This week was full of all sorts of surprises. Some good, some not so good. Thursday we went into Rochester to get some of our shots that are not available in our county and I ended up writing a check that was the equivalence of one of our mortgage payments! The next day our car went into the shop for what we thought were some inexpensive repairs and we ended up making a payment the equivalence of one of Ray's weekly paychecks! Those were NOT good surprises.
Now our checking account has very little in it. I told Ray we should be glad we actually had the money in our account to pay for these things. That is one of the reasons we sold our bed, to help pay for the immunizations we needed (the other reason being that we didn't want to pay for storage for it).
Today we spoke at a church right here in town and were so blessed by their congregation. We were feeling discouraged going into this weekend and the Lord lifted us up. That was a good surprise.
Lastly, during (my) choir rehearsal this evening Miss Anna pulled out tooth number 6 leaving her with a lovely gap in the middle of her mouth. She can now sing the song, 'All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth' and yes she is only 5 years 2.5 months old. That was a fun surprise since that tooth was dangling at an awkward angle that was making Mommy queasy.
Please continue to pray that our house will either sell or that we would find the perfect renters for it. And also continue to pray for our support.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Fall Fun
Before the leaves came down in early September I let the girls have a picnic lunch on the trampoline in their princess tent. The rest of the pictures were a couple of weeks ago when the girls were playing in all of the leaves on the trampoline. They had a blast!
2nd Yard/Porch Sale
Today we had a 2nd yard/porch sale to get rid of our last few pieces of furniture that needed to go. We were able to sell both Ray's and my desks and both Ray's and the girls' dressers along with the remaining rocking chair. The desks and the girls' dresser were very heavy so we had a friend come over early this morning to help Ray carry them outside. There is no way I could have done this. Apparently they had to lift Ray's desk over the upstairs stair railing to get it downstairs and sweat was dripping down Ray's face by the time they got it all the way outside! Thankfully today was in the 50s and though cloudy it was dry.
We know that people are concerned about our lack of furniture but it really isn't that bad. We just owned a ton of furniture to start with. Anytime someone had something they were getting rid of we would volunteer to take it and thus a house full of furniture, some nice, some not so nice. The air mattress we are sleeping on is comfortable, really. The hardest part is actually getting out of bed in the morning and realizing you have to stand up from the floor. Yes, we got rid of two couches and a love seat but we started out with 3 couches and 2 love seats! We had 3 rocking chairs and we had 5 dressers. We collect furniture, what can I say. Someone is throwing out a couch and we go and get it. It may not be in great shape but we stick it on the porch with a blanket covering it's flaws, you get the idea.
Right now we have a couch and a chair sitting out front of our house waiting for garbage day. It is so abused that no one will take it and so we will have to pay for the garbage company to take it away.
We are still waiting to hear back about our house. I really thought two of the families that came through our house last week were interested. I'm not very good at being patient.......
Our support is steadily climbing but not very fast. We are at 45% of our support for our training/airfare and we are at about 19% of our monthly support. We have to be at 75% monthly support to be able to go and live on the Africa Mercy. So there are a few things that have to happen in a short amount of time. Our house has to either sell or we have to find a good renter for it. And we need our monthly support to increase in a very short amount of time.
Please pray with us as we wait upon the Lord. And thank you so much for those of you who are already partnering with us financially and prayerfully. We are so grateful to you and your faithfulness.
We know that people are concerned about our lack of furniture but it really isn't that bad. We just owned a ton of furniture to start with. Anytime someone had something they were getting rid of we would volunteer to take it and thus a house full of furniture, some nice, some not so nice. The air mattress we are sleeping on is comfortable, really. The hardest part is actually getting out of bed in the morning and realizing you have to stand up from the floor. Yes, we got rid of two couches and a love seat but we started out with 3 couches and 2 love seats! We had 3 rocking chairs and we had 5 dressers. We collect furniture, what can I say. Someone is throwing out a couch and we go and get it. It may not be in great shape but we stick it on the porch with a blanket covering it's flaws, you get the idea.
Right now we have a couch and a chair sitting out front of our house waiting for garbage day. It is so abused that no one will take it and so we will have to pay for the garbage company to take it away.
We are still waiting to hear back about our house. I really thought two of the families that came through our house last week were interested. I'm not very good at being patient.......
