Cross the Waves and Climb the Steeps: The Meyer Family Missionary Adventures

By Nancy Meyer Schafner

Join the Meyer family as they uproot their lives and heed God’s call to serve in a variety of stimulating overseas mission fields.  Your heart will be warmed by the powerful challenges they encounter.  

Get to know each family member as they experience exciting adventures in both difficult and delightful circumstances while learning to place steadfast trust in God’s providence.  

The story begins in Africa, transitions to Lebanon and back to Africa with other countries in-between.  Encounter the desolation of war but enjoy the natural beauty beyond.  Soar with the summiting of two of Africa's highest peaks and sigh with the tragedies.  Savor the safaris.  Cry with the heartbreaks.  Each character travels undulating paths packed with trials but filled with surprises.

Learn of intriguing cultures, customs and cuisines interwoven with history, geography, ornithology and zoology.  Numerous Biblical passages lace this book and are set to practical, heart-felt applications.

• Language: English
• Publisher: LifeRich Publishing
• Release date: May 23, 2021
• ISBN: 9781489734365

Nancy Meyer Schafner

Nancy lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, with her husband, cat, and bunnies. She combines her love of hiking, gardening, and skiing with being creative through her writing and artwork. Similar to the way she uses her art brushes, Nancy paints pictures in your mind with her words. As a published freelance writer, she draws you into her stories with her down-to-earth, genuine style.

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• Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version.

• Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version®.

Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

• Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®

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• Scripture quotations marked ESV taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®),

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Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright ©

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Getty images for the front cover

Top–Pigeon Rocks, Beirut Lebanon

Bottom–Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania

Back cover images:

Top–Mackinder’s Camp, Mount Kenya

Middle–Watamu Bay, Kenya

Bottom–Willow Lake Trail, Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah, USA

ISBN: 978-1-4897-3424-2 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4897-3436-5 (e)

LifeRich Publishing rev. date:  08/09/2021

Contents

Foreword

Introduction

Chapter 1     How Did I End Up Here?

Chapter 2     Delayed

Chapter 3     Overweight and Visa-less

Chapter 4     Campus Life and Scintillating Safaris

Chapter 5     Icing on the Cake

Chapter 6     Jungle Creatures

Chapter 7     Motorcycles

Chapter 8     Brain Surgery

Chapter 9     The Spirit Indeed is Willing

Chapter 10   Spring and Summer in the States

Chapter 11   Taunting Trek

Chapter 12   Traversing Turkey and Syria

Chapter 13   Escapades in Egypt

Chapter 14   Going Where (nearly) No Man Has Gone Before

Chapter 15   Turned Around

Chapter 16   Sneaky Snake

Chapter 17   Visiting Warriors

Chapter 18   The Lions’ Mouths

Chapter 19   Rock My World

Chapter 20   Our New World

Chapter 21   From Head to Heart

Chapter 22   Reunions

Chapter 23   College in Cairo

Chapter 24   Upper Egypt Excursion

Chapter 25   All Is Well

Chapter 26   The Stones Cry Out

Chapter 27   All Is Not Well!

Chapter 28   Therapy

Chapter 29   Finding My Way

Chapter 30   The Nest

Chapter 31   General Conference

Chapter 32   Last But Blessed

Chapter 33   The Principal’s Office

Chapter 34   100 Things to See and Do

Chapter 35   That Man

Chapter 36   Caught in the Crossfire

Chapter 37   Though All Forsake Thee

Chapter 38   Starting Over

Chapter 39   Face to Face with Reality

Chapter 40   Climb the Steeps

Chapter 41   Wind in My Sails

Chapter 42   I Had a Farm in Africa

Chapter 43   All Creatures Great

Chapter 44   All Creatures Small

Chapter 45   All Things Wise and Wonderful

Chapter 46   Conversions

Chapter 47   The Reunion of All Times

Dedication and Acknowledgements

This book is dedicated to those who made it possible. First to my beloved husband, Carl, who gave me the freedom, space, patience, love and technical support I so greatly needed. He spent countless hours proofreading, editing, formatting, and on layout and design. He threw himself into this project in multiple ways like acquiring and learning a new program to implement my cover design ideas. Without him, I could not have finished.

