Elli

Two months after Caleb was born we were enjoying our healthy, happy, newborn, when we learned about the struggle of some friends from college days. Elli was born in February 2000 to our friends Scott and Joy (Wickholm) Bennett. She was beautiful! The doctors detected a heart murmer, but after the normal time in the hospital the hospital staff sent mother and baby home. Just a day or so later, Elli was back in the hospital after turning blue from lack of oxygen. Elli was fighting for her life at less than a week old. Surgery after surgury left Elli struggling to keep up with her peers and because of a tube that was "placed" in her throat during one of her emergency surguries, she was unable to use much of her voice box.


Elli turned 8 this past February and has learned how to communicate using a portable computer as her voice called a dynavox. Since Elli was unable to fully develope she was mostly confined to a wheelchair. She had been learning how to use a motorized one so she could have a bit more independence.


Over the years, I've watched and admired our friends Scott and Joy as they took care of Elli with love and treated her just like any of the younger kids they have since had. Joy has fought and fought to make sure that Elli would receive the necessary government assistance that Elli so rightfully deserved. All the while Scott and Joy have been active members and now Scott is an elder in their local church.


Well, one week ago Sunday, Elli passed away in her sleep. God just knew it was time to take her home. Elli loved to sing! She really just loved any kind of music, but especially Veggie Tales! We know that Elli is finally dancing with her own 2 feet, and singing with her very own voice! I can't wait to get to heaven and hear her sing! I know it will be beautiful, just as she was!

On her last night of tucking Elli in, Joy shared with her about God's love and she prayed with Elli. In her on-line blog Joy writes of tucking Elli in every night with the possibility that "this might be the last time I do this." If you would like to read more about my friend you can visit her blog site that is linked to the title of this blog. Just click on "Elli."

It really has made me think about how you just don't know when will be the last moment you see someone, hug someone, or have the chance to show God's love to someone. Now when I tuck in my kids or send them off to bed because I am just spent from the day, I ask God to help me give from His stregnth one more time to tuck them in right, or cuddle a little longer, because tomorrow may not come.

Please be in prayer for Scott and Joy as they and their 3 other children have begun the LONG process of continuing to move forward in the Lord's will for their lives!

Bums for Jesus

Last night was girls' night out for a few of us. Some of my close friends here took me out for my birthday. It was SO great to get out of the house with friends! I miss the friends that I have here at ILE because they are continuing to spend time together in between classes and I'm never there. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being home with the kids and homeschooling them. This is what the Lord has directed us to do, but sometimes it's a bit lonely, especially without female companionship. Therefore, it was a really nice break to get out of the house!

Anyway, on the car ride there, I was saying that I'm really thankful for the transient people in my life. That I hope that I can be and have been a blessing to them and that truly many have been a blessing to me. Well, a couple of the girls looked at one another and wondered what "transient" meant. So, I explained in this context it meant the people that aren't in our lives for very long. In this year at ILE, I have many "transient" friends that minister to one another and then move on to other countries and may or may not stay in touch. Well, one of the girls had known what transient meant, but she thought of a bum. She thought I was talking about how I have "homeless bums" in my life.

Then we made the connection. Yes, a bum is usually homeless or moving a lot, often begging for money, and wears hand me down clothing. That sounds A LOT like missionary life. We move A LOT! We are asking for support to do God's work, and we often wear hand me down clothing! So, we all decided that we are "Bums for Jesus!" Anyone else want to join the club???

Editor's Note:
(OK clarification here. I understand that there are many responsible people out there that are homeless and are doing all that they can to provide for their families. My sister works for a group that helps such families find work, housing, and to provide for their families. They are not those that I would call "bums.")

Not Going

Due to a storm that has litterally camped out over the northern part of Costa Rica, all the roads up to Guanacaste where we were going to go and see the ministry, are closed. They are impassable. Sooo we'll have another quiet weekend at home continuing to process the items that either go to Chile when I go in November, that we need to sell, or that we'll take back to the states. This is a long process, but fun to purge again and be free of earthly goods! We're hoping to have good enough weather in January in Ohio to be able to purge more of our "stuff" before we ship things to Chile. We'll see, we may end up purging when we get there. Who knows!

