It is risen...

I debated whether to call this "It is risen" or "Is it risen?" but after some good days in the village (where I am far too busy to think about the worries of the city) I have heard from the "Computer Hospital" (see our prayer request) and my computer is working again... I think . Since I cannot speak Thai most of the conversation was polite "ka's" and "krap's" so I'm not positive... but in faith I am putting this post under "Praise Reports".
Thank you for the support and prayers... it could have been worse!
Thanks also to God who has (once again) reminded me to check my priorities... so often what I think is important is just not important.

Dama Gojo Akha

We are so thankful for our wonderful village - Dama Gojo Akha. These past few days have been some of the best we have ever had. We are especially thankful for our language growth, our adjustment to Akha life and the friendships we have built.
God has been incredibly faithful in fulfilling His vision and calling on our lives and we are thrilled to be "in the middle" of all He is doing. We do not deserve the treasure that is working with the Akha and are truly grateful to have this opportunity.

Pray... Against Discouragement

For several days, Paul & I have been feeling pretty discouraged. We were planning on going back up to the village last Saturday for one last push in the village before coming home to the US. But we haven't made it back up, feeling that we just couldn't handle the stress of being in the village. However, being down in the city hardly seems much better. We've had plumbing projects that have been waiting to get done for months now. We've tried to get them fixed but every time it seems that we get home with the wrong part! The other day I said to Paul, " I know why the sink in the bathroom still isn't fixed! It's because I can't bear the thought of making another attempt to buy the correct part and failing AGAIN!"

Maybe it's because we're so close to our visit to America that the culture shock is finally kicking in full force. We've talked about how it's similar to college days; just after you finished finals you'd get sick for your whole break. We feel a little like that... only the "sickness" didn't wait until "finals" were over.

Anyway, what really prompted this blog is that Paul's computer just died... really died. It feels like the straw that broke the camels back! We feel paralyzed to deal with another problem however insignificant it might sound in the grand scheme of things!

We could really use your prayers (whether you're the type who prays for the "health" of computers or not) for our state of mind, wisdom and strength for the coming weeks.


PS (Can you do a "PS" in a blog?) Even as I write this, the ill computer is showing unexplained signs of life! "Thank you Lord for bringing us to our knees and then giving us hope to carry on!"

Preperation

We are a little weird right now. As we are preparing for our trip to America we are finding ourselves in cultural limbo. Pray that we will accomplish what we need to in the remainder of our time in Thailand and that we will be prepared for the cultural adjustment back to America.