Bloom Where You're Planted

Announcing the New Addition to our Family...

2007-08-20T13:16:00.000-07:00

Now what are you all thinking? :o)

Anyway...my husband has started a new ministry/family blog.
You can find me over there now instead of here.

As my husband posted...

"As we prepare to come home for furlough early next year, we wanted to take some measures to strengthen our relationships with many relatives, friends, and acquaintances back in the good 'ole USA. If you are planning to take the time to frequent and peruse our humble musings, let me say "thank you"....you are helping us to rekindle necessary relationships. "

Please visit...
www.villagevista.blogspot.com

With love in Christ,
Kristin

What do these signs mean to you?

2007-08-03T06:58:00.001-07:00

My husband came home last week and said,

"Honey, you'll never believe what has come to town."

"A drive-thru coffee shop."

I was quite suprised. We had to run errands later that day, so we planned to try out the new novelty on our way home.

We drove in the parking lot, both of us on the look out for the "drive-thru".

All at once - with feelings of stupidity and annoyance - it became obvious that we were thinking like Americans.

Although the drive-thru sign was BIGGER than the cafe' sign itself, it was just a nice, polite way of letting the customers know that you could now 'DRIVE-THRU' from their parking lot to the side street behind the coffee shop.

Bummer.

Culture.... and Coffee.

Family Update

2007-08-03T06:37:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends!

It’s been quite a while since I’ve had the chance to write. I know, I don’t have to tell you all that…you can see that by the posts or the lack thereof! :o)

So here’s what we’ve been up to over here in Africa…

Visitors – We’ve enjoyed a time of lots of visitors from the States. We have had guests in our home every month since April. I cannot share what an immense privilege (and fun!) it is. As missionaries, we are on the receiving end of so much. We count it a great blessing to be able to give back to others in some small way…perhaps even just in sharing our beautiful land and precious people.

Ministry – There is so much work to be done. The harvest is great, the laborers are few. I can’t tell you how many times, my heart is just wrenched to tears at seeing the multitudes. Multitudes whom Jesus loves and has redeemed. We have such an intense desire to see the Power of God displayed in this land. We realize so much as we go on, how frail we truly are. But we have a God….the Almighty! We’ve recently seen one man baptized and another one saved. Praise the Lord!

Health – I covet your prayers for our health as a family. We’ve had more sickness than we’d like to remember this year so far! At least one of us has been sick for over nearly 2 months now. But may the Lord be glorified even in our weaknesses, for when we are weak then HE is indeed strong!

Joel – is 3 now. He is busy from sun-up to sun-down. And that’s exhausting to type, because I’m remembering that with summer around the corner here, the sun will begin to rise again at 5am. One of his absolute favorite things right now is to sing Mr. E Scripture songs. I don’t know how many he knows, but all day long, during work or play, you can hear Mr. Joel singing his little heart out.

Anna – is 18 months old now. She is a beautiful little sweet heart. Her goal in life right now is to do everything her brother does – and do it faster and better. :o) She doesn’t see much need to talk. She has surprised us with about 3 clearly said words, but she refuses to repeat them! She’ll probably surprise us with an entire sentence one day!

George and I – we’re doing well. Busy. Exhausted. But our joy comes from knowing we’re where God wants us. We had the very neat opportunity to go on an elephant back safari together recently when George’s family was here. That was INCREDIBLY cool! Thanks Mom H. for babysitting!

Some recent blessings...
~Jathro – following the Lord in baptism
~Fels - salvation and fruit evidenced
~A van provided for short-term use
~Our Riso guy has been doing our huge printing jobs for Botswana at a fraction of the cost - even cheaper than we could.
~Seeing the power of God in David's life as he grows and matures (our key man right now who has surrendered to preach...he is currently discipling Fels).
~Monkeys daily frolicking out my kitchen window (and sometimes on my roof).
~Seeing the power of God's Word in my life, in my children's and husband's lives, and in our precious Africans' lives.
~A divine appointment with a lady who gives Afrikaans (local Dutch dialect) language
lessons.
~ Our protection & safety

