Death Has Lost its Sting

This Easter was a true day of celebrating all that Jesus has done for us on the cross. But all the circumstances were so wrong today for a day of celebrating our Savior. I don't think I slept more than 3 hours last night, J woke up with a cough & fever, and we were super late to church. Not a great start to any Sunday, let alone this special day that brings LIFE to our faith! However, the day turned out to be a beautiful reminder of what it means to follow Jesus.

How this day turned out to be so beautiful has a lot do with what we've been going through on a daily basis with the construction. We have been getting to know some of our neighbors near our soon-to-be-home and orphanage. At first, whenever we passed by, even when we would say hello, no one in the family would respond. They would look right passed us as though we didn't even exist. This went on for a few weeks. Later, our van got stuck in the sand right outside of their house. We asked for help and a shovel and the whole family refused and sat back to watch me and Phil struggle to push the van out until we finally were successful.

A few months later, we were walking past the house when we noticed the family's friend had a car. His car, like our own many times before, was buried in the sand. We didn't wait for them to ask - we shoved and pushed the car out, and reminded the family that it's always good to help each other, after all we are neighbors!

Since that day, the family would say hello and help push our van out anytime we are stuck in the sand. (We seriously need to invest in a 4x4 vehicle!!) We occasionally bring gifts for the family - like vegetables they don't grow or a bag of rice or juice - and they occasionally invite us to eat beans & rice with them at lunch time. Our relationship is developing and we are slowly planting seeds about Jesus.

About 6 weeks ago, we learned that one of the children of the house is extremely ill. She isn't really a child - she's 21 - but if you saw how emaciated and weak she is, you may think she's no more than 10 or 11.

The family explained that she first became sick about 4 months ago with malaria and she never got better. This is the story we believed until we saw her today and took her to church. The moment my eyes met her weak body this morning, I had to bite my cheek to hold back the tears. Her breathing was extremely labored and she had no energy. She couldn't walk at all. She looked much worse this morning than the very first time we met her.

I carried her into church after watching her mom struggle to get her out of the van, and I don't think she weighed as much as Jadon. We prayed and prayed for her, and concluded that she is now our daughter. We must help her. After all, Jesus said to love God first, and then love your NEIGHBOR as yourself.

At church, both mother and daughter decided to follow Jesus. Our pastoral staff talked with them and prayed with them, and both agreed to come to church whenever possible. It was so beautiful to watch a mother, desperate for hope, jump right into knowing more about Jesus and committing her life to follow him! Even though the daughter was so weak she had to lay on the floor of the church, she said yes, she wants to know Jesus more. There is nothing more beautiful than seeing hope in the eyes of the hopeless, life in the eyes of the lifeless.

After church, we begged both mother and daughter to let us go to the hospital, possibly to test her for TB, but the mother said no. It's not TB. The daughter said, "I'm positive." We asked if that meant she has HIV. With the last bit of strength in her body, she moaned and shook her head yes. The mother explained that she has to have medications everyday at the hospital for 2 1/2 months, but they haven't been able to do so consistently because of the transport money - 50 meticais per day, approximately $0.88 - less than a dollar. The cost is too great for the family to bear.

This girl literally can not walk from the car into the house. I carried her 3 times today and it was like carrying Jadon. I could feel every bone in her body. I can't help but cry and cry over this beautiful girl. She is ours to care for, and we'll do anything we can to help. We've already arranged reliable transport for her daily so she can get her medications, and we're committed to praying for a future for this new daughter of ours. We see her daily, and we will continue to do so until she begins to get her strength back.

Please pray with us that God will give her back her strength and that the medications will work on her weak body, to give it life again. With people, there are so many things that are impossible, but with God, ALL THINGS are possible! After all, is this not the very reason Jesus laid down his life? He died so we can live!

On this resurrection day, Jesus showed us to have no fear, because he is ALIVE. We have no fear for the future of this new daughter because Jesus has already overcome death and death has FOREVER lost its sting.

