MAILING ADDRESS:

  5612 rue des Campanules

  Quebec, Quebec G1G 5K7

  CANADA

EMAIL:  webster.mike@ifmnews.com

WEBSITE:  www.thewebsters.ca

Birthdates:

Mike - 3/1

Melanie - 11/9

Stephanie - 10/5/86

Jonathan - 7/9/88

Catherine - 8/26/91

Wedding Anniversary - 12/24

We are excited to announce the birth of our second grandchild, Benjamin Michael Sandquist, born on November 17, 2008 to our daughter Valerie and her husband Tom.

Excerpt from their latest prayer letter:

Several months ago, Melanie wrote an article for the newsletter of a supporting church about missionary wives.  For this edition of our prayer letter, we thought we would share it with all of you so that you may better know:

How to Pray for a Missionary's Wife:

The American Heritage dictionary defines hat as a “covering for the head” or “a role or office symbolized by…the wearing of different hats.” Now Bartholomew Cubbins of Dr Seuss fame had five hundred head coverings! I only own one, but I wear a few others as I go about my day that I would like to describe to you.

My first two hats belong to a lot of women. They have wife and mother written on them. Two of my main ministries are as commonplace as the air we breathe. Like any wife and mother, I juggle schedules, meals, the housework, time with my family… But these are corner stone roles which if neglected can affect all the others.
My next hat has pastor’s wife inscribed across the brim. It is dyed with the blue and white of the Quebec flag and carries a bit of a twist. The women to whom I minister have no other role model. They are for the most part first generation Christians, so there is no Christian mother, no prayer warrior Aunt Beth or devout Grandma Lacey to look up to. The other pastors’ wives of the province and I are “it”. When I wear this hat, I am privileged to lead individual Bible studies, ladies meetings both locally and in the province, counsel in person and on the phone, etc. 

My translator’s hat is my play hat. Yes, play! I get to have fun with words and their meanings, syntax and grammar, and in two languages. I have to match meanings and expressions, make sure the rendering of the English is accurate, navigate between the punctuation and spacing pitfalls (French and English are different), and coordinate readings with my team. Some would call it work; I like to think of it as an exacting game.

The final hat I wear is more of a hair net. It never leaves my head and all the other hats fit over it. Ambassador, servant, foreigner are a few of the words inscribed in its design. Everything I do is embroidered with its cross-cultural floss--a foreign language, country and way of life. Every action matters, even swapping gardening tips with the neighbors. It is my missionary hat. I wouldn’t be here if God had not sent me to be His representative, to serve His people in this beautiful province of Quebec, Canada.
These five hats represent broad categories of ministries. The only one I can actually set aside for a while is my play hat. All the others are constantly by my side and I alternate between them, sometimes at lightning speed. They can take on different hues: taxi driver, nurse, teacher, cook, janitor … but the basic shapes and functions remain the same.

As you pray for me, remember the wife, mother, pastor’s wife, translator and missionary and the various duties attached to these roles.

Melanie Webster