Second to my family who lived these experiences and shared their stories with me. I appreciate the time each family member took to recount their stories, offering their ideas and feelings. With Bruce leading the way, followed by Willy and then Cindy, they all provided unique insights. Cindy tapped into her years of teaching experience offering critique and proof-reading skills.

Without David Meyer’s (Dad’s) impeccable memory and his willingness to answer a myriad of questions assisted by Ethel Meyer’s (Mom’s) details, this book would not have been complete. As it is, I’m sure there are incidents that have been left out, but with everyone’s help, here in is a summary of some of the most exciting years of our lives.

Some of these events have been told and retold at gatherings of family and friends. My hope is that these special and sometimes sacred events never become like autumn leaves, fading, falling, and disappearing. So now with everyone’s help, here they are in writing.

Special appreciation to Marvin Moore who provided expert guidance, instruction, professionalism, counseling and encouragement to carry on.

Admiration and thank you to two special people who spent countless hours proofreading and making recommendations; Georgene Bond and Karen Bray. Also, thank you to Dr. Bruce Bray for his expert assistance with Microsoft Word.

And, I want to acknowledge Poppurr who was at my side either purring or napping throughout the entire process. He’s quite a helper. I couldn’t have done it without him. 72071.png

We have been counseled in Selected Messages (book 3 p. 162). We have nothing to fear for the future, except as we shall forget the way the Lord has led us . . .in our past. All of the stories in this book are a reminder of how God led each one of us in our past.

Most of all, praise, honor and glory to God who made it all possible. He has given, guided, blessed, and protected our lives in more ways than we know.

Endorsements

Every person’s story is vast and unique. I was reminded of that recently by encountering, for the first time, the adventures in her personal account by someone I’ve known for years. In this book Nancy Schafner vividly recalls fascinating stories I enjoyed of how God blessed her and her family during decades of service work throughout the world. Readers will be reminded of how God can lead in our lives.

—Georgene Bond, Retired Registered Nurse and Educator

I enjoyed reading the stories and visualizing the places that Nancy and her family experienced during their years of service in the Middle East and Africa. Some of the stories made me laugh and others made me realize there are joys and perils in being a foreigner in another country. Nancy’s book makes good reading for anyone whether they have missionary blood or not and is a good choice to include in a library.

—Karen Bray, Summit Christian Academy Librarian

Foreword

I first became acquainted with Nancy Schafner when she sent me an article for the magazine I edit, Signs of the Times®. It was short but well written, so I purchased it and published it in the January 2015 issue of my magazine. That was the first of more than 15 of Nancy’s articles that I’ve published in Signs over the years since.

One thing I learned about Nancy as I worked with her: Sometimes she would send me an article that needed some help, so I would send it back with a few instructions on what she needed to do, and when I got the article back, it was perfect! And I published it.

Then Nancy told me she wanted to write a book, and would I help her? She sent me her first chapter--a story that really needed to be sparkled up. So, I sent it back with my recommendations--and lo and behold, she did exactly what I had suggested! From that point on, she wrote the rest of the book, of which I’ve read only a few chapters. But those chapters tell me that Nancy has learned well how to write.

The book you now hold in your hands is that book in its final form. I hope you find as much pleasure in reading it as I had in helping Nancy to write it!

—Marvin Moore, editor Signs of the Times® magazine and author of 38 books

Introduction

All of my immediate family members have been involved in overseas mission service. My brother, Bruce, pioneered the path by being the first to serve overseas. Like a pebble cast into a pond, his influence created a ripple effect that flowed throughout our entire family. Even though he returned to the United States, other family members continued to serve. The ripples Bruce started resulted in a cumulative wave totaling 43 years of mission service.

This is a family story; a combining of many of the memorable events and adventures spanning those years. Starting out Bruce is the lead character. Later on, the focus will shift to other family members, demonstrating how Bruce initiated a tide of ripples that reached to the very perimeters of our lives.

I pray the lyrics of Steve Green’s song will be personified by these—the stories of our lives. May all who come behind us find us faithful. May the fire of our devotion light the way. May the footprints that we leave lead them to believe. And the lives we live inspire them to obey. That was our goal.

