time keeps moving on...

and I'm finally taking the time to post again.

We have had a relaxing time the last few days. Together as a family and some time in the community with friends. I have really enjoyed this quiet time here the last week or so...at the same time I wonder how some that we have walked beside recently are doing. I have this sadness and burden for some of what I know is happening in their lives.

Jim and I have had a tough decision to make in the last couple weeks about whether or not to continue schooling these children. God made it clear to us, that last week before Christmas break, that we would not be able to continue with their schooling at this time. We have a peace about that and at the same time it has been very painful for me. They are hurting so much and we hate to see them back in the schools here. It seems like such cruel world out there for them. I wish I could take their pain away. We are praying that the Bible knowledge we were able to give along with the discussions we had about right and wrong while they were here will stick with them and give them some hope as they face different situations. And also that we will be able to maintain our relationship with them.

There are a couple of people that were just baby Christians here, that have fallen in the last week. It has been a sad thing and I have felt this heaviness for them...I guess it is a reminder for me to pray for them. We have not been able to contact them and don't really know where they are. So that leaves us with praying and I know God can work in ways that seem impossible to us.
There was a mother that had a baby just before Christmas. The situation that this baby was born into is not good. But with her having the baby she has seemed more open to us coming around. I would like to have the opportunity to meet with her regularly in her home in the next several weeks. I am praying that those doors will open as I stop in to see her.

It has been a painful time of year here for some who have lost loved ones recently. We continue to pray for them and keep in contact with them through this time.

Amidst all of this it has been a blessed time for me. I still have to work on giving all these burdens to God and not try to carry them on my own strength.

But we have had some enjoyable times together recently and I will try to add some pics below.
Blessings to all!

Jeremy, Nathan and Bryce had a chance to play together while Jeremy was home.

Sharayah with her hat and gloves from Tara.

Jim decided to brave the icy, rough hill with the kids. Not the most comfortable ride. He could tell the next day.

Tara

Seth a couple weeks earlier after a wipe out on skis.

I think he took a wrong turn somewhere.Look out!

These are friends that came to see us in November. Larry, Sherry and Larry. (Let's see if I can confuse you) Larry and Sherry on the left (husband and wife) are from CO. and Sherry and Larry on the right are twin brother and sister. Larry on the right is from Phoenix. And the Larry and Sherry on the right grew up near Ft. Wayne, IN and have an Amish background. And their last name?.....Miller. We have enjoyed these 2 families and really appreciate all of their prayer support. It is amazing how God brought them into the Toews' life just over a year ago.

winter snow

It has snowed here and we are enjoying it! At least some of us are. It may all be gone by the week-end but the kids are enjoying it while it lasts. They did some skiing today. Over the summer we were able to get used ski equipment for all of us.

The Christmas season is upon us. The Toews headed to Phoenix today to pick up Jeremy, their son. And we are looking forward to the break from school in 1 1/2 weeks.

Here are some random pics. I was going to put more but blogger quit uploading pics just now. Maybe more later.

my thoughts....a little jumbled but here they are

It seems things have changed a lot since I last posted. One of the main differences for me has been the school. We needed to change things around a bit, so we have just 2 Hopi children here instead of 3. We have them here all day now instead of the half day that we were doing. I am responsible for the 15 year old all day and the 13 year old is taught by others here. It has really changed my days...I was able to make a run to the post office, check in on those we are ministering to and spend time with our children working on projects, etc. That is all different now. We will do school this way until Christmas break and then re-evaluate. Please pray for wisdom and discernment for what God wants us to do. We are seeing a hunger in them for God's Word and they seem to want to keep learning more about it.

Another praise here, is a house for the Hayah's. They were able to get a trailer and a couple days after they found out they had the high bid in the silent auction, they heard from a church in another state that they were giving some money to the Hayah's. It was what they needed to pay for the trailer and have it moved. God's timing is perfect. PTL! The guys have been busy with helping with the moving and and putting the halves together.

It seems there has been a lot of crisis' around here lately that have kept us busy from one thing to the next. A few days ago a young boy shot and killed another young boy. We have been working some with a couple of the families involved so we are continuing to try to walk beside them through this crisis.

