Category: Reflections

Hurricane Irma came past around 2 am this morning and it was frighting! But God kept His hand over us and our property.

Here are the good, the bad and the ugly from Irma’s “visit”:

The Good:

1. We hardly ever see our neighbours, but with the preparation and clean-up, the whole community worked together.
2. The closure of schools and non-essential services, gave us 5 days together as a family.
3. After the preparation work, we had time to do a few fun things, like playing board games, watching a movie and even cooking together as a family.
4. During the curfew, we also had time for the things we never get time for (and never want to make time for) like polishing  great-Grandma’s silver.

The Bad:

1. Watching the panic and hysteria as people prepared for the hurricane.
2. Driving from shop to shop for basics like water, bread and tinned food. Empty shelves was not strange the past week.
3. The waiting and uncertainty of the hurricane’s path. She made various changes to her route during the week.

The Ugly:

1. Marie’s flight to Denver was cancelled at the last minute and she could not get another flight before the airport closed. It is sad to miss this training.
2. Waking up to wet carpets in the rooms that took the impact of Irma.
3. Seeing the damage to roofs, fences and trees of our neighbours.

In the midst of all this, we were very aware of the Lord’s presence and the encouragement from His people. Thank you so much for your prayers!

Schools and our office are still close tomorrow (Tuesday, 12 September) and we hope to get our home and garden back in order.

We are grateful we never lost electricity despite it being true for many of our friends. We are looking forward to a restful night.

 

Our hope for a white Christmas did not become a reality, but we had the privilege to escape the bustle and flatness of Florida for the beautiful mountains of Tennessee. The quality family time around a fireplace in the cold was good for our souls.

It also gave us time to reflect on 2016 and God’s hand over us.

Highlights of 2016:

1. Two grannies, a grandpa, an aunt and 2 cousins came to visit us this year.
2. Marie celebrated her Mom’s 70th birthday with all her siblings in South Africa.
3. We received our Green cards, it makes working here as foreigners much easier.
4. The children settled well into their new school and the Cambridge program.
5. Continued open doors to share the gospel in many places around the world and for the new ways the gospel is penetrating closed countries. For example, our ministry’s digital tools had 32.2 million unique users in 2016.
6. Our faithful ministry partners that sacrificially enable us to remain in full-time ministry.

Lowlights of 2016:

1. Hurricane Matthew – thankfully we were spared the brunt of it, but it was a scary experience.
2. Kenneth’s broken leg in July. Grateful that it healed well.
3. Two neighbours that we built the strongest relationships with, moved this year. A frustrating reality of today’s society.
4. Journeying with several ministry partners and co-workers that have walked hard roads during 2016.

We are entering 2017 with great anticipation! There are some exciting changes awaiting us. Stay tuned!

Our prayer for you for 2017 is from Psalm 20:4

“May He grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans!”