Steel Rod + Cameron's Head = A Tetanus Shot

Sometimes accidents just happen and, a few weeks ago, I had a run in with such an incident. I was on work detail and we were digging holes for a fence to surround a rock wall. What you have to know about Missouri ground is that it's a compilation of rocks and clay mixed with just a hint of some sort of foreign substance that other States call "dirt". We were using post-diggers, shovels and 45lb steel rods to break up the dirt and make the holes for the fence posts.

Well, about three hours into the work, I jumped into the hole to dislodge some rocks with my hands and remove them. The next thing I knew I felt a sharp pang hit the back of my head and I jumped back reflexively. Stunned slightly and unsure of what just happened, I shook my head to clear away the throbbing feeling still stinging the back of my head. I was about to go back to moving the rocks when one of my teammates alarmingly said I was bleeding. I moved my hand to the back of my head and felt wetness. I brought it to the front of my face and was shocked to see it covered in blood.

My work detail leader and I quickly jumped into the truck and drove over to the main building across the lake to get some help. He radioed a fellow leader and asked him to come and bring the med kit and they also called the on-campus medic who, prior to enrolling in the training, was a paramedic. At this point, my head is just covered in blood because, as we all know, the head loves to bleed and has trouble clotting. Everyone cleaned me up, washed off most of the blood and got the wound to stop bleeding. Because the gouge was so deep, and it had been more than five years since my last tetanus, we made a trip to the health department to get a shot.


Of course, it was 4:30pm by this time because things usually happen on the weekend or after hours. Thankfully it was a Tuesday but we were cutting it close on time. We found out that, typically, the health department stops giving injections by 3pm unless they have a licensed personnel who can administer the shot. Thankfully, they did and I was able to get a tetanus! Good thing, too because I had thought my last tetanus was just before high school in 2006 but really it was in 1996 - almost two decades ago and way past the ten-year mark.

When I got home, I took a shower to really wash off the blood but that caused the wound to open again and start bleeding. After holding a paper towel to my head for over ten minutes and it still bleeding, Caitlin devised this makeshift bandage also known as a headband to wrap under my chin and hold the paper towel in place. It worked and I was able to comfortably eat the Macaroni and Cheese Caitlin made which is true comfort food.

It was an exciting day on work detail and quite memorable to say the least! Later, I learned what had fallen and hit me in the back of the head. One of those 45lb steel rods was accidentally knocked over and collided with my head. I can now literally say that I've spent both my sweat and blood while working on the Missionary Training Center grounds. However, let it be known that there were no tears! Honestly, it hardly hurt at all and startled me more than anything. But it makes for a good story! Plus, I got out of the way one of the many vaccines we'll need before going overseas and the best part about it was that it was FREE! Sometimes the Lord provides through suffering.

Thank you for your many prayers and support!

United in Christ,

Cameron and Caitlin

If you are interested in partnering with us financially, please check out the Support tab at the top of the page and don't forget to take a look at our Etsy store Created Concoctions for handmade items for you and your loved ones.

Digging and Drawing - A Fun Work Detail Update

We realized that we haven't written about our work details since September...of last year! So this is long overdue. For those who may not remember what work detail is, it's a program to keep the cost of tuition as low as possible. Rather than having to hire out people to mow the lawns, clean the buildings, work in the secretary office, and so on, these various jobs are divided among the student body and we put in 7.5hrs a week to keep the campus functioning and looking good.

For the first two semesters, Cameron was a part of the Carpentry Team and I was placed as a secretary for the Ministry Practicum. (Just a reminder that "Ministry Practicum" in a department here at the Missionary Training Center which oversees the various ministries in which students are involved.) This semester, while I am still a part of Ministry Practicum, Cameron has moved over to Grounds Crew.

