Praise Report concerning Matt

Thank you to everyone who has prayed for Matt and the spreading wart like/molloscum spots on his face. Because they were so small the doctor couldn't be sure what they were and thought they were more likely warts than molloscum. He gave me a cream to help with the itching but basically said we would have to wait them out. In just a few days, they have almost completely disappeared. Thank you Lord for your kindness to remove these spots. I prayed and you heard my heart and answered me.

Life in Africa "The church monkey"

Might be a bit tough to see but this little guy was in the parking lot at church this week. I had my camera in the car and was able to get this picture but once he saw me he kept climbing higher and higher into the trees. Small monkeys and baboon are pretty common around here. Last week I saw about 5 baboon running through the mango orchard near the YWAM base.

When Derek and I got married in Texas it was the first and only time his family had traveled to the US. One of his mom's first questions while driving through Katy was "where are all your monkeys?"

Trust in the Lord

This is what the Lord says; "Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD. He will be like a bush in the wastelands; he will not see prosperity when it comes. He will dwell in the parched places of the desert; in a salt land where no one lives. "But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit." Jeremiah 17:5-8

This is what the Lord has been speaking to me this last week. When I look at the blessings found in trusting God my heart feels such peace. I don't know about you but I need more peace in my life. And I know I need to trust God more with all the hidden places in me, all the hidden worries. I've been reminded lately by words from my own mouth and from our team that God cares more about my heart, my character, my relationship with Him than He does about what I can do for Him. How gracious He is. How patient. How loving.

Valley Christian STAK is back!!

Angela and Matt are hosting the Valley Christian High team this week. Last year we had the privilege of hosting this team for what we thought might be a one time trip. As you can see with what they arrived with they have hit the ground running. Lots of energy, beautiful smiles, loving hearts, and ready hands!! This week will be an incredible week of outreach for Agnes's House focused on lots of physical labor on the property and a VBS in the afternoons. Praying for blessed hearts and spiritual growth! By the way, this team project began with one young teen's heart to make a difference in the lives of children in Africa. We were blown away last year and expect incredible things in the coming week! These kids are seriously motivated!! Thank you Lord!

I am a highly detailed person. Derek is totally visionary. At times we are like worlds colliding, but gratefully what we see most often is how God has joined us together to make a difference through our own giftings. Aside from Bible study Wednesday and a class I'm participating in at church, the last week was full of driving my kids to and fro, meetings at the bank, the church, the school, the doctors, planning, praying, and office administration. I finished Friday with nearly all the financial records for YWAM complete for the year (our year end is Feb 28th), all the laundry in the house done (although now its Saturday and the basket is full again), and a possibly fantastic opportunity for one of girls in Phokeng. Thank you Lord for a great week!

Prayer Needs

We have 3 specific prayer needs this week. Please join with us as we seek the Lord about them.

- Our funding with GM is under review. We knew this day was coming but a recent email suggest there is uncertainty regarding the whole of the funds and not just the possibility of adding Agnes's House to the program. We are praying God would have His way in all this and that we would receive whatever He sets aside for us.

- Matthew has small bumps on his face that seemed to appear overnight. I found something online called molluscum contagiosum that fits the description. We're going into to see our GP as soon as we can to see if they have any suggestions. The treatment for MC is basically to leave it alone and it will go away, but it spreads with scratching and it's on his face. We are praying God will remove it quickly.

- We've been praying for a long time to have more local influence, accountability, and wisdom offered to us (Derek and Rebecca) has we serve the Lord in missions here. We've got incredibly godly, supportive friends in the area and a dedicated staff but not since our days with David and Janis at the shelter have we had the oversight/mentoring we long for. In the last few months the Lord has opened up a relationship with one of the eldership couples in our church who understand our hearts for mentoring and as former YWAM missionaries understand the call on our lives. Today is another of several meetings with them to talk about how God might be leading us to partner for the sake of His glory in our mission but also in our personal relationships with Christ, marriage, and family.

Sick Week is Over!

I'm hoping this was our one and only family sick week this year. Derek had German Measles, Matthew had a sinus infection, Kyla had tonsillitis, and Malachi and I both fought off just feeling tired and weary. Today we are trying to get our lives back together from a week of laying low and waiting expectantly for the week ahead.

Some good things going on around us this past week were:

We've got an outreach team from Orlando that is busy working at our orphan care projects, Freedom Park, and other areas of Rustenburg. They are doing a great job!

A friend of mine took over my Bible study this week on extremely short notice. Abby in the words of Vanessa, "You did a stunning job". Thank you!

In my feeble attempts to do laundry I didn't clean out Derek's pockets and washed his ipod with the clothes. That's not good, but a friend sent us a message saying they want to replace the one I ruined. Gifts like that, ones just for our enjoyment or in this case the health of our marriage (haha) do great things for our hearts. Thank you H&K!

Matt only made it to school two days this week, but both times were without incident and he came home happy and encouraged by the school day. Lots of prayers being answered!