It seems our life is never "dull". Although I would not consider this last month fun...it certainly has not been dull.
After
my last post, I was getting near to catching up on things...well it
never happened. We were home a week and a half and I was hit with the Chikungunya
virus. At some point I will write that whole experience up so others
will know exactly what people went through. At this point, just let me
say that you would not believe what it is like. After about 4 days, I
thought I was feeling better. I had gotten a rash on my leg (as part of
this virus). It was between the ankle and the knee. It was swollen
and an ugly rash. It started to clear up and like a switch was turned
on, my foot swelled up and turned beet red. On a pain scale of 1 to
10.... 10 being the worst, the virus had my body at about a 12 or 12.5.
Once the virus started receding the pain was all concentrated on the
foot. I couldn't walk. Our friend Belle, who is a nurse, came often to
check on me. (Keep her in prayer, she went through a lot with me,
believe me.) She had been checking with Dr. Mono each time I talked to
her, or when she would stop in. Finally after a week, Dr. Mono came
with her. He said what I had was cellulites. With my allergy to so
many meds, he put me on one antibiotic. Finally on Monday, the decision
was made for me to fly stateside for treatment, since I was not
responding to what I was taking.
On Thursday, Don and I flew
out. We landed in Fort Pierce and headed to the emergency room.
Actually to the trauma center here. Great hospital and staff. After
lots of tests and lots of probing they said, yup, that's what I had.
They added another antibiotic to what I was taking. This is the third
day and I am finally starting to respond to the meds. Still not
walking, using a wheel chair. Not sure at this point how long we will
be here. Can't really leave until it's well on the way to being
healed. We have had to stay at a hotel, since the wheel chair wouldn't
make it into the house we had hoped to stay at for a few days. At this
point, I'm tired, worn out and so ready for this to be over. Three
weeks of laying in bed is about all I can take. Doc said two to six
weeks to be totally over it all, but I should be on the way to "normal"
(whatever that is) soon.
So, we are asking for prayers. I know
many, many are already praying, but please keep them coming. And pray
for Don. He's not the best "house mother" and he said he will NEVER work in a hospital. I think these three weeks have really worn on him, too.
We
know God is in charge and we know He can heal. So we are depending on
Him to step in and keep things on the way to healing. We have not lost
hope in Him, nor have we stopped believing He is in charge of all
things. So, I'll simply rest in Him and let Him guide and direct what
happens.
So, until I can get to the point of writing more and
sharing more of what this virus is and has done, I'll close and give
glory to the Lord for keeping us this far. He knows where we are at and
what we are going through. So, I'll praise Him and rejoice in the fact
He has me in the palm of His hand.
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Friday, August 8, 2014
Back in Haiti
I'm thankful to be on here again. This system is really driving us to distraction. At times we go days without connection, then it's fine for a day or two. But we have to believe God knows all of this and will help us struggle through. I have had to remind myself that when we came to Haiti, almost 31 years ago, that we had only letter mail for communication. No internet, no phones to speak of and not even Ham radio at that point. For a phone line we had to travel 12 miles, get in line (for maybe up to 6 hours) then pray we could connect...but that was very iffy... and IF connected to an operator, then we had to pray we didn't get cut off, which was a real possibility. So, waiting a day or so to get on internet isn't all that bad, since we can reach so many. I don't pray for patience, I pray for endurance.
We arrived here last Thursday, a week and one day ago. We were still settling in on Friday when we got a phone call. The gal and her daughter who clean the dorm called. Juliette (the mama) said, "You said if you were here you may be able to help with Maz's (daughter) flowers for her wedding." I had totally forgotten that, but said yes. Then asked when it would be. "Tomorrow!" Well, that threw me for a loop. But I could praise the Lord for Carolyn (a good friend from West Palm Beach). She had been here while we were gone for a wedding and did all the flowers for that wedding. She had left them here. I asked Maz what color she wanted. She said whatever you have is fine. That at least made me happy. So, decorations were right there for me. But I had to work on flowers for bride, groom, maren, paren (God parents), mothers and pastors and whoever else I could get done. I did most of them with what was here and felt fine. Decorating the church on Saturday was another trial... no one there had the key. Had to call all over and find someone to let us in. An hour and a half later we were able to get in. One gal there wasn't happy with anything. She was no relative and just a distant friend. So we ignored her. We went home to change and Savanah went down for a nap. Don went to the wedding, I didn't. Savanah slept through the time for the wedding, so her and I stayed home. Don took photos, and they didn't turn out good at all. Something wrong with the camera. But we were glad that situation was over.
Then Sunday I had to lead English church. I had no idea who our speaker was, but simply planned it as if we didn't have one. July and August are very slow months for our church. We ended up with about 20 Haitian fellows, Don, Savanah, me and our other committee member (and piano player), Enoch. We have a hard time getting the Haitians to respond to the praise and prayer time. I shared all our blessings with them and asked if anyone else had any praises to share with us. At first nothing....then one man stood and praised God for being with him in a tough situation. From then on, maybe 7 or 8 stood up and shared. That was such a blessing for us. Then Enoch gave the message. What a powerful man he is. God used him to touch all those there, including us. We had a fantastic service praising God. What a great start to our return to Haiti, seeing God working and using people.
When we first arrived in Haiti, we were amazed at the progress at the airport. It's still a ways from being done, but it is really moving along at a fast pace. The director took Don and I through the whole building and explained so much. We really were amazed. And on October 5th, American Airlines will be flying in with their first flight. It is already booked solid. So, we really are moving into the 21st century.
