For us, this January has been all about new beginnings and making plans! The largest part of our time and energy this last month has been remodeling the garage apartment for a precious missionary family that works out in a remote tribe on the border of Brazil. They will be living here on our base when they come out from the tribe every few months! The apartment had seen a solid, hard ten years of our family of five living in it without much attention to it while we built the main house, so it was in sore need of a fresh coat of paint. As we began the work, we found more, and more projects that needed doing. The upstairs loft was finally finished with hardwood flooring instead of just plywood. The molding was completed around all of the windows for the first time, and the entire end wall that houses the air-conditioner was removed and redone due to the old air-conditioner leaking. The “little house” looks wonderful, and we are so pleased that it will finally be used as a guesthouse in the service of the King!
It has been a privilege to serve a young missionary couple that is working out in a Matses tribe; the same couple that Vann went out to help in November. They had an opportunity to have a supply flight make a drop to them a couple of weeks ago, so we spent a couple of days in town shopping and gathering their list of supplies. Also on their list was a “meal from Vanessa, and if possible, chili please?” As they do not have refrigeration, it could only be a meal for the day. What a delight to get to serve this devoted young couple! We had set up a schedule for calling them on their tribe’s satellite phone every week to check on them, but halfway through their stay, lightning struck the phone installation along with two people who were near some connected cables. Thank God, everyone lived. Vann spent the next couple of days trying to get ahold of them on their satellite texting device. This was the couple’s first month living out there on their own. To have such a traumatic event happen, and to have no help but from God, was a challenge well met. The trauma from such a scare has understandably had its effect, and we are doing all that we can to help them debrief, and to minister to them on their return.
We are also beginning our plans for furlough this coming summer! Our plans have to center around the children’s school schedule as we have two in high school now. This will probably be our last furlough with all five of us together, and we will be spending some of our time college “shopping” for our Corynn. She does not yet have a plan for what exactly to study, and she is praying for the Lord’s direction in her life, but there is still some time as she is just finishing her sophomore year. Please pray with us, that God will provide for her in every way.
Here is a tentative sketch of our itinerary for the summer:
June 4th – July 4th – Cross-country road trip to visit family, supporters and colleges in Louisiana, Texas, Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Ohio, Kentucky, and New York
July 5th – August 13th – Maryland, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Florida to spend time with family and friends, and give an update to our supporting churches.
It will be our pleasure, and honor to be able to see as many of you dear ones as possible this summer! Ten weeks is just not very much time. It will once again be a whirlwind trip, but we trust that the Lord will direct our steps!
“The Son of God reveals himself in me and out of devotion to Him service becomes my everyday way of life.”-Oswald Chambers