'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus
Just to take Him at His Word;
Just to rest upon His Promise,
And to know 'Thus saith the Lord.'
***

Update
Kyle is recovering well after his minor oral surgery. Thank you for your prayers. His pain and swelling are since completely gone. Since our last post we have done a bit more traveling. We visited my sister, Marcy and her husband, Kevin in Wisconsin. It was such a blessing to visit with them and to see that my sister is doing so well. Kyle spent a few days working from their kitchen table...his "office". We also took the time to be in silence, as Marcy and Kevin live in a more rural town with lots of tree and nature sounds surrounding their house. The time allowed us to read and seek the Lord's face. To listen for his voice in the silence. However, after 7 days in that wonderful place it was time to leave.

Work and the VISA
We are back in Chicago and staying for about a week before heading back to Holland, Michigan for a friend's wedding and to work in the office a day or two. We continue to be in conference calls with Partners Worldwide on a weekly basis and Kyle spends a lot of time revising documents and answering email. We have reached a month with our work visa application. Please keep praying, for receiving our visa in the next few weeks we were told is "optimistic." But we believe our God is capable of working in HIS time and we are feeling like loose ends are being wrapped up as we are close to completing our scheduled visits.

Us
We are encouraged as we continue to wait. There are definitely difficult moments and other moments are very stressful. But God is faithful to hear our cries. The Lord continues to meet us in wonderful ways when we are discouraged. He gives us peace in our hearts. We know He is with us as we learn to rest upon His Promise and to take Him at His word.
We also have been able to find a little time to steal off and be alone together. Yesterday Kyle and I took the train to downtown Chicago to enjoy the sights, sun, and a free symphony concert in Grant Park. It made for a pleasant day to spend together enjoying one of our favorite places.

SUITCASE
We also continue the process of preparing and packing. There is some shopping left and there is always downsizing as Kyle and I attempt to fit EVERYTHING into our two suitcase allotment for flying. It is a process, but this time of waiting has taught us that we do not need as much as we thought we did...as most of our belongings are stored away. However, we are praising the Lord today because we passed a garage sale on our way to the Library and there was a huge hardly used suitcase for sale, $15. This is an item we have been searching for unsuccessfully for about a month now. Unwilling to pay ridiculously high prices for a piece of luggage that would get beat up in one trip, we wanted something second hand. Our new suitcase has only made one trip: a European cruise with the former owner: a cute, kind, and talkative retired woman.

Time is Ticking...
As the days roll by we continue to plan and travel. On Friday, we head to Grand Rapids for a meeting in the office and on Saturday our friends are getting married in Holland. We will stay the weekend for what will probably one of our last extended visits to our "home church" and with some of our closest friends. It will probably be time for some of the first "good-byes."

Please pray for the Lord's mercy and grace as we travel and visit with friends and church family. Pray also for God's hand to work in bringing approval to our work visa.