Oh, wanted to share one more picture with you all. (I keep forgetting all the blessings we have had...and I'll probably end up sharing more later when I go through the photos we took.) This photo is another 4 generation one for our family. On our travel back to Florida to fly back, we were able to spend one night with our son, Tim. His daughter was there with her twins, so we took the opportunity to get that four generation photo. These two little ones are doing great after a hard start. Aren't babies fun? Yes, we did the twin thing, too, and it's a bit tough at times, but worth it.
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And then, of course, Savanah.... She has grown so much in the 3 months we were gone. But always ready for a photo.
Well, I'd best get back to work and start catching up on things. Three months of mail and other work to do and get caught up on. I hope to be back on here soon with some more photos and news of how things are progressing here.
Remember to keep praising God for what He does in your life. Both the big and the small. He does a whole lot more than any of us realize in our lives. Keep Jesus at the front and center of all you do. Blessings to all!!!
We arrived here last Thursday, a week and one day ago. We were still settling in on Friday when we got a phone call. The gal and her daughter who clean the dorm called. Juliette (the mama) said, "You said if you were here you may be able to help with Maz's (daughter) flowers for her wedding." I had totally forgotten that, but said yes. Then asked when it would be. "Tomorrow!" Well, that threw me for a loop. But I could praise the Lord for Carolyn (a good friend from West Palm Beach). She had been here while we were gone for a wedding and did all the flowers for that wedding. She had left them here. I asked Maz what color she wanted. She said whatever you have is fine. That at least made me happy. So, decorations were right there for me. But I had to work on flowers for bride, groom, maren, paren (God parents), mothers and pastors and whoever else I could get done. I did most of them with what was here and felt fine. Decorating the church on Saturday was another trial... no one there had the key. Had to call all over and find someone to let us in. An hour and a half later we were able to get in. One gal there wasn't happy with anything. She was no relative and just a distant friend. So we ignored her. We went home to change and Savanah went down for a nap. Don went to the wedding, I didn't. Savanah slept through the time for the wedding, so her and I stayed home. Don took photos, and they didn't turn out good at all. Something wrong with the camera. But we were glad that situation was over.
Then Sunday I had to lead English church. I had no idea who our speaker was, but simply planned it as if we didn't have one. July and August are very slow months for our church. We ended up with about 20 Haitian fellows, Don, Savanah, me and our other committee member (and piano player), Enoch. We have a hard time getting the Haitians to respond to the praise and prayer time. I shared all our blessings with them and asked if anyone else had any praises to share with us. At first nothing....then one man stood and praised God for being with him in a tough situation. From then on, maybe 7 or 8 stood up and shared. That was such a blessing for us. Then Enoch gave the message. What a powerful man he is. God used him to touch all those there, including us. We had a fantastic service praising God. What a great start to our return to Haiti, seeing God working and using people.
When we first arrived in Haiti, we were amazed at the progress at the airport. It's still a ways from being done, but it is really moving along at a fast pace. The director took Don and I through the whole building and explained so much. We really were amazed. And on October 5th, American Airlines will be flying in with their first flight. It is already booked solid. So, we really are moving into the 21st century.
Oh, wanted to share one more picture with you all. (I keep forgetting all the blessings we have had...and I'll probably end up sharing more later when I go through the photos we took.) This photo is another 4 generation one for our family. On our travel back to Florida to fly back, we were able to spend one night with our son, Tim. His daughter was there with her twins, so we took the opportunity to get that four generation photo. These two little ones are doing great after a hard start. Aren't babies fun? Yes, we did the twin thing, too, and it's a bit tough at times, but worth it.
Well, I'd best get back to work and start catching up on things. Three months of mail and other work to do and get caught up on. I hope to be back on here soon with some more photos and news of how things are progressing here.
Remember to keep praising God for what He does in your life. Both the big and the small. He does a whole lot more than any of us realize in our lives. Keep Jesus at the front and center of all you do. Blessings to all!!!
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Ready to travel home
Greetings again,
I realize it has taken me some time to get on here again, but please have patience with me. We thought we'd have some time for extended family and some special friends, but time has again slipped away. We have accomplished a lot and are happy about that, but have missed the fellowship and fun times we had looked forward to. We were able to spend some quality time with our kids and that was very special. And we were able to see our newest great granddaughter. Actually our only great grand DAUGHTER...we have some great grandsons, but this is the first girl. She's a special little one, for sure. So, I guess it's picture time? Here we go.... Since it downloaded in random order, I'll just note what they are.
This first one is Don with great granddaughter, Faith.
Here is our grandson in his army uniform. We are so proud of him!! Great job, Mike!!
Our daughter and her sons, Chris, Danny, Christine and Donny!!
A blessing beyond measure... Don's siblings... Sandy, Don, Yvonne and Rich
Don and his niece, Pat.... haven't seen her in many, many years... a REAL blessing!
Don's other niece, Carrie and her husband Ray. If you are ever in Hartford, WI, stop in and see their awesome Ice Cream shop... "Scoop De Ville". Again seeing Carrie was a real blessing.
This was on a firetruck in the Cranberry Festival parade. I really like eagles!!
A four generation picture... Todd, Sarah, Faith and Don
Debbie, Todd, Sarah, Faith, Don and Karen.
Now you have seen some of the blessings we have had on this trip. We sure enjoyed all of the family we were able to spend time with.
I will try to post once again before we head into Haiti, but not sure where or when we will be able. We leave Wisconsin in 3 days, and will be on the road again.
Thanks for sharing in our fun and family times. Blessing to everyone. Keep us in prayer as we travel and share prayer requests, too, as we will uplift them all!
