The Home Stretch

Thank you to everyone who prayed for our trip to Ecuador.  We spent a week there at the beginning of the month, and it was very productive.  Things were a bit chaotic since we decided the day before we left for Ecuador to send all of the kids back to Texas with Trevor’s parents.  Cana’s allergic reaction got so severe that her hands, feet, and face were swollen, so we decided it would be better if she saw a specialist in Texas.  Fortunately, after a few weeks of doctor’s visits and tests, her allergist is confident all of her problems were caused by the vaccines she received at the end of May.  We feel blessed that we finally have an answer to what caused her reaction and that it’s not serious.  God is good!

We spent the first two days of our trip in Quito, the capitol of Ecuador.  We met with an Ecuadorian pastor there to receive some documents necessary for our religious visas.  It was exhausting to converse the entire day in Spanish, but God was gracious to us.  We had no difficulty understanding or communicating in Spanish.  Everything went really well, and we got the required documents.

 

We then moved on to Cuenca and went shopping so we will know where to go to buy furniture, appliances, and everything else we need to furnish our house in September.  We didn’t want to have to drag the kids to all of those different stores to compare prices when we arrive, so we did that during our trip.  We also looked at some houses and were incredibly blessed to find a home to rent!  It’s ideal for our family and for ministry.  We are very excited to have found a house much more suitable for our family than the one we had in Costa Rica. 

Nafisa is now back in Texas with all the babies, and Trevor will be returning late next week.  It has been a difficult year at times, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything.  God has used our time in Costa Rica to teach us many valuable lessons.  After all, it’s usually not the good times that draw us closer to the Lord or make us more like him. 

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.”  James 1:2-3

Estamos en Cuenca! (We're in Cuenca!)

What a busy week we’ve had!  A few weeks ago, Cana developed an allergy to something.  After switching detergents and removing potentially allergenic foods, her rash continued to get worse.  The day before we left for our trip to Ecuador, her hands, feet, and face were becoming swollen.  After taking her to the doctor in Costa Rica, we decided to send her home with Trevor’s parents so that she could get medical attention.  The boys also went back to Texas with them.  Please pray for this transition time and that doctors would discover the cause(s) of Cana’s allergy.

We have had a very productive time so far in Ecuador.  We spent a day in Quito and stayed with an Ecuadorian pastor and his family in order to obtain the required documents for our visas.  It was also a good test of our Spanish, but by the grace of God, we had no problems communicating.  It was a good visit, and Quito was beautiful.  We arrived here in Cuenca on Wednesday afternoon and have spent a lot of time walking all around the city trying to familiarize ourselves with the different areas.  We’re also looking at some houses while we’re here and hoping to find the right one for our family and for our ministry.  Please pray for us during this time that God would guide and direct our decisions.  

We will return to Costa Rica next week to finish our time in language school.  Praise the Lord we will finish August 8th. 

“Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!”  Psalm 96:3