I am Blessed

Well, once again I have waited a while to add to my entries.....Busy as usual.  I just wanted to make note of the fact that I am Blessed!  The last week - weekend in April we had visitors.  First Captain Keith Botjen and Jared Arnold arrived to do some much needed handiwork around the corps and outpost.

What good sports they were - what a blessing!  We had wonderful fellowship and they worked hard to repair many things...they had to sleep on the floor in our living room and put up with our crazy life for the week!  I am so grateful.  Later on in the week Captain Lisa Smith arrived followed by Captain Kyle later in the week...They were our sponsors of and special guest speakers to Youth Councils.

 The youth here are still talking about how wonderful Youth Councils was!  The greatest blessing of the weekend was two of our young people giving their lives to the Lord as well as another answering a call to officership.  God really used Kyle and Lisa to touch the hearts of these young people.  One of the young men we are enrolling as a senior soldier on our farewell sunday.  It really makes it difficult to leave.......even more so than before.....BUT I know - God has plans that I do not yet understand.....I  am accepting it - it just still hurts my heart to leave these people that I love so dearly! 

Please pray for Fermin who left his gang to make a commitment to Christ and Kristi who struggles but has made a commitment.  And pray for Val who feels God calling her to officership.  These kids have so much to overcome just on a daily basis - it is something I find hard to put into words - even if I did you still would not understand until you see it firsthand.   God sees and understands and He will help them to overcome! 

Many thanks to Kyle, Lisa, Keith, and Jared and their families for sharing them with us.  You have blessed us - even your presence here before you did anything - just being here shows you care and that is a blessing to us!

We will be back in the States in 2 weeks on furlough before we move on to Jamaica....We are running into a few glitches as far as moving and shipping of our "stuff" and Jamaica really does not seem interested in helping us....only in us helping them.....(we have already been told to try and get a vehicle  and other items that U.S. officers would just expect to be provided in the appointment while in the States)  Just an impression I am getting - I hope I am wrong.  It has been difficult to deal with that here.  One thing I am certain of is God can see us through anything that comes our way - not only that but He will Bless us as we remain faithful in these times!

Blessings to all that have supported us in Gods work in Belize - Please continue to pray for Belize and for our family as we make this transition - we will miss this place and its people....it has become home to us....

Nothing much new happening here in the jungle.  Home-schooling the girls makes for a busy and loooong day.  It has been incredibly hot here - more so than usual.  It makes it difficult for the girls to concentrate and me irritable.  The water goes out almost every day when it is this hot.  Very frustrating.

Packing for the move is going very slowly - no Mail Boxes Etc. here or anything like it -  to get boxes we have to scrounge through the trash.  Not a pleasant thing to do.  We are in competition with all the folks who collect boxes to use as dressers - not many people own dressers and after awhile they need new boxes when their 'dresser' wears out.

I certainly have learned not to take things for granted....I have to be thankful that I have running water in the quarters - not all homes in the village do. Just my mind is still a little warped by the instant world I have known all my life.....I still find it difficult when I can't have things RIGHT NOW.  In fact that is one of the funny things about Belize -The very way the phrase "right now" is used here does not mean RIGHT NOW as it does in the States. When someone says "right now" they will do something here it could mean 2 hours, 3 hours or even a week later before they get to the task they are referring to.  Never does it mean right away. Must have patience. 

Keeping praying for us....Not too excited about the move...Don't get me wrong, I will go where I am sent without complaining - well, not much anyway - working on that.  I just really feel like we have not finished the work here in Belize.  Some of you know what I am talking about - you get to a certain point in ministry when people are beginning to trust and grow....we are really beginning to tackle some real issues of sin in peoples lives here......the time when you really would like to run ( you know the times when it is hard) BUT you see something bigger than the battle coming ......AND then they move us ....Only for whoever is coming in to have to start all over again.  Makes no sense to me - we asked to stay.....SO JUST PRAY.  I want to go into the next appointment excited - having a little trouble.  I really love the people here.... AND then on top of it all we have some issues at home in the States....... 

Our Crazy life

Thanks for all of you have been praying for our godson Tony.  He is home from the hospital - better - but still needs much prayer.  He has pneumonia - which they were able to treat.  As far as the whole in his heart the doctors here are unable to do anything - it is beyond their capability so they released him.  Pray he gets approval to go to the States soon.  The doctors here are so cold - they told his mother do not bother - he will die.  We are working with some wonderful people here to get things done for him so he can go.  A lot of the work is being done through a program that Mark s Rotary sponsors called The Gift of Life Program.  Mom still needs to raise a lot of money herself.  My Home League is sponsoring a fashion show fund-raiser on the 12th of May in which all money raised will go towards Tony.  We are excited.

Last night was elections in the village for Village Council.  It was crazy.  Lots of alcohol and all the trouble that comes with that.  Just when we thought everything was calming down around midnight we heard yelling outside the house.  Mark went outside the house to check it out.  One of our female soldiers was being fought over by three different men - which one was going to take her home.  So Mark brought her into the house with me to get her out of this bad situation.  Because of this one of the men threatened to kill Mark and I.  Made it a little hard to sleep last night.  I had already been cussed at on my way home from Sunday school that morning after chasing a drunk man away from my daughter Saharra.  Our Crazy Life.

God definitely protects us! 

URGENT PRAYERS NEEDED

Mark just took our God -Son, Tony who is 16 months to the hospital.  He is struggling to take a breath.  Tony was born with a hole in his heart and we have been working to get him to the States for much needed care-  But tonight Tony needs the hands of the Great Physician to bring healing in his life and keep him strong until he can get to the States.  This is the best way I know to get the message out the quickest to many....Xanga is wonderful this way.  Pray and ask others to pray!!!!!