When I was a kid, we always used to go and pick out our fresh Christmas tree and cut it down.  I’m pretty sure I didn’t do much of the cutting but it sure seemed like I did.  We’d get the tree home and Dad would set it up and get the lights put on it. But we were never allowed to turn the lights on until the whole tree was decorated.  Plugging in the lights was the final event to the decorating day.  We would all put the ornaments on together – while remembering the previous decorating year.  Then we had the countdown.  All 6 dogs would be included – everyone sitting together around the tree.  We’d count backwards from 10 and then Dad would plug in the lights.  Ahhhhhh.  Ooooohhh.  It really was spectacular.

One tradition I loved took place with my Grandma.  Every year she would give me a box of chocolate covered cherries and at some point, I started giving her a box as well.  Wrapped.  Under the tree.  She also got me a Guideposts subscription which I loved.  But I loved those cherries.  Too much.  Wonder why I didn’t get sick on them like I did the Butterfingers.  (That’s another story but I’ll just say that after we shared of 6-pack of giant sized Butterfingers during a night of Bingo I cannot eat them til today.)

The cherries come out in the stores at Christmastime.  But I live in Niger.  I can assure you that store bought CCC will not be found here.  One summer while I was in the US I was browsing through a Minnesota Cookbook.  You’ll not believe the recipe that caught my eye.  Yep – CCC.  I of course bought the book.  Back in Niger, the next challenge was going to be to get the maraschino cherries.  Not to worry.  We have visitors that come throughout the year, and if I can be organized enough I can ask them to bring me cherries.  I am happy to say that for at least the past 10 years I have had maraschino cherries straight from the US.  Making the cherries is pretty simple once you get the ‘feel’ for it.  The filling is simply powdered sugar, butter and cream or milk.  I add some cherry juice for some of the milk, as well as some almond extract if I have it.

This is something the kids have always helped me with.  This year I only had one kid to help.  But I have to say that he did amazingly well.  Hung with it to the end.  Here he is now.  Mixing the filling and enjoying it!

Next come the cherries.  This takes concentration.

One must watch Tobi very closely….

 Or the cherry could be missing.

But sometimes a little motivation is required.

Next comes the chocolate.  I know.  But someone’s gotta do it.

The finished product.

I believe I’ll go have one right now (yep, we still have a few left!)

 How’s that for a tradition?  Thanks Grama!!

The new cross was completed almost a week ago, but I haven’t had a chance to post it until now.  What a site it is to see.  God is good and He is faithful!

BEFORE…

AFTER

The cross will never lose it’s power.  Isn’t that beautiful?

Isn’t that what comes to mind when you look at this picture?  I’ve been missing Tanika and thinking a lot about her, so I decided to write about her.  That’s one of the areas we’re similar.  We both like to write when we feel emotional – good emotions or bad ones.  This is a girl that still writes and sends snail mail.  So if you need a real pen pal, get in touch with her.

I’m sure I’ve shared before in this blog the testimony of Tanika’s life.  She was born at 24 week s – 1 pound, 7 ounces.  The docs gave her a 20% chance of survival but warned us that if she lived, she would have cerebral palsy, and if she ever attended school, it would be in a wheelchair with an oxygen tank.  That’s ‘if’ she lived.  We knew what God’s Word said about our children being blessed, and that report didn’t sound blessed, so we began believing God for her to be completely restored to health – the way God created us.  Whose report are you going to believe?  We shall believe the report of the Lord!

Here’s Tanika when she was 8 months old.

Jump ahead 19 years.  God gave us our miracle.  She is alive and very well.  It’s not been without many battles.  I could write  volumes.  But God continues to give us victory.  To give her victory.

One of the things that Tanika continues to believe God for is the complete restoration of her sight.  Because of the prematurity, she had a detached retina among other eye issues.    Her visual issues are not noticeable unless you are around her for a length of time, or you see her reading or watching TV.  She has adapted amazingly well, even though she is considered legally blind.  She’s always been told she won’t be able to drive.  Before she left for college, her dad gave her a driving lesson.  When she had her eye appointment this past August, her doctor told her that she should talk with him about some specific eye tests if she was interested in driving.  That may not sound like a big deal – but it really is.  Because when we were told she wouldn’t drive, we were also told that there was nothing more that could be done medically for her situation.  Only that it needed to be checked regularly be make sure things didn’t worsen.  So a report that driving is even a remote possibility – well, that’s a miracle.

