There have also been some big challenges, especially in this last week.  There has been devastation in families we care about that keep us up at night interceding.  Cancer diagnosis.  Parkinson diagnosis.  Trust broken.  Sexual brokenness.  Suicidal thoughts.  Painful anniversaries.  Hospitalization for a broken hip.  A big portion of our week is listening to them because we are safe to talk with about really difficult things.  
 
Almost half of the group that committed to doing Dan’s freedom course Align have fractured off to do their own healing journey as a support group because they decided Dan’s course was too hard.  While we would’ve loved to have them along for the course, ultimately they get to choose.  So hard!  We still have around 15+ that faithfully come and to be honest, it will probably be easier to disciple this smaller group who are all interested in doing the hard work to heal.  The author of the course material was planning on coming into Bethlehem to lead a healing weekend workshop, but it looks like there is a scheduling conflict now.  Disappointing!

Remember a couple months ago how I was moaning about how cold it was in our house during winter?  Well, our faulty house foundation has been holding moisture and made our walls and floor boards rot.  This definitely helps explain the all the coughing, mold, moisture, and extra cold!  Our wood floors rotted from the bottom up and now have broken all the way through in our hallway.  (slugs and mold!)  So now, after already fixing the sewer, rewiring our electric lines, and making an air duct to pipe hot air from the stoves into our rooms, now Dan is putting plywood over big holes in the hallway and we hope that they can come to fix it within the next month or so.  Ugh – rental home repairs!  
 
Last month, the electric company “fixed” our breaker box which we share with the school next door and now our electricity trips 5-15x a day, which is in addition to the planned power outages that right now are 4-6 hours a day.  Did I mention we don’t have water when we don’t have electricity?!  I’m still trying to teach English to Chinese students online which is difficult because it seems our cell tower has low batteries during power outages.  We do have a generator which we are exceedingly grateful for and there is a rumor flying around that Dan may help our landlord “fix” the breaker box again.  (don’t tell the power company!)
 
Also, Bethlehem has infrastructure issues – as in, our roads are littered with potholes.  Big ones!  There were two occasions where the potholes surprised us and caused significant damage – once a popped tire, and another time caused some damage to the front of our Honda.  We phoned our insurance company to see if they covered pothole damage and long story short…the car’s value was less than the potential cost of the repairs and they totaled my car!  We are adjusting to being a one car family again and we have been waiting over a month for the insurance money to come through.  Our truck is nearing the end of its life as well and this afternoon Dan drove into our driveway in a cloud of engine smoke.  Apparently something in our cooling system is significantly damaged and we can’t drive the truck until that is fixed.  We are scrambling to come up with a solution.  Driving is essential to our ministry life and we have so many things we need to do in the next week to prepare for the team that is coming. 
 
I think after a month in the USA where everything works well, our current South African challenges seem a bit much.  Truly, these things aren’t out of the ordinary for a South African experience and in our hearts and minds, we feel that our call to be here and our love for Africans is much bigger than these inconveniences. Just today, as I am writing to you, we feel a bit overwhelmed.  The stress is a bit high in our home!
 
The idea that our life is hard, or whether our life is everything we have been hoping for is entirely a matter of perspective.  Historically, when there are so many challenges (big and small) there is usually an incredible season of breakthrough and ministry just ahead.  Has God truly given us everything we need for life and godliness?  YES.  Can we thrive in difficult situations?  YES.  
 
Did I just pause writing this newsletter for another power outage?  Sigh, YES. 
 
Please keep us in prayer in the coming weeks.  We are excited to help the Whiteheads settle in next week and to host the Zambians for a week of ministry soon.  We are expectant that the Lord will do great things in these partnerships.  
 
Will you please pray for breakthrough in some of the above challenges?  Will you pray we will be able to hear the Lord’s heart for these painful stories?  Will you add your prayers to ours for rest and peace?  Will you pray for the ministry schedule for the Zambians to come together so that they can be a blessing to Bethlehem and that Bethlehem can be a time of refreshment and rest for them as well?
 
Also, we need wisdom and finances as we look for another vehicle to buy.  We are hopeful that we can borrow a vehicle for a short season from some friends, but we will need to purchase another ministry vehicle fairly soon.  If you are able to give towards our next vehicle, we would be so very grateful.  If you click the donate button below to give, please put “vehicle” in the memo line.  Please also pray with us that the insurance money from the Honda will come through ASAP.
 
Still smiling, 
Janell and Dan