Second Chance Final Exams

The kids had final exams just before Christmas, and their grades were pretty bad. They had all January to revise and try again today. Paul, Firmin and Emma were all working with them to help them. However, what can you do if they are not motivated. Though the NGO director (the one managing their sponsorships) wrote a serious letter I read to them before my departure, there is little fruit.

Saloum was able to improve in 2 of 3 subjects, but Fousseni and Abdias failed their exams again, some with worse grades than before Christmas. And I even gave identical or nearly identical exams!!! Fousseni is showing some effort, but I really don't know what's going on with Abdias. He failed all subjects, except for Bible which he passed barely. Pray for the Lord to give me insight and wisdom how to handle this situation!

Now that we're moving, we won't be able to start school again yet anyway. We will take February as a month of prayer and fasting and praising and worshiping Him. The best way to start off on our property!

Busy Days Ahead

Please pray for us these next few days as we move. I'm still suffering from jetlag, plus there is so much work to catch up on. I NEED to send out an email update, but simply haven't had the time to write it. I haven't written in a month, and most people aren't even aware we're moving NOW. I need to tell them....

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Construction Progress

On Monday and Tuesday Anco (a Dutch missionary) was working like crazy to get our solar power installation done, since he had to leave town early this morning. I talked to him today, and he said he got it done and it's working - giving more electricity than he would have thought. Later Kossi (construction superviser) called me and told me it was NOT working, and he couldn't reach Anco. So I postponed the internet installation until Friday. Hopefully it will work by then.

You can see that the staircase onto the roof is done, and the metal doors and windows in (though no glass yet). The room under the staircase holds the inverters and battery bank for the solar power system.

These pictures show the sceptic tank:

I intend to go to the property myself tomorrow and take new pictures, see what the progress is like, and get a feel for what it's gonna be like living in the unfinished house. The kids have their exams tomorrow, but on Friday we're gonna start packing the house, on Saturday moving stuff, and on Monday we move all the way.

First Day Home

I have so much to do, I don't know where to start. I was doing office work today, but feel like I got barely anything done. The 8 hour time difference between California and Mali is also not that easy to ignore.

I also spent some time with my kids, young and older, which was great. Of course Hama wanted to be with me all the time, and Sarata also kept running into my arms. I showed them the 10-min-presentation that I had put together after leaving Mali, and they LOVED it. They also watched the TV show I was on, though they didn't understand anything. Paul claimed to have understood a lot - and his English has improved a lot.

We had our first family meeting since my return tonight, and it was great. I have to say, things went really well during my absence - I'm proud of them!

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Arriving Home

I've just arrived back home, and it's midnight local time now. Everything went smoothly without problems.

As I was waiting at the gate in Los Angeles to board my plane, the lady sitting next to me asked me a question. We started talking and I found out that she was on her way to do a missions trip to Madagaskar (Africa). The plane was really empty, and so basically every person had 3 seats to themselves - except me. I'm not the type of person who'd move, but finally I did, and I sat with my new friend, talking and talking. She's 62 years old and a very sweet lady, and we really connected. After the meal, I found myself three empty chairs and lay down. The video system was out of order and so there wasn't any movies. It wasn't very comfortable, and it took me a while to fall asleep, and just when I was sleeping, they woke us up again. I spent some more time with my new friend, until we had to separate at the Paris airport. I had some time and spent it in the lounge, making a few European phonecalls.

The trip to Bamako went smoothly as well, but I was unable to sleep though the tiredness was getting intense. Paul and Seybou were waiting for me and happy to see me. I drove home with them, where everyone was sleeping already, except Firmin. It's good to be home again!

The first challenge will be that there is nobody to watch the kids tomorrow, as both Paul and Firmin have exams at school/university, and Emma can't come either. I'd like to sleep in and get a day of rest until the Bible School exam at 6 pm.

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Leaving California

I thought I had plenty of time and got up late, slowly packing up my stuff. At 11 am I found out I DON'T have a ride to the airport, and HIM ended up booking me on a shuttle. Then Victoria came home for lunch and called a few people, and did find somebody to take me. Praise God!

I walked over to the HIM offices that are on the same campus I was staying on, to talk a little and say good-bye. I talked with 2-3 of the HIM staff, which was great. They are wonderful people!

Then one of my good friends in the US called me on the phone - I had been trying to reach her my whole time in the US, and she just caught me hours before I was leaving. I enjoyed talking to her. She's another one praying about being on the board of H2TNI. I now have 3 that said yes, and 3 that are praying about it.

I went back to my room, finished packing, grabbed something to eat, and pulled my two big bags of 28 kilos each (62 pounds) plus carry-on plus backpack down the stairs and outside, where my ride was already waiting for me. It was the daughter of the lady I had met yesterday, and her financé. I enjoyed talking to them in the car, and we got to the airport with plenty of time left.

At check-in I found out that the way Air France does things in the US is different from Europe. In Europe, you can have 10 kilos extra, but not in the US. In the US you can get another bag and pay for it, while in Europe you pay for overweight bags rather than extra bags. Confusing! I ended up paying $50 for the overweight.

There were no lines at security, and I still had 90 min to spend in the frequent flyer lounge which gave me the time to write these lines.

Please pray for a safe and smooth trip - no problems in Paris with my 2 carry-ons, and that my bags all make it to Bamako.

Back Home In Mali

I talked to Paul today. Anco started putting up the solar panels and everything else today. He only has today and tomorrow, since he needs to leave early Wed morning, so it's gonna be tight time-wise. I'm thankful it worked out so that we'll have electricity in the house from the beginning. They are coming on Thursday to install the internet, so the electricity was a prerequisite for that too.

This is the plan for the week to come:

WED - unpack, rest (?), Bible School exam
THU - kids' school exams, Internet installation
FRI - prayer meeting, feed kids on street, packing up house
SAT - street kid program, packing up house, moving stuff
SUN - service, packing up house
MON - moving house, painting old house
TUE - finish painting old house, return keys

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Time With Jill

Another short night since I had to be at Jill's hotel by 8 am. My friend was so gracious to drop me off and go on to church, where she'd hang out and get a seat for me too.

The receptionist announced me and I went up to Jill's room. Jill was in the process of packing and she was gonna get it done and then have breakfast with me. We were talking as she was packing up, and making phone calls. Stacey Campbell also stopped by for a few moments, and so the packing made slow progress. The church service was gonna start at 9:30. I enjoyed talking with Jill and helping her out as much as I was able to. She's such a precious woman of God! And she's meant so much in my life, especially ministry-wise. I'm so thankful that the Lord is now connecting us. She later introduced me to someone as one of her spiritual daughters - that was a first and touched my heart. I'm so thankful that she's gonna be on the board of trustees for HEALING 2 THE NATIONS INTERNATIONAL, and I told her how much I'd just like to help her and serve her as she does conferences, and she encouraged me to do that, saying that would also be a great way to meet all the other speakers.

I don't want to say much more than that. In any case, at this point I'm planning to come up for her conference in April (from Austria), when Heidi is one of her speakers. I feel such a need to connect with Heidi (have felt it for a long time), and that will be the opportunity. And I'll get to help out my spiritual Mom with whatever she needs.

We never got to have breakfast, but drove to the church, where we arrived at the end of worship, nearly an hour late. I was so thankful for that precious time I'd had with Jill!

Conference With Chuck Pierce

Chuck Pierce did the last two sessions of the conference, in the morning and in the evening. He's a prophet who knows the times and seasons, and so he spoke about 2008 and the time we are in right now. I'd been battling discouragement for days, enforced by the physical tiredness and spiritual desert place, but Chuck's words (or God's words) dispelled the discouragement and gave hope, as he gave language to the events of the past few months that made so much sense and brought excitement for the season ahead.

Of course you've all heard that the prophets are saying that 2008 is the year of new beginnings. He said that in Sep/Oct something significant happened in everyone's life that kind of was the kickoff for this new season. I was amazed as Oct was the time I lost my spiritual Father and gained a spiritual Mom - a major change and shift in my life. A loss I've been grieving for over 3 months now. Listening to Chuck, I felt my spirit lift as things made sense. I've already seen the beginning of the new these past few weeks, and things sure seem excited as I look ahead at this year. He also gave us some things we can do, some things to be aware of, and I intend to put those things into practice as I've done the past two years. This desert season spiritually also made much sense, as this is the year for God's glory to come down in a new way.