I realize it has taken me some time to get on here again, but please have patience with me. We thought we'd have some time for extended family and some special friends, but time has again slipped away. We have accomplished a lot and are happy about that, but have missed the fellowship and fun times we had looked forward to. We were able to spend some quality time with our kids and that was very special. And we were able to see our newest great granddaughter. Actually our only great grand DAUGHTER...we have some great grandsons, but this is the first girl. She's a special little one, for sure. So, I guess it's picture time? Here we go.... Since it downloaded in random order, I'll just note what they are.
This first one is Don with great granddaughter, Faith.
I will try to post once again before we head into Haiti, but not sure where or when we will be able. We leave Wisconsin in 3 days, and will be on the road again.
Thanks for sharing in our fun and family times. Blessing to everyone. Keep us in prayer as we travel and share prayer requests, too, as we will uplift them all!
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Our time in the US
Hello again from Wisconsin. Since I just sent out an email, I'll copy that here and then add some photos with it, that didn't make it in the letter (and I'll add some comments with them).
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Hello from Wisconsin... and yes it is warming up a bit here. I think we thought that it would not warm up, but slowly it is doing it. We do miss our weather in Haiti, at least the warm part of it.
Well, we have spent over a month here and it seems to have gone so fast. We had a minimum of 3 days a week with eye doctor, doctor, tests and check-ups through this whole time. It's not quite over yet, but coming close. But it's been good to get it all over and done with and soon we'll have some of the final results. I have had both cataract surgeries done. It's a bit difficult though. Eyes are much better, but need my glasses to read and see yet. But since the surgery, it's the wrong prescription, but have to wait for the eyes to heal before getting new glasses. I'll be SO happy to get that done and be able to see clearly again. We are so very grateful for all the doctors and the fact that the Lord put Christians in our path yet again. Not looking forward to the bills and those mundane things, but know the Lord is not about to let us down in that area either.
One area that has us concerned about not being in Haiti at this time is this virus that has pretty much taken over the country. It's called Chikungunya (pronounced chick-en-gun-ye) virus. When we first heard about it, not long after we came out, they had said close to 800 cases were reported. Within a couple of weeks, that rose to over 40,000 cases. There is a site you can check it out at, it's: http://news.health.com/2014/06/20/mosquito-borne-chikungunya-virus-may-be-headed-for-u-s/ This story tells about the virus and where it has all been reported. But it doesn't specify any real news about Haiti. Our concern, and that of quite a few in Haiti, is that there are at least double what was reported, since most people don't make it to a doctor, and thus aren't reported. And in Haiti, as in some other countries, once that virus sets in, many DO die. Not from the virus itself, but because their resistance is so low, they contact other things, like pneumonia or other problems, and those things do result in death. But a lot of our concern ended up being Abbie and Savanah. Both of them contacted it. The only thing to even help with this is Tylenol. And Vero told us it was not available in country now. We had Missionary Flights send in a case of Children's Tylenol immediately. But more is needed, and the adult doses are also needed. Savanah seems to have recovered from it, but Abbie has some lingering problems. We are praying that Vero does not get it. She is so overworked already and now this added situation is sure to wear on her even more. At the last time we talked to her, the 24 children at the IDADEE orphanage had not gotten it, but the surrounding area is rampant with it. I was able to talk to our missionary friend, Belle a few days ago. Her husband has it quite bad, and two of the missionaries working with them had it too. Their orphanage, at that point, had about half of the children down with it, too. A lot of prayers needed in Haiti with dealing with this virus.
We had very few "down" days, but the few we did have were fun. Don was able to see and spend time with his younger brother and sister. We hadn't seen Richard for many, many years, so it was a blessing. His sister Sandy lives in the area so we do get to see her each year. But it's still such a blessing to be able to see those we miss. ((check the picture below))
Then for father's day, our daughter got Don flowers and a pot, so he could work with flowers again. She said when you go back to Haiti, I get the pot, because the flowers will be alive. She has the same problem I have, flowers seem to simply die on us. But Don works with them and brings them back to life again. ((check the picture below))
Now that most of our testing is done and we simply are waiting for results, we'll have some time for family and friends that we have as yet, been unable to meet with. Once our glasses arrive we can make the final plans for our return trip.
While we wait we ask that you keep the following things in prayer:
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Hello from Wisconsin... and yes it is warming up a bit here. I think we thought that it would not warm up, but slowly it is doing it. We do miss our weather in Haiti, at least the warm part of it.
Well, we have spent over a month here and it seems to have gone so fast. We had a minimum of 3 days a week with eye doctor, doctor, tests and check-ups through this whole time. It's not quite over yet, but coming close. But it's been good to get it all over and done with and soon we'll have some of the final results. I have had both cataract surgeries done. It's a bit difficult though. Eyes are much better, but need my glasses to read and see yet. But since the surgery, it's the wrong prescription, but have to wait for the eyes to heal before getting new glasses. I'll be SO happy to get that done and be able to see clearly again. We are so very grateful for all the doctors and the fact that the Lord put Christians in our path yet again. Not looking forward to the bills and those mundane things, but know the Lord is not about to let us down in that area either.
