Summer Adventures

So far this summer our schedule was filled with events and moments to connect.  This video gives you a glimpse of two events.  Jonerik, Joe Darrow and some teens from our church (including two of our own) joined some other leaders in a week long backpacking trip in New Hampshire.  They hiked each day, set up their camp at night and enjoyed beautiful surroundings like natural waterfalls, clean air and spectacular views from the peak of the mountain.  They were challenged in their walks with God and given a unique opportunity to enjoy his creation.

We also recently had our annual block party!  This is a big event that shuts down a section of Frankford Ave. for the afternoon.  We set up a stage, inflatables, food booths, a place for sharing the gospel, games, face painting and we open our playground for the kids. This is a great way to have fun and serve our community.

Our summer isn't over.  Jonerik is actually at Dorney Park right now with teens from Teen Club who earned the rewards trip for good grades this past school year.

He will also be going with some teens for a second time to serve dinner at a homeless shelter at the end of this week.  He is intentional about serving our community with the teens - to help them see beyond themselves and to realize that they can make a difference for others.

Cornerstone Video

This video is almost 15 minutes long.  It's an excellent overview of our neighborhood, our church and the heart behind our ministry.  I encourage you to take the time to watch to the end as it will give you a fuller picture of what God is doing here in our community.

The music was written by Jonerik and sung by Jonerik and Emily during a morning worship service.

Some of my favorite quotes:

"A lot of people think bad about Kensington but its just like any other city, 

there's a lot of good here..."   -Joel

"The people in our neighborhood need to know that there is hope."  -Joel

"Cornerstone is a group of redeemed people... 

Cornerstone is made up of people who have hope." -Jonerik

A Sweet Ride... A Sweet Gift!

Many of you have known of our need for new and/or more transportation for our family.  We have been crunching numbers and window shopping for a while but didn't feel at peace with a direct decision yet.

Last week an acquaintance graciously donated a car to our family! It is a '97 Toyota Camry and while it is "experienced" in life - it is in great condition.  This gives us two cars for the family - meaning we can (legally) all go places together or go separate ways as needed.

While it is not what we had first envisioned we know that this is huge answer to prayer and we trust God's timing and plan for our needs.

31 So don’t worry about these things, saying,‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. 34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.

Matthew 6:31-34

Jonerik and I were also given some great clothes recently.  This seems a little random, but when I put all of this together I feel well-cared for by our Father.  He knows our needs and provides faithfully.

A year and a half later....

Almost immediately after moving into our new home we got pregnant!  "New house, new baby!" is what someone told me.  I think God is just really good at what He does. My pregnancy was tougher than I expected.  I was diagnosed with Hypermesis - aka "morning sickness on steroids".  It mean being consistently nauseous for months, not keeping food down, losing lots of weight and ending up in the ER for hydration.  This was an intense struggle because normal life goes on when you are sick.  I don't think moms are supposed to get sick.... ever.  Jonerik was fantastic in taking over what I couldn't handle, which was just about everything I normally did.  I literally stayed in our bedroom for weeks.  It was summer so we tried to keep the kids busy with church events, camp and other activities.  After a few months my body evened out a little and I cruised through the rest of the pregnancy with the usual ups and downs as a little person changed everything about my insides.

Karis was born on 2/09/14 in the afternoon.  She was a surprise "footling breach" which means she was delivered by emergency C-section.  God was gracious to us and even in the scary moments of realizing everything we expected to happen was not going to happen - He felt present.  As I was being rushed down the hallway for the surgery I remember feeling so helpless.  All of the hard work - laboring for 12 hours with no meds - was something that I could "do".  But when we learned that I would not physically be able to deliver her safely I had to surrender those efforts to a God who creates and sustains life and a medical team that I didn't know.

Today Karis is 7 months and 2 days.  She is so pleasant and beautiful.  She blends into our family so well and while it doesn't equal "simple" or "easy" - it is an amazing process.

A few life changes over the last year:
- We now officially have 3 teenagers!  Our kids are ages (almost) 16, 14, 13, 9, 7 and baby!
- Our oldest is in a charter high school year.
- I am no longer working part time from home for a non-profit - my goals are now focused on the women of our church/neighborhood.
- Jonerik is training for a marathon in November.

Instead of doing communications work for a non-profit I will be working to improve communications for our family!  Support raising is work - it requires time and energy.  We have a vision for what we are doing - and we think the mission is so important that we continue to pursue partners to help make our work possible.

