Yaya's Coming to America!!!!

Hello everyone!

My apologies for not updating sooner. Our house has been full of visiting missionaries and our schedule has been CRAZY! In addition to that I had another round with malaria and needless to say, I haven't quite been myself lately. Thankfully, this time around, we caught the malaria quite early and it wasn't anywhere close to being as bad as the last time. We aren't sure whether this was a relapse or a new infection. Either way, I'm fairly certain it's over and for that, I am GRATEFUL! I will have lab work done next week just to be sure but I'm not sleeping the day away anymore and I can almost eat like a normal person again so we are praising God!

Enough of that! 

Our home has been full of guests since August. There literally hasn't been a day without at least one guest since August 29th. (and generally there have been more than one)  I have been playing musical bedrooms since this started and it has been a blessing to have people around. The one thing that has been made abundantly clear is that we need to start looking for a place to rent as a guest house. We simply don't have space for everyone who wants to come and that is a wonderful problem to have.

Our days have been full with teaching at the school, home visits with people who are sick and shut in, Prison Ministry, counseling sessions, orphanage visits, hospital visits, teaching English classes and more! We literally had to schedule a REST DAY on the calendar... it hasn't happened yet, It's scheduled for November 30th! :-) We love being busy and most of us are work-a- holics who are still learning to balance work and rest. That is a SERIOUS prayer request. Pray for balance and that we rest well. The work is always here and the needs overwhelm us at times. It's difficult to say no to someone when you are aware of genuine need but at the same time, we have to take care of ourselves so that we can adequately do what we are called to do. This is difficult for us at best.

I am delighted to let you know that I will be visiting America in the next few weeks! When airline miles didn't work, my wonderful Rozetta Church family donated the money for me to come visit for a short time! To all of my Rozetta family who may be reading this, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU again! You all completely shocked me! I will be in the States from mid December through Jan 21st.

While this visit was mainly to get some medical check ups and some much needed rest, I will be making some whirlwind visits to churches and hopefully I'll get to squeeze some time in with my family. :-) I'll be updating you all as to what has happened in the last year and share some of our goals for next year.

Several people have been asking what they can start collecting for donations and I have sent out lists. Because of limited space and weight with what we can bring back on the plane, I am asking that you give Sam's/Wal Mart gift cards, Amazon gift cards, donate to my support account or our newly created Medical Scholarship or School Sponsorship funds. The last time I was in America you all gave so generously with items that we needed I was overwhelmed with joy.  I discovered that because my travel schedule is sooooooooo busy, we spent a lot of money transporting those things from place to place because you have to pay for luggage on domestic flights. If we can order online and ship to my church or I can simply pick up the items to pack and carry them ONCE, we are better stewards of the finances God is providing for us. This is NOT to say that I won't accept actual items. We just don't want to end up paying more to schlep things around than they are worth... I don't think God is pleased with that. Sam's and Wal-Mart gift cards also help with fuel for the people who are driving me all around America while I'm there!

The other thing I realize is that most of my financial support is used to pay for medical bills and school fees... There is a huge need for both of these here. Sometimes this can put us in some interesting situations financially, so the need to raise specific money to meet these needs is wise. My current monthly support (actually coming in) isn't enough to meet all of my "regular needs" but God is faithful and one time gifts always come when they are needed. I want to do a better job with planning and continuing to help others so changes need to be made. If you are interested in knowing more, please message me and I will let you know and I will also be talking about this during my visit home.

As we are looking at ways to provide income for the people we work with and help the ministry to become more self-sustainable, we are actively pursuing opening a restaurant in Cameroon. God has opened some interesting doors that I'll discuss with you later but if any of you have experience with running a restaurant and/or helping young people write business plans, I could certainly use your help. Please email for details. I have a LOT of questions and I need a LOT of help. We also need help with non profit law and taxation so if any of you have expertise or know someone who might donate their time to help, I would appreciate the connections. 

Exciting things are happening in Cameroon and around the world! I'm so grateful to be a part of God changing lives. Thank you for your help as I take this journey. If you are a giver, prayer warrior or simply one who "loves on me" by sending encouraging emails I am grateful for your love and support!

I can't wait to see many of you and hug your necks! My last request is that in my quest to take back my health, I am endeavoring to eat as healthy as possible... If I'm visiting you, please help me out by not being offended when I want to try to stick to eating my fruits, veggies, and high quality protein! I know it's going to be holiday time and there will be lots of yumminess around but I don't want to go back to Cameroon sick, nor do I want to have sick days while I'm in America!

