Now the Real Work Begins ...

As soon as school was out last Friday, the Magruders hit the road for our first African vacation. We drove to Kribi, with our friends, the Boyd family, for an extended weekend at the beach.

Jeff and Christy Boyd are missionaries with the Presbyterian Church, and have lived in Yaounde for four of the past five years. They invited us to stay with them at a Presbyterian retreat center that is located on the coast. We had a wonderful time with them and their three kids -- Matthias, Salome, and Naomi.

The beach is a respite for our family. Ever since we’ve been married, Leah and I have felt a particular pull to the ocean. We’ve lived in Venice Beach, California, vacationed at Crystal Beach on the Gulf of Mexico for several years in a row, and now have found a new refuge at the alluring coastal town of Kribi.

We returned to Yaounde on Tuesday, just in time for a ceremony at the Mission Office on Wednesday morning. At that ceremony, Bill Warnock officially handed over the directorship of the mission to me. In a lovely symbolic gesture, he handed me a lit candle, signifying that he was “passing the light” to me.

And just like that … the true work begins.