USA or Costa Rica

Today, Doug and I were able to get away for a couple of hours to a local mall about 20 minutes away by taxi. We are thankful to have fellow ABWE missionaries who have teenaged girls who will take care of our kids. Anyway, as we stood there in the food court wondering what we wanted to eat, we truly wondered if we were back in the states. Our choices were, McD's, Pizza Hut, Burger King, Taco Bell, Subway, Quiznos, Cinnabon, and an "ice cream" place. Sooooo, we ended up going hispanic at least, with Taco Bell :).

Truly, we often wonder if are just in Miami on a long weekend. Then we head back home with the bars, razor wire, glass ridged walls, and 7 locks to open to get into our front door and we're jarred back into reality. Some days the time outside of the city is so relaxing. Oh to see a mountain or a sunset without bars on the windows. Granted living where we live, I would never get rid of the bars, but each time we can get out of the city, even for a couple of hours, it is always a welcome, yet guarded change!!

Next weekend we are excited to visit another ABWE ministry in Guanacaste. Guanacaste is an area of Costa Rica well known for its resorts and tourist trafic, but the people are EXTREMELY poor and there is a group there that meets on Saturdays at least once a month, when Paul and Patty Coulier, our pastor here and fellow ABWE missionaries, can drive the 5 hours each way to minister. Due to my health and the kids, we are leaving on Friday so as to make it a two day trip. Normally, Paul and Patty drive the 5 hours up to Guanacaste, minster, have lunch, and then turn right back around and drive the 5 hours home only to wake up on Sunday morning to minister here at "our" church. Please pray for this ministry in Guanacaste! They DESPERATELY need a pastor to take over and REALLY be able to devote the time and God's energy into a church plant. For now we are excited to FINALLY glimpse the Pacific Ocean and get to help with this ministry! I'll post more details when we get back with pictures and more details!

Thanking God for...

Keeping in line with yesterday's post, I'm giving the receiving angel some work.

Thank you God for sending your son to be my savior!
Thank you God for a wonderful husband!
Thank you God for children who want to follow You!
Thank you God for a house that is comforable and big enough for us and friends.
Thank you God for medication and doctors who help many of us!
Thank you God for friends!
Thank you God for food on our table, even treats that many can't afford.
Thank you God for family.
Thank you God for healthy bodies that function on a daily basis.

How many can you come up with?!? I have many more, but some are just not for sharing on the WWW.

What Happens in Heaven

I dreamt that I went to Heaven and an angel was showing me around. We walked side-by-side inside a large workroom filled with angels. My angel guide stopped in front of the first section and said, 'This is the Receiving Section. Here, all petitions to God said in prayer are received.'

I looked around in this area, and it was terribly busy with so many angels sorting out petitions written on voluminous paper sheets and scraps from people all over the world.

Then we moved on down a long corridor until we reached the second section.

The angel then said to me, 'This is the Packaging and Delivery Section. Here, the graces and blessings the people asked for are processed and delivered to the living persons who asked for them. 'I noticed again how busy it was there. There were many angels working hard at that station, since so many blessings had been requested and were being packaged for delivery to Earth.

Finally at the farthest end of the long corridor we stopped at the door of a very small station. To my great surprise, only one angel was seated there, idly doing nothing. 'This is the Acknowledgment Section,' my angel friend quietly admitted to me. He seemed embarrassed 'How is it that there is no work going on here?' I asked.

'So sad,' the angel sighed. 'After people receive the blessings that they asked for, very few send back acknowledgments.'

'How does one acknowledge God's blessings?' I asked.

'Simple,' the angel answered. Just say, 'Thank you, Lord.'

'What blessings should they acknowledge?' I asked.

