Playing in the sun

We haven't been very good at taking pictures the last week or so. Here are a few of the kids enjoying the little water pool outside.

Meeting the Chaffey's

Last weekend, we had an opportunity to meet our friends Tim and Casey Chaffey. We first encountered Tim Chaffey while Darrin was taking a class online with him. Soon after the class started Tim was diagnosed with Leukemia and dropped the class however, I continued to keep up with his progress via his website, midwestapologetics.org. My heart was very heavy for the Chaffey's and thus I prayed for them. One night in particular I couldn't sleep as I was so bothered, saddened and compelled to pray for Tim, Casey and there 2 young children. Despite the fact that I was pregnant with my son and really sleep deprived, the Lord kept me awake for several hours that night. So all I did was cry to the Lord and plead for Tim's health, Casey's comfort and their children's peace. I did this for several hours, which if any of you know me, this is not me! I like my sleep! :) The next day I checked his website and it turned out that the very same night I was kept awake praying for him was one of his hardest nights in ICU. He was struggling to breath and thus struggling to live. He was supposed to breath in 4.5 liters of air but was only able to get about .5 liters. At one point during the night he turned to his wife as he was so tired and needing sleep and said, "If I fall asleep, I won't wake up." It was in those crucial moments that God woke me from sleeping and caused me to pray for him even though I had no idea this was going on. I sent he and his wife an email letting them know I had been praying for them that night. I continued to follow his progress through Chemo, praying for him and his family the whole way through. After he was cleared of cancer, I slowly stopped keeping up with his progress since he was now cancer free! Praise God! A couple of years later, I received and email from him letting me know that he wrote a book titled God and Cancer and had enclosed a copy of my email in his book. I was so touched by the fact that our Lord used me in such a way to impact a family I had never known who lived across the country. I received and read his book. It is truly a remarkable book especially for those who are suffering and questioning God's goodness and the problem of evil. Next thing I new was that the Chaffey's had a trip to California in the works, however they were going to be in the Redwoods many hours away but it turns out in God's perfect planning that the Chaffey's were able to drive down to Southern California and meet us for the first time on the anniversary of the day when he was in ICU and I was kept awake to pray for him! We had such a fantastic time with the Chaffey's and were so blessed to have them with us this weekend. Tim was able to speak briefly at our church this morning and many were blessed by that as well. We were so thankful for all connections our church had with Wisconsin this Sunday too! It certainly was no coincidence! So here are just a few pictures of our time with the Chaffey's! We loved them and can't wait to go visit them in Wisconsin, Lord Willing!

Thank you for a truly remarkable weekend! We had so much fun with you. You two are such a blessing to us and so many others. We are so excited to see what God has in store for your family and ours as we continue to love and serve Him! Lord willing we will be in Wisconsin someday soon!