Our Week

Samuel

March 10, 2012

God is so loving! He restored my joy this week. He is so near to me. He is my life. I am blessed because of Him. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement too. It feels so good to be loved.

Tuesday we went to Obule to see the well drilling. Our teammate Colin and the church are digging a well. It is really amazing how they do it. Four people pull a rope, one person pushed the bit down, water and earth sprays out the pipe and eventually you have a well. (How is that explanation from an unknowledgeable well drilling person?) Josh pulled that rope with the guys a couple times this week. Hour after hour, day after day…I am impressed with the attitude and hard work of Colin and the other people. It is good to see them all muddy, laugh together, and work together to get a well. Water is such a blessing. The well they dug last year is used by over 800 people!

While Josh and I were watching the drilling, Lydia, Grace and Luka were playing with the preschool kids at the church (where the well is being put). I was proud of our girls. They sat in the class with about 20 four year olds. They repeated the teacher just like all the other kids. They even taught the class the song we sing for the seven days of the week. They stayed for almost an hour then came out crying because a boy hit Lydia on the back. I asked what the teacher did and she said she sent another boy to go get a stick. Oh boy. Luka was happy playing with (ok maybe teasing) a puppy while the kids were in their class.

Josh and I also had a nice talk with Charles. He is such a humble man. He asked us to correct him if we see he is going down the wrong path. If he falls into sin he wants us to rebuke him. What maturity. I am so thankful for him and his example.

Grace was sick this week with a fever and headache. She was quiet. Thankfully now she is doing better. It was two years ago this weekend that we took our little Luka to the ICU in Kenya. It is a special time to give thanks to our God.

I took a spiritual gifts test this week. I haven’t taken one for quite awhile and I think God has done a lot of maturing in my life so I decided to see if there were any changes. It is hard cause every test define things differently but it is also exciting to be confirmed in the gifts God has given you. I am either too vague in my answers or I have many different joy and passions. This is how I scored:
1. Exhortation
2. Wisdom, Faith, and Mercy (all tied)
3. Hospitality and Shepherding (tied)
May God use all the gifts He has given to bless and build His kingdom.

I love to love people. It brings me so much joy to make some ones day. To show them I care and they are loved. There are a lot of people hurting who need to be encouraged and loved. There is no greater joy than to see some ones life changed by God’s love. How exciting that we have His love to share!

I forgot to tell you about Samuel. Last week Charles asked Josh to come and talk to his nephew because he had gone crazy. You never know what you are getting into when someone says that. Sam had gone to the witch doctor and since then his mind hadn’t been right. Josh and Charles shared Jesus with Sam and told him he could have freedom in Christ, and that there is greater power in Jesus. Sam said he wanted to follow Jesus but something in his pocket was stopping him. He had charms in his pocket from the witch doctor. Sam decided to let them go and receive Jesus. He confessed his sin and burned his charms. What an exciting day! He came to church Sunday in his right mind, has been working all week with the other guys digging the well, and Charles reads the Bible with him each day. Please continue to pray for him to grow in his walk with Jesus.

Today our friend, Jane, from church invited us to her house near Obule. She is so sweet. Her husband has two wives which makes her a co-wife as they call it here. Both wives are Christians but their husband is not. She fed us rice and chicken and sodas as she shared with us her struggles (mostly from her husband who drinks) and the change in her life since the teaching Josh has brought. She has grown in the Lord and there is more peace in her life. It is always a privilege to hear how God is working in a person’s life.

I saved the best for last. Last night Josh and I had our own little get away at our house. Our teammates offered to have our kids for the night and our kids were so excited they counted down the days until it came. What a win, win situation when the kids are as excited as the parents for their sleepover. We brought the kids at supper time and came back to our very quiet home. I took a relaxing, hot bath (needed to get out of Mommy mode) while Josh made the pizza dough for supper. We made pizza together with all the grown up toppings we wanted. It smelled and tasted so good! We enjoyed a candlelight supper while listening to piano music – my favorite. We had such a fun night playing games, talking, and watching movies. It is amazing how special time together in your own home can be. We slept in and made omelets and French toast for breakfast. I was so blessed by our time together. What a joy to be alone and do whatever we want. It is a bummer going back to normal life now and our kids are not thrilled to be home again either but we’ll all be back in the swing of things soon. So here is my challenge, find some good friends who want to have fun with your kids for a night and go back home with your spouse and have some fun too! God loves when we enjoy our marriages.

One more thing I wanted to share. Open Doors put together a pledge for religious freedom that they are asking all candidates running for president to sign. I am so thankful for Christians defending our right to worship but it so sad that our country that was founded on God by people looking for freedom to worship now have to ask our president to agree to religious freedom. Let’s do our part to protect our freedom to worship and the freedom of our brothers and sisters around the world.
http://www.pledgeforreligiousfreedom.com/pledge-for-religious-freedom