God's Faithfulness

Jumping off the cliff...

Many of you have already heard that we finalized the sale of our house last week. When we originally considered what to do with our house (to rent or to sell), we felt that in spite of the struggling housing market, we should put it up for sale. Not only that, but we were praying and believing for it to sell within a month. God is faithful. We accepted an offer (near the asking price) within 26 days! There were many houses up for sale in our neighborhood prior to us putting our house on the market (some for many months) and none have sold. Through this experience, our confidence has grown that not only has He called us to this, but He will provide what we need to make it a reality. In some ways we feel as though we're jumping off a cliff, but He is catching us in mid air.

Moving out...

This past weekend, we finished packing up our things and moved into our rental house. It's starting to feel real now! We moved from a 5 year old, 2300 sq ft house into a ~40 year old, ~1400 sq ft house. Needless to say, we had to do some considerable down-sizing. We were so busy in the process of cleaning and moving out that we forgot to let our land lord know that we were ready to move in. She had said she would get the house ready for us by cleaning up after the last renters (they hadn't clean up at all) and would have the carpets cleaned.

So, we moved from our very clean newer house into a very dirty old house (with a brown shag carpet that has turned a shade of green from fading). The people who lived here before had put some powdery chemical in the carpet (which I think was ant killer) and so right before bedtime I was compelled to vacuum. As I tried to vacuum up the white stuff out of the carpet, puffs of white "dust" arose from the floor and then clogged the vacuum. Our bedroom smelled like insecticide. We were both very tired from moving and cleaning our old house and this was the final thing that pushed me (Heather) over the edge! I was so mad! I promptly told Danny I was not staying here and refused to live in this house! I put myself to bed and as I layed there, I began talking to God. I was ready to hear his reply which could have been something like, "OH Heather, you're a spoiled brat. Just stop this!" Or maybe even, "Heather, just get over it" or... "things could be worse!" No, God's response was, "I love you at this very moment. I love you and that will never change." The next day I made a decision to be thankful for where I was and to do everything for Him. We were able to get the carpets cleaned, scrub down the house, and unpack our things.

In the midst of this transition, it is emotional. It feels like a death. A death to our old life and way of living. My heart (still Heather writing) is being exposed. The adventure has become painful and sometimes it feels like pruning...ouch! I know that new growth is coming!

So here we are, waiting until we leave for Uganda (which is going to be August 17th). I have to say it is hard to wait for my heart's desire, which is to embrace and love with all my heart the children at Hope Children's home. It will truly be a joy to love them and be loved by them. I work at my children's school and had been gone all week because my oldest son Keith was very sick. I went into the school yesterday to pick up my youngest son, Jeremiah, who was now feeling sick. As I made my way through the school many of the kids started calling out to me, "oh hi Mom"and I would respond "oh hi my children!" I felt so loved and blessed even though they where being silly and teasing. It reminded me of being in Africa and made me even more "homesick" for the children of Uganda. I can't wait to hear the words Mama Heather from all the children I pull into my heart and receive as my own! Let the adventure begin!

If you'd like to find out how you can help support us or would like to learn more about Show Mercy, please go to the following link:

http://www.showmercy.org/get_involved/long-term-missions/