***********Note: As you can see, I didn't post a picture of our neighbor here. I don't think she needs anyone to gawk at her, we just need to pray. God will do the rest. When she is in a better state, I'll ask her permission to use her photo so I can introduce you to her properly.

Standing on a firm Foundation!

Phil helping J with his itchy chicken pox! 

The last 3 weeks have been like a tornado, hurricane and a nice, calm breeze, all at once. Jadon came down with some form of chicken pox, and I (Laura) had a nice case of malaria. After a few days of antibiotics for me, I was fine. But Jadon's chicken pox were awful. The size and the amount he had were truly horrific. I felt for my boy, and leaving him each day to go teach in the mornings was rough.

After missing almost 2 weeks of school, he finally is better! He healed so well, didn't scratch at all and he never had a fever. I am grateful for how well he did. He listened to us when we begged him not to scratch, and explained that he could spread them or make them even worse. He was a real trooper and I'm so glad he is better.

I am now fighting some kind of chicken pox infection as well. It looks similar to chicken pox, but I had them as a child so I'm not too sure. They don't seem to be contagious but they are painful and very itchy. I'm taking some medicine to help and using some cream for the itching, but I'm over it. Seriously. Over. It. I have been sick off and on since the beginning of the year, and I am so done.

So I'm praying for this rash or chicken pox or shingles or whatever it is to leave me now and that God would heal me inside and out so I will no longer get sick this year! God can do it and I trust Him to be my doctor. Our family has certainly been attacked this year by all this sickness and we are praying that this is the END. (I have to say, though - my husband deserves a gold medal for all the nursing he has done - from the dirty jobs to just loving on us extra, he really deserves an honorary degree or something by now!)

Setting of the corner stone by our pastor - Pastor Ben!

Besides all the sickness, we are in high spirits! The calm breeze in all of this has certainly been the fact that the work on site has continued at a rapid pace. We have water on site for the orphanage, and we have a completed storage and guard house. The foundation digging started about 10 days ago, and in just 1 short week, the brick layer is preparing to pour the foundation, most likely the end of next week. The walls will then go up towards the end of the month, and the second floor decking will be prepped the beginning of April.

We had a small ceremony at the beginning of the week to set the first stones of the foundation. Phil and I each put a stone in place, along with those individuals that have been pillars here for us, and our Pastor, Benedict. It was a great time of celebration, and it was short and sweet. We committed the location and building to the Lord, and we prayed for continued blessings on the land that will change the future for so many little people for the good of this country, and this world!

Completed storage and guard's house!

We are anticipating having the 2nd floor of the building completed by the end of April or middle of May, and moving in shortly there after. We are so excited and I honestly CAN NOT WAIT! We will need to have an inspection completed, and then we will be approved for a certain number of children. We are looking at opening our doors as an orphanage in June.

The progress of the building has gone on despite the illnesses, despite any set backs - and we have had a LOT of set backs. There have been major problems with our brick layer and his team, and we recently had another car accident with a drunken bicyclist, but I will save that for another day. (Don't worry - it wasn't a big deal.)

As we continue into this project, we are spending and spending on cement and rocks. It is crazy how much it costs to make a giant slab of concrete to put an entire HOUSE on top! But we thank God because we have NEVER gone without. Any time we have needed ANY thing, we have been victorious.

2nd load of rocks - 20 tons!

As we continue up to the 2nd floor, we will be short on materials and by then, finances as well. If you have been on the fence about partnering with our organization, now is REALLY the time! We are in a very exciting
phase of construction, and if we have to stop due to funding, we would be setting the building and opening of the orphanage back by months.

We would love to partner with you so we can help this community blossom in the best way God sees fit! You can always give through our website: heartfortheneedy.org, using Paypal. You can always mail donations to: 35 E Animas Village Lane, Durango, CO 81301.

Every cent counts and nothing is too small! We are blessed to have partners who have made big sacrifices to continue pledging monthly support, and to each of you we are grateful. We know that God will bless you for your faithfulness!

The corner of the building - foundation started!

