Pictures 6/28/07

Below you can see additional pictures that I could not include in the Prayer Update e-mails.

 

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The Mongolian flag.

 

Erin's mother (right) and twin sister Emily (left) made the trip to

Mongolia for Erin and Emily's birthday in May.

 

I don't usually like to take pictures of idols, but this was one thing

that I remember seeing for the first time in Mongolia. This huge

idol (reminding me of Nebuchadnezzar's golden image) was just

erected a year or two ago near a mountain we like to climb.

 

Our CTI staff was graciously invited to the home of one family from

church. We enjoyed some traditional food and good fellowship together.

 

Posing for a picture outside the home. Shipping containers are often

used for more secure storage or garages for vehicles.

 

We had the opportunity to share a session for a Korean mission

conference several weeks ago. I was surprised to see many Korean

people that we knew from various churches and ministries here.

 

A gas station near our building. All of the gas stations here are full

service, with an attendant to run the pump and receive the money.

Most people only put a few dollars in the tank at a time, so it is

very unusual to see a gas tank gauge more than 1/4 full.

 

The Basic Seminar was a major focus of our energy in the month of

April.

 

While the adults watched the video sessions, the children enjoyed

a full program of lessons and activities designed to present the

same basic principles of life.

 

Small group sessions gave the teams more opportunity to interact,

and for the leaders to share testimonies and illustrations from their

own lives.

 

A boy studies the picture of the Wood Duck after

learning about obedience and how God works

through the authorities He has put in our lives.

 

On one day the leaders took the children outside for some exercise

and fresh air. The children would spend over 30 hours learning

together through the week.

 

In the background you can see a ger district like many that surround

the city. I recall hearing that three-quarters of the population of

Ulaanbaatar live in dwellings like this without running water.

 

On top of a mountain, the group posed for a picture.

 

Helping us with the seminars was a group of Koreans that came to

visit the work in Mongolia. They were very gracious and we enjoyed

our time together very much.

 

One man had a birthday that week, so we presented him with a cake

and various ones sang "Happy Birthday" in four languages.

 

Tumerhoig, pictured with David, came in from the countryside to help

with the Children's Seminar. A radiant young man, Tumorhoig works

with the Warners, a missionary family in the countryside. As the only

known Christian in the town where he lives, Tumorhoig faces much

ridicule for embracing this so-called "foreign religion."

 

It was a real blessing to see the whole-hearted involvement of the

Mongolian young people from several local churches. The training they

received at the Children's Seminar had a great impact on their lives,

and many are currently involved in weekly children's programs where

they continue to grow in the skill of communicating Biblical truths to

children.

 

A man stops to buy a newspaper from a street vendor. The lady is

wearing a traditional Mongolian del and boots. Many common

scenes here are very similar to what you might see in Russia.

 

Sarah joined the Randalls and some friends for a little jaunt outside

the city.

 

Since they couldn't get a taxi for the ride back...

-No, actually they were just enjoying a little camel ride. Things like

this are usually at a low cost, unless the handler has been around

too many tourists.

 

"UB Auto Parts, Inc." Actually, this is a section of a large open

market where you can pick up an engine or a few car parts on your

way home from shopping.

 

Teaching on the character quality of virtue at the Batbaigal bakery.

The food coloring and cotton ball illustrate the need to not be

contaminated by the evil that happens around us in the world.

 

Samuel and Sarah took on the project of putting new upholstery on

one of the aging couches in our apartment.

 

It was a great learning experience for them, and the result was fantastic.

 

Chingis teaching at a character training.

 

The man in the top right corner of the picture came to Christ through

a character training, and after attending more trainings, he is now

teaching character at a high school where he works.

 

Our CTI staff in May.

Back: Mr. Waller, Adam, Chingis, Kate, Sarah, Melody, Zola.

Middle: Hei Jin (visiting from Korea), Puje, Emily, Mrs. Randall,

Bolorma, Erin, Mrs. Waller.

Front: Rachelle, Lydia, Rebecca, Matthew, Samuel, David.

 

Our Character-English classes can vary greatly in size, and in this

case only one student wanted to place herself in the "beginner" class.

Whether many or a few, we try to make it a good learning experience

for each one.

 

Yes, even a Land Cruiser can get stuck trying to cross these piles

of dirt. (He was trying to avoid traffic by taking a shortcut through

a dry riverbed.)

 

Before leaving Mongolia, Melody had requested an opportunity to

climb "Script Hill". (So named by us because of the vertical script

written on the side with hundreds of small white stones.)

 

A favorite mountain of ours to climb, it is higher than the typical tourist

attraction on a nearby mountain, but not to difficult for Matthew or

the others to climb.

 

This rock brought back special memories of climbing this mountain

with Isaac two years ago.

 

The happy climbers at the top of "Script Hill."

 

David and I try a "special effects" shot...

 

We held a Teacher Training Class in May, where we trained about

sixty teachers how they can teach character to others.

 

It was an attentive group, and we enjoyed some good discussion in

our small group times.

 

Adam looks over his notes a few minutes before going up to teach.

