Today was a day blessed by the Lord! We spent the day with a large ecclectic group of people who've made their way to Costa Rica in many different ways and over many different years and for many different periods of time. It was really great getting to know some new people and seeing the kids make new friends as well. The food was GOOD! Let me say that again...The food WAS GOOD!!!!!!
Then later in the afternoon we were able to reunite with some friends at their home not too far from us. They are hosting a team this week and some dear friends of ours are on the team. Good desserts were enjoyed there!
It was just a blessed day and we are thankful to the Lord for all who we were able to share the day with.
I'd like to ask you to pray for our friends Mike and Sharon Druley today. I received word that Sharon was kept overnight in the hospital last night due to some issues she is having. Please pray for these dear friends of ours. Please pray for Mike as he is nearing the final stages of his battle with cancer. Pray for their adult children as they try to provide the strength their parents need in this time.
Just a glimpse into our lives following JESUS as He leads us to serve Him in the nations. Thanks for stopping by!
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
cookies...pilgrims...and Plymoth Rock
This morning I was overwhelmed with thankfullness for all God has done over the years and even in just months in our hearts and in our family. Sometimes life here gets overwhelming in so many aspects. Matt and I are going through Ephesians with Pastor Phil and it has rocked me the way God has blessed us who love him and obey him and put our faith in His Son. this morning God specifically spoke to me through Ephesians about being thankful and lead me to Psalms 136.
Thanksgiving to God for His Enduring Mercy (some versions say 'love')
1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!
For His mercy endures forever.
3 Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!
For His mercy endures forever:
4 To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His mercy endures forever;
5 To Him who by wisdom made the heavens,
For His mercy endures forever;
6 To Him who laid out the earth above the waters,
For His mercy endures forever;
7 To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever—
8 The sun to rule by day,
For His mercy endures forever;
9 The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His mercy endures forever.
10 To Him who struck Egypt in their firstborn,
For His mercy endures forever;
11 And brought out Israel from among them,
For His mercy endures forever;
12 With a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm,
For His mercy endures forever;
13 To Him who divided the Red Sea in two,
For His mercy endures forever;
14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His mercy endures forever;
15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea,
For His mercy endures forever;
16 To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His mercy endures forever;
17 To Him who struck down great kings,
For His mercy endures forever;
18 And slew famous kings,
For His mercy endures forever—
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
For His mercy endures forever;
20 And Og king of Bashan,
For His mercy endures forever—
21 And gave their land as a heritage,
For His mercy endures forever;
22 A heritage to Israel His servant,
For His mercy endures forever.
23 Who remembered us in our lowly state,
For His mercy endures forever;
24 And rescued us from our enemies,
For His mercy endures forever;
25 Who gives food to all flesh,
For His mercy endures forever.
26 Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven!
For His mercy endures forever.
This scripture has captivated me today...his mercy and love endure forever...I am thankful that even though I was feeling a little sad about Thanksgiving, we recieved an invitation last week and then, God in his goodness, allowed us another invitation so we now have two places to go! God is so good!
We finished the cookies today, got them all cut out and baked. They will be iced the day of by the kiddos :) It was fun and cutting out has gotten so much over easier as they get older :)
We studied the first Thanksgiving and learned some facts about the Pilgrims and Indians today. The kids were enthralled. Good stuff.
And here's a few jokes for ya to get you in the holiday mood...
What kind of key has legs but cannot open any doors? (a turkey) hahahaha
Can a turkey jump higher than the Empire State Building? (Yes, of course, the Empire State Building cannot jump at all!)
and finally...
What kind of music did the pilgrims enjoy? (Plymoth Rock)
That's all folks....
(still no picture button...any other bloggers experiencing the same thing?)
Thanksgiving to God for His Enduring Mercy (some versions say 'love')
1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Oh, give thanks to the God of gods!
For His mercy endures forever.
3 Oh, give thanks to the Lord of lords!
For His mercy endures forever:
4 To Him who alone does great wonders,
For His mercy endures forever;
5 To Him who by wisdom made the heavens,
For His mercy endures forever;
6 To Him who laid out the earth above the waters,
For His mercy endures forever;
7 To Him who made great lights,
For His mercy endures forever—
8 The sun to rule by day,
For His mercy endures forever;
9 The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His mercy endures forever.
10 To Him who struck Egypt in their firstborn,
For His mercy endures forever;
11 And brought out Israel from among them,
For His mercy endures forever;
12 With a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm,
For His mercy endures forever;
13 To Him who divided the Red Sea in two,
For His mercy endures forever;
14 And made Israel pass through the midst of it,
For His mercy endures forever;
15 But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea,
For His mercy endures forever;
16 To Him who led His people through the wilderness,
For His mercy endures forever;
17 To Him who struck down great kings,
For His mercy endures forever;
18 And slew famous kings,
For His mercy endures forever—
19 Sihon king of the Amorites,
For His mercy endures forever;
20 And Og king of Bashan,
For His mercy endures forever—
21 And gave their land as a heritage,
For His mercy endures forever;
22 A heritage to Israel His servant,
For His mercy endures forever.
23 Who remembered us in our lowly state,
For His mercy endures forever;
24 And rescued us from our enemies,
For His mercy endures forever;
25 Who gives food to all flesh,
For His mercy endures forever.
26 Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven!
For His mercy endures forever.
This scripture has captivated me today...his mercy and love endure forever...I am thankful that even though I was feeling a little sad about Thanksgiving, we recieved an invitation last week and then, God in his goodness, allowed us another invitation so we now have two places to go! God is so good!
We finished the cookies today, got them all cut out and baked. They will be iced the day of by the kiddos :) It was fun and cutting out has gotten so much over easier as they get older :)
We studied the first Thanksgiving and learned some facts about the Pilgrims and Indians today. The kids were enthralled. Good stuff.
And here's a few jokes for ya to get you in the holiday mood...
What kind of key has legs but cannot open any doors? (a turkey) hahahaha
Can a turkey jump higher than the Empire State Building? (Yes, of course, the Empire State Building cannot jump at all!)
and finally...
What kind of music did the pilgrims enjoy? (Plymoth Rock)
That's all folks....
(still no picture button...any other bloggers experiencing the same thing?)
Monday, November 22, 2010
Thanksgiving, Christmas tree, and making cut-out cookies
This weekend we put up our Christmas tree and Christmas lights in the house. I was reminded of years past as we got out the ornaments we found this past summer back in IN that we thought had been long gone in a garage sale before we moved, but had actually been stored at my brother's :) Years of memories flooded back and I was reminded of all God has done in our family over the years. We shared a great few hours of getting the lights on the tree and putting up the ornaments and then Matt and the kids putting up lights outside.
We were invited to share Thanksgiving with several families in the surrounding areas late last week and so that got me into Thanksgiving mode (I had not been up until that point...I had been actually really missing home and family and wondering what we were going to do on that day, so I was thankful for the invitation) and I began planning to make cut-out cookies using Grandma Adair's recipe. Today, we began the process- and it is a process. Every time we make them (which is at least twice a year for Thanksgiving and Christmas), I tell the kids the story of my Gran teaching me to make them and how the recipe was her mom's (Ging-ging's grandma) and how I used to make them with Aunt Sandy and how Andrew and Tanner made them also...and how each step of the process goes. It is a long process and the dough must be cooled before rolling them out so it literally is an all day process. We sifted the dry ingredients and then began the process of cutting in the shortening, which took longer than normal this time (I used a different brand and it must be a little more oily or something because I had to add extra flour. We got redy to add the liquid ingredients and when we got to the vanilla the girls were excited. I opened the cap and they smelled it and oohed and aahhed at the smell. Then I poured it into the teaspoon and they both gave me this confused expression. "It doesn't look like vanilla," they said. "It looks like chocolate!" Hahaha! Ya know, vanilla should be white, right? Like ice cream? :)
When I was explaining that we were making cookies for Thanksgiving dinner, Audrey asked about Thanksgiving. "What is it, Mom?" I love the opportunity to teach my children and share about history.
I've been pondering the traditions of Thanksgiving this week. I love the smell of pumpkin pie, the turkey, of course, and other good comfort foods. BUt is that what the meaning of thanksgiving is all about? Food? For me, it has changed over the last few years, not having access to these foods or been able to purchase it because of the cost here. The meaning of Thanksgiving has drastically changed for me.
What does Thanksgiving mean to you?
What Thanksgiving traditions do you keep in your family?