We know Tanika believes as the Bible says that first, faith is now.  It is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen.  Tanika is hoping for her vision to be restored, even though we have not seen that with our physical eyes.  Yet. She also knows that faith without works is dead.  Well, let no one ever accuse Tanika of not taking steps of faith.  Here is the latest one.

Making friends for Tanika has never been difficult.  I remember a birthday party here in Niger – I think it was her 7th.  We had invited a group of kids for her party and planned food/cake/gifts accordingly.  We weren’t surprised when children kept coming to our gate, wanting to come in.  We were surprised that our guard was allowing them in.  We finally told him he had to stop letting kids in.  He then told us that the children were all showing up, dressed in their best, and came because Tanika invited them.  Indeed she had.  I think a good percentage of the Maradi children were at her party that year.  But I digress…  Back to her latest step of faith.

Was I surprised when Tanika, (who is now a freshman at Oral Roberts University),  told me about helping her new blind friend run her 2 mile field test?  No.  It was then that she told me about Sarah.  Sarah was born prematurely like Tanika, and had the same eye condition, but it left her completely blind.  Tanika told me that she likes being around Sarah because she’s fun, but she doesn’t feel sorry for her at all.  (I believe candor is one of the words I used to describe Tanika).   Here they are together.

Here’s the amazing, hilarious, fantastic part of the story.  And Tanika, you can correct me if I don’t have all the facts right.  Sarah’s parents have provided her with a golf cart to get around on campus.  Of course she would need a driver.  Well guess who Sarah’s driver is on Thursdays.  Do we need a drum roll?  None other than Miss ‘you’ll never drive’ Tanika Childs.  I’m totally serious.  I don’t think Tanika even realized the significance of her being the designated driver.    She didn’t write or call and say “Hey Mom.  Guess what!?  I’m driving a golf cart for my blind friend!”  In other words, I don’t think she saw it as that significant of a thing.  Does she really realize what a step of faith this is?  But however the opportunity presented itself, I’m also sure she didn’t say, “Well, I can’t see very well myself, so I’m sorry, but I’ll have to pass”. Maybe she did realize it was a step of faith…I suspect that she never even considered the irony of her driving around a blind young lady.  The way I found out about it was really funny though.  Tanika wrote an email telling me that she was having a frustrating day.  One of the frustrations was that while she was driving the golf cart – on her way to pick up Sarah I believe,  she got stuck.  I’m sorry Tanika, but at that point, I was already laughing.  I know the ORU Campus and Tanika is one of the few that could get a golf cart stuck on a sidewalk.  Thanks so much for the belly laugh!!!  She called security for help, but that took some time.  I can’t remember how she resolved the situation, but we were laughing crocodile tears when she finally told us that it ended up that it wasn’t really stuck, but was in neutral so she couldn’t get it to go.  But a little grace here…how could she, an inexperienced driver, know what neutral was?  What a girl!  What a faith-filled girl.  I think of a song I knew from years ago…

“Faith without works like a song you can’t sing,
It’s about as useless as a screen door on a submarine…”

Now I’m in Maradi – we’re here for an evangelistic outreach/crusade that is happening next week.  We lived in this city for 9 years so Trae and Tanika really ‘grew up’ here.  Did I mention Tanika makes friends easy?  I’ve been around the town since I’ve been here – to several places.  In every place I’ve gone, without fail, people have asked me about Tanika.  I reply  ”Oh!  Ku san Tanika?”  (You know Tanika?)  They say, “Mu san ta sosai.  Kai, tana da Hausa kwarai – fiyyada ki.”  (We know her so well.  She has very strong Hausa.  Better than you.”) Thanks.

Tanika, you have made your mark.  You make your mark wherever you go.  And the mark you will make is so much greater than anything you can even imagine.  Because the Lord has chosen you and called you for a purpose.  His purpose.  I love you.

We’re in Maradi for a citywide evangelistic crusade. Nothing like this has ever been done here – so we’re quite excited about it. It’s being called ‘Festival of Life’. I’ll write more on that soon.

Maradi is very close to our hearts because this is where we cut our teeth on the mission field. We have lots of relationships here.   Usually when we’re here we’re hosting a mission team and of course they are the ones that do the ministering. So it was a treat for Neal to preach in the Maradi church yesterday.