Some Prayer Requests...
~ Burgersdorp Sun AM services (currently meeting on a soccer field/cow pasture:-)
~ Motupa Sun Afternoon services (currently meeting in a primary school)
~ Lodi (high school age boy from Motupa - under conviction)
~ Botswana Trips & Contacts
~ Power of God on our ministry and lives
~ Wisdom
~ Divine Appointments
~ Laborers
~ Timing of Furlough...
~ Our key men right now
David, Jathro, Fels
~ Our health (this is a 3rd world country...we are daily around alot of sickness and
disease)

Thank you friends and family, for your love and support. You are a vital part of our ministry. Please don't ever think that the part you play is insignificant. So many times as ladies (or men), we see only what we CAN'T do....but please, look at what we CAN do. Jesus praised that precious woman in the New Testament, for "she hath done what she could...". If you don't "hold the ropes" in prayer, who will? The harvest IS plenteous, but the laborers ARE few. Will you go? We realize more now than ever before how weak and powerless WE are. We thirst to see God's power across this land.

I want you to know that every email, every letter, every call is very special and appreciated. Although I may not always be able to personally respond as I would like to, in this season of my life, please know they are blessings. You'll never know the joy of driving to the post box and having a letter there from home....or of checking my email and reading about what's going on in YOUR life!

In the Everlasting Arms,
Mamaruti
Mhani Mufhundhisi
Kristin :o)

Birthday Time Around our House!

2007-06-01T05:38:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband.

~ Twenty Nine Years Old ~

I am so grateful for him.

He is my best friend.

He loves me so much and is a incredible husband, father,

leader, missionary...

Happy Birthday!!!!! We ALL Love you!!!!!!!

Just the way it is...

2007-05-11T12:34:00.000-07:00

Here in our busy little town, errands are rarely a quick thing. You'd never imagine it could take so long to buy stamps or to just deposit money. A few days ago, my husband went into town to run some errands. It was the day before a public holiday, so things were packed. It usually isn't the best idea to try to go to the post office or bank, but sometimes, you just don't have a choice.

It just struck me funny as relayed the less-than-exhilarating experience (one of many) to me. He said that there must have been hundreds of people in the bank itself. He was waiting and waiting for almost 45 minutes in the queue (the line).

What else do you do when you're bored? Count the people in front of you!

My husband said he stopped counting at 75 people in front of him...

AND THAT WAS IN THE EXPRESS LANE! :o)

Culture...and Visitors

2007-04-29T13:24:00.000-07:00

We love to have visitors. We just bid goodbye to visitors a few weeks ago, with a tear in the eye. We have the privilege of having my mother here for a surprise visit right now, as well, and never look forward to family goodbyes.

We are so grateful for the day and age we live in that makes overseas travel possible. We love our friends and families. We love the people and the place where God has put us here in Africa. Some of the sweetest times have to be when both of our ‘worlds’ merge for a short period of time, when friends and family visit this beautiful land. As one missionary wife put it, “It just doesn’t get much better than that!” It is with great joy that we get to see our much-loved mission field again through different eyes - the eyes of a visitor.

It’s always amazing to me how we become accustomed to the things that we see every day. When we have visitors, we see things through the eyes of an American once again! :o)

Things like:

*Passing the sign for Kruger National Park every time we check our mail or go grocery shopping!
*African ladies carrying 20 lbs or more on top of their heads with no hands
*Breathtaking scenery
*In the village, seeing houses that would be smaller than an American’s tool shed…and that probably sleep 4 people at a minimum
*Monkeys being as common as squirrels
*Killing a scorpion on the way to get groceries
*Armed guards everywhere
*Car watchers/guards at every public place
*Iron bars and gates on every house
*Being ready to greet people in one of 4 languages at any given time
*Buying meat by kilograms and fabric by the meter
*Seeing prices that look rather high, like R10.00 for milk! :o)

And those are obviously just a few things!

I recently read this portion from a book written by a missionary’s wife to Ivory Coast. I found her perspective quite interesting and her words well written.

“Goodbyes are a natural part of life, but in some lines of work they are far too frequent to be comfortable. We belong to a group in constant flux seeing many people come and go. This is the life of a missionary. I rarely cry now at a parting because I have prepared for the inevitable. It is only afterwards, in a quiet moment, the tears begin to flow at the memory of a friend who has left our lives once again, or of our extended family far away on the other side of the ocean. In missionary life goodbyes are as frequent as greetings, and the special people in your closest sphere are continually changing. When we leave our friends and family across the ocean, God brings in others to replace them for a time, but eventually we lose them too.