We were invited to share Thanksgiving with several families in the surrounding areas late last week and so that got me into Thanksgiving mode (I had not been up until that point...I had been actually really missing home and family and wondering what we were going to do on that day, so I was thankful for the invitation) and I began planning to make cut-out cookies using Grandma Adair's recipe. Today, we began the process- and it is a process. Every time we make them (which is at least twice a year for Thanksgiving and Christmas), I tell the kids the story of my Gran teaching me to make them and how the recipe was her mom's (Ging-ging's grandma) and how I used to make them with Aunt Sandy and how Andrew and Tanner made them also...and how each step of the process goes. It is a long process and the dough must be cooled before rolling them out so it literally is an all day process. We sifted the dry ingredients and then began the process of cutting in the shortening, which took longer than normal this time (I used a different brand and it must be a little more oily or something because I had to add extra flour. We got redy to add the liquid ingredients and when we got to the vanilla the girls were excited. I opened the cap and they smelled it and oohed and aahhed at the smell. Then I poured it into the teaspoon and they both gave me this confused expression. "It doesn't look like vanilla," they said. "It looks like chocolate!" Hahaha! Ya know, vanilla should be white, right? Like ice cream? :)
When I was explaining that we were making cookies for Thanksgiving dinner, Audrey asked about Thanksgiving. "What is it, Mom?" I love the opportunity to teach my children and share about history.
I've been pondering the traditions of Thanksgiving this week. I love the smell of pumpkin pie, the turkey, of course, and other good comfort foods. BUt is that what the meaning of thanksgiving is all about? Food? For me, it has changed over the last few years, not having access to these foods or been able to purchase it because of the cost here. The meaning of Thanksgiving has drastically changed for me.
What does Thanksgiving mean to you?
What Thanksgiving traditions do you keep in your family?
posting pictures
I have been wanting to post several pictures, but have been unable to post them because my little picture posting icon has disappeared...I have not had the time to go deep into trying to figure out where it went...so sorry for the delay in posting pics...hopefully it will re-appear soon and I can post pics...
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Way behind...
I am so behind on posting and I must say I am sorry. We've been pretty busy lately and I have not had much time on the computer to blog...
Last weekend I had the privelege to be with 20 other women from Calvary Chapel church on the first ever women's retreat. We drove about 6 hours to La Fortuna near the base of Volcan Arenal. It was a beautiful drive (but there were some major fear-conquering battles going on for me as we crossed more bridges than I care to remember and some passages where the road had been washed out and there was barely enough room for one car to pass...) and we would our way all the way around Lake Arenal. The retreat them was Waiting to go Home and the teaching was so amazing. It was so awesome to see the friendships of the women go deeper in just a few days away from all the hustle and bustle of life and to break through some of the walls we as women sometimes put up. God is so good and the Holy Spirit really worked in the lives of the women present, including me! My roomates and I had some great girl talks, we ate tasty food all weekend, went to the hot springs which were AMAZING!!!!!, had natural mud facials (see pics here ), worshipped and praised Jesus, and got deep into God's word. The Holy Spirit in so many ways and it was such a joy to see him work in the hearts of the ladies. Praise Jesus with me for a great opportunity to minister to these ladies. Thank God for those that gave so these ladies could experience time away from their daily lives to meet with God and study his word.
We also had a great visit with our friends Steve and Kathy Glover and their daughter Ashley. They were able to see a little bit of PFK's, hang with matt and the kids while I was gone on the retreat, worship with us at Calvary Chapel and meet our church family here, and then we shared their last day here together. It was really great to get to know Ashley better and to see her bond with our kids, especially Audrey. Steve and Ethan had an adventure exploring the rocks on Playa Hermosa as did Ashley and Audrey. We had fun in the pool at their hotel as well. It is always such an encouragement to us to have visitors and we are so very thankful for those of who who have come to visit us. THANK YOU!!! And PLEASE come again!!! :) Unfortunately, I did not get any shots of us together...I don't know why??? So, hopefully I can get some soon through email and post them :)
Last night was the first night of home fellowship groups for Calvary Chapel. Three different groups started in three different barrios. We had almost 25 neighbors here last night, some from the church, some parents of kids we have in PFK that are not in the church, some who just need fellowship with other believers. It was a sweet time of study in God's word, sweet fellowship, and good food. It reminded me of our time of home fellowship before leaving for the field. Pray for those who came last night in our neighborhood and in the other groups as well. Pray for those who have not yet given their lives to the Lord. Pray for those who have not been active in the church to be obedient to Jesus and become active part of the body of Christ in the local church. We began a study on Who is Jesus Christ.
For some reason the button to attach pictures is not showing up for me today, so I cannot post any pics right now...sorry about that...
Last weekend I had the privelege to be with 20 other women from Calvary Chapel church on the first ever women's retreat. We drove about 6 hours to La Fortuna near the base of Volcan Arenal. It was a beautiful drive (but there were some major fear-conquering battles going on for me as we crossed more bridges than I care to remember and some passages where the road had been washed out and there was barely enough room for one car to pass...) and we would our way all the way around Lake Arenal. The retreat them was Waiting to go Home and the teaching was so amazing. It was so awesome to see the friendships of the women go deeper in just a few days away from all the hustle and bustle of life and to break through some of the walls we as women sometimes put up. God is so good and the Holy Spirit really worked in the lives of the women present, including me! My roomates and I had some great girl talks, we ate tasty food all weekend, went to the hot springs which were AMAZING!!!!!, had natural mud facials (see pics here ), worshipped and praised Jesus, and got deep into God's word. The Holy Spirit in so many ways and it was such a joy to see him work in the hearts of the ladies. Praise Jesus with me for a great opportunity to minister to these ladies. Thank God for those that gave so these ladies could experience time away from their daily lives to meet with God and study his word.
We also had a great visit with our friends Steve and Kathy Glover and their daughter Ashley. They were able to see a little bit of PFK's, hang with matt and the kids while I was gone on the retreat, worship with us at Calvary Chapel and meet our church family here, and then we shared their last day here together. It was really great to get to know Ashley better and to see her bond with our kids, especially Audrey. Steve and Ethan had an adventure exploring the rocks on Playa Hermosa as did Ashley and Audrey. We had fun in the pool at their hotel as well. It is always such an encouragement to us to have visitors and we are so very thankful for those of who who have come to visit us. THANK YOU!!! And PLEASE come again!!! :) Unfortunately, I did not get any shots of us together...I don't know why??? So, hopefully I can get some soon through email and post them :)
Last night was the first night of home fellowship groups for Calvary Chapel. Three different groups started in three different barrios. We had almost 25 neighbors here last night, some from the church, some parents of kids we have in PFK that are not in the church, some who just need fellowship with other believers. It was a sweet time of study in God's word, sweet fellowship, and good food. It reminded me of our time of home fellowship before leaving for the field. Pray for those who came last night in our neighborhood and in the other groups as well. Pray for those who have not yet given their lives to the Lord. Pray for those who have not been active in the church to be obedient to Jesus and become active part of the body of Christ in the local church. We began a study on Who is Jesus Christ.
For some reason the button to attach pictures is not showing up for me today, so I cannot post any pics right now...sorry about that...
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Weekend(quick) wrap-up
So much to write about...
I was able to be part of the first Calvary Chapel Women's retreat- 21 women were able to go and the presence of the Lord reigned over us all. It was an incredible weekend.
We've had precious moments with our firneds the Glover's. We are so thankful they came so far to see us and also thankful they were able to experience the beauty of Costa Rica and had some 'normal' Costa Rican experiences that made their trip extremely memorable! :)
I promise to write more about both :)
I was able to be part of the first Calvary Chapel Women's retreat- 21 women were able to go and the presence of the Lord reigned over us all. It was an incredible weekend.
We've had precious moments with our firneds the Glover's. We are so thankful they came so far to see us and also thankful they were able to experience the beauty of Costa Rica and had some 'normal' Costa Rican experiences that made their trip extremely memorable! :)
I promise to write more about both :)
Update on Baby Emma
Please read the latest update about Baby Emma and praise God with us for the little accomplishments and for his hand at work in her life.
"Another busy week. They all just seem to run together now. Caleb and I spent Wed up in Milwaukee as we finally got his echo and check up done. He's been scheduled for the same time as Emma's cath and surgery dates so I kept rescheduling. Overall things looked the same for him as in August so no complaints there. He doesn't have to go back for 4 months - seems like forever when you're used to every few weeks or couple of months.
Emma has had a pretty good week. She's continuing to progress with things. We started feeds with her again and are increasing very slowly. We began with 10-15cc per day and have increased by 5 a day so she is now getting about an ounce every three hours and she is tolerating it so far. Not sure how far she'll be able to increase to since as one Dr. put it today her stomach is taken up by half of her liver. Her liver is very enlarged as it always is due to her heart failure. While she is getting feeds regularly she is not taking really anything orally. She showed interest on Wednesday, but needs to relearn how to compensate when swallowing due to her damaged vocal chords.
The persistent fever appears to have finally gone away as she's been without fever for 2 days now. Many of her antibiotics will be stopped tomorrow so her med list will shorten significantly. She is still on her meds to help her heart and to keep fluid off. They've been working to wean her methadone daily and she's still on that and valium to continue controlling her withdrawl from the pain and sedation meds.
