Kisumu Yoder's: Let Go..... Let God.

"One of the happiest moments in life is when you find the courage to let go of what you can't change."

"Happiness is letting go of what you think your life is supposed to look like and celebrating it for everything that it is."

" Faith is having the courage to let God have control."

It's a nice breezy afternoon in Kisumu. We heard a bit of thunder and that always gives us hope that it will rain. But many times it only gets very windy and threatens to rain but the rain doesn't come. I'm glad we're not in control of the weather! We can let go of what we feel we desperately need and let God have His way.

I've been thinking about "letting go." It's such a hard thing to do! Sometimes we need to give up our pride and admit that we need help. Sometimes we need to let go of our hopes and dreams and let God do what He wants. We should always let go of our fears and give them to God. I've also been thinking of "letting go" of our children and giving them "wings" and letting God and others take care of them. I'm discovering it's not an easy thing to do! This past week was a first for Wayne and I as we gave Clarissa "wings" and allowed her to fly almost half way around the world! Around 10 weeks ago Stacy Byler, the dear lady who lives behind our house, asked Clarissa if she would like to fly home with her when she goes for a wedding. They would fly together most of the way but then part ways when they reach America. Wow! Sounds exciting!! After pondering and receiving clearance from the units in Kisumu and Nakuru, as well as permission from the Board, we gave our blessing to Clarissa going with Stacy. We decided this would be a great opportunity to surprise everyone at home.... just walk in on them! :) It felt like it would be a miracle if we could keep it secret because of everyone who already knew about it. It was stressful at times to keep our mouths shut and make sure we didn't "spill the beans." We kept reminding each other to be careful what we say. :) The day FINALLY came! This past Wed., after much excitement and planning they flew from Kisumu to Nairobi and then on across the waters. I was almost as excited as Clarissa I think!! We miss her like crazy but we're SO happy that she has this opportunity! Flights went well and she was met at the airport by my sister Marla and family ( the only ones from home who knew she was coming.) Grampa Yoders from PA knew about it too because we found out that they planned to be in Wytheville for a few days last week and planned to return home the very day that Clarissa arrived, so Rissa phoned them and asked them to PLEASE stay a day longer so she could see them! They seemed happy to oblige! Jeremy and Marla took Clarissa to Vernon and Rosy's house first where she walked in and totally shocked everyone!! Jeremy captured a lot of people's responses on video for us and it's priceless! :) Some cried, some shrieked, some sat stunned and couldn't say anything. It was hilarious! Next stop was at Chet and Gina's house where there was a girls party that night. Imagine their shock... and the shrieks and hugs! Next to Mahlon and Ruth's house. Grampa Benders came there too. Clarissa helped Gramma sit down while she got over the shock. :) This is something we won't forget for a long time and I think its next best to being there ourselves! Bradlyn must be thinking a lot about America today (probably because of Clarissa being there). He was outside playing on top of our van and singing on the top of his lungs... "God bless America, my home sweet home." Oh dear! I wonder what our African neighbors thought! :)

Its been a while since I wrote and I'll try not to bore you with a lot of details. I'll just skim over some of our activities. Wayne had some meetings with natives, another house dedication, Bible study with Lela and later Ahero and such like. One day he went out to the Rabour area to try to find John Awounda. John is a former Bishop of Rabour who is no longer part of the church because of some difficult issues in the past. Wayne would like to build a friendship with him... but John was not at his duka that day. Hopefully John can be restored to the church some day.

A week ago on Fri. Melodie Beiler arrived here. We were so happy to have her here for the weekend. She was a much loved teacher in Wytheville and our girls loved having her here! Joe and Glenda invited us to their house the evening after she arrived. Kore Beachy was here too because of CAM work in the area. That eve. the youth had a lively game of volleyball on the lane. On Saturday Joe organized a book distribution for all the youth on the compound. They went to Lela Primary school and reported a good time. That eve. everyone who wanted to was invited to eat supper at Kiboko Bay. What a LOVELY, relaxing place to be!! There was a lady there who owns a pontoon. Rides are usually expensive but for some reason she offered to give all the youth a short ride... free of charge! That was fun for them!

On Sunday Melodie went with us to Rabour for Church. It was Communion Sunday. We really enjoyed the service. The choir's singing was great and the fellowship was warm. (literally too!) After we ladies washed feet outside under a tree we all marched inside singing as we went. We drowned out the men's singing. People were in high spirits. That eve. we were invited to Joseph and Becky's house where Mark Beachy's visitors were as well. James Gingerich shared words of encouragement with the compound here. We really appreciated them... they were a blessing to us! Lorene Miller was such an inspiration too! We learned to know her back in Belize days when Wayne's family served in Crique Sarco. She is a very skilled nurse with years of experience and one day while she was here she had the privilege of delivering a baby in a hospital close to where Marks live. I'm sure that would never happen in America! You can't just walk into a hospital and have someone introduce you as a nurse and ask if she can help with a delivery! The midwife in charge was very willing for her help and a half hour later Lorene delivered a baby and then also observed another birth. Very special!!

On Monday morning Becky Miller and I were invited to have brunch with Mary Ellen Beachy, Rhonda Gingerich, and Lorene. We had a very nice time sharing and praying together. Thanks for coming and blessing us so much!! Later in the day Stacy took Clarissa and Melodie and I to the Ahero market to do some shopping. While we were there we met Judith and the children. Tony dropped them off there while he went to do some business elsewhere. We brought Judith and Ayla and baby Kaiden back to Kisumu with us and they stayed until Tues. It was special to have them here! It had been a while...

On Friday eve. Josephs and us were invited to Jakes for supper.... a very yummy grilled chicken meal. There was volleyball on the lane afterward. Saturday afternoon we compound ladies got together at Acacia to plan our special Thanksgiving meal that is coming up soon. That was special! I'm privileged to live next door to some wonderful ladies!!

Today we attended church at Kajulu! Wayne preached a good message on "Being Still" and allowing God to speak to us. It goes well with the subject of Letting go and Letting God. Do we take time for the things in life that really matter or are we so busy running, working, and not taking time for God and people. God bless your week! Clara