As we move onto the property in a few days, I'd like us to start with three weeks of prayer and fasting and praising and worshiping. He said we should do 7 days of praise and the 8th day of rest in the months to come.

Blessed Lunch

After the service, we were gonna go have lunch with some people who wanted to know more about Mali. My friend and host Victoria, me, and four more people went to a fastfood restaurant, where we had a great time talking. They made me share my whole story and loved it. In the end they asked if they could pray for me. Their prayers blessed me big time! I wished I had recorded them to listen to them again :-). They said they'd keep praying for me, and would stay in touch. They even wanted to help in some way.

From there we went to somebody's house, where Victoria introduced me to three of her friends. They saw my 10-min clip that you can watch on the VIDEO page, and we spent some time talking. We had a good time.

Time To Say Good-Bye

We had an hour at home before it was time to go to the evening service. Instead of resting (though I was very tired), I contemplated all the events of the day, all that had I had heard. I thought over the year, strategizing and looking at options. The hour just flew by.

There was so much more I would have liked to tell Jill, and even in response to our time together, so that I decided to write her a little letter to give to her since I knew she'd be busy. I shared my heart in that letter I wrote during the first half of worship. I went inside the sanctuary, and Jill was already there. I went up to one usher who Jill introduced me to - she actually introduced me as "she's like Heidi Baker" to several people - and asked her to give Jill the letter. However, she told me to give it to her myself, and so I went up to her. I don't feel comfortable up front with the "big people" :-). I gave the letter to Jill, hugged her, and told her I love her, which she did to. We said we'd talk on skype.

As I walked away back to my seat I had tears in my eyes because I'm thankful for Jill, and I love her. I've known Jill since 2001, and have wanted for years to be in relationship with her, pursuing her, but I had to wait until 2007/08 for it to happen. Thank You, Lord!

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Conference Continued

I just had to get more sleep and so I decided to go to the conference later. It sure paid off. I got there in the middle of the first speaker. Today during the day all the speakers were young leaders that are rising up, and they were awesome. In the afternoon Shara spoke who was Jill's assistant and now is Heidi Baker's; we were both on the same trip to Malawi with Todd Bentley in 2003.

I spent both breaks - lunch and dinner - alone outside the building today. The breaks weren't long, and there wasn't anyone to go out to eat with. I saw Jill, and we are meeting tomorrow morning at her hotel, before the service with Chuck Pierce.

The evening meeting was great, with Bill Johnson's associate. And God spoke to me during worship again, which was wonderful.

They also had their prophecy rooms today. The first 300 registrants could get prophesied to, and I was included. What they said was good, though not impacting. I'm at the point where I don't want to hear about any more expansion or growth or miracles, because it means even more work. What I want to hear is that more workers are coming to help.

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Conference Continued

I'd had good intentions last night, but I ended up going to bed late again, as tonight as well; sigh. I paid the price during the day, as I was very tired.

I was first at the church, at least in the pastors' line, and they opened the door later than I thought, so that I had to stand in the cold and rain for a while.

What is special about this conference is that it's about the generations coming together, and that in a practical way, so that young "unknown" people are also preaching - like sons of famous preachers as well as assistants. Lou Engle's son spoke this morning, as well as Bill Johnson's assistant. Between the two messages, I was able to talk to some people. I spoke to Charles who is on the apostolic team for HIM and a pastor, and who spoke at the pastors' summit yesterday.

Mali Suddenly Everywhere

God is definitely doing something new! My mouth is wide open as I have now counted at least 4 times that leaders in the body of Christ has shared with me these last two weeks how God has put Mali on their hearts or broke their hearts for Mali, in the past few years or 20 years ago, or how they know someone called to Mali. I've never seen this before! It's like God is answering my prayer to put Mali on the map! Or showing me that I'm actually the answer to these people's prayers!

Charles was one of those people, and I felt such a connection while talking to him. He was really interested, and I believe God connected us; there is something there for the future.

Yesterday the pastor from New Zealand told me they have someone in their church called to Mali. And then tonight! My friend Victoria who I'm staying with told me this lady really wants to meet me. I wasn't keen on hearing tonight's speaker anyway, and skipped the session. Grace took both of us out to eat.

Grace is Nigerian, but has lived in the US for nearly 30 years. She has a ministry to Africa, and a few years ago the Lord told her that Mali was one of the nations for her to go to. She's been wondering since how to go in, and when Victoria told her about me, she got all excited. She was so excited to see me tonight! She asked me lots of questions and shared her heart. She's planning on coming in the beginning of March to see everything for herself. One thing her ministry does is to help with agriculture. They also help women get on their feet work-wise. It sure looks like a God-connection to me!

Clarification

I wanted to clarify my last two blogs where I shared very transparently about my hunger and desperation for more of God. I want you to know that I believe this is a GOOD place to be in. God WANTS us to be desperate for Him. He wants us to run after Him. I believe that He's allowing this season in my life now because of the great things ahead. I do believe the great breakthrough is ahead, but you'll never see the mountain if you don't go through the valley.

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Leaders' Summit

I went to bed far too late, writing the blog, but thankfully the meeting didn't start until 10 am. It was an awesome meeting with a leader from New Zealand who was very anointed. It created that intense hunger for more of God in me again that I've been having for months. He started ministering to people and I got up as well joining those going forward. He walked by me several times, but for some reason he never prayed for me and they closed the meeting. I was disappointed as I had wanted an impartation of what he carries.

We had a 90 min lunch break and I ended up having lunch with my pastor from Kansas City, another friend, and a lady I hadn't met before. Back at the meeting at 2 pm, the desperation was still there. Another guy spoke, and it was good again. In the end they decided to do a fire tunnel with everyone being prayed for and everyone being the ones praying. I walked through twice, but for the first time in my life it did nothing for me. I didn't feel a thing. Tears were flowing that I'd be in this desert place, left only with longing for Him.

Conference Starts

We had 2 hours before they would let us in for the evening meeting, which was the first meeting of the conference. It was raining hard and cold and I wondered what to do during this time. I didn't really want to go home, as that seemed too much of a hassle, so I ended up getting on the back seat of my friend's car. At first there were more tears and desperate cries for Him. I kept praying and worshiping and took a much-needed nap, and so the time passed quickly. Thankfully I wasn't too cold.

I felt better as I got out of the car to go inside. After over 10 minutes of freezing, they finally let us in. I got my seat, and went to talk to the new HIM member from Belgium. Since they are French-speaking, that was a connection I wanted to make. They have a church in Liège, and maybe I could go visit them before or after Amsterdam in May since they are not that far from there.

There was still time and so I decided to try calling some friends again that I have not been able to reach. I reached one special friend, which was such a blessing, to finally get to talk to her. She's one of those I have asked to be on my board.

I ended up getting back in late, with worship already in full swing. I entered right in and got captivated by His presence and love. Every time I come to Pasadena and the church here, God speaks to me big time during worship, and tonight was no exception. God gave me some instructions regarding our move to the property next week that are gonna be helpful. He also spoke some directional things to me this morning concerning this summer that I have to follow up upon.

Che Ahn was doing the message tonight, but jetlag got a hold of me again and I was unable to keep my eyes open. I was the first one out the door as soon as he was done, trying to open my eyes, with my contacts acting up as well. It was still raining hard, as I drove home. Tonight I'm going to bed earlier!!!

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Pasadena, California

I was glad I had the morning off and got up at a comfortable time. I went to a grocery store where I enjoyed buying groceries. Anything you want is available! Awesome! I bought several kinds of fruit and vegetables and other good stuff.

Back home I had lunch and talked to Paul and then it was already time to go to Harvest Rock Church for the pastors summit.

Back In Mali

Things in Mali are going well, it seems. I told Paul today that I would bring cash back, and that Kossi would have to get that cash right away to go buy the tiles and put them in. However, he had a point that that would take one week in any case, which means we will spend at least the first week living in the courtyard for sure. That's not an exciting prospect, as I think of all the implications. So I'm asking God for wisdom. I HAVE wondered whether they would let us stay another month in our rented house - that would be our 4th extension - but haven't heard from God on that yet.

