YA'LL

ya'll, my sister is coming!!!

MY SISTER. MY HERO. i can't even begin to tell you how my heart is about to leap out of my chest. when we started to talk about her coming, i wasn't sure if she REALLY could, i knew that she wanted to so badly but, i wasn't sure on how she felt about leaving her kiddos at home. well, we have awesome parents, so dads going to take some vacation and mom and dad will keep the dart kids so that so she can come. i can't wait to serve with her. i can't wait to see her here. i can't wait to see her use her nursing skills here. i can't wait for her heart to fall in love.  Kelli says that she is already so in love with faces here and just can't wait to get her hands on them!!! my sister has taught me so much about love and i can't wait to see her share her love here in Gressier!!!  MY SISTER IS COMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  thankful.

so, with my sister comes DAVID. oh, for those that know David. his goofiness will bring so much joy!!! i can't wait to see how high he can throw some of our kids up to the sky!!! i really can't wait to see what the Lord shows kelli and david and teaches both of them while they are here. Gressier is ready for the GOOFINESS!!

more news.... 

my cousin amber and her sister-in-law Brittney are coming that week as well!!!! amber being a teacher, plans are spending her time here at the school. i can't wait to see her in the classroom! she is an excellent teacher and i know that the Lord will use her to be a great encourager to the teachers at Respire Haiti Christian School.  Brittney is a nurse and plans on using her skills. you never know what will happen that week. she may be surprised! the cool thing about Brittney coming is that she decided to come about 2 weeks ago. she really felt like she was supposed to come and begin to pray about it.. she called kelli one night bc she couldn't hold it in any longer and was able to get on their same flight!!! i love how the Lord works everything out!! Hes so cool! i can't wait to see brittney and amber serve together as family.

 well, all of us as family, serve together!!!! family serving together!! wow. so thankful! 

and now, i present to you news that i am thrilled about.. and news that is a little bittersweet.

the thrilling news is that BEN MORRIS, my man, is coming. he will arrive on feb. 11 (2 days after my family) ... i can't hardly wait to wrap my arms around him. Ben, with his darling heart, is going to serve so well here. there are times when i see things that need to be fixed and i think right away,"ben could fix that. ben could do that. ben could drive that. ben could build that. ben could .... the list goes on." needless to say ben morris is thought about often here. i can't wait to serve alongside him. the Lord has definitely used this time apart to grow us, to show us how big HE is, to show us freedom in a relationship and to teach us a TON. ben is coming and im sooooo happy. i can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for us that week! i just know that the Lord will use that week to show us more than we ever could imagine. im praying for huge things to happen!

the bittersweet part is that..... when Ben leaves on the 18th, i will be with him. so i will spend my last week, of the 5 months here, with Ben then we will travel back together. this is bittersweet. on that day, i will be sad. so sad. dang, im going to be sad. thinking about it now brings tears. i have already warned Ben that he better be ready for lots of tears. it will be sad to leave my family,the people who have loved my guts out and theirs in return for the past 5 months. they will be hard to leave. the people who have taught me so much about life, they will be hard to leave.  Leaving here with Ben will make things better... knowing that He will be my side brings joy. im soo thankful.

so yeah, FEB 18. ill be home. a trip back in June is already in plan. of course i can't stay away to long. 

being back at home... well, im asking the LORD to prepare my heart for my homecoming. im ready to be with my family, my friends and my church family. 

God is so good. 

He knows exactly what i need.

Hes so Good. 

