Returning To USA Posted by jonfaust on Saturday, March 22, 2008 (UMST) Monica talks about her trip home this winter and the upcoming end to their ministry in Madagascar.

Greetings from Madagascar, Below is a letter I wrote already one month ago. Since I was in the US at that time and Doug was in Madagascar (explanation below) we had to email it back and forth to edit and approve. In the process, it fell off the priority agenda so only now are we finally getting it sent out. But we’ve decided to send it out late as it is rather than changing it all since it contains a lot of news that we want everyone to get. Sorry for the delay. Just an added note; I am doing well and back in Madagascar and almost over jet lag! Monica Dear Friends and Sponsors, Feb. 20, 2008 I (Monica), bring you greetings today from snowy, chilly North Dakota. I am here in Valley City, North Dakota, watching the mercury register below zero temps while Doug and the boys are weathering the storms of cyclone Ivan in Madagascar which dumped a good bit of rain on them. I am in the USA for gall bladder surgery. Global Mission approved a trip back here for that surgery which was successfully completed last Monday, the 18th. It was done laproscopically which meant I was in to the operating room at 8:30 am and out of the hospital by 2 pm. Not quite drive-through surgery, but close. Everything went very well and I am now at my parents’ house recuperating nicely. The hardest part of this surgery is the time away from Doug and the boys. They are doing well though, carrying on with their regular routines…minus Mom. Doug reports that both of the boys have been very helpful around the house to allow Doug more time to work. He is busy on a report for the president of the Malagasy Lutheran Church. At a recent meeting with the president, Doug was asked to write a report of the activities of Muslim missionary groups in Madagascar and his recommendations for the Lutheran Church in light of these activities. He has been doing a good amount of research on that topic and continues to do more. Unfortunately our laptop died (second one within a year) recently so he lost a good bit of information that was saved on that computer. While my surgery in the States and Doug’s report are news, there is actually much bigger news that prompts us to write today. One of the questions we have most frequently been asked by sponsors and friends over the years is how long we are planning to stay in Madagascar. Our answer has always been that we didn’t know. When we initially joined the Division for Global Missions in 2000, it was with the understanding of a 7-8 year commitment. Now, 8 years later, that initial commitment has been fulfilled. As this time approached we have been praying for discernment about whether we should renew that commitment for a longer period or prepare to return to the US. After much prayer and discussion, we have resolved that it is the right time for our family to end our service in Madagascar and return to the USA. We thank God and all of you for the opportunity to serve as missionaries in Madagascar. Our experiences here have been a blessing to us in many ways and we leave with very mixed feelings, knowing that we will deeply grieve leaving Madagascar. Yet we feel that the time is right for our boys to live in their own culture and country and to be able to put down roots in one place for many years. This time in Madagascar has been very good for them, yet filled with constant changes and adjustments. In addition to stability, we are hoping to let them see extended family more often now. Doug is also feeling called to find his niche for ministry in the US. So we are currently looking at possible opportunities in the US and are starting to wrap things up in Madagascar. Fortunately Project Shalom has strong support from the Malagasy Lutheran Church as well as several mission partners (including ELCA Global Mission), so Doug is leaving with confidence that this ministry can continue to have a positive impact in Madagascar. Research Doug is documenting right now will be used by those who will continue this work. Doug has also been instrumental in introducing a new ministry partner into Madagascar who has been doing ministry across Africa for many years. They will bring rich experience and a wealth of knowledge to this ministry in Madagascar which will be very valuable in the years to come. We are not as confident about the future of the ministry of Manna for Madagascar. As you may remember, we have been experiencing a great deal of difficulty in the past months because of the president of the board of Manna who has essentially sabotaged the organization out of her own jealousy and selfishness. It has been very sad and discouraging to watch, yet for the producers whose livelihood has come to depend on this, it has been devastating. It is out of compassion for those producers that we are currently looking at starting a new organization that can continue the mission of Manna for Madagascar but with a new name and new structure. Two Malagasy women who have been deeply involved in Manna are hoping to run the organization and I may continue to volunteer to help them from this side of the operation. There are still many questions about the specifics of this ministry, but the goals would be the same as that of Manna for Madagascar; to provide income generating opportunities for women while also offering learning and transformational opportunities to empower them to bring about positive changes in all aspects of their lives. To accomplish this, the shipments of handcrafts for sale in the US would continue, although all the specifics of that are still unclear. We have been amazed at all that has been accomplished through Manna in the past years and we hope it will prove to be only the beginning. We appreciate all the support you have provided through hosting Bazaar Kits, fund raisers, donations, and many prayers. We would like to encourage you to continue that same support and join us in a network of “Manna supporters” with whom we can continue to stay in touch, even when our Cox Family ministry newsletters have ended. As we have more information available we will share that with you and would encourage you to prayerfully consider continuing your involvement with this ministry in the future as well. As you can probably imagine, it is an exciting but stressful time for our family. Jeremiah is excited to get back (among other things to see snow which he doesn’t remember at all) while Ben is determined NOT to move back to the US with us. We are very concerned about this very major transition for both of our boys and, indeed, for all of us. We have heard from many missionary families that returning to the US after mission service is harder than the initial culture shock of going overseas. Doug and I have both experienced this phenomenon as singles but not with children. We do so now with great concern for our boys, knowing Ben has been sheltered in many ways that American kids are not. He will be entering 6th grade, not an easy time anyway. We face uncertainty about where we will live and what kind of job we will get, starting over to furnish a home (and trying to remember where all we have left things behind to try to gather together), and the daily challenge of keeping our mouths shut when all we want to do is talk about Madagascar to people who don’t want to hear anymore. We know there will be hard times ahead, yet we know that God will provide and see us through. So we can move ahead with trust that things will work out and our family will make it through. We covet your continued prayers during this time of transition yet again. I should add that we will likely be leaving Madagascar mid-June after the school year is over. The boys’ school has both 5th grade and Kindergarten graduation every year so both boys will be graduating before we leave. We feel this is important for their sense of closure at their school. From there we hope to do a few days of travel on our way back to the US. Starting on July 1st we have an apartment reserved at the missionary apartments in St. Paul, MN where we can live until the end of December if we haven’t yet found a job during that time. We would prefer to have that job figured out by the time school starts so we can have the boys settled in a school where they can stay instead of facing yet another transition mid-school year. We don’t have control over that though, so we move ahead in faith that all will work out. We thank you for your support and prayers over the years of our ministry in Madagascar. We will be in touch again before we go but we do want you to know how meaningful it has been to us to have your encouragement along the way. We will miss that in whatever ministry opportunity we are called to next. In Christ, Rev. Doug, Monica, Ben, and Jeremiah Cox