God has been so faithful - even in the most difficult and trying times. We know this is a journey that will change us, that will change this community, and that we pray God will use to change the world. I pray that today, as you go about your usual Sunday routine, you find something extra ordinary from God. If you have dreams and big hopes to do something in this world, He will fight for you. Never let the fear of money or any other provision stop you.

We certainly have no regrets in this journey, but I must admit I have one. I regret that I didn't have the courage and the faith to do this sooner. I regret that I let fear and worry take over my thoughts, when God could have filled that void and grown my faith. But, I am grateful that God never stopped quietly whispering to us, and sometimes shouting, that the time is now and that He has prepared the way for us. How amazing the God of the UNIVERSE loves us so much that he quietly and gently deals with us at times?! I'm in awe of what He has accomplished on our behalf. We can't wait to see what God will do next!

Blessings,

Phil, Laura and Jadon, too

Don't Stop Believin'

I think Journey got it right - Don't Stop Believin! We've never stopped believing in our project, but there are always doubts. When we start to get frustrated because things are moving too slow for our liking, we sometimes fall into that negative self talk: "was this the right time? Should we have waited? How are we going to do this?! We should've saved more money! Oh my goodness, where are we going to get the money to do ALL of this AND meet our personal financial needs?!"

We've discovered this is normal, and we wouldn't be human if we didn't have doubts at times. The meaning of faith is to trust God even when you have doubts; to continue walking the path even when it feels uncertain and scary. No person of faith is expected to feel 100% confident in everything God is doing all the time; the difference, though, is that we continue on, trusting that God's plan is working for the best possible outcome. And, I'm glad we've never let our personal doubts stop us from trusting God.

Yesterday was one of those days that we will always remember what we were doing on February 12, 2016. Yesterday was a fulfillment of God's promise to see us, to provide, and to guide us through something we have never done. IF we had given up a week ago when we were feeling down, we wouldn't have seen God's hands working on our behalf.

We now have water, plenty of water, flowing directly on our land. The borehole was drilled yesterday, and after just 40 meters, the crew told us the water was pumping itself out, without even attaching the pump! They told us the other borehole's they've drilled in our area were at least 60 meters deep, so we are certainly blessed with an abundance of water.

This is a HUGE deal for our community. Each family has received us so well, with extreme joy in their hearts, that finally, water won't be a problem. Many families walk for hours to get decent water, and some rely on the dirty water that flows from a mini-river just east of our land. Knowing that our neighbors & community will stop dying from water-born illnesses, and pregnant women and children won't have to plan their days around water collection, makes every single minute of planning worth it. 

Today we connected the dreams we have with our community, as we all watched together, in aw that we have so much water underneath us. Today was a day that will forever be in my mind because it was the start of something great. And, today our team started the construction of our storage area for construction supplies, and it is nearly 1/2 way finished after day one! Once completed, we'll start on the first large building that will house us and our new kiddos. We have a truck load of 350 bags of cement coming late next week so our team is working quickly to finish up the storage unit. 

Storage & guard's house

While it is surreal to watch our community transform over water, we know it is not because of us. We aren't anyone's savior - only Jesus is the true Savior. Only through Jesus can anything be truly changed and reconciled. We can't "save" anyone - we can only share the amazing joy we have in our hearts with those around us and pray for our community. This project has only been made possible through God, and through the generous donations & faithful monthly gifts from all of you.

Your money is not something we take for granted, which is why we don't use ANY of our funding to support our personal financial needs. God is taking care of our personal needs, and somehow, He always comes through when we need anything. We trust Him to meet each and every need we have. And, we trust that He will continue to work in the hearts of so many who are eager to help so that together, we can lift up our community, to show them the love of Jesus.

Please pray with us that God will continue to guide us, help us to overcome the challenges that are guaranteed to come, and help us to continue to raise the needed funds to complete our first building. We can't do any of this alone, and recognize that God has used so many of you wonderful people to help us. Thank you for your faithfulness!

If you haven't had the opportunity to partner with us yet, check out our website - heartfortheneedy.org - where you can find more information about our NGO/nonprofit. As always, you can donate online through our website or find our mailing address to send a donation through the mail.

