Archive for the ‘Family’ Category

…Survived the Season of Sickness…

Monday, January 12th, 2009

Sheep near the bungalows where we stayed...

Well, we made it through the “Sick Season” which happened to coincide with Christmas and New Years! Thanks for praying for us as we jumped from Grace’s motorcycle accident and subsequent concussion, to Anna’s Dengue Fever, to John’s Strep Throat all during the busy holiday season!

We still managed to enjoy “stretches” of the Holidays including a “get-away” to Jakarta for 2 days by train (actually relaxing), a Christmas morning breakfast of eggs and strawberry waffles, Mom and the kids... enjoying a couple Christmas packages from home and the presents and pictures inside, and a trip to the beach with friends and playing board games in the evenings.

Please go to our Photo’s page on this website under "Christmas 08" to see more Christmas pics of the family.

To see pictures of our trip to the beach on New Year’s Day, please go to our Photo’s page "For New Year’s 09 to the Beach!"  Anna along with three of our kids left with our friends on New Year’s Eve afternoon and I waited to leave until New Year’s Day because Paula wanted to go to a friend’s New Year’s Eve party, but then Paula decided to stay back home with her pets and friends. Dad and Kurt along the bluff trail... Yes, it was a lonely motorbike ride there, but therapeutic as I always say.

During the Holidays, we continued to welcome and orientate our 6 new missionaries to the field. John also continued to take them on language and culture excursions such as trips to the Post Office, bus station, hospital, auto and motorbike mechanics shops, the market, a seamstress/tailor shop, how to entertain guests and be received as a guest, how to wash clothes, cooking fried rice and a trip to the rice fields. To see more pictures of our excursion to the rice fields, go to our Photo’s page to the folder "Excursion to the Rice Fields." Working the oxen across the terraces...

I am still looking forward to some of my favorite excursions to the coffee plantations and rubber tree plantations! Those are in the next couple of weeks!

Please continue to pray with us concerning our family, especially our two oldest daughters as we look at the best options for their futures. They are having a difficult time over here now and really could use your prayers. We too could use your prayers as we seek the Lord for His wisdom in this and that Anna and I would draw close and be “on the same page,” that is, in God’s will in this. We’ve made some mistakes as earthly parents and over-prioritized ministry over the well-being of our children and really need to draw back and look to the Lord for guidance.

Thanks again for your faithful support of our ministry and for your faithful prayers and interest in what’s happening over here in Indonesia. Please pray too for our safety and well-being as most of the world does not look to kindly on Americans these days, especially with the current conflict in the Middle East.

Looking for our Lord’s soon return,

In this together,

John for Anna Marie, Katie, Grace, Paula and Kurt

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Pray For Our Daughter Grace After Motorbike Accident

Sunday, November 30th, 2008

Dear Friends,

Please be praying for our second daughter Grace as she recovers from a concussion after a motorbike accident. She was driving the motorbike last night with her older sister Katie on the back. They had left the house wearing helmets, but then took them off while riding on backroads. Born to be wild...They were making a 90-degree turn and hit loose gravel on the pavement and the bike slid out from under them. Katie was not hurt, but Grace was knocked unconscious for a few minutes. Their Indonesian friends rushed them to a local hospital wear the doctors just bandaged her up. When they got home Grace was still bleeding from her head wound and had injured her shoulder and foot which was bloodied too.

Grace kept asking the same questions over and over again like, "Is all my hair gone?" and she was experiencing short-term memory loss. Our other daughter Paula was having a sleepover and Kurt was already in bed so I stayed with the younger kids while Anna drove Katie and Grace an hour away to a bigger city and bigger hospital. The roads were clear and Anna made it in a half-hour! They immediately got Grace into emergency and stitched her head wound and then did a cat-scan. They did not find blood on the brain and after spending the night at the hospital they returned this afternoon.

We celebrated Thanksgiving Day late here on Sunday with some friends and enjoyed turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, rolls, casserole, and pies the girls had made. The girls started a pie business a couple weeks ago so have been busy baking and selling pies! They made my favorites pumpkin and pecan pie yesterday before the accident in anticipation of our late Thanksgiving. We can’t get pecans here but had received them in a care package! The turkey we ordered in advance!

Please keep praying for Grace as she recovers and still experiences some nausea and short-term memory loss; it seems to be getting better though. Please pray for a full-recovery.

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