May the reader be encouraged to become involved in mission service. Whether it be overseas or at home, find your mission. As Christians we know we have been created to serve. Giving complete control of our lives to someone else is scary. Yet giving Christ control of our lives is the most rewarding and exciting adventure imaginable. He can be trusted to guide in ways which will result in our maximum best. We may be led in harm’s way, but rest assured, our ultimate destiny is secure.

Our family includes; my parents, David and Ethel Meyer and their children in order of age: Bruce Meyer, Cynthia (Cindy) Meyer Read, William (Willy) Meyer and me, Nancy Meyer Schafner. You will also read about our cousin Lois (Waxter) Folkenberg and her husband Don.

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CHAPTER 1

How Did I End Up Here?

Grasping the handlebars of his motorcycle, my brother, Bruce, rounded a corner on the road from Mbale to Kampala, Uganda. My other brother, Willy, seated behind him scarcely saw anything except Bruce’s form in front of him. Earlier that day on their way to Willy’s motorcycle race in Mbale, the landscape of scrubby trees and brush, intermingled with grazing land saturated their eyes. Willy had sent his motorcycle ahead to Mbale on a truck, and Bruce happily agreed to chauffeur him to and from his race.

Now night had fallen. In addition to their light jackets, they were shrouded by a cloak of black. Throughout the sparsely populated Ugandan countryside, no electrical lines ran alongside the road. When the sun set, the villagers retired for the night. Darkness surrounded them except for the narrow beam illuminated by the motorcycle’s front headlight.

Out of nowhere, a car appeared in that narrow beam. Startled by the car’s sudden appearance, Bruce squinted his eyes instantly realizing the car’s headlights were not on! His automatic reflexes turned his bike to the side of the road. Unfortunately, the driver of the car did the same. They both turned to the right side of the road with identical timing. In an attempt to avoid each other, they collided with a sickening sound of crunching metal and bone.

Turning the bike sideways made Bruce’s left leg and body vulnerable. On impact, he felt his leg being crushed between the bumper of the car and the side of his bike. The abrupt halt of the bike catapulted Willy up and over the car, propelling him forward while fully rotating him head over heels through the air. Landing on his rump on the asphalt road behind the car in a startled daze, he wondered, what just happened?

After his leg was smashed by the impact, Bruce felt his body flying through the air and slamming into a ditch by the side of the road. Momentarily stunned, he could not process it all. Maybe I’m dreaming and I need to wake up—he hoped.

When he came to his senses, he realized he lay face down in a ditch filled with water. Powerless to move, it seemed as if his mind floated outside his body. I need to breathe! My lungs feel like they are bursting! I am going to drown! he thought, as the desperate panicky fear of helplessness surged in his chest.

Just as the mounting fear began to explode, Bruce felt two hands grab his shoulders and drag him out of the ditch. Those hands rolled him over onto his back. It was then he saw, they were the blessed hands of our brother, Willy. Water from the stagnant ditch still swathed Bruce’s face. When he opened his mouth to gasp for air, the acrid taste of the ditch water assaulted his tongue and the stench sailed up his nostrils. But none of that mattered as he inhaled the deepest and sweetest breath of air ever.

After being launched over the car and coming down with a thud, Willy was stunned as well. But in a few moments, he was able to stand on his feet. When he examined himself, he found the seat of his jeans were shredded combined with patches of road rash on his skin. However, when he tried to walk his legs didn’t work right. Did I break something? he asked himself. In spite of it, he was able to hobble around without much pain and search for Bruce. In the process of trying to locate Bruce, he came across the heel of his boot. It was then he realized nothing was broken except his boot! The momentum from the sheer impact caused the heel of his boot to be wedged in the motorcycle’s foot peg, ripping it off, as his body continued forward at 30 mph.

After getting his breath under control, Bruce was able to look around and come to grips with what happened. Why couldn’t I get myself out of the ditch? Why couldn’t I move? he deliberated. Looking at his left leg he found the answer. Something was terribly wrong. His eyes could scarcely believe what they were seeing—a mangled leg with a foot hanging on backwards. Raw broken ends of bones protruded at a grotesque angle. Is that my leg? Is that my foot? Are those my bones? he questioned.

