Tot so fer!

Dear Friends,

Our good Dutch friend, Wessel, speaks impeccable English.  So we have to work hard to find imperfections to keep him humble.  You can imagine our chagrin, then, when we realized, during our recent trip with him to Holland, that a few of his funny Dutch expressions had worked their way into our speech patterns!  “Till so far,” we found ourselves saying, when English speakers would say “Up till now” or “Until now.”  And, as we struggled to learn a few Dutch phrases, we learned why:  it’s a direct translation of the very workable Dutch phrase “Tot zover” (which we choose to spell “tot so fer”).

 “Tot so fer”, sums up what we want to say in this newsletter.  “Till so far,” we have seen God opening up doors for the new work He has for us in Thailand.  “Tot so fer,” he has provided us with the funding and personnel.  “Up till now,” His grace has been there for us through each phase of our lives and we’re learning how important it is to wait for his timing.  Though there are still many pieces to the picture that need to come together, we are excited about what has happened “till so far.”   

Neil & Liz sorted.  

One of those was the joy of seeing Neil Peterson and Liz Stewart, both good friends of ours, married in Brighton, England.  Neil, you might remember, was the Covenant short-termer who shared our home for two years--and our exodus from Laos.  Liz was Ruthie’s great partner in tea and prayer.  Since Ruthie and I played a bit part in the early stages of their relationship, we were asked to share a few words at their reception.  As we arrived in the south of England, we were all concerned for Liz’s health.  She had experienced on-going symptoms from an unexpected health problem.  But thankfully, Liz was in good health when the day arrived--and the wedding a testimony to God’s grace.  It was a blessing to see these two surrounded and upheld by the love of their immediate families—and so many friends from their church families. 

Of course one of the things we enjoy most about visits to the UK is to hear a different version of our English language.  Our bags were likely to have shifted in the “luggage locker”, we were warned as we prepared to step off the plane.  Then, in the busy days leading up to the wedding, countless details needed to “be sorted”—and we did what we could to help.  Fortunately, however, the notorious English weather was “lovely” and a “brilliant” time was had by all.   

Life at the bottom of the sea.  

Leaving the wedding, we drove north to visit other friends from Laos who had gone through similar trauma of having their work prematurely closed down by the government.  Comparing notes, bearing each other’s burdens, praying together, we realized again that friendships forged in crisis have a special quality to them.

The next day, Wessel led us to the bottom of the English Channel, as our little Citroen “rode the neck” (as we would say in Lao) of a train through the “Chunnel” into France, Belgium and Holland.  The remainder of the week we learned it’s possible to grow potatoes, sugar beets, and wheat at the bottom of the sea—if you’ve conveniently built a wall and pumped out the sea, as the Dutch have done in these polder.   Another observation.  We saw that it is possible to build a country for the bicycle—not the automobile, as we’ve done in the U.S.  We wondered:  Is this our future, with $4 gasoline and no relief in sight?

Besides visits to picturesque villages with reed-roofed bungalows and drawbridges by the millions, we also managed an informative visit to a Dutch company which manufactures food-processing factories.  Best of all, however, was meeting Wessel’s family and friends who have faithfully prayed for and supported the work in Laos.  As we prayed and strategized for the future, these friends and contacts were important connections. 

Though rare, there were times when conversations were totally in Dutch—and Ruthie and I competed to infer the meaning from a word here, a word there.  After an unbroken string of “wins”, Ruthie smugly pointed to a sign in front of a church which announced, she informed me, that “Juli and Augustus were to be married that coming Saturday.”  In fact, the church had invited the public to join in hymn singing every afternoon, for the months of July and August.  I was so delighted with my victory,  I insisted Ruthie stand beside the sign for a memorial photo.             

U.S. Odyssey.  

Before our hop across the Atlantic, we had the privilege of arranging our own little odyssey—in our Honda van--around the U.S.  For two weeks we traveled to Massachusetts, New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, and Pomeroy!  In turns, we were joined by Wessel, Neil, and Nate and Jessica (Nate and Jessica Sperry are a young couple praying about missionary service).  Again, combining sight-seeing, discussion, and prayer, we sought together God’s will for each of us. 

The Illinois-Iowa part of our journey took us to Neil’s home church in Pomeroy, Iowa—and several soy bean processing companies in the Des Moines area.  Natural Products, Inc., a leading producer of niche soy products for the bakery industry, was one.   As we have talked about how we can do more value-adding to corn and soy bean crops grown by farmers in Laos and Thailand, this company, founded and managed by Christians,  has been extremely helpful with technical advice and inspiration.   

Now it appears certain that their Lao subsidiary, a company with whom we worked closely in FUF, will also be forced to close at the end of the year.  With our networks of farmers in Laos and proven markets in the international aid community, we see an opportunity for a company which will not only be economically viable from the start, but also be able to continue the work of bringing agricultural development to the area. 

So, we have offered to purchase the factory and equipment owned by these friends—and plan to move the factory across the border into Thailand where the political climate is more ‘business-friendly’.  This job, we hope can be completed by the middle of 2009, enabling us to continue supplying orders for locally-made corn-soy blend to international aid organizations.  Value-adding to agricultural crops by processing them into finished products, we feel, is a last critical link that will enable us to continue creating sustainable livelihoods for villagers in the area.  

We’ve prayed much over these plans and have sought the counsel of friends and associates in our work.  Will you pray that God will continue to direct and bless this work—and that He would supply everything we need to make them a reality? 

As Always,

Peter and Ruthie Dutton

“I always pray with joy because of your partnership.” (Phil. 1:4)

Throughout our years in Laos—especially these past 3 years, some of our most difficult so far—we’ve had a strong sense that we aren’t alone in this work.  We’ve been privileged to have a great team with which to work and many of you have written to encourage us, to say you’ve been praying, and to give what you can.  As we begin a new phase of our work—this time in Thailand--here are a few ways you can have a part in this project:    

 

By Praying

§  POLITICAL SITUATION IN THAILAND.  News from Thailand has not been good lately.  A faction in Thai politics is trying to topple a democratically-elected government.  Friends on the ground, however, say the disturbance is almost exclusively in Bangkok.  Please pray this situation will be resolved quickly. 

§  MEKONG VALLEY CO.  We are in the final stages of discussions to buy factory equipment which we plan to move from Laos to Thailand.  Please pray these discussions will come to a conclusion soon.        

§  PRAY FOR FRIENDS BACK IN LAOS.  We’ve recently had very encouraging word from friends who have bought FUF and are trying to carry on the work.  Keep praying for their safety and relationships with authorities.

 

By Giving

Thank you so much for giving faithfully.  Even in these times of extreme economic difficulty, our prayer is that “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” (II Cor. 9:11).  Here are a few needs we have in the project:

§  A NEW CAR.  We left our beat up old Toyota in Laos and need something to get around in for our work in Thailand.  So far about $7,000 has come in.  Estimated need:  $20,000. 

 

Checks for our support or projects may be sent to:  DWM, 5101 N. Francisco Ave., Chicago, IL 60625.  Please put a note on the checks—“Dutton Project” or “Dutton Support”.