This weekend Emma was able to get back on regular oxygen instead of the high flow and was weaned down to a half liter which is what she's been on since her Glenn. She still drops her oxygen levels lower than desired if the canula doesn't stay in or near her nose so she's not to a point where she can do without it yet. Since it really doesn't bother her there probably isn't going to be any big push to get her off it.
Overall Emma is just a happy go lucky kid again waiting for that new heart to arrive. We had a good weekend visiting her. She loves to have company and know there are people around. She's been giving smiles pretty freely again and even laughing at times.
Tomorrow will be 12 weeks since Emma went into the hospital this trip. I've had a few people ask if and/or when I'm going back to work and if Chris has been working. I went back to work Aug 1 and have taken about 6 days of vacation since then. Chris has taken a couple weeks off when Emma has had surgery, but otherwise we work full time and the boys are in daycare full time. To give you an idea, here's our typical week:
Monday/Tuesday: Work then Chris and I take turns either going to visit Emma or staying home with the boys
Wednesday: Work and then have a night together at home
Thursday: Work and all go to see Emma
Friday: Work then usually head to Milwaukee for the weekend
Saturday: Spend the day at the hospital or home depending on what we have going on; Football games at Purdue for Chris
Sunday: Hospital until late afternoon and stop for dinner in Kenosha.
It's about 90 min to the hospital from work and an hour from home so we spend a lot of time on the road. Some days more on the road than actual time with Emma, but we're thankful we are able to see her most every day and that our Moms are willing to live in Milwaukee when we can't. I'm anxiously awaiting the day when we can just come home every day and once again worry about what we're going to fix instead of where we're going to pick up food and actually being able to spend time at home in the evening instead of 2 hours on the road. In the meantime though we can tell you every exit between the state line and Milwaukee that has a McDonald's and the cheapest BP gas :) "
"Another busy week. They all just seem to run together now. Caleb and I spent Wed up in Milwaukee as we finally got his echo and check up done. He's been scheduled for the same time as Emma's cath and surgery dates so I kept rescheduling. Overall things looked the same for him as in August so no complaints there. He doesn't have to go back for 4 months - seems like forever when you're used to every few weeks or couple of months.
Emma has had a pretty good week. She's continuing to progress with things. We started feeds with her again and are increasing very slowly. We began with 10-15cc per day and have increased by 5 a day so she is now getting about an ounce every three hours and she is tolerating it so far. Not sure how far she'll be able to increase to since as one Dr. put it today her stomach is taken up by half of her liver. Her liver is very enlarged as it always is due to her heart failure. While she is getting feeds regularly she is not taking really anything orally. She showed interest on Wednesday, but needs to relearn how to compensate when swallowing due to her damaged vocal chords.
The persistent fever appears to have finally gone away as she's been without fever for 2 days now. Many of her antibiotics will be stopped tomorrow so her med list will shorten significantly. She is still on her meds to help her heart and to keep fluid off. They've been working to wean her methadone daily and she's still on that and valium to continue controlling her withdrawl from the pain and sedation meds.
This weekend Emma was able to get back on regular oxygen instead of the high flow and was weaned down to a half liter which is what she's been on since her Glenn. She still drops her oxygen levels lower than desired if the canula doesn't stay in or near her nose so she's not to a point where she can do without it yet. Since it really doesn't bother her there probably isn't going to be any big push to get her off it.
Overall Emma is just a happy go lucky kid again waiting for that new heart to arrive. We had a good weekend visiting her. She loves to have company and know there are people around. She's been giving smiles pretty freely again and even laughing at times.
Tomorrow will be 12 weeks since Emma went into the hospital this trip. I've had a few people ask if and/or when I'm going back to work and if Chris has been working. I went back to work Aug 1 and have taken about 6 days of vacation since then. Chris has taken a couple weeks off when Emma has had surgery, but otherwise we work full time and the boys are in daycare full time. To give you an idea, here's our typical week:
Monday/Tuesday: Work then Chris and I take turns either going to visit Emma or staying home with the boys
Wednesday: Work and then have a night together at home
Thursday: Work and all go to see Emma
Friday: Work then usually head to Milwaukee for the weekend
Saturday: Spend the day at the hospital or home depending on what we have going on; Football games at Purdue for Chris
Sunday: Hospital until late afternoon and stop for dinner in Kenosha.
It's about 90 min to the hospital from work and an hour from home so we spend a lot of time on the road. Some days more on the road than actual time with Emma, but we're thankful we are able to see her most every day and that our Moms are willing to live in Milwaukee when we can't. I'm anxiously awaiting the day when we can just come home every day and once again worry about what we're going to fix instead of where we're going to pick up food and actually being able to spend time at home in the evening instead of 2 hours on the road. In the meantime though we can tell you every exit between the state line and Milwaukee that has a McDonald's and the cheapest BP gas :) "
Prayer for our friends
Please pray for our dear friends, Mike and Sharon Druley. Mike has been battling cancer for some time now and I just ask that you bathe him and Sharon in prayer. Please read their latest CaringBridge update below...
"The following verse appeared in a card this week: "On the day I called, You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul." Psalm 138:3 We have not always felt strong this week but God has made us strong to face some tough decisions.
The last two weeks have been very difficult. Following the last chemo infusion on November 1st, which was a new recipe following the new port, Mike was beseiged with difficult side effects. He had extreme soreness of the tongue to the point that eating was very painful. He had very dry skin which would cause pain and also had extreme weakness. Because of all this he was unable to eat but tried to drink plenty. For the first time he fought the ultimate side effect of diarrhea for a week. On Monday when he returned for another chemo he was a very sick guy. The oncologist took one look and sent him straight to the hospital where we have been until yesterday morning. During the hospital stay he received fluids, antibiotics for a urinary tract infection, several blood tests, and another CT scan. The oncologist and surgeon shared the scan results on Wednesday. They showed an increase in the liver tumors and tumors on the adrenal gland which weren't visible last scan three weeks ago. In short the two new chemo mixes were not working on slowing or stopping the rapid cancer growth. After asking some very difficult questions of the oncologist, we were faced with some hard choices. Should he continue to receive chemo (which didn't seem to be working) and be so sick that he could not function in any normal manner, or discontinue chemo to concentrate on comfort management and place his time in God's hands (where it has been all along)? After a prayful and tearful night, we both felt strongly that continuing chemo was NOT the best choice. We met with Dr. Narayan, his oncologist, and shared our decision. She supported our choice and contacted hospice to set up our home program. Although this was a difficult choice, the peace that we have felt following it has reassured us that it is the right choice. Our family has been very supportive and our son, Jeff, and family plus our daughter, Kristen, are with us this weekend to lend their help and support. Kristen has even taken Family Leave Time from her job and is planning on staying through the end of the year. Our son, Brian, will be coming on Tuesday next week to stay the week.
Some have questioned whether we are "giving up" and the answer would be NO! There just comes a time when quality of life has to outweigh quantity of life. We have received so many blessings along this journey and hope to be able to enjoy many more in the days to come. Never be discouraged in your prayers for us. A friend once told me that God answers prayer in three distinct ways by saying: YES, NO and NOT NOW to our requests. Your prayers for our strength and guidance and for our doctors have been answered in multiple ways for the last several months. We have been blessed with doctors and nurses who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to treat us, counsel us, pray for us, and yes, even cry with us. What a blessing they have been! Your prayers have allowed us to get up, make it through some very hard days, and trust that there was hope for a better tomorrow. In short, please continue to lift us up as we face the next step of our journey that we might be able to walk it faithfully with God's help.
Blessings to you all,
Sharon (for Mike too)"
"The following verse appeared in a card this week: "On the day I called, You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul." Psalm 138:3 We have not always felt strong this week but God has made us strong to face some tough decisions.
The last two weeks have been very difficult. Following the last chemo infusion on November 1st, which was a new recipe following the new port, Mike was beseiged with difficult side effects. He had extreme soreness of the tongue to the point that eating was very painful. He had very dry skin which would cause pain and also had extreme weakness. Because of all this he was unable to eat but tried to drink plenty. For the first time he fought the ultimate side effect of diarrhea for a week. On Monday when he returned for another chemo he was a very sick guy. The oncologist took one look and sent him straight to the hospital where we have been until yesterday morning. During the hospital stay he received fluids, antibiotics for a urinary tract infection, several blood tests, and another CT scan. The oncologist and surgeon shared the scan results on Wednesday. They showed an increase in the liver tumors and tumors on the adrenal gland which weren't visible last scan three weeks ago. In short the two new chemo mixes were not working on slowing or stopping the rapid cancer growth. After asking some very difficult questions of the oncologist, we were faced with some hard choices. Should he continue to receive chemo (which didn't seem to be working) and be so sick that he could not function in any normal manner, or discontinue chemo to concentrate on comfort management and place his time in God's hands (where it has been all along)? After a prayful and tearful night, we both felt strongly that continuing chemo was NOT the best choice. We met with Dr. Narayan, his oncologist, and shared our decision. She supported our choice and contacted hospice to set up our home program. Although this was a difficult choice, the peace that we have felt following it has reassured us that it is the right choice. Our family has been very supportive and our son, Jeff, and family plus our daughter, Kristen, are with us this weekend to lend their help and support. Kristen has even taken Family Leave Time from her job and is planning on staying through the end of the year. Our son, Brian, will be coming on Tuesday next week to stay the week.
