Ressurection Day, 38th Anniversary, and More

 What a busy month April has been. I can't believe it is almost over. I celebrated the Resurrection with my kids by having an Easter egg hunt, decorating cross cookies, and creating stained glass cross sun  catchers. It was a fun day. We had a good crowd in church on Resurrection Day. 

Last week, we prepared for the church's 38th Anniversary by passing out flyers in three towns. A group from City Baptist (bus kids) School in Hammond, IN came down for the senior missions trip. Between the three groups, we saw 12 people saved. I was able to lead a 13 year old girl to Christ.

On Sunday, we celebrated the anniversary. I had 10 of my 15 students sing "God and God Alone" in Spanish. Along with them, they brought 24 family members. I didn't realize how many visitors I actually had until the pastor asked me to count them. It was very exciting! I won a beautiful bouquet of flowers, so I gave each child a flower for bringing their parents. We had a few people saved in the service, and we had two people baptized.

I was able to chat with some of the City Baptist students, and some of the girls expressed interest in missions. Fast forward to today. I received a message from a girl I met in Guatemala on one of my first trips. She was asking me about doing missions work as a single lady, raising support... I could not answer her right away because I was teaching. Tonight, I received a video call from my Friend  who was in the children's home I went to in Nepal. She too was talking about missions and how she was doing outreach to the poor around her by providing them with groceries. the pastor's daughter here in PR has also expressed interest in perhaps joining me on a trip. I believe God may be finally opening a door for me to help other ladies be used on the mission field. Please pray as I seek out what God would have me do in the future. If I were to plan a trip with a group, I would ask that you pray for people willing to sponsor some of these ladies who cannot afford plane tickets on their own.

Please pray for my mom. She has had some news about some recent tests, and her doctor has moved her appointment up. Her health is one reason I have not made any permanent travel plans yet. I am the only one who is free to be able to care for her if she needs it. 

My family is still dealing with some important unspoken needs, and prayers are greatly needed. These needs have ben present for three years, and there still seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel.

Please pray that God continues to provide for my missions ministry. I still have to supporting churches, and I am praying God will allow those who supported me before to begin doing so again, and that more will join them. As I talked with the young lady from Guatemala tonight, I told her the hardest part about traveling as a single missionary lady is having faith that God will provide.

Please pray for my students as we finish the school year. Pray that God will get a hold on their hearts. I shared their former teacher's wedding with them, and I explained the meanings behind the various elements and aspects of it. I carefully explained that the vows made are supposed to be promises that are kept. Many students come from broken homes. My prayer is that they will learn to marry the right person and stay married.

Better Late Than Never

 Goodness how time flies! I can't believe it is already April, and I haven't posted on here since March 7. I thought I had, but I must have sent out an update to my supporters instead. Life has been busy. My friend Marriah had an absolutely beautiful wedding. Ladies, waiting for the one God has for you is much better than taking somebody when  you want them. 

Teaching 3rd-4th grade has been fun and challenging. I have 15 students, but for one week, I brought the 5th graders in too, and I had 25 students. All in all, the classes did well. A teacher doesn't just teach basic subjects. Sometimes we end up teaching life principles, political principles, and of course in a Christian school, Biblical principles.  I am excited to see what God does with these kids.

I was so happy to find many former students are still in school and doing well. On Thursdays, we have quite a few who attend our church service in another town. Although they might be coming because we go to Chik-Fil-A afterwards, they are getting good sound Bible preaching. I enjoy watching them as they sing the hymns, and I especially enjoy watching the young men imitate the song leader. 

This week is Easter Spring Break, so I had the week off. I came to Vieques with the pastor's daughter, and we spent two days learning how not to plan a trip to Vieques. First, don't go on a holiday week. Second, book everything way ahead, especially a rental car. Third, check the future forecast. Fourth, make sure all equipment on the car is in good working order. Flat tires in the middle of a nature preserve are a bit unnerving. Thankfully a good Samaritan came along and helped our driver get the tire changed. Although our first day was covered up in rain, today, god answered our prayer, and we had a beautiful sunshiny day to sit at a beach on a small reef with tropical fish swimming around us. yes, missionaries need min vacations too.

We are down to about four weeks of school, and some of those are short weeks due to holidays or special days. Life is about to get even more hectic, but I love being busy again. Sitting still in one place for too long is very hard for me.

Please keep my mom in prayer. Her pain management doctor is trying to find a surgeon to look at the tears in her hip muscle to see if they can be repaired surgically. While she is waiting for this to happen, she has been given some natural oils to try to see if they will help heal the tears. Please pray the oils work as the surgery may not be an option, or it may cause her to be worse off than she is now.

Please pray that God will open the doors for me to find some online work to help supplement my personal income when  I am traveling. I try not to use missions support when I am home, so any work I do puts money into my personal account which then allows me to care for my needs, and to be able to take mini vacations when I need or have opportunity to do so. I do know how to create Powerpoints, turn them into videos, create programs, bulletins, and other documents for special events..., proofread, and edit. I have also designed yearbooks and similar creations, written plays for our kids programs, puppet skits, and silly skits. if you or someone you know needs anything like this done, I would love to be a help to them, and it would be a help to me.

Please pray for an unspoken request which has been ongoing for two years now. It will take a miracle of God for the situation to be cared for.

Please pray for the ministry here in PR. The inflation has been extremely hard on the parents of students here which in turn makes it hard on the school. 

Please continue to pray for our kids program to grow. Pray also for our craft group to be used to reach people in our community. Pray for our 20-30 year olds as they continue to grow in Christ.