Samuel & Elizabeth Simonyi-Gindele
Rua Morgado de Covas, N. 2 1-Dt,
Sto. Ant. dos Cavaleiros, Portugal, 2660-249
E-mail: sg@chameleonsolutions.ca

Many of you in past have received a letter or e-mail from us requesting prayer for one matter or another and so, in the interest of soliciting your continued, active and accurate prayer, we want to let you know how God has answered prayer and how things are going presently.

We have been in Portugal for one year. That time has been largely spent in full-time study of Portuguese. We have found it a challenging process, but a time where God has proved His faithfulness to us. We are now getting to the end of our studies with a forecasted conclusion in May. I am not sure that we will ever reach the point where we are satisfied with our fluency, but we have an excellent teacher who has skillfully guided us through acquiring her mother tongue and learning much about her culture.

Our children have done well in their time here. In the beginning, our routine was very strict with homeschooling every day, a walk to the park to use up energy, and an outing most Saturdays to help prevent cabin fever from the seven of us living in a very small apartment. The older boys felt the loneliness of leaving friends and the familiar atmosphere of Canada more than the younger ones, but were able to express their hearts and when they were becoming weary of our repetitive routine, the way opened up so they could attend school here, from September onwards. They have now been attending an English-speaking Christian school run primarily for missionary kids. It has been an excellent experience with very challenging academics, the opportunity to be with peers, and, perhaps most importantly, a new and very positive atmosphere to spend time in. Seth and Abigail go to a small primary Portuguese Christian school with hope that they will acquire the language there. They are enjoying it very much and it has given Elizabeth and me some contacts with Portuguese Christians which are rare here where evangelical Christians account for less than one-percent of the population. This month our oldest, Zachary, turned thirteen, and our youngest, Abigail, is turning four, so they are growing quickly.

The experience of living in Portugal has been invaluable for language learning as it is total immersion, with few people outside of the tourist areas having much knowledge of English. Having spent time in Angola, it is interesting to see how many similarities there are between the two countries and note the influence Portugal has had on Angolan culture. There is a lot of bureaucracy here, flamboyant driving, especially on motorcycles, and a reserve with foreigners, and similar types of open markets. Even in the big supermarkets, most parts of an animal are sold, (think pig feet and ears) and most animals (from snails and octopus to entire baby pigs and rabbits, all in one piece!) Many people have a love for the land, with large gardens and small farms everywhere. Seeing castles that were built by the Moors, more than eight-hundred years ago, has been fascinating, and the large plaza where many faithful believers died in the Inquisition, has made history come alive for us.

When we think about prayer that God has answered, we are reminded of the burden of waiting for our house to sell in Fredericton, NB, wondering what would happen with such a flat market. Then, with expensive insurance needing renewal in a few days, an offer came in and the sale went through in record time, strengthening our faith in God's timing. We are thankful for the many Christians in Fredericton who gave of their time and effort in keeping the house clean, the driveway cleared of snow, and our mail forwarded.

There are those who have encouraged us by making a point of staying in touch regularly and we are so thankful and blessed by these faithful fellow-labourers. There have been times we have felt lonely here but have been blessed by getting to know other missionaries who already live here or who are learning Portuguese as well, with a view to moving on to other countries. We are excited about the prospect of welcoming Joel and Kaleigh Griffin (Fredericton) to Portugal as they come to study Portuguese before going on to Angola. This is their first time living in a foreign country and learning a new language so please pray for them and their two young daughters, Elysia and Svea.

Among the many prayers that God has answered in these last months is the question of how to go about applying for an Angolan visa. Fourteen months ago, when I made application for a visitor's visa to Angola, of thirty days, it was an arduous process involving multiple phone calls, much uncertainty, and finally a flight to the Angolan Embassy in Ottawa in the hopes that the visa would be granted six hours before my next flight was scheduled to take me to the U.K. and on to Angola.

Now that we are applying for visas to live in Angola as a family, the process enters a whole new paradigm of ambiguity and challenge. However, we met a missionary pilot here who works for Missionary Aviation Fellowship (MAF) Canada and he put me in contact with the lady in their organization who handles all visa applications. She readily agreed to guide us through the process and has spent hours on the phone for us, even visiting the embassy and has given us clear guidelines to follow. We have spent many hours translating my CV into Portuguese, writing various declarations (such as that we will obey Angolan law), getting medical reports, X-rays, blood work, fingerprints, criminal record checks, reference letters, and on it goes. Many of the documents have to be notarized by a lawyer, then verified by Canadian Foreign Affairs, before going on to an "official" Portuguese translator. Our contact in Canada is well known and respected by the staff in the Angolan embassy and that relationship is critical and often can make the difference in how quickly an application is accepted and processed. We are not certain of the timing as it may take from three months to two years. Once the visas are issued, there is a sixty-day window of time in which we need to travel so please pray about the timing.

Another matter for prayer is where God will have us, once we get to Angola. At this point, depending on further guidance from the Lord, we are planning to spend some weeks in the Saurimo area near Ruth Hadley (U.K. missionary), getting ourselves sorted out. Hopefully at that point the vehicle we have ordered should be imported, licensed, and ready for use. It will be a vital and useful tool. Ruth Hadley, with the help of the Singletons (U.K.), have done a remarkable job restoring some homes on the old mission in Biula which is one of the places we are praying about. Biula is central to a number of rural local churches and associated medical clinics where I could be a help. We still have a burden for the Luvale people who are further southeast in the Cazombo area, closer to the Zambian border. It is also in that area where many of my trips into Angola, from Zambia, were made, and where a dear Zambian friend and fellow missionary lives and works, Mutondo Masaha. He continues running a medical clinic that we worked at together and, with men from the local church there, making trips deep into areas that are unreached with the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We are due to go out to pick up Joel and Kaleigh from the airport and are so thankful for your interest and would continue to value your prayers that the Lord will accomplish His will in our lives.