Anna's sister Esther - Missionary to Africa

[snickerz]

Esther - the sister who was afraid of the Japanese radiation - is taking her family (7 kids under the age of 10) to Zambia to be missionaries. PLEASE start a blog, Esther! If the radiation could affect your electrolytes all the way in Oregon, how will you keep your babies safe from the wild animals and savages in Africa?!? Maybe TLC can send Josh & Anna to Africa to help bomb some natives with Bibles? I might actually watch that episode!

From Facebook

Esther Shrader For many months now my sweet husband has been scrolling away the spiff money he earned to take me on an Alaskan cruse in celebration of our 10 wonderful years of marriage! We planed on going this spring. But in the last few months God has been doing some incredible things in our lives! I will be going on a special trip with my Sweetheart this spring, it will just be a little farther than Alaska, we are going to Zambia Africa on a survey trip! Yes! God has called our family to be missionaries for Him in Zambia! We are ALL so excited, and humbled that God would call us to serve Him in this way! We will be going as a team with another family! Before we evan knew God was calling us, people in our church could see what God was doing! God has already provided a Pastor for His little flock! A man that has had a strong burden for this area for over 5 years! God is so very good! How comforting it is to have our lives in the hands of The One who knows the end from the beginning, the one who gives grace for today, and will be faithful to give grace for tomorrow, our Precious Redeemer Savior and King!

Saturday at 1:12am ·

[Sola]

I read that has SPLIFF money, and thought, "whoa, he deals weed?"

[Visionoyahweh]

Good Luck Esther!

Africa is gonna chew gothardism to shreds.

[xDreamerx]

So her husband drag everyone to Africa because he's too cheap to spring for the cruise? That's what I'm getting from this. It's in god wrapper but it's there.

[freealljs]

So her husband drag everyone to Africa because he's too cheap to spring for the cruise? That's what I'm getting from this. It's in god wrapper but it's there.

Flying to Africa can be quite expensive. A ticket to South Africa is about $1200 roundtrip. A roundtrip ticket to Zambia is around $1500 (I know it's about $1800 now, because it's the summer there). Esther's husband would save more money on the cruise. I hope that they learn a few things if they go to Zambia. It's a beautiful country.

edited for bad grammar

[snickerz]

I don't think they'll be using much of their own money (I don't think they HAVE much of their own money, despite "scrolling away his spiff money" WTF.) One of those missionary organizations must be funding this. A year or 2 ago God miraculously provided housing for them! (a trailer in the middle of nowhere - because they apparently couldn't have afforded housing on their own.) Christmas 2010 God miraculously provided a turkey for them! (Because apparently they couldn't have afforded one on their own.) Around the same time God miraculously provided a job for them! (car salesman job, same as Joshie & Daniel) So they've only had a dependable income for a year, not exactly much time to save for a family vacation trip to Africa. It will probably be "tight" for them just to squeak out enough to get everybody passports & whatever shots are necessary.

[ilovetchotchkes]

Flying to Africa can be quite expensive. A ticket to South Africa is about $1200 roundtrip. A roundtrip ticket to Zambia is around $1500 (I know it's about $1800 now, because it's the summer there). Esther's husband would save more money on the cruise. I hope that they learn a few things if they go to Zambia. It's a beautiful country.

edited for bad grammar

My parents went to Cameroon over Christmas it was about $2000 per ticket. (They were going for a friends' wedding).

[lilwriter85]

Yup tickets to Africa are really expensive. My cousin and her boyfriend went on a vacation to Egypt and they said there tickets were close to $2,000. I was also thinking the same thing snickerz said about a missionary organzation funding this for Esther and her family.

[Jessica]

Why do I picture her ending up like poor Janey Lockwood?

[NurseNell]

Is this just a short term mission or are they going to be living there?

[Eclipse]

My best friend in high school went to Zambia after we graduated. I can't imagine Esther going there and experiencing the roads, public buses, people and food. They are going to be shocked. I've met many people from Zambia who have come to North America to fundraise for different Zambian causes and none of them would buy what Gothard tries to sell. I would donate money to keep these "missionaries" away from the people of Zambia.

Does anyone know how long they are going to be gone?

[xReems]

She hasn't said for how long but it bothers me that they're going to another country as "missionaries"--Gothard's way of spreading Jesus to those who have differing views other than Christianity and bring them to the "right" religion.

[xDreamerx]

Yup tickets to Africa are really expensive. My cousin and her boyfriend went on a vacation to Egypt and they said there tickets were close to $2,000. I was also thinking the same thing snickerz said about a missionary organization funding this for Esther and her family.

I didn't realize it was so expensive. I wouldn't have thought it would be since I don't picture Africa as a vacation hotspot.