Love and hugs to all of you!

Love has no barriers

Many of you will remember Mommy Ahmed. We met in the hospital in Yaounde last year. Her grandson and Elliott shared the only oxygen tank in the hospital. Her grandson was 2 years old
and had a severe heart condition. We spent several weeks together in ICU caring for our children. During our hospital stay and our time at home, I had daily devotions with Elliott. Each morning and evening, I would read to him from a children's Bible, worship, and pray over/with him. (incidentally, we finished the entire Bible the night before Elliott died.) After a few days of her watching this, she put Ahmed on Elliott's bed just after I started reading. She asked in broken English, "Is ok?" I of course said yes. This may not seem like something significant but Mommy Ahmed and her family are devout Muslims.

The first day that Ahmed sat on the bed during our devotions, my heart was racing and my mind was filled with questions. What is the meaning of this? What should I say and what should I do? Yaounde is the French speaking side of Cameroon and Mommy Ahmed speaks French and a tiny bit of English. I speak a VERY tiny amount of French. My heart was overwhelmed with her asking to share our devotion time. How do you reach someone who doesn't speak your language? I just prayed that the words of scripture and the prayers I prayed would touch their hearts in a very special way.

We were in and out of the ICU for several weeks and each time we spent "quality time" with Ahmed and his grandmother. We struggled to speak to each other in broken forms of the other persons language and when someone was available who spoke both languages we peppered them with questions. I pulled out my camera and showed her pictures of my family and friends.

Ahmed and I played games and I would watch over him for his grandmother to go to bathe and vice versa. We developed our own "language" and a bond was created. There are no televisions in your Cameroonian hospital rooms and we were sharing the room with a total of 6 patients but the two of us shared something special.

The day that Elliott passed away, Mommy Ahmed had gone to the pharmacy. Her daughter called her and she came running and screaming back to the ICU. She grabbed me and held me for the longest time saying, No, No, No, Desole, Desole. (I'm sorry in French) I'm sure she cried more than I did that day. It was a few days before I had my meltdown... For the next several weeks we traded phone calls back and forth, checking on each other and just letting the other know that we cared. After a few weeks I wasn't able to reach her and she wasn't calling me.

One day my phone rang with a strange number and Mommy Ahmed was on the line. She was very excited and I could barely understand her. Fortunately, there was someone with me who speaks fluent French and they were able to translate. She was calling to tell me that Ahmed was being transferred to a hospital in Bamenda for heart surgery and she wanted to know if I would pray for him and for their family. My heart burst wide open. Tears began to fall and I couldn't speak for several minutes. I could only nod my head to my friend who was translating for us. I finally gathered myself and was able to speak. Here was a devout Muslim calling from 10 hours away asking this Christian to pray. That was a beautifully overwhelming moment for me.

I was struggling at the time with being angry for losing Elliott. I kept questioning how much time, energy and numerous prayers went up for Elliott and his life. I was angry that my baby was gone after God had given us so many good days and hope after so many bad days. The moment she asked for prayer my mind began to race with all of the good things that happened as a result of Elliott's life. I repented and told God how grateful I was that even in the midst of tragedy, His light was shining among people who didn't know Him.

Mommy Ahmed changed my life that day. Her phone call gave me the fortitude to move forward and to focus more on the good that had transpired over the past 7 months.

Flash forward almost a year. This past weekend was the anniversary Elliot's descent to heaven. I felt very strongly about going back to the hospital where we spent the last months of his life to express my gratitude to the Doctor's and Nurses who helped care for him. I had a wonderful visit with them and the following day I went to visit Mommy Ahmed. I took a friend with me to translate. She met us on the road a little ways from her house. We were calling her to get directions when she spotted us on the street and started running. She grabbed me and both of us had tears in our eyes. We held each other for a long time.  She was speaking so rapidly in French my friend had trouble keeping up but she finally told me that Mommy Ahmed was saying how much the two of us love each other even though we have trouble communicating. Mommy kept putting her arms around me and smiling saying welcome, welcome.




There are no words for me to express the sweet time of fellowship that I spent with her and her family. She has 5 children and 7 grandchildren. I met 2 of her daughters, one son and numerous kids...(family and extended family) They welcomed us so warmly and told me over and over, "We are family," "You are our family," "This is your home." Once again my heart was overwhelmed. I was stunned to find out that Ahmed had also lost his battle with his illness and had passed away. She had called to tell me but I didn't understand her French and didn't have someone nearby to translate for me. Tears threatened to fall numerous times but I kept myself in check until it was time to leave.