HIM Pastors' Summit

I was pensive and somewhat discouraged as I drove to the church for the beginning of the pastors' summit. I was also painfully aware of my hunger for the Lord, my desperation for Him, and for finding Him in a fresh way, being renewed and refreshed so I can go back to Mali on Monday. So I spent the time driving my friend's car talking to God and asking Him to meet me this week. I came to the summit and conference with no expectations, and the Lord has already ministered to me wonderfully this first day.

The first person I saw as I stepped into the church building was my pastor from Kansas City. I had been looking forward to seeing him again. We ended up talking and sitting next to each other. There were also some other people I knew and said hello to. The presence of God was in the place, and I felt like crying because I was so desperate for Him. A time of worship started that was totally centered on Jesus, and soon tears started flowing freely. How much I need Him! I don't care about the miracles, about ministry, all I need is Him! I told Him if He wasn't going back to Mali with me, I wasn't going. Like Moses when God said He'd only send an angel with him.

The HIM network director Mark Tubbs did the teaching and it was great. The tears stayed very close to the surface and came easily again when he prayed in the end. Then Jill Austin came up - a spiritual Mom of mine - prayed, and then told us to go pray for each other. I had already tears flowing and knew it was time for me to receive instead of giving out. A few people prayed quick prayers over me, and then I felt I should go over to Ray & Steve, two men of God I'm acquainted with who both have the Father's heart and minister in that area. I told them I was worn out and needed refreshing. They started praying, and the tears kept flowing freely. Then the tears stopped and I started breathing deeply. Something was happening, some weight lifting off. One of them saw a picture of the calvary coming to Mali to help me out. That encouraged me somewhat though I had the question WHEN in my mind. I'm just tired out and really need help in Mali.

Since they had the Father's heart, I then told them that I lost my spiritual Dad three months ago and that that has been very painful. They then hugged me, one on each side of me, and the tears flowed again. Then they each told me how much they admired me. They said every time they get my email newsletter they admire me and think how they couldn't have done what I do. I kind of shrugged on the inside because admiration doesn't help me a bit; a simple email of encouragement would. But I greatly appreciate those two guys and would love to hear more from them.

I still felt close to tears as I walked away. I saw Jill standing closeby talking and waited for a chance to say hello to her. She waved me over to join them in the conversation, and I was happy to hug this precious Mom in the Spirit. After a while it was time for dinner, and together we walked to the hall where they had prepared it. I ended up sitting next to Jill at a round table with a total of 7 people, and enjoying 2 hours of fellowship with her and the others.

I FINALLY connected with Rick who is responsible for Africa within HIM. For some reason, I have never been able to connect with him these past 3 years I've been a part of HIM. But today he found out about Mali and was intrigued by what I shared. There was also another pastor at the table who has a prayer ministry going that covers Jill in intercession.

I talked to Jill a little bit, but she suggested we should get together privately at some time. I do have some things to talk to her about, so that will be good. To my amazement, Jill has agreed to be on my board of trustees for HEALING 2 THE NATIONS INTERNATIONAL, but we do need to talk more. I noticed how much of a networker Jill is as she connected people at the table with other people that would be good for them to know. It is also thanks to Jill that I connected with Barbara (a national leader) in Michigan. After this week I'll see Jill again in Holland in May, where she is a speaker at an international congress where I was invited to be the delegate representing Mali.

In short, I was very blessed to get to spend this time with Jill, and please pray the private meeting will work out. Jill is so busy and sought after that that is not a given.

We walked back to the evening meeting that Che Ahn was doing. No more tears in worship, but smiles of joy and thankfulness to my awesome God, as I raised my hands to heaven to worship Him. Jetlag was getting a hold of me so that I was unable to keep my eyes open during Che's talk, but I did follow all he said since it was very interesting and helpful. Then they had a time of ministering to us pastors and leaders. Jill was the first to walk by me and prayed for double and refreshing, and prophesied land and buildings over me. Actually she had told me during dinner that she had a word for me. I assume she'll give it during her session Friday afternoon.

Jill didn't pray for me for long, but I was touched by the presence of God. Then Che got a hold of me, and as soon as he started praying, I started trembling with the presence of God which in my case often represents an impartation, and Che even prayed for an apostolic impartation, and for new authority and government. The Lord touched me powerfully. I stayed in His presence for a while, pondering what God had spoken to me before Che came up to pray for me. I had heard his loving, tender voice, like a Daddy speaks to his daughter saying, my little one, why are you so worried of so many things? I realized how so many worries have piled up on my shoulders....

I stayed longer than I thought I would and got home pretty late. Still, I've wanted to keep you up to date on what's going on. The next few days are gonna be long and busy and I don't know whether I'll succeed in writing every night. Please pray for me these remaining few days in the US!

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Busy Last Hours In Augusta

Thankfully I did nearly all my packing yesterday, and so there wasn't that much left to do in the morning. I had to get to a Christian school to share about Mali. The teenage students saw the video presentation, and I shared a little what would be pertinent to them. Time was short, so there was no time for them to ask questions. They did seem moved though.

From there we had to run straight to Peter's office, where we had a scheduled meeting with his boss and a business man who I had met before, last year. Unfortunately the pictures stayed home, so we had to go from there back to the house, where we continued the meeting. I showed them the pictures of Malian products, and we discussed details of what and how we could make, import and sell goods from Mali. It was a productive time. The business man ended up giving me a bag that sells well on ebay, as a model to produce in Mali. They were also talking about coming to Mali in the next few months and buying a 100 products to see what sells well on ebay.

After the business meeting I packed all my stuff into my friend's Christy's car, who was so kind to drive me to the airport in Atlanta, a 2+ hour drive. However, there were still some errands to run first. I had to stop at the bank to take care of some stuff, and unfortunately that took a lot longer than expected. I started getting a little nervous as the clock was approaching 1:30 pm, which was 2 hours before the time I should be there. Finally we were done, I said good-bye to Judy, and Christy and I drove off. We did stop on the way to get some food, since neither of us had eaten anything today. We enjoyed our last 2+ hours in the car, though I was nervous about the time.

I arrived at the airport at 4 pm, 90 minutes before my flight, and Atlanta is a huge and busy airport. I had two big duffel bags, a carry-on bag and a backpack, but only 2 hands and three bags to pull. I wanted to check in at the curb, but couldn't because the bags were overweight. I went inside where I ended up with a rather unfriendly agent. She said that both my bags were overweight - one 3 pounds, the other 4 pounds, and so I had to pay $100. I was shocked but too rushed to move those 3 pounds to the other bag and only pay half. Stupid.

And then it turned out that the airport wasn't busy at all, and the lines moved fast, and I easily arrived at the gate on time.

Arriving In California

On the plane I had a divine appointment with a young girl that was leaving the US to go to Australia for a year, doing Hillsongs' Bible School. We talked for a while and exchanged email addresses. The 5-hour flight went by quickly enough. Though I was very tired, I didn't really get a good nap in.

In Los Angeles a couple from the church there picked me up. They were so kind to drive me all the way to the campus where I'm staying with my long-time friend Victoria. It was late when I got there, after 10 pm. Victoria got up for me and we talked a little bit. She told me there is a lady who has a ministry and a call to minister in Mali, who wants to meet me. She also told me she'd like to get together a few friends so I can share with them. Though I had traveled 3 hours into the past, it was late when I went to bed.

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The Day After

After an awesome day yesterday, tiredness and discouragement hit me today. I talked to Paul, and he told me that the car has to be repaired again; now it's leaking oil somewhere. He also told me some other discouraging stuff. Kossi (our builder) has received the money I sent last week, and it will all go into the wiring of the house this week. Unfortunately it's not enough for the tiles (yet). Some money has come in or is on the way, but there's no point in sending it over. I will take as much cash with me as I can, and then give it to Kossi myself to put the tiles in. I have no clue how long that is gonna take, so we'll see what state the house will be in when we move next week. Right now we still need $23,000 to finish it.