Some have questioned whether we are "giving up" and the answer would be NO! There just comes a time when quality of life has to outweigh quantity of life. We have received so many blessings along this journey and hope to be able to enjoy many more in the days to come. Never be discouraged in your prayers for us. A friend once told me that God answers prayer in three distinct ways by saying: YES, NO and NOT NOW to our requests. Your prayers for our strength and guidance and for our doctors have been answered in multiple ways for the last several months. We have been blessed with doctors and nurses who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to treat us, counsel us, pray for us, and yes, even cry with us. What a blessing they have been! Your prayers have allowed us to get up, make it through some very hard days, and trust that there was hope for a better tomorrow. In short, please continue to lift us up as we face the next step of our journey that we might be able to walk it faithfully with God's help.
Blessings to you all,
Sharon (for Mike too)"
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Visitas!
We are expecting our friends Steve and Kathy Glover and their daughter Ashley later this morning! We are so excited to have them here and it is something Kathy and I have dreamed about for such a long time! God is so good. Pray for their time in Costa Rica to be a time in which they can relax, soak up God's glory in His beautiful Creation and see His hand here. Pray for sweet fellowship for us as well.
Baby Emma update
Mnay of you have begun following Baby Emma's story and have also begun to pray for her and her family. Below is the latest CaringBridge update.
What strikes me the most is that this little girl, 10 months tomorrow, has spent over 200 nights in the hospital! Please consider going to her CaringBridge site and leave an encouraging message for this family if you are praying for them. It is the little things that mean so much sometimes in periods of life like this.
Go here to visit their Caring Bridge website.
Thank you for your prayers for this special family.
"Emma has had a few good days. She is really showing improvement physically and acting more like herself. Her swelling from surgery is gone and if anything she was too dried out today. She has been pretty happy and starting to give out smiles again. On Sunday we were really glad to see her start to take her pacifier and put it in her mouth herself as she always used to. Up until then she wouldn't try to grab for it or anything else really. It seems that all the withdrawl is getting through her system for now. I'm sure there will be more to come, but hopefully only subtle hints of it once the methadone and valium start to get weaned. Emma was made active again on the transplant list last Friday so she is back at Status 1A. Overall she really has done well with the recovery from such a major surgery and the initial rough period after.
Once again we'd really like to say thanks to everyone for the prayers, messages, food, presents for the kids, mowing the yard, gift cards for food and gas. We have not been able to thank everyone individually, but please know it is all very much appreciated. Somedays it's the little things that may not seem like much to everyone else that really help ease the stress and get us through yet another day. It has been such a long year yet some days it seems to have flown by. Emma will be 10 months old already on Thursday and next Monday will be her 200th night spent in the hospital."
What strikes me the most is that this little girl, 10 months tomorrow, has spent over 200 nights in the hospital! Please consider going to her CaringBridge site and leave an encouraging message for this family if you are praying for them. It is the little things that mean so much sometimes in periods of life like this.
Go here to visit their Caring Bridge website.
Thank you for your prayers for this special family.
"Emma has had a few good days. She is really showing improvement physically and acting more like herself. Her swelling from surgery is gone and if anything she was too dried out today. She has been pretty happy and starting to give out smiles again. On Sunday we were really glad to see her start to take her pacifier and put it in her mouth herself as she always used to. Up until then she wouldn't try to grab for it or anything else really. It seems that all the withdrawl is getting through her system for now. I'm sure there will be more to come, but hopefully only subtle hints of it once the methadone and valium start to get weaned. Emma was made active again on the transplant list last Friday so she is back at Status 1A. Overall she really has done well with the recovery from such a major surgery and the initial rough period after.
Once again we'd really like to say thanks to everyone for the prayers, messages, food, presents for the kids, mowing the yard, gift cards for food and gas. We have not been able to thank everyone individually, but please know it is all very much appreciated. Somedays it's the little things that may not seem like much to everyone else that really help ease the stress and get us through yet another day. It has been such a long year yet some days it seems to have flown by. Emma will be 10 months old already on Thursday and next Monday will be her 200th night spent in the hospital."
Sunday, November 7, 2010
El Salvador 2010
While trying to figure out how to get my pictures from Picassa web albums to Blogger, I managed to get this cute little froggy here...but nothing else!
He was on our gate Monday as we arrived home.
Hopefully, pictures to come soon! :)
He was on our gate Monday as we arrived home.
Hopefully, pictures to come soon! :)
November 2010 Prayer Letter
Please read the text of our November 2010 prayer letter below. If you'd like to receive our updates by email, please leave a comment below with your email address and I will sign you up. If you'd like to view these with pictures and graphics, please go to www.mcclainfamily4him.org or www.clfcostarica.com
Thank you for your ministry partnership!
Praise Jesus with us this month for the amazing blessing of being able to travel to El Salvador last month. We were invited to be part of the Latin American Calvary Chapel Pastors and leaders conference. We planned our visa renewal trip around this conference. Mostly these trips are a real hassle for our family. They disrupt our school schedule, ministry and are costly. However, the Lord has seen fit to continue to bless our family during these times away from Costa Rica. This trip was wonderful in so many ways from seeing the beautiful countryside of Guanacaste and Nicaragua, to the congested, densely populated inner city areas of Managua, Nicaragua and San Salvador, El Salvador. In addition to the blessing of the hearing the teaching of many godly pastors from all over Central America and even South America, we were beyond blessed to see what God has done in San Martin, El Salvador with Potter’s Field Kids. We were able to spend much needed time as a group with our stateside PFK contact and glean from his knowledge and experience. Our kids made new friends with a missionary family serving in San Martin and that meant that both Matt and Brooke were able to be a part of the conference. We were able to reconnect with dear friends serving in El Salvador and also in Nicaragua. We are amazed at how intricately God can connect the body of Christ.
Potter’s Field Kids (Las Manos del Alfarero)
For several weeks now, the kids have been practicing the song ‘Trading My Sorrows’ (Cambiaré Mis Tristezas) in preparation for the first ever PFK Parent’s Night. A majority of the parents were in attendance and the kids did a great job with their song. Each teacher spoke about their students, Pastor Phil shared the Word, and arroz con pollo was enjoyed by all. We could really see the hand of God as so many children had family present. Please continue to pray for the planning, budgeting and details for the next school year. Pray for the Lord to lead us and for us not to follow our own desires. Pray as we work together this month to meet year-end details, pre-enroll children for next year, and seek God’s will. Pray for servants from the church to rise up and respond to God’s call in their life, as we need help. Pray for the parents to come to know the Lord, serve in the local church and become more active in the lives of their children. Pray for these children as many show leadership potential. Pray for their basic needs to be met of food and shelter. Pray against abuse and neglect in their lives. Pray for the almost 50 kids we see weekly in the Thursday Bible Club. Pray for the many who come to us from unstable home situations. Pray for us as a team as we seek to minister to them with grace and love, peace and patience, kindness and gentleness and that our words and actions would always be seasoned with salt. Pray for La Capilla del Calvario and Pastor Phil and his family.
If you’d like to pray for a specific child or become more involved in this ministry, please contact us. For more about PFK go to www.pottersfield.org. Thank you for praying!
We look forward to visits from good friends and ministry partners this month and next. Pray that our time with our friends would be filled with sweet fellowship and that they would see God’s glory at work here in Villarreal. Please pray also as we look forward to several exciting ministry opportunities with Calvary Chapel church including a women’s retreat, Samaritan’s Purse outreach, annual Women’s Christmas outreach, and the start of home fellowship groups. Praise God with us for the last year of focused discipleship with the leaders of First Baptist Church Villarreal. Pastor Nelson will now continue making disciples in his church and barrio.
“Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:18
Thank you for your ministry partnership!
Praise Jesus with us this month for the amazing blessing of being able to travel to El Salvador last month. We were invited to be part of the Latin American Calvary Chapel Pastors and leaders conference. We planned our visa renewal trip around this conference. Mostly these trips are a real hassle for our family. They disrupt our school schedule, ministry and are costly. However, the Lord has seen fit to continue to bless our family during these times away from Costa Rica. This trip was wonderful in so many ways from seeing the beautiful countryside of Guanacaste and Nicaragua, to the congested, densely populated inner city areas of Managua, Nicaragua and San Salvador, El Salvador. In addition to the blessing of the hearing the teaching of many godly pastors from all over Central America and even South America, we were beyond blessed to see what God has done in San Martin, El Salvador with Potter’s Field Kids. We were able to spend much needed time as a group with our stateside PFK contact and glean from his knowledge and experience. Our kids made new friends with a missionary family serving in San Martin and that meant that both Matt and Brooke were able to be a part of the conference. We were able to reconnect with dear friends serving in El Salvador and also in Nicaragua. We are amazed at how intricately God can connect the body of Christ.