Temporarily, he was not in pain due to sensory overload. As his mind gradually accepted the facts, his thoughts avalanched. He knew he wouldn’t be able to ride his motorcycle the rest of the way home, but he didn’t know how far reaching the effects of this accident would be. Being young, he expected to heal quickly and life would get back to normal before too long.

The man in the car left my brothers by the side of the road. I go get help, he promised. It all happened so fast. Now they were alone, laid out by the side of the road; a mangled motorcycle and two mangled missionaries.

Except for the occasional laughing choruses of distant hyenas, silence deepened the night. With nothing to laugh about in the muted dimness, Bruce perceived dark pools of blood forming under his leg. Willy, can you find something to make a bandage for my leg? It is bleeding awfully bad.

We didn’t have room to bring much with us, but I’ll check the little storage compartment under the seat of your bike.

Bruce heard the click of the storage bin opening and Willy rummaging around in the dark.

As Willy’s footsteps returned, his response came, Couldn’t find anything. But we can use my shirt, he offered as he took it off. I can stay warm without it; my jacket will be enough.

He wrapped his shirt around Bruce’s leg while assuring him, Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. Once the makeshift bandage was in place, Willy found some string to secure it.

Life in Africa is slower paced, but eventually they started to doubt anyone was coming to their aid.

How much longer do you think it will be before help arrives? Bruce questioned.

I wish I knew. It seems like it’s been long enough for someone to get here.

I guess we don’t know if they will be sending the police or an ambulance or what.

I hope it’s an ambulance. We could use one! Willy added.

Their minds both toyed with questions. Did the driver in the car abandon us? Are we victims of a hit and run?

At long last, their doubts were alleviated. An ambulance arrived. Bruce was thankful to finally be loaded and headed for the hospital. The ambulance driver took him directly to the Catholic hospital in Kampala. After evaluating his condition, it was determined they could not handle his type of trauma. The Catholic hospital sent Bruce to the University of Uganda Hospital also in Kampala.

Fortunately, this hospital had a well-trained orthopedic surgeon on staff. He was contacted immediately. Around midnight Bruce went into surgery. He suffered from a severe, double-compounded fracture of the tibia and fibula. As the surgeon worked to put his leg back together, he discovered a large portion of the tibia was missing. It was triangular in shape and close to the size of a fifty-cent piece but about three or four times as thick. Unknowingly left behind, a chunk of Bruce’s bone now resided in a roadside ditch on the road to Mbale!

Because of Bruce’s mangled bones, a stainless-steel rod with plates and screws should have been involved in his surgery. His bones needed the support of a rod to heal properly. However, certain medical supplies simply weren’t available in Africa at that time because of their high cost, including stainless-steel rods. Bruce’s surgeon would have made good use of a stainless-steel rod if he could have gotten his hands on one. Taking everything into account, the doctor did the best he could.

In the morning when Bruce woke up, he saw Willy lying in the hospital bed next to him. Bruce thought, Willy must have a serious injury too, otherwise why would he be here in the hospital with me? He seemed OK while we were waiting for the ambulance, but maybe he was hiding it from me because he didn’t want me to worry. Propping himself up on his elbow he questioned, Hey man. You all right? What happened to you?

They let me spend the night even though they can’t handle my injury here. They said I would have to go to another hospital for surgery.

What? Really? What surgery? What happened to you?

They said I might have to go back to that Catholic Hospital to have surgery on the heel of my boot. They aren’t equipped to handle that here! Willy endeavored to make light of the situation, and they both laughed at the thought of it. My two brothers were down, but not done!

Bruce lowered himself back down on his pillow. While he rested there in his metal hospital bed, his mind drifted back to the events that led to the crash. He asked himself, how, in the whole wide world, did I end up here? In a hospital in Uganda? He mentally reminisced on how it all began.

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Bruce after his surgery at the University of Uganda Hospital in Kampala.

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CHAPTER 2

Delayed

Thinking back over his life helped Bruce realize; It all began because I wanted to be a doctor. As long as I can remember, that’s what I wanted. Even as a little kid, when adults would ask me, What do you want to be when you grow up? I always answered immediately, because I knew. I didn’t have to think about it. I just knew. I want to be a doctor, I told them. Many people who graduate from college still don’t know for sure what they want to do with their life. Not me. I felt God leading me into medicine all my life.