Today I took care of a lot of emails I needed to write, which was great. In the afternoon I worked with Peter on our master plan and the dining hall. It looks like there will be more changes than I had anticipated. Since Kossi didn't place the first two buildings on the intended spot, we corrected that on the master plan, and then we finalized the dining hall. I had already felt like we should do the dining hall before doing the main three-story building, because it's a lot cheaper to build and will give us a hall to meet in and have school in etc. until the big one is built. I'm even contemplating doing that building next instead of my own house, but we'll see. Now it's time to move first of all.

The big change is the businesses and workshops. We're trying to make better use of the courtyard for the children to play in, and so rearrange the buildings in a different way. But thankfully that's not urgent.

Healing 2 The Nations International, Inc.

I sent an email to 12 trusted people to let them know about the incorporation and asking them to consider coming on board. So far two have turned me down, two have accepted, and two have told me they are praying about it. I trust the Lord has already chosen just the right people to serve Him in this capacity.

Tonight I met with a lady who does the administrative work for a small mission working in Europe. We came to find out how it all works, all the details. Not knowing anything about accounting, I was anticipating all of that to be overwhelming. I wanted to know how it all has to be done, and to my greatest surprise, it's all so much easier than I had thought.

Judy Slavovsky - our architect's wife - has graciously accepted to take on the task of being the administrator. And it turns out that she's just gonna have to keep track of donations and sending receipts, while I just keep doing the accounting the way I have been. Thank You, Lord! So things are on track. I plan on calling the potential board members in the days to come, so that we can complete the incorporation. Our first board meeting is in the summer.

2008 has already brought new beginnings. May they continue!

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Looking Back On Saturday

Yesterday was a more quiet day which was a blessing. In the afternoon I spent a few hours with my good friend Christy. The picture shows her with her 2+ months old first baby. I've known Christy for 10 years or so, and she's the one who made the connection between me and her Dad who is now our architect. I had the privilege and joy of doing a theophostic session with her and see God do a wonderful work in her.

In the evening we went out to eat together with another lady, and I enjoyed a wonderful steak. I was very tired, though, and went to bed earlier than I have been.

Preaching At Overcomers Outreach Center

I got up a lot earlier than usual to spend quality time with God before preaching. Someone spontaenously showed up at our house to see me (and actually woke me up) but I had to turn her down - it just wasn't the right time.

We then went to THE CHURCH AT GREENBRIER first, which is Peter's (our architect) church. After the first worship song and the announcements, they had me come up and the pastor did a 5-min interview with me to wet people's appetites to come to the meeting in the evening.

After the interview we left right away to go to the children's room and talk to them. I had 10 minutes to tell them about the children in Mali - and they were no strangers to what I had to say. These kids have money banks to put money in for the children in Mali, and Peter has been telling them about Mali.

Then it was time to rush over to the church I'd be preaching at. Peter & Judy had to go to another church for their grandson's baby dedication, while my friends Judd & Marsha who have talked to their pastor about me took me to their church to preach. I had met the pastor a few days ago, and found out today what a privilege it was to preach there, since he is not someone who easily gives his pulpit to someone else.

The service had started at 10 am, and I showed up just before 11 am, just before the last worship song was over. I would have liked to worship and get a feel for the place. It was a rather small church, but the church was full, maybe with 80 people or so. There was a good sense of the presence of God there. After worship, the pastor came up and said a few words about me coming, and then they showed the 10 min presentation. I came up, and the pastor prayed for me before handing me the mic.

I had about 45 minutes to preach. I had been told that there were a lot of hurting people in the church, and so I shared more about my own testimony than I had ever done publicly. I emphasized my healing journey, and that God could use anyone to do anything for His glory. I read 1.Cor 1:26-29 and Heb 12:1-2. People loved it - they told me afterwards. When I was done, I knelt down and prayed, before inviting people forward for prayer. Several came - for physical healing or emotional healing - and the Lord touched them. I'm waiting to hear some testimonies.

The sermon was recorded, and I'm gonna put it on the AUDIO page as soon as I have it.

Sharing At Greenbrier

I sure needed an afternoon nap before going to the church offices of the church at Greenbrier where I'd share about Mali. I had done that before last summer, but this time many more people showed up. The pastor and church has been very kind to me, supporting our construction work in the past.

Everything was set up, and the room full, as we started the meeting. The pastor spoke first, and then Peter introduced me, before we watched the 10 min presentation. Then it was my turn and I shared very informally before asking for questions I could answer. People had great questions, and I shared my heart. As in the morning, many signed up to get my email newsletter, and came up to me to talk for a few moments and express how much they love what I'm doing. Some said they'd think about coming over to visit, and this church seems to pray about a missions team coming over.

I thank the Lord for all the wonderful people and churches He brings across my path and who He calls to partner with me and support me and our work. I couldn't do it if it wasn't for God's people, and God is swinging wide the doors because we are desperately in need of workers and of funds.

Another $1000 were given today, and so we are down to $23,000 needed to finish the house. I hope I can talk to Paul tomorrow and find out how construction is going.

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Dinner & Sharing

Today was a quiet day that allowed me time for emails and prayer and other stuff.

In the evening, Peter & Judy had invited friends over to hear about Mali. Judy prepared a wonderful dinner of lasagne (it was great!), and then we watched my presentation that you can also watch online on the VIDEO page. I then shared a little more and answered questions, before everyone went home. It was a good time.

Thanks to a donation from Austria and what came in at the church Wednesday night, we are now down to needing $24,000 to finish the house, and are moving two weeks from today.

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Meeting With Doctors

It actually turned out to be a meeting with dentists. A few dentists gathered informally, many of whom go on regular missions trips. The main guy explained what organization that is, and how it works, and I could tell they are a huge organization with lots of red tape, and not quite in our league. I'd just like a couple of doctors to come over and treat everyone for a few days. It was still a good meeting, and we'll see if anything comes out of it. The picture shows me with Peter, our architect (behind me), and the doctors.

New Logo

For a long time already I've been unhappy with H2TN's logo, but couldn't think of a better one. Now I've finally had the right inspiration, and created it. The world held in our Father's healing hands. Please let me know what you think about it.

I also reworked the main top logo on the very top of this site. Any comments are welcome.

The ministry's mailbox was opened today. Praise God!

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Awesome Marathon Day

Today was a LONG day with 5 meetings, but I enjoyed every minute of it. There's lots to update you on. I wished I had some pictures, but you'll have to wait for those.

FIRST - LAWYER

"Healing 2 The Nations International Inc." - that's the official name of this ministry. It was reserved today, and we'll need to file all the papers within 30 days to keep it.

The architect's wife Judy who will do the administrative work introduced me to her lawyer friend Sue who donated today's meeting. The two used to be in the same church and cellgroup. Sue is a strong Christian and lawyer who does training on these issues for Christian ministries. She was great telling me how this works and what to look for in board members.

I had lots to think about as we left there. I now need to find 8 board members to start with. Eight people who love what I do and are willing to run with the vision. That's not gonna be easy but I pray the Lord will give me the right people. I already have a few in mind and will contact them in the days to come.

SECOND - WOMEN'S LUNCHEON

From there we went to a luncheon where several ministry leaders were gonna present their ministries, and I was one of them. There were about 15 ladies, and the leaders all from local ministries. One of them was from the local Christian TV station. She spoke after me and said she needed to talk to me after the meeting.

She told me that the founder of the TV station had a heart for street children, and that she wanted me on tonight's show, since it was already a missions emphasis. We ended up following her to the TV station so Judy would find it in the evening and so I could sign the release forms in advance, since we'd arrive at the last minute in the evening.

THIRD - MEETING A PASTOR

Our next stop was a church office where I met another pastor who was gonna have me on Sunday morning. I found out that I'm actually gonna preach Sunday morning, and I'm greatly looking forward to it. He said there'd be 60-70 people, and they are all about healing, physical and emotional.

FOURTH - SPEAKING IN CHURCH

Next was my invitation to speak at another church. Yesterday I met the pastor and his staff and we had a great first meeting where I shared my story a little. Their hearts were touched, and he said they'll seek God to see how we could be in relationship with each other.

Tonight many people showed up for their mid-week meeting. I'd say there were about 150. And this church is less than a year old and has nearly 600 on a Sunday morning!

At first they called me into the children's ministry room to talk to the kids who were ages 5 through 10. I talked to them for a few minutes on their level and could tell they could hardly believe their ears as I shared what their life would look like had they been born in Mali.

