April 2022
“Parting is such sweet sorrow..." Well, we certainly found it hard to leave the work in the Dominican Republic but the prospect of seeing precious friends and family in the States made it bearable.
And what a scramble to leave! How is it that even the best-laid plans and schedules blow up at the last minute? Despite complications, we completed the final sessions of our last two discipleship groups (mostly without power in the Haitian church!!!), dispersed all our belongings to various missions, and said many tearful goodbyes.
One exciting last-minute opportunity came through a local group working with an elementary school whose children desperately needed food. We visited the school, which is administered by a Christian principal, and with the help of Restoration Ranch, were able to distribute food packs to these children, and will do so again next month. What a blessing to again find servants already working for the Kingdom with whom to partner to multiply our efforts!
Our Nicaraguan missionary partner, Jaime Blandon, and Emily Stader, our young “translator extraordinaire,” will begin a new discipleship training on April 28 in another Haitian church. In the meantime, Jaime had been working and praying with a Haitian group to purchase land on which to build a chapel and bible institute, a dream God has recently and miraculously begun to bring to fruition. These missionaries aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty and work side by side with the members to build the church, pastor’s home, and institute. How amazing is God! How thrilling to see this project take shape to further the Kingdom!
In the war-torn and impoverished country of Myanmar, life continues to be extraordinarily difficult, but God consistently provides. The rescue home in the mountains near Tachileik has built kind of a dining room to keep the kids off the ground and out of the rain while eating and are expanding their very successful hen house. They reported the first three roosters had gone into the pot this week, a much-anticipated event. COVID and military restrictions have forced these industrious and resilient pastors to become more and more food self-sufficient, planting gardens, raising fish, and keeping chickens for eggs and meat. Not content with teaching the 43 rescued children, this pastor is teaching a nearby village’s children, as ALL schools are closed.
On the Thai side, the discipleship team with whom we partner has expanded their school for Burmese immigrants from 7 to 70, and God has provided a new location to house the missionaries and teach the children, which they are joyfully cleaning, repairing, and painting. We’re excited to get our Thai visas to be able to go work with and encourage them!
I’ll admit it was hard to say goodbye to my cherished chickens and chicks, although I didn’t suffer too many pangs leaving the roosters (!) Several hens had obligingly produced their chicks on schedule so I could admire them before we left, but one mama with a huge clutch did not: clearly, one or the other of us can’t count. We left bags of food and pages of helpful instructions and careful observations for the landlord, although I have a feeling all will be ignored. Sigh. It does seem strange not to be serenaded at 4:15 AM!
Here in the States, we’ve felt God’s blessing and protection from the moment we landed on a weekend when more than 1500 flights in and out of Tampa were canceled due to storms and technological glitches. We were able to meet briefly with dear ministry partners in Dallas, get the “all-clear” from our doctors’ to continue apace, and fly to California for a blissful weekend with 2/3 of our kids! This was a “sweet” part, indeed! From here, God willing, we’ll visit more family and friends, attend Liz’s graduation ceremony, visit our church, and head to South Africa and then Thailand (still pray for that visa…it’s looking good, but it’s not a done deal yet.) Traveling always reminds me of one of God’s most precious names; Jehovah Shammah…The Lord is There. Whether in the DR, in Thailand, in Myanmar, in the States, in Africa…our Lord is There leading, protecting, and providing for us. How wonderful we are never alone!
As always, we thank you for your unique part in our ministry; your friendship, your love, your mentorship, your advice, your support, and your encouragement.
“And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7