Merry CHRISTmas. We pray that this Christmas will be very special for you and your loved ones. We are grateful to be back in the States to see our family and friends like you. I also felt like the Lord wanted me to tell you that He sees you, loves you, and that He is with you. Pray you enjoy the below email and again, have a great Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!
Before coming back to the States we had a community wedding where 6 couples got married. It was a really great time and we were very proud of these couples. Two of the couples had been married at the justice of the peace several years prior but never had a formal celebration. We also had a Mom and Dad get married, alongside of their son and daughter. It was a really cool sight to see the Mom and Dad getting married with their children which is something that you do not see every day. There were lots of smiles of happiness and tears of joy, and the Lord was smiling in their midst as they made their public testimony of dedication and commitment to Christ. Another blessing was that all of the dresses were donated which went a long way to making this a very special day.
Also before coming back to the States, Elba went to Porto de Moz to speak to their congregation and encourage them in the Lord. Thankfully she was able to take a speedboat which only took about 4-5 hours to get there. They were really excited about her visit and they had many performances and dances for the special time. As a treat, Elba got to eat her favorite fish which is a hard shelled fish that is prehistoric in nature. It is a bottom feeder and she grew up eating it. Personally, I ate it once, and then went to the hospital….no joke.
We drove up from Florida which had some great weather. During our trip up we had many competing prayers between the kids and us. They were praying for snow and cold, and we were trying to rebuke those prayers with warm weather. When we arrived in Columbus this past weekend, it was a rude awakening, and the girl’s prayers prevailed. However, we are still praying for warmer weather….brrrrrr.
Please also continue to pray for spiritual, physical, and emotional health for us.
Much love, Steve, Elba, Camilly, and Alyssa
Tax deductible donations can be written and sent to:
The Xingu Mission
P.O Box 340785
Columbus, Ohio 43234
Or On-line donations at:
We went on a little retreat with the church and I was just about to lay down in my hammock when I heard these plops on the ground. I thought it was fruit falling from the tree but upon further investigation I saw that it was poop. I then looked up and saw the monkeys just above me trying to mark their territory on my head. Then they started to unleash a poop storm. Needless to say I moved quickly from that spot. This was my firsthand experience of an animal marking their territory….they won. J