One area that has us concerned about not being in Haiti at this time is this virus that has pretty much taken over the country. It's called Chikungunya (pronounced chick-en-gun-ye) virus. When we first heard about it, not long after we came out, they had said close to 800 cases were reported. Within a couple of weeks, that rose to over 40,000 cases. There is a site you can check it out at, it's: http://news.health.com/2014/06/20/mosquito-borne-chikungunya-virus-may-be-headed-for-u-s/ This story tells about the virus and where it has all been reported. But it doesn't specify any real news about Haiti. Our concern, and that of quite a few in Haiti, is that there are at least double what was reported, since most people don't make it to a doctor, and thus aren't reported. And in Haiti, as in some other countries, once that virus sets in, many DO die. Not from the virus itself, but because their resistance is so low, they contact other things, like pneumonia or other problems, and those things do result in death. But a lot of our concern ended up being Abbie and Savanah. Both of them contacted it. The only thing to even help with this is Tylenol. And Vero told us it was not available in country now. We had Missionary Flights send in a case of Children's Tylenol immediately. But more is needed, and the adult doses are also needed. Savanah seems to have recovered from it, but Abbie has some lingering problems. We are praying that Vero does not get it. She is so overworked already and now this added situation is sure to wear on her even more. At the last time we talked to her, the 24 children at the IDADEE orphanage had not gotten it, but the surrounding area is rampant with it. I was able to talk to our missionary friend, Belle a few days ago. Her husband has it quite bad, and two of the missionaries working with them had it too. Their orphanage, at that point, had about half of the children down with it, too. A lot of prayers needed in Haiti with dealing with this virus.
We had very few "down" days, but the few we did have were fun. Don was able to see and spend time with his younger brother and sister. We hadn't seen Richard for many, many years, so it was a blessing. His sister Sandy lives in the area so we do get to see her each year. But it's still such a blessing to be able to see those we miss. ((check the picture below))
Then for father's day, our daughter got Don flowers and a pot, so he could work with flowers again. She said when you go back to Haiti, I get the pot, because the flowers will be alive. She has the same problem I have, flowers seem to simply die on us. But Don works with them and brings them back to life again. ((check the picture below))
Now that most of our testing is done and we simply are waiting for results, we'll have some time for family and friends that we have as yet, been unable to meet with. Once our glasses arrive we can make the final plans for our return trip.
While we wait we ask that you keep the following things in prayer:
- That all our tests return great and no problems.
- Pray for Vero, Abbie and Savanah as this virus continues in Haiti.
- Keep Haiti and it's government in prayer, not only because of the virus, but to start following the Lord in decisions being made for the country.
- Pray for Savanah's adoption process. We have been unable to find out what is happening at this point, but know that prayer can expedite it.
- Pray for Vero for strength and wisdom in all she is dealing with.
- Pray for our return trip.
- Pray for the Lord to go before us in the financial situation we will face with all the medical work that was done.
- Pray for America... for the leaders, the situations that are coming to light and for God to put His Hand on things and turn them to His ways.
- And pray for revival... for God's Holy Spirit to be poured out in a mighty way all over the world.
We'll
close for now, thanking you for praying and for standing with us in our
work in Haiti. Now we are praying for you, that God will open your
eyes and let you see clearly what and where you can best serve Him. May
He richly bless and be with you in all you do and in all of your
situations.
It's in HIS name we close.
These are a couple of the photos I wanted to share. The first is Don and his younger siblings. His brother, Richard and his sister, Sandy.
This one is Don with his flowers.... YES, the thing on his head is for UNDER the pot. But he had fun with it anyway.
And now, we'll simply say, Blessings from the Lord on you. May He be the center of all you do and all you are. Keep your eyes turned to him in all situations.
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
In the US for a bit...
Well, it's been a while since I have posted. But a lot has happened in that time, too. I am going to post the email I sent out yesterday, but after that, I will post some photos and more news. Please, if you have already read this, go to the later part and see some photos.
Greetings from Wisconsin... mostly chilly and at times COLD! I guess I just am not used to anything below 70 degrees. But we are adapting.
We were scheduled to come stateside today (the 20th), but things changed. I had mentioned before that I had not felt real well. Dr. Steve decided that he wanted me to come out and get checked out sooner than we had planned. So, we left on the 6th of May. Had some major problems with airline flights, so ended up driving again. This was not in the plans. But it gave us a chance to touch base with our son in Tennessee anyway. AND we were able to make our grandson's wedding here in Wisconsin, too. More on that later.
Our daughter did great on getting not only our appointments set up with doctors, but contacted Bud and Sharon and we were able to stay here at the lake house again. This is such an awesome place and such a blessing for us. We know without a doubt that they will receive some extra blessings from the Lord for their service to others. And they are a great couple, to boot.
We had both decided to do a major overhaul with doctors this time. Haven't done that in a long while. So, right now we are in the midst of a TON of tests and will find the results the first part of June. Isn't it fantastic how God works things out? AGAIN, He has put Christians in our path and we are happy that our doctors are Christians.
I will be going in for my eye doctor appointment next week, and setting up for the cataract surgery. So I was right in saying it is a complete overhaul.
We have been pretty much "running in circles" since we got here. Not only with doc appointments, but we went with a good friend, our son and his son, our daughter and her three sons to help at a food pantry. The US Postal workers in the area did a food drive for the pantry. We went the day they were delivering the food. Helped unpack, sort and restock things. It ended up being an all day thing, but we had a great time. Met some really nice people and not only worked, but enjoyed our time there. I will probably post some photos on the blog soon about that.
Then came our grandson's wedding this last weekend. My daughter and I did a couple of cakes for the rehearsal dinner. (More pics on the blog). And then the big day came. Mike and Sarah had a very simple but very beautiful wedding and reception. We really enjoyed the simplicity and beauty of it all. Now they are off to Oshkosh to live, go to college and work. Mike is in the National Guard. Their wedding was supposed to be in June, but the Guard changed their two week of service to the time of that wedding date, so it was moved to May. We thought we would miss it, but thankfully we were able to go. A great couple, but we'll miss seeing them as much as we did last year.
Our daughter's twins had a birthday this week, so it was off to another celebration with them. We had a great time there, too. All of this mixed in with doctor appointments has kept us really busy.