Yes, my brother’s ambition made sense. He inherited natural talents that perfectly dovetailed with his sense of mission. Our mom commented that even as a little boy, Bruce always treated his playmates and pets with gentleness. He always had steady hands and he loved to read—even the Encyclopedia Britannica—especially the articles on anatomy, the brain, the heart, the liver, and how all these systems worked together to make up the human body. It was as if Bruce would rather learn about these things than eat his food!

His keen intellect made him popular among his teachers at Garden State Academy in New Jersey. His congenial personality combined with his handsome James Dean type looks, made him a popular student among his peers. Seeing Bruce driving around campus in his old car caused his friends to smile and wag their heads. Dependable but speckled with rust spots, his blue Ford Falcon took him where he needed to go. Missing the left front fender belied the purring engine under the hood. The Falcon made a fitting symbol for Bruce. Its dependable engine purred like Bruce’s brain, but being fender-less made the Falcon vulnerable. Now, with his broken leg, Bruce was vulnerable as well.

True to his calling, my big brother enrolled at Columbia Union College (CUC) in Takoma Park, Maryland, as a pre-med student with double majors in chemistry and biology. At the same time, he worked to pay his tuition. He landed the job of being an assistant professor for the biology department. He taught biology labs for the nursing students and gave biology lectures. On top of that, he had a second job as a night watchman for the Baltimore City School District. This job gave him a chance to study in between the scheduled security rounds. Plus, the extra income helped pay his bills. Taking as many classes as possible, including summer school put him on the fast track to graduate. He did not want to be delayed. Bruce wanted to be a doctor posthaste!

As part his biology degree, he took summer classes at CUC’s Biological Field Station. Tucked away along the winding dirt mountainous roads of Virginia, stood the Field Station’s remote campus located near Head Waters, Virginia. (The South Fork, South Branch of the Potomac River rises north of Head Waters, hence the name.) Dense forests of pines, oaks, locusts, redbuds and many other types of trees covered the hillsides around the Field Station. The small campus is carved out among the trees and nestled next to a gurgling creek.

When our parents started teaching church school, they didn’t have their degrees. Each summer they faithfully attended classes working towards their education certification and bachelor degrees. After getting their undergraduate degrees, they continued on to get their master’s degrees.

Because our dad minored in biology, the summer of Bruce’s junior year, both Bruce and Dad were at the Field Station. One of the classes they took together was ornithology. They fell in love with birds and birding, and enjoyed comparing their bird lists. Later that summer a recruiter from the General Conference contacted Bruce, offering him the opportunity to serve as a student missionary at Bugema Adventist College (BAC) in Uganda.

Continuing with his daydreams, Bruce pondered. They wanted me because I wanted to be a doctor. If I didn’t want to be a doctor, I wouldn’t have been taking biology or lecturing and teaching labs. I probably would have majored in business. Teaching biology at CUC made me the perfect fit for their needs. I wasn’t sure what to do. It would mean a lengthy delay of my goal to be a doctor. I still remember asking Dad for advice.

Boz, (our dad’s lifetime nickname) what do you think? Should I go to Uganda? I believe I was born to be a doctor, but going to Uganda would be a huge delay. I have been working so hard at CUC to get through as fast as possible. I don’t want to be delayed.

Yes, it will slow down your plans. But, think about this Bruce. Remember when you lived with my sister, Ruth, while you were attending academy?

Yes, of course.

Remember when you came home on the weekends you liked to share the stories Aunt Ruth told you about your cousin, Lois and her husband Don, who are living in Kenya? You were always so excited about what was going on there.

That’s true. The stories were all so interesting and intriguing.

I think that might be your answer. I know it will mean delaying your goal of becoming a doctor, but you are only young once. Being a student missionary might make you a better doctor.

Yes, I know. But . . . this decision will rearrange my life. I really don’t want to be delayed. It is a big responsibility. Plus, two years is a long time. In two years, I will have graduated from CUC and finished one year of medical school. I’ll think about it.

Being reminded of those stories from Africa struck a chord in Bruce’s heart. True, it would be a time consuming and goal delaying sacrifice, but after carefully weighing his options, he