God Provides

We recently returned from our orientation (well, now by the time I am posting, it is almost two weeks!).  It was a joy to get to know the staff in Louisville, the other mission co-workers and their families.  And it was a wonderful preparation for us, but it surprised us how wonderful a preparation it was for our children!  Our children were involved in a children's program during all our meeting hours with four other children.  They had three wonderful teachers who spent 7+ hours with the kids in a room for three weeks.  Although the teachers did also manage two wonderful field trips.  The other four children were all older, but were so kind in playing with our children.  With all this time together, all of the children became fast friends.

 They ate all their meals together that they possibly could and Eclaire was there this night too!

They made tunnels and forts even at times when they didn't have to play together.

One night "A Delight" (our oldest child) said to us, "I don't want to go to West Africa because I will have to leave my friends in Columbus and Louisville."  This seemed like words she may have learned from that days discussion with the older children, but it was God presenting us with a wonderful opportunity.  We are so grateful that she expressed this to us, as we were able to talk to her about it.  We started by asking if she had expected that she was going to make such great friends in Louisville.  She said that she never knew it.  We validated how hard it is to say goodbye to friends, but how God had provided these friends for her in Louisville and He would be doing the same for her in Africa.  Looking back at orientation in Louisville, we see God's provision in continuing to prepare our children for this move.

 The kids walked everywhere together - holding hands!

The kids program had a part in the talent show.

We already have seen the many ways our prayers have been answered.  Our current prayer request is for open hearts - for ourselves in this time of preparation as well as in Africa; for the people we are meeting at churches; for the people we will be meeting in Africa.  And we pray that God will provide at least one good friendship for each of our children (and ourselves) in Africa.