A Surprise Return

Due to s3cur!ty, we left our place of refuge in S3neg@l to return to the land and the people to whom our Father called us without letting any of them know we were on our way home. We knew nothing about what the journey would be like, how long it would take us, or exactly when we would arrive at out homes. Only our Father truly knew what the journey held for us...it was an adventure. We did end up spending a couple of extra days at our second destination.
After arriving at our home, we called our friend O to talk with her and see what she was doing. She was doing her normal things--selling peanuts in the market. She told us she would be working peanuts in the late afternoon and that she would not be going to the market the next morning. She would be working peanuts at home. OUr conversation ended with me saying. "K'an ben, sooooni." That means "See you soon!!" At first my heart was anxious to go see her and work peanuts with her that afternoon. I knew that it was not a possibility. I asked Father to give me patience and wait on His timing to see her and let her know we had arrived at home.
The next morning I called and still did not reveal that we were home. Just called to make sure she was home and working peanuts like she said she would be. She was, so again I ended the conversation with "K'an ben soooooni!!" This time I knew it would be much sooner than she was expecting..actually she wasn't expecting it at all!! That was the fun part.
C@therine and I got ready and headed to our friends house to surprise her and work peanuts. It was fun as we took a taxi, walked up her street and quietly entered her compound. As is custom, we walked in and greeted saying, "I ni sogoma!" ("Good morning!") After a moment of shock and uncertainty about what was happening, our friend stood up, greeted us, and welcomed us home. Truly it was later in the day that she really realized we were home and we were at her house. I'm not certain what she had been thinking or if she thought we would ever be back. For weeks we had been ending our conversations with  "K'an ben sooooni!" But this time it was real and our Father had kept His promise:

"What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go.

 One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you." 

Genesis 28:15

Gifts from My Creator

My birthday month was filled with gifts from the One who knows me best!! Things that make my heart smile, things that assure me of His love for me, and things that reflect the intimacy of a relationship with the One who created me! He filled my days with glimpses of Himself and the reality that we walk together in this garden called life.


The beach has always been an integral part of my walk with G0d. From as far back as I can remember, the beach and all of the beauties that fill the ocean have been a part of my world. My parents took us to the beach every year and sometimes more than once. It was a place of peace, serenity, joy, excitement, and exploration. It held the promise of sweet memories of family and friends as well as a clear understanding that there was a G0d bigger than I could imagine.

It was at the beach that I surrendered my whole life to the One who loves me and gave His life for me. He took my heart that night on the beach and has held it close every since...never leaving me, never giving up on me. My life was no longer mine...it is HIS. He meets me there every time. Whether on the Eastern Seaboard of the USA, the west coast or southern coast of Afr!ca, the shores of the Hawaiian islands, or the rocky shores of Korea, the Lover of my Soul walks with me there.

From the waves crashing on the shore to all kinds of seashells, there is a display of the greatness of my G0d. From the puffer fish to the sea anemones under the surface of the salty water a whole different world awaits our curious souls. The vastness of the One who made us can only be known as we stop... taking in the beauty of all that lives around us, taking a walk with Him, and allowing Him to open our eyes to the details of every day.

HIgher Thoughts

 Before the coup d'etat in M@li, I was planning my vacation. I had some frequent flyer miles that HAD to be used by a certain date. My heart's desire was to go to the beach somewhere. There was only one place I could fly to from M@li using my miles--Kenya. Sounds like a great place to visit...I have never been there. After checking into it, I discovered there is a good beach with snorkeling and lots of other great things to experience. As I planned, it looked like I would have to take that trip alone. Not my first choice, but my only choice. 

Well the coup d'etat happened and I was unable to make my plans in time to use my frequent flyer miles. My Daddy G0d had higher plans for me. Just as His Word says, "My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts and my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine," His thoughts were way beyond what I had thought of for my birthday vacation. He used the difficulties in M@li to place me in a neighboring country for one month...a country on the west coast of Afr!ca...yes and a town on the coast. 

On my second day in D@kar, some friends were showing us around and helping us know about all the places we would need for our time there. On that little tour, I spotted a lighthouse sitting in the distance ...in the middle of the ocean. At that moment, I said to myself..."One day, I want to go out to that lighthouse and see it up close and personal." The longer we stayed in D@kar and the more work G0d did in my sp!r!t about all that was going on in M@li, the more He opened my eyes to His higher thoughts and ways. He had a better plan for my birthday vacation...He placed me near the beach, He surrounded me with lots of people instead of being alone, and He provided me with lots of new experiences to bring joy and reminders of His Faithful Presence in difficult times. 

There were several birthday adventures while I was in D@kar. One was the bucket list event of finding a way out to the little lighthouse in the ocean. Some of my new friends and old friends took a little boat into the big ocean to take an up close personal look at the little lighthouse. It was a blast with only a couple of us experiencing greenness around the gills. The water was a little choppy that day because the wind was blowing. It was a fun journey...one I will never forget! The anticipation of seeing the little lighthouse filled me with joy as we got closer and closer. It just reminded me of the importance of us returning to M@li and her people. Right now, the times are turbulent and the country is on the verge of great disaster. Christ and His people stand as a light in the darkness to guide the way. G0d filled my Sp!r!t with f@ith and courage as I spent those few moments staring closely at that little lighthouse. My heart filled with resolve to follow Him and finish what He has begun in M@li.