I have a lot of dreams of how to make this possible and how to connect with the people that we care about. Now that the kids are back in school, we'll see how my dreams unfold.

Moving!!

The long awaited announcement....  we are moving!!

God has graciously provided a house that is more than what we asked for and has blessed us with a perfect time to buy.  Another family on staff at Cornerstone is moving into a smaller home in the neighborhood - their 5 children are quickly growing and moving into different phases of life.  They have offered to sell us their home in the price range we were looking for!!  

It is located about two or three blocks away so it is still within walking distance of the church and we will know many of our neighbors.  The home is 3 stories and it has 5 bedrooms...yes....5!  We will probably be using 3 of them as actual bedrooms with a playroom and an office in the others.  There is one full bathroom and 2 half baths.  3 toilets!!  

The plan is to settle and sign papers within a few days and move in about 2 weeks!  As I packed boxes in our apartment today it started to feel more real.  Things are really moving along and this dream is becoming a reality.  We have a group of friends from a supporting church coming that weekend to help with the moving festivities.  

We are thanking God immensely and are grateful for his faithfulness and provision.  We recognize that there will be more work ahead and challenges to face as we make this major transition with the kids, but we know that God is near us and that He is walking with us.  We will be sad to leave our apartment.  While it is small and cramped and there is usually a revolving line for the bathroom at any given time - we have gone through a lot while living here and have experienced many life milestones in 3 short years.  

Please be praying with us that the process and the transitions go smoothly.  Updates and photos to come!

Surprise Wedding!!

We love to celebrate at Cornerstone.  We even coined the phrase "Cornerstone Clap" because people clap and shout about everything that happens.  Right before Valentine's Day we got to celebrate something very special - a SURPRISE WEDDING!

A woman that has been coming to our church for a long time (I posted her poem a while back, a beautiful story of how God redeemed a broken woman) met a man that she fell in love with.  He had yet to commit his life to Christ and while they had a lot in common they had different religious views.  Through various circumstances they came to live together and were trying to live life under the same roof.  As she talked more with him about this God that she loved he became more interested.  He started to come to church and gave his life to Christ.

He learned what baptism was and decided that he wanted to pursue it.  He asked Jonerik if he would baptize him and Jonerik's response was, "not yet".  There were still some things that needed to be dealt with in his life and as they talked this man was convicted.  They realized that they we not putting God first in their lives and living in disobedience to him in their current situation.

They made arrangements to live in separate places while they worked through some premarital counseling.  The church supported their desires to be obedient to God and it was inspiring to see fresh passion to honor God.  On the Sunday before Valentine's Day, one of the pastors at Cornerstone preached about what true love was why marriage was so special to God.  At the end of the service, this couple got married!!  They had a reception for everyone afterwards and a small group from the church surprised them with a night at a hotel in center city!

God cherishes marriage as a sacred covenant - to bring glory to his name.

Here is the church service/wedding.  Skip to 32:00 if you want to get to the wedding!

Celebrations and Rememberances

Since my last post we experienced whirlwinds of celebrating and moments and days of remembering. 

Celebrations!

• Lymarys turned 14 in November!

• We also celebrated Thanksgiving with family, thanking God for his faithfulness and love over the past year. 

• Christmas and Thanksgiving were both celebrated in our home (we borrowed the neighbors house for Thanksgiving this year) and we created some new traditions and memories and we kept some of the old.

• Gigi celebrated her 6th birthday on January 11 and lost her two front teeth right before Christmas!

• The most exciting celebration that we quietly rejoiced over was December 4th.  Jonerik and I received full custody of Limaris' children!  It was a year long process with some obstacles thrown in our way, but God has blessed us with three beautiful children and we couldn't be prouder.  We have maintained good relationships with family (which was a goal in the process) and it is a relief to have things officially set.  Thank you for all of your prayers over this, your encouragement sent through email, cards and in person.  I never imagined God would call us to something so difficult and so beautiful.

So in case you lost count our kids are currently:
Gigi - 6
Damian - about to be 8 in Feb.
Bub - 11
Dante - 12
Lymarys - 14

• We are still in the process of buying a new home.  That will deserve a post of it's own when things get closer and solidified.  Our hope is to move in April!

The holidays proved to be very different this year. It was the first year without our dear sister Limaris and we missed her party planning, life of the party presence. There were moments that we stopped to remember her and how different life is. The grief was still present and was stronger at different times for all of us. We are so grateful for a God who holds and comforts us each step of the way.

