Newsletter/Fall 2011

God's Faithfulness

I can't believe the summer is over and fall is here, or in our case that the rainy season is over and the sun is shining again! It was a busy summer, full of groups, gratifying work with our staff, getting the girls home finished, starting the new stove project, and seeing God continuously be faithful to us. Andrew and I have discussed over and over how blessed we are to have this opportunity to clearly see God's faithfulness in our daily lives. He has used so many situations to humble us and show us our weaknesses, while drawing us into greater dependence on Him. One of the areas, of course, has been finances, it seems that no matter who or where we are, this is something that God is always using in our Christian lives to show us where our hearts are. It has, and continues to be, a challenge to look to and trust Him. We came here to Guatemala with an idea of what we thought we needed and in all honesty what we thought we deserved, and God has totally taken that idea and destroyed it. Not that all our needs haven't been met because He has taken care of us in every way, more often than not, miraculously. But God has used this in our lives to show us that He is our provision, not just for finances but for everything in life. That being said, thanks to you all for being willing to be used by the Lord, because almost always God has used one of you to bless us, and to be His hand of provision for us.

Home for the holidays!

Andrew and I are headed to the states for our yearly holiday visit, and we're looking forward to time with all of you! We are also wanting to use that time to share what God is doing here is Guatemala. If any of you would like us to share in your cell groups, small groups, churches or just one on one, we would be thrilled to do so! And as you all know the time goes by so quickly, so if you would like for us to meet with you, please let us know so we can be sure to plan our time accordingly.

The Girls Home

As for the girls home, we're just waiting right now. Bethany Christian Services comes the beginning of November, for a visit to help us figure out all the details of what we need to do next. We're excited about this step, because it brings us that much closer to having girls here!

Clinics

We had the pleasure of working with Dr. Mary again! She, and an amazing group of other doctors and friends, from Georgia, saw close to 500 people in 3 days! I enjoyed getting to be out in the rural communities with the people, hearing and seeing their needs. It continues to break our hearts to see the endless needs, but it always serves as a clear reminder as to why we're here.

A Next Step. . .

The first of October I started midwife classes!!!! I'm so excited about this and even though I know it will be a long journey, I'm looking forward to it! There is another missionary lady here, Sally York, who has the same passion for the indigenous women, and is enrolled in the same midwifery school with me. It has already been so encouraging to me to have a dear friend to work alongside. I'm excited to join her in teaching the other local indigenous comadronas (midwives), because they traditionally receive little to no education. The need in this area is greater than we can ever meet, but that's when the Lord does His greatest work!!