 

More birthday fun took place as a group of us spent the day at AcroBaobab Adventure. It is an adventure park among a Baobab tree forest where you exsperience the challenges of a high ropes course. I have to say I believe this is the best high ropes course in the world. Each challenge presented its own fears to overcome!! It was a time to face and overcome obstacles that could either hinder your progress or sending you soaring to new heights. I love these kinds of challenges because life is full of them. When you face them, you know what is truly deep inside of you. I knew that the choice to return to M@li during these turbulent times was going to take a f@ith and a dependence on G0d like never before. This day at the park was a day where G0d and I continued to work out the f@ith and courage and dependence I was going to need to soar with HIM to new heights in my f@ith journey. It was a day to confess that I cannot do this life alone...He is everything I need!! 

So I stepped off that last platform to zipline to the ground knowing that I am not alone... knowing that He has called me... knowing that He is the One who holds me up!  Complete abandon to the ONE in whom I believe... Complete trust in the ONE for whom I live!!

Unexpected Birthday Celebrations

After spending over a month as a refugee of M@li in S3neg@l awaiting the open door to return, we began the journey back to the country and the people we love. We had to spend a few extra days at our second destination. During that time, my actual birthday arrived. I had used some of my time in S3neg@l to celebrate my birthday because I was in a new place and had the opportunity to see and do some things I may never have a chance to do.  So I had begun my "birthday month celebrations" in April.
 

 As only G0d can do, He had me in another new place with new opportunities for my birthday. At breakfast, we decided we would spend the day exploring the area and experience the beauty of G0d's creation. My birthday celebration included a day of hippo hunting and enjoying some of the most beautiful waterfalls in M@li.

  

With new friends and old friends, I celebrated my special day in unexpected ways...ways filled with fun, joy, and the incredible greatness of my G0d. I basked in the serenity and peace of following Him and walking WITH Him even though there may be turbulence all around. We didn't actually get to see hippos but the hunt along the S3neg@l river was worth the looking!!

A Life of Importance

Greetings everyone!!
We have had a great and busy week!! It began Monday morning with my trip to the dentist. Most of you do not know, but when I was in the 4th grade, I broke both of my 2 front teeth--they broke in half from the bottom to the top. Since then I have had many dentist and teeth adventures. I can now mark this one off my bucket list--going to the dentist in a 3rd World country to have a missing tooth replaced with a temporary one. I guess I need to confess...it was never really on the bucket list. Now it is and now it is marked off!!

Many of you have emailed and asked about it so today I have been able to sit still to send a report. I was pleasantly surprised when a friend and I went inside the dental office. It was VERY nice, with great furniture and a big waiting room. We were the first ones there so we went straight in and then straight back to the dental chair. I wasn't sure what to expect but after seeing the waiting room I was hopeful. Again, I was pleasantly surprised...a nice reclining dental chair with the usual light by which to see, a place to swish water to rinse your mouth and the little spitting bowl, drills and regular dental utensils, a rolling chair for the dentist to sit on, and a couple of people to assist and observe.

Before he began working, my friend asked him if he knew a retired colleague of hers and a lady I had met on some of my very first trips to our country. He immediately responded with great joy, "Yes, I know her. We did a very good work together. When I was a young dentist we went out to the bush to help the people. We did a very good work together. She was a very good woman and her husband too. It was on these trips that for the first time I realized my life was important. Helping these people and seeing the difference it made for them showed me that I was worth something." He continued talking about his experience and you could sense the huge impact this colleague and friend had had on his life and how his dental practice has been significantly impacted by his time serving the people in the bush. The dentist is not a f0ll0wer of J.s.s. so I ask you to pr@y for these memories to be used by G0d's Sp!r!t to remind Him of the things he saw and heard about G0d and His S0n J.s.s. through this couple who served here for many years. Pr@y for Him to encounter J.s.s in a real and personal way and that He would come to understand that he really is worth something...he is worth the G0d of All Creation sending His S0n to live and die and rise again to bring him the salvation of his soul.

He looked in my mouth and began the work of cleaning and preparing and deciding how best to repair the damage. He worked diligently and carefully seeking to do his very best work. His plan was to first put a temporary tooth in so that we could have time to decide about putting in a permanent crown. Honestly I didn't know what we would have to do, so I was very please with the whole temporary tooth. Gently he worked and carefully pulled out several boxes with all different kinds of temporary teeth to choose from. After trying several, he settled on one and went to work making it fit perfectly. When it was all over, I must say I was amazed!! You can barely tell that it is not the tooth that belongs there. I still look at it and think...I got that tooth in a 3rd world country!! Bucket list....CHECK!

When I left the dentist office and for the last 2 days of brushing my teeth, I must agree with the dentist...HIS LIFE IS A LIFE OF IMPORTANCE! The work he did for me matters and it made a difference for me!!

Thanks for pr@ying me through this adventure!!
 toothless no more...

