January Recap

January was stressful and busy. But, I think that's been life for a lot of people. Thankfully, for us, the stress was mostly centered around planning Marcel's parents' trip and waiting for their visas ... which arrived days before their scheduled departure!

And now they are here ... and it's amazing, refreshing, and RIGHT.

And it's also currently holidays for school, so I have a few moments to jot down some thoughts, prayer points, updates, and whatever else I can squeeze into Ethan's nap time.

So, first, this. The stress of January brought to the surface again a lot of stress and emotions and issues that we had dealt with in November, and somewhat pacified by December. It's well known (although, not talked about NEARLY enough) that the first term on the mission field is the toughest. While those in their second, third or fourth terms on the field have become well-acquainted and acclimatized to life as a missionary, those of us still in the first term sometimes feel like we are drowning.

I write this because I probably should write about it more often. It's the reality of living in a new culture. The reality of missing home. The reality of not yet knowing boundaries, limits, and capacities. The reality of new forms of stress that really didn't exist in Canada. The reality of sickness, visas, traffic, and parenting. All those things may be small one day, and incredibly huge the next.

I won't talk much longer about this topic, except to say this. Pray for new missionaries. Pray specifically for their families, and their marriages, and their stress. We need it.

Now, onto some specific news about the MAF Angola program. We are excited to finally be able to report that the Caravan--our big plane--is getting it's new engine as we speak. Next week, Marcel joins Tim in Windhoek to help prepare the plane to come back to Angola and get to work!!!! After many long months of waiting for funding and just the right engine, we will be back to three functional airplanes!

On a much more challenging note, however, is the huge need for one of our pilots to get his visa renewed. Until this process gets sorted out, they will have to leave the country and their home here. Please pray for a timely process.

And, on a very, VERY positive note, we are so thankful to have Marcel's parents here, particularly after poor weather caused their flight to be rerouted to a different city in Angola. Thankfully, by God's grace, they found a few people who spoke English and helped them to get in contact with us and arrange a pick-up point. Wow. Now, we have a few weeks to enjoy their company, soak up all the family time we can get, and of course, if you know anything about Marcel's mom, get in as many photo opportunities as possible!

Well, Internet is slow and nap time will probably soon wind down, so I'm signing off here. Next week, we are off to Namibia for work and vacation. Lord willing, after this, two more visitors will be coming from WLA! (Pray for this visa process too!) We miss so many of you, and are thankful for the many warm wishes and hugs sent with Marcel's parents. We wish we could see you too face to face, but for now, BEIJINHOS de Angola ... (which means, "little kisses from Angola", the equivalent of hugs.)