As we walked through her neighborhood and around her home, my heart was full of prayers for this wonderful family. I have no idea what the future holds for them and for our relationship but I long for the day when they are also my Christian family. I believe that it WILL happen.

My heart was/is so full. It's amazing to me that God can take an insignificant girl from California and drop her in Africa and she finds herself at home. The people that God has blessed me with here constantly overwhelm my heart. I am so privileged to share life with people all over the world and have "family" wherever I go. I love that I can meet and fellowship with people from all walks of life and various backgrounds. Our common ground is always LOVE.

Love opens many doors and cultivates relationships. Love knows no barriers. Language, race, family background etc. make no difference when God has joined hearts. It is my honor to

share life with this sweet woman and her family. I'm so excited to see what God has in store for them in the future. Please join me in praying for this sweet family and that my life in general will demonstrate God's love to those around me.

1 John 4:7  Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

Matthew 22:36-40  "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

Urgent Prayer Request Part 2

My heart breaks to write these kinds of messages.

This past week has been one of emotional ups and downs. I have spent 4 of the last 7 days in African hospitals. You know this is my least favorite place to be. I HATE hospitals in Africa but what I hate even more is having to be there with a loved one.

Many of you will remember my dear Bessie. She is the nurse who selflessly dedicated herself to helping me care for Elliott. She stayed in the house with us and accompanied me to Yaounde for his treatment because I don't speak French. Last week she woke up in excruciating pain and her right leg numb. We took her to the hospital on Friday morning and discovered what we thought was abnormalities with both of her kidneys. On Monday we traveled to Douala to a more sophisticated hospital with better equipment to take a better look. Ironically, we were back at the same place that did Elliott's MRI. (There is only 1 working machine in the country) It was surreal to walk through those doors and see many of the same faces I saw a year ago. Walking into the room with the MRI machine literally took my breath away. My mind immediately flashed back to the day we brought Elliott into this same room with the very same technicians. Bessie was there by my side to offer support and help in any way needed. On Monday, the roles were reversed and she was the patient and I was supposed to be giving moral support.

My mind raced. I switched back and forth from prayers and asking the tech a million questions. My heart was broken. I never thought I would be inside that room again and especially not with Bessie. At some point I switched to an attitude of gratefulness. When walking through Elliott's journey, I never had an idea that I would need to go back to Douala for treatment for anyone. However, Because of his journey, we were able to get quality care quickly for Bessie in an emergency. I would have never known where to go or what to do if I didn't have experience. This is one more way that I am choosing to believe that Elliott's life is making a difference long past his time here on earth. I am also choosing to walk in faith and gratefulness.

Since my original message, Bessie has received 6 ultrasounds, 2 MRI's and a CT Scan with contrast. In an incredible outpouring of God's favor one of her MRI's and her CT Scan were done for FREE! THIS IS A HUGE BLESSING AND VIRTUALLY UNHEARD OF HERE IN CAMEROON. Patients are not seen without first paying everything up front. We have been very blessed with the quality of her care and Doctor's who are concerned and working for her good. This is also rare in Cameroon. Many Doctor's don't try to find answers, they send you on your way with a prescription for pain pills and that is that. I'm so grateful that this isn't the case right now. We have discovered that she has 2 gallstones, 3 Fibroids, a mass in her right kidney that is blocking her uretur and causing her kidney to be enlarged, her left kidney seems to be fine and there is another problem with her right kidney that they have yet to identify. The Radiologist is working diligently to give us a proper diagnosis and we are to return to Douala on Monday to hopefully get the final diagnosis. They have told us that if they can't figure it out, she will need to be sent to Europe for a diagnosis and treatment.

We DESPERATELY NEED YOUR PRAYERS. Bessie is in pain but she is in good spirits. We also need your financial help. We have spent about $1200.00 so far and we are spending $100 per day for transportation each time we travel to Douala.(3 times this week alone and we are headed back on Monday)  At this point I can't begin to estimate what her medical expenses will be. I have to trust that as God lays it on your heart to give, we will have what we need. Many of you have asked about my financial needs for Kenya and for coming back to the US this summer. I would ask that you defer any gift you were making for these trips to help cover Bessie's medical costs. Though I want to make both of these journeys, I will not until we know that Bessie is ok. At this juncture she needs an advocate, a big support system and friends.

