There is light at the end of the tunnel! After so much hard labor, and so much time, the end of this building project is in sight! Vann has worked tirelessly to build and install the ductwork, finish the soffits, and wire the house. It still amazes me, how much planning, calculating, and manpower goes into every step of this project, especially here, where nothing is easy. For instance, the ductwork; in the States, you would call a company to come in to calculate the space and install their prefab materials for you. Here, we have to do it all from scratch. We thought that maybe the guys in town that make gutters could make the ductwork for us, you know, delegate some part of this blessed project, and save us some time trying to figure out how to make something that we’ve never made before. It was a nice thought. We spent a whole day driving around to every metal bending shop that we could find to no avail. Every single one of them wanted to charge us at least four times the price that it should cost. We call it the “gringo price”, because when they see the color of our faces, the price jumps exponentially as it does with every other thing here from vegetables to taxi fares. So, we built our own ductwork! What size and shape ductwork does the space call for? What size metal sheeting do we need? What do we insulate it with? How can we bend sheet metal without machines?, and on, and on. My husband has a genius way of tackling a massive project that he has never done before by just doing the next thing. He solves the problem in front of him, and then he goes to the next, and the next, always asking God for wisdom. We are praying that this house will be a blessing, and safe haven for all who come under it’s roof.
In the midst of the mission construction, there are always those in need of help of some kind. Whether it’s missionaries that need technical help, or a bride that needed her hair done, or substitute teaching at the missionary academy, we stay so busy! We were especially honored to have the Police colonel and his wife out for a cookout with some dear friends, and spent the afternoon sharing Jesus with them. What an honor.
There have been some life happenings in our family and on the farm; our Ethan turned thirteen years old! He is just as beautiful on the inside as he is on the outside. He is so very smart, and talented, and he is learning to love Jesus more every day!
Vann and I celebrated seventeen years of marriage this month! I have now been married for half of my life! What a wonder, and adventure this life has been with my Vann. I am blessed among women.
Our precious, old Great Dane, Caddy died at the ripe old age of nine. She was a wonderful part of our family, and an absolute terror to anyone that came onto “her” property! She is greatly missed.
We have had three fillies added to our herd this month! They are so darling! What a joy it is for our children to have the opportunity to love on, and learn to care for so many different animals during their childhood.
Their childhood is going by too fast! Corynn graduates from eighth grade this week! Remind me not to blink. Please pray that Vann and I will have wisdom as we are raising these amazing young people to learn to love Jesus with all of their hearts.
Please pray for Hamilton, he has been hospitalized and is in a coma with a viral infection in his blood. He is thirty-five years old, and has Down syndrome. Hamilton is Alexis’ brother. Alexis is a brother in Christ, and has been helping us on the mission base for the last few months.
A few weeks ago, we had the privilege of rescuing a darling three-toed sloth! Some guys with sticks were beating the poor thing as it clung to an electric pole on the side of the road. Our kids saw this happening as we were driving by on our way home from church, so Vann promptly stopped the truck, turned around, and went back to rescue it! The little sloth was asleep in my arms by the time we got home, and seemed so happy to be saved, loved on, and set free. The people around here have a superstition that if a pregnant woman looks at a sloth, then her baby may be born with Down syndrome. That somewhat explains why sloths are treated so poorly. The police station near there, now has our number to call us for any other wild animal rescues that they encounter. They said that they have animals that need their help all of the time, and the zoo is overwhelmed, and can’t help. Since we have so much jungle around us, and are so far away from the highway, we are a safe haven for wildlife.
Hopefully, we are a safe haven for all living beings that come our way, and Lord willing, those who come will see Jesus in us, feel His love for them, and know that they too can be saved and set free!
"True salvation, worked out in me by the Holy Spirit, frees me completely." - Oswald Chambers