Neal preaching in Maradi Church

Still preaching

His message was about 'Proving the will of God'

In the above picture he is ‘proving’ that the stool will hold him.  It’s one thing to know it, but another thing to prove it.  And to do that, we can’t be afraid.  We should be strong and courageous, according to Joshua 1:9 (and many other places).  But I’m getting off the point of this blog…

On Saturday evening we were at the church for a meeting with the pastors regarding the above mentioned festival.  When we were leaving, I commented to Neal about the cross at the top of the church.  It was in bad shape.  Not a huge surprise since it has been there for over 10 years.  But it needed to be replaced.  Neal agreed and said that he had just talked to Pastor Yahaya about it.  Good.

The cross in need of repair

The old rugged cross?

Sunday morning.  Pastor Yahaya gave an incredible testimony.  He said that he had been planning on talking to Pastor Neal about the cross when he got there but Neal beat him to it.  (by ‘talking about it’ that meant that he wanted to ask for our help to replace it).  That morning he was in the church at 8:30, praying before the service.  He said a chinese man walked into the church and put 1000 cfa (about $2) into the offering.  (No, this isn’t a normal occurrence) Pastor Yahaya tried to talk with him but the chinese man spoke only English (well, and I suppose Chinese), and P. Yahaya speaks only Hausa and French.  So they smiled and nodded.  The man began to leave.  He walked out of the church and then walked around the outside of it.  He looked up and noticed the disheveled cross.  He tried to speak to P. Yahaya about it.  They found someone else on the compound that spoke some broken English and he helped to ‘translate’.  The chinese man wanted to know how much it would take to replace the cross.  Pastor Yahaya told him 40,000 cfa (just under $100).  The man pulled out a hundred dollar bill and handed it to Pastor Yahaya.  He gave  him an email address and told him to replace the cross and let him know when it was done.  Wow!  That may not seem like a huge thing to some, but 40,000 cfa is a respectable monthly salary around here.

And that’s not all!!  As a ministry, our churches have given their tithe (10% of the church income) and it is put in a general fund and used for various needs people have.  A year ago, the decision was made for the tithe of this ministry to be given to another ministry – outside of Niger.  We needed to sow some seed.  So we collected the tithes for the first 6 months of this year and we sent them to Mission China – a mission that is doing church planting and discipleship in China.  Yep.  China!  Now that’s  just a cool miracle of provision!!  It’s so much fun to witness God’s faithfulness.     And that is just the beginning.

The church will soon be displaying a new cross - shining the light of Jesus for all who pass by!!

Pastor Yahaya was planning to get a carpenter working on the cross right away.  I’ll post picture of the finished product when it’s done.

We came home this morning from the closing service of our 4th discipleship school module this year.  Tobi was with us there.  We decided to do musical beds and arrange our guest rooms to better accommodate the units of guests that are coming.  Tobi helped with that then shouted out – Mom, I’m going to ride my bike’.  To be honest, I didn’t think about him until he was back about an hour later.  He came into my room and said, “Hi Mom”.  I just love hearing that.  I asked what he’d been doing (remember, I forgot he was riding his bike).  That’s all the encouragement he needed – He sat down and started talking.  I was busy doing something but realized that this was a rare ‘chatty moment’ that I needed to take advantage of.  He had my undivided attention.

Tobi:  I was riding my bike and I made a new friend.  His name is Habibu.
Me:  Really?  Where?
Tobi:  Down by the main road.
Me:  A kid?
Tobi:  No, a grown man.
Me:  What language were you speaking?
Tobi:  Well, first we used English, then French, then I asked if he spoke Hausa and he did, so that’s how we talked.
At this point, I could tell Tobi still wanted to talk about the conversation, but needed a bit of prompting.
Me:  What did you all talk about?
Tobi:  I asked him if he goes to church.
Me:  What did he say?
Tobi:  He said he doesn’t go to church.  I asked him if he knew Jesus died on the cross for our sins.  I told him that Jesus is going to come back and take the Christians to heaven with him.
Me:  What did he  say?
Tobi:  I couldn’t believe what he said.  He said that he believes that Jesus will come, but when he gets here on the earth, he’ll become a Muslim and will get married.  Can you believe he thinks that?  How can he think that?!
Me:  Because that’s what he’s been taught.  You should invite him to church.
Tobi:  Oh, I did.  I told him where our 2 churches are.  I also told about Pastor Nelson’s church.  He asked if he could come with us sometime.  I told him I’d come and visit him again tomorrow.  Is that OK?