[Arete]

These A-hole Gothardites don't even realize that there are a LOT of Christians in Africa. And some of them have been Christians since not long after the apostles debated on whether in would be a good idea or not to take the message of Jesus outside the walls of Jerusalem. Can't stand this patronizing, sheep stealing, colonialist nonsense. :violence-stickwhack:

[fluttershies]

These A-hole Gothardites don't even realize that there are a LOT of Christians in Africa. And some of them have been Christians since not long after the apostles debated on whether in would be a good idea or not to take the message of Jesus outside the walls of Jerusalem. Can't stand this patronizing, sheep stealing, colonialist nonsense. :violence-stickwhack:

Exactly - Ethiopia's been Christian way before Amurrca was. A lot of evangelical churches in the UK have plenty of Africans attending.

[marmalade]

Is Esther still a Goat-herd? I thought I remember seeing Dougie touted on either her or her husband's FB. Not that Billy Boy has embraced social media, and I guess you can follow both (not sure how different they are doctrinally), so I guess they could follow both.

But Gothard doesn't have any African missions, does he? Sounds like another organization (whom I agree is paying for at least a portion of the plane fare).

[prayercloseted]

Holy comma-splice, Batman! Was that 12 of 13 sentences ending with exclamation marks? Not quite eleventy, but Rebecca K would still be all over this.

How does one "scroll away" money? Does this involve wrapping it in a length of parchment? Surely she means "squirrel away"?

What exactly is a survey trip? Is this of shorter duration than a permanent missionary posting?

[SpeshulTaterTot]

Exactly - Ethiopia's been Christian way before Amurrca was. A lot of evangelical churches in the UK have plenty of Africans attending.

I was just going to point that out, too. Many Ethiopians consider their country the real cradle of Christianity. There's an African church not far from me, I'd pay to see someone like the PP or Mr. Duggar trying to tell them they're not real Christians because they dance during their services.

[fundifugee]

Ummm, do they know Zambia is already over 90% Christian?

I smell the New White Man's Burden: poor white trash Americans going to Someplace Fashionably Brown with their fundraised missionary money, to enjoy the good life because they can get servants for $80/month to scrub their floors, cook their food, wash their clothes, and weed their fowerbeds. All the while they will be sending updates about misguided heathens and their horrible satanistic practices, the trials of living somewhere with occasional power and internet outages and different traffic patterns, and how the Lord protected them from various scary incidents that are largely caused by the fact that they are living like feudal overlords in a country where the majority is desperately poor.

:angry-cussingblack:

I could write pages on the jerks I've met who strut around in their palatial mansions with no idea how their maids and gardeners live. If these folks are willing to live on the wage of an average Zambian, in similar living conditions, then I might be interested in what they have to say afterward. Meanwhile, I hope Zambians hold them to a similar standard.

[Kitty]

What do you want to bet that they'll come back to the US one day with a "little brown bear" or two? :evil:

[NurseNell]

I could write pages on the jerks I've met who strut around in their palatial mansions with no idea how their maids and gardeners live. If these folks are willing to live on the wage of an average Zambian, in similar living conditions, then I might be interested in what they have to say afterward. Meanwhile, I hope Zambians hold them to a similar standard.

I haven't known a missionary who lived in anything that could even remotely be considered a mansion. My friend Carol lived in Pakistan until she went to college. Her mother was a nurse there for 40 years. They lived very simply, wore hand me downs sent by churches in MN, and never had a maid or gardener. Now American and European CEOs, diplomats, etc had a much different standard of living but not missionaries.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

I lived in Malawi....poor Zambia.......just what they need more Missionaries with no useful skills. Now if they were doctors or nurses or something....Wait till a child of hers has malaria the first time.....

[slickcat79]

God has already provided a Pastor for His little flock! A man that has had a strong burden for this area for over 5 years!

What...does that mean? A strong burden for the area? I don't understand :?

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Why do I picture her ending up like poor Janey Lockwood?

Outside of Lusaka and maybe a couple of other places the only way they'd be living as well as the Lockwoods would be if they bring in electricity, drill the well, build the house and import the appliances. Hope she likes 4 door pickup trucks with cap on the back for family transportation--if they can pay for the gas! If they are going I hope it's with a well established Missionary Society or denomination that will help support them.

[tkr322]

We have family friends living in Zambia right now. (no they are not there for religious purposes) They live in a mud hut and from reading their blog they live a VERY primitive life. I could not imagine at all bringing kids into that situation. They have said it takes at least 3 hours to make their dinner every night over a fire. They have to kill their own chickens, etc. I hope Esther knows what she's in for!