Potter’s Field Kids (Las Manos del Alfarero)
For several weeks now, the kids have been practicing the song ‘Trading My Sorrows’ (Cambiaré Mis Tristezas) in preparation for the first ever PFK Parent’s Night. A majority of the parents were in attendance and the kids did a great job with their song. Each teacher spoke about their students, Pastor Phil shared the Word, and arroz con pollo was enjoyed by all. We could really see the hand of God as so many children had family present. Please continue to pray for the planning, budgeting and details for the next school year. Pray for the Lord to lead us and for us not to follow our own desires. Pray as we work together this month to meet year-end details, pre-enroll children for next year, and seek God’s will. Pray for servants from the church to rise up and respond to God’s call in their life, as we need help. Pray for the parents to come to know the Lord, serve in the local church and become more active in the lives of their children. Pray for these children as many show leadership potential. Pray for their basic needs to be met of food and shelter. Pray against abuse and neglect in their lives. Pray for the almost 50 kids we see weekly in the Thursday Bible Club. Pray for the many who come to us from unstable home situations. Pray for us as a team as we seek to minister to them with grace and love, peace and patience, kindness and gentleness and that our words and actions would always be seasoned with salt. Pray for La Capilla del Calvario and Pastor Phil and his family.
If you’d like to pray for a specific child or become more involved in this ministry, please contact us. For more about PFK go to www.pottersfield.org. Thank you for praying!
We look forward to visits from good friends and ministry partners this month and next. Pray that our time with our friends would be filled with sweet fellowship and that they would see God’s glory at work here in Villarreal. Please pray also as we look forward to several exciting ministry opportunities with Calvary Chapel church including a women’s retreat, Samaritan’s Purse outreach, annual Women’s Christmas outreach, and the start of home fellowship groups. Praise God with us for the last year of focused discipleship with the leaders of First Baptist Church Villarreal. Pastor Nelson will now continue making disciples in his church and barrio.
“Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:18
Friday, November 5, 2010
Prayer and feelings of fall
I sit here tonight, thinking of Costa Rica and the many who are experiencing difficulties and even some who've experienced death due to major rains this week. It has been raining almost non-stop since we arrived home Monday night from El Salvador. We learned yesterday that the entire country cancelled school because of the excessive rains, landlsides and flooding. It really hasn't caused too much damage for us here, although it has rained and rained and rained...However, it has caused mahor problems in other parts of the country and so tonight I ask you to pray for the country and those deeply affected. Please read the following email from our friends, Bob and B, who are serving in San Jose:
"Blessings to you all in the name of our Lord Jesus!
I am writing to ask for prayer for our country, Costa Rica. We are in our wet season, which means rain every day but in the last three days there has been an incredible rain for a tropical storm that is over us right now.
We have received more than 20-30 inches of rain in these 3-4 days. There are hundreds of people without houses and many of the main highways are closed because of collapsed bridges and parts of roads. We are in the group of 805,000 people who are without water and the authorities do not know how long we will be without because several major plants are affected.
The worst news was received this morning after a very long night of severe rain, that there had been a land slide of great magnitude and that as of now 20 people have lost their lives and there are still several missing.
Please pray for a night without rain! The report is that it will not stop until sometime on Friday. The schools are closed and their are lots of people who cannot get to their jobs or leave their homes.
Please join us in asking God for His mercy on our nation and for His peace to reign in our hearts. Please pray for those who have lost their loved ones and their homes.
--
Blessings,
Barb
http://bobandbsbriefs.blogspot.com/ "
All of this rain has caused the temperature to drop a good 15 degrees, I'd say and the evenings and nights have been chilly. Today, I wore jeans and a sweatshirt all day- a first here. I have a pot of yummy home made soup on the stove and can't wait to eat it up. Matt called home today and Roger said that it was snowing- the first snowfall of the year...all of this makes us miss the 'home' back there, as it is our favorite time of year...
Thank you for supporting the ministry here with your prayers. Thank you for those who pray for the people of Villarreal, thank you for those who support our family so we can make disciples and feed hungry kids here, thank you for those who have begun to support Potter's Field Ministries, thank you for pray for those we know back there, and in other parts of the world when we ask you too, and thank you for your prayers for our family.
"Blessings to you all in the name of our Lord Jesus!
I am writing to ask for prayer for our country, Costa Rica. We are in our wet season, which means rain every day but in the last three days there has been an incredible rain for a tropical storm that is over us right now.
We have received more than 20-30 inches of rain in these 3-4 days. There are hundreds of people without houses and many of the main highways are closed because of collapsed bridges and parts of roads. We are in the group of 805,000 people who are without water and the authorities do not know how long we will be without because several major plants are affected.
The worst news was received this morning after a very long night of severe rain, that there had been a land slide of great magnitude and that as of now 20 people have lost their lives and there are still several missing.
Please pray for a night without rain! The report is that it will not stop until sometime on Friday. The schools are closed and their are lots of people who cannot get to their jobs or leave their homes.
Please join us in asking God for His mercy on our nation and for His peace to reign in our hearts. Please pray for those who have lost their loved ones and their homes.
--
Blessings,
Barb
http://bobandbsbriefs.blogspot.com/ "
All of this rain has caused the temperature to drop a good 15 degrees, I'd say and the evenings and nights have been chilly. Today, I wore jeans and a sweatshirt all day- a first here. I have a pot of yummy home made soup on the stove and can't wait to eat it up. Matt called home today and Roger said that it was snowing- the first snowfall of the year...all of this makes us miss the 'home' back there, as it is our favorite time of year...
Thank you for supporting the ministry here with your prayers. Thank you for those who pray for the people of Villarreal, thank you for those who support our family so we can make disciples and feed hungry kids here, thank you for those who have begun to support Potter's Field Ministries, thank you for pray for those we know back there, and in other parts of the world when we ask you too, and thank you for your prayers for our family.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
A few reflections...
We made it back to Villarreal last night about 7:30, picked up Daisy, who we had kenneled, and a few groceries and got home about 8:00 PM. It was a long day, but good and fairly uneventful :) for traveleing through three countries!
In reality I am still processing all God showed me and the way he spoke to me through the speakers at the conference. I hope to share more soon as I am able to put into words what I learned.
Tonight, I've decided a few snippet refelctions would be the best way to share the many things we saw and some of the ways God touched my heart during the five days...
Prayers unite our family as we begin our journey...the sweet picture of three little heads bowed as they pray to their Kin; come together in agreement with their daddy, asking for safety as we travel.
Rolling green land, large leaning trees, herds of cattle and little white birds all around them as we drive through the Guanacaste country side.
A sea of darker skinned, weathered faces fill the windows of the car as we pull into Penas Blancas- the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border town. Shouts of "Cordobas? Colones? Cambia! Cambia!" fill our ears.
Praise for my God fills my heart as we receive our 'salida' or exit stamps on the Costa Rica side without even waiting in line. And then again as we found 'Gato,' the man who we needed to find to help us through the process of getting the car through. As we pulled into the parking spot, there he was...thank you Jesus...
The sea of weathered brown faces plastered against the window as Matt collected the papers he needed before getting out of the car...and then, suddenly, Pastor Phil's face was there as as well :) All of us arriving at the border at the same time...
God was with us, despite the minor irritation we encountered outside of Rivas...God went before us and was with with us...keeping us on His path and guiding us every step of the way.
Driving through the countryside of Nicaragua...vast stretches of land dotted with small tin or slat wood one-room houses barely bigger than most bedrooms...this is the way of life for the Nicaraguan people.
Miles and miles of the Pan-American highway cut through land mostly untouched some 20 years ago...no room for error when driving as people casually sit on the side of the road, waiting for their ride, little children walking to and from school, babies leading babies...bicyclists dangerously journeying in the path of large 18-wheelers, speeding cars and the wandering traveler.
Managua, Nicaragua- the capital city of Nicaragua...dirty, old, run-down...shells of buildings remain as the reminder of the devastation left by a major earthquake decades ago.
Buildings left to deteriorate as new country leaders frivolously decide they want something new and different. Huge elaborate buildings tell the story of poor communication between countries, plans made and then changed...now abandoned piles of rubble.
Tent city in the heart of the city tells the story of workers unfairly treated standing up for their rights...protesting for over a year still waiting for change...literally living in tents made of plastic tarp; waiting, hoping for change...
Girl- maybe 12 years old- holding droopy-eyed baby wearing 'diaper' made from a t-shirt folded around his bottom and held together with a safety pin...begging in the middle of the main highway...big, brown eyes tell a story I'm sure she'd rather forget...
Kids, men, 12 ounce bottles with squirt tops holding household cleaner, window scrapers...rush to your window the second you stop at the traffic light, hoping to make a few bucks by cleaning your windshield...they clean it even if you say no...desperate...