But, we are missing our "family" in Haiti, too. We ended up "dumping" the care of Savanah on Vero again. She has become quite the little "spitfire" and Vero has her hands full. And of course, while we are gone, things there seem to keep falling apart. Vero tries not to let us know when things go wrong, so as not to upset us. But it all comes out. Not much we can do from this end, but we can pray and try to find someone there to help her out.
We had heard that the adoption process would probably finish up quickly while we were here, but haven't heard anything on that front. It may require us to fly back to Haiti to sign papers since we are her official "parents" now. But until we hear more news, that is on the back burner. We have talked to Vero, Abbie and Savanah since we've been out, at least a couple of times. It helps ease the "missing you" part of being here. First question from Abbie, as always, is "WHEN ARE YOU COMING HOME?" She is a sweetie for sure. And Savanah, just keeps yelling, "Granma, Granpa" when we talk to her.
So, I guess I should close with some prayer requests. First on the list is prayers for Vero as she has to deal with all of our situations on top of hers, and then with Savanah. Next would be for a positive outcome on all of our tests. And last, but very definitely NOT least, is for the Lord to continue to work in us and in Haiti. We have seen some great things happening and we praise God for them. Pray that His Spirit will be poured out in a huge and miraculous way in Haiti, AND in the US, too.
So, for now, we'll close and send our love and blessings on to everyone. Remember to keep your eyes on Him and all He has done and will do in your lives. BLESSING BEYOND MEASURE!!!!
Okay, now on to some things I wanted to add.....
First, because we miss them, Savanah in her bed. We took one side off, since she climbed over and out anyway. But she still has her own bed. (But she can still reach out and find grandma when she wants.)
And then Abbie (with one of our other kiddo's babies). We miss our little ones a lot. We were supposed to be with Abbie for her 9th birthday on May 20th. We haven't been there for her birthday since she was born. But she had a good time and was happy.... just missing us, as we miss her.
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Next is a couple of pics of some of our oldest son's grandkids, our great grandkids..Three little angel boys... well, at least for the picture.
And then his latest addition, little Faith... isn't she precious? Have yet to see them since they are on the other side of the state, but he keeps us posted with pics.
Our son in Tennessee's twin grandsons. His daughter had twins. Daddy is in service and mom is a cowgirl (of sorts)... LOVED this photo of them, even if it was a few months ago. Our family keeps growing and growing... by leaps and bounds it seems.
This was our trip to help the food pantry. There is Dale and his son, Gregory (two outside guys standing up), and Christine and her 3 boys, ready to go to work. They even gave Donny a job bagging 3 packaged milk sacks in zip lock bags. Being in a wheel chair doesn't stop a heart for helping others. He sure enjoyed helping out, too. The other pictures are of everyone working, sorting, stacking and boxing the items brought in.
On to the cakes Christine and I made for the rehearsal dinner. Mike is getting his pilots license and we had to put a plane on one of the cakes.
Then came the wedding. It was so nice. And Sarah looked so lovely. Instead of using unity candles, they used the combining of sands to represent their combined life together.
And we had to get a photo of us with them, too.
This last one is one item we hadn't mentioned in the email...guess so much going on that was forgotten. Actually Peter (who came with us last year when we returned) is graduating the first part of June, but the church had their recognition day for grads and we didn't want to miss out on that. He has a great future ahead of him, serving the Lord.
Well, that is our update for now, hopefully I'll be able to add more as our time here continues for a bit yet. We just want you to remember to keep the Lord at the front and center of all you do. He IS our rock and our salvation and we need to cling to Him in all way and in all things. Blessings!!!!!
Greetings from Wisconsin... mostly chilly and at times COLD! I guess I just am not used to anything below 70 degrees. But we are adapting.
We were scheduled to come stateside today (the 20th), but things changed. I had mentioned before that I had not felt real well. Dr. Steve decided that he wanted me to come out and get checked out sooner than we had planned. So, we left on the 6th of May. Had some major problems with airline flights, so ended up driving again. This was not in the plans. But it gave us a chance to touch base with our son in Tennessee anyway. AND we were able to make our grandson's wedding here in Wisconsin, too. More on that later.
Our daughter did great on getting not only our appointments set up with doctors, but contacted Bud and Sharon and we were able to stay here at the lake house again. This is such an awesome place and such a blessing for us. We know without a doubt that they will receive some extra blessings from the Lord for their service to others. And they are a great couple, to boot.
We had both decided to do a major overhaul with doctors this time. Haven't done that in a long while. So, right now we are in the midst of a TON of tests and will find the results the first part of June. Isn't it fantastic how God works things out? AGAIN, He has put Christians in our path and we are happy that our doctors are Christians.
I will be going in for my eye doctor appointment next week, and setting up for the cataract surgery. So I was right in saying it is a complete overhaul.
We have been pretty much "running in circles" since we got here. Not only with doc appointments, but we went with a good friend, our son and his son, our daughter and her three sons to help at a food pantry. The US Postal workers in the area did a food drive for the pantry. We went the day they were delivering the food. Helped unpack, sort and restock things. It ended up being an all day thing, but we had a great time. Met some really nice people and not only worked, but enjoyed our time there. I will probably post some photos on the blog soon about that.
Then came our grandson's wedding this last weekend. My daughter and I did a couple of cakes for the rehearsal dinner. (More pics on the blog). And then the big day came. Mike and Sarah had a very simple but very beautiful wedding and reception. We really enjoyed the simplicity and beauty of it all. Now they are off to Oshkosh to live, go to college and work. Mike is in the National Guard. Their wedding was supposed to be in June, but the Guard changed their two week of service to the time of that wedding date, so it was moved to May. We thought we would miss it, but thankfully we were able to go. A great couple, but we'll miss seeing them as much as we did last year.
