Lessons Africa is Teaching Me... by Rashel

Monday was Paige’s birthday, as well as, our day to do our “big shop” before we move out to Sanyati. We had a dozen places to go and a million things to buy and do.  In the middle of my day, I found myself complaining in my head about my busy day- Can’t believe we are this busy!... I hate being this busy!... etc. Soon after, we loaded everyone in the car and we were off at it again. As we drove, we passed by a corn field where there were men handpicking corn and then others chopping down the stalks with machetes. Clearly, they had been working hard all day and judging by the size of the field, obviously, had several more hours to go.  It totally slapped me in the face. Here I am complaining about my day- got my 3 children dressed (how blessed am I to not only have 1 child, but 3 and have clothes that God has provided for them to wear),  went to the grocery store to shop (with money provided to us by God and people being obedient to Him), celebrated my daughter’s 8^th birthday (again HOW blessed am I??) with gifts and going out to eat (that God gave us Ryan’s job/the money to do). Here I am complaining to myself about my busy day (and I often do) but really how often does my busy day involve manual labor or back-breaking work? Granted my life/busyness is tiring, but when I look back at it all, it’s all God’s blessings and provision that keep me so busy- why would I complain about that? Why would I not instead say “Thank you, God, for 3 little girls, for my children being healthy enough to live to be 8. 4 and 2, for Your constant provision of money and food, for a truck to ride in instead of being forced to walk… and on and on… and on”. May my heart grow sensitive to all He has provided and may my complaining turn to praise.  

Wanted to give an update too- we leave tomorrow to move to Sanyati. Please keep us in your prayers as it is a 4 hour drive on a terrible road. Prayers please that we make it there ok (with all our stuff) and that we adjust well to life there over the next several weeks. Prayers for the house we will live in and working major appliances (the house has been shut up for several months) would also be appreciated. Thank you so much for every prayer said on our family’s behalf! We so treasure every one! Thanks! 

Rashel

We've arrived!!!

Well, after a long 27 hour flight we are here! Praise the Lord! The flight went as well as to be desired... The first leg was the hardest by far. It was a smaller plane which made the hot cabin and Chloe's fussiness almost unbearable:( When we landed we had to exit the plane and enter the airport on steep staircases in the rain with all the kids and luggage. It was crazy! Needless to say, we are going to try to stick to big planes from now on and stay away from commuter jets with children. By the time we landed in Washington DC and found our new plane we were sick of carrying all our carry-ons so we combined 1 bag and checked 2 others. The smaller amount of carried luggage made the rest of the trip much more bearable! The girls were so good about carrying stuff and walking in all the large airports... such troopers we have! Our 2 long flights, over the ocean and then over much of Africa, were on the same plane so it gave us an opportunity to stretch out and get settled more. Their backpacks of activities and snacks kept the girls pretty well entertained. Chloe was mainly fussy during take-offs and landings (her ears were probably bothering her), but all in all did a good job sitting in a limited area for 16 hours straight! Her crankiness seemed to subside almost immediately after it got put on Facebook as a prayer request... so THANK YOU!- God clearly heard you and blessed us! When we got off in South Africa, they had taken our umbrella stroller to the check-in counter clear across the airport so we had to walk with Chloe "free to roam" to go find it. God blessed us with a very uncrowded airport so it actually went ok... slow, but ok. Haha! Our 2 and a half hour flight into Harare, Zimbabwe flew by which was a huge praise! We were all so excited to be done flying! We had been told that our 18 pieces of luggage (yes, 18...) might not make our flight because the commuter jet was limited on space, but when we got there ALL our luggage (even the carseats and checked carry-ons) was there spinning proudly around in the baggage claim area. We were told by the couple showing us around this week in Harare that this was nothing short of a "fish and loaves miracle". Their comment was that "clearly you have a lot of people praying (and fasting) for you guys!" It was so encouraging to have God move in this way on our behalf! Thank you so much for every prayer!!

Today, our first day in Harare, we've been adjusting to the time and life here. We already have 2 praises- 1) Ryan went today and got our Temporary Employment Permit finalized (which is again a MIRACLE that it all fell into place so easily) and 2) I went grocery shopping and actually found stuff the kids know and recognize. (Even found Heinz ketchup!) I overheard Katy (our currently picky-est eater) say, as she munched on a piece of bread, "Hey, Paige! Look their bread is like our bread!" It warmed my mother's heart to hear her happy about the food here!

 We will stay here in Harare until after Paige's birthday and then head to Sanyati soon after. We will be excited to get to our new home and settle in. Thank you again for all your prayers! We so appreciate knowing that we have brothers and sisters back home that are praying us through! Our earnestly plea is to keep His ears ringing with our names until we are back with you again! Thank you so much and hope to update everyone again soon!

Our Current Prayer Requests:

*For continued adjustment to the time and to life here. 

*For Electricity and Water to keep working (the electricity was off all day today and didn't turn on till 10pm tonight) 

*For Ryan's work to go well tomorrow, which includes getting the truck we'll drive while we are here.

*For Rashel and the girls to get our stuff organized, so adjusting can be easier

*For health (Chloe's ears specifically) and for safety (esp. while we are figuring out how things work around here)

Thank you,guys! We love and miss you all!!

Rashel

We’ve reached our funding goal!

We would like to thank all of those who have given to support our mission and those who have prayed for us.  We are fully funded!  Praise the Lord!!!  We are blown away by the response.  To be honest, it is hard to fully describe.  To watch God move so mightily and so fast has been humbling to say the least!  Sometimes, it seems unbelievable but that is not an appropriate way to describe the work of the Lord.  He has blown us away with His provision and has confirmed the call, yet again.  He has provided to fulfill His work and ALL the glory goes to Him.

Please continue to pray for us as we go through our final preparations before we depart.  Our “to-do list” still includes packing, fixing stuff around the house, and a mountain of paperwork.  Please pray that everything that needs to be done happens and that God’s peace would remain in our hearts during the process.  Also pray that God would give us wisdom on how to proceed in every step.  

Once again, we thank you most sincerely for your part in making this happen… those who have supported us financially, those who have prayed for us and those who are serving us physically (helping us prepare our immigration papers, living in our home while we are gone, mowing our grass, watching our kids while we prepare to go, taking in our dog while we are gone…the list goes on and on). We COULD NOT do this without God working through you, so we thank you for your obedience to Him and the love you have shown us!

THANK YOU!

Ryan, Rashel, Paige, Katy, and Chloe