take BACK

With the wind at our backs And in the strength of the Lord We will rise on the wings of the dawn We're going to take back all the enemy has stolen It's in the blood of the one who's worthy I know that God has not forgotten All that's lost and broken Come and see the turning of the tide Come and see the sons and daughters rise For how could he who did not spare his own son Not freely give us victory Against the darkest of nights It's in the blood of the one who's worthy It's in the blood of the one who's worthy You're worthy. You're worthy these lyrics (by: will reagan) have been screaming in my mind for the past couple days. i have even yelled them out loud. somedays can be overwhelming. somedays, it can hit you all at once. this world is full of lies, full of sickness.....you name it. the truth of this song is so clear. it reminds me that still in all the worldly ways, CHRIST still REIGNS, He is covering us! There is still joy. there is still peace. there is still love and HE will RETURN!  thats where my hope is. i want to walk towards eternity with love by my side. no matter what, no matter how hard it is or how overwhelming it can be, LOVE WILL WIN.  i went to bed last night a little weary and woke up with encouragement in my heart. i am encouraged to know that Christ gives me strength and HE has given me the power to take back what satan tries/tried to steal from me.  so, today, i encourage you to do that also. RISE UP. take it back.  if the enemy has stolen... your joy your peace your happiness your relationships your mind your vision your dream your health your confidence your identity your worth your love for others your compassion ... i could continue. TAKE IT BACK. rise up. we have the power.  satan wants us to be destroyed. he wants our relationships to be destroyed bc hes afraid of how people can further the KINGDOM of CHRIST! he wants us to be joyless. mindless. visionless... add an "un" or "less" to the list above. hes afraid. plain and simple.  DO NOT LET him even go there. he has no business. none at all. do not let it dwell, thats exactly what he wants.  gosh dern it, TAKE IT BACK. its yours. allow Christ to win what He already has WON!  PLUNDER the gates of hell.  now, GO take it back! today i will chose JOY.  Christ in me will overcome.  thankful. rejoicing.   no place i would rather be, than HERE in Your LOVE

nap time thoughts.

W and W are down for their nap and my mind is going 100 mph.

-some days are harder than others.
-my heart is being protected and i can feel it.
-some days there is time for rest, others not at all.
-evil is real and i see it everyday. we are in a battle and we have to fight.
-i can't do this alone.
-we need each other.
-im thankful for the RH team.
-i serve alongside some amazing people.
-i leave in 5 weeks, its not going to be easy.
-God is way bigger than any of my thoughts.
-I've witnessed Jesus in huge ways.
-HUGE
-respire haiti is so dear to my heart.
-its winter here and its 90 something degrees.
-hopefully, we will go to the beach soon.
-meg and josh get married 11 days. yeah!
-their parents will be here next week. some have never been before.
-i can't wait to see Mrs. Pat (megs mom) when she sees the girls for the 1st time in person!
-i found out today that All Sons & Daughters are in Haiti visiting Hands and Feet orphanage, i should go stalk them.
-we have a turkey. yes a turkey in our backyard. (its the landlords, that lives upstairs)
-i eat eggs a lot.
-i have learned to be really creative with food.
-i think we may go to the beach soon and im happy.
-the 3rd year anniversary of the earthquake is sunday. i hate that this day will bring back bad memories but i love that people will also be reminded of Gods faithfulness.
-thinking of Madame Carol and the loss of her son brings me to tears. please continue to pray for her.
-outside my window is a family living in a tent. i hear them laughing and singing all the time.
-the Lord will break you of so much here and i want to be open to whatever it is. break me.
-when i think about ben and him being here in 30 days it makes me really happy. i can't wait to see him serve here. i can't wait to serve alongside him. im praying for his heart to be prepared.
-there was a rat in my room last night and i didn't scream to the top of my lungs. he left without me having to act like a fool and he better not come back or he's dead news.
-a picture of Genevieve is on my shelf, that i have to say i made myself out of recycled wood, and im thinking about the day when i will get to hug her soon. soon and very soon.
-im so thankful for family and friends who have supported me financially and through prayer while i have been here. i've been completely blown away. you guys sharpen me.


im tired and need to nap myself.
as i read back over this list i realize how ADD i am. goodness.

love and more love.

hes more than ok

today was tough.
sad.
full of tears.
confused students.
excellent student.
1st in his class.
soccer star on RH team.
a room full of 6th graders and the teacher grieving together.
house full of family and friends gathering around Madame Carol (mom)  to love and show support.
older brother still in shock.
Mom crying out.
Flag raised halfway in honor and memory of him.
school cancelled in honor and memory of him.
a day of remembering.
a day of sadness.
today was tough.
Jesus is near.
Hes near to those who cry out.
Hes near.
today Lenz went to be with Jesus.
today he is more than ok.
amen.