Once I was sitting by a missionary colleague during a conference, and she commented about this difficult aspect of missionary life. She said there are only two options for survival: to love quickly and deeply, or not to love at all. In the former course you hurt badly every time you move on and a relationship is broken, but in the latter you shut yourself off from loving anyone, and while it is true that you do not hurt when someone leaves, you also begin slowly to die within – no one can live without giving and receiving love.

How can you face the subtle, prolonged grief of always saying goodbye? When you love deeply it rips you apart and leaves you hurting. Some people cannot face it and leave to put down more permanent roots back home. I cannot blame them. Though we repeatedly hurt, we also repeatedly run to the Lord who heals all our wounds. We cry and He comforts us. We grieve and He holds us. The more we hurt the more He heals us, and the more it becomes apparent that there is no end to the fountain of His grace.

I felt the tears welling up inside me as I remembered once again those who had left. Yet God was there. He would always be. He is the one thing that never changes. He only is always sure to fill that emptiness completely. This life is only temporary; we are just passing through and moving on to better ground. We are doing our best with what we have, trying to please our Lord, until we arrive safely home to our final resting place. There we shall see all those we have been parted from for so long, and we will greet them – never to say ‘goodbye’
again.”

At the Edge of the Village (Canon Press)by L. Leidenfrost “Goodbyes” pg183-184

Happy Birthday Little Man

2007-04-27T11:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Son!

3 years ago today, I held my firstborn son

all 10.5 lbs of him! :o)

I shall never forget that day!

He has changed my life and taught me so many things.

I love him!

Questions...

2007-04-06T13:46:00.000-07:00

One of our wonderful missionary group leaders from our church sent me this questionnaire to fill out for her group. Some of the questions were good ones - ones I had never thought of before. So I thought I'd post it:

Favorites….

Color... Burgundy or Lilac
Food... Sweets or Italian Food
Book of the Bible... Hebrews
Verse... Psalm 145:8-9

How old were you when you were saved? 13

How long a member? 13 years

What kind of books do you like to read? Christian Womanhood or Mommyhood books.

Hobbies / Interests - a few are reading, baking, exercising, organizing, writing, playing blocks! :o)

How would you like to spend a free day, that you could do anything you wanted. I think I'd like to take my Bible and a book to Kruger Park for the day. Turn off the engine of the car and sit by a river bed and listen to the sounds of the African Bush, while reading - of course with coffee.

Please tell us about your new home....In November, we made a move to a new house. We weren't necessarily planning on moving, but the right house was dropped in our lap. My husband desperately needed an office since he works from home. In our old house, the 'desk' and Risograph was in the living room (IE: Grand Central Station) and as the kids got older and noisier :o), it was getting harder to keep the kids quiet all day. So now, we have an all-brick 4 bedroom house. One bedroom for us, one for the kids, a guest room, and then an office. It's a whole lot bigger than the other one was - and that's nice too....lots more to clean though! It has an open plan living room, dining room, and kitchen which I love.

New favorite African fruit? Litchi

New favorite African flower? What colors? Yesterday Today Tomorrow Bush...the flowers start white and change to light purple, then to dark purple and have a heavenly lilac type scent.

New favorite African store? What kind of things do they sell? Boardman's. It's a home store....sort of like Bed, Bath, and Beyond, but about a 1/4 of the size :o)

New favorite African place to eat? What type of, or description of food? Mugg & Bean - COFFEE SHOP mainly, but they do have nice meals - the closest one is an hour away....just opened up a few weeks ago....I was so excited!

New favorite African place to visit? What is to be seen or done there? Kruger Park...the size of New Jersey - great place to go on Safari!

New favorite African season of year? You will have to give us the months too. The way-too-short winter (May, June, July) because it's not 120F out!