Any gift that you can give will be helpful. You can donate online at http://hisbodyministries.blogspot.com. All donations are 100% tax deductible and you will be helping to save a life! Thanks so much to you who have already given to make the first MRI possible!

Thank you for all of your support for me, our ministry and the people of Cameroon that I have come to know and love.

Please continue to pray for Bessie, her family and for me that I keep my head on straight and stay focused during this time. I'll send out updates as I have more info!

Urgent Prayer Request and Financial need

• Urgent Prayer Request and Financial need!
  
  I have spent the entire day in 2 hospitals with the nurse who moved in to help us take care of Elliott and has continued to live with us for all of our mental health purposes.
  
  She has problems with both kidneys and at least 1 Fibroid Tumor. We need to have an MRI on Monday to see what else is going on. She is likely going to have surgery but we are unsure at this time.
  We need to raise about $2500.00 immediately. The MRI is 700 and the transportation to Douala is 100.00 This is what we know we need for Monday. She is sure to have more tests and medication and the Doctors consultation fees. I want to try to have as much on hand as we can because the hospitals will not see you without paying upfront.
  
  I will also be sending an email update if I can get the email to open. It took more than 15 minutes just to get signed into FB. We are having problems city wide with internet right now.
  
  We are trusting God for a miracle in her case. Her right kidney had problems 10 years ago and she had an operation but we are not sure of what the surgeon did. This is looking like the same issue but worse.
  
  Any help you can give is appreciated. Please donate using the button at the top of this page.
   

Kenya Update

God never ceases to amaze me and each time He does something spectacular, I’m left wondering why I’m so surprised. He is God after all. Sherri and I are just returning from a month in Kenya. We traveled to 5 different cities and experienced something phenomenal in all of them. I will attempt to share a few of the highlites.

We visited a Children’s Home/Orphanage that literally took my breath away. There were almost 500 children that were extremely well behaved, well disciplined and knew where they were going in life. Our first real encounter with the children was participating in their Intercessory Prayer time. The kids lead everything themselves. They didn’t have an adult coming to tell them it’s time to start, now do this or that… Nope, each child is led by the Holy Spirit and I was in awe. These kids worship with their entire being. They pour themselves out to God and each other in a way that I can’t describe to you with words. During our first prayer time with them, the tears ran freely down my face. (okay, if I’m 100% honest, tears ran down my face with pretty much every encounter them)They were tears of joy and I was humbled by the purity and the sincerity of the words coming out of the mouths of those sweet children. My heart kept saying, Surely the Presence of the Lord is in this place. These are children who truly love God and believe that He loves them and will do absolutely anything for them. It was so refreshing to experience the Presence of the Lord with little children. Tears are forming as I write this.

 In an incredible twist of almost everything I have seen in orphanages around the world, they also have an intense love the people who are caring for them. Foyer La Providence in Haiti is the only other place I have seen the children love their caretakers so intensely and you can see and feel the love as you walk around.

We were able talk with the directors, staff and older children who were very forthcoming about how things work there, how they finance the place with 500 children and they only have 78 of the kids sponsored.  We also got plenty of ideas for how we will run our own Children’s Home in the future. 

Maasai Land was my next favorite part. It was such a delight to go and worship with the Maasai people. I don’t speak Kiswahili but worshipping with them was surreal. This particular tribe has only been introduced to the Gospel since 1993. They are relatively new Christians but their hunger for the Lord and their love for Him is breathtaking. We sang, they danced and shared testimonies about what God has done for them. My heart was overwhelmed. When I was there 2 years ago, the Pastor told me that the greatest need they had was for the word of God.  This village of about 200 has only 4 people who can read and those same 4 can also speak English. They had a few Bibles in their language and the few people who could read would take turns sharing the word with the other villages throughout the week. I was able to find Kiswahili audio Bibles that are solar powered. (no electricity in the entire village – they are EXTREMELY remote) The smiles on the people’s faces when they saw the Bibles were priceless… The bigger smile on Pastor Zack’s face as they listened to the word in their language was even better. He walked around with the Bible listening and showing us around. A small group of people were gathered at the house we were visiting and they sat and listened in awe. What a blessing. I can’t describe it. My heart has memories of sitting under the trees with some of the ladies of the village sharing stories from the Bible with them and answering their questions. I can’t wait to get back and do it all over again!

