|
Carole Robeff served with her husband,
Sam, as missionary teacher for six
years in Saenz Peña, Chaco,
Argentina, and two years in Jakarta,
Indonesia. After returning to the
United States, Sam was able to finish
his graduate studies. At this point,
they were appointed to serve at
the Hispanic Bible School in Houston,
Texas. Carole taught music classes
during this time until the school
was merged with West Coast Christian
College in Fresno, California. At
West Coast, she served as the administrative
assistant to the president for nine
years. It was at West Coast that
she received her bachelor of arts
degree in music. Upon leaving California,
Sam and Carole accepted the pastorate
of the Merritt Drive Church of God
in Greensboro, North Carolina, which
they pastored for nine years until
Sam was appointed as coordinator
of Cross-Cultural Ministries for
Western North Carolina. Carole and
Sam have been blessed with two lovely
daughters, Alicia and Rebecca, two
dedicated sons-in-law, Justin and
Paul, and five beautiful grandchildren.
They all reside in High Point, North
Carolina.
What would you think if you found
yourself in a foreign country, not
knowing the language, not knowing
how to cook the native dishes, not
knowing how to cook on a wood-burning
stove, with 33 hungry students waiting
for their meals to be served? This
was the situation in which I found
myself as a newlywed missionary
to Argentina. Sam and I met over
47 years ago at Lee University (Lee
College in those days). After his
graduation, we
married and left for Chaco, Argentina,
South America, since he had been
appointed director of the Church
of God Bible school there. This
was the beginning of a real adventure
for a girl who had never travelled
outside the Southeastern United
States and who knew nothing of other
cultures. With my Home and Gardens
Cookbook I had received as a wedding
gift under one arm and two textbooks
on how to learn Spanish under the
other arm, I started out on my exciting
adventure. I was a young 21-year-old
girl full of energy and great expectations.
We were on our way to carry out
the Great Commission! As we arrived
at the airport in Argentina, we
saw quite a crowd waving and cheering.
At first, we thought some famous
dignitary had arrived until we realized
the crowd was a large group of Sam’s
family and church members. I felt
overwhelmed, and the only thing
I could remember from my eighth-grade
Spanish class was, “El burro
sabe más que tú.”
(“The donkey knows more than
you.”) Of course, this was
not something you would want to
say to your new mother-in-law, so
we just stood and looked at each
other and smiled. In spite of my
inability to speak the Spanish language
and lack of knowledge of their culture,
the Argentine people and Sam’s
family were wonderful and accepted
me with open arms. After spending
a few days with Sam’s parents,
we boarded the bus and headed toward
our new home at the Bible school
in the city of Saenz Peña.
The Bible school was located about
one and a half miles outside of
town on a red clay road which was
impassable by car when it rained.
Our apartment was built as part
of the school, which did not give
us much privacy. The facility had
no electricity, but it did have
lights a few hours at night, powered
by a small kerosene generator. We
had water only when there was wind,
because the wind powered the windmill,
which piped water into the building.
In spite of all these unaccustomed
hardships, I was an excited young
bride intent on making my first
home as cozy and comfortable as
possible, even trying to cook with
recipes out of my Home and Gardens
Cookbook. Sam, on the other hand,
was busy hiring teachers and planning
his classes. The school year started,
and everything was in place. We
were carrying out our calling. However,
one of the most difficult challenges
we faced at the school was finding
and keeping a Bible school cook.
During our second year of classes,
our cook left in the middle of the
year, and there I stood in the middle
of a large, primitive kitchen with
a wood-burning stove and 33 hungry
students peering through the windows
at me. Since my American cookbook
could not help me out of this dilemma,
I knew I had to have the help of
a local chef. We heard of a retired
Argentine army cook who attended
my father-inlaw’s church.
We made an appointment with him,
and he supplied me with 14 recipes
that would give me enough meals
for one week’s worth of menus.
I could then rotate these recipes
each week. I had to really scrimp
with the budget in order to buy
food to cook. We received only $10
per month per student from the World
Missions Department. Since we had
no refrigeration, I had to buy food
each day. The custom of the Argentine
people is to have a small breakfast
of bread, butter, and coffee, so
the students were able to prepare
their own breakfasts while I started
the morning shopping. I went into
town every morning to buy meat and
produce. When I returned from town,
it was time to start preparing the
noon meal. After the students cleaned
the kitchen from lunch, I would
indulge myself in a small “siesta”
before beginning preparations for
the evening meal. The students were
a great help when they did not have
classes. Finally, we were able to
find a young girl in town who became
my assistant. Like most of us in
the ministry, I accepted this role
because there was no one else to
do it. However, I must admit, I
did complain to God in our private
moments, and told Him this was not
what I had expected. But a passage
in the Book of Ecclesiastes reminded
me that “whatever my hands
found to do, I should do it with
all my might” (see 9:10).
This too was in God’s plan
for me. Eventually, we did locate
a lady willing to cook for us. I
have learned over the years that
even though God had constant “learning
opportunities” for me, He
always had a ready and willing human
angel to disciple me through all
these new dventures. And, in due
course, I feel I was able to be
an encouragement to young ministerial
wives as they faced challenges.
I know that life can have difficult
moments and can, at times, seem
somewhat unfair, but life is good.
I have learned that if we keep our
eyes on Him and His agenda, we can
overcome every difficult circumstance.
Even cooking for 33 hungry students
is part of carrying out the Great
Commission—the students had
to eat in order to study and be
trained for their ministerial calling
in life. So, in a sense, I was helping
to carry out God’s command
to “Go and make disciples
of all nations” (Matthew 28:19,
NIV).
 |