Here's to never ceasing to Believe that all things are possible, with Him.

Peace & Love,

Phil, Laura and Jadon, too

The struggle is REAL

When people say, “the struggle is real,” it’s usually about something funny and I usually laugh about it. Like, the struggle is real when I have to leave the house in real clothes instead of shorts or stretchy pants. But seriously, we are honestly struggling right this moment. Not financially or physically, but in ways that can’t be seen manifesting physically. Or, maybe you can see it in our eyes.

We’ve been having a lot of struggles lately, and when I say, “the struggle is real,” it is in fact real, and hard. We seem to be fighting a lot of battles lately. Some are clearly spiritual battles; some battles are clearly a test of our marriage, and yet others are clearly a test of character. I find the spiritual battles the most difficult because many of these battles are aimed at destruction – destroying our dreams, our marriage, our friendships, and our relationships with those around us, especially local Mozambicans. 

Living in a foreign country is difficult enough without fighting these battles. But each battle is a part of life, and each battle is a fight against the one who doesn’t want us here. Anytime in our lives when we were going through a lot of difficult stuff, there was a HUGE blessing or a big change around the corner, usually something mind blowing that we never, ever imagined.

I know on the other side of things, God will work everything out for GOOD. He promises that to us in Romans 8:28:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

In the midst of everything, I read the last part of the verse, over and over again.

ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE

It isn’t about me, or Phil, or even Jadon. It’s about the PURPOSE that God has called us for. It’s not for us to decide the purpose or the way or the road we take, it’s up to HIM. If God is using each of the battles we are walking through to nurture us into the people He foresees us to be, I’m okay with it. As long as the end result is for HIM and it’s what HE wants for me, how can I argue with that? He knows me best, and I trust him with everything in my life, including my future.

So, we’ll keep pressing on. We’ll keep digging in. We’ll keep praying. We’ll keep reading and studying our Bible. We’ll keep our frustrations to ourselves, and give them over to the ONE who knows best.

Lastly, we have a prayer request! If you think of us, will you keep us in your prayers? I (Laura) have been really sick over the last 3-4 weeks. I’ve had some major stomach issues (No, I am not pregnant) and then I recently caught a nasty flu/cold of some kind. I’ve tried probiotics, making ginger or lemon tea, eating, not eating, following the BRAT diet (bananas, rice, apples and toast), drinking Sprite, drinking just soda water, drinking only bottled water, and it seems there’s still no end in sight. I know this is a spiritual battle and I’m praying, but will you pray along with us? And as always, please let us know if we can pray for you about anything. We would feel honored.

Thank you for your love and support. Thank you for letting us open up and be honest about our struggles. We know that together, we can support each other and accomplish so much more!

Love and peace,

Phil, Laura & Jadon, too

Water, Electricity and a Tall Engineer

Electricity and water - my 2 favorite things now that we live in a 3rd world country, and often the most inconsistent services in our lives here.

We rarely have running water in the house, but the bill still comes every month, on our doorstep, usually increasing from the month before. Unfortunately, taking it to the FIPAG office and complaining isn't really an option. Complaining doesn't typically yield results here - only money can do that. I'm extremely thankful that we have a well in the backyard!

The electricity is slightly more consistent, usually only going off for 1-2 hours a day. The longest we have been without electricity since moving is 5 days - 120 long hours! While this really isn't that big of a deal, it's just another reminder of what I've always taken for granted.

Several lines serve thousands in our community 

Water and electricity make life easier, although I used to believe that electricity was a necessity. However, now I know I can do without it fairly easily, but with water, there is no compromise. Nothing happens without water. Life ends without water.

Backyard well

Water is a necessity we have been working to secure for this project. We have hired a friend we call Papa Berry, a jolly South African with an incredible accent and a contagious laugh. He has agreed to help us with this huge undertaking of finding water. His business is to dig boreholes for a living and he has offered to do what he can to help us on our current site. He agrees there are few problems with water where we are located, but his engineer and geological specialist will first have to take a look before we decide if it's worth drilling.

