January 2011 Update

Dear Friends



We wanted to start by wishing you all a very blessed New Year. Here in Zambia, we have officially entered into the big rains of the rainy season and for almost three weeks now have had little to no sun which can make life a bit sluggish at times. It has been a while since we last wrote and we wanted to just take a second to update you on what God has been doing in our lives.



This past December we enjoyed a two week visit with Luke’s Mom and Brother Noah. It was such a blessing to watch Mamoo (as she is known) and Noah reconnect with the kids who they had not seen in almost two years. We enjoyed just hanging around Lusaka but did get a chance to take Luke’s Mom into the main teaching hospital to pray for the sick and distribute fruit to the patients. Spending Christmas and New Years with family was such a treat for us and we appreciate all of you who covered Chris and Noah in prayer as they traveled.



January not only marked the beginning of a new calendar year but also the start of another wonderful year of homeschooling bliss (those who have home schooled know what we are talking about, hah!). This year the kids were introduce to a new teacher (Luke) who will help out by teaching the kids math. One of the biggest ways you could bless us would be to pray for us in this area. Specifically that God would give us patience and the ability to cater to each child’s specific learning needs.



The start of the New Year also ushered us into some new territory in the adoption process with Chichi. Next week on January 31st we have a meeting at the US Embassy to apply for a non-immigrant visa for Chichi. This is crucial as we will need one for him to be able to travel home with us this coming July. Please be praying that God would continue to give us favor and that we could walk away from the meeting with confirmation that a visa will be granted.



Lastly, as we mentioned above our next home assignment is tentatively scheduled for July 2011 through January 2012. While our return to the US is still a ways off, we wanted bring it to your attention as it will be our desire to connect, in person, with each of you during our time home. We will be both in Chicago as well as Dallas during our stay and will get you more details as they materialize. Would you also begin to pray specifically for God to provide a vehicle for us to use while we are back.



We love each of you very much and as always remind you that our last four years of service here in Zambia would never have been possible without your involvement. Your prayers and support mean more to us than you may ever know! Be blessed and we will be in touch soon.



His Servants



The Whitfield Family