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UPDATE ON FLORENTIN'S HEART OPERATION

End of November we were overjoyed to be informed that the county of Upper Austria is covering all the expenses for Florentin's heart valve replacement. We were totally amazed by the fast and positive response! I immediately called the leading cardiologist at the hospital to set a date for the operation. As I was already traveling to Europe right after Easter, Florentin will now travel with me. We'll have about a week in Vienna before going to Linz and him checking into the hospital on April 15th. He'll be operated 2-3 days later. After his operation he'll spend 10-14 days in the hospital before being released. Thankfully, a local sister church in Linz will take care of Flo when he's released. He'll then return to Mali with me end of May.

I'm looking forward to introducing him to many of our Austrian friends. He's probably the only one of our children to ever have the privilege to travel to Austria, as the visa requirements are nearly impossible to fulfill. I'm very thankful for the way God has been making this possible step by step, but there are still some hurdles.

TRAVEL TO SENEGAL

Mali has no Austrian representation. I've talked to the Austrian consul responsible for Mali and was told that we need to travel to Dakar, the capital of Senegal, for Florentin's visa. Now that's no easy thing to do for several reasons. One, flying within Africa is very expensive. Then you need a hotel, food,...

We've already spent a LOT of money to help Flo - starting with the medication he has to take daily, and injections he needs every few weeks. Then the next challenge was a passport...

Paul has a brother who works at the passport department - thank God! We were told that the production of passports had already stopped for this year. However, after presenting our case to the top guy there, we received Florentin's passport within 24 hours. Praise God! Of course, it also cost money.

Next I tried to use my miles for a flight to Dakar - to no avail (I didn't really want to fly first to Paris, and then on to Dakar, or via Nairobi, which would have taken 24 hours or more). So we have to pay full price.

Next was the question of a hotel. I considered the hotel where Paul & Rokia stayed in January and loved it so much. It included a buffet three times a day, and was on the beach - why not give Flo an experience. However, it's outside Dakar and I was concerned about how much it cost.

Paul left quite an impression with the European owner there. After hearing our request and reason for travel to Dakar, she told us we'd be our guests and could come for free! WOW! Now we still have to pay the pricey transfer between the airport and the hotel.

IN FINANCIAL TROUBLE

The visa is also not cheap, then we need insurance for Flo, and a couple of other things that cost money. The expenses just keep growing. And we have a big problem.

We fly to Dakar on Sunday (today it's Tuesday) and we don't know how to pay for the flights that cost $1,500 or 1200€ (and that's not adding all the other things to pay for). We were hoping to sell our oldest car this week, but the buyer informed us he won't have the money before January. Both our American and Austrian account is empty (and our debts have been growing), and I'm at a loss. Even though the time before Christmas is always financially difficult, we've never been this desperate.

Please, can you help us?

QUICK NEWS

•       Political Events - Last night the Malian prime minister was arrested by the coup leader who then forced him and the whole government to step down. He claims it's not another coup. Please pray for calm, and that this doesn't affect the intervention in the north.

•       My Health - Please pray for me. I've been dealing with a skin condition since April, and even though I'm taking medication and applying creams, it's progressively gotten worse, and don't see how I can conquer it. Also, I've been extremely tired and don't know whether it's due to the medication or just exhaustion.

•        Christmas - We're thankful to the church making our family celebration possible. If you'd like to help us put on the Christmas party for street children, we'd be thankful for your contribution. We are currently a few thousand euros/dollars short as too few donations have come in.

•        Thief Among Us - We believe we know who the thief on our base is who has been stealing for the past year and a half. We'll be setting him a trap now; please pray we can get proof and catch him.

•        Construction - Because of our dire financial situation, we can neither fix the crumbled walls ($2000) nor continue construction.

•        New US Secretary - We are looking for someone who'd like to help us out by becoming our new secretary. It's only a few hours per week - picking up mail, entering checks online and depositing them. That's the primary job, with occasional other things to do. Ask me for more details.

•        Book in German - It was exciting to hold the German translation of my book in hand, and get to immediately present it in a new church. I'm looking forward to doing so many more times while in Austria next year. You can order it by emailing xero2@gmx.at.

•        More Austrians Coming - The first 2 Austrians arrived a few days ago, and we're very thankful, especially in light of the trip to Senegal that we couldn't have done if it wasn't for them being here.

•       Volunteers - We need volunteers in Mali who can stay a few months or more. If you'd like to come help us, please contact me.

Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness. (2.Cor 9:10)

Crying out to HIM,

Claudia