Hello everyone,
Many of you know that our time back in the U.S. this summer was full of difficult and unexpected surprises. We feel as though our lives have been turned upside down. A lot of you have been praying with and for us. Many of you have encouraged us more than I can express. I'm tearing up right now just thinking about how blessed we've been with your support. THANK YOU SO MUCH. It really does mean so much to us. If you missed out on what's been happening, you can reference last month's update HERE. We're back in Chihuahua now and have had more time to see how the situations with our families are unfolding and to spend more time in prayer.
I've struggled all day with how to say this, so I'll just go ahead and say it directly--we feel that the Lord is calling us to leave Mexico and move back to the U.S. within the next two months. Those of you that know me well or have walked with us for awhile know that those words are really hard for me to type. The Lord has made our calling clear for many years now and we thought we were going to be here in Chihuahua for the long-term. Even as recently as one month ago as we were in California, we were excited to return home to Chihuahua for the work the Lord was calling us to.
Then in the last three weeks, we've seen the health situations of Priscilla's mom (Aleyda), my mom (Susan) and my grandma (Bonnie) all worsen in one way or another. (I'll include more specific prayer requests for each of them below, thank you for joining us in prayer for them). We see that our families need us during this time. They need us there to encourage them and point them to Jesus as the only true source of peace and hope. I was struggling through this decision a couple weeks ago when the Lord brought me to 1 Timothy 5:4 which says, "But if [a widow] has children or grandchildren, their first responsibility is to show godliness at home and repay their parents by taking care of them. This is something that pleases God." None of the three women in our families are widows, but we feel that God is calling us to first show our Christianity at home--ministering to them and the rest of our family members. We want our kids to spend lots of time with their grandmas and to enjoy the time we have with them. We are praying that God fully heals each of them but no matter what we want to be with them during this process. We don't know all of the details about what's to come, but we see God's hand in a combination of factors that have brought us to this point.
Please continue to pray with us and for us. Our moms and my grandma need the prayer. Our family here needs the prayer as we struggle with the emotions and logistics of such a big life-change. Roca Norte needs the prayer as we seek to identify who God is calling to become the next pastor. I'll include more in-depth prayer requests below. We really do appreciate your prayer so much. We'll keep you updated with how things move forward over the next month or two. God bless you.
-Tim, Priscilla, Josiah, Hannah & Abby
Eph. 3:20-21
Praise Reports
-God is still on the throne and worthy of our praise no matter how we feel or what's going on around us.
-The Lord took care of us during the long summer away from Chihuahua and gave us sweet time with our families.
-God provided for us amazingly during the summer! On top of providing enough money for us to travel a lot during these unique times, He also provided new tires and breaks for our van, sound/music equipment for the church, 6 months rent for the church and more financial donations for the church!
Prayer Requests
-Priscilla's mom (Aleyda). After being rushed to the ER again a couple weeks ago, she improved to the point where last week they moved her to an assisted-care facility. She is doing better physically although she still can't walk or do other things on her own. Mentally she has improved to the point of having conversations but she is still often confused, disoriented and hostile toward the nurses.
-My mom (Susan). Her cancer is now stage 4 as it has moved to her liver and a lung. She begins new chemo treatments and other medications this week.
-My grandma (Bonnie). She has lymphoma cancer and is in the process of chemo treatments. She had to go to the hospital a couple times in the last month for dehydration and a kidney stone.
-For our extended families as they struggle with these situations. That they would look to Jesus. That those that aren't yet Christians would turn to Jesus through all of this.
-For our family (Priscilla, the kids and I) emotionally. We are sad and having a hard time as we think about leaving Chihuahua.
-For the church (Roca Norte). We just announced it to them this past Sunday and many of them are having a tough time with the news. Please pray that God provides a great pastor that will love, lead and teach the sheep well. Please pray that God would guide us as far as my relationship with the church moving forward (I would love to maintain a connection with the church somehow if the Lord wants that).
-For the logistics of the move (finances, packing, selling things, the cars, the dogs, moving across the border, a trailer, jobs when we get to the U.S.--I'm sure there's even more we'll encounter soon).