GOD LOVES ME!

I've had "one of those" mornings ~ ~ ~

waking up completely overwhelmed by the myriad of things that still have to get done before we start our big 3-month-trip -

exactly 2 weeks from today!

And when one of my sweet kiddos starting acting up about not having the right clothes to wear and having yet another "morning scene" ...

(I have ZERO tolerance for fussing about clothes ~ or food ~ since coming back from Africa!!!)

I lost my temper with her - ouch!

- and on the way to school had to apologize -

(just like she did, too)

I was feeling really crappy as I drove on to take Shayden to preschool

and I could hardly believe it, when out of the blue, I hear his sweet voice from the backseat:

"God loves you, Mummy!"

This truth spoken by our little boy who is just barely starting to speak in whole sentences ~

~ it moved me DEEPLY! ~





Just before driving off to school with the kids I had checked the emails

and what did I see???

An email from our beloved son Richard in Uganda!!!

We hadn't heard from him for over a month

Hadn't been able to get a hold of him

Were concerned for him, as there've been violent riots in Kampala where he lives

And still last night when we tried calling, we couldn't get through.

So it was extremely special to receive an email from him!!

He'd been in hospital - again (this is the second time since we saw him in December!)

but is fine now.

What touched me so much about his email was when he wrote:

"... I love you every single day of my life...

God loves you but I love you more"

Definitely brought a chuckle to my stressed state-of-being

So when I realized - in the car - on the way to preschool -

that God had used my 2 adopted boys to reassure me of HIS LOVE today,

It took all the self-control I could muster to hold it together until I had dropped Shayden off and was on my way back home...

THANK YOU LORD FOR LOVING ME!!!

THANK YOU for each one of my children -

Thank you for Shayden and Richard who YOU have placed in our hearts and family



and who you used today to remind me of what I needed to hear most:

That YOU LOVE ME!!!

Longing for HIM

My heart YEARNS for HIM - the lover of my soul

the reason I LIVE

and LOVE!

HE has captured my heart

and I am addicted to HIM!

When I don't get to spend much time with him

I miss him so much!!!

This song just brought me to tears

I'm soooooooooo hungry and thirsty for HIM!

SO LONGING for FAMILY!!!

Over and over, my heart is broken for the orphans - those SO longing to BELONG to a FAMILY!!!

And I'm stirred up when I read this or this blog-post about children in Uganda!

EVERY CHILD needs to be in a FAMILY!!!

Our family is getting ready to go to the USA/Canada - from June 13th to the middle of August -

from West to East

{and back again - at least Rich, Kylie and Shayden -
Leilani and I are hoping to be able to fly on to Uganda from the East Coast}


to share with whoever would want to hear and see -

about the Orphans Know More ministry in Uganda.
The one I've shared about before... several times :) (and you won't be able to shut me up, either)

... hoping and praying to raise awareness

prayer and

support

for this wonderful ministry that wants to multiply all over Uganda and Africa!


This is a huge undertaking for us - organizationally and financially -

and we have quite a few mountains that still need to be moved.

But in times of weakness, like today, where I haven't slept much, am not feeling great and will need to lean on God for strength to make it through this day (what in the world am I doing blogging?!!)

I get energized by watching this video - and off I go -

Kylie's day

I'm not feeling very well tonight (battling a cold that's going 'round), so I thought you'd enjoy Kylie blogging for ya - hehe.

Here is what she wrote up about her day:

My little brather is seck he has A tarbl cof . I stad howm because

I dednt feel varee wall I plaed with my brither I had a

BORING day after dinr I rot thes story.

Makes me so happy!

I know, I know, call me weird, but I wonder if I'm the only one who feels this way...

Thursday is THE DAY

every week

that our garbage gets taken away



ya know

nothing spectacular

just one of those necessary things in life.

Well, last Thursday we didn't only have our regular garbage bin full,

but also an extra bag.

Somebody in the family had a big clean-out -

and I'm not telling who
but hey, we all need to do this from time to time!

Anyways, as I dropped off the extra-bag next to the garbage bin on the side of the road,

IT FELT SO WONDERFUL!!!

