1 Corinthians 16:14 "Do everything in love"

Wow! How time goes by! Our second month is coming to a close and it feels like we just sent out our first newsletter. God continues to fill us with joy and hope as a result of His unwavering faithfulness. We see His hand moving in our lives and the lives of those we minister to. 

The first boasting of the Lord is the addition to our family! We welcomed Titus Henry on the 15th of May. The labor and delivery went very well. Carolynn went into labor on her own the night before her scheduled induction. With our other three children, she was induced into labor by the doctor. Titus was a big baby according to South African averages, weighing in at 4.015kg. You get to do the math. The staff was very impressed with the "strength of the American woman". They said they are used to babies between 2.5 and 3.0kg. Bigger babies are rarely delivered "naturally". The doctors, nurses, and hospital were all top notch quality. We are so thankful that we were covered in prayer and that the Lord blessed us exceedingly. Titus and Carolynn are doing very well.
The weather is turning colder here as winter approaches. We don't expect to have snow in our yard, but we are told that when we see snow in the mountains, we should bundle up. When the wind comes off them and settles on us, we will know it is indeed winter. Houses are not insulated here and the typical heating arrangement is to carry an electric heater around the house with you. Everyone bundles up, even when they are inside their house. Last week was the first week that I didn't wear shorts in the afternoon. The daylight is also getting shorter.

The garden in the backyard is growing well and I hope to use the produce to prepare frozen meals to sell near cost in the shop. I started cleaning and organizing the shop space, preparing it to be used for ministry. We are still asking the Lord for direction, but right now we feel led to use half of the space for a bakery, and half for counseling, prayer, teen gatherings, and bible study. We are praying that we can provide a job to someone through opening the shop. Shelving and a deep freezer was left for us by the owner but many other items are needed to make it a workable space. 

Our friendship with Marizel continues to grow, and she stops in at least 3 times a week. It's really good to hear about her day and what God is doing in her life. She is a really special girl and though He is working through her now, we can't wait to see how God is going to use her in the future. She hopes to be a heart surgeon and has started looking into her options after she graduates.

We meet many people and have many stories to tell, but we just can't tell them all, so this month we will highlight a teen mom-to-be named Leona. She is 19 and expects her baby within a few weeks. I met her mom, Louise, when I was praying at the hospital. I followed up with her at her home after she was discharged. I found a home with no electricity, no food, 4 children, and no father. As I talked with her, I found that social services was taking her children from her because she could not provide for them. Leona, because she is 19, would stay. I asked them to please come to our home and take some clothing that we have received as donations, to which they were grateful. We gathered around them in prayer before they left. Over the next two weeks, they stopped in a few times and we went to see them a few times. Since then, Louise got a job at a farm making less than $15 per day. Praise God for providing a job! Leona stopped in with a friend of hers one day and we had lunch together. Leona has a baby the same age as James who lives with her aunt. After the baby is born and things get settled for her, Leona hopes to attend night school in order to finish high school. Her dream is to be a social worker.  We have also found that Louise has 7 children in all. We are so thankful to be able to meet people and talk about their lives and pray with them.

Yes, we are thankful for where God has us. Yes, we see fruit growing. However, we are also new to the task God has laid before us in the midst of a new culture. We have no experience in ministry and must rely entirely on God for teaching us. Through the Word, prayer, and relying on the Holy Spirit we are learning.  We see so many things in our day to day lives that stir compassion in our hearts. It pains us not to be able to help everyone, and to understand why we can't. We are also learning wisdom and discernment. Unfortunately, there are many people who have learned to sustain themselves via manipulation. Lying, stealing, and "borrowing" do not carry the same weight as those offenses might in western culture. Often, there are matters of life and death associated with these actions. We are seeing addictions as a catalyst very often as well. We have already experienced the pain of being deceived and manipulated. How we react to trials is of the utmost importance (James 1:2-6). I have been asking God how we need to respond and He continues to tell me "love them anyway." Yes, but how? What does loving a man who asks for money to buy electricity and food, when I know he will be drinking a bottle of wine in a few hours? What does love look like to a woman who asks for clothes because she is homeless and without a job, when she takes more than is needed and sells them on the street? We are learning that we cannot manage everyone, constantly policing their actions to determine if they are "deserving" of our help. We must rely on the Holy Spirit to give us wisdom in every circumstance. Sometimes love looks different than we imagined. Maybe in certain circumstances love looks like saying "No, but do you have some time to sit and talk? I want to get to know you." Through deeper conversation with people we get to know more about the "why" behind their circumstances as opposed to being limited to what we see. It takes more love and more effort to have the conversation, but in the end, it's what we are commanded. 1Cor 16:14 "Do everything in love".

As we sum up this month, we are asking you to pray Colossians 1:9-12 with us over our family. "For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light."