'If you have food in the refrigerator, clothes on your back, a roof overhead and a place to sleep you are richer than 75% of this world. If you have money in the bank, in your wallet, and spare change in a dish, you are among the top 8% of the worlds wealthy.'

'And if you get this on your own computer, you are part of the 1% in the world who has that opportunity.'

'If you woke up this morning with more health than illness .... you are more blessed than the many who will not even survive this day.'

'If you have never experienced the fear in battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation ... you! are ahead of 700 million people in the world.'

'If you can attend a church without the fear of harassment, arrest, torture or death you are envied by, and more blessed than, three billion people in the world.'

'If your parents are still alive and still married ...you are very rare.'

'If you can hold your head up and smile, you are not the norm, you're unique to all those in doubt and despair.'

Ok, what now? How can I start?

If you can read this message, you just received a double blessing in that someone was thinking of you as very special and you are more blessed than over two billion people in the world who cannot read at all.

I can't say that as a teacher I agree with being disrespectful to a teacher, but I was sent this story over e-mail and I thought it appropriate in our current day and age.

One day a 6 year old girl was sitting in a classroom. The teacher was going to explain evolution to the children. The teacher asked a little boy:

Tommy do you see the tree outside?

TOMMY: Yes.

TEACHER: Tommy, do you see the grass outside?

TOMMY: Yes.

TEACHER: Go outside and look up and see if you can see the sky.

TOMMY: Okay. (He returned a few minutes later) Yes, I saw the sky.

TEACHER: Did you see God up there?

TOMMY: No.

TEACHER: That's my point. We can't see God because he isn't there. Possibly he just doesn't exist.

A little girl spoke up and wanted to ask the boy some questions. The teacher agreed and the little girl asked the boy:

Tommy, do you see the tree outside?

TOMMY: Yes.

LITTLE GIRL: Tommy do you see the grass outside?

TOMMY: Yessssss!

LITTLE GIRL: Did you see the sky?

TOMMY: Yessssss!

LITTLE GIRL: Tommy, do you see the teacher?

TOMMY: Yes

LITTLE GIRL: Do you see her brain?

TOMMY: No

LITTLE GIRL: Then according to what we were taught today in school, she possibly may not even have one!

'FOR WE WALK BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT'> > II CORINTHIANS 5:7

Balance and Medications

Balance - Heather? In the same sentence? Many of you who know me well, also know that I tend to go, go, go. If I have a task to do, I'll get it done, and do it well. However, more often than not that comes at the expense of my relationships. Some would put it this way... My personality type values Tasks OVER People. I have to say this is true. Sad, but true.

Anyway, since being diagnosed with Addison's Disease, I HAVE to take it much easier. I physically can't go, go, go. I think this is God's way of calming me down. See, with Addison's Disease, I don't get that extra "shot" of adrenaline when something goes wrong. Therefore, I can't get riled up about things unnecessarily. For instance, on Monday, I was riding in a taxi when we nearly had a head on collision. Most people, even after an incident like that would feel that extra "shot" of adrenaline, but not me. I simply thought, "Wow. We almost had an accident. How weird, I didn't even stress about it?.?." After talking to another Addison's patient, she told me she has had many of the same experiences, since being diagnosed over 15 years ago, so I guess that's my new "normal."

I asked my new Addison's friend, who by the way, has given birth to 4 children and manages them everyday while having Addison's, about balancing medications, and how each day I feel different. I just wish this was an exact science, but it isn't. NOT BY A LONG SHOT!!! I guess I need to take more meds when I'm feeling sick. A simple head cold can put me in the hospital again, or getting the stomach flu, or severe diarrhea. How FRUSTRATING it would all be, IF I COULD GET TRULY FRUSTRATED ABOUT IT!!

So for now please continue to pray that I would learn to balance my medication levels and that I would know when to increase based on the stress levels and sicknesses in my life. This is life long and has every day effects on me and my family.

This is just one of the medications that I have to carry with me every time I leave the house. In case of emergency, where I can't physically take another pill, someone has to give me this injection.