C0up Food

There is nothing like a coup d'etat to make you hungry. Without warning we found ourselves home bound and encouraged to shelter in place. You know there seems to be nothing that makes you hungrier than being stuck inside with nothing else to do but eat. We laughed many times and said how do you deal with a coup d'etat...EAT!  Since I'm not really a cook, being stuck inside and faced with 3 meals a day for 5 days without outside sources to help, proved to be a daily challenge. As G0d would have it we had been to the store and we had plenty of food in the freezer and the cupboard. With nowhere to go and no rush in our days, we enjoyed some of the best meals we have had at the house.

I found though that physical food was not the only thing one gets hungry for in a coup d'etat. Honestly the best coup food I ate was the spiritual food prepared by our Father everyday. It was like He knew exactly what to serve up to nourish our sp1r1ts, strengthen our souls, and fill us with f@ith. It was as if everyday His Word tasted  sweeter and sweeter and satisfied more and more. It created a hunger to see what He would say and His purpose for saying it. Here...take a taste and enjoy the C0up food provided by the Sovereign L0rd over all ...

Philippians 4:6-7
"Don't worry about anything, instead pr@y about everything. Tell G0d what you need and thank Him for all he has done. Then you will experience G0d's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Chr1st J.s.s."

Psalm 9:9-10
"The L0rd is a shelter for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, O L0rd, do not abandon those who search for you."

Psalm 36:7-9
"How precious is your unfailing love O G0d! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings. You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your river of delights. For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see."

While refugees in D@kar, S3negal:
Genesis 28:15
"What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day, I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you."

Finishing What He Starts

"What's more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day, I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you." 
Genesis 28:15

Greetings from cold S3negal!!

The weather here was a complete shock to us!! I came prepared for hot season...I mean this is West Afr1ca, right? Well the answer to that is yes, BUT D@kar is a peninsula sticking out into the Atlantic Ocean. The weather is VERY different here ...a surprisingly great difference. We are experiencing days in the 70's/80's and nights in the 60's. Shortly after arriving, we went shopping and I was able to find a long sleeve T-shirt to start my days. My family will be glad to know that I have my "uniform"--a long sleeve t-shirt and long African pants that I wear daily just like we did when we went on family vacation. Every morning I think of you all--mom, dad, Sheri, and Vicki--when i put on my "uniform".

I continue to truly enjoy my little garden spot with G0d each day!! G0d has tenderly met with me, listened to my heart cries, spoken His W0rds over me and directly to me, and filled my heart with pe@ce and j0y!! While last week was characterized by chaos of emotions, events, and uncertainty swirling around the anchor of G0d's Sp1r1t and Presence, this week has been filled with a return to a simple focus on G0d alone and the calm certainty of His voice, His call and His plan for our lives. On Monday morning, I woke up and went to my little garden spot and poured my heart out to Him. I pr@ised Him and confessed my surrender to Him. I sat with Him and remembered all that He has started in M@li, all the ways we had seen Him at work, all the things He had said He would do.  I began pr@ying His word back to Him and confessing that His word says that He finishes what He starts.  I simply began asking Him to do that--finish what He had begun in M@li among the people, in the lives of those He has been calling to serve in M@li this summer, in C@therine's life, in my own life, and through the work of HSI. I thanked Him for all He had done to provide for the Gift of Grain, and asked Him to complete what He started among those who are in desperate need for food. I began seeking His direction, timing, and will about returning to M@li.

After my time of pr@yer with Him, I began reading and listening to His Word. My first scripture was Gen 28:15. He spoke loudly to my heart, "I am with you, I will protect you"....then the final touch..."One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have FINISHED giving you what I have promised." At that moment, I knew He was saying to me...this land, this people I have promised as your inheritance, you will go back and I will finish what I have started. At that moment for me, it was done. God gave me an overwhelming pe@ce and rest in my sp1r1t. I knew at that moment He is preparing the road for me to go back. I am still awaiting His specific time and I believe it to be soon. No matter when He fully opens that door, His pe@ce has filled my heart, my mind, and my sp1r1t. Since that time with Him on Monday, He has been  drawing me closer and closer, preparing my heart and opening my eyes to what He is preparing for us. Catherine and I have spent each day this week pr@ying together, seeking His direction and just lifting M@li and her people up to G0d. We are both in agreement and sense Him leading us, preparing us, and showing us what is next for us. We know that we will not be going back to the same M@li, but we will be going back to a place where the humanitarians needs are greater, the people are seeking, and our G0d is at work.

My other scriptures that day were from Romans 8:31-39...He continues to say to me over and over...He never promised  we would have NO TROUBLES or no difficulties...He HAS promised His Presence, His Protection (not safety), His victory.

Join us as we pr@y for

-M@li and those who are leading her
-the Ch.rch of M@li to stand strong and be His light in the darkness
-the Chr1stian refugees coming into B@mako from the north
-God to provide help for the refugees from the north through the -M@lian ch.rch and others who come alongside them
-His timing for our return
-His plans and purposes for us to be clear in our minds as we return to serve Him 

Thank you for your f@ithfulness to pr@y and walk with us!!