Our daughter's twins had a birthday this week, so it was off to another celebration with them. We had a great time there, too. All of this mixed in with doctor appointments has kept us really busy.
But, we are missing our "family" in Haiti, too. We ended up "dumping" the care of Savanah on Vero again. She has become quite the little "spitfire" and Vero has her hands full. And of course, while we are gone, things there seem to keep falling apart. Vero tries not to let us know when things go wrong, so as not to upset us. But it all comes out. Not much we can do from this end, but we can pray and try to find someone there to help her out.
We had heard that the adoption process would probably finish up quickly while we were here, but haven't heard anything on that front. It may require us to fly back to Haiti to sign papers since we are her official "parents" now. But until we hear more news, that is on the back burner. We have talked to Vero, Abbie and Savanah since we've been out, at least a couple of times. It helps ease the "missing you" part of being here. First question from Abbie, as always, is "WHEN ARE YOU COMING HOME?" She is a sweetie for sure. And Savanah, just keeps yelling, "Granma, Granpa" when we talk to her.
So, I guess I should close with some prayer requests. First on the list is prayers for Vero as she has to deal with all of our situations on top of hers, and then with Savanah. Next would be for a positive outcome on all of our tests. And last, but very definitely NOT least, is for the Lord to continue to work in us and in Haiti. We have seen some great things happening and we praise God for them. Pray that His Spirit will be poured out in a huge and miraculous way in Haiti, AND in the US, too.
So, for now, we'll close and send our love and blessings on to everyone. Remember to keep your eyes on Him and all He has done and will do in your lives. BLESSING BEYOND MEASURE!!!!
Okay, now on to some things I wanted to add.....
First, because we miss them, Savanah in her bed. We took one side off, since she climbed over and out anyway. But she still has her own bed. (But she can still reach out and find grandma when she wants.)
This was our trip to help the food pantry. There is Dale and his son, Gregory (two outside guys standing up), and Christine and her 3 boys, ready to go to work. They even gave Donny a job bagging 3 packaged milk sacks in zip lock bags. Being in a wheel chair doesn't stop a heart for helping others. He sure enjoyed helping out, too. The other pictures are of everyone working, sorting, stacking and boxing the items brought in.
This last one is one item we hadn't mentioned in the email...guess so much going on that was forgotten. Actually Peter (who came with us last year when we returned) is graduating the first part of June, but the church had their recognition day for grads and we didn't want to miss out on that. He has a great future ahead of him, serving the Lord.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Easter and Rains
Greetings, and we pray your Easter was a fantastic time of remembering not only what the Lord Jesus Christ did for YOU, but what He has given to us, through His suffering, death and resurrection!!! He has passed on to us the power over satan and the right to claim victory is all of our circumstances. That does not mean we will not have problems or trials. It means we have the Lord standing with us through each and every one of them and He will help and guide us if we only ask Him.
We had a great Sunrise (SONrise) service. I had spent a couple of days really not doing well, and I prayed the Lord would touch me so I could go to the service, for a couple of reasons. I enjoy those services, but I was also supposed to LEAD the service this year. And, an added blessing, we were to have the mime presented. But let me back up here a moment.
Our American doctor here feels I have a pinched nerve in the lower back. (This added to the pinched nerves in C2 and C5). The fun never ceases. But again, the Lord is in control. The C2 and C5 problem was taken care of by a physical therapist who had been here. He gave me exercises to alleviate the problem when it erupts, and they work wonderful. Then this problem arose and I have been given some advice from the doc on helping that. God sent the right people at the right time. Well, almost. I had not called the doc here when I felt so bad. I hated to call when he is so ultra busy with some real situations here. But the Lord worked it out first.... I felt better by Saturday evening, and by Sunday morning at 5 AM, I felt I could go.
Don had to take all the benches we have plus a lot of the chairs over to the school next door. He did that, with a little help. We were finally set up and ready to go. I do have to back up once again. On Saturday, our good friend, Belle, came to visit. She stepped in and was willing to take my place leading if I couldn't make it. But she also came and was willing to make the food I had planned to prepare. We have a breakfast right after service, and everyone is to bring a dish to share. Those of us on the committee for English Bible Fellowship (EBF) always end up making a lot of things, since some of the Haitians who come don't have the ability to bring anything. Belle was a real blessing to us with her willingness to step in and help out.
I didn't use most of the traditional Easter songs, but used some of the contemporary ones. And we had two soloists who also helped out. Now on to the mime.... One of our former puppeteers (Daniel) had decided to revive the mime they had done. He recruited 5 young adults from the orphanage to do it. They had come here to the house to do it for us the week before. We were very impressed. And they asked us to help them get it right and work with them on it. Well, they did it Easter morning for EBF. They did an awesome job and many were impressed. (I had 2 people come and tell me they had tears by the time it was finished). That was such a blessing for us to see it again. Once service was over, I realized I had expended much more energy than I thought. I had a glass of juice, then looked for Don to head home. Doc came over after the breakfast and gave me some pointers on how to overcome that pain. See, the Lord puts those we need right where we need them, doesn't He??
I am now up and back to work...well, going a little slower, but still getting things done. I really praise the Lord for being what I need, when I need it.
Again, I want to back up and fill in some gaps I left. The day I got sick, Don had to stop working on Vero's house to watch Savanah. Then he discovered a huge puddle in the yard... and knew we had a water problem. Come to find out, our water line had broken between our house and the dorm. (A huge tree root was the culprit). Two of the fellows Don used to hire to work for him came seeing if he could help them with some food. So (again the Lord sent help) Don hired them to help fix that problem. It not only saved Don all the work, it saved the pride of those men, since they could work and provide for their families.