New favorite African custom or tradition? Two things: First ~ Although at first, it was a big adjustment, we love the quiet nights in Africa. Nothing is open past 5pm. NOTHING but a convenience store. We have one restaurant and it is open later, but the mall, coffee shops and fast food are closed. It will be a ghost town by 6pm - hardly any cars in sight. We very rarely leave the house after dark. I can probably count on two hands and not need all the fingers - the times we've gone somewhere after dark in 2.5 years! Saturday & Sunday, everything closes by 2pm. Second ~ at this new house, we are at the edge of town. At night, we can see more stars than you can imagine. I love to sit out before bed and just gaze at the stars and pray or sit out with my husband.... such an awesome feeling!

You can add anything else that you would like to share with us about Africa...

Many people don't know how much of a white population (mixture of English and Afrikaans [dutch] background) there is in Africa. In town, it's probably 75% white people, of course, most of the black people live in the village. More and more though, black folks that have good jobs are moving in town too. They are glad for the opportunity. Under the previous Apartheid government, they were not allowed to live in town. Most businesses are owned by white people and operated by black people. English is the trade language, although it is a British English, so things are quite different and hard to understand. Afrikaans (dutch type language of the whites) and the local dialects are also spoken. There are 11 official languages in the country. In our province, the main African dialects are Sotho (sue-two) and Tsonga (song-a). We are currently working on both languages for conversational purposes.

Culture...and Bugs

2007-03-30T12:41:00.000-07:00

I never was very fond of bugs - any kind, any size. It's sort of funny now, that I am a missionary's wife to the dark continent of Africa; probably the bug capitol of the world! Now there's a whole new world of bugs to discover.

It's amazing to me how after time, the most bizarre things become commonplace and normal. The other day, I was washing my face before bed. As I turned to my towel, I noticed a nice, fairly good size beetle that was resting right where I was headed. And you know what - I didn't flick it off or kill it. I just 'moved over' so we could 'share' the towel. Then I stopped. "Oh. My. Word. I cannot believe what I just did." Because it's a way of life, one gets accustomed to picking foreign 'things' out of food and drinks, and just 'pretending you never saw it'.

Culture. It has a way of changing you! Now I've probably offended, grossed out, and lost all my friends. My apologies. :o)

Another missionary wife and I were chatting about the subject of bugs one day and she made the comment, "I don't think ladies back in America have any clue the types and amounts of bugs we face on a daily basis - that we now look at as normal!" She's right. What once would have illicited a quick smack of my shoe now gets passed by as if it were part of my decoration. Now, unless they're poisonous or harmful - they may live.

Here's just a few that we visited with today...

Ants. Boy they work hard. Boy they're scavengers. We have the type of black ant that is mainly interested in other dead bugs. Nice, eh? Trouble is, in this country cleaning up dead bugs is a several times a day chore. Oftentimes though, these diligent little things beat me to it. You can leave a room clean, only to re-enter 5 minutes later to a infestation of ants. We probably say a dozen times a day, "What in the world are they after now." A closer look reveals that the main attraction was dead fly. How exciting. When they've rid the house of dead bugs, they will move onto food. We must keep things sealed and covered, or they help themselves! Many times I have gone to do dishes and found an army swarming all over every dish in the sink. Fun!

Flying Termites. Recently these have started up again. Around the time I'm preparing dinner, it starts. The air-raid of the flying termites. Maybe they like my cooking, I don't know. They come unannounced and unwelcomed in the screenless windows, try to shed off their wings and then ... well I don't know what they do next.

Crickets. Now these little creatures are normally not too bothersome. Except when your house is infested. When we returned from the States in January, we discovered that they moved in. We regularly remove at least a dozen crickets a day. Oftentimes we're flicking lights on in the middle of the night moving furniture to find them, as their 'serenade' isn't appreciated in our bedroom.

Spiders. In the 2.5 years we've been in Africa, I've seen more spiders than I have my entire life. There is one particular kind that is somewhat poisonous. It called a jumping spider and very tiny. They do jump. They are hard to catch. When they bite they leave a welt about the size of a half-dollar - and often require antibiotic treatment. Spiders require daily maintenance as well around here.