Patience

If you typically receive a newsletter from us, I just want to thank you for your patience in this gap of time.  Our newsletter is being finalized and sent to the printer this week.  We will work hard to get it out in the mail as soon as possible.

What to expect:

• Empowering the Unlikely - a story of how God used an unexpected person to do extraordinary things
• Fall Ministries
• School Update
• House Update - spoiler alert - WE FOUND ONE!

Stay tuned to receive a paper copy or the email version.  Please email me at emily.santiago109@gmail.com to add your name to our list if you aren't currently signed up or if you would like to make any changes.

Until then...

Stay Cool!

Fall

September and October have been beautiful and crazy months.  Fall is a favorite season around here and we have loved every bright tree, hot mug of apple cider and pumpkin treat in sight.

Our family having a fun day at a pumpkin patch!!

Some updates of things going on:

- Dante and Bub got baptized several weeks ago!!  There is video, but I won't be able to post it right now.  Instead I will share these with you.

-My (Emily) Sunday School class has started a new study on the book of Romans!  We added a few women to the class and it is exciting to start such a deep book.

-The Food Cupboard that Jonerik and I help organize at CCC is bursting at the seams!  We love distributing the food from the local food bank and because of the rapidly growing numbers we have had to re-evaluate how to best serve our neighborhood.  Some changes have been made to focus our audience and those receiving food.  We are still distributing food every week (except the first Thurs.) to hungry families around us and cultivating relationship with those who come.

-The kids are receiving a steady diet of scripture and godly songs at school and we are all benefitting from that.  Watching them remember a verse to apply to a routine situation is an amazing blessing because that is what the Word of God is for!!

Hurricane Update:
Sandy's path was headed straight for Philly but the effects of the hurricane impacted other areas stronger than us.  We had heavy winds, rain and some thunder/lightning but our power is still on and we didn't have damage of any kind.  We praise God for his protection and pray for others who are wading through difficult aftermath.

Back to School

I can hardly believe I am about to write the following words.  Never, let me repeat that, NEVER did I expect God to bless our family in such a huge way in such a short time.  In our women's Bible study about a year ago we were doing a Beth Moore study and one of the themes was "Expect the Unexpected".  So here it is...

Last year when we took on the bulk of the kid's educational needs as they were all living with us for the majority of the time, we were shuffling 4 different schools in our neighborhood.  Different start/end times, different locations, different administrations, different uniforms.  We found a rhythm and it worked, but we desired to simplify the process as soon as it would be possible.

In our involvement and close observation of the public schools around us over the past two years we discovered a lot of the heart breaking things you are probably hearing in the news off and on.  A lack of funding for extra-curricular activities, teachers stretched to their limit, important staff being laid off (like the fantastic social worker that helped Dante last year).  The teachers we interacted with were great, but we started to learn that the kids were not getting all the education we thought they were.  Our fourth grader didn't know how to read or write in cursive, our oldest was not prepared enough to flourish in PA Cyber.  We had enrolled the oldest in PA Cyber instead of sending her to the local public middle school again and she enjoyed it and passed, but it was not a good fit for her and we knew we couldn't do it again this year.

When we realized that 3 of our kids would be in public middle schools next year (yikes!) we started researching charter schools and filling out lots and lots of applications all with different deadlines and paperwork needed.  We sat through the lotteries, feeling helpless and quite pitiful as our children we reduced to a random number spinning in a wheel at the front of the room...and the disappointment as we left with not even a chance.

One of our co-workers at Cornerstone suggested that we look at the Christian school that their kids go to and my first thought was, that sounds nice, but there is no way we can afford that.  But after our other options thinned out, we started to research how much it would cost to send the older kids.

To make a much longer story, short, we figured out we could squeeze things enough to send 4 out of the 5 kids to Cedar Grove Christian Academy!  After the financial aid lady rolled her eyes at me several times going through our information and calculating all the possible options, we were sold.  The middle child had been accepted to a magnet middle school down the street from us and we thought we would try that for him because 5 would have stretched us too far.

[Let me just insert here - that after they were tested to get into Cedar Grove and we saw their education levels (the older 3) based on a national average, I was appalled at where our public schools left them.  Further affirmation that they need more support than they were getting and that we can offer them at home.]

A few days before school started on Sept. 6th we were talking with some friends of ours about this whole process.  They came back to us soon after and said, "We have prayed about it, and we really feel like the Lord wants us to pay for your 5th child to go to Cedar Grove as well." *tears*  He wanted to go to Cedar Grove so badly and participate in all the sports and extra stuff going on and now he could! There was room in his class - he tested - and was accepted into the school hours before the first day would begin.