When I left them to return to the sanctuary, worship was already over and the pastor came up to introduce me and do the offering. They did one worship song while doing the offering, and I just let myself fall into His arms while worshiping Him with this one beautiful song. His presence was so strong and tangible!

Then Peter (our architect) came up and spoke a few words, introducing me, before they showed my 10 min presentation. Then it was my time to go up on the stage. I was ready to roll! I only had about half an hour, and I did start out with one of my favorite verses, 1.Cor 1:26ff, going on from there, telling the story how I ended up in Mali, and encouraging them that God can do anything with anyone, if He could with me. I could feel the anointing to preach, and it charged me all up. It's been a while since I've preached in the West, and I could feel the "itching inside".

When I was done the pastor came back and took an offering for me. He said he'd like their church to come up with the money to be able to put the tiles into the house so we can move in in 16 days. Then they prayed for me before the meeting was over. Unfortunately I didn't have time to talk to anyone since we had to leave for the next meeting.

FIFTH - BEING ON CHRISTIAN TV

I had to be at the TV station by 9 pm, and so we had to hurry since it was a 30-min drive. It had been snowing before the meeting, but now it was just raining hard. We got there at 10 to 9 and tiptoed inside where the live program was going on. It wasn't until 9:25 pm that I came on, and I was the last segment, with a few songs in between. They also showed an excerpt from my video presentation - the part on the street children.

They had a couch put up, and the host Dorothy was already there. Now, Dorothy knew nothing at all about me or what I do, which made it an interesting interview. But I could tell she was getting into it as the program went on. She was amazed at what I was doing, and doing alone, as a woman, and I kept reiterating that God can do anything with anyone. I was given a DVD with the show on it in the end and I'll see if I can make it a file I could put on my website.

After the program Dorothy kept talking with me for a while. She said I'd just HAVE to come back to her show next time I'm in town. Praise God! Also, the guests that were on before me came up to me to talk and want to pray for me and stay in touch. Then the director returned my presentation DVD and told me she loved it and had a hard time choosing the part to show during the program. So it was a wonderful experience, and I could feel the anointing as I spoke. I wasn't nervous at all but simply shared God's heart.

It's been a very long day, and I go to bed late. However, tomorrow and Friday are pretty quiet so far - but then, you never know with our God! He's able to do far more than we could ever think or imagine!

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Day of Rest

It's been a wonderful, slow-going day of rest. The potential appointment didn't work out, and so I spent a few hours with my friend Christy before returning to the house where I caught up on some computer work. I've enjoyed a day without responsibilities, and having been able to sleep in.

Construction Update

I had an email from Anco (who's installing the solar power system) clarifying that Kossi is NOT doing bad work. On the contrary, he said that he's doing a great job, compared to what he's seen elsewhere. It's only the finish on the walls, what they put on top the walls, that had too little cement in it.

These are some current pictures taken yesterday; it shows the doors and windows, but only the metal part is there so far.

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From Abbotsford To Vancouver

After 5+ hours of sleep I had to get up early, pack, and wait for my ride to Vancouver airport, which takes nearly 2 hours. The two young men - one a student at Todd Bentley's school - showed up just after 7, and we started the long trip, talking about God, and Mali, and their lives. Suddenly a cop car waved us down on the highway and made us stop. During my two years of driving in Kansas City I had never been stopped, nor when I rent a car. The policeman came up to the window and asked for MY driver's licence. I didn't even get it at first. I was sitting in the back! I was perplexed and gave him my Austrian licence. He said I didn't have my seat belt on, and it was required in Canada.

He left to check our licences, and we had to wait quite some time. The driver was from a different Canadian state, driving a friend's car. When he came back, he told the driver that he was responsible to tell a foreigner riding with him to buckle up. The young man replied that in his state it's not the driver who's made responsible but the person herself. He didn't give us a ticket in any case. I guess I'd better buckle up every time I get in a car, whatever country I'm in. In Mali, the taxi driver laughs at you if you try to put your seat belt on when you get in.

Traveling To Augusta, Georgia

I arrived at the airport with plenty of time until my flight, and everything went smoothly - nearly. At immigration, their computers didn't work and all the non-Americans had to stand to the side and wait. They couldn't take the pictures and fingerprints of people because of the problem. I talked to an Australian lady whose boyfriend just about made it through in front of her. Thankfully we didn't have to wait too long until it worked again.

I was disappointed to find that my airline group didn't have a lounge for elite members in the terminal. So I ended up getting breakfast from Tim Horton's (my first time, and it was great), and then paying to get online for an hour. I was able to talk to everyone in Mali, which was good.

I had one direct flight to Atlanta which took 4.5 hours. I got to sleep a little and watch a movie. Arriving in Atlanta, my good friends Judy & Peter (our architect) soon found me, and we started on the long trip to Augusta (2+ hours). We stopped to have dinner at Arby's, which was great - food-wise and fellowship-wise. We continued on our way and soon had a problem with finding gas - all the gas stations were closed, and we were out of gas. So we started praying we'd make it to a station before the car stops - and God heard our prayer, though it would have been an adventure to tell to run out of gas on the highway ;-). When Peter filled the car, the amount he put in was the amount the tank holds. Praise God!

Tonight I'm planning on sleeping long and well, with nothing waking me up early, to catch up on much-needed sleep. Also, I've had this sore throat and cough for a week and would like to get rid of it.

News From Home

The news from home are not that great. Anco came to install the equipment for the solar power system, only to discover that the walls were not of sufficient quality to do so. He drilled holes in there for screws, and the wall just disintegrated. They haven't put enough cement into it. Great! I told Paul to let Kossi know that's not the way to save money. I'd rather wait longer and pay more and have good walls that don't fall apart than walls made of sand.

The good news is that our solar panels have arrived in Mali, and Anco will install everything by the end of the month, so we'll have power from the beginning when we move in. I hope the wiring will be done by then since that was another reason Anco couldn't do the installation. Plus, they will install the internet on Jan 31, so everything needs to be ready by then. Lord, send the finances!

Yesterday our nurse Jessica did the teaching on hygiene I had asked her to do. She did a great job, but the kids kept rolling their eyes throughout it, especially Fousseni. On one hand is the farthest along spiritually, on the other he has been acting up more than the others these past few weeks. I was somehow reminded of Sekouba today as I heard about this. He also behaved really weird before he left. Because of the kids' behavior Jessica started addressing their unacceptable behavior and trying to make them understand how it affects me, and that the only way they could show gratefulness for all I do for them would be for them to obey and behave. Vroni said it was GREAT all she said, and the kids understood, possibly with the exception of Fousseni.

Unfortunately they have no concept of hygiene and it seems nonsense to clean a bathroom all the time. They urinate on the toilet and next to it, and it doesn't bother them that it stinks all the time. Even Paul today told me he didn't understand what the big deal was. It's hard to change culture and mind patterns.

Vron is leaving Mali on Tuesday, and then it will be Paul and Firmin again, and Emma promised to help out too. I've come to rely in many ways on Vroni, and it's sad to see her go. Please pray the remaining two weeks without me (and Vroni) will go by without incidents or major problems.

Talking to them all on skype today I realized how glad I am not to be in Mali right now. I'm still as tired and worn out as when I left. The time in Canada has been good, but not refreshing. I realize it's been a time of connecting more than anything. There wasn't any personal ministry, so I didn't receive prayer. And the nights were so short, that I was tired much of the time. I'm looking forward to JUST ONE NIGHT of sleeping as long as I like. I do hope my first night in Georgia will be that night.

Pray for my remaining two weeks in the US - for refreshing, for connections, for favor, for finances, and for divine appointments. 2008 is the year of new beginnings!

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Last Conference Day

After another short night, I was so blessed to get into the conference center with my host who was working during the conference. I'm so thankful I haven't had to stand in line in the rain and cold outside like other conference attendees. I got a good seat, and got two for my friends Cliff & Julie (see picture).

I then went up to the leader of Todd's orphanage in Uganda, because I wanted to hear how they deal with certain things at their place, hoping to get some good input for Mali. I had a good conversation with her but had to discover that they don't have the same problems we have. Their children are orphans, and so they don't come with the chunk street children come with.

