"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding,
shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:6-7
Our praying friends and family in the Lord,
[I posted some of this on our Facebook page, but for those of you who don't Facebook, I thought I'd send it in an email as well. It's an answer to prayer, a testimony of God's goodness, His care, and provision. What a blessing to see His handiwork, and to know that He does things just for us!]
We begin our visas for another year. While the whole process takes about a month, from application to finally picking up our visas/id cards, we begin making preparations mid Spring. It's one of the more stressful things we have to deal with to live and work here.
This year we hit a bit of a snag early on. It came to my attention that Christian and my passports were due to expire, and that we would need new ones prior to applying for visas. Normally that's not a problem, new passports are fairly easy and quickly obtained. However, and unbeknownst to us, we learned from direct communication with our embassy, America is experiencing difficulty and delays in processing passport applications worldwide. We were advised to apply as early as possible, which we then did