So to summarize - all 5 of our kids are going to Cedar Grove Christian Academy.  The same place.  The same times.  The same administration.  The same uniforms.  Thank you Jesus!  The kids are in grades: Kindergarten, 2nd, 5th, 6th, and 7th.

There are still hurdles to jump over, sacrifices to be made, and huge adjustments for the kids academically as they begin the year but the excitement and joy of solid, Christian education outweighs the struggle for us all.

Summer 2012

In my return to our blog and my assessment of past blogs I just discovered there were a few posts that started off great but landed in my "drafts" file and never got published, oh dear.  Yes they covered a span of a few months.  How do I write about everything that I've missed and all that is going on now??  To catch you up to speed on the basics of our summer:

Ministry-

• Cornerstone Block Party (see previous post)

• 3 VBS' were hosted through different groups

• Food Cupboard continued as usual

• We took 15 kids to camp at Victory Valley Camp - including 3 of our kids

• Jonerik preached two Sundays in July

• We met with some people to discuss the possibility of a neighborhood, faith based legal clinic in our neighborhood

• Church picnic

• Church swim party

• Cornerstone Staff Retreat - 3 days at Camp Men-O-Lan

Family - 

• Family vacation for a week

• Swimming at various places

• Library trips

• Lots of picnics!

• Older kids went to camp for a week

• Jonerik and I got away for a couple of days for a VERY belated anniversary trip

I know I am missing some things, but you get the picture.  We have been spinning through the summer balancing a fairly new family structure and a running ministry that is thriving and challenging at the same time.  Joy and grief punctuate our routines as we are all learning to live a new way.  

Sometimes I wonder what genre of TV our lives would be.  Most days would probably be viewed as a crazy sitcom.  I mean, really, its the perfect set up for humor - 5 goofy kids who love to mess around in a small space, in a crazy neighborhood.  Other days - that would give the Hallmark Channel a run for their money - are filled with sentiment and reminders of the grief that we are all still wading through.  Still others would fall under the Drama category as each week brings crazy ups and downs due to the fact that we are working with other family members to raise these children and our ministry includes interacting with complex lives.

Most things can't be shared on a public site but one thing can be known for sure - God has been faithful to our family this summer (and all along).  How has He been faithful?  Again I can't list every way we have seen His hand move, but we have seen Him provide work for Jonerik and Emily both (I work part-time from home for a great non-profit), we have been surprised by people offering ways to spend our summer days and we have been given some days of true refreshment.

Am I just saying that to sound more "Christiany"? Not in the least!  Yes my husband is a "pastor" and we are "missionaries", but that doesn't mean we don't wonder what God is doing (or not doing) at times.  We do not have what we need inside of us, that is proven again and again.  We don't have the patience that is required, we certainly don't have the knowledge that we need on a regular basis, and we have no experience in shepherding children's hearts in such intense circumstances.  We are brought to our knees and each day we depend on the Holy Spirit to walk through these things with us.

“The Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; he will be with you.  He will not fail you or forsake you.  Do not fear or be dismayed.”  Deuteronomy 31:8

   

Block Party!

Our church has an annual block party (which took place earlier this summer) that takes up a couple blocks on Frankford Ave.  Traffic is re-routed, a stage (big truck bed) is brought in, inflatables are filled and food is made.  This video is a little long, but it gives a great glimpse into the huge undertaking that this is and the great time we have with lots of friends, family and neighbors!!

Jonerik and I led worship with our brother Frankie on the drums.  At three different points throughout the afternoon we got up and sang some songs, a few others that have started a Christian rap group sang, and then the gospel was presented by a couple of people.  A while back, Jonerik had a dream that a man in our church named Mingo would get up and speak the gospel.  He shared this with Mingo and we saw that the Spirit was working and moving in his heart to bring this to be.  Mingo got up three times at the block party and shared about Jesus Christ in Spanish!

Each year there is a forecast for possible rain showers and thunderstorms.  Each year we pray hard that the Lord would show us His favor.  Last year the storms were scheduled to start at 6:00 PM and as that time approached the sun broke through the clouds instead of rain.  This year the weather was hot, but it was beautiful and lots of people came out to join the party!

Lots of great things happening this summer!

Extreme Room Makeover!

This past week we changed our 2 bedroom apartment into a 3 bedroom apartment!  Amazing!