Since Sunday, Don has started working on Vero's place again. He now has all the electrical outlets and switches in, and once Cequer (one of our helpers) finishes the cupboards, they can do the tile and Vero and Abbie will be able to move into their home. Yesterday I helped Don get the last of the screening up on the windows out there. Abbie is so excited to be able to see the progress. She wants to move in NOW. Vero doesn't say much but when she found out the screens were all up and the electric about done, she was happy. It's been a long time coming.
We have had a lot of rain lately. We praise God it has overcome the drought we had. Things are looking so nice and green. Now we are praying it levels out and doesn't over do. Like I mentioned before, it's either feast or famine. But we are very happy with the rains, as the wells all over are now back to normal.
So, I close with some prayer requests. First and foremost on our list is Savanah's adoption. Pastor Cebien is working so hard to get it done. Pray for him as he puts his time and energy into getting it all accomplished. And pray for his ministry as well. He has over 200 churches now, and he helps them all in any way the Lord provides. He is not a preacher only, he works with the men when they build buildings and schools. He does not hold with the feelings, that many Haitian pastors have, that once you are a preacher, you don't do any physical work. He works as hard, and sometimes harder, then the men laying cement and blocks.
Next pray for the country of Haiti, that the Lord will move mightily in a very obvious way to bring unbelievers to Him. Pray that he opens the minds and hearts of some of the "pastors" who are only in it for the money. Pray that His word will go out and lives will be changed. I guess we need to pray the same way for America. When we pray with pastor Cebien, he ALWAYS prays for America and the pastors there, along with Haiti.
Pray for Don and I to accomplish what the Lord sets before us. Pray that we will have open hearts and minds to do what He wills.
We will be praying for all of you, too. We pray the Lord will walk before you and guide and direct you in ways you don't expect. We pray He will be all that you need in every situation. We pray God's abundant blessings on you as you walk with Him and do His work.
We had a great Sunrise (SONrise) service. I had spent a couple of days really not doing well, and I prayed the Lord would touch me so I could go to the service, for a couple of reasons. I enjoy those services, but I was also supposed to LEAD the service this year. And, an added blessing, we were to have the mime presented. But let me back up here a moment.
Our American doctor here feels I have a pinched nerve in the lower back. (This added to the pinched nerves in C2 and C5). The fun never ceases. But again, the Lord is in control. The C2 and C5 problem was taken care of by a physical therapist who had been here. He gave me exercises to alleviate the problem when it erupts, and they work wonderful. Then this problem arose and I have been given some advice from the doc on helping that. God sent the right people at the right time. Well, almost. I had not called the doc here when I felt so bad. I hated to call when he is so ultra busy with some real situations here. But the Lord worked it out first.... I felt better by Saturday evening, and by Sunday morning at 5 AM, I felt I could go.
Don had to take all the benches we have plus a lot of the chairs over to the school next door. He did that, with a little help. We were finally set up and ready to go. I do have to back up once again. On Saturday, our good friend, Belle, came to visit. She stepped in and was willing to take my place leading if I couldn't make it. But she also came and was willing to make the food I had planned to prepare. We have a breakfast right after service, and everyone is to bring a dish to share. Those of us on the committee for English Bible Fellowship (EBF) always end up making a lot of things, since some of the Haitians who come don't have the ability to bring anything. Belle was a real blessing to us with her willingness to step in and help out.
I didn't use most of the traditional Easter songs, but used some of the contemporary ones. And we had two soloists who also helped out. Now on to the mime.... One of our former puppeteers (Daniel) had decided to revive the mime they had done. He recruited 5 young adults from the orphanage to do it. They had come here to the house to do it for us the week before. We were very impressed. And they asked us to help them get it right and work with them on it. Well, they did it Easter morning for EBF. They did an awesome job and many were impressed. (I had 2 people come and tell me they had tears by the time it was finished). That was such a blessing for us to see it again. Once service was over, I realized I had expended much more energy than I thought. I had a glass of juice, then looked for Don to head home. Doc came over after the breakfast and gave me some pointers on how to overcome that pain. See, the Lord puts those we need right where we need them, doesn't He??
I am now up and back to work...well, going a little slower, but still getting things done. I really praise the Lord for being what I need, when I need it.
Again, I want to back up and fill in some gaps I left. The day I got sick, Don had to stop working on Vero's house to watch Savanah. Then he discovered a huge puddle in the yard... and knew we had a water problem. Come to find out, our water line had broken between our house and the dorm. (A huge tree root was the culprit). Two of the fellows Don used to hire to work for him came seeing if he could help them with some food. So (again the Lord sent help) Don hired them to help fix that problem. It not only saved Don all the work, it saved the pride of those men, since they could work and provide for their families.
Since Sunday, Don has started working on Vero's place again. He now has all the electrical outlets and switches in, and once Cequer (one of our helpers) finishes the cupboards, they can do the tile and Vero and Abbie will be able to move into their home. Yesterday I helped Don get the last of the screening up on the windows out there. Abbie is so excited to be able to see the progress. She wants to move in NOW. Vero doesn't say much but when she found out the screens were all up and the electric about done, she was happy. It's been a long time coming.
We have had a lot of rain lately. We praise God it has overcome the drought we had. Things are looking so nice and green. Now we are praying it levels out and doesn't over do. Like I mentioned before, it's either feast or famine. But we are very happy with the rains, as the wells all over are now back to normal.