Yearly average wage in Nicaragua...about $1000 - $1200 (yes, I said yearly!)
Flight from Managua, Nicaragua to San Salvador, El Salvador...about 45 minutes...start to finish :)
Audrey: "That is the fastest airplane ride I've ever had!"
God is working throughout Nicaragua- met and heard from many missionaries and pastors in different areas of the country...
Sweet time with old friends, although cut too short due to our travel time...
San Salvador, El Salvador - large, densly populated, dilapidated house upon dilapidated house...over 2,000,000 people live in the city...48% of the country's population live in the city...
El Salvador uses the US dollar...the government made the switch from the colon to the dollar in 2001; wages remained the same but the price of most things literally doubled due to the value of the dollar...
The country has a small upper class 'the rich' and a very large lower class 'the poor' and seemingly no real middle class. The city has several malls, great infrastructure, high class hotels...but it seems this life is enjoyed by only a select few.
Cab driver who earns about $6 from a $30 fare...has two kids and a wife at home; home is a two bedroom home in one of the marginal areas of the city where he pays $50 a month rent...
The city has German schools, French schools and North American schools...all filled with children whose paretns are either very rich or who work primarily to send their children to that school...
God is doing a work in San Salvador...as we had the opportunity to see not only His work in San Martin but also what He is doing in the heart of the city...and in the outskirts of the country in a little place called Gotera...Thank You Father for Your work in this country...
San Salvador - capital city- quickly becoming gang-controlled; rampant crime; miles of buses on strike due to recent gangs reatliating against government laws against gangs...vicious cycle between government and gangs...resulting in innocent lives being taken...a city LOST in desperated NEED of a SAVIOR- the answer is JESUS- Thanks YOU JESUS for those who are bringing your name to this lost nation...
Solid teaching, soaking up Your Word, Father in two jam packed days, devouring what you were saying to me...
New friends...seeing Potter's Field Kid's San Martin, meeting the boys in the orphanage, meeting Pastor Carlos, seeing Steve again and meeting Michelle...lunch and so much encouragement from them both...no words yet for all I saw and heard...
Old friends...reunited...pizza...love and fellowship.
Our kid's making new friends and God allowing for both Matt and I to soak up His word.
One blessed day spent with precious friends from language school...seeing how much their sweet girls have grown; the blessing of instantly falling back into step as if two years hadn't passed since being together last...seeing them minister to other precious friends...God's family is so beautiful, His ways are so perfect...
MultiPlaza, San Salvador- Victor, Isabelle, Audrey...mini-train ride, together in the spinning teacup...Victor and Audrey in the taxi...Victor pushing the girls around the lobby of the Sheraton on the luggage cart...unforgettable! Don Santiago and his sense of humor...Pastor Phil being able to be fed...Bendito sea Dios!
more to come later...
In reality I am still processing all God showed me and the way he spoke to me through the speakers at the conference. I hope to share more soon as I am able to put into words what I learned.
Tonight, I've decided a few snippet refelctions would be the best way to share the many things we saw and some of the ways God touched my heart during the five days...
Prayers unite our family as we begin our journey...the sweet picture of three little heads bowed as they pray to their Kin; come together in agreement with their daddy, asking for safety as we travel.
Rolling green land, large leaning trees, herds of cattle and little white birds all around them as we drive through the Guanacaste country side.
A sea of darker skinned, weathered faces fill the windows of the car as we pull into Penas Blancas- the Costa Rica-Nicaragua border town. Shouts of "Cordobas? Colones? Cambia! Cambia!" fill our ears.
Praise for my God fills my heart as we receive our 'salida' or exit stamps on the Costa Rica side without even waiting in line. And then again as we found 'Gato,' the man who we needed to find to help us through the process of getting the car through. As we pulled into the parking spot, there he was...thank you Jesus...
The sea of weathered brown faces plastered against the window as Matt collected the papers he needed before getting out of the car...and then, suddenly, Pastor Phil's face was there as as well :) All of us arriving at the border at the same time...
God was with us, despite the minor irritation we encountered outside of Rivas...God went before us and was with with us...keeping us on His path and guiding us every step of the way.
Driving through the countryside of Nicaragua...vast stretches of land dotted with small tin or slat wood one-room houses barely bigger than most bedrooms...this is the way of life for the Nicaraguan people.
Miles and miles of the Pan-American highway cut through land mostly untouched some 20 years ago...no room for error when driving as people casually sit on the side of the road, waiting for their ride, little children walking to and from school, babies leading babies...bicyclists dangerously journeying in the path of large 18-wheelers, speeding cars and the wandering traveler.
Managua, Nicaragua- the capital city of Nicaragua...dirty, old, run-down...shells of buildings remain as the reminder of the devastation left by a major earthquake decades ago.
Buildings left to deteriorate as new country leaders frivolously decide they want something new and different. Huge elaborate buildings tell the story of poor communication between countries, plans made and then changed...now abandoned piles of rubble.
Tent city in the heart of the city tells the story of workers unfairly treated standing up for their rights...protesting for over a year still waiting for change...literally living in tents made of plastic tarp; waiting, hoping for change...
Girl- maybe 12 years old- holding droopy-eyed baby wearing 'diaper' made from a t-shirt folded around his bottom and held together with a safety pin...begging in the middle of the main highway...big, brown eyes tell a story I'm sure she'd rather forget...
Kids, men, 12 ounce bottles with squirt tops holding household cleaner, window scrapers...rush to your window the second you stop at the traffic light, hoping to make a few bucks by cleaning your windshield...they clean it even if you say no...desperate...
Yearly average wage in Nicaragua...about $1000 - $1200 (yes, I said yearly!)
Flight from Managua, Nicaragua to San Salvador, El Salvador...about 45 minutes...start to finish :)
Audrey: "That is the fastest airplane ride I've ever had!"
God is working throughout Nicaragua- met and heard from many missionaries and pastors in different areas of the country...
Sweet time with old friends, although cut too short due to our travel time...
San Salvador, El Salvador - large, densly populated, dilapidated house upon dilapidated house...over 2,000,000 people live in the city...48% of the country's population live in the city...
El Salvador uses the US dollar...the government made the switch from the colon to the dollar in 2001; wages remained the same but the price of most things literally doubled due to the value of the dollar...
The country has a small upper class 'the rich' and a very large lower class 'the poor' and seemingly no real middle class. The city has several malls, great infrastructure, high class hotels...but it seems this life is enjoyed by only a select few.
Cab driver who earns about $6 from a $30 fare...has two kids and a wife at home; home is a two bedroom home in one of the marginal areas of the city where he pays $50 a month rent...
The city has German schools, French schools and North American schools...all filled with children whose paretns are either very rich or who work primarily to send their children to that school...
God is doing a work in San Salvador...as we had the opportunity to see not only His work in San Martin but also what He is doing in the heart of the city...and in the outskirts of the country in a little place called Gotera...Thank You Father for Your work in this country...
San Salvador - capital city- quickly becoming gang-controlled; rampant crime; miles of buses on strike due to recent gangs reatliating against government laws against gangs...vicious cycle between government and gangs...resulting in innocent lives being taken...a city LOST in desperated NEED of a SAVIOR- the answer is JESUS- Thanks YOU JESUS for those who are bringing your name to this lost nation...
Solid teaching, soaking up Your Word, Father in two jam packed days, devouring what you were saying to me...
New friends...seeing Potter's Field Kid's San Martin, meeting the boys in the orphanage, meeting Pastor Carlos, seeing Steve again and meeting Michelle...lunch and so much encouragement from them both...no words yet for all I saw and heard...
Old friends...reunited...pizza...love and fellowship.
Our kid's making new friends and God allowing for both Matt and I to soak up His word.
One blessed day spent with precious friends from language school...seeing how much their sweet girls have grown; the blessing of instantly falling back into step as if two years hadn't passed since being together last...seeing them minister to other precious friends...God's family is so beautiful, His ways are so perfect...
MultiPlaza, San Salvador- Victor, Isabelle, Audrey...mini-train ride, together in the spinning teacup...Victor and Audrey in the taxi...Victor pushing the girls around the lobby of the Sheraton on the luggage cart...unforgettable! Don Santiago and his sense of humor...Pastor Phil being able to be fed...Bendito sea Dios!
more to come later...
Sunday, October 31, 2010
El Salvador
We made it to San Salvador, El Salvador late Thursday night after a great adventurous trip from Villarreal to Managua, Nicaragua in our car (more on that trip later...) and then by plane from Managua to San Salvador. We hired a taxi at the airport and our driver, Angel, took us to a great pupusa dive where we picked what we wanted, watched the ladies make the pupusa and grill it right there by the street. We ordered 10 pupusas and three drinks and got a bag full of chile and some spicy sauce, too for about $6.00! (FYI: the national currency in El Salvador is the US dollar!)
They were YUMMY!!!! The pupusa is apparently the national food. There were litterally about 20 pupusa restaurants in this little strip Angel took us to! El Salvadorians eat pupusas like Costa Ricans eat black beans and rice!
