Update #3: One month to go!

Dear friends of Lesibovu, 

 

We are so excited that God has provided enough funds and this time next month, we will be on our way to Swaziland! We have some wonderful praises to share: 

 

- Our airfare has been purchased, so we know when we will be traveling, and have our itinerary set. Having plane tickets bought is a HUGE relief. Funds given and support raised over the last two years is finally being put to use. What a blessing!

- A nice bonus is that we don't have to travel to Atlanta to depart from there like we normally do. We are so thankful to be able to fly out from Birmingham, and due to generous gifts from family, are able to stop by on the way home from Africa for a two day visit with our former exchange student, Julia, in Germany! We get to spend Abigail's 15th birthday with both of our girls, and that is such a sweet gift for us all. We are counting down days to Africa, and then will be counting down till we see the Schraders!

 

Requests:

- Our team is made up of about a dozen folks from California, Colorado and Alabama, so we would love prayer for us to connect well, and function cohesively as a team to love on the folks at Lesibovu, and the staff in Swaziland. We want to be of the most use possible in the time that we have, with a focus on giving the best of our time and energy. We would love prayer for our minds to be focused on following whatever Jesus wills, and no personal agenda, during the entire trip.

- Our three boys are still going to be here at home, and we need peace about leaving them, and we need caregivers to help share the load while we are gone. We'd love prayer for them and for us as we work on arranging who they'll stay with while we are gone.

- Besides the large playground that we will build, another important project is the sewing machines that will be brought to women at Lesibovu. We will work on training them with sewing skills so they can create items to sell and earn income for their families. Please pray that these investments will bring a great return of joy and hope, and will benefit the community for years to come.

- Funds are due in less than two weeks, so if you haven't given, but desire to, then please do so now. The money that we still need are to help us with travel in country, and to cover lodging and meals. You can give here or mail a check as well, so if you need that address, just let me know. We deeply appreciate how God has used some of you already to help us travel to Lesibovu again!

 

I'll update you all again soon as we finalize prayer requests for our time in Swaziland. Thank you for your support and encouragement!