From there we began talking about how his conversation with Habibu was seeds planted, and now we needed to pray for him so that those seeds grow.  He then told me that it wasn’t just Habibu – that there was a whole group of men there in on the conversation.  I don’t know if you can picture this, but it would look something like this:  A group of African men sitting under a tree.  Some maybe on a bench, some on the ground.  It’s 100+ degrees.  Life is going on around them.  Taxis, donkey carts, children playing, women cooking/selling their fried bean cakes, maybe a camel or two go by.  Possibly a herd of cattle.  They’ll be chatting about various things, probably news and politics.  A white boy rides by on his bike.  One of them greets Tobi.  Tobi stops and starts talking with them.  The men are loving that this white kid speaks Hausa so they are likely trying to engage him in conversation as much as they can, just to hear him.  He is proving to be entertaining.  I’m sure they had no idea what he was going to start talking about!  Nor did they have any idea that it was God that arranged that meeting today!

Anyway, Tobi and I began talking about how important it was to be following the leading of the Holy Spirit.   I reminded him about what Grampa talked about that morning at the school – in his class on the Holy Spirit he talked about all the names (jobs) the Holy Spirit has and how He leads us.  I told him that I believed that he was listening to the Holy Spirit when he witnessed to these guys.  Which then led to a discussion about hearing from God.  He asked me if God sounds different to different people.  I said I thought so.  But often it’s just a thought that we have -and we know it’s not our own thought – but something that God gave us.
Tobi:  Yeah, that’s how God talks to me.
Me:  What has God said to you lately.
Tobi:  Well, the other day he told me to tell Ezy to look in his desk for his lost spelling book.  He had already looked there but I know God told me to tell him to look there again.  He did, and there it was.
Me:  Did you tell Ezy that?
Tobi: Well, I told him after he found it that God told me to tell him to look there.
Me:   What did Ezy say?
Tobi:  He just said, “Ahhhhh”.

This then led to a discussion about what God looks like…

Tobi:  What does God look like to you?
Me:  Hmmm.  (hesitation here, because I’m not really sure what I think God looks like)  I’m not sure.
Tobi:  What??!?!  You don’t think about it?!  Well, I kind of see God as a big shiny bird.  He has wings.  He doesn’t have a beak though.  He just glitters and has shiny eyes and He’s as big as the world.

At this point I’m working really hard at not laughing, while at the same time wondering where in the world this boy came up with his picture of God.  Then we started talking about heaven.  Tobi has always had lots of questions about heaven.  I remember they started about 5 years ago when his friend Obed went to be with Jesus.   He had some really hard heaven questions then.  It makes me realize I know so little about heaven.  Tobi said he thinks about it a lot and can’t wait to go there.  He wants to see Jesus.  He said he wants  to see people from the Bible. ‘ I want to see Abraham and Peter and Jonah.  Oh, and Noah.   I would ask them questions’.  He actually started to get on the verge of tears when talking about it.  He said he thinks its going to be fun because we’ll have our houses.  Then he said that he thought Jesus would probably invent something even better than TV’s.  I’ve said it before – it doesn’t take much to impress this guy!

While we were talking, Hamisu, the man who is building our new church in Tamou came over with the tile samples.  Hamisu is a really good guy.  He’s a Muslim.  Neal has had quite a few conversations with him – shared the Gospel on many occasions.  He recently gave him a Bible.   Tobi and I went out to look at the tile.  Hamisu suggested one, but I chose a different one.  He asked why.  I said because it’s brighter.  Then I saw my opportunity so I mentioned that we are bright because Jesus lives in us.  He is the light.  We chatted a bit about it, then Tobi jumps into the conversation.  ”You can be good, but you can’t go to heaven unless you accept Jesus Christ”.  I think this shocked Hamisu and he just started laughing and calling Tobi “Little Pastor”.  Tobi walked him out when he left and I heard him all the way to the gate saying “Little Pastor”.

What’s interesting about all this is that at church just this morning I was praying for Tobi.  He was sitting across the room during the worship time and I was watching him.  I was thinking how I wanted to talk to Neal about how I felt that we should really focus our prayers for Tobi on God visiting him and making Himslef real in his life.  I was thinking about how Trae and Tanika both had to ‘own their salvation’.  They had to make their decision to follow Jesus because they knew it was right and they knew that God truly had a purpose for their lives – not just because it’s something that we as their parents told them.   So my goodness – God has already begun to answer my prayers!  Earlier in the week Tobi told me he wanted to get up 5 minutes earlier and read the ‘Good Morning Lord’ devotionals in his Bible.  He’s already doing a daily Bible reading plan.  So, he’s on the right track.  I told him that he needs to continue to listen and obey when the Holy Spirit speaks to him, and he’ll get better and better at knowing his voice.