The final part of our trip was bittersweet. We ended up extending our trip by a few weeks. There was another Missionary in another city 8 hours away that was in need of some serious help. She runs a rescue home for children rescued from sex slavery. After being up all night in prayer for her and the children, Sherri and I decided to make the trip to assist in any way that we could. Overwhelmed is the only word that I can use to describe how I felt when we were told some of the stories of the girls and some of the issues that the house mom’s had been working through. I had my own meltdown while we were there… These girls are mere children. The youngest was 9 years old and the oldest was 20. (the ones we met, I’m sure there are many ages out there.) Some of them had been on the streets since the tender age of 6. THIS IS NOT O.K. Many of them had been sold into prostitution by family members and they “worked” to provide food and shelter for themselves and their families. There are many reasons why these kids are “working girls” but none of the reasons are o.k.  Men and women from all over the world fly to this city just to be able to have cheap sex. (something like $.50 for an encounter) The fact that this can go on and the local government knows about it and turns a blind eye or even participates in it makes my stomach churn. While walking on the beach, attempting to talk to God, I was propositioned numerous times. Anger, despair and hopelessness filled me at times.

Even with all of the horrible stories and the realities of the situation of this city, those girls were precious. They were loving and giddy and happy to be in a home with their “Mama.” I use the quotes only because Mama B. isn’t their biological mother or even legal mother but she is and always will be their Mom. The work that God has done in them over the last year is nothing short of a miracle. The girls are learning who God is, who He says they are and that their bodies are temples of the most high. It was wonderful to hear the stories of how they learned about God and when they began to understand what it means to worship and how they pour their hearts out to God during their worship time. I hope I am around in a few years as they are sharing their testimonies all over the world and are working to stop sex slavery. They will all be used powerfully by the Lord I am so sure! Please be in prayer for these precious children and Mama B. who is working tirelessly to help these girls have a better future. Because this is a public blog, I am not sharing the city or any identifying info about the girls. I don’t want to provide any sicko’s out there who don’t already know about this horrible place the opportunity to hurt any more children. I also don’t have permission from Mama B. to share all the stories. In the long run, it doesn’t matter. God knows who they are and when you pray for Mama B. and her girls. He knows the needs. My personal selfish “need” is that I want to go back and help Mama B and the girls. Another friend of mine will be joining me in Cameroon in July and then will be heading to Kenya to help out. She had invited me to go with her several months ago and now the burden in me to help is overwhelming. I need to raise about $1,500 to make the trip back in July.  If you feel led to help, please message me or donate through the donate button at the top of the blog.

My time with God was surreal the entire visit in Kenya. He continued to reinforce who I am in Him and He gave me so many glances into my “assignments” for the future. More than anything this visit helped me to see who I am in Him and the call that He has placed on my life. It’s huge and overwhelming. There were many times, I felt like, God, I can’t do this. I felt like He was saying, no, you can’t but I can if you are willing to allow me to use you. I’m willing, but I would be lying if I didn’t say that it’s overwhelming. There are many times I look at the ideas that God gives me and the people that He has me helping and I’m like, Whoa, this is a whole lot. There is so much to be done and I’m just not sure… The good thing is I don’t have to do it alone. I have the Lord, I have people on the ground helping and I have all of YOU! I’m so thankful that He has made us partners on this journey and He has equipped all of us to do our part.

My heart is overwhelmed with the blessings of the Lord. This trip to Kenya has taught me so much about myself and how to do the assignments that God has given me much better. Thank you for being a part of this journey. Thank you for loving me and “my kids” around the world. Thank you for listening to the Lord and doing what He tells you. I was visiting with my girls in the orphanage in Cameroon tonight. One of them asked me, Auntie, how is that you are able to help us? My answer, there are many people around the world who love the Lord, they also love me and are kind enough to listen to my stories about you. Because they love the Lord and believe in what I do, they also love YOU. They are willing to sacrifice money and time to help because of LOVE. Her answer to me, I want to be one of those people Auntie. I love the Lord and I want to be able to show love to others too. Will you help me so that I can love too?

Never underestimate how YOUR love is making a difference all over the world. Your sacrifices of time to pray for me and my kids, taking the time to read this blog or email update, making a trip to the store to buy an item to donate or digging through your kids things they never use, giving financially or volunteering at a VBS is changing the lives of people you may never meet. People are coming to know Christ for who He really is. They are finding their identity in Him. Girls are stopping sex for pay and People are learning to love like God loves. This is how we will change nations and God’s Kingdom will come here on earth.

