November 2022 Update
“Christmas Thanksgiving is coming, the geese are getting fat!”
Eleven weeks post open heart surgery, Peter empathizes with “force-fed” geese, given his dietary regime of high protein (220 grams per day) and low carbohydrates (under 100 grams). This protocol and the healing of the Lord are helping him regain his strength amazingly well; I even signed him up for the Y’s Thanksgiving Turkey Trot Fun Run (although to be perfectly candid, he’s a teensy bit reluctant...but he’ll come around). Pictures will be forthcoming, I promise! We found this pig’s head at Walmart, making us quite homesick for Thailand, where the pigs' heads are fresh and saran wrap doesn’t exist!
Since Peter is past the prescribed 10 weeks of sternal precautions (up until then he had to function as a Tyrannosaurus Rex with useless arms), his cardiac rehab now embraces upper body exercises…a whole new category of exertion! This includes carrying in the groceries, doing the laundry, and other chores I’ve thoughtfully devised to help speed his recovery!
And Christmas IS coming…at a furious pace…as we help plan Christmas evangelism efforts with our teams in Northern Thailand and over the border in that country-that-must-not-be-named. Consistently, these pastors focus not only on the children in their care but on spreading the Word to their neighbors. As we have for the past two years, with food expensive because of COVID and the civil war, we're concentrating our available funds on extra food. It is an enormous boon, particularly now as roving bands of soldiers periodically strip villagers of what little rice and freshwater they have. In Thailand, the school in MaeSai for Burmese immigrant children is currently packaging up rice, oil, and canned fish to be sent home to the children's families at Christmas; a sign of the Lord’s love for all who labor and are heavy burdened. Despite rising costs, US money still goes a L-O-N-G way, buying a remarkable amount of rice; we have personally witnessed miracles where wholesale rice dealers, upon hearing what we’re doing, have given us unheard-of discounts, even doubling our orders. The Lord is still active in feeding His children! Thanks to our partnership with a missionary friend in Chiang Mai, who is publishing Christmas gospel coloring books in several Asian languages, each child will also receive a new gospel coloring book in Burmese, to be taken home and shared with the whole family.
We ask you to join us in prayer over the following concerns:
1) Our Northern Thailand Immigrant Learning Center (servicing Burmese immigrant children) is currently under attack by their neighbor who complains of the "noise” emanating from the 100 children (!). I’ve witnessed and highly approve of the active, engaging, joyful, participatory…and yes, noisy…instruction where kids are busily running from courtyard corner to corner to learn their colors and letters. This active learning process “disturbs” the neighbor, who prefers to sleep off his nightly carousing, and he has threatened to kill our missionaries should they call the police again. The prevailing police attitude is, “There wouldn’t be this problem if you (foreign) missionaries and (foreign) children weren’t here.” Please pray for safety, coverage, God’s favor, and the winning of this man to the Lord through whatever means are necessary.
2) Our over-the-border Children’s Rescue Home pastor is still praying to relocate to a city or town that has internet so her older children can avail themselves of online learning. Being so far away from civilization means the pastor sacrificed online access for safety but the educational responsibility of teaching them all without sufficient teachers is proving to be too burdensome. Please pray for a buyer for the existing compound which will enable the move.
3) Our Dominican pastors, Jaime and Jackie desperately need rest; Jaime has spent 22 days in Nicaragua on missions while Jackie completed discipleship training for a Haitian church, and Jaime returning to the DR to hard labor to finish building a Haitian church with a missionary team from Wisconsin. These two workhorses for the Lord need a season of His perfect rest and peace.
4) We are currently among old friends in Goldsboro at our sending church, hearing “the sounds of freedom” daily (and often nightly); F15s taking off and landing only minutes from where we’re staying. We love it! Peter will preach on Discipleship on Sunday; we pray he can convey his passion for the Great Commission in a way that relates to everyone.
5) We return to Dallas in late November for a few more “tune-ups;” cataracts and arthroscopic knee surgery…after which time, God willing, we should be good to go! As Peter says, he feels like a rebuilt Ford truck...good for another 100,000 miles!
As we contemplate this Thanksgiving season and everything for which we are grateful…well, it’s nothing short of mind-boggling! Friends and family are high on that gratitude list, all of you who support us with your friendship, care, prayers, finances, phone calls, and encouragement. We are deeply grateful for each and every one of you.
Much love,
“Let them give thanks to the LORD for His unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.” Psalm 107:8-9