Our support is steadily climbing but not very fast. We are at 45% of our support for our training/airfare and we are at about 19% of our monthly support. We have to be at 75% monthly support to be able to go and live on the Africa Mercy. So there are a few things that have to happen in a short amount of time. Our house has to either sell or we have to find a good renter for it. And we need our monthly support to increase in a very short amount of time.
Please pray with us as we wait upon the Lord. And thank you so much for those of you who are already partnering with us financially and prayerfully. We are so grateful to you and your faithfulness.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Please Pray
We have three different families/individuals coming through our house this week. Two today and one on Friday. We would really appreciate your prayers as we seek God to find the perfect buyer and situation for our house.
The girls and I had the flu for the past two weeks, fever, chills, and the cough that seems to last forever. We finally seem to be past it.......I hope.
We were able to present our future ministry with Mercy Ships at our church this past Sunday during the kick-off for our Mission Conference. We were so blessed by the reception of our church family and we are so encouraged!
We are at 16% monthly support and at about 33% towards our airfare and training. The second number is hard to nail down because we don't know how much our tickets are going to cost. In an act of faith I went ahead and had money transferred as a deposit for our training in January! Lord willing we are leaving in two months and one day!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
An Update
I realize it has been over a month since I last updated you all on our progress. I will try to do better and give weekly updates......okay, I'll try.
Both our dog and cat are in their new homes and are doing well. We are slowly emptying out our house and packing up our belongings. We thought we had a buyer for our house but that didn't happen so we are back to square one on that.
Our support has been coming in slowly but surely. We are at about 10% of our monthly support and about 30% for our airfare/training fees.
We were able to speak at two other churches besides our own and were really blessed by those congregations and their interest in Mercy Ships and our part in it. We will be speaking at another church next month along with our own church and we are excited about both of those opportunities.
I am continuing to homeschool the girls during this time so that makes life interesting. We started school during the summer so we will be able to take some time off for traveling and not feel like we are losing any school time. The girls just completed 8 weeks of soccer through a Homeschooling league in our area, that was a lot of fun. And both girls are losing teeth like crazy so the Tooth Fairy has been making lots of visits to our house in the past two months! Deborah who is still 7 lost her 11th tooth last night and Anna who is newly 5 has lost her 4th tooth as of tonight!
Ray continues to be excited about Mercy Ships and wishes we could skip the 'moving' and just be on the ship right now. I think for me the process helps me in the whole transitioning thing and I'm glad to have this 'extra' time. As much as I wanted to already be in our training right now I can look objectively at our situation and see how God planned the whole thing out for us for our best.
I really will try to do better and update more often, maybe even with a picture next time!
Edited to add:Ray is still employed as an Electronics Technician and will continue at his job until we leave to serve with Mercy Ships.
Both our dog and cat are in their new homes and are doing well. We are slowly emptying out our house and packing up our belongings. We thought we had a buyer for our house but that didn't happen so we are back to square one on that.
Our support has been coming in slowly but surely. We are at about 10% of our monthly support and about 30% for our airfare/training fees.
We were able to speak at two other churches besides our own and were really blessed by those congregations and their interest in Mercy Ships and our part in it. We will be speaking at another church next month along with our own church and we are excited about both of those opportunities.
I am continuing to homeschool the girls during this time so that makes life interesting. We started school during the summer so we will be able to take some time off for traveling and not feel like we are losing any school time. The girls just completed 8 weeks of soccer through a Homeschooling league in our area, that was a lot of fun. And both girls are losing teeth like crazy so the Tooth Fairy has been making lots of visits to our house in the past two months! Deborah who is still 7 lost her 11th tooth last night and Anna who is newly 5 has lost her 4th tooth as of tonight!
Ray continues to be excited about Mercy Ships and wishes we could skip the 'moving' and just be on the ship right now. I think for me the process helps me in the whole transitioning thing and I'm glad to have this 'extra' time. As much as I wanted to already be in our training right now I can look objectively at our situation and see how God planned the whole thing out for us for our best.
I really will try to do better and update more often, maybe even with a picture next time!
