Dear Friends and Family,
Thanks so much for your prayers and your emails. People here have been praying , too-- some ladies from the church have come up two weeks in a row after their women's meeting to pray with me, and our former next-door neighbor has come every day. Praise the Lord for answering many of our requests!
Zach's diarrhea stopped the day after I wrote, and he has not had any since. His body is evidently making up for lost time, because he's been eating much more than usual. My contractions haven't stopped-- I'm still having at least five a day-- but there's still no bleeding and my nausea really was a 24 hour bug and didn't stick around for long. .. only four more weeks to go before I can get an ultrasound to see if the placenta previa has resolved. The people who have been helping us with Zach and cooking since the bed-rest started were able to return to work yesterday, and we see it as a definite gift from God that they were sick mainly during the time that Jesse's folks and Brook Ford were here for Thanksgiving and able to help. They also helped take care of some of the things around the house I haven't been able to take care of. Jesse's Aunt Melli is back in Burundi now and has offered to let Zach play with her kids a few mornings a week now that her daughter Lizzie is home from RVA and able to help keep tabs on the little ones-- I know Zach will find that an exciting change from spending so much time playing with me on the bed.
As for the possibly cursed basket, Jesse's Dad was able to give us some good advice. Although we all agreed that our family seems to be definitely being attacked/ involved in spiritual warfare right now, Dad knew the lady who had made the basket and assured us that she was a Christian who he didn't think would do anything like that. He is also familiar with the type of baskets that witch doctors here do use, and said that this was nothing of that sort. We prayed and have been praying that God would bind any forces of evil that would seek to work against us, and we have left it at that. We feel very peaceful about the decision.
We are also thankful for God's physical protection. During the Christmas season robberies in Bujumbura increase since people want money to celebrate and buy gifts for their families. We learned this morning that last night sixteen men with machine guns were just outside our yard on the other side of the wall. They robbed many small shops simultaneously (without firing a shot-- just the threat was enough to get everyone to hand over what they had). They could easily have climbed the wall, but didn't. Please thank God with us and pray for the safety of our family, the night guards, and the others that live on the church property, especially between now and New Years.
After much prayer, Jesse decided to stay home from the five day film trip this weekend since he would be out of cell phone range and impossible to contact in case of a pregnancy-related emergency. He is very actively involved in the preparations-- he is outside in the dark right now trying to get a roof rack attached to our land cruiser so they can carry all the equipment-- but has decided that God wants him to be here with his family right now. Thankfully the rest of the trips scheduled the next month are close to home and he will be able to go on all of them. His Bible School class has been going fabulously-- their exam is Thursday-- but all that is "real" newsletter material to be saved for another day. I just wanted to give you an update now since so many of you are praying and God is answering…
"He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks to God on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many." (2 Cor. 1: 10-11)
Thank you for your continued prayers for all of us.
Praying that God will bless you the way that you have blessed us,
Jesse, Joy, and Zach
