The prayer-miracle connection!

Well, it went a little something like this..

About a year & a half ago, we submitted a request to an insurance company here, requesting sponsorship for any of our projects..we submitted a profile of our various programs & said something like "Requesting financial assistance towards the running of the programs run by FCEIS in the attached profile"...

Then last year, they expressed an interest & we brought another proposal with some specified dates & figures for the school project, as well as for the upcoming free health care projects in the South..

For what looked like endless months, we never got any reply..

Meanwhile, we'd also been praying for other donations to come through; some specific furniture items for the kids, more petrol contacts to run our vehicles & generator (electricity had been off more than on.), & a couple of other household needs....these too seemed to be taking months to come in..

Then the Lord showed us that we needed to target these items in prayer--specifically, fervently & regularly--so that's exactly what we did. Every day in devotions we claimed these things, then praised for having them already..

Within 2 weeks:

--2 petrol companies agreed to give us 300 litres of petrol a month
--another company gave desks for the kid's school room
--the insurance company that we'd approached & been discussing w/ since 2007, agreed to sponsor 175 of our school kids' fees for 2 terms..so that's for the rest of the year.

We're hooked on this new prayer method. You all should try it too.

IF

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master,
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

--Rudyard Kipling

In that case I think I'm finally growing up..Not quite there yet, tho..Life really is tough at times..exhilaratingly wonderful at others..But it's these extremes & learning to deal w/ them that make us who we are...do u all agree?

(P.S. the 2nd frm the last paragraph, seems to be @ the one I've mastered the most..how do you all fare?)

PMA!

It's official..

I started the PMA (Professional Missionary Academy), 2009 semester this week..

I'm doing the Building A Flock course..

This feels really good, actually...I haven't done any intense college courses in at least 8 years..I did a part-time writing course in 2006, which was good fun..

This year's brought a few new things already...

let's see what else is in store..

TYJ!

Double do!

Here's a few pics from my double B'day party, Sunday b4 last..

These were originally posted on my Facebook account..

I hope you enjoy them!

The project at the orphanage went very well & it felt good to be giving on my B'day for once instead of always expecting to get things for myself...the after party was a simpler event (due to just coming back from the orphanage), but I enjoyed it all the same.


most of us (BA staff & Family Care staff w/ some of the orphanage caretakers & the kids)..





with some of the kiddos..

Blowing out the candles..I know the pic below actually goes 1st..


Everybody singing for me..all I could do was clap along & smile..

.The after-party:

random snap of friends..



celebrate--doesn't it feel good to be pushin' 30?? hmmm...


Chloe decorating the 2nd cake of the day...both cakes were courtesy of Mary, as were the mini pizzas & other snacks served..she made the day as far as food went..


W/ 12 FS students, Amechi & Ekwa