Philippians 3:12-14New International Version (NIV)
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
The past two months have been full of progress. We enjoyed a wonderful visit from Bryce's sister Aimee and her family, and we had the chance to take them skiing in the French Alpes. Everyone enjoyed the views of mount blanc on the back left, and despite a few falls no one got hurt too badly. We consider it great progress that all 11 of us survived the day on the slopes (the two youngest are not in this picture but enjoyed skiing with us earlier).
We have seen a few pictures of our house in Togo. The team has been making steady progress with it's construction, and our house there now has a roof. We are thankful for all their hard work and diligence, so that we will have home when we arrive.
The problem with progress, is that it means you haven't yet obtained or completed what you seek. Well that is certainly the case for our French. We are improving little by little, but often progress seems slow and difficult. It's been helpful to remember why we are learning french. Additionally, it has been great to see our three big kids start to enjoy speaking french. They have all of a sudden begun to show how much they have learned over the past year. Finally, we have also been encouraged by how quickly we are approaching the end of our studies in France and the beginning of our ministry in Togo. We have started to discuss the dates of our transition to Togo. Stay tuned, there will be more to come soon.Praise/Prayer FamilyWe have been immensely blessed by Linda our current nanny. She has been taking good care of all of us. It's amazing how God is constantly orchestrating things for His glory. Linda had a fear of flying, but deep inside she has had a desire to visit Switzerland. Well, we live pretty close to Switzerland. God used this desire, that He had placed in her heart years before, to help confirm that He had prepared her for such a time as this. Ahni's prayer at the dinner table tonight was a sweet reminder of how thankful we all are that she came, "thank you for giving Nana Linda a safe flight to our house, and thank you for the food." Another praise, last week we got approval for the extension of our visa, so we can stay here for the remainder of the school year! Please pray for Natasha's mom who will be coming to help us for 6 weeks. Also please continue to pray for our family as we finish our time here in France and in school. Our four days of finals are quickly approaching, and this is a stressful time for all of us.TeamPlease continue to pray for our team in Mango. Our team recently released the following information: The Hospital of Hope is once again facing Lassa Fever season here in northern Togo. We are taking precautions to limit the risk of exposure to our team and medical staff. Until further notice we are limiting our clinic services to follow-up and urgent cases. The Hospital of Hope has accepted two Lassa Fever patients who arrived from neighboring countries. Please pray with us for wisdom and safety as we provide compassionate care in Jesus name. If you would like to help cover the cost of treating patients that are facing prolonged illnesses like Lassa please consider a donation to the Hospital of Hope Patient Care Fund.