Last weekend, the Jr. High youth group from Sunbury Bible Church came to our house and church to serve for part of the weekend.  They were able to help us switch all the furniture from our bedroom to the back room and the from the kids bedroom to the front room!

Then on Thursday, our neighbor/"landlord"/friend started the renovations to split the big front bedroom.  Jonerik, Frank, and two other guys from our church worked really hard all day and got the project completed by the end of the day (paint included!!).  We let the kids pick out the paint colors for their accent walls and I occupied the kids while the men worked.


Before:

The Finished Product!

Boys Room

Girl's Room

It's hard to describe how amazing this is.  But it's a big step for our family and helping the kids feel like they have a place where they belong.  A place of their own.  Someone recently told me that it sounded like I was "nesting" in a sense.  And I think that is true.  It feels so good to help get them settled and find fun decorations that fit each of them.

It has been an incredibly busy week/weekend, but it is all worth it!  To top off the weekend, Jonerik and I ran the Broad St. Run this morning!!  We had a great time and the weather was perfect.  When we saw the kids later in the day the first thing Damian said to me was... "Did you beat?"  Haha!  I don't think they understand how long 10 miles is and how big this race is, but it was too cute.  It felt so good to accomplish something that big (again) and to do it with friends.

Beautiful Weather

Last year, our neighbors had a group of people help them lay some concrete in the back yard.  We didn't get much of a chance to use it due to it going in at the end of the summer, but now that the weather is warming up the kids are loving it!  After dinner is cleaned up the kids will go out and stay out till dark. Thank you daylight savings time!  Yes we have lots of scrapes and some tears from time to time, but mostly it is all giggles, laughter, and squeals.

Another simple thing that has changed our routine and brightened our evenings has been....chores!!!  I waited for a while before getting the kids used to doing "chores" because I didn't have a system in place and thought I would eventually get around to doing a cute chart or board.  But that has proved to be low on the priority list.

And then one day I remembered the beautiful invention of sticky notes!!

...and we're back!

During these past two months we have taken a "guilt-free" break from blogging.  We stepped back and spent our time and energy on our family.  Lots of prayer, paperwork, reading, crying, hugging, loving and laughing.  Yesterday was the 2 month mark of Gugy's passing and it still seems so surreal.  She was the kind of woman who always left a smile on your face and an imprint on your heart.  She had a beautiful way of finding common ground with everyone and many people are missing her today.

Gugy loved her children with all that was in her (just under her love for Jesus) and I can't blame her one bit.  These kids are so great to have around.  We are honored and consider it such a precious gift that she asked us to care for them.  We are all still adjusting to...well...not-adjusting like we had been doing for so long.  God has led us and prepared us over time and as I sit here and think about last year at this time, I can honestly say that God has stretched and grown us in so many ways.

So, what have we been up to?

God has blessed us with some really fun opportunities recently.  We bought a membership to the Adventure Aquarium for the family because of a great deal online.  We also got a great deal through the same website to visit the Please Touch Museum for a day.  We were given a zoo membership for Christmas but haven't gotten there yet.  We have gone outside on beautiful days to walk across the Ben Franklin bridge, play capture the flag at the Art Museum steps and we were given some tickets to the circus to take Damian in celebration of his 7th birthday last week.  (Wow...I am just now realizing how busy we really have been!)

 

We also realize that many precious memories we hang on to 

are found in the small moments of ordinary days.

We still have a lot of work to do to get settled legally with some things and to get the kids all the help they need, but we have seen progress which helps us keep moving forward.  Each new day brings new and different challenges and joys.  We are so grateful for a supportive group of friends and family around us.  

So - you have been reading our blog for some time as the progression of our journey as a couple.  Now we invite you to jump on the "crazy train" and hold on tight as our adventures continue.  

We have hope.

The dust is settling.


The whirlwind of activity that the holidays brought, the loss of our sister carried in, and the very loved and welcomed visitors shared is now over.


School started again.  Ministry is still on break in part, but we are back to work.  Some things feel exactly like they did before Christmas.  Other things feel so completely strange and different.  


God continues to be sweet to us in the whole process.


We are starting to embrace our new roles sometimes gracefully and other times with more of an intentional effort.  


I read this verse in our Bible study this week and it has stuck with me:


But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.   
-1 Thes. 4:13-14


So we grieve - in hope and expectation.

Saying Goodbye

It is still hard to take in the reality of the things taking place.  On Tuesday, Dec. 27 Limaris Santiago went to be with her Savior, Healer and closest Friend.  She passed away around 4:10 as we were all at the hospital.  