We head out tomorrow for the graduation of a man from here. He has completed a discipleship/rehab program in Cortez, CO. We are excited about what we have seen and pray that He will stay strong in the Lord as he comes back to this environment.

A baby was born a few days ago into a home where drugs and alcohol are very much a part of the parents everyday life. We pray for her protection.

A mother who's young daughter is living with her (not a good situation) is now pregnant. What will become of this child as she enters the world into this home? Please pray for the safety of her daughter and the child to be born.

A mother who lost her daughter recently has shared that the numbness is wearing off and reality is hitting. Please pray for her during this season, the first without her daughter who loved Christmas.

The last 2 weeks of school and the rest of this year looks like it will be really busy. Melissa leaves for IN in 1 week and the Toews will have their son home for Christmas. They will not be as involved with school during that time. We will be doing some Christmas caroling and other special ministry during this month too along with whatever comes up day to day.

I really can't thank you all enough for your prayers. I know God is beside us as we walk through the ups and downs of day to day life here. Your prayers are a much needed blessing.

Through thick and thin...He goes before us.

You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Psa. 139:5

Here it is another weekend halfway over again.

Last weekend we had several guys here from IN and really enjoyed their time here. They even brought a dishwasher for me. (or 2 or 3 or 4) They were not a burden at all and pitched right in and helped. Besides making their own breakfasts they made 2 other meals and 1 morning I awoke at 5:40 am to this strange noise in the kitchen...it was one of them doing dishes.

They also spent lots of time praying for the ministry here while they were here. We really enjoyed having them, they were truly a blessing.

Some of the guys chopping wood.

The chef!

They stayed in the church and while they were there they made good use of the piano. Pat and his 3 sons all played. It was beautiful.

It takes several to grill. The burgers were great and it helped me out.

All but Pat and Scot on one of our hikes.
Danny, Philip, Collin, Paul, Nathan and Peter.

These 2 have become very close recently. Tara is feeling pretty blessed to have a friend from a Christian home right here on Hopi.
These are the fry-bread-makers for our Hopi Tacos for the IN guys. They did a good job and had fun in the process.

The IN folks left on Tuesday and the rest of the week here has been a whirlwind it seems. With school and 2 nights of scheduled ministry, plus a few other crisis' it has seemed really full.

We thought we would be home today, but there was a ministry opportunity so we ended up in Winslow at a Christmas parade. It was an enjoyable time with other families though.

Tonight this creature (Lizzy, the name given by Seth) was found lounging on the couch just above my head. It was a little unnerving. (still better than mice though) Seth found this on a recent hike and has been keeping it in a jar. I kept wondering if it would figure out how to get through the plastic wrap lid. I will wonder no more I guess. It is now in a gallon size jar with a metal lid with holes.


This one family...I just so enjoy watching the way God is working in healing their family. Every time we're around them I get so excited. Through a difficult time God has brought them so close. He is certainly being glorified through this.

It looks like tomorrow will be a full day. We have morning and evening services and sometime in the afternoon we will be meeting with an individual. Please pray for wisdom and that our hearts would be yielded to what God wants for this meeting.

Thank you so much for your continued prayer. I know they sustain us especially in the difficult times.

God bless.

Happy Birthday!!!

God has been so faithful! I am continuing to heal. Each day my skin is closer to normal and there is very little itching now. The swelling has been gone for several days. It is amazing how He works. I have so enjoyed being out in public again after 2 weeks, and fellowshipping with others. We hosted ANF (Anabaptist Native Fellowship) meetings here last weekend so we had visitors from several places here. It was nice to visit with friends we had not seen for a while as well as make new friends. Saturday night we had a cookout behind the village.

We are looking forward to a visit from several men and boys coming for a visit this weekend. They are from our church in Indiana.

Please pray for this family of 7 living here in the fellowship building as they walk through some very painful things. That God will give them strength through this and that they will grow stronger and closer to the Lord and each other.