Over the next several weeks, I have several posts I will be writing in regards to different aspects of the culture of the land and people we love. I hope that you can get a better glimpse of our reality, and be able to pray for us better. So, there will be more frequent posts than there has been! :o)

With all that being said, I wish at the same time to convey the peace and joy - amidst oftentimes radical cultural differences - of being where God wants us. "There's no life so rewarding, as serving the Lord..." When we accept what God has for us - His Perfect Way, then we can and will bloom where we're planted - for His glory. God's will is NEVER something to fear.

Known Only To God...

2007-03-08T05:04:00.000-08:00

Sunday, last week, I experienced some complications with the pregnancy, 9 weeks along. Monday, last week, we made an unexpected trip to the doctor's office. We were deeply saddened that our doctor could not find a heartbeat anymore.

Although this has to be almost the toughest few days of my life. The Lord was very gracious and His strength very real and very strong on our behalf this past week as I miscarried my 3rd precious little one. She or he joined their twin in Heaven only weeks apart.

The Lord allowed me to behold a miracle with my own eyes....to behold what for most - is something only God sees. Psalm 139:16 became so alive, "Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect..."And as the Bible affirms, we KNOW we shall see our babies one day. What peace and comfort that gives. We do not understand it all but one day we shall. Their first sight will be Heaven; their first steps will be on streets of gold, and their first words will be praise to their Creator LORD! In THIS is a mother's heart comforted!

Deuteronomy 33:27 "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting Arms..."

Grief is very real. Grief is necessary. Grief has it's intended purpose. But to those of us that KNOW the Lord, may the grief always press us closer to Him, looking to Him and allowing Him -God of all Comfort to do just that.

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on Thee, because he trusteth in Him. Isaiah 26:3

I could go on and on because there's so much I could share. I have a journal nearly full of just these past two months, and all the Lord has taught me, shown me, and blessed me with. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

I KNOW

I know thy sorrow, child; I know it well,

Thou needest not try with broken voice to tell.

Just let Me lay thy head down on My breast,

And find here sweetest comfort, perfect rest;

Thou needest not bear the burden, child, thyself,

I yearn to take it all upon Myself;

Then trust it all to Me today - tomorrow,

Yes, e'en foever; for I know thy sorrow.

Long years ago I planned it all for thee;

Prepared it that thou mightst find need of Me.

Without it, child, thou wouldst not come to

Find this place of comfort in this love of Mine.

Hadst thou no cross like this for Me to bear,

Thou wouldst not feel the need of My strong care;

But in thy weakness thou didst come to Me,

And through this plan I have won thee.

~Author Unknown ~

A Glimpse of an African Sunday...

2007-02-25T11:17:00.000-08:00

These pictures were from last week.

Out of necessity, I was trying to be discreet,

hence the reason there are not any pictures of the service. :o)

View from where I sit...

The road we drive in on...

Across the street...

One of the girls...

Laundry

Dishes

My son

My Daughter

Road in Village

We're still Alive...

2007-02-17T10:09:00.000-08:00

Just in case anyone was wondering, yes, we are still alive over here. :o) It was quite a crazy week. Tuesday, I came down with a bout of food poisoning, we thought possibly from the local cafe'. TIA (This Is Africa). Despite not feeling well, we still had to make a quick overnight trip to the Pretoria area to deliver video equipment to a fellow missionary to use later in the week. Less than a half hour in the car, in the mountains, it became tangibly evident that my daugther had contracted the same food poisoning, as she blessed herself and the car seat with the consequences. My husband and I looked at each other and said, "Are we ready to go home yet?!" We pressed on though. We arrived home on Wednesday, quite exhausted from being sick and travelling. So on an errand, my husband visited the cafe' on Wednesday after returning home. And unfortunately, Thursday morning, he woke up with food poisoning case #3. TIA!

So, that has been our week in a nutshell....food poisoning! What fun....my son has been fine so far and since we are positive now that the culprit was 'cream' from the cafe', we now KNOW what to avoid! :o)

Note: I don't want to hear any comments from Wendy about the coffee - ok?! It was the 'cream' NOT the 'coffee'. We would've gotten sick on Chai too - but why?! :o) Hee! Hee!

Our Valentine's Day Gift

2007-02-16T10:04:00.000-08:00

The ultrasound on Wednesday, revealed one very precious heartbeat! The baby is about 8 weeks old at this point. We were saddened to find out however, that the other baby has already miscarried and is with the Lord.