Edited to add:Ray is still employed as an Electronics Technician and will continue at his job until we leave to serve with Mercy Ships.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A Story from the Africa Mercy
Maomai Dangbenon: Salvation Has Come
It was the middle of the night, and Perlagie couldn’t sleep. The image of Maomai, her three-month-old baby girl, flashed through her mind every time she closed her eyes. A huge tumor the size of the baby’s head was jutting out of Maomai’s neck. Perlagie looked over at her daughter, peacefully sleeping in her hospital bed, and began to cry.
For over a week, Perlagie had stayed in the hospital, waiting and praying for a doctor to help Maomai – but no one came. In the morning, they were being sent home. Perlagie didn’t know what to do.
When Perlagie finally fell asleep she had a dream.
“In that dream, I saw a person, who told me I should be quiet and pray – that salvation shall come.”
The next morning, Perlagie felt confident and peaceful. She didn’t know where help would come from, but she knew God was going to take care of her baby.
***
Maomai was born with a teratoma, which means monstrous tumor. It started out as a small, golf-ball sized lump on her neck, but within three months, the tumor had grown to the size of her head.
Everyone in Perlagie’s village was afraid of Maomai. The grotesque tumor was difficult to look at, and the villagers thought they could be contaminated by it. No one would touch or play with the small baby.
“One time I was in the bathroom, and the baby was crying. People were around the baby, but they would not touch her because of the tumor. They left her crying, alone. Even the members of my family,” said Perlagie.
Perlagie was alone. Maomai was a precious, beautiful baby girl, and she could see that, but others simply couldn’t see past the monstrous tumor. In a country where perceived physical differences mark people as outcasts, Maomai was treated like a monster instead of a baby girl.
“I was very, very, sad. I was not able to sleep,” said Perlagie. “Every day, I was crying. Also, I was not eating. I had no appetite because of the condition of my baby.”
Perlagie and her husband wanted to get Maomia help. They took her to a local hospital, but there was no surgeon to perform her surgery. Perlagie didn’t become anxious or fearful. She confidently left the hospital, trusting God to bring healing and deliverance from the tumor.
When Perlagie returned to her village, her sister-in-law told her about the Africa Mercy, a hospital ship filled with doctors and nurses, which had come to Cotonou. She had just returned from the ship after being treated for an eye problem and thought they could help Maomai.
Perlagie brought her daughter to the Africa Mercy and was screened by the medical team. It was obvious that she needed immediate surgery. But the tumor had made it difficult for her to feed, and Maomai was very underweight – too underweight for surgery. The Mercy Ships medical team placed her on a feeding program and scheduled her for surgery in one month. Mercy was on its way. The salvation Perlagie had dreamed of was becoming a reality.
A month passed, and it was time for Maomai’s surgery. The morning of surgery, Peralgie worried it would not be successful.
“I started crying. Some nurses and translators told me the operation was possible with God. The doctor will be successful with surgery, the tumor will be removed, and the baby will be healed. They gave me that hope,” said Perlagie.
After six hours of surgery, Maomai’s tumor was removed. It weighed 375 grams, 15% of her body weight. The monstrous tumor was gone, and the beautiful baby girl remained.
Maomai spent over a month recovering in the hospital. Still struggling to maintain her weight, she had to be fed through a surgically placed feeding tube.
The nursing staff encouraged Perlagie to use the feeding tube. At first, she was hesitant. Perlagie distanced herself from Maomai. But as she grew more comfortable in the hospital, things changed. The nursing staff taught Perlagie how to use the feeding tube. As she took ownership of Maomai’s care, their relationship thrived.
“Initially, we were worried about her,” said pediatric nurse Ali Chandra. “But now she’s been here for over a month, and she’s blossomed. Perlagie has completely bonded with Maomai in the time they’ve been here. And it happened as we started teaching her [to use the feeding tube]. She’s doing really well,” says Chandra.
Maomai has continued to grow stronger since her surgery. Not only has she gained weight, she’s gained vibrancy.
“Maomai used to be this kind of listless baby, and now she’s bright. She’s doing more age-appropriate things than before,” says Chandra.
Psalm 13:5 says, “I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation” (NKJV).
Perlagie knows this to be true. She trusted God to take care of her baby, and He brought her salvation. Perlagie is rejoicing in His mercy.
“I thank God, and I thank each of you, for all you have done for me. God is healing and still working. I have seen my salvation in this child,” she concluded.