Todd Bentley did the morning session and opened his heart, sharing about his 18-month sabbatical which was a dark night of the soul. He talked about being in the desert spiritually, and all he said really resonated with me. In the end he encouraged us to seek God, and I was on my face in tears because of my own desert season and hunger for God.

After the session I met up with Brian & Kristen, the leaders of Todd's network, who invited me to go to lunch with them. Even though they were very busy they took this time to get to know me better. They're leaving for India with Todd on Monday. Kristen's Mom also came along. We only had an hour, and we had a great time together. The are wonderful people, and I really feel like I connected with them. I didn't realize though how dormant the network still is, and really not operating yet.

Thanks to Brian & Kristen I was given a seat in the staff section in the afternoon and evening which I was very thankful for. I sat with Beth (Kristen's Mom), which whom I spent quite some time as the day passed.

The afternoon session was only for Todd's partners (which I am), and Joshua Mills did it. He sure is an interesting guy, and my first impression seems to have been wrong. I loved what he had to say, and was stirred in my hunger for more of God. In the end, he laid hands on every single person for impartation.

We then had nearly 3 hours until the evening session, and thankfully they let us stay in the building. I spent this time with Cliff & Julie - our last time together. They are wonderful friends; I consider Cliff my big brother. Who knows when I'll see him again, since they are in East Africa for most of the year.

Todd did the last session in the evening. But they had so much stuff going on there wasn't time for him to preach. He had it on his heart to lay hands on every single person there even though there were 3000 people. They lined us all up, organizing it well, but I ended up among the last 20 people and had to wait a very long time. I was talking to Beth while waiting and getting more and more sleepy. I felt like I'd fall asleep before Todd would ever come by. At one point I left to say good-bye to Cliff & Julie, and then returned.

It was midnight by the time we left the conference center and started on the 30-min drive home. Back home I got some tea to warm up before taking off my coat in my cold room. Thankfully I had already packed most of my stuff (which is not much anyway) in the morning. It was very late though before I went to bed.

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Second Full Conference Day

Today the speakers were Todd Bentley, Shawn Boltz and Joshua Mills, and the worship leader Brian Doerksen. It was a good day. Todd gave the 12 points God showed him for 2008, which was helpful and encouraging. Shawn shared some of his prophetic journey, which was also encouraging, and as the last two nights, I could not stay awake during the evening session. It looks like my body knows I'm going back to Eastern time on Sunday, so it's not worth adapting for the few days :-).

During the short lunch break, I hung out with Cliff & Julie. During the evening break, we went to their hotel room again. However, the hotel is having some internet problems, and so I could only quickly download my new emails and send out the ones I had written last night. They said there won't be any internet access tomorrow. We had some pizza in the hotel room, which was delicious, and then we went back to the conference. Thankfully we were allowed to keep our seats all day today.

Tomorrow is the last day of the conference, and I hope it's gonna get better yet. They haven't done any ministry yet, so that's a little disappointing, since I'd like some spiritual refreshing. But God has already talked to me some, which has built me up and encouraged me for the time ahead.

H2TN Getting Incorporated

It looks like God is now opening the door for H2TN to become incorporated in the US, something that has been on my heart for about 2 years. I'm going to GA on Sunday, to be with our architect and his wife, who have been extremely wonderful to me and the ministry. We'll be meeting with a lawyer right in the beginning of the week to set up the organization, and that lawyer is willing to waive her fees. Praise God!

Please pray for wisdom to know who to put on the board, and wisdom for everything elseto do it all the way God wants it.

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Full Conference Day

After a rather short night, and cold night, we left the house at 8 am to drive the half hour to the conference center. They had opened the doors at 7:30 am already, and so all the good seats in the front were taken by 8:30 when I got there. However, I did find three good seats still for myself, Cliff and Julie, who showed up just before it started.

Jason Upton was leading worship all day, which was great. Heidi Baker did the morning session, and this time I didn't fall asleep like last night, and I enjoyed it very much.

We spent the lunch break inside the building eating what we had brought along. I enjoyed talking to Cliff and Julie, and I also connected with the wife of the director of Todd's network that I'm a part of. She's a lovely lady, and she later introduced me to her husband when he came by. I found out to my amazement that he had been reading my email newsletters, and he was also excited to meet me in person. They are really wonderful people, and she told me that they also want relationship and want to develop those within the network. That's exactly what I want too. She said that we'd have coffee together tomorrow to get to know each other more. She also said that maybe they could send us some students from the school, and she's helping me get a ride to the airport on Sunday. I was touched by their kindness.

Jason Upton preached in the afternoon, and it was great. It was already over at 4 pm, and they kicked us all out of the building - into the cold and rain. A lot of people were frustrated because of that, since they wouldn't let us back in until 6:30 pm. I ended up going with Cliff & Julie to their hotel room, where I was able to get online for a little bit, and where we did some talking, and eating pizza, before going back to the conference center by taxi.

Since we came late, all the seats in the front were taken. I found one single seat somewhere, and then Cliff & Julie miracously found two great seats. Then I talked to the network leaders, and since they had a meeting, she gave me her seat in the staff section! So I ended up sitting up front as well. Isn't God good?

Again, I was very tired and had a hard time trying to stay awake, failing much of the time. They say it takes a day per hour of time difference to adjust; I guess I'm experiencing that right now. Shawn Boltz did the preaching, and it was good.

Once again it's 1 am before I go to bed, but I'm so thankful I can be here, and that I'm building relationships. A lady also approached me today, recognizing me from Todd's trip to Malawi. She's now an intern with Todd, and she was very interested in what I do. She said she'd like to stay in touch.

Invitation To Holland

I had an invitation to a prayer conference in Holland today, where they invite a representative of every nation (at least that's the goal) to come, and I was invited to represent Mali.

How did that come about? Well, Jill Austin (a spiritual Mom) is one of the speakers at the conference, and so I checked out the website for the conference and simply emailed them to ask whether they'd still need someone for Mali, and today I got the official invitation, two weeks after I emailed them. I think that's pretty exciting. I only emailed them because the timing of the conference is perfect, just at the end of my time in Austria. So it should be interesting! And it's another chance to be "with" Jill.

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Long Day Of Traveling

After 4 hours of sleep, I had to get up at 4:30 am to finish packing and leave the house by 5 am. I was pretty tired! One of the interns came to take me to the airport. It took about 35 minutes to get there.

At security I was singled out for special screening, and for the first time I had to take off my earrings - that I then forgot there, but thankfully I remembered before it was too late and was able to go back and get them. That's not the first time on this trip I forget something but remember in time. Once I would have left my tickets and passport on a plane. Thank God for His protection!

Arriving at the gate, they had changed gates, and I had to go to the other end of the terminal, but it all worked out on time. I flew to Minneapolis where I changed planes, and then on to Vancouver. Being very tired, I did as much sleeping as I could on the planes.

Having crossed North America from east to west, I arrived in Vancouver at 11:15 am local time - my body was three hours ahead. It took me over an hour to get out with long lines at immigration, where Elana was waiting for me. She's the friend of a friend who lives in Abbotsford and was willing to come pick me up and take me there for gas money. I didn't realize how far Abbotsford was from Vancouver. It took us nearly 2 hours of driving. We stopped at Wendy's and had lunch together. I enjoyed Elana's company who is a very interesting person. She's grown up in Jerusalem and now lives half her time there and half her time in Canada. She's a musician, a vocalist, and teaches as well.

Since there was still time, she took me to her house where I was able to take a shower and then lie down for an hour. I'm used to taking naps during the day, and it's not a problem, but today I felt as if a truck had rolled over me after that hour. The alarm woke me out of deep sleep, and I felt horrible. I had a hard time packing up and getting into the car so Elana could take me to the conference center.

First Conference Night

I got there at 5 pm which was the time I was told registration would start for partners, which I am. I just walked by the line and got inside, waiting at the registration table until the person was ready. I went to get a seat and then found Marlene, the lady on staff with FFM who I'd stay with. We put my suitcase into her car, and then I went to my seat to wait until the start of the meeting.

