August 27, 2008

Off to Joni and Friends!

I leave tomorrow morning for Joni and Friends Family Retreat in Alabama. The Family Retreats are for families affected by disability and are a ton of fun I hear! I'll be serving one specific family while I'm there as a partner to a person with disabilities. Not sure who that is yet...

Interestingly enough, Joni - like Eareckson Tada, Joni - called the Knoxville office from California last week and they are sending the media team to do a video highlighting short term missionaries. So they asked if I would be a part of it because I'm new. I said, "Sure!" Little did I know what they really meant! It's not just a small interview like I thought... it will be an hour long reality tv format and I'm the main character! Hmmmmm... should be interesting! It's actually gotten quite comical as we little nobodies communicate with the California office. I've never had a producer call me before! Ha! They'll be there when we pull in until when we pull out. It's called "No nerves!" So I guess I'd better not be nervous. The director said, "Just be yourself." Well, that's all I've got, so I should be okay.

Pray for no rain as we're right in front of Gustav by the end of the weekend. Pray for safety, energy, and a non distracted time of service! I'm very much looking forward to it as I'll be smack in the middle of the group of people I love most, well second to my hubby and kiddos. And pray for them too! Two days is the longest I've been gone from the kids up to this point. The kids will be with Robert and friends, so I'm sure they'll have a great time!

Be praying as well for two little boys in my Special Needs Sunday school class.
Daniel - 3 1/2 - Severe complications from epilepsy have left him non-responsive with little hope of coming out of it. His 21 year old mother is terribly overwhelmed at the thought of parenting him in a vegetative state. He had Cerebral Palsy before this, but this round of seizures have damaged his brain much more than it already was.
Matthew - 7 - He aspirated a cucumber last week and woke up with pneumonia several days later. He has had 5 days of antibiotics and is still fevering. If the cucumber does not dissolve in short order he will have to have surgery to remove it. He also has Cerebral Palsy. Just pray the the Lord will clear his lungs without any further treatment.

Thanks for praying...

2 comments:

mom said...

We'll be praying for you while you're there, and can't wait to hear how it goes! Your partner and his/her family will be blessed to have you involved in their lives.

LY MOM

Matt said...

So how's it going now? Are you having fun on your reality tv show? Sounds really neat...I'm glad they picked you. I hope we can see it sometime.
LY
Matt