Update 5/23/25: Life is Hard

Psalm 55:22 “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.”

We all have hard days in this life. Sometimes the days turn to weeks, months, or even seasons. Last week was hard. I had all these plans of what I was going to accomplish to get ready for our trip. Instead, I dealt with one unexpected thing after another. 

1) After months of not getting sick, I came down with one of the worst colds ever. It went straight to my chest to become bronchitis. I’m slowly getting better, but would appreciate prayers for a complete healing.

2) My dear and close friend, Liz, suddenly lost her husband Mike. I felt privileged to be able to be at the hospital with the family during this difficult time. Liz has been my mentor, encourager, and the sweetest sister in Christ. It broke our hearts to see her going through losing her husband and best friend. Mike was one of a kind. You could walk in a room a stranger and leave with at least one friend, Mike. He loved to joke and pester people. We had some running jokes between us and he always brought a smile to my face when I saw him. He loved when I brought chocolate chip cookies to CR. He would sneak extra home in a cup, which became a running joke. On more then one occasion, I’d make him his own plate of cookies with the condition to not steal them all at CR. He’d just laugh and we both knew he’d still steal them. Mike was a true example of someone who lived for Jesus and was a bright light everywhere he went.

Heaven just keeps getting sweeter with all these amazing people going home. I said that to Wayne and he informed me that is a sign that we are getting old! 🤣

3) My dad’s retina detached (see below)

To keep life extra exciting, my dad detached his retina last week. We ended up at the eye doctor late Tuesday night with laser repairs to his left eye. Early Wednesday morning, we headed to UK hospital for his right eye. They ended up putting a gas bubble in his eye to help it reattach. Then Friday, we went back for my laser work on his right eye. In the middle of all his eye work, he had his last 3 radiation appointments. He has one more to go, hopefully they will get him in tomorrow. Monday was supposed to be his last day, but the machine has had issues all week. 

Sophia decided to fix the brakes on her car. With Wayne’s guidance, and some help from Shan, she got them completed today. Her car should be a reliable car going forward. She had the struts replaced by a mechanic, and now her brakes and rotors are all new. I love how my kids aren’t afraid to take projects on to save money. Good thing Wayne is around, because I am not handy with a car. 

Micaela enjoyed a celebration breakfast with her fellow 8th graders from youth group. I cannot believe she will be in high school next year!!! 

We fly out Tuesday afternoon for China! I will try to post an update every few days to help us keep track of all our journeys. I don’t know if I’ll be able to upload all the photos, but as I’m able, I will share as many as possible!

Prayer Requests:

- Please pray for Wayne as he continues his therapy. Please also pray that we are able to get his medication worked out before I leave. Ideally, I would like to have all his weeks of medicine laid out for him to make it easier.

- Please pray for a complete and full recovery for me from this nasty cold I’ve been battling over a week. 

- Pray for our drive  to Chicago Monday & for our trip to China. Pray that it is an amazing time of fellowship, encouragement, and enjoying God’s creation around the world.

- Pray for Naomi as she is just a few weeks away from flying to Ireland for the summer.