Saying Goodbye

Don't worry, WE'RE not saying goodbye to YOU... it's us saying goodbye to some fellow missionaries. Yes, part of the life of a missionary is saying goodbye, and we've done more of that than we care to in the last six months. Since we said goodbye to our friends and family in early January, we've now said goodbye to four missionary families. But we understand that the only constant in life is change, and we also know that the families that left have all felt God's calling to new assignments.

This time around, we are saying goodbye to the North and Cyr families. The Norths leave tomorrow and the Cyrs on July 10th. This is going to be an especially hard one for Jake because Jordan North and Nkele Cyr are his two best friends. He doesn't really grasp the concept now, but we imagine that we will have one sad little boy on our hands once he realizes what has happened. However, we know that he will make new friends and will be just fine once he has done that.

Well, the big news this week is that everyone is WELL! We were all so sick of being sick, but we're back in the saddle again. Jake is eating like a big boy and back to doing all of the things he likes to do. For right now, those things are:

1. Swinging on his new swing

2. Making his parents nervous by jumping off of EVERYTHING

3. Making up stories having to do with dinosaurs, dolphins, lions, sharks, pirates and swords

4. Watching movies

5. Playing with his puppy

6. Hitting his dad with empty paper towell rolls (actually, Dad started this one, so he deserves it right back)

Well, the big news of this week is that we have discussed it as a family, and we are going to try out a new section in our weekly update. We'll see how it goes over... your feedback is appreciated. :)

Jake's Quote of the Week (with parental commentary)

"I like to go potty sitting down because Jesus goes potty sitting down." - Jake

(As at the time it was spoken, I'm not really sure what to say here, so it will be more of a disclaimer than a comment this week... The views expressed in this quote are solely the opinion of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the doctrines and/or beliefs of the Church of the Nazarene... or his parents)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We are so thankful for health, it is so much easier to do the tasks that God has set before us when we actually feel like getting out of bed in the morning! Thank you for you prayers, they worked!

Also, a praise/update on Dr. Enoch Litswele, who is out of the hospital and back at his home, continuing his recovery.

We ask that you remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- The North and Cyr families, as they go and prepare to go to new assignments.

-- The group from the Africa Regional Office that is currently in Kansas City and heading back to Joburg next week.

Until next week,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake