Our Battle With the Viral Infection

While Nisha and our other three children remained in Michigan to recover from their viral infections. I enjoyed the opportunity of one on one time with our oldest son, Matthew. Our memories include carpet-ball, foosball, baseball game, church picnic, Wisconsin Dells, grandma and grandpa time, and many miles traveling in the car. We were able to present our mission field to Bible Baptist Church in Wisconsin and First Baptist Church in Illinois. We thank the Lord for allowing us to be a blessing in these churches as much as they were a blessing to us. We arrived safely back in Michigan Thursday night, only to find Nisha and Becca still fighting their sickness. I, the last of the healthy ones, have yet to get this viral infection that lasts up to two weeks with signs of heavy coughing, fever, and exhaustion. I find myself taking Vitamin C, Echinacea, and praying to remain healthy while trying to nurse those sick back to health. Nisha, although exhausted, has maintained the home while I was away. It seems as if Mom's are never allowed sick days or vacations.

We will be making final arrangements for my trip to the western states coming up in September as well as making plans to begin homeschooling soon.

Our New Senior Pastor

Our sending church has a new senior pastor. It is the Scott Estell Family. We first met while I was the youth pastor in Wixom in 1998. I was able to present our mission field in the church that he pastored in Wisconsin before becoming our pastor. It is a blessing to have him at FaithWay and am praying for God to richly bless the transition. We are currently visiting churches near the Great Lakes and making calls for new meetings into 2009. Nisha is busy taking care of our sick children who seem to be facing colds.

South Carolina Travels

I have been traveling through South Carolina recently presenting our ministry in churches.  Along the way I got to visit with some old friends and also meet some new.

Faithful is he that calleth you

I’ve been reminded in my devotions lately of I Thessalonians 5:24 “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.” As we continue the deputation process through the summer months we have been able to present our calling in churches in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, and Louisiana. Although many churches are not looking to take on missionaries during the summer months it’s good that churches are seeking to keep missions in front of their church and not just once or twice a year. We have had one more church added to our support, been invited back to a missions conference, and have been able to give out the Gospel these last two months. Our children get excited about passing out “Smile, Jesus Loves You!” tracts whenever we stop in our travels. The Lord has once again revealed His faithfulness to us these past two months with traveling mercies and good health.

Family Time is a precious time for us. There are times that we cannot be together in our travels due to distance, schooling, health, or other unforeseen situations. We cherish the times that we have together. Our time in South Carolina allowed us to feed wild swans out of our hands at a public park. In Florida, meeting up with my parents for a week of vacation will have lasting memories. As our children are becoming more confident in their abilities to swim and jump on trampolines, it has led to three visits to the hospital, all of which have quickly healed. As parents, we are hoping that our children will also learn their limitations. In between meetings in Tarpon Springs, Florida, we were able to visit with Nisha’s dad and brother, whom she has not seen for ten years. It brought tears of joy and more compassion for them to be saved. We thank those who thoughtfully remembered our birthdays and our 13th wedding anniversary which has taken place since our last prayer letter.

We echo what Paul says in I Thessalonians 5:25, “Brethren, pray for us”. Please join us in prayer that God would be glorified in and through us. We are praying for more churches to help support us financially so that we may depart for Peru in a timely matter. Please continue to pray for traveling mercies as we travel to visit churches in South Carolina and around the Great Lakes these next two months. As home-schooling quickly approaches, there is a need to obtain our children’s curriculum. Please pray we can obtain the necessary materials before September 2, which is our target date to start school.

In Lima, Peru this week, two buses crashed into each other resulting in 25 people killed and 60 injured. It made me wonder if those who died had ever heard and received the Gospel and how many more will die in Peru without ever hearing the Gospel. The urgency of getting to the field is ever before us.