So, I close with some prayer requests. First and foremost on our list is Savanah's adoption. Pastor Cebien is working so hard to get it done. Pray for him as he puts his time and energy into getting it all accomplished. And pray for his ministry as well. He has over 200 churches now, and he helps them all in any way the Lord provides. He is not a preacher only, he works with the men when they build buildings and schools. He does not hold with the feelings, that many Haitian pastors have, that once you are a preacher, you don't do any physical work. He works as hard, and sometimes harder, then the men laying cement and blocks.
Next pray for the country of Haiti, that the Lord will move mightily in a very obvious way to bring unbelievers to Him. Pray that he opens the minds and hearts of some of the "pastors" who are only in it for the money. Pray that His word will go out and lives will be changed. I guess we need to pray the same way for America. When we pray with pastor Cebien, he ALWAYS prays for America and the pastors there, along with Haiti.
Pray for Don and I to accomplish what the Lord sets before us. Pray that we will have open hearts and minds to do what He wills.
We will be praying for all of you, too. We pray the Lord will walk before you and guide and direct you in ways you don't expect. We pray He will be all that you need in every situation. We pray God's abundant blessings on you as you walk with Him and do His work.
Friday, April 11, 2014
We have missed spring
Greetings again from Haiti!
I think we have missed spring and gone totally into summer. We have lots of HEAT and HUMIDITY right now. But we are also into praising God for the rains He has sent. We are excited that the heavy drought has ended and things are now growing again!
I decided to send out some pictures again, since the Lord has arranged for our internet to work. I was shocked when I tried, once again, to get on with my laptop... and it worked!!!! I have not gotten on the internet with this computer since last September. God is working wonders and it's all in answer to prayers! Thank you so much for those prayers!
So, as the photos come up, I'll describe them to you all!! First of all, one of our former puppet team members was married this last weekend. Our good friend, Carolyn, from Florida, came and did the flowers. We had a great week with her. She also brought along some dresses which were donated from a gal in West Palm Beach. Savanah received one of them and it was so pretty. Abbie was the flower girl and got to dress up and be a "princess" for a day.
This is Belfort after the wedding, along with the Maren (Godmother), his new wife, and Stan, the Paren (Godfather). Loved the very vivid colors!!
The cake was also awesome... made by another orphan from the same orphanage Belfort had been in. She did such a great job and is so talented!!!
Belfort was the director of the church choir. They sang at the wedding and he directed them. Then he grabbed his saxophone and joined the band he is in (who play for funerals and other events). We were amazed at the fantastic music they created. The whole wedding was really wonderful, and we so enjoyed it.
Savanah decided to help grandpa do some work. He had an extra set of glasses to help with close work. She simply put them on, so she would work with him.
Don has been working on Vero's house, hauling sand a gravel, and working at the airport, so he has been extra busy these last weeks.
I've been busy keeping track of this very, very active 2 year old. Each day she seems to find more and more things to get into. She is doing so many things our twins did when they were her size... not a fun time for me!! I'm using a lot of Greased Lightening now, to get rid of all the pen drawings she has created all over the house. Including my good chair, the walls, books and her belly!! Maybe she'll be an artist? Who knows. An added note... please keep praying for the adoption process to be finalized. Pastor Cebien said he had to have 4 meetings, and has already completed 3 of those. Need some heavy prayers to get this completed.
I have also started working with another group from the orphanage who are resurrecting the mime our former puppet team did. It is awesome and has touched so many people. Now we pray these young adults will have the same impact when they do it for others.
I will close for now and try to get some work done while I have internet. We have so much to be thankful for and we continue to praise the Lord for all He is doing. We also pray you are walking with Him and doing what He directs you to do. May your walk with Him be fulfilling and fantastic!! And may you always keep your hand in His in all things you do!
I think we have missed spring and gone totally into summer. We have lots of HEAT and HUMIDITY right now. But we are also into praising God for the rains He has sent. We are excited that the heavy drought has ended and things are now growing again!
I decided to send out some pictures again, since the Lord has arranged for our internet to work. I was shocked when I tried, once again, to get on with my laptop... and it worked!!!! I have not gotten on the internet with this computer since last September. God is working wonders and it's all in answer to prayers! Thank you so much for those prayers!
So, as the photos come up, I'll describe them to you all!! First of all, one of our former puppet team members was married this last weekend. Our good friend, Carolyn, from Florida, came and did the flowers. We had a great week with her. She also brought along some dresses which were donated from a gal in West Palm Beach. Savanah received one of them and it was so pretty. Abbie was the flower girl and got to dress up and be a "princess" for a day.
Savanah decided to help grandpa do some work. He had an extra set of glasses to help with close work. She simply put them on, so she would work with him.
I've been busy keeping track of this very, very active 2 year old. Each day she seems to find more and more things to get into. She is doing so many things our twins did when they were her size... not a fun time for me!! I'm using a lot of Greased Lightening now, to get rid of all the pen drawings she has created all over the house. Including my good chair, the walls, books and her belly!! Maybe she'll be an artist? Who knows. An added note... please keep praying for the adoption process to be finalized. Pastor Cebien said he had to have 4 meetings, and has already completed 3 of those. Need some heavy prayers to get this completed.
I have also started working with another group from the orphanage who are resurrecting the mime our former puppet team did. It is awesome and has touched so many people. Now we pray these young adults will have the same impact when they do it for others.
I will close for now and try to get some work done while I have internet. We have so much to be thankful for and we continue to praise the Lord for all He is doing. We also pray you are walking with Him and doing what He directs you to do. May your walk with Him be fulfilling and fantastic!! And may you always keep your hand in His in all things you do!
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