Dan is back

Hello again! Better frequent shorter letters than one long epistle I think. Friday we had just arrived in the village for our meeting when I got a call that my mom had slipped and fallen - she is 77. I left the group to carry on --Praise the Lord for Seth to lead singing and preach, Isaiah to play the guitar, Lydia on piano, and Lydia and Hannah teaching the children. We have a great team of faithful kids. Susanna was holding up the fort at home.
I could see that something was definitely out of place. An x-ray showed that Momma had dislocated her wrist - praise the Lord it was not completely broken. Since it was Friday night, nothing was going to happen any time fast. Back we were for a 9 AM Saturday appointment --not fast either. They put Momma to sleep to reset the wrist and didn't get their "group" together until 11:45 --a doctor, an anesthesiologist, and another doctor. Meanwhile, I had to go out and buy the necessary supplies. Hannah was allowed to watch - fun for her. After all was done - another x-ray to make sure it was done right. Here is Seth getting beaten in arm-wrestling ---can't win over a cast.
Dan just got back from America. I am so happy to have him back on this continent. He came up on the bus today. I will happily give him back our wall problem ---though I think it might be almost at the end. The men have been working hard.
Thanks for all your prayers --for us, for Momma now, and for our wall situation. Pray for Ruth as she is traveling --to the Philippines - then to China to do a delivery - then back to the states. All the young adults go back to Ambassador in August. Love in Christ,
Joan

Home - heaven that is

Dear Friends,
Dan's dad is now home. We are only pilgrims on the earth - looking for our final, eternal home --that word alone is so comforting - "Home." How sweet it is when children come home!!
We are glad it wasn't a long drawn-out illness and there seemed to be no suffering. The funeral will be on Sunday the 23rd. Thank you for continuing to pray for the family, especially Dan's mom as she is now in a new phase of her life.
Love in Christ,
Joan

Pray for all - PS

Dan's dad is dying. He is saved and will soon be stepping on shore. Wow. He had another heart attack and stroke and is on a ventilator - not able to respond. The doctor said that as soon as they unplug the ventilator, he will die. The family is getting together - of course Dan also needs to go. I think the memorial / funeral will be next Saturday or Sunday. Anyway, Dan left yesterday to go to the states --he will be in Detroit on Thursday afternoon and will be there 12 days. It was all sudden. Pray for his safety in travels and for all the family. Now we know why I didn't go to Liberia ---all God's timing. It is something when you see it so clearly.
Have a great day.
Love in Christ,
Joan

June letter

      I was planning to write to you before my trip to Liberia for a delivery for friends there. Just today, I found out that the mother Sara had delivered last night! Wow! Praise the Lord all is well. Sara and their son (seven-pound Noah) are both fine. It was a nice, "easy," quick, uncomplicated, exciting birth. Thank you for your prayers for her. Now that my services are not needed, we are trying to get a refund on the ticket. Please pray that it will work out.

      This has been an encouraging month. Our attendance has been better, despite all the rain. We have had outreaches due to a member of our church who died.  He was a faithful man with a fruitful life. His wife is also a member, so Dan had a lot to do with the services and burial--a more Christian funeral, as opposed to the pagan way of weeping and wailing. She has been a good testimony through it all. Here, the funerals are like the old-time wakes--you sit up with the dead. It started at 9 p.m. outside under tents. Hannah, Max, Seth and I were in the crowd passing out tracts and witnessing on the street. We also had to make sure that all those seated received tracts and booklets of John and Romans, with the plan of salvation on the back. If we missed anyone, someone would come to one of us and tell us (wanting us to come to their section). We stayed from 9:30-11 p.m. both Saturday and Friday nights. The "wake" went on for a week. Dan preached and also did the graveside service on the next Saturday morning. God held off the rain for the morning service, although it was pouring again on the drive over. There were probably around 300 there on the first Saturday and 600 on Friday night. Salvation was clearly presented. People listened and all received the tracts. Pray for all those who heard. We will never know of the fruit until we get to heaven. This was all a very different experience for Max (the young man who is here visiting). Imagine using a funeral as an evangelistic outreach.

      The rain has fallen for four days and nights straight. Our new wall has a crack in it and is very bowed out. I have been praying that it will not fall down. Like in the day of Noah, God is in control of the storm, and He is also in control of the wall (the ark). The ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic was built by professionals (smile). I read that somewhere. The rain makes a good illustration of the story of Noah, which I am teaching right now. The sun, when it is out, is very hot; that makes a good illustration of hell--the fires that burn and burn and never go out. Women here make a fire every day to cook over; the sun is flames put in motion by God. Every time there is an earthquake, a hurricane, etc., it is showing just a drop of the awesome power of God.

      The rain has not stopped our normal church activities. Dan teaches in the village every Sunday afternoon from 1:30-4:30 p.m. It takes us 30 minutes to get there. A while back, there was only one main bad hole in this spot with a stick in it. Now, there are two--with just enough space to go through in the middle of them.  You have to know where that hole is and not come upon it suddenly.  Continually pray for our safety.

      Dan started with six students who registered for Bible school class and now has 21. It encourages us to see people wanting to learn. We are willing to teach, and we need people who are disciples who want to learn and take the time and effort necessary to study. It has to start in the heart. 

      During this time on Sunday afternoons, I go teach the ladies. Three villages are lined up some miles apart.  Every week, I go to a different village.  Again, the ladies are eager to learn. They requested that I come, they line up the meeting and I get to go "preach." 

      Pray for all these who have heard. Pray for the tract ministry. There is not the plethora of reading materials here as in America, so people like to receive tracts and read them.  It is God Who has to open their understanding, and His Spirit who has to convict of sin. Pray for people to understand and be saved.

     Thanks for praying for us and the people here.  Have a great day! May God bless you and smile upon you.

 

Love in Christ,

Dan and Joan, Ruth Marie, Hannah, Seth, Lydia, Susanna, Isaiah, Stephen, Rebekah, Josiah, Joseph, Esther, and Gideon