THANK YOU!

A Merry Heart

The sound of children’s laughter in my home is something that I will never get tired of hearing.

8 kids from the orphanage spent the weekend with me and two assistants. Words cannot adequately describe the joy that having a house full of children brings to my heart. 

The younger girls came for their monthly retreat and they brought a special guest, 8 month old baby Michael. Each of the girls is assigned a younger child to care for and his “care giver” was part of our group this week. He is a bit fragile, medically speaking and needs some extra TLC. We were so glad to have him.  

It continues to amaze me the simple things that I take for granted on a daily basis that mean so much to people who don’t have them.  Showers are something I don’t think about a lot. I don’t use my shower much these days. I only have running water every other day for a few hours and I don’t have hot water running through the pipes. For me, it’s easier to heat a bucket of water and take a bucket bath.  The orphanage doesn’t have running water at all and the kids bathe in buckets of cold water outside in a bath house. When the girls first spent the night at my house, the shower and western toilet were some of their favorite things. This weekend was no exception.

I walked in the hallway and heard a scream followed by a fit of giggles coming from the bathroom. I walked to the door cautiously asking,  “What’s happening in there?”  The door opened and there were 4 naked girls with huge grins on their faces. “Mom, this shower is amazing!” I closed the door both baffled and amused.  Baffled as to why there were 4 of them in the shower at the same time (One couldn’t figure out how to make the shower work, so the others came to help!) and amused that a simple shower could bring so much joy. One by one they took their showers and filed out of the bathroom to change. My hallway was full of water as they walked from the bathroom to the bedroom but I didn’ t care. The joy radiating from them was contagious.

Moments like this filled our time together. Writing them won’t do justice to the memories. You had to be there and understand where these kids come from and the challenges they face on a daily basis to fully appreciate simple moments like this.  

Mommy Felicia Doh came to speak to us about being the Kings Delight. She taught from the book of Esther and completely rocked our world with the story of Esther, orphan turned Queen. To see the looks on the faces of the girls as they began to understand what they were being taught was amazing.  We took some time to make declarations over our lives and futures based on what God says about us. The truths that the girls spoke over their lives brought joy to my heart and tears to my eyes. Watching them grow emotionally and spiritually is one of my greatest joys. To be an orphan in Africa is no joke. Society says you are nothing and will be nothing. You are treated like dirt by most of the world.  Teaching them what God says about them and who they are can be an uphill battle sometimes. To see and hear each girl boldly (or timidly) declare who God says they are and make positive declarations about their future is a joy that I can’t begin to describe to you.

The retreat is over and my house is now empty but the sound of laughter still rings in my ears and the joy continues to burst from my heart. My kitchen is still a wreck and the rest of the house is a disaster but my love tank is overflowing. I can sit here on my bed and see the face of each girl. I can hear her making joyful declarations and I am agreeing with every one of them and declaring more. More of God, more joy, more emotional healing, more truth taking hold in their lives, more, more, more!

It is my joy and my privilege to share life with them. It isn’t always easy but it is worth every minute.

Thank you to all of you for your prayers, your financial gifts, and your willingness to allow God to use you to help make a difference in the lives of many around the world. Some of the lives you touch you will never meet in person. I’m so grateful that God uses all of us to change the world for Him and to establish His Kingdom here on the earth.

How can you bring life and laughter to those in your corner of the world today? Make it your mission today to find out and bless someone with the Jesus in YOU!

New Living Translation (©2007)
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit saps a person's strength. Provers 17:22

We NEED MEN!

This past weekend, I held the first retreat for some of the older boys at the orphanage. 15 guys, age 13- 18 piled into my living room for an afternoon of food, teaching and fun!

The boys arrived around 1:00 p.m. and we began with discussing our visions and dreams of the future. There are some lofty goals in this group. We took a bit of time to dispel some myths about America... (i.e. the government leaves cars abandoned on the side of the road for anyone to claim and use.. um, NO!)

We also took time to prepare our meal. I ended up not teaching them how to bake because they arrived a few hours late and there wasn't time. We did have lots of lessons in hygiene, cooking etiquette, etc. They were very receptive and well behaved. While waiting on our stew to cook a few boys went outside for a quick soccer game and I taught the rest how to play Uno. Fun times!

Our last few hours were spent watching the movie, The Gospel and then discussing what a true relationship with God looks like, and how to deal with anger, bitterness and resentment.