We got to our hotel, showered and went to bed. We were tired!
All day Friday we spent at the Potter's Field Kids ministry compound and orphanage site about an hour out of the city. It was awesome to see what God has done here through PFM. I am still forming my story for this day...but suffice it to say it was AMAZING!!
Today we were at Calvary Chapel San Salvador for the conference. The Lord really blessed us as there was another missionary family at the conference whose kids were sinmilar in age to ours and they all hit is off great- instant friends. So, our kids were entertained the entire time and both matt and I were able to listen to almost all of the teachings together. It was siuch a blessing!
We've met so many new friends and pastors. What god is doing through Calvary Chapels around Latin America is really an aawesome work.
Tomorrow, we are meeting up with some of our good friends from language school who are serving about three hours outside of the city. We are super duper excited to see them again- it has been two years...
I will write more as I am able, but it may be after we are back in Costa Rica...
We will fly back to Managua early Monday morning and then will travel on to Villarreal later that afternoon- please pray for our travel .
They were YUMMY!!!! The pupusa is apparently the national food. There were litterally about 20 pupusa restaurants in this little strip Angel took us to! El Salvadorians eat pupusas like Costa Ricans eat black beans and rice!
We got to our hotel, showered and went to bed. We were tired!
All day Friday we spent at the Potter's Field Kids ministry compound and orphanage site about an hour out of the city. It was awesome to see what God has done here through PFM. I am still forming my story for this day...but suffice it to say it was AMAZING!!
Today we were at Calvary Chapel San Salvador for the conference. The Lord really blessed us as there was another missionary family at the conference whose kids were sinmilar in age to ours and they all hit is off great- instant friends. So, our kids were entertained the entire time and both matt and I were able to listen to almost all of the teachings together. It was siuch a blessing!
We've met so many new friends and pastors. What god is doing through Calvary Chapels around Latin America is really an aawesome work.
Tomorrow, we are meeting up with some of our good friends from language school who are serving about three hours outside of the city. We are super duper excited to see them again- it has been two years...
I will write more as I am able, but it may be after we are back in Costa Rica...
We will fly back to Managua early Monday morning and then will travel on to Villarreal later that afternoon- please pray for our travel .
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
updates
Just a quick update before I head to bed on both the Sappia family and baby Emma...
John's surgery went well and his recovery is going well. Hopefully the kids will get to skype him and will get to visit soon. Thank you for your prayers for this family.
Emma made it thruogh surgery, then yet another surgery...for a total of 18 hours yesterday. She seems to be stabilizing. Please continue to pray. Praise God for little steps, however small...
Tomorrow we leave for first Nicaragua, then flying to El Salvador later in the day. Please oray as we will be travelling all day for safety. Pray that our time be rich with God's prexence and we leave change and knowing Him better.
Praise God for Potter's Field kid's - yet another awesome night with these kids. We loved watchign them practice for next week's parents night! I love hearing them speak God's word from their heart and I just plain love them!!! :)
Praying for a special friend tomorrow as well...I can't share the name, but God knows...
God is so good...
John's surgery went well and his recovery is going well. Hopefully the kids will get to skype him and will get to visit soon. Thank you for your prayers for this family.
Emma made it thruogh surgery, then yet another surgery...for a total of 18 hours yesterday. She seems to be stabilizing. Please continue to pray. Praise God for little steps, however small...
Tomorrow we leave for first Nicaragua, then flying to El Salvador later in the day. Please oray as we will be travelling all day for safety. Pray that our time be rich with God's prexence and we leave change and knowing Him better.
Praise God for Potter's Field kid's - yet another awesome night with these kids. We loved watchign them practice for next week's parents night! I love hearing them speak God's word from their heart and I just plain love them!!! :)
Praying for a special friend tomorrow as well...I can't share the name, but God knows...
God is so good...
Prayer for Baby Emma
It is with a deep aching in my heart that I share with you tonight the prayer request of my dear friend Sue Wolfe. PLease read her email below and please pray for sweet grandbaby Emma, who is a very sick little girl. Please pray.
"Hello All,
I have had the privilege of being able to stay with Emma at the hospital all of last week and again this week. I know that she is indeed a very sick little girl, and that only by the grace of God and with the help of modern medicine have I been charmed to see her biggest smiles. I been able to watch and help her play with her toys, I have had the joy of having her listen intently and reach for the pages as I have read books to her, I have watched her kick her legs with glee when her brothers Caleb and Tyler come into her room or if she even sees a picture of them. I have also witnessed a parade of nurses and Dr's stop in just to say hello to "sweet little Emma" and to get a smile from her. Emma seems to be extra special to all of them. (Yesterday Tim was able to be with me at the hospital to also witness all of these events for himself!) I have also tried to calm her when she was in such severe pain that it took two doses of morphine, plus one of another strong painkiller, all given within a matter of minutes, to help her rest comfortably.
Today I am asking for extra prayers for Emma. Many of you already know that she is in surgery, her fourth major heart surgery in her 9 1/2 months. It is going to be a longer and tougher day than we had anticipated. The surgeon was in a couple of hours ago to tell us of really four possible outcomes for today's surgery. She is a very sick little girl and he has already cancelled his other surgery of the day and will focus just on Emma. (I know that this is already a full week of surgeries, so please pray for the child, and the family of the child, whose surgery has been postponed.) Pray for the entire surgery team and those that will care for her in the days to come, that God will give them the wisdom to make the decisions that will provide for the best outcome for little Emma.
For Emma, please pray first and foremost that she survives the surgery as it will be tough on her. Pray that when they try to take her off the heart-lung machine that her sick little heart will again function and she will not have to placed on ECMO. (ECMO is very similar to the heart-lung machine that if necessary, continues to do the work of her heart and lungs after the surgery.) Finally, pray that she will be strong enough to survive until the day that she receives a new heart. (Once that day arrives, pray for the family that will lose the child that will provide Emma with a heart.)
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11. Pray for that hope and that future for sweet little Emma.
Steph will continue to update throughout the day at: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/wolfekids
Thanks and love to you all,
Sue (for Tim too)"
"Hello All,
I have had the privilege of being able to stay with Emma at the hospital all of last week and again this week. I know that she is indeed a very sick little girl, and that only by the grace of God and with the help of modern medicine have I been charmed to see her biggest smiles. I been able to watch and help her play with her toys, I have had the joy of having her listen intently and reach for the pages as I have read books to her, I have watched her kick her legs with glee when her brothers Caleb and Tyler come into her room or if she even sees a picture of them. I have also witnessed a parade of nurses and Dr's stop in just to say hello to "sweet little Emma" and to get a smile from her. Emma seems to be extra special to all of them. (Yesterday Tim was able to be with me at the hospital to also witness all of these events for himself!) I have also tried to calm her when she was in such severe pain that it took two doses of morphine, plus one of another strong painkiller, all given within a matter of minutes, to help her rest comfortably.
Today I am asking for extra prayers for Emma. Many of you already know that she is in surgery, her fourth major heart surgery in her 9 1/2 months. It is going to be a longer and tougher day than we had anticipated. The surgeon was in a couple of hours ago to tell us of really four possible outcomes for today's surgery. She is a very sick little girl and he has already cancelled his other surgery of the day and will focus just on Emma. (I know that this is already a full week of surgeries, so please pray for the child, and the family of the child, whose surgery has been postponed.) Pray for the entire surgery team and those that will care for her in the days to come, that God will give them the wisdom to make the decisions that will provide for the best outcome for little Emma.
For Emma, please pray first and foremost that she survives the surgery as it will be tough on her. Pray that when they try to take her off the heart-lung machine that her sick little heart will again function and she will not have to placed on ECMO. (ECMO is very similar to the heart-lung machine that if necessary, continues to do the work of her heart and lungs after the surgery.) Finally, pray that she will be strong enough to survive until the day that she receives a new heart. (Once that day arrives, pray for the family that will lose the child that will provide Emma with a heart.)
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11. Pray for that hope and that future for sweet little Emma.
Steph will continue to update throughout the day at: http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/wolfekids
Thanks and love to you all,
Sue (for Tim too)"
Monday, October 25, 2010
Weekly Prayer Requests
This is from the eamil we sent out to our email prayer partners. Please join us in praying this week. Thank you in advance!
Greetings! Would you please join us in prayer this week for several important things in our lives and the ministry here.
First, Matt and I were invited to attend a Latin American Calvary Chapel conference in El Salvador with Pastor Phil and Calvary Chapel Villarreal. Part of the conference will be spent at the Potter's Field Kids Orphanage and Ministry Center just outside of San Salvador, the capital city. We are so excited for this opportunity to travel and see where PFK all started as well as be part of what we are sure will be powerful time in the Word and solid biblical teaching. We will be traveling as a family to Managua, Nicaragua in our car on this Thursday, October 28, 2010, and flying out of Managua airport to San Salvador, El Salvador. Please pray for us as we travel up to Managua and then as we fly to San Salvador on Thursday. We will be returning to Managua, Nicaragua on Monday, November 1, 2010 and then driving back to Villarreal later that day. Please pray as we return on November 1st. Please pray also for Pastor Phil and two of the leaders of the church as they travel the entire day Thursday in bus and then again on Monday as they travel back in bus. It is about an 18 hour trip. Pray for wonderful fellowship during our time together as well. Praise God with us for this opportunity and blessing!