I have learned that we are responsible in training our children.  This is a serious responsibility.  And this responsibility requires serious prayer/intercession.  The enemy won’t just sit by and allow God’s plan to unfold in the lives of our kids.  The weapons of our warfare are not carnal – and our enemies are not flesh and blood.  Our weapons are prayer and Word of God.  We need to use them liberally.  God has amazing plans for our children.  Train.  Pray.  God will answer.  Tobi is still young.  I suspect there will days that I will need to come back and read this post to find encouragement.   But this I know:  My children are blessed by God and will fulfill all that He has called them to do.  All of it!  Amen.

Trae, I remember the day I found out you were coming.  Dad, Mr. Organized, wrote in his Franklin Planner that his 1^st son would be born in October ’92. You arrived in October ’91.  I was happy because I didn’t want to wait a year for you.  We knew that someday we’d be in Africa so we started praying before you were born that you’d be adaptable and fit in wherever God placed us.  We saw the answer to that prayer.  We got off the plane in Niger at 6am and you heard kids playing next door to Grama and Grampa’s house.  You insisted on playing with them immediately.  The next few hours found you directing all the activities going on  — you insisting that all these Zarma children understood your English.  What they understood was your loud voice and gestures.  In Maradi, you were a very valid part of our ministry, particularly children’s ministry and music.  We appreciate how motivated you are, which is why you were a successful homeschooler.  I would often find you in your room at 7am, almost done with the day’s lessons.  Not because you loved learning so much, but because you wanted to go outside and play with your friends.  That motivation has served you well, and will continue to bring you success.  Speaking of success, we recognize that you have many gifts and abilities.  What we want you to recognize is that they are all God-given.  Given to you to help fulfill the purpose for which He created you. I believe you have already been faithful with what God has given you and because of that, He’ll increase those gifts even more and will use you to establish His Kingdom.  One day you’ll understand that there is no greater joy than to see your children loving and serving God.  But for now you should know that you have brought us that joy.  I can’t even express how much you will be missed when we return in January.  We will intensely feel your absence in both our family and ministry.  But at the same time we are so excited about this new stage of life you are beginning.  You have learned (sometimes the hard way) that when you make the choice to obey God, there is absolutely nothing that is impossible.  We are so proud of you and it brings me great joy to say that you, Trae Childs, are my son.

It all started a few years ago (well, technically I suppose it all started the day I was born – getting old that is).  In my family, a claim to fame has been my perfect vision.  Well, that and the fact that I had straight teeth without the aid of braces.  While my siblings and my mom all needed serious help in the eye department, Dad and I could see better than them all.  In fact, my vision was even better than perfect:  20/15 to be exact!  Can’t read the tiny print on the back of the tiny spice bottle?  Give it to me.  Can’t read the billboard a mile ahead?  No worries if I was in the car.  So imagine my surprise when a few years ago Tobi held a book up to my face to read and I said, “Dude. Back up.  I can’t see it that close”.  Then I thought, wait a minute, I’ve always been able to see it that close.  Isn’t that how I was able to read the tiny spice bottles – close?  Then I remembered the phrase I’d heard and guffawed at in the past – ‘it happens when you turn 40′.  I kept this little incident a secret, and remained in denial.

My 4 - year old self and my perfect vision

Fast forward to today.  Denial is no longer an option.  I have gone from secretly wearing reading glasses to now even needing them with my semi-large print bible.  Okay – it says ‘large print’, but in all fairness, I’ve seen larger.  I’ve even graduated to keeping several pair strategically located around the house in places I’d likely find myself needing to read.  And I no longer secretly chuckle at people who can’t find their reading glasses.  Thus my strategically placed pairs.

Don’t get me started on my skin…Once, when dealing with my eyebrows, I noticed the skin under my eyes – aka: parchment paper.  (In my defense, I was using a rather strong magnifying mirror).  I could actually stretch it one way and it stayed.  Not good.  Then I moved the magnifying mirror to my hands and up my arm.  What I saw was what looked like a puddle of mud that was on the verge of being dry – with lots and lots of cracks. And what’s with those large brown freckles?  I don’t have freckles!   I’ve always been jealous of the beautiful skin of the African’s I see around me every day.  Now I’m on the verge of downright envy.  Who got me started on my skin?

