A Month of Exploration

Well we have had a very eventful month of February and have found the Lord’s hand all over it.  We had our vision trip down to Toliara and finally got to see the Tandroy in a little more natural environment.  We were able to see firsthand the difficulty of the task ahead of us.  There are tough roads, tough sleeping conditions, a need for stomachs made out of steel (we’ll not give you all the details of everything we ate and drank), a lot of waiting, cultural norms to learn, etc…  However, we were also amazed at how the Lord is already at work and doing great things!  Thanks to your prayers and support we had an amazing trip.  We did not have any real problems on the road.  We were protected from unwanted bugs and some of you even asked God to send a cyclone to cool things off for us down south (Though the damages up north were major we were thankful for the cooler weather).  All in all we just felt the peace of the Lord and His Mighty hand guiding us.  We were overwhelmed with how different the dialect is down South compared to what we are learning.  It is like going from Texas to Alabama or Louisiana they just don’t speak English there (J/K).  The same is true for the Tandroy dialect; it is very different overall.  I think the thing that has stood out the most to us this past month is the Lord’s faithfulness in all situations.  We have many things to think about and pray about but just keep finding ourselves totally submerged in His plans and love every step of the way.  Our frustrations are only temporary and the joys seem to just engulf the temporary struggles.  We are so excited to finally be able to communicate a little clearer (in the Merina dialect) and be able to teach God’s Word with effectiveness and clarity (we have improved a bunch).  Just knowing that we are gaining the ability to share about our Lord and Savior in Malagasy brings us much joy.  I think it is on those days that we truly feel like everything is going to be okay.  This is not to say that we don’t struggle and make major mistakes in language; it is just to say that we are seeing the Lord’s hand at work in and around us.  Overall we feel very good and everyone is doing great.  We are so proud of the girls and how they just continue to be willing to be fluid in everything that we do.  We know that not having many friends to communicate freely and openly with is tough, but they just seem to face each day with great optimism and trust in the Lord.  They have started to do more things on their own.  Phoebe and Emma have gone to a pre-teen Bible study by themselves, Baylee will go to the children’s church times, and they have all continue to have a desire to want to tell others about Jesus.  Phoebe has had the privilege to go and teach with her mom a couple of times now.  This last time she drew all the pictures for their teaching on creation.  We are so proud of them!  We are also so thankful for all the support and prayers that we know we receive from you all.  The Lord is answering so keep them up.  Below are some prayer request and praises.

Pray Request:• We have another Oral Proficiency test this month and would like to do really well.
• We will be traveling and doing some new training over the next couple of months.  We need safety and patience.
• For our Southwest team to grow in unity under the Lord and then with each other as it is growing/grown from five people (two kids included) to 18 (six kids included) people by the time July comes with more probably coming:  And all of this in just a year.
• For Phoebe (Maybe her parents more) as she will officially become a teenager this month (28th).
• Those whom we are discipling and teaching the Gospel to that they would grow in the Lord.

Praises:• Vision trip to Toliara was a success.
• We have survived the two cyclones in two weeks here in Madagascar without any damages to our home.
• David, our nephew, is getting better and better each day. Praise the Lord!!!
• We are gaining a better knowledge of the Malagasy language each day.
• We have not had any more unwanted visitors at night since you all prayed!!!

Packages:• We love getting packages, but will be out-of-country for two months.  Please hold off on sending packages until at least April 15th, as we would like to be able to receive these blessings when they arrive.
• Also, we will be moving to Toliara in July and will give you an updated address in June.

 Just a normal Malagasy highway in the bush

A large Baobab Tree

They have a following


Doing Well!


Beautiful Scenery

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