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DESCRIPTION
Dave Rager and his family arrive in Mattru Jong, Sierra Leone, to start their first term as missionaries. They get settled into their new home and Dave meets Jeff, another missionary kid. The two become fast friends and begin a ‘Good News Club’ to introduce Jesus to the local Mattru kids. But Tom Berkey, a bully at the MK School, teases them from the beginning of school. Dave has to learn how to deal with the bullying, and he hears about a terrible event in the past that made Tom turn mean.
Tom dares them to swim in the Jong River, where he says crocodiles are. Dave and Jeff, disregarding Tom’s attempt to scare them, proceed with their plan to float down the river. But, it is dangerous, and someone’s life is at risk! Dave must have great courage and test skills he has never used.
Crocodile in the River continues the saga of the Rager family as they make friends in their new African home. Tragic events could turn anyone into an enemy of the Lord. Gentleness, prayer and forgiveness are necessary to understand and help restore those alienated from God because of losses that could happen on the mission field.
A LITTLE ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Beth Y. Lambert is a practicing pediatrician in Johnstown, PA. She is married and has two children. While a medical student, Beth did a short-term medical mission trip to Sierra Leone with World Medical Mission. She uses some of her experiences as a basis for this book.
EXCERPT PREVIEW
“Bye!” Dave Rager called to the missionaries gathered around their Land Rover. The days had flown by so quickly in Bumpe that he could hardly believe he and his family were headed to their final destination--Mattru, Sierra Leone, in West Africa, where they would start their first term as missionaries. Dave’s dad, Dan, was the new Missionary Kid (MK) School Principal, and Dr. Lori, Dave’s mom, would be working at the Mission Hospital. They had spent four days doing orientation in Bumpe, where the Mission supervisors, Jon and Laura Harkins, lived. The Land Rover pulled away on the dirt road, and Dave watched faces disappear in a cloud of dust. He sat back and sighed, smiling at his mom and six year old brother, Kevin, sitting next to him.
“I’m going to miss everybody, especially Miss Maida,” Dave said. His mom, Dr. Lori Rager, a family practice physician, smiled back. “She sure turned out to be a fantastic lady, didn’t she?” Dr. Lori responded. “I’m glad we learned our first lesson about being missionaries from her.”
“What do you mean, Mom?” Kevin asked. Dr. Lori smiled and explained, “Well, Kevin, we heard some strange things about Miss Maida when we first arrived, and we believed them for a little while; but we learned that God uses all types of people to tell others about Jesus. If we think that God only uses preachers who preach a certain way, or teachers who teach a certain way, we are limiting God, because He can use anybody, no matter what. We thought we knew this already, but Miss Maida helped us to really understand it, and that is an important lesson to learn as we start our ministry. Now we can be free to let God use us in whatever way He can, even if it seems different from what somebody else is doing.” She looked at Dave and raised her eyebrows at him, as if she was saying this for him in particular.
Twelve-year old Dave understood immediately. He wasn’t good in sports and was always trying to somehow impress his dad. His mom was letting him know that not only was he accepted for his ‘non-sports’ talents, but that God would use him in a special way by just being himself! Dave grinned at his mom and sat back, cushioning himself from the jolts along the bumpy, dirt road. He thought about the tremendous beginning to their missionary life they had experienced when Miss Maida took him hunting for monkeys just a few days after arriving in Sierra Leone. He decided he would start a journal once they reached Mattru, and write down special things, like the monkey hunting.
They had been on the road for an hour when Albert, their African driver, interrupted Dave’s thoughts. “We will be stopping in a while at Serabu to deliver some mail and supplies to the Catholic Hospital there. It is always a good time to get a drink and stretch. You can meet some of the missionaries…” Albert’s voice trailed off as the Land Rover rounded a curve and he yelled, “Oh!”
Their vehicle swerved to miss a huge pothole in the dirt road, then they side-swiped a poda-poda stuck in another hole just beyond, and went up on two wheels for a few seconds. Albert skillfully controlled the Land Rover as it returned to the ground, braking carefully to avoid rolling the car. Finally it stopped 30 yards away from the poda-poda. “Is everyone OK?” Albert questioned, looking around anxiously at the Rager family. “So sorry…,” he shook his head, “…going too fast…I should have known better…” He started mumbling in another language and was obviously very upset.
Dave called out, “I’m OK!” and the others echoed the same. Albert stopped muttering and heaved a sigh of relief. They all got out of the car and opened the back to check on their supplies. “Everything seems to be fine,” Mr. Rager observed, poking at a number of bags and boxes. “I think we should be thankful that we decided not to bring those eggs the Harkins offered to us!” he quipped.
Dan Rager closed the back of the car and turned to Albert. “Do you think we can help them?” he asked, nodding toward the stuck poda-poda.
Albert shrugged his shoulders and said, “I will ask them.”
He and Mr. Rager walked to the poda-poda. Quite a few people stood off on the side of the road, seemingly unconcerned with their plight. It seemed odd that they were in the middle of the low jungle, with no village for miles, yet no one was surveying the situation to remedy it.