Written by Megan Petock
Edited by IOC Editing Team
Photography by Debra Bell and Megan Petock
It was the middle of the night, and Perlagie couldn’t sleep. The image of Maomai, her three-month-old baby girl, flashed through her mind every time she closed her eyes. A huge tumor the size of the baby’s head was jutting out of Maomai’s neck. Perlagie looked over at her daughter, peacefully sleeping in her hospital bed, and began to cry.
For over a week, Perlagie had stayed in the hospital, waiting and praying for a doctor to help Maomai – but no one came. In the morning, they were being sent home. Perlagie didn’t know what to do.
When Perlagie finally fell asleep she had a dream.
“In that dream, I saw a person, who told me I should be quiet and pray – that salvation shall come.”
The next morning, Perlagie felt confident and peaceful. She didn’t know where help would come from, but she knew God was going to take care of her baby.
***
Maomai was born with a teratoma, which means monstrous tumor. It started out as a small, golf-ball sized lump on her neck, but within three months, the tumor had grown to the size of her head.
Everyone in Perlagie’s village was afraid of Maomai. The grotesque tumor was difficult to look at, and the villagers thought they could be contaminated by it. No one would touch or play with the small baby.
“One time I was in the bathroom, and the baby was crying. People were around the baby, but they would not touch her because of the tumor. They left her crying, alone. Even the members of my family,” said Perlagie.
Perlagie was alone. Maomai was a precious, beautiful baby girl, and she could see that, but others simply couldn’t see past the monstrous tumor. In a country where perceived physical differences mark people as outcasts, Maomai was treated like a monster instead of a baby girl.
“I was very, very, sad. I was not able to sleep,” said Perlagie. “Every day, I was crying. Also, I was not eating. I had no appetite because of the condition of my baby.”
Perlagie and her husband wanted to get Maomia help. They took her to a local hospital, but there was no surgeon to perform her surgery. Perlagie didn’t become anxious or fearful. She confidently left the hospital, trusting God to bring healing and deliverance from the tumor.
When Perlagie returned to her village, her sister-in-law told her about the Africa Mercy, a hospital ship filled with doctors and nurses, which had come to Cotonou. She had just returned from the ship after being treated for an eye problem and thought they could help Maomai.
Perlagie brought her daughter to the Africa Mercy and was screened by the medical team. It was obvious that she needed immediate surgery. But the tumor had made it difficult for her to feed, and Maomai was very underweight – too underweight for surgery. The Mercy Ships medical team placed her on a feeding program and scheduled her for surgery in one month. Mercy was on its way. The salvation Perlagie had dreamed of was becoming a reality.
A month passed, and it was time for Maomai’s surgery. The morning of surgery, Peralgie worried it would not be successful.
“I started crying. Some nurses and translators told me the operation was possible with God. The doctor will be successful with surgery, the tumor will be removed, and the baby will be healed. They gave me that hope,” said Perlagie.
After six hours of surgery, Maomai’s tumor was removed. It weighed 375 grams, 15% of her body weight. The monstrous tumor was gone, and the beautiful baby girl remained.
Maomai spent over a month recovering in the hospital. Still struggling to maintain her weight, she had to be fed through a surgically placed feeding tube.
The nursing staff encouraged Perlagie to use the feeding tube. At first, she was hesitant. Perlagie distanced herself from Maomai. But as she grew more comfortable in the hospital, things changed. The nursing staff taught Perlagie how to use the feeding tube. As she took ownership of Maomai’s care, their relationship thrived.
“Initially, we were worried about her,” said pediatric nurse Ali Chandra. “But now she’s been here for over a month, and she’s blossomed. Perlagie has completely bonded with Maomai in the time they’ve been here. And it happened as we started teaching her [to use the feeding tube]. She’s doing really well,” says Chandra.
Maomai has continued to grow stronger since her surgery. Not only has she gained weight, she’s gained vibrancy.
“Maomai used to be this kind of listless baby, and now she’s bright. She’s doing more age-appropriate things than before,” says Chandra.
Psalm 13:5 says, “I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation” (NKJV).
Perlagie knows this to be true. She trusted God to take care of her baby, and He brought her salvation. Perlagie is rejoicing in His mercy.
“I thank God, and I thank each of you, for all you have done for me. God is healing and still working. I have seen my salvation in this child,” she concluded.
Written by Megan Petock
Edited by IOC Editing Team
Photography by Debra Bell and Megan Petock
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