Both we and our wonderful doctor were pretty surprised and excited to see the beating heart, and attribute that as a blessing of the Lord and answered prayers. The last several weeks have been quite a rollercoaster of emotions, and we are mainly relieved today to just know what is happening at this point. We praise the Lord for another child, which should be coming along around September 28!

Even though twins would've been overwhelming, only a mother could long for even that, so she could've known and held that one so dear that was lost.

I read this quote from Dr. J.R. Miller, in reference to the loss of a child,

"Only God knows what will be best - to live in this world, enduring it's wintry weather, or to be taken to the summerland of Heaven, to grow up there, getting the crown without the conflict. We are not wise enough to to decide what will be best' we would rather leave it to our Father."

What a precious thought...'getting the crown without the conflict'. One of the things that comforted me the most when we miscarried our first child was the fact that the baby was with the Lord. He or she was perfect. And he or she had already attained all that we look forward to one day being.

Psalm 145:9

"The Lord is good to all: and

HIS TENDER MERCIES

are over all His works."

We are very grateful for the Lord's perfect way. We're so grateful that when our spirits are overwhelemed within us, then HE knows our path.

Thank you to all of those friends and family that have showed so much love and concern for us during this difficult time. I cannot express to you the encouragement it was to this mama's heart.

FeedBlitz

2007-02-08T11:45:00.000-08:00

If you're interested, you can subscribe over to the right and get emails when I update the blog. Thanks Rachel! :o)

Eucalyptus Trees & The Storm

2007-02-07T05:19:00.000-08:00

Several have asked if we can notice the scent of the eucalyptus trees just over our brick wall. Up until last night, I had not noticed.

Last night we watched an incredible storm come off the mountain. We live on the edge of town now and closer to the mountains. It seems as if our backyard is where the cool front collides with the hot humid weather we experience 9 months out of the year.

The winds were very strong. It was blowing things off of my shelves! And of course - this always happens in Africa - I had just dusted! Then through our screen-less windows, the fierce wind blew in a few tons of dirt all over again!

Yet the neatest thing - and reason for my post in the first place - was the strong scent of eucalyptus wafting through my home. Absolutely wonderful! My husband said, it's like natural aromatherapy! How cool is THAT? See, in the USA, you have to PAY for stuff like that...I just open my windows! :o)

The only thing better would have been if it had actually rained; bringing a more long lasting cool front!

To us, here in Africa, when we say, "Oh what a nice day out," we usually mean "It's cloudy and threatening rain"...but just the brief absence of the sun can make all the difference. The weather stations report two temperatures here; one in the sun and one in the shade. They say there is a 20 degree difference. :o) To an African however, if there's no sun, they're cold. They will have sweaters and jackets on even if it's 80 out - because there's no sun!

Needless to say, we keep our thermometer in the shade. It said 85 today. I don't really want to know what it would've been in the sun. That might be depressing! :o)

Bow the Knee...

2007-02-04T05:10:00.000-08:00

This would have to be one of my life-songs. It was the song that comforted my heart most during the miscarriage of our first child. And even yet today, it's message has grown even sweeter as we walk with the Lord through the current storm we're facing...

Bow the Knee

There are moments on our journey

Following the Lord,

When God illumines every step we take.

There are times when circumstances

Make perfect sense to us

As we try to understand each move He makes.

But when the plan grows dim,

And our questions have no answers,

Turn to Him.

When we hear the thunder round us

And the rain begins to fall.

The cold and lonely winds won't cease to blow.

When it seems there is no reason

For the suffering we feel.

We are tempted to believe God does not know

When storms arise,

Don't forget we live by faith and not by sight.

Bow the knee!
Trust the heart of your Father
When the answer goes beyond what you can see.
Bow the knee!
Lift your eyes toward Heaven
And believe the One Who holds Eternity.
And when you don't understand
The purpose of His Plan,
In the presence of your King,
Bow the Knee.

His Way is Perfect...