We grieve the monumental loss that we are left with - a warm and caring sister, a fun-loving and humorous friend, and a hard-working, patient and ever-loving mother to three beautiful children.  Her children are taking it in slowly and in different ways due to their ages.  I think we have a long road of healing ahead, but we are confident that the same Jesus that is holding Limaris now is the same Jesus that will be near each one of these children as they grow. 

As we grieve our loss, it is true that we are also rejoicing that she is cancer free now and that she is feeling no pain, no sickness, no pic-lines, no fatigue.  She is finally face to face with her Creator, who she worships and loves.  She had full faith that this Jesus came to rescue her from her sins and that through grace he forgave her and adopted her into His family.  She is at her true home now.

Our family is overwhelmed by the love and support that has been shown to us from many different people.  We are grateful for all of your prayers.

There will be a viewing and celebration service for her.  Here are the details:

The viewing will take place at 10:00 am 

and the celebration service will be at 11:00 am

Friday, December 30

Cornerstone Community Church 

3167 Frankford Ave

Phila, PA 19134

 

Birthday Visit

Last night we got to celebrate Limaris' birthday with her in the hospital!  She had asked for chocolate cake with chocolate icing, and while she couldn't eat it - I know she was happy the kids got to enjoy it!

Jonerik brought his guitar and worshipped with her for a little while.

Our visit with her was brief but it was full of smiles and fun.  Limaris used Carlos (the cute pig above) to wave and do a little dance.  The kids loved it.

My parents are in town and staying with us right now at the our friends home (downstairs/next door).  We are making Christmas memories by singing and dancing to Christmas music, wrapping presents and making Christmas cookies.  Despite our heavy hearts, there is a spirit of excitement in the air that the children bring and it is a joy to help them laugh and smile.

We are trying to make Christmas as normal as possible for them and to make some new positive memories in the mix.  

Limaris' birthday

Today Limaris turns 29. 

Last night Jonerik and I stayed with her at the hospital overnight while my parents stayed with the kids at our house.  We did get some sleep and were grateful to be there as doctors came around and when she was awake and aware of our presence.  We had taken our ipod and a deck in so she could have some music playing.

Today Limaris is about the same - healthwise.  We were hoping and needing to see some major improvement today to move forward and while she is not getting any worse...she is also not getting better.  The pneumonia is still a problem - and they are almost certain that the cancer that had recently moved into her atrium (the muscle of the heart, not just the tissue where it started) is now affecting the lungs.  She is sedated because of the tube down her throat but she comes in and out and sometimes is able to write, motion, or mouth what she is thinking.

Because today is her birthday and Christmas is on Sunday, we are putting all conversations about next steps on hold until Monday afternoon.  We have a plan, but we are praying that God makes things unmistakably clear and she is able to tell us exactly what she wants to happen. 

We have seen in undeniable ways that God has prepared us for many life events in the past and we pray that this circumstance will follow that pattern as well. We already see God moving in our own lives, our family, and in the friendships that have been made prior to these struggles that are encouraging and supportive. 

This situation is not all about us.  It is so vast and widespread.  Limaris is deeply loved by so many people and because she is such a giving, caring woman of God this is hard for so many.  And ultimately it is about God and bringing glory to His name.  Yes we have moments of asking Him hard questions, pleading and wrestling over and over with Him.  That is part of what it means to have a personal relationship with an infinite God that we don't understand completely.  But in the end we know that His will is what we surrender too and that He is a good God that loves His children more than we ever could.

Please continue to pray for God to move in miraculous ways.  Pray for her precious children who have a difficult road ahead.  Pray that we will have wisdom that can only come from the Holy Spirit.  That His peace, that surpasses all understanding, will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:7)  We have felt His presence over the past week.

Limaris is still loving Jesus and knows that her peace comes from Him. 

Thank you again for your prayers, your love, and your support.

Check back in...

This update will be brief because it is from my (Emilys) phone.

As of today Limaris' health has not changed drastically. She is still strong in spirit and her heart is full of love.

The initial plan was to re-evaluate next steps on Friday. This has now been shifted to Monday. Her birthday is tomorrow and with Christmas on Sunday she has asked that we keep this phase going until Monday. We are all peaceful in that decision.

I will let you know more as we go along these next couple of days.

We brought all the kids for a visit last night and it went as well as it could have gone. A social worker helped us out and that was great.

She knows that lots of people are praying for her.