33 years of blessings

Well, we keep thinking the rains have stopped and then another cloud pops up and dumps a bit more....but torrential and constant rains have gone.  We are SO very thankful for that at least.  We hear more and more stories of destruction.  But we haven't heard a whole lot on how many people have perished.  Seems everyone has heard different numbers.  But the most we have heard was 30 and we have no idea if that was fact or supposition.  The physical destruction is pretty heavy though.  They are still cleaning streets to make them passable.  I guess on a straight, flat, paved road we may end up simply having to deal with elongated speed bumps for a LONG time.  Slows traffic down which in some ways is good, others, causing traffic jams.  I guess now, it's learning how to live with things the way they are and going on from there. 

A really bright note here, Savanah's grandma Bibiana is here for a night.  I had to laugh last night.  It was dark, we were on our generator watching a movie.  It was over about 8:30.  Savanah said, "It's NOT bedtime yet, right?"  We said, "Well, it's really close."  The no's and not yet started up.  I finally told her, "Do you know, the sooner you go to sleep, the sooner Grandma Bibiana will be here?"  She looked at me, told grandpa to turn off the generator and told me to go to bed, NOW!  That was the easiest and quickest bed time we have ever had.  And today she has been so thrilled to have her grandma here.  It's been awesome.  Too bad it's only for the one night.  She then leaves to go do some teaching. 

And no passport or word on it, yet.  Just praying and waiting on it.

Today is "the" day... it's our 33rd anniversary of being here in Haiti.  We had been here before that on teams, but we actually moved here on November 12, 1983.  I look around and think, wow, doesn't seem that long at all.  Then I think, well, our baby who was 11 when we got here, now has 3 sons over 21 years old.  Yup, it's been a while.  We brought our 5 children with us, and now we have 14 grand kids and 7 great grand kids. 

There is so much here to celebrate, and yet so much here to pray for and about, too.  We have been working with some awesome Haitian people.  We have ended up with a whole lot of "kids" here who call me mom.  And they do seem like our kids.  Watching these kids grow and become God inspired young adults has been one of the blessings.  And some of the pastors that we work with are really neat and God fearing men.  God HAS blessed us in these years here.  Oh there have been trials, for sure... the night of one of the overthrows when thieves came to burn us out, but God intervened...the hi-jacking...the tough times of no gas and road blocks....they have all been there.  But those are the minor times, not times that took away the joy or peace the Lord gave.  We have always felt the peace of the Lord with us and surrounding us through it all.  And God has brought some totally awesome people into our lives through the people here and those that were on teams.  We do serve a fantastic, wonderful, loving God. 

We pray you are clinging to that same loving God.  That you are holding on to Him in both the great and not so great times.  That that same God is with you on a daily basis, His presence felt and known in all you do.  AND that those who look at you exclaim that the joy of the Lord is shinning in your life. 

Till next time, blessings beyond measure!!!