It didn't take long until the friends I had been looking forward to seeing here showed up - Cliff & Julie Pash. They are from the Kansas City area, and Cliff was the first person to visit me in Mali. He now ministers 10 month out of the year in East Africa. It was a wonderful reunion since I hadn't seen Cliff in a long time - a year and a half, I think. They ended up sitting next to me, and we just talked and talked. There were technical difficulties, and so the meeting didn't start until after 8 pm.

Unfortunately I was very tired by then - it was 11 pm body time after all, after a short night. I stood at first in worship but was too tired to raise my hands even an inch. I soon sat down, and for the rest of worship, and then Heidi Baker's session, I just concentrated on not falling off the chair as I kept falling asleep and my head falling to my chest. It was annoying, but I couldn't help it. It was after 11 pm when the meeting was over (2 am body time), but many were still there praying. Thankfully Marlene came over and said she wanted to leave right away since it was snowing hard. Originally she had said she'd have to stay late to man the booth - thank God that changed!

It was a half-hour drive to her house, which gave us a chance to get to know each other a little. She showed me my nice little room and thankfully turned on the heat, and I decided to write this blog before going to bed.

I'd better go to bed so I'll have at least 6.5 hours of sleep. Hopefully I'll find a way to get online somewhere and send out my blogs.

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Being Blessed

Today I spent all day burning DVDs. I bought 100 blank DVDs yesterday, but didn't even get half of them burned. Still, I'm glad I got some copies to give away now, and gave away quite a few tonight.

I also did a little reading, and spent some time seeking God. However, I didn't get anywhere, just felt the overwhelming weariness and discouragement.

Just before 6 pm it was time to go to church for the nightly prayer meeting. Before the meeting I had this picture taken with 3 of the interns. They are precious people, who were truly happy to see me again.

As the prayer meeting progressed, I became more and more desperate and ended up prostrate on the floor weeping hard. All the weariness just overwhelmed me and I was just so tired of everything. But I gave it all to God and just cried out for help, and for Him to intervene, and meet me. But the heaviness remained.

They were closing the meeting, when Barbara (the senior pastor) waved me forward. She told her church that I had been here for a couple of days and was leaving tomorrow, and they wanted to send me forth. Even in the afternoon I had thought how nice it would be if Barbara prayed for me, and I even thought maybe after the prayer meeting, and asked God to have her do it. Seems like God answered my prayer. :-)

I was already in a very vulnerable place spiritually after having poured out my heart to God in desperation, as the leaders of the church surrounded me and started praying for me. The anointing immediately came on me, as I received fresh waves from heaven. The different people prophesied and it touched my heart. Barbara was the last one to prophesied, and as she mentioned the glory - a key word for me - there was a release that came with it, the sweet touch of the Lord.

I was overcome, so overwhelmed by God's goodness, and was actually smiling again. He's so wonderful!

As I got up again, I was amazed to find money lying next to me, and then several other people came up to me giving me checks and cash. It moved me even more. Some people came up to me, just talking for a minute, taking my flyer. One lady apologized for not having talked to me earlier - she said it would have been her duty to talk to someone new who she doesn't know in church. Others who I had spent some time with came to say good-bye, saying they'd keep in touch. I was given the prophetic words on CD, which I was really glad about.

I left the church different than the way I had walked in. A big chunk of the heaviness was gone. And His presence so close again. Hallelujah!

Precious Time With Barbara

Though Barbara is very busy and had other stuff to do, she chose to go out and have dinner with me since it was our last chance to talk. I felt so very blessed that she would do that.

We went to Applebee's and spent some precious time together. I shared some more from my heart, and it was a wonderful time of fellowship. Barbara is a very unique lady. Even though she's a nationally known leader and busy person, she is so relational, so "normal", and so obviously loves her people. She also has an awesome team around her. I was touched by her transparency and by her sharing her life with me. I'm still amazed that she opened her home to me and invited me without ever having met me. Rarely will you find a leader of her stature who still meets the biblical requirement of hospitality like she does. I highly regard her and honor this woman of God. I hope this is the beginning of a precious relationship that will last.

Coming home, I had to say good-bye to her since I'm leaving at 5 am to go to the airport. It is sad to leave again, but I know I've found a couple of friends here in Ann Arbor who I'll stay in touch with.

I packed up my stuff, and then chose to write today's blog, as I don't know whether I'll be able to get online in Canada. If I go to bed right away, I'll have 4 hours of sleep. So please pray for my trip to Canada tomorrow, and that I'll be able to get some sleep on the plane. Pray everything works out as I arrive there. Somebody I don't know is picking me up and taking me to the conference center, where Todd Bentley's conference starts in the evening.

Speaking To Interns

TThe church here has an internship program to raise up young, future leaders - like a ministry school with much practical work. I was invited to address them for 90 min, sharing my story with them, and I was looking forward to it.

Last night I finished my Mali presentation; I turned out great! It ended up being 10.5 minutes, and it's on my website, on the VIDEO page, or simply click here.

So the interns were the first ones to see it, and they loved it. I was content too. I'm glad I now have something to show in all the different places I'm gonna be the next few weeks. I encourage you to watch it, and would like your feedback.

After the video, the interns wanted to know how I ended up in Mali, and so I shared my story. They loved it and asked many questions. Many of them gave me their email address to stay in touch.

After school, they had a one-hour prayer meeting, and I joined them. After the meeting I had lunch with them in the church kitchen, which allowed us to talk more. Then the intern that had picked me up was to drive me home. I asked whether we could stop at a store, since I hadn't had any chance to do that yet, and so we went to Target. I did some basic shopping like shampoo, but also DVDs to burn my presentation on, so I can give it away in the weeks to come.

Back home I took a little nap before it was already time to leave for the nightly prayer meeting. During that prayer meeting, I became very aware of my weariness, and did not find relief for it.

Fellowship With Pastors

After the meeting, I was invited to dinner by Barbara and another one from the pastoral stuff. That other lady wanted to know my story, and so I told it for the second time that day. She loved it, and as always when I travel, I felt the urgency to get my book written and the story out, to encourage people and help them step into their destinies.

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Long Sunday Morning

I regretted having stayed up so late after having to get up after just 5+ hours of sleep. Plus, I can't remember when I was last at a church at 8 am on Sunday morning! But they had their one hour time of prayer that morning instead of evening. Though very tired, I enjoyed it while trying to stay awake.

The first service started at 9 am, and the worship or rather praise was already very unique. They did an awesome, unique song - and no other songs. Then they had the offering, announcements, communion, before Barbara came up to preach.

I greatly enjoyed her sermon. It was an encouragement of how to live right, act right, as we enter this new season of 2008. Some parts got me thinking.

There was a short break before the second service started, and all the pastors gathered in Barbara's office to get a snack. Then the second service started, which was the same as the first, more or less. I loved it

After the service we gathered in Barbara's office again, when a crisis came up - a purse had been stolen. The distressed lady came in, and after some time the police was called and came to take down a report. All that kept up at the church for longer than expected. The good news is that the purse was found hours later - somebody had mistakenly taken it along.

Fellowship With Pastors

At 2 pm we left to drive to the house of one of the pastors where all the pastors came together for a time of fellowship. I felt honored to be able to join them. They had WONDERFUL food, and I enjoyed talking to people. There were about 14 pastors there, and everyone had much fun, with lots of laughter. I was amazed by the closeness of these pastors, the unity, the friendship. They had something special together. God has given Barbara an awesome team.

At 5 pm we left to go home, where I had two hours with Barbara, just talking and sharing and gleaning from her. I opened my heart to her, and it felt good to be able to do that with an experienced leader like she is. Thank You, Lord!

I then went back to work, finishing up my presentation. Tomorrow morning I'm speaking to the interns here, and they'll be first to see it.

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Mali Presentation

I woke up early local time, after a wonderful night of rest. But it sure was cold as I left my warm bed. It's winter!

Barbara was busy all day, and so I had a quiet day to myself. I used the opportunity to work on my Mali video presentation. I had started it in Mali, but didn't have time - or inspiration - to finish it, and so I thought I just wouldn't have one. However, I worked on it all day long, and even after coming home from the prayer meeting, until 1 am in the morning, and got it done except for the music. I love the way it turned out, and hope I'll soon be done with the music as well. I'll let you know so you can watch it.

It was a fruitful day but I have to say that I'm not used to being alone all day any more. No knocks at my door, no "Hawa, Hawa", no demands, questions, or responsibilities. I realized how much of a people person I am, needing people around me.

