Greetings and Good-byes

Jesus has blessed us with so many friendships over the course of the last year! He is so kind to us to give us the relationships we need that we might grow into the family He desires us to be, (John 17:21)…that the world might come to know Him!

One group of ladies has been a special encouragement to Joanna. Hope, Jennifer and Tina came this past week for tea. They have all been friends of Joanna’s for a while now and she has been able to share Jesus in different ways with each of them, but Saturday they greeted one another for the first time. We are excited to see what Jesus will bring about though those new relationships! Hope and Jennifer are both university grads who are interested in starting businesses here in Arua. Tina, you have prayed for before…she has just found out that she is pregnant again. Please pray with us that Jesus might help her carry this baby to term.

Ken Good is a colleague and friend who has been serving in the southern part of the country for the last few months. He has been an encouragement to those being trained at the eight pastoral training sites in and around Kampala. We got to train alongside him when we came to Uganda in the summer of 2003. He spent the weekend with us and helped at our training in Nebbi! He is heading back to the states now. Pray with us for Jesus’ best ministry and employment for Ken back in Ohio.

Eric Smith is another dear friend Jesus has blessed us with since we moved to Arua. He and his bride Martha have challenged and encouraged our walk with Jesus and been “young missionaries” alongside us for the past 8 months. Her health has transitioned them back to America. We were sad to see them go, but we are trusting that Jesus has a mission field prepared for them there. Eric is a missionary kid who grew up in Congo. Please pray with us for their closure here and Jesus’ best as they continue to say “yes” and walk with Him now on “your” side of the sea.

These are some of the greetings and good-byes Jesus has trusted us with in the last couple of weeks. We wait with anticipation to see what new relationships He will open before us in the days ahead.

Another good-bye we would rather not make is with our silly dog Marori…she is quite sick. Please pray for all of the above people before you mention our dog, but we aren’t quite sure at the moment that she’ll live through the week. It seems silly, but she has lived this last year’s adventures alongside us…every greeting and good-bye she has been there for. We’d love for her to be around to greet Baby Elsie in the next couple of weeks and even each one of you as Jesus brings you to our home! Jesus knows what is best. If He reminds you, pray for her to recover. Thank you. Greetings from Arua!