I was struck with how they followed me around like small children. They had questions and some simply wanted just to be close to me. It was interesting that they were more "clingy" than the girls are. Not in a bad way but it struck me how much we all crave family. When you live in an orphanage, institutional living is so different. These kids live in a large orphanage with a few staff so they crave the attention of a mother and father.

90% of our volunteers are women. This isn't bad but we NEED more men! We need them to help give what we as women can't. The kids need the love of "mothers" and "fathers." This is for the girls as well as the boys. As days go on, my understanding of why God created family the way He did deepens. There are come things that God gave to women to pass on to their kids and their are others that He gave to men. All kids need BOTH to function well.

My hearts desire is for men to come and pour out to these beautiful children. Are you a man  some vacation time on your hands? Would you like to come and impart love, wisdom, kingdom and practical skills to some kids who desperately need it?

Are you a married couple seeking to serve the Lord and bless some children in the process?

WE NEED YOU!

Finally an Update from Cameroon!

It's been a whirlwind the last few weeks/months. So much has happened and I will attempt to give you some of the highlights. Forgive me for having such a long time lapse between updates. This will be a slightly longer
message than usual.

For the past few months, I have been visiting back and forth and caring for kids from the orphanage who have been hospitalized for various reasons. So far, we have 3 that have needed blood transfusions. I'm not exactly sure why. The answers from the "Doctors" leave me stumped. How does a 6 month old suddenly develop a shortage of blood? That is just one crazy example. I won't take time to delve into all of their issues but please keep Michael, Paulsen, Cathy Praise and all of the kids lifted up in prayer. The orphanage is having a lot of difficulties in several areas, so keep the staff in your prayers as well.


In March, I resumed having our monthly retreats with the girls from the orphanage. Twice a month a different set of kids come to visit my home for the weekend. There are 20 or so girls from age 13 and up that are allowed to come. The orphanage sets the parameters for who can come and who can't.

Many of the kids in the orphanage have no idea what "real life" outside of the orphanage looks like, so our goals are to model family life, provide Discipleship, mentoring, practical life skills and some "vocational training" that will help them develop skills to get a job and/or become entrepreneurs. The number one goal of all our time together is to show LOVE. The love of Christ is why I'm here and the reason why I can do any of what I do.


The orphanage had made me aware of some serious problems that the girls were struggling with and the staff was at an impasse with how to address their needs. They asked me to see if I could make any headway with the girls. I spent quite a bit of time in prayer asking God what might be the best way to do this and while I was a tad bit overwhelmed with how to tackle this, God came through.

On Saturday night, God gave me a simple question to ask that opened the flood gates for the kids. They shared their hearts. They were brutally honest and we discussed a number of solutions for the things they are dealing with. We talked until late in the evening when I finally called it quits so that we could get up for church in the morning. Throughout the remainder of the weekend, the girls pulled me aside one by one to talk about their individual needs. I was so honored that they chose to trust me.

The girls were pleasantly surprised to see the addition of a new oven, freezer and projector. My church family surprised me with a generous gift of $2800 to purchase these items. We were also able to get a new laptop, and software to use for the ministry. We are using these items to assist with some of the vocational teaching that we are doing. Last month the girls learned how to bake brownies, spice cake and bread. Our next undertaking will be soap and/or deodorant. We are in the process of gathering supplies and whatever we find the most of is what we will make. We are also working on locating shops to consign the things we make until we are able to have our own place. Before the year is over, we hope to teach the following:
How to make liquid and bar soap, how to dye fabric, how to make toothpaste and deodorant and paper bead jewelry.

My absolute highlight of the weekend was when I assigned clean up duty. One of the girls refused to allow anyone to help her with the dishes/kitchen. She is fairly new to the orphanage and this was her first time in my home. I finally went in to see what the issue was. She  turned from the sink with tears in her eyes and pulled me into a soapy hug and said, "Mom, Thank you. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for loving us." My heart was ripped out of my chest.


One semi-urgent need the girls have is for undergarments and feminine hygiene products. We would like to purchase a weeks worth of undergarments and 3 months of feminine hygiene supplies for each girl. This is a CRITICAL need. Imagine being without these items and without water consistently too! SCARY at best. Our goal is to raise $500 to purchase the needed items and hire transportation to take the girls to shop. We don't have a Target or Wal-Mart and the markets don't stock things by size so we may need to go to several places to get everyone sized a few at a time. If you can with gift of any amount, it will be greatly appreciated. You can give online via the donate button at the top of the blog or you can mail a check to:
National Christian Foundation
 11625 Rainwater Drive, Suite 500
Alpharetta, GA 30009
please write Fund ID - 721433 on the memo line.
Your gifts are tax deductible.