Then I proceeded to look into the mirror and what did I see?  A new understanding of what a face-lift really was.  I hear about face-lifts and know they are synonymous with growing old, but I’ve never really given the time of day to understand what one was.  But while looking in the mirror I ever so gently ‘lifted’ the skin on my forehead back towards my scalp to what all the rage was about. Ahhhh.  Now I understand.  So I tried the same thing with the skin back towards my ears, ever so slightly pulling my mouth back.  Just a tiny bit.  What’d that give me – 10, maybe 20 years?  The older I get, the better I understand Newton’s Law.

Though I’m not the type to make ‘home improvements’ that require tools like knives, needles and scalpels, neither am I ready to surrender the fight.  I will continue to exercise, (which by the way I can do just as well now as I did 20 years ago – ask my 19 year old daughter) eat right, and as Psalms 103:5 says, I will allow God to satisfy me with good things and renew my youth as the eagle’s.

And there is a bright side for me…My chin hairs.  I no longer have to be concerned about them until they’re long enough to braid.   This is because instead of being black, they are now white and can barely be seen.  How’s that for a positive outlook?

And someday, maybe I’ll learn to grow old gracefully.  Maybe.

It is well known that I am majorly backlogged in my posts.  But if I’m going to get better at this, I have to start somewhere.  And the fact that we are down to only 1 child in our domicile seems to me the most obvious thing to ramble about.  Something I’m still getting used to- the 1 child thing.  Of course I’ve only had 3 weeks to get used to it and in that time we hosted a ministry team that helped us do 2 weeks of children’s camps for 480 kiddos in 2 cities a days drive apart.  Now things are settling down and I’m not sure what to think.  Except that I’m SOOOOOOOOOO glad God decided we needed a 3rd child.  After Tanika was born, I was more than done having babies.  Probably something to do with the fact that I had 2 of them in the space of 10 months.  Then we got to Niger and 7 years after Tanika was born, Tobi joined us.  Like I said, so thankful, as I am in no way ready for an empty nest.  And Tobi just started 5th grade and though I know as much as the next guy how fast time zips by, we still have a few more years before he flies away.  Sometimes I do wish I could stop time.

As for the other 2 birds, here they are.

  Pretty cute, eh?

The big one, Trae, just started his junior year at Oral Roberts University.  So he’s obviously been away for 2 years – but I still miss him.  A lot.  Maybe even more now than the first 2 years.  The smaller bird, Tanika just graduated from High School (this picture was taken in Niger at the grad party her grandparents had for her) and has successfuly started her freshman year at ORU.  Problem is, every time I walk to my bedroom, I look straight into her pink/burgundy but very EMPTY bedroom.  Which reminds me that she’s not here.  Which reminds me how much I miss her.  So though I love having Tobi around for this new season of ours, I can’t deny how much I miss having all 5 of us here together.

In an effort to train myself not to write novellas every time I write, I’m going to stop here – even though there is much more to say.  No worries, because I have promised myself to write more frequently so I have plenty of words to fill these spaces.  Another day.

Patty:  How’s that for short and sweet?!

Danette,

It’s time for you to post on your blog.  Now, here’s what you DON’T have to do:

Pastor Zabeiru is greeting Blessing as she came into the church.

Blessing and Alloy.

It’s been awhile since I’ve written an update about Blessing.   She’s been at home recuperating and has been anxiously awaiting the day she could come to church.  That day was today!  She came in with her family a few minutes after our Easter service started and the church erupted with praise when they saw her.  Lots of love and excitement.  Here she is with Tanika.

She had a cane with her but barely used it.  During the testimony part of the service, she had plenty to say.  And it was all about thanking God and thanking the church for everything they did for her and her family during this very challenging time.  The church family really did come together for them.  Here are a few pictures of her testimony.  Wish I could post video here because I have some great clips of her – not just standing, but dancing!

The ladies rejoiced with her by dancing to the front.

I know these pictures are all similar, but they are full of such joy I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

She was so excited she was using 3 languages.  Here, her husband Alloy is interpreting for her.

She said that she realizes she left the hospital a few weeks ago, but it’s today that she finally feels like she’s home.

Let’s remember.  She went from this….

To this….

To this…..

To THIS!!!!!!!!!!!

To God be the glory GREAT things He has done!!  Thank you for your prayers!  Please continue to thank God for her complete healing – and no lasting side effects.