Happy Reunions and Happy Smiles

Alyssa (and Rachel) Returns
January 21st was a happy day for all of us here as Alyssa returned from 6 weeks in the States and along with her friend who volunteered for a few months here last year, Rachel Villafone.
The smile on the faces of the children and housemothers was priceless as they ran up to hug and great them with wild abandon.  One thing that the villagers here know is that life is precious and that when  someone leaves (even if just for a short time) it is never guaranteed that they will return, even with the best intent.  This makes their joy and the welcome all the more real when they do.  It’s always a time for celebration and is amazing to witness, never getting old.
Unfortunately neither had much time for rest with less than 2 weeks before school opening to get the preschool ready for the 2013 year.  It was all hands on deck and there was lots of cleaning, painting, building of furniture, fixing doors, hanging shelves, and organizing to be done but God answered Alyssa’s prayers to hold off   on rain during the day and we actually had our first week of sunshine since the rainy season really started.  After many long hours of work (and many late at night or early in the morning) the school was ready and it was well worth it.  There were many happy kids at school on opening day. /
P.S.  True to God’s nature – after the week of sunshine that Alyssa prayed for the heavens opened once again and have barely stopped : )
Children’s Christmas Blessing
Thanks to the Dutch Reformed Church of Livingstone, our children at the children’s home were blessed with Christmas gifts again this year.   Since the presents only arrived in January, no one was expecting them and so the kids were even more surprised and excited.  The older children loved their different gifts of backpacks, school supplies, umbrellas, face cloths and body spray and the younger children and toddler loved the toys that they received.  Thank you DRC of Livingstone for all of your practical help over the years and for bringing such joy to the lives of these precious children.
For more pictures of the children receiving their present please visit  https://picasaweb.google.com/missionoflovezambia/DRCLivingstoneChristmasGiftsJan201302
The Joubert Family
Our family is doing well and both Jakob and Jeremiah are growing like weeds.  Jakob loves playing in the dirt and the mud of the rainy season and playing with all of his friends at the children’s home and Jeremiah is now walking and wants to do everything that his older brother is doing.  They are loving life in the bush and we are so happy for God’s watch care and protection over both of them.  On a personal note if anyone wants to see some fun current pictures of them you can visit https://picasaweb.google.com/missionoflovezambia/BoysFunInTheMudFeb2013
We were blessed with a visit from Jako’s mother over Christmas and cherished every moment that we got to spend together.  The boys especially loved all of her hugs and special attention and we enjoyed getting to make new traditions of our own for our first Christmas here in Zambia.
And then in January we were blessed with a visit from Pastor Harry Davies from a Church in Centurion, South Africa.  This was the English speaking church that Jako and I attended after we got married and Pastor Harry is the pastor that did the baby dedication of both of our boys.  Despite all of their dedicated prayers, support, and encouragement over the years, this is the first time that anyone from the congregation has been able to visit.  It was such a blessing to be able to show him the ministry here in person and all that things he had only heard about or seen in pictures previously.  He was a great encouragement to us as a couple, family, missionaries, and fellow workers for the Kingdom.  Thank you Pastor Harry for taking time out of your busy schedule to come and check in on us and for all that you and the church have done for us over the years.  We are blessed and so grateful to God for providing for us and allowing us to be here.