Please email me to let me know if you are giving for the girls.

This weekend, I will be hosting the older boys from the orphanage for their first retreat. For more than 3 years, they have asked for their own retreats/Bible Study and they will finally get it. One of the gentleman from Bethel Cameroon has graciously agreed to assist . The boys will come early on Saturday morning and go back in the evening. The verdict is still out on whether I will teach them to cook something while they are here. :-)  The following weekend, the girls will be back in their regular rotation.

Bethel Cameroon and His Body Ministries has formed an official partnership and with that comes lots of teamwork in the form of visiting teams! Bethel Cameroon had a team come from Bethel Atlanta and what a joy and delight they were. They were here for 2 weeks and we had an awesome time ministering all over the city and loving on each other. The Bethel Atlanta team really poured their hearts out to the people of Cameroon. They were the first team ever to have their luggage lost. 10 out of 14 bags were missing for almost their first week here. That didn't stop them at all. They borrowed things, braved the African Markets  and washed and re-washed various items by hand. There was prayer walking, hospital visits, village visits and some serious worship. Our outreach in the village of Tole alone served: 145 widows, 72 single moms, more than 100 orphans and another hundred or so various children that came out.  I couldn't keep up with all of people there and the only reason I was counting was to be sure that we had enough food to serve all those that came out. I was so blessed by the team's presence as was the nation of Cameroon! I don't think any of us will ever be the same. I'm so grateful to be a part of what God is doing through Bethel. I will  continue working with the single mom's in Tole on the 2nd Friday of every month and various Bethel students will be assisting. After we finish our relationship building, the single mom's in Tole will be learning many of the skills that we are teaching the older girls at the orphanage so that they can also be empowered with tools to help them have a brighter future.

I can't express to you what working with all of these groups has done FOR ME. I know that they are growing and the staff at the orphanage gives me feedback about how things are changing there for the good.  I have only just begun to realize how much working with them has been changing me. God is so very faithful. There are many days when the obstacles seem too overwhelming and it feels like there isn't a way to make any real changes. I am constantly reminded, that Toya can't do anything on her own. One plants, one waters and God gives the increase. I'm eternally grateful to each and every one of you who give, who pray and who take the time to listen to me talk about what is happening here. You are a part of all of this. YOU are making a difference with your gifts and your prayers.

Next month I will be heading to Kenya for 3 weeks. I will go back to my beloved Maasai land to work with a group I met in 2011. They are "newbies" to the gospel having just been introduced to the word of God in 1993. They are in a remote area and many of their people don't read or speak English. I have 2 audio Bibles that are solar powered in their language and can't wait to deliver this precious gift. I will also be visiting an orphanage that is doing so much of the work that I am doing and  long to do here in Cameroon. I hope to gain knowledge of how it's best to impact orphans in Africa. They are doing a marvelous job of impacting the lives of the children holistically and I trust that the staff there will be able to impart some of their wisdom. I'm still prayerful about what else God wants to show me during this trip and who He wants me to pour into. I am looking to raise an additional $750 to cover lodging and transportation during this trip. You can donate online via the donate button on the blog or mail a check to the address mentioned above. Please email me if you are giving specifically for this trip.


Many of you have asked for a Toya update... This is one of my least favorite things to do but here goes...
The last few months have been a bit up and down for me emotionally. I am still grieving the death of my sweet baby Elliott and grief has brought other issues to light. I have been forced to look at my life and deal with some issues that I thought were long gone. I have also tried to balance taking care of others while I take care of myself. This isn't one of my strong suits. It's so much easier for me to take care of everyone else and bury my own needs. I'm sure this is why some of these issues are coming up. Fortunately, I have wonderful friends who can speak truth and love me enough to do so. I am also working with a counselor to deal with some of the more difficult issues. Grief has changed me in some ways (both good and bad) but I refuse to allow it to derail me. Elliott's life was a gift to me in so many ways and even his death has brought growth. I recognize that the enemy would love for his death to take me out, but I refuse. So, I ask you for your prayers. I want to grow in every area that the Lord is asking me to come up higher and I want to come out on the other side of this more victorious.

Thank you for loving me and the people I  minister to on a daily basis. Blessings to you and yours!