Cameron has had several adventures on Grounds. He's moved rocks inside the tunnels of the drainage system, mowed lawns, moved rocks, mowed lawns, moved rocks, and mowed lawns. Yes, most of his afternoons consist of either moving rocks and mowing lawns but there has been some pretty fun times in between including digging BIG holes with a backhoe! He was soooo excited to get to try his hand in operating this piece of machinery and, thankfully, had his phone on him so he could document!

Yet it's not always fun and digging with big toys. One day he had to remove a drainage cover and what greeted him but dozens upon dozens of camel crickets! These are truly nasty insects. I tried editing the picture so you can see them climbing up the sides of the hold toward Cameron. Because you can't fully appreciate just how creepy they are in our photo, we've including this close-up thanks to some brave soul who posted in on the internet. Ewww.

Meanwhile, my work detail in the Ministry Practicum has no giant crickets involved! So far this semester, the primary focus of my office has been gearing up for the new students to choose their community outreach teams. This would include setting up two mornings for the various teams to share about their ministry and needs in front of the new class. The presentations spanned over the mornings of Friday and Monday so, on Sunday, Cameron and I went into the chapel and decided we would decorate the white board! We listed all the ministries and added illustrations to make them interesting. I proudly did the stick figures for the youth group and the lighthouse while Cameron did all the rest which is why it turned out so awesome! This means that we literally spent an hour drawing and coloring! Work, work, work. I assure you that I actually do work in the office but this was definitely a highlight to my work detail!

We hope you enjoyed reading about our tales of digging and drawing! Thank you for your prayers!

United in Christ,

Caitlin and Cameron

We invite you to prayerfully consider partnering with us through regular monthly support or a special gift, as we prepare and train to go and share the Gospel with those who have never heard. When designating which missionary you are supporting, indicate: Cameron Neace Account #900458

Teaching Considerations

Today we finished up our Teaching Considerations class which focused on the importance of understanding the tribal context in which we will be ministering in one day. Often times, we may be tempted to pour all our efforts into the content and neglect the context yet both are equally important when teaching God's Word! We do not want to do anything that would cause an unnecessary barrier for a tribal group to hear God's message and, considering the context, can help us to avoid creating such stumbling blocks. For instance, if a tribal group is used to men sitting on one side and women on the other, forcing them to mix may cause uneasiness and distractions. Or teaching in the morning when they are accustomed to having meetings in the evening or vice versa. Or beginning the teaching during their harvest time (if they are an agricultural society) which would be their busiest time of the year so their minds will be on their gardens rather than on the message. There are countless other considerations that we must take into account but these are just a few to give you an idea of the various topics we were discussing in class.

We talked about a variety of topics including such contextualization which is changing the form of the message so that it is understandable to the people but not tampering with the truth. Also enculturation or how knowledge is passed on to others. Along with various stratification in societies like caste, clan, age, class, and others. There were other related topics but these were some of the highlights. For the final exam, we watched a segment from a video documentary that highlighted a tribe along the Amazon in South America and had to identify cultural contexts and the corresponding teaching consideration. For example, that particular tribe believed they were descended from monkeys. Thus, monkeys are an important part of their lives, are kept as pets, and are with them throughout their daily activities. Therefore, it would be a teaching consideration to recognize that there will most likely be monkeys present during the Bible teaching which has the potential of causing quite a distraction!

Today we also started the follow-up class to Teaching Considerations called Curriculum Development which focuses on the content. During this class we will even have the opportunity to create a lesson that takes into account both the context and the content for the same tribe we "visited" in Papua New Guinea which we wrote about in "A Visit to Papua New Guinea." That should be a really neat experience.

As a final thought, we want to leave you with this statement from one of our teachers today, "Nothing is worse than teaching a life-giving lesson in a lifeless way." Something to ponder.

Thank you all for your support and prayers!

Caitlin and Cameron

If you are interested in partnering with us financially, please check out the Support tab at the top of the page and don't forget to take a look at our Etsy store Created Concoctions for handmade items for you and your loved ones.