Dear family and friends,
I'm going to just share some prayer requests with you today as our week has been very eventful and my time is very limited. Thank you again for your prayers. We are seeing God at work so clearly - in both the big and the small. We are trusting Him for all of the things that are not yet clear. Thank you for praying! Urgent prayer request in red below.
Praise:
1) Dan and I are overwhelmed with how our pledged financial support jumped from 7% last week to 17.5% this week! We have not even "officially" begun the support raising process, but we have been contacted by individuals and two CRC churches who have let us know that they want to be a part of this with us.
2) Our presentation at 1st United Methodist last Sunday went well. One of the pastors has a daughter who will be doing mission work in Granada, Nicaragua next year which was an interesting "Godincidence". We were touched by the heart this church has for people who are poor.
3) We have 6 small group dinners scheduled in Cedar Rapids for the month of June! Our first dinner is on Monday, June 9. Please pray for those hosting the dinners - that God would bless them as they serve us in this way. Also, please pray for dinner guests to be available to attend the dinners and open to considering partnership with us.
Petition:
1) Our urgent request involves a request for prayer for my Dad. I've mentioned trouble with high blood pressure throughout this year. His doctor has indicated that he has 6 out of the 7 risk factors for heart disease. Today he went in for a stress test and his doctor is concerned about the results. This Thursday, June 5, at 11:00 am he will go in for angioplasty (not sure if this is spelled correctly) and depending on the results, he may have a stint put in, open heart surgery, or all that may be needed is a change in medication. The concern is that there is a blockage in his heart and/or arteries. Would you pray for protection and for successful treatment for him. I will send another update at the end of the week to let you know the result of Thursday's procedure.
2) My sister will also have surgery on June 17 due to a concern about possible cancer cells. Please pray for a successful surgery and healing for her. And for peace for my family. My parents have three major events going on - my sister's surgery, our leaving the country, and my Dad's heart and blood pressure issues. Thank you so much for your prayers for them!
3) And finally, please pray for Dan and I to keep intentional focus on our relationship with God and our family in the midst of the chaos of our lives right now. God is speaking to us in prayer and through the Word and continuing to reassure us of His love and His presence. We know that in the midst of many details and concerns it can be easy to "do" instead of "be". Pray that we would maintain a healthy balance.
Just something to end with to make you smile: Will and I were in the car the other day and watched a squirrel attempt to cross the road and then change his mind. Will, my profound little thinker said, "So, what do squirrels actually do for the world anyway?" My feeble answer was, "Well, they carry nuts around so maybe God uses them to plant trees!"
It is our second day of no school and our kids are having to adjust a little. Today at the table for lunch, they were arguing because one had their foot in a place the other one didn't want them to have it. Then the other child complained that what the other one said did not make any sense. At that point, they tried to rope me into it and I just burst out laughing and said, "Do you guys know how ridiculous you sound?" I repeated their arguments back to them and they both got the giggles and we all laughed so hard our tummies hurt. I really do love having them both home - fights, giggles, and all!