                                Lenz (in light blue shirt) and his buddies on the 1st day of school

www.blessedwithaburden.wordpress.com read Megans BLOG here. its a must. God is ALL COMFORT.

today we loved extra today.
today we rested in the truth that God Comforts.
HE COMFORTS ya'll. 
rest in that.
amen.

bullet point blog

so, this will be a bullet point blog again.

• my friends came and it was an awesome week. megan and josh even claimed them as the funniest group they have ever had! we laughed so much until our bellies hurt.  Toni rapped a lot. Jonathan and Wadley are now bff.  Kameryn was stretched as a nurse and didn't mind one bit. Jamie organized the heck out of the whole house. Angelle was so fun and sanded walls down like she had done it 10000 times before.  Mr. David became a carpenter right away and did a fine job! everyone loved on W and W, the girls and the kids in the neighborhood. they were amazing and i am so blessed to call them my dear friends. 

                                                 

• Mr. Don Burzynski from Florida was here doing a seminar for the RH team. all i can say was that we were all completely blown away by his way of teaching. wow. i learned so much in these 4 days. so thankful that i got to be apart of this seminar. im really hoping to get him to come to La. soon!!  google him. you will not be sorry.  http://crosslifeverobeach.blogspot.com/  click to read his blog. everyone should read his blog. just saying. you can go to his website from his blog.
•  New Years Eve was pretty laid back. we ordered pizza, drank haitian beer and sat around the big table.  we had such a fun night! we laughed soooo much!
•  a team of doctors and hard workers have been here and WOW! what i have seen this week serving along them has completely blown my mind. holy moly crazy stuff.  evil infections. evil sicknesses. stuff that was not meant for people. stuff that was intended for us. but, bc of the fall we have to live with sickness and disease and cancer and yuck. yuck. yuck.  its crazy how much confidence you can have in such strange situations. confidence that only comes from the Lord (blog about this soon)
• the class rooms of the secondary NEW building were sanded,  painted and white boards were hung. the team worked so hard to get the classrooms done before Monday. 
• school has started and its GREAT! seeing the 7-9 graders walk from the church, where school has been for them, UP the mountain into their NEW classrooms was just the BEST! im so thankful i got to be here for this!!!  
• Sharon Zuercher arrived and will be here for 4 months. super sweet from Missouri. shes my new roomie. she plans to love a lot!!
• Mark Langham arrived also and will be here for a month. He is building the bathroom on the mountain.. YES!! 
• Rita (Grita) is here!! she will be here for a few weeks! sooooooooo happy. i love her.
• W and W (the Wonder boys) are still here and i say that with SO MUCH JOY. what these boys have taught me in 2 weeks will last a lifetime. i feel like i will carry these days with me for the rest of my life.  everyday, every minute, every second, everything. thankful. heart is full. 
• oh yeah, remember that mountain and what a struggle it was for me in an earlier blog? well, i can finally walk it without feeling like im going to die. whooo hoooo!!! boooo yaaaaa!!!!  every time i reach the top and want to do the Rocky "dance"!!  
• a team is here from new york, doing a photography workshop with some of the students at school. on Saturday they will have a display of all the photos that the students took. im so excited to see these photos!! 

• everyday is a different day here.  nothing ever looks the same. everyday i have to wake up, with my heart set on Jesus. Everyday.
• i am learning a new way of compassion. i feel like i have been getting in the way of this. Jesus is teaching me new compassion. something different than what i have been used to. its encouraging. 
• ive been listening to Will Reagan and United Pursuit. wowzers. powerful lyrics. much needed for my heart. 
• my sister, david, amber, and ben get here in about a month. i can't even begin to explain how my heart feels. this also means that i 
• will be going home soon. woah. deep breathe. (this is going to require another post)
• im crying now, just thinking about the last couple months. goodness. what an honor to serve. what an honor. what an honor to live here and live life with my Haitian family. what an honor is is to call them family. 

im thankful. 

extremely blessed.

extremely thankful.