Our engineer, Gaumbe, is another man on our side. He is a tall, slim Mozambican whose smile is so big he can light up the darkest places. We met with Guambe Friday and he let us know how we can move forward with starting the foundation. Obviously, his first concern was water, and his second concern was funding. He believes so much in our project so he is doing everything he can to cut down on costs of labor and materials. He is currently extremely busy with the construction of our church, but he is making us a priority on his long list of projects. We are so thankful for his experience, engineering abilities, his faithfulness to God, and his giving heart.

Our engineer, Guambe

Guambe has calculated the costs for all of the materials we will need, and while the figures can be overwhelming, we know that we serve an awesome God who has met every single need we have had so far.

We have had every need answered in one way or another. We currently are about $11,650 away from our goal for completing this first building, and we know the funding will come through by God's grace.

With ongoing construction, it is important for us to have monthly donations so construction doesn't come to a halt in the future. Have you considered becoming a partner? If not, now is the time. Every dime you donate goes towards the project, not our personal financial needs.

We are currently in need of 10 monthly donors to commit to $50/month for the next year. Make it easy on yourself, and visit our website to set up automatic giving through PayPal: heartfortheneedy.org.

Thank you for your prayers and for all of your support. We know that as the project progresses we will continue to have great success, and we give all the glory to God! Without Him, none of this would be possible.

Be blessed,

Phil, Laura & Jadon, too

One Week – What a Difference

We’ve been dreaming about this orphanage for so long, picturing a playground, kids running everywhere, the house a complete mess, but a joyful, happy mess. Honestly, we can't stop dreaming about how and what God will do to accomplish this project. While it can be overwhelming at times, it is so amazing to watch how God puts all of the pieces together. From the very beginning of all of this, almost 7 years ago, He has been preparing a way. 

I am always blown away when I look at this picture:

 

Orphanage site in 2009!

This is the VERY first photo we ever took of our land, in 2009, when we purchased additional land knowing we wanted to build the orphanage here. A few weeks after we bought it, we had the land cleared and cleaned up, making a perfect soccer field for the local community’s youth.

For 6 years we left this piece of land under the watchful eye of the previous owner, who carefully looked after it for little to no reward. When we came back to get started, the land look like this:

 The community told us the youth in the area like to play soccer on the land, so they have also kept a watchful eye on it, and continued to remove debris and trash through out the years. While I know they are a little sad they won’t be playing soccer on it much longer, I’m so grateful for the years they enjoyed it, because it continues to remind me that this project has already become a community project. Between the youth, the former owners of the land and our close neighbors on the north side of the land, our 8 plots has stayed secure and safe for the future of this great community.

However, apparently someone in the area “sold” 2 plots of our land to another foreigner. Fortunately, God helped us obtain the building and occupancy permits quickly, and we are able to show the land was sold to us first.

These are the things we continue to see from God. The ways He has lovingly knitted every detail to work together in our favor, kept everything in order so that we wouldn’t have to fight for ourselves. When you allow God to fight for you, it always works out better!

We decided that prior to building, we need to get a temporary fence in place to help protect our land from unwanted attention, and especially from individuals hoping to steal cement. The temporary fence began about a week ago and is now complete on 2 sides that we needed enclosed right away. The progress was so much fun to watch, and as the foundation planning begins this week, we can't wait to see the landscape change again. 

 Here's the fence in various stages:

 The fence went up quickly, and gave us an opportunity to hire some of our neighbors. Everyone was excited about having this project in the community, and our neighbors directly in front of us offered us anything we need - water, storage for any supplies we have, and they would be willing to help keep an eye on things, just in case. Many people made excellent suggestions about how to lay out the compound and asked questions about the different stages of the project.

 This only took about a week – 4 days of gathering supplies and 3 days of work. We hired the former owners of our land to facilitate the construction of the temporary fence, and they did an excellent job.