To get rid of a bunch of garbage - or rubbish, as they call it here in NZ -

leaves you - or at least me -

feeling GREAT!!!

Just imagine the way our home/garden would look -

let's not talk about the smell - eeek (with all the smelly diapers in there, yes, still!)

if nobody came to pick up and "take care of" our garbage every week!

I dare not activate my imagination too vividly,

but I'm sure you get the point!




Such a freeing feeling, isn't it?!!

I don't have to hassle with our family's garbage

GONE!!!!

Never to be seen - or smelled - again!!!




Made me think of my heart!

I'm SOOOO grateful that the garbage that happens in my heart

can also get "disposed of"

Don't even have to wait for the weekly dump-truck!

How awesome is that?!!

How freeing?!!!

If it's worry, bad and unloving attitudes or words, resentment, doubt, gluttony, you name it

PROVISION HAS BEEN MADE

for getting rid of that ugly stuff!

The price?

Far more expensive than our garbage truck

The blood of JESUS!!!

Feels so good to be CLEAN

FREE

and off to a fresh start

every day!



If we are living and walking in the light
as he is in the light
we have unbroken fellowship with one another
and the blood of Jesus Christ his son cleanses us
from all sin and guilt.

If we freely admit that we have sinned
and confess our sins,
HE is faithful and just
and will forgive our sins
and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

1.John1, 7 and 9

MAKES ME SO HAPPY!!!

My man...

Since yesterday - and until the 3rd of June - Rich will only be home just to sleep and have breakfast...

He's running the first ever "Rescue-Net" training in NZ!

YIPPPEEEEE!!!

It's been a lot of work getting to this place and yesterday, 5 people arrived at Auckland airport from different places (mostly Australia) to help him run the training! They are now doing all the last minute preparations until Sunday, when the students will arrive.

The training is being held at YWAM's training center at Gideon's Heights here in Tauranga ~ and I'm not complainin' ~ that way I at least get to see my man a tiny lil bit every night/mornin'

I'm so proud Rich and so happy to see him thrive in one of his greatest passions

{the other one would be to see revival - still a comin'}

Here he is with Gideon ~ how precious!

Another beautiful family

At the moment, our Ugandan son Richard is doing a camp with one of the couples in the "Orphans Know More" network.
I so wish I could be a little mouse at that camp and see/hear what's happenin'... hehe

The leaders of the camp are Dickson and Mabel. They are trained children and youth workers with Youth With A Mission. Dickson and Mabel host camps for hundreds of Ugandan children each year. They do this voluntarily without pay.

They also have adopted four orphaned children in addition to their biological children, and look after a widow, Hilda, and her four children.

Their family has faced serious tragedies, like so many others in Uganda.
Unfortunately, tragedy and death are very common companion to everybody there.

A couple of years ago, their daughter Melissa was killed in an arson fire at her school along with 19 other children, and then last year their daughter Jackie died when the bus taking her to school was hit by a drunk driver.

Dickson and Mabel and their 8 children have been living in an unfinished house with windows missing, a very rough dirt floor, and no electricity. These conditions make it very difficult and their health has suffered.

Although Dickson and Mabel have been trying to complete the house for several years, they are constantly generous to others.

Even in its current condition, their home is a center of life and is full of children from the village.

We were very touched by their warm, loving and cheerful hearts when we visited them last year! And we are planning on seeing them again this year when Leilani and I will be in Uganda.

We have a very exciting project that we'll be planning for together.
Something that God placed on their hearts - and mine - about the same time (about 1 1/2 years ago, a long time before we ever met) - more about that another time.

We would be so THRILLED to bring funds with us towards the completion of their home!

This is the family:

You see Dickson all dressed up - well this is the way that all Ugandans dress when they go to work in an office - we had just come from the YWAM office with him.

As a matter of fact, Rich and I were embarrassed on more than one occasion about our casual dress code. We never expected it to be this way, but the Ugandan men almost always wear dress shirts - poor as they may be. And the ladies also dress nicely in public.

This is the boys' bedroom

This is where the kitchen should/will be

the hallway of the home

the living room

Happy Mother's Day!

Well, it sure WAS a HAPPY MOTHER's DAY for me!

