It’s hard to believe that Saturday marks the first official day of autumn here in the USA, and that the summer of 2006 is almost behind us. For those of you receiving this letter as your first newsletter from us, welcome to our prayer warrior team…
How do we even begin to describe what an incredible summer it’s been? Some of you may have kept up with all the news and Athol’s blog, which was updated weekly. For those of you who didn’t, you can still visit the blog, view pictures, and read all (or some) of the updates and newsletters that we posted. We have both seen God’s hand at work and have grown in our faith, as we have seen and experienced all that He has done.
My mom arrived in May, and was here for the 11 weeks that Athol was away in New Orleans. What a blessing it was to have her caring for Christie, and to have another adult in the house while he was away. She left on the 28th of August, and arrived home safely in South Africa on the 29th.
Fortunately, Athol was able to come home for a night or two every 10 days to 2 weeks, which made the separation somewhat bearable. My mom, Christie and I were able to go to New Orleans for the Fathers’ Day weekend in June, and although Athol remained incredibly busy, we were able to spend some quality family time together. A friend at my work blessed us incredibly by giving us 3 return tickets to New Orleans (compliments of her husband, a Delta pilot), so we were even able to make a second trip in July, to visit and catch up on some family time.
Athol arrived home for good on the 12th of August, and the annual AIM staff conference started on the 17th. After being apart for so long, we weren’t about to be separated again, so we tagged along and camped at the Mocassin Creek State Park nearby. After a time of worship on the Friday evening, Athol was presented with the MVP (annual, “most valuable player”) award, which he received along with a standing ovation. We were really humbled when AIM presented our family with an all-inclusive, all-expenses paid vacation to Cancun, Mexico, in appreciation for the sacrifices we’d made as a family this summer. It is hard not to feel guilty; when you are awarded for doing something that the Lord already blesses you for doing.
We left home at 3:30am on the 6th of September, and were at the resort in Cancun in time for a late lunch. What a glorious few days this proved to be! We were blessed with incredible weather, and even better family time. We took an all-day Mayan Adventure tour, and got to snorkel over a reef just off the Riviera, and then in some Secret Jungle Caverns. Following the caverns dive, we were given a traditional Mexican lunch, served on a local farm. We then closed off the day with some snorkeling in some Sacred Mayan Cenote (sinkholes).
God’s blessings didn’t end here! While in New Orleans, Athol got to work again with a worship leader who’d lead worship on the 3 previous mission trips that Athol had led, Ivy mentioned a couple in his home church, who had bought a beach house and made it into a guest house/retreat/place of rest, for people involved in ministry and missions. Instead of flying home from Cancun, we flew into Orlando, and then drove down to this house in Melbourne Beach. If we’d thought Cancun was paradise, then this house was a little slice of heaven! Ed and Jeanne, who own the house and live in a home on the same property, couldn’t have made it any more luxurious, yet comfortable, welcoming, and filled with the love of the Lord! We even had our own pool, and Christie had a ball feeding the fish and turtle in the lake in front of the house. I took over 700 pictures (thank goodness for digital camera’s!!!), and will share a few of them with you. We enjoyed beautiful sunsets on our own dock on the Indian River, and watched manatees and porpoises as they swam and played nearby. What a special gift this week was, as we explored the Brevard zoo, Sebastian Inlet, Pelican Reserve, etc. Saturday night we went to church with Ivy and Wendy, and then out to dinner with a number of people from the church, including Ed and Jeanne, who made us feel so welcome.
After 12 days of the best vacation we’ve ever had, we arrived home on Sunday, and are still trying to get back into the swing of real life and work again.
I mentioned my not-so-reliable car in a number of recent newsletters, and God answered our prayers for a new one – yet another blessing in a month of many, many blessings! Close friends in our Sunday-school class called Athol just before our vacation, and said that they were buying a new family car; did we want their old one? What a question! They worked out some financing which was very generous of their part, and fitted into our budget. So, I now drive a minivan, and can drive above 60mph without my teeth rattling, and wondering when next I was going to need the AAA… With that said, does anyone want to buy a slightly used Ford Focus, with only 120 000 miles on it?
Athol and I spent a lot of time talking and praying about the future. It has been a momentous year and it almost feels anti-climactic, to return to the same routine we were in before the fateful day of August 29 2005, when Katrina struck. Well for Athol the answer didn’t take long to come. AIM’s director of project management and Mexico has stepped out of that role and Athol has been asked to take over the entire project management department. (Setup department) He knew it was coming, but would have liked a little more time to get familiar with some of the financial systems. He will be responsible for all of the mission trip locations worldwide (somewhere in the region of 40 or 50) including locations such as Peru, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Ghana, and of course South Africa. Amongst them there will be at least seven different locations in Mexico. Athol has assured me that even though he will be traveling a lot, the trips will be short and we will work around my work schedule. He already has four two day trips planned for next month: Virginia, Denver, New Orleans and Matamoros in Mexico.
Just prior to leaving for New Orleans in May, the Lord gave us the verse that would be the theme for all our summer work in New Orleans, which was Isaiah 58 v 12. We get an email everyday from an organization called Daily Manna from the ‘Net. And two days ago, Athol got the following reading:
“Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings”. Isaiah 58:9-12 NIV
It is so refreshing to look at the entire passage and be hit by something fresh and new. Our work is not over yet and there is much to be done. We praise God for the opportunity to rest and be refreshed and then to hear Him speak to us so clearly. It truly is exhilarating to walk by faith and not by sight.
May God bless you all and thank you so much for your continued prayers.
