Pressure

Derek and I are facing an intense pressure right now in so many areas it is mind boggling. Each day another thing seems to pop up and we find ourselves struggling to endure. The most recent thing involves crime. South Africa is one of the most crime ridden nations in the world and we've had our experiences over the years with theft. Our storeroom was broken into last night and quite a few things were taken. Our neighbors to the left and right have had incidents as well, one in the last couple of days. Our concern is that the thieves will return. We are grateful they didn't get access into the house, but other neighbors have not been as fortunate. In regards to the theft please pray for our family's protection and the protection of our property. In regards to everything else pressing in us, please pray that God would refine us through it all. Where release and breakthrough are His intentions we pray He would act quickly. Where we need to persevere, we pray we would endure. Where we need to fight we pray we would do so in His strength. Where we need to rest, we pray we would trust Him more deeply. Thank you!

Tensions running high!

Yesterday our electricity went off several times during the day. This is not unusual and beyond wondering if I had forgotten to pay the bill I really didn't think much of it. Except it was really hot yesterday! By 4pm it was back on and I was preparing for a normal evening at home. My plan was short lived as the power turned shut off before 5pm. Derek was picking up friends at the airport so I put the kids all to bed in our room while I sat in a rocking chair with a miners headlamp on and read a book. Eventually the kids were all asleep and Derek and I gave up on waiting for the electricity to come back on. I'm so grateful that the temperatures dropped in the evening and we were able to get a little sleep. This morning the power came back on about 6:15 but then turned off again an hour later. Now we know the story: two transformers providing for our city collapsed yesterday and will hopefully be repaired by the weekend. The city has a plan to provide electricity at night (like now, I'm thrilled to be under a fan at the moment!) and for 2 hour portions of the day. Our time will be 5-7 pm. Temperatures are over 100 degrees F this week, businesses are losing a lot of money, alarms are working and crime is always a factor, and tensions are really running high. We are praying for the electrical company and all those working round the clock to fix the problem, praying for our home and the safety of our family, and praying for our city!

Perplexed

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair. 2 Cor 4:8

While praying yesterday morning I submitted several things to the Lord that are pressing down on Derek and I. Nothing earth shattering, just a constant sense of pressing in various areas. Once I realized the word 'pressed' was how I felt the worship song with the line "pressed, but not crushed; persecuted, not abandoned" kept repeating again over and over in my mind.

Later as I was able to look up the actual Scriptural reference to that song, I started giggling in spite of all the pressure. The word perplexed, even now, brings a smile to my face. There is no better description to how Derek and I have felt regarding certain pressures. Simply to know that God inspired that word to be used in the midst of this verse brings such peace and comfort to my heart. He is my Lord and never leaves me. He never forgets me. He never fails to speak to my heart. "Lord I ask for your peace in the midst of our pressing, for your joy to reign in our hearts, and for our eyes to forever be on You and Your glory. Thank you for all that you do in our lives. Amen."

Matt's student led seminar

At our sons' school, there is one day each year designated for 'student led seminars'. The children get to take their parents around the campus to see all their class environments and show off their work. Matt had a great time explaining everything to us. We are so proud of him! He had a rough start to the year but has managed to settle in and is so excited about being a first grader in just a matter of weeks.

New Plants for Martha's House

Thank you Vantage Point Church and Junction Church for joining the kids from Martha's House for a morning of fellowship, games, and planting some beautiful flowers.

REACH

While Derek has been teaching in Cape Town I had the privilege of teaching a group of students from the REACH program of Reaching a Generation. The REACH program has been designed to equip people with skills for evangelism, counseling, and establishing their own community development programs while partnering with local churches. The program is directed by a friend of ours who asked that we teach the Foundations course so that she can be certain that a solid, Biblical foundation has been laid in the lives of the students. I got to spend about 10 days teaching this group and had a wonderful time. They were some of the loveliest people I have ever met and it was blessing to be with them. On the last day, one of the students said, "Imagine if this Foundations course was taught in every church in Africa. What a difference it would make for the lives of Christians." I wanted to shout "Hallelujah, that's the plan."

Derek in Cape Town

Derek flies back from Cape Town today after two weeks of non-stop teaching and outreach. Each morning he, Matt, John, and Gill were sharing at YWAM Muizenberg and most afternoons they were teaching at a local church in Mitchell's Plain. Throughout the two weeks he also had a wonderful time visiting with several of our former staff members and enjoying the very different Cape Town lifestyle from the Rustenburg one. For those of you from the USA, he described it as "where someone might live in Denver, Colorado for the outdoor, relaxed lifestyle you would find that people live in the Cape for the same reason." Then he said, "with his type A/Red personality he would have a very hard time adjusting but would be willing to "suffer" through it if God ever lead us to move there." No such luck! We are so happy here in Rustenburg and are thrilled with what God is leading us to do right now.

The young men and women from the school were Derek was teaching are part of a Church Planting school and many will go forth into areas of Africa using the training they have received to bring together the body of Christ locally and to spread the gospel across the world. It has been a challenging, exhausting few weeks of preparing and then teaching, but Derek has loved it all and is so grateful to share with this school.