The sweetest gift was Shayden walking into our bedroom this morning - after Rich had gotten up to help Leilani prepare breakfast - (and I got to lounge in bed for a while) - whata treat!

He opened the door and exclaimed:

"Happy Mother's Day, Mummy! - pause -

I love you to pieces!"

Leilani went over the top and worked all day cooking and cleaning etc to give me a day off,

made a beautiful card,

gave me 3 pairs of new earrings

helped Kylie and Shayden make cards -

WOW, girl!

You outdid yourself - once again!!!

THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH for all your love and giving me a day off!!!!

Nathalie and Gideon joined us for breakfast (Lewis was working at the bakery) so all I got to do in the morning before church was enjoy holding Gideon - no dishes, no getting kids ready -

Just enjoying my lil grand-baby!

I must be the most blessed Momma in the world!


In the afternoon, we went to a park -

And GOD was spoiling us with FALL BEAUTY!!!

THANK YOU, GOD!!!!

What an awe-inspiring God you are!!!



Look at what artwork you can create with fallen leaves - gotta love autumn!!
no, we were NOT the artists - somebody else was!

About Orphan Care

"The great challenge of adoption and orphan care ministry is to cultivate a death-defying passion for God above all things.

A faith that rests in HIM

whether living or dying,

whether comfortable or miserable,

whether successful in our orphan care or not.

The aim is to cultivate and spread the unshakable confidence that God is better than what life can give and what death can take from us."

Piper

“No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr

Such contrasts!

Mummy, Tia Lani (how Leilani wants to be called by Gideon) and Gideon-cuddle

As I was having some wonderful Nana-Gideon-bonding time yesterday

(yes, I did end up changing to "Nana" instead of "Ma" - just like it better and won't get me confused with being "Mom") -

holding the precious little treasure for the first extended time - almost 1 1/2hrs! - whooohooo! -

and love and prayers spilling out over his life,

I couldn't help but think of all the babies that are abandoned and have absolutely

NO ONE to hold them


NO ONE to comfort them

NO ONE to love on them

NO ONE to whisper tenderly into their ears

NO ONE to cuddle them

NO ONE to clothe them

NO ONE to feed them

NO ONE to keep them warm

NO ONE to protect them

NO ONE to rock them to sleep

NO ONE to sing over them

NO ONE to pray over them

NO ONE AT ALL!!!
It tears me up inside

IT IS NOT RIGHT!!! IT IS JUST NOT RIGHT!!!

They are so incredibly precious and deserve just as much love as our little Gideon!!!

My thoughts went to the 200 babies that are reported dead in the mortuary of one particular suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa,

EVERY

SINGLE

MONTH!!!!

The 90+ babies that are found abandoned in the same city

EVERY

SINGLE

MONTH!!!

Lord, have mercy on these little ones!

Rescue them!

Place them into loving families!!!

And all the other ones, too

around the world!

And please bless and provide for ministries like this one, caring for these treasures, so that they can keep taking them in, loving on them and placing them into families.

It's just not right that they should have such a struggle to survive

Just because of lack of finances.

SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE!!!




My heart also goes out to the parents of a 11-year-old in Uganda

who died suddenly a few days ago

from a high fever (I suspect malaria)

I got that news just after I had been to the travel doctor with Leilani.

She got a whole bunch of immunizations for our trip to Uganda.

And a big talk on how she needs to make sure that the daytime mosquitoes don't get her, cuz they cause typhoid and yellow-fever (I think),

and the night-time mosquitoes, cuz they cause malaria

and a bunch of other precautions.

That's all good and right and I'm so grateful she gets to have these immunizations and preventive medicines (the brave girl paid for them with her own hard-earned money),

on top of the mosquito repellent she'll be putting on morning and night,

and the mosquito nets she'll be sleeping under.

But how unjust!!!

The Ugandans don't get any of that protection

and they die

so many of them.

Much of it is because of lack of money

even to buy a mosquito net!

Death is so common over there

And the parents love the children JUST AS MUCH as I love mine.

It's just burning inside of me

The injustice of it all!

All I can do for now is to CRY OUT TO GOD!!!

And that I will!!!