Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Kigali Summer



Due to the cost of flying our family back to the States, we spent the summer in Kigali. Our boss is truly kind and found work for us to do at school, so that we could be employed for the summer months. Although we MISSED going back to the states, we LOVED having visitors. Here's a glimpse of what we did and who we were with...



Our dear friends Alison, David, Gideon & Jemma Ellis brought along Riley Egge, Emily Frier, and Izzy Kohler. 
We had a full house and full hearts!
The pictures above are of us all getting ready for a Rwandan wedding.

We went on safari...
Safari at Akagera

Zebras
Buddies

We went to Musanze...

Hanging out with Intore Dancers

Forever Friends
Hiking

We worked for a day in the village...

Preparing banana juice


Removing corn kernals




Hauling bananas
Carrying the baby

We enjoyed making music, sharing meals, playing games, and just being together...


About two days after our friends left, 
Carol and Ovid McNatt (Nana and O) made their first international trip. 
We took walks in our neighborhood, traveled to Uganda for safari,
and enjoyed being together at home. 

Tug-of-War over the equatorial line

Carol & Ovid at the Craters of Queen Elizabeth



Vervet monkey


We saw so many elephants!





Kasenyi Safari Camp

 
Granddaddy O and Wyatt


Nana and Presley

It was an incredible blessing to share our life here with
Chad's parents and the Ellis team.

We'd love to host more guests in the future.
Let us know if you'd like to come see us in Kigali!




Sunday, August 21, 2016

Healing

Thanks so much for joining us in prayer for Chad's health. 


As it turns out... "the hard stuff may actually lead to the best part. Maybe just on the other side of what is so difficult, frustrating, and stressful is the beginning of God’s grace and healing. We need only be faithful and open to what he might do, continuing to lean forward." ~ Chad

We are so excited to share that after an incredibly difficult season, God has begun a healing work in Chad. At the end of the summer, he got to a near breaking point emotionally and physically. Our school staff went on retreat to Lake Kivu. There, some of our administration and leadership team anointed us and prayed over us intensely for complete healing in Chad's body and spirit.

The next day his leg pain was gone. The pain has not returned and it has been two weeks. 
His energy level has increased.

 "It’s like all of the underlying stress inside of me from the past two years finally surfaced and nearly exploded." 

 "I had to become broken enough to finally fully turn to the Lord, learn again about his love, and trust him for what I need. I am now beginning to exercise again, regain my strength, re-invest in my family, and lean into our present context and the opportunities around us. For all of you who have worried about me and prayed for me, thank you. I am not yet 100% but have begun the healing process inside and out. This transformation was not only physical, but involved some apologies to people I love and other deep work in myself regarding who I am. Maybe brokenness is just the beginning. Maybe just on the other side of the hard stuff is healing." 

We've been praying over these last two years that we won't miss whatever is is we need to learn in all this.  Certainly God has done a bigger work than just making Chad's body feel better. 
I don't know why sometimes God answers with No and sometimes it's YES,
but we are so thankful for this YES!