Second Prayer Meeting

At 6 o'clock they had a one-hour prayer meeting again, to start the year off. It was a time of worship for the most part, and again I was on my knees and in tears before the Lord. How hungry I am for Him! How much remorse over my shortcomings and failures!

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Long Trip To Michigan

Seybou, Paul and Vroni accompanied me to the airport in Bamako last night. It was time to say good-bye to Vroni for good, since she won't be in Mali any more when I get back. She's been a wonderful blessing, and I'm looking forward to when she's returning to Mali.

The over-night flight from Bamako to Paris went well, and health-wise I was doing better than expected. I only got in a half hour of sleep, though.

Paris, France

I landed in Paris at 6:30 am, and was looking forward to meeting Corinne from our sister church there. Corinne came to Mali nearly two years ago, and she's been a faithful friend and supporter who hopes to come back again one day. She came to the airport just to see me, and to give me some stuff for our Bible School.

We had a wonderful two hours together, having breakfast on a bench. Corinne brought all kinds of food and tea for our picknick, and we enjoyed talking and catching up. For a while I would stop at our sister church in Paris every time I came through there, but now I haven't been there in a while. Maybe I can visit again on my next trip.

Detroit & Ann Arbor

I went through security again and found my way to my next flight, to Detroit. I still had a little time, and so I went into the VIP lounge. When I checked in there, the lady joyfully announced to me that I had been upgraded to business class. Praise God! I was looking forward to 8 and a half hours in business class!

And I did have a wonderful flight. I even got two hours of sleep in, in nearly horizontal position. That helped me a lot after I arrived since I had no chance to go to sleep then.

Arriving in Detroit, the lines at immigration were long, and it took a long time to get through. Then my suitcase was one of the last ones to come out, and they were pretty slow too. And for the first time I saw a line at customs. So all in all, it took me 90 minutes to get out. A young man - an intern from the church here - was waiting for me. One of the pastors had been circling with the car, and together they drove me to Barbara's house in Ann Arbor. I enjoyed their company and asked lots of questions about Barbara and the church.

Barbara is a nationally known leader and speaker, and she was speaking at a conference today, which is why she wasn't home when I arrived. The guys dropped me off, and I was on my own until her return. She has a beautiful home, and I settled into one of the bedrooms. I took a shower, but knew there was no point in getting some sleep since there was a prayer meeting at the church tonight, and there was little time left.

It was after 5 when Barbara came home and I finally met her. When I was in England in October, it was Jill Austin who suggested I'd connect with Barbara, and it still amazes me that I'm here now. I'm curious how these four days are gonna turn out.

It was time to leave for the prayer meeting, and we stopped at a coffeeshop near the church to get some coffee/tea, together with other church and staff members. It was a chance to get to know others and share a little.

We didn't stay long since it was time for the one-hour prayer meeting. They are doing a daily prayer meeting for 8 days to start off the new year. Barbara (standing, in black) led the meeting. We did a lot of worshipping, and Barbara spoke a lot of things prophetically. Though it was for their church, a lot of what she said was also right on for me. I knelt on the floor and had many tears run down my face. Tears of remorse, of regret, of realizing the mistakes I've made, of realizing how badly I represent Jesus, and of weariness. But I also felt His sweet presence, His pleasure, and felt Him telling me that He had never abandoned me, but that He was still there. I also heard the verse in Matthew to come to Him for rest, and I realized how little peace and rest I'd had. I longed for that peace and rest in Him. I longed for Him.

I wouldn't have minded if the prayer meeting had laste longer, but I was thankful for the touch of God during those few minutes. We went home where we had a little snack and did some talking. It was time of getting to know each other a little, and I enjoyed it. I'm hoping for some deeper conversations these coming days. Barbara is a single senior pastor, and I want to draw from her experience and wisdom.

I was soon getting very tired, since I had slept little since my departure from Mali, and fell into bed at 10 pm.

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Off To The States

Once again it's January and time for my trip to the US. I'm going to be in four different locations.

I'm now flying to Detroit, MI, where I'm spending a few days with a well-know Christian leader, a lady, to get to know her and see what God might have in mind.

From there I'm flying to Canada, to Vancouver, to attend Todd Bentley's SECRET PLACE conference. That has been a dream of mine for years, and now it's gonna become reality. I'm staying with a FFM staff member who has a heart for Africa, so I'm hoping it will be a refreshing as well as fruitful time in terms of contacts.

After those two cities, it will be time for more familiar territory. I'll have 10 days in Augusta, GA, with our architect Peter and his family, and he's set up a busy schedule for me that I'm looking forward to. I'm so amazed and so blessed to see all they are doing to help us raise money to build. Thank You, God!

My final stop is Pasadena, CA, for the yearly HIM prophetic conference. I'm looking forward to reconnecting with people there.

I'm leaving the US on Jan 28th to return to Mali, where we are going to move when I get back.

Please pray for my LONG trip to Michigan tonight and tomorrow. I have a full-blown cold now, and it's not fun to travel that way. I can't breathe through my nose that is already hurting.

I have no idea what the situation will be like regarding internet, but I hope to keep you updated on what God is doing.

Pray also for Paul, Firmin, and Vroni who remain in Mali.

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School Restarts

This morning we had the last 4 hours of Bible School. The last session of the 5th and last trimester. The students had decided they wanted to get it done before we move, and so we did two evenings a week, a real intensive. It was tough for some of them. It was definitely tough on me, and for the first time, I didn't stay to watch the video sessions with them, since I had too much other stuff to do. The three students (each one from a different church, and Paul is our student) have to do their final exam when I come back from the US at the end of the month.

Seybou drove our 4 kids to school this morning, only to find out that classes start next Monday. However, for our own kids, school has started today. They have the month of January to study and review and prepare to redo the exams they failed (which is most) when I get back.

The German NGO managing their sponsorships had sent a serious letter so they realize they need to make more of an effort, and I read it to them today. I think it had its intended effect.

I had forgotten that I needed to do the correction of the Math and French exam with them, and so I ended up working with them for 3 hours this afternoon. On one hand that was 3 hours less to do other things, on the other hand I realized again how much I enjoy teaching them. In reality I don't want to pass this on to someone else, I think.

30 Days Until Our Move

Right now it's Paul who keeps saying that everything will be ready for us to move INTO the house when I get back, rather than into the garden and onto the roof of the house. As if to confirm, I received two emails today announcing donations on the way.

This week Kossi is finishing the staircase and the room below, where Anco is installing the inverters for the power supply system next week. The solar panels only arrive in a couple of weeks, and we'll only get them if we pay the $15,000 we still owe them.

And then Kossi is gonna finish the interior - floor tiles, the walls, and installations. I hope there won't be any more mistakes, as I won't be here to point them out. I'm looking forward to moving into our Promised Land in a few weeks!

Sweety's Husband

May I introduce to you: Sweety's husband. She finally succeeded in calling a male cat over to our house to procreate. I let her out on purpose, so that we can have little Sweeties in a few months. I'm looking forward to that adventure!

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First Day of the Year

Though I've not been feeling well at all today, I took some time to play monopoly with Paul, Vroni (both in picture), Firmin and Souleymane. We had some fun.

However the question remains what to do so that the kids behave in a godly way. Vroni has been the eyes on the back of my head in some way, seeing all that's going on when I'm not there, and it's shocking. And when Paul is not there either, they let loose even more. I found out today that Saloum and Daouda attacked each other yesterday, and the other kids were also involved somehow, as was a pen and knife as weapons. Firmin, Vroni and Jessica were witnesses. Tonight I asked Firmin why he did not tell me about this incident. I've told him over and over that he needs to tell me those things. And then Vroni told me more details Firmin hadn't even mentioned.

It's discouraging and frustrating to find out all those things going on behind my back. I have done everything I know to do. If they still don't fear God and act the way they do... may God have mercy on them.

I'm so tired of all the conflicts, the constant demands on me, the constant knocks at the door or window... That trip to the US sure comes at the right time. I can only pray nothing serious happens when I'm gone, and after Vroni leaves.

Please keep praying for my physical health to be restored. I'm leaving for the LONG trip to the US on Thu night.

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