Second, please continue to pray for the kids of PFK. We are seeing them open up more and more and we love our time with them each week. Praise God with us for the weekly Bible Club as well. Last Thursday there were over 50 kids! Ask the Lord of the harvest with us to send workers to this ripe field!
Third, praise God with us for his answer to our prayer of receiving discipleship. We have begun to study inductively the book of Ephesians each week. Pray with us for God to open the eyes of our hearts that we may know him better, that God would give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation and that we may know the hope to which he has called us and the incomparably great power we have in him. (Eph. 1:17-19)
Finally, please pray for each of our children. As they grow and mature we see them developing and maturing at a rate faster than we would like to see. Please pray specifically against the temptations this world offers. Please pray that their eyes, ears, and hearts be protected from all that is around them in these evil days. Ask God to surround us as a family, pray for us to keep him in the center, and for continued open communication with our kids. (Please don't be alarmed as nothing has happened to them...we just live in an evil world and ask for and covet your prayers for our family and children).
Thank you for your partnership with us in prayer.
"I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers." Ephesians 1:15
Serving Christ til He comes back,
Matt and Brooke
Greetings! Would you please join us in prayer this week for several important things in our lives and the ministry here.
First, Matt and I were invited to attend a Latin American Calvary Chapel conference in El Salvador with Pastor Phil and Calvary Chapel Villarreal. Part of the conference will be spent at the Potter's Field Kids Orphanage and Ministry Center just outside of San Salvador, the capital city. We are so excited for this opportunity to travel and see where PFK all started as well as be part of what we are sure will be powerful time in the Word and solid biblical teaching. We will be traveling as a family to Managua, Nicaragua in our car on this Thursday, October 28, 2010, and flying out of Managua airport to San Salvador, El Salvador. Please pray for us as we travel up to Managua and then as we fly to San Salvador on Thursday. We will be returning to Managua, Nicaragua on Monday, November 1, 2010 and then driving back to Villarreal later that day. Please pray as we return on November 1st. Please pray also for Pastor Phil and two of the leaders of the church as they travel the entire day Thursday in bus and then again on Monday as they travel back in bus. It is about an 18 hour trip. Pray for wonderful fellowship during our time together as well. Praise God with us for this opportunity and blessing!
Second, please continue to pray for the kids of PFK. We are seeing them open up more and more and we love our time with them each week. Praise God with us for the weekly Bible Club as well. Last Thursday there were over 50 kids! Ask the Lord of the harvest with us to send workers to this ripe field!
Third, praise God with us for his answer to our prayer of receiving discipleship. We have begun to study inductively the book of Ephesians each week. Pray with us for God to open the eyes of our hearts that we may know him better, that God would give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation and that we may know the hope to which he has called us and the incomparably great power we have in him. (Eph. 1:17-19)
Finally, please pray for each of our children. As they grow and mature we see them developing and maturing at a rate faster than we would like to see. Please pray specifically against the temptations this world offers. Please pray that their eyes, ears, and hearts be protected from all that is around them in these evil days. Ask God to surround us as a family, pray for us to keep him in the center, and for continued open communication with our kids. (Please don't be alarmed as nothing has happened to them...we just live in an evil world and ask for and covet your prayers for our family and children).
Thank you for your partnership with us in prayer.
"I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers." Ephesians 1:15
Serving Christ til He comes back,
Matt and Brooke
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Continue to pray for the Sappia family
You may remember my post not too long ago about prayer for a family we met in language school three years ago...
Here is an update and prayer request.
Please keep praying for this family.
Here is an update and prayer request.
Hello there...
We would like to thank you for your constant prayers for our family during the last couple of weeks and would ask that you would continue praying for all of us as we enter this week of surgery.
Lisa and I (John) leave tomorrow for Miami, where we will spend the night before the surgery. John will be taken into surgery at 7:30am on Monday (10/25). The surgery is supposed to last 6-7 hours.
We sure would appreciate your prayers for Lisa and our family during the long hours of waiting. Of course we ask you to pray for John's strength during surgery and pray for God to lead the surgeons. Also, please pray for the kids as they are back in WPB for the week while John recuperates.
Again, we are so thankful for you, your prayers and your constant encouragement through emails.
Peace!
John and Lisa (and the kiddos)
Please keep praying for this family.
Morning devotional with Charles H. Spugeon
I recently started receiving morning and evening devotioanls from Blue Letter Bible (which a FANTASTIC free online resource - you should totally check it out!) written by Charles H. Spurgeon.
They are deep, they cut me to the bone and make me catch my breath and reflect on my life.
I thought I'd share this mornings with you.
Morning and Evening
Charles H. Spurgeon
October 24, 2010
Morning Reading
The trees of the Lord are full of sap.
—Psalm 104:16
Without sap the tree cannot flourish or even exist. Vitality is essential to a Christian. There must be life—a vital principle infused into us by God the Holy Ghost, or we cannot be trees of the Lord. The mere name of being a Christian is but a dead thing, we must be filled with the spirit of divine life. This life is mysterious. We do not understand the circulation of the sap, by what force it rises, and by what power it descends again. So the life within us is a sacred mystery. Regeneration is wrought by the Holy Ghost entering into man and becoming man's life; and this divine life in a believer afterwards feeds upon the flesh and blood of Christ and is thus sustained by divine food, but whence it cometh and whither it goeth who shall explain to us? What a secret thing the sap is! The roots go searching through the soil with their little spongioles, but we cannot see them suck out the various gases, or transmute the mineral into the vegetable; this work is done down in the dark. Our root is Christ Jesus, and our life is hid in Him; this is the secret of the Lord. The radix of the Christian life is as secret as the life itself. How permanently active is the sap in the cedar! In the Christian the divine life is always full of energy—not always in fruit-bearing, but in inward operations. The believer's graces, are not every one of them in constant motion? but his life never ceases to palpitate within. He is not always working for God, but his heart is always living upon Him. As the sap manifests itself in producing the foliage and fruit of the tree, so with a truly healthy Christian, his grace is externally manifested in his walk and conversation. If you talk with him, he cannot help speaking about Jesus. If you notice his actions you will see that he has been with Jesus. He has so much sap within, that it must fill his conduct and conversation with life.
This has been brought to you by the following ministries:
Blue Letter Bible
Sowing Circle
I am studying thrugh Ephesians Chapter 1 this week and this really penetrated deep today.
"The mere name of being a Christian is a dead thing, we must be filled with the spirit of the divine life."
"What a secret thing the sap is!"
They are deep, they cut me to the bone and make me catch my breath and reflect on my life.
I thought I'd share this mornings with you.
Morning and Evening
Charles H. Spurgeon
October 24, 2010
Morning Reading
The trees of the Lord are full of sap.
—Psalm 104:16
Without sap the tree cannot flourish or even exist. Vitality is essential to a Christian. There must be life—a vital principle infused into us by God the Holy Ghost, or we cannot be trees of the Lord. The mere name of being a Christian is but a dead thing, we must be filled with the spirit of divine life. This life is mysterious. We do not understand the circulation of the sap, by what force it rises, and by what power it descends again. So the life within us is a sacred mystery. Regeneration is wrought by the Holy Ghost entering into man and becoming man's life; and this divine life in a believer afterwards feeds upon the flesh and blood of Christ and is thus sustained by divine food, but whence it cometh and whither it goeth who shall explain to us? What a secret thing the sap is! The roots go searching through the soil with their little spongioles, but we cannot see them suck out the various gases, or transmute the mineral into the vegetable; this work is done down in the dark. Our root is Christ Jesus, and our life is hid in Him; this is the secret of the Lord. The radix of the Christian life is as secret as the life itself. How permanently active is the sap in the cedar! In the Christian the divine life is always full of energy—not always in fruit-bearing, but in inward operations. The believer's graces, are not every one of them in constant motion? but his life never ceases to palpitate within. He is not always working for God, but his heart is always living upon Him. As the sap manifests itself in producing the foliage and fruit of the tree, so with a truly healthy Christian, his grace is externally manifested in his walk and conversation. If you talk with him, he cannot help speaking about Jesus. If you notice his actions you will see that he has been with Jesus. He has so much sap within, that it must fill his conduct and conversation with life.
This has been brought to you by the following ministries:
Blue Letter Bible
Sowing Circle
I am studying thrugh Ephesians Chapter 1 this week and this really penetrated deep today.
"The mere name of being a Christian is a dead thing, we must be filled with the spirit of the divine life."
"What a secret thing the sap is!"
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