2007-02-04T04:36:00.000-08:00

We have been going through an especially trying couple of weeks. For those of you who may not know, I will briefly fill you in:

We found out last Tuesday that I was expecting, currently 6 weeks along. Then last Wednesday I had some complications to indicate that the pregnancy was in danger of miscarrying. Last Friday they did a blood test that seemed to indicate everything was ok, but the doctor ordered an ultrasound just to be sure. This past Wednesday, I was far enough along to have an ultrasound. We thought maybe we'd get to the bottom of this. She found TWO amniotic sacs. BUT she could not locate anything in either sac; they appeared to be empty. So she is quite concerned. It looks like both pregnancies may have already ended (blighted ova), and in that case will miscarry at any time. But she wants to give it two more weeks. There is a very small chance that I am not as far along as thought to be - meaning it would still be too early to see things on a sonar. But all things considered, that seems highly unlikely.

We greatly appreciate your prayers during this time. Our appointment is on Valentine's Day. Of course it is possible to miscarry at any time if it is indeed what the Lord has planned.

It has been a very difficult time of emotional ups and downs, yet the Lord has given great peace. And I just don't say that lightly. He has been everything to us. He has been so very real. He has been and continues to be our Strength. His Word has been a lamp to our feet and I'd like to close by sharing some of the most precious with you...

"For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand...."

Isaiah 41:13

"Which of you , clasping the hand of the child that you love, leading it home in the eventide darkness, or across some stony way, would let go that feeble hand, so that the little thing came to harm in unaided loneliness? It may be that to you life's path is rough and hard just now; the skies my be darkened, the track perplexing. Yet never dream the hand of your God and Father has ceased to guide you. He holds you all the more

closely because the road is dark."

~Mrs. Charles E. Cowman~

"As for my God, His way IS perfect...It is God that girdeth me with strength and maketh my way perfect. He maketh my feet like hinds' feet, and setteth me upon my high places."

Psalm 18:30,32,33

"When my spirit was overwhelmed within me, then Thou knewest my path."

Psalm 142:3

Around the house...

2007-01-19T11:07:00.000-08:00

The kitchen window

The view from my kitchen window

The eucalyptus trees where the Vervet monkies frolic

Palm trees in our yard. :o)

Just a few pictures to give you another glimpse of "home".

I forgot to mention that we are all healthy this week!

Praise the Lord!

Blackout #3

2007-01-18T10:49:00.000-08:00

Our whole town was in a blackout today for 4 hours - at the hottest part of the day! :o) Not fun! I just happened to be alone in the mall when it happened. I was in Clicks, similar to CVS, picking up a few things and with no warning or flickering lights, the darkness hit and could be felt. Pitch black. I could not even see my hands, much less who was standing next to me. Backup generators are not required here. So there I stood. I instinctively clutched my purse tightly as I quickly put what I had to purchase back down and made my way to the door. It was busy and tense. The security guards were scrambling for the front doors to prevent anyone from running out and stealing. It was quite an unsettling strange feeling - to feel paralyzed by darkness.

They've stated that apparently there isn't enough electricity in South Africa right now with a main plant being down in Cape Town. So for the next week, they will be enforcing random blackouts across the country to 'spare' the electricity. How nice of them. Our town is having their own issues as well; there was the 72 hour blackout in October, a 24 hour blackout in December, and various patches (weekly) in between. They stated in the local paper last week that the part needed is "on order" and should be fixed......BY JUNE!!!!! Ever since the 72 hour blackout in October, we've got it down to a science now - what to do when our power flickers on - because we never know just how long it's gonna be there! Never take that stuff for granted!

And yes - to those of you that were wondering - the first thing we do when power flickers back on is make coffee. :o)

Does this look good or what? :o)

2007-01-18T10:26:00.000-08:00

Ahh! The blessings of living in the Southern Hemisphere right now!

Sick!

2007-01-12T12:14:00.000-08:00

My sweet son came down with tonsilitis midweek. My daughter is still fighting bronchitis from when we were in the USA. This makes almost 8 weeks straight of either one or both of my children being sick non-stop! Needless to say, we are wiped out and exhausted. Pray for us! Both of the kids today though are showing marked improvement - for which we are so glad! I've got tons and tons of pictures waiting to upload, but for now, you'll just have to wait! :o)

Happy Birthday Sweet Baby!

