O love the Lord, all ye his saints: for the Lord preserveth the
faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer. Be of good courage,
and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the Lord. -
Psalm 31:23, 24
We are blessed beyond measure. November was a month of thankfulness, not only because of Thanksgiving, but because God was so faithful. On so many levels, we have seen His provision, even in the smallest of details. We truly serve an awesome God.
Thanksgiving Day at the Eheler’s was bittersweet, as we bid Jessica Saiz and her daughter Mia farewell. They returned home to El Paso, Texas, immediately following the feast. And what a spread it was! Roast chicken with a hint of lemongrass, homemade dinner rolls fresh out of the oven, stuffing, cranberry sauce, creamed corn, garlic mashed potatoes and gravy, candied carrots, green beans, pumpkin pie served with whipped cream, and cherry torte to top it all off.
At the conclusion of the meal, we all gathered around Jessica and Mia and prayed over them and their journey home. They had arrived in Olongapo shortly after we did, and had been in country for nearly six months. It was as though they were a part of the team, and goodbyes were tough, especially since Mia burst into tears. Jessica was strong, saving her own tears for later, but she was reluctant to leave. The clinic isn’t the same without them.
As I sit here, writing, I reflect on everything that Christ has done
for us. Just in this past month, He healed me of my infection. The
illness drew John and me even closer, tested his faith, and ultimately,
we both put our trust in the Lord – to whatever end. Christ drew us
closer to Himself. Blessed be His holy name.
The great wall of mercy is completed, and stands as a testimony to His goodness. That we obtained the proper permits from DNR, and the backing of the local Barungai captain alone are reason enough to be grateful. Spanning 170 feet, it is a massive accomplishment, and the first of many terraces to come. In time of typhoons and floods, it will serve as a bulwark of protection, and provide a safe path for our neighbors and the Aetas through the storms when the road washes out. And it was truly a group effort, a great community project, putting us on good terms with our fellow neighbors.
The month of November was also the time when God revealed to us our
return date. We had told Mercy In Action that we would stay for one
year, and our purpose in coming was to build their clinic. Yet the
permissions have not yet been obtained. While there has been plenty of
work and ongoing projects to keep us busy, they run dry in January. John
and I had been giving the matter much thought and prayer. It was not a
decision that we took lightly. And so we put out a fleece before the
Lord. It was just between us and God – we told no one else of it. We
asked Him to show us three specific signs, and in this way we would know
that it was His timing in calling us home. If they were not answered,
we would stay the full year.
One morning, John woke up with firm impression that mid-February was the time to return home. Whether from God or of his own mind, he did not know. I was reluctant to return so early, as our home was still rented out to his brother Josh until June. Josh and his wife Kari are expecting their first child in June – so we would of course honor the contract; yet this left us with a housing predicament. Other than that, I was not opposed to the date, if it was God’s will.
John was unable to shake the persisting feeling that mid-February was the right time. I urged him to talk with Jason and Theresa Eheler, wanting their blessing and council. Our leaving would directly affect them, especially since we had initially committed to staying for a year, rather than 9 months. Not only did they give their blessing, they also informed us that a large group of Canadian volunteers were coming over in mid-February, and it would be an ideal time for us to switch out.
With their blessing, we headed up to our house to check the ticket prices for airfare from Manila to Los Angelos. And it was during that time that God revealed to us all three of the signs. Our fleece was shown to us, leaving no room for doubt. We would fly into LAX, stay with John’s grandparents for about a week, and purchase a Cali car, then drive back home on Route 66. This would put us in Indy around the first week of March.
Just when I thought that it couldn’t get any more amazing, Christ showed me that He cares about the details. When John called his brother Josh, he was informed that Josh and Kari had been thinking about returning to Kentucky for her birth. They had been thinking about going back around the first week of March or so. He said that they would continue to pay rent on the house, even though they wouldn’t be living there, to honor the contract. A wave of relief washed over Josh’s voice when John informed him that we were returning home and would not require the rent. It was agreed that Josh and Kari would move out at the end of February, ending their contract. And we would get our home back.
I could not have planned it. Without a doubt, Jesus showed us our return date and gave us our house back as an unexpected blessing – the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae. Lord, Your wonders never cease.
originally posted on December 3, 2011
We are blessed beyond measure. November was a month of thankfulness, not only because of Thanksgiving, but because God was so faithful. On so many levels, we have seen His provision, even in the smallest of details. We truly serve an awesome God.
Thanksgiving Day at the Eheler’s was bittersweet, as we bid Jessica Saiz and her daughter Mia farewell. They returned home to El Paso, Texas, immediately following the feast. And what a spread it was! Roast chicken with a hint of lemongrass, homemade dinner rolls fresh out of the oven, stuffing, cranberry sauce, creamed corn, garlic mashed potatoes and gravy, candied carrots, green beans, pumpkin pie served with whipped cream, and cherry torte to top it all off.
At the conclusion of the meal, we all gathered around Jessica and Mia and prayed over them and their journey home. They had arrived in Olongapo shortly after we did, and had been in country for nearly six months. It was as though they were a part of the team, and goodbyes were tough, especially since Mia burst into tears. Jessica was strong, saving her own tears for later, but she was reluctant to leave. The clinic isn’t the same without them.
The great wall of mercy is completed, and stands as a testimony to His goodness. That we obtained the proper permits from DNR, and the backing of the local Barungai captain alone are reason enough to be grateful. Spanning 170 feet, it is a massive accomplishment, and the first of many terraces to come. In time of typhoons and floods, it will serve as a bulwark of protection, and provide a safe path for our neighbors and the Aetas through the storms when the road washes out. And it was truly a group effort, a great community project, putting us on good terms with our fellow neighbors.
One morning, John woke up with firm impression that mid-February was the time to return home. Whether from God or of his own mind, he did not know. I was reluctant to return so early, as our home was still rented out to his brother Josh until June. Josh and his wife Kari are expecting their first child in June – so we would of course honor the contract; yet this left us with a housing predicament. Other than that, I was not opposed to the date, if it was God’s will.
John was unable to shake the persisting feeling that mid-February was the right time. I urged him to talk with Jason and Theresa Eheler, wanting their blessing and council. Our leaving would directly affect them, especially since we had initially committed to staying for a year, rather than 9 months. Not only did they give their blessing, they also informed us that a large group of Canadian volunteers were coming over in mid-February, and it would be an ideal time for us to switch out.
With their blessing, we headed up to our house to check the ticket prices for airfare from Manila to Los Angelos. And it was during that time that God revealed to us all three of the signs. Our fleece was shown to us, leaving no room for doubt. We would fly into LAX, stay with John’s grandparents for about a week, and purchase a Cali car, then drive back home on Route 66. This would put us in Indy around the first week of March.
Just when I thought that it couldn’t get any more amazing, Christ showed me that He cares about the details. When John called his brother Josh, he was informed that Josh and Kari had been thinking about returning to Kentucky for her birth. They had been thinking about going back around the first week of March or so. He said that they would continue to pay rent on the house, even though they wouldn’t be living there, to honor the contract. A wave of relief washed over Josh’s voice when John informed him that we were returning home and would not require the rent. It was agreed that Josh and Kari would move out at the end of February, ending their contract. And we would get our home back.
I could not have planned it. Without a doubt, Jesus showed us our return date and gave us our house back as an unexpected blessing – the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae. Lord, Your wonders never cease.
originally posted on December 3, 2011
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