 

We usually rotate teachers in longer trainings to keep things

moving and interesting for the listeners. This Teacher Training Class

included six hours of instruction on character and teaching methods.

 

David and I discuss some logistical details for the training. It is such

a blessing to be able to work with your brothers and sisters.

 

A group picture. We were all very encouraged by the large turnout

for this Teacher Training Class. Many of these are Christians that

will go out to the countryside this summer as teachers.

 

Dad has not played the guitar for many years, but in Mongolia he had

the opportunity to take some lessons from a Korean teacher that

we know from the Mongolian International University.

 

A garbage truck comes to empty out the trash container. These old

Russian trucks are very common here, and sometimes you see

the driver with a hand crank, trying to start the engine.

 

 

My parents worked out an opportunity one day for my whole family

to go outside the city for a picnic. Here we were waiting for the bus.

 

Even at the end of May, the landscape is pretty barren out here.

 

It was a bit chilly, with a good breeze blowing, so we all worked together

to block the wind so we could start the campfire.

 

Matthew tests the water to see how cold it really is.

 

David enjoys taking the younger ones on hikes.

 

David puts the "foil dinners" on the fire. These are comprised of meat,

potatoes, carrots, and onions, wrapped in foil and cooked over hot

coals.

 

The food turned out well, and it was nice to have a hot meal on a

cool day.

 

The river was shallow enough to wade across, if you could stand the

cold water and not slip on the rocks.  :-)

 

Rachelle decided not to cross the river, so she had

fun climbing a tree instead.

 

Matthew, the youngest of the smaller Wallers, is

now nine years old.

 

Our microbus driver didn't return, so we walked back to the road.

 

In Mongolia, this is how you flag down a taxi. Actually our prearranged

microbus driver came before the yellow bus did, so we had a nice

ride back to our apartment in Ulaanbaatar.

 

At the Teacher Training Class, it was a team effort, from the oldest

to the youngest. Here we served lunch for the attendees of the course.

 

The testimony of a whole family serving together probably has a far

greater impact than we realize.

 

Tsolmon, a translator at a nearby Bible School, decided to attend the

Basic Seminar in April. Her life was greatly impacted, and she has

been our most faithful participant to the Follow-Up Course that our

family is hosting. Here we are showing her how to do word studies

from a passage of Scripture.

 

Several from our family pose with the Champanhet family who had

flown from Shanghai to see the Basic Seminar in Mongolia. It was

a great encouragement to see their faith and desire to follow the Lord.

 

This spring a number of forest fires around Ulaanbaatar blanketed the

city in smoke. This picture was taken in "broad daylight", but we could

not even see the mountains on the other side of the city.

 

This is a more typical view, seen a week or two later from the same

window.

 

Our pastor invited the CTI young people to join the "middle-aged group"

(ages 25-40) for a retreat outside the city. Our training schedule did

not allow us to take part in the whole weekend, but we joined them

for Friday afternoon.

 

It was a blessing to be able to interact on a different level than how

the church people usually see us. Most of these people had probably

never seen me without a tie on.  :-)

 

Pastor Ideree finds a good spot to take pictures with his camera.

 

You see a different side of people when you play a good game of

volleyball together.

 

Rachelle has an opportunity to serve...  ;-)

 

Whether teaching at a training, or playing a

game of volleyball, we like to put our whole heart

into the task at hand.

 

Watching the ball...

 

The retreat also gave some good opportunities to talk with various

people from our church.

 

With Tim away in Korea, David assumed the responsibility of finishing

the character course semester at the Mongolian International University.

 

We went out to a riverside for a Memorial Day picnic together one

Saturday. Friday had beautiful weather, but it was forecasted to be

cold, windy and rain all day on Saturday. We decided to go anyway,

and I spent the first hour building a lean-to shelter in case it started

raining hard.

 

But we had brought warm clothes and tarps, just in case.

 

Huddled in our makeshift shelter, we enjoyed some warm pasties.

(We couldn't build a fire because of a current burning ban.)

 

But the cold and occasional light rain didn't stop us from having

a fun time together.  :-)

 

A flock of sheep and goats wandered over. They loved eating the

green leaves from the bushes and trees.

 

If you pulled down a branch for them, the almost trampled each other

trying to get a mouthful of something green.

 

Coming from a farm in Wisconsin, the smaller Wallers were happy

to be around animals again.

 

Hattie, a Chinese friend of ours, found this goat particularly friendly.

 

Samuel worked to build his own little shelter.

 

With a little squeeze, the four youngest could fit inside.

 

Remembering our earlier outing, Mom wasn't going to take the risk

of getting cold.

 

Stringing our net between a couple trees, we enjoyed a few games

of volleyball together.

 

While Mom kept an eye on our bags.

 

This goat seemed especially curious about digital cameras.

 

We have continued trainings at the Batbaigal bakery.

 

This is one of my favorite trainings, and it is exciting

to see how the people are applying the principles that

we study together.

 

Their primary focus is cake decorating, although they

are now making a number of other foods and dainties.

 

They have expanded to now having seven branches and distribution

centers. It is really neat to see how God has blessed this company

as they apply principles of character.

 

Hope you enjoyed the pictures!! 

 

 

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