Flourishing in 2018!

Verse for the Year

Psalm 92:12-15Amplified Bible (AMP)

¹² 

The righteous will flourish like the date palm [long-lived, upright and useful];
They will grow like a cedar in Lebanon [majestic and stable].

¹³ 

Planted in the house of the Lord,
They will flourish in the courts of our God.

¹⁴ 

[Growing in grace] they will still thrive and bear fruit and prosper in old age;
They will flourish and be ^[a]vital and fresh [rich in trust and love and contentment];

¹⁵ 

[They are living memorials] to declare that the Lord is upright and faithful [to His promises];
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our family, friends and supporters for their continued support of our ministry with MAF here in Australia.  We are very aware that there is a host of people who lift us up in prayer and support us financially and we don't take that for granted.

On New Years Day we visited a place called Babinda Boulders.  J and Z and their friends were jumping off trees into the river until they found a bigger challenge which involved jumping off huge boulders into the water.  The photos below show the height they were jumping from.  One guy that passed us said "...that's not for the faint of heart...".  Fortunately we had watched other folks do it so we knew it was pretty safe.

Zara in the distance making the impressive jump

Joshua taking a leap off the rock with his friends watching below

Stepping off this boulder into thin air for at least 10 metres made me think of our initial thoughts of moving to Australia back in 2016.  It would have been easier in many ways to stay in Uganda with everything that was familiar, however, that was not to be and the Australian adventure began.  Despite the transition being challenging at times we are thankful, as we look back, at what has been achieved.  Below is a list of things we are thankful/grateful to God for in this last year and for those who have stood by us and prayed for us.

God's faithfulness through all the ups and downs in 2017
Reaching the end of 2017 with a 187 permanent visa in our hands
Amazed at God's goodness in enabling Simon to pass all his exams
Thankful that Joshua and Zara have settled well in their new school and life in Australia
Encouraged that God provided Pam with a job and that she qualified as a Professional Life Coach
Family, friends and faithful prayer warriors - for their support of us along the way
Unique experience of being able to live, work and minister in another country with MAF
Learning to trust God each day and especially as we walk into the new year - 2018

Love and blessings to you all in 2018.

Simon, Pam, Joshua and Zara xxxx