We are now awaiting the arrival of our small truck so we can finish hauling rocks, cement and sand to our land. A borehole is also in the pipeline for next week, but we are still awaiting pricing and how much time it will take.

The finished product of the fence looks beautiful and well put together. The team did an excellent job!

For the next week, will you please pray for us? Please pray our borehole won’t cost an arm & a leg, and the beginning of the foundation won’t encounter too many issues. Please pray for funding to continue to come in, as we are still about $12,000 away from our goal for this building.

We thank God for this new year, and we know 2016 will be another life changing year for this community in Mozambique. If you haven’t already, consider partnering with us. All of your donations are tax deductible, and ALL funds go towards our project, not to our personal needs.

Don't forget to sign up for our weekly emails! Send us an email and we'll add you to the list, or go to our Facebook page - Facebook.com/heartfortheneedy - and sign up! 

We're praying for a bless year for you and your families, and we can't wait to show you what God does here in Mozambique!

Many blessings, 

Phil, Laura & Jadon, too

Irreplaceable

I hate feeling like something is wrong, especially when I have no means to make sure that the worry I am having is illegitimate. For example, when your husband is in a neighboring country, driving down roads he doesn’t know, with elephants & giraffes that run wild, and you can’t yet reach him by phone. Yes, this is one of those moments where until you hear something, either good or bad, you try to put your worries aside & trust God to bring your husband home.

Let me preface this by saying I used to be a worrier, and it took me many, many years to overcome this. Once I was married and became a mother, I really had to rely on my faith to carry me through the scary things of life that can make one feel completely overwhelmed. I had to take a long, hard look at myself and decide if worrying was really something from God, and if it was really worth wasting my time. My final conclusion was obviously NO because fear & anxiety aren’t feelings that come from God, so I knew if it’s not from Him, it’s not for me.

After the accident

Since moving back to Mozambique, I still don’t feel worried about much of anything and I’m thankful that God has continued to not only grow my faith in Him, but I’m thankful that anytime I have a worry, I can quickly let it go. But this last week has been a little different.

While he was driving on the way back from picking up a vehicle we purchased, I hadn’t heard from Phil for almost 24 hours. I couldn’t sleep on Friday night last week, and I finally fell asleep around 4am, the time when the accident happened.

I finally heard from Phil Saturday evening, around 6pm. He told me over the phone that he had been in an accident. I tried to choke back the tears, remembering that if he is able to talk and tell me what happened, he is probably okay.

Driver's side of the car

While driving, Phil said he was feeling tired and the next thing he knew, he was running off the road. Phil nearly totaled the vehicle he was driving. He said he remembers it rolling at least 3, maybe 4 times, but he blacked out for a minute before the vehicle stopped tumbling when it hit a tree.

Thankfully, a swollen & bruised arm along with a few cuts from broken glass was all that resulted. He saw a doctor near where the accident happened in Tanzania, and the doctor was fairly certain his arm isn’t broken, although x-rays weren’t done. We’ve given it a few days, and it’s pretty clear his arm isn’t broken.

Sore & swollen - but not broken!

We, honestly, could care less about the car. It’s metal and glass – nothing that can’t be replaced and/or fixed. My husband is another story. He’s one of a kind and can’t be replaced. I felt so much relief when he told me that he was okay. Even when he told me he was in an accident, the relief of just hearing his voice & knowing he was fine was more than enough for me.

Phil finally walked in the door Sunday afternoon, after filing police reports, and making arrangements for the van. After a nice meal and a warm shower, he slept most of the evening and slept through the night.

Please continue to pray for his healing, and that the vehicle won’t be a total loss. Even though it had insurance, that doesn’t really mean much here. We will make do with whatever happens with the van, and we know God can use anything for good.

Thank you for all of your sweet prayers. We appreciate your love and support more than you could ever know. We’re still figuring out a few details before building commences, but we will begin constructing the fence for the orphanage before the end of the week!

Until then, Merry Christmas! Remember the sacrifices Jesus has made for us, and let us celebrate His love and kindness in this dark world.

Be Blessed,

Phil, Laura & Jadon, too