Continue to pray for all of us as we help school 3 extra children. It is certainly not without challenges. There may need to be some changes made in the way we are doing things for school very soon. Pray for wisdom as we seek the Lord's leading in this process. Also just pray for this family in general, they all have a lot of painful things to work through.

Today Sharayah turned 6. It's hard to believe she is 6 already. We had a little celebration tonight with presents, cake and ice cream. Now she is having a hard time falling to sleep.

Well, I need to get off to bed. We really appreciate all your prayers...we couldn't continue without them. God bless you.

very itchy and feeling drugged...

life has been a challenge here the past week. I have been fighting an infection (cellulitis) since about last Sunday. We thought I might end up in the hospital, but we are thankful for a Dr. that goes to church here who was able to prescribe 4 very potent antibiotics for me to take. I know that lots and lots of people were praying and the Dr. was very pleased with my progress when he made his "house call" this morning. Jim has been quite a trooper through all of this, waiting on me hand and foot, sterilizing anything I touch, keeping the house running, homeschool...and I'm sure the list goes on. The biggest thing I'm dealing with right now is the itchiness of the drug reaction. Pray that, that will clear up soon. Thanks for all of your prayers through this, God has been faithful.

In other news...

Please pray for the lady who lost her daughter several weeks ago. It seems she is running from the pain and is not handling/processing it very well.

Another lady who had gone to rehab is now back home and is staying strong in her walk with the Lord. But her situation here is not without trials. There was a death in her family recently, her adult son is very angry and has physically hurt her in the past, her 5 year old son is being kept in a home that is not a good situation, illegally. She has custody but has not been able to get him back.

Continued wisdom is needed as we teach these 3 children in school.

Here are some random pics from around here.

Homeschool Bible class

Ok, well....I think they're getting carried away now. What does that say in the top left corner?

It started out being Bible class.
Seth, making eggs on the wood stove.
They're making hats.
Sharayah is wearing a hat she made and is making another one.
She likes to relax while she works.
That's all for now.

Fall weather is here...

...and it is hard to believe. We are having colder nights and pleasant fall days. (we even burned a fire a few nights) It seems there are so many things happening and changes taking place. Some exciting things and some not so exciting.

I was sad to see a young mother move back to CA, but I know it may be the best thing for her right now as she makes some major decisions in her walk with the Lord. Just pray that she will stay close to Him, as she doesn't have Christian friends there.

A lady moves back in the area before finishing her rehab and seems to still be weak in her walk with the Lord. Will she be able to stand up to the pressures around her?

We see the hearts of these 3 children coming to school here, softening. Praise God! Pray for wisdom and patience as each day brings new challenges that we feel so inadequate to handle.

A lady who comes around some, finds herself pregnant. Based on the choices she has been making during this pregnancy, the baby will have FAS. God have mercy on this helpless child.

There are different ones around here confused by what is being taught in another ministry here on Hopi. As they share their confusion...I am so sad that these young Christians are having to face this.

There is the mother who recently lost her 8 year old daughter; and I think of all that she is walking through right now.

For some reason today I am feeling especially burdened for this and other situations here. My heart aches for the souls of these people. Lord, what would you have me to do? We are here on this earth to bring glory to Him...how does that look practically?

Thank you so much for your continued prayers for us here. We certainly do feel the need for them.

In other happenings....

I sorted through closets and found so many clothes that are too small. How fast they grow in what seems like just a few short months since I was putting away their warm clothes.

School for our children is going quite good amidst all the busyness here. I am really enjoying my teaching time with them, although it seems I never get enough. Sharayah loves to read and often does 2 lessons in reading a day because she likes it so much. With Math-U-See Tara and Seth really like Math and do it in their spare time sometimes. Bryce has been doing some extra studying in an electronics book that a friend of ours loaned to him.

Tara is really enjoying Choco, the dog we have claimed...I guess. Tara is definitely Choco's favorite. We were able to get rid of the other stray dog so it's nice to just have one hanging around. (i'm actually glad she's here because i really like her, i just don't proclaim that too loudly)

One of these times I will put some pics on here again.
For now I need to go.