2007-01-12T11:55:00.000-08:00

~Just hours old ~

One year ago today, we held our precious baby girl in our arms for the first time...just seconds after birth. Today has been such a sweet, special day - filled with unexpressable gratitude for this precious baby. You see, she was born with only one functioning kidney. Although she is so very healthy today, during those first few days of her life things were so very uncertain to us. Yet we KNOW our lives are NEVER uncertain to Him. Thank you Lord for this precious gift. We love you pretty girl!

~6 months old ~

~One Year ~

Robbed!

2007-01-07T00:51:00.000-08:00

When we arrived home - weary from traveling and excited to be 'home' - we stepped in the front door and stopped dead. Both my husband and I were speechless.

Our eyes were immediately drawn to the curtainless kitchen window, the black welding marks on the iron bars over the window, and the chunks of red mud smeared on the floor. All at once we saw the police report on the counter and it clicked - we had been the victims of a heartless crime.

My eyes burned with tears. In disbelief, we wandered through the house - afraid to learn of what had been stolen. The security company had locked all the bedroom doors after responding to the alarm. And the keys were no where to be found. Great. Who has them?

To make a long story short, we were able to find the keys. They were in safe hands - the security company. Praise the Lord! So again, in disbelief, we wandered through the house - afraid to learn of what had been stolen. Exposed. Vulnerable. Violated. Angry. Broken. Afraid. Pity for people we love so much. Where had they been? What had they seen? What had they done in the cover of darkness?

We had hid some of the electronic items that we possess in the event that we were robbed. Thankfully, they did not have time to find those items as the alarm was blaring and they only had minutes till our armed response came.

Thankfully they didn't steal much. And what they did steal were things that were ready to be replaced anyway! In amongst the turmoil of such a thing, I marvelled at the protection of the Lord and His mercy.

I was comforted with the story of Noah, oddly enough. Sometimes life's circumstances are out of our control. Sometimes, with eyes of flesh, I make the error of thinking that perhaps God wasn't looking. However, God is in control. God IS in control. I imagined what Noah must've felt like in that ark. Rain pouring. Death surrounding them on the other side of that gopher wood ark. Of course we can read the whole story in 2 minutes and see how it all played out. But put yourself in his shoes. With eyes of flesh, I'm sure at times, he wondered if God had forgotten them. But God remembered Noah and his family. Through it all God was in perfect control. With eyes of faith, I am encouraged to trust in that simple fact. He IS in control. Always. Totally. He that keepeth Israel shall never slumber nor sleep! The Lord is my helper!

The Great Plane Ride

2007-01-06T11:35:00.000-08:00

Tuesday came quicker than we thought possible. It was a day of busyness...of sadness...of joy...of frustration! Yes mixed emotions, you could say!

The Lord gave obvious grace when the moment came to say goodbye to our dear families at the airport. Airports. Missionaries tend to have a love/hate relationship with them. Sometimes they're the best place in the world (picking up loved ones) - and sometimes they're the worst (saying goodbyes)! He put a joy in our hearts to be in Africa again....to be with the people we love and have been called to minister to!

The Lord also answered several prayers...
We were not charged for the extra suitcase we had
The children slept for the better part of the 18hour flight.
We only had 3 tickets, but were able to have an entire row (4 seats) both legs of the flight.
We had assistance from two porters when we arrived at the airport in Johannesburg. They took care of everything and even got us in special lines for both passports and customs. Very nice!
We were able to stay at a Bed & Breakfast that night to rest before we began our 4 hour drive home.
The children slept almost all the way home - and THAT'S a miracle!

Praise the Lord for His GOODNESS and for His wonderful works to the children of men...

My Heart Is Full

2006-12-30T18:02:00.000-08:00

Well, just a few more days and we'll be getting on the airplane for an 18 hour flight leaving home to go home. Right now, my heart is so very full. Full of gratefulness and humbled at the love that has been poured out so overwhelmingly.

We are grateful for the other missionary families the Lord has allowed us to be co-laborers with.

We are also truly grateful to the Lord for His Will for our lives right now - missionaries to South Africa. It is one of the most blessed opportunities in the world. I feel so rich...to be able to call both the USA and Africa my home!

I am not looking forward at all to saying goodbye again - YET - I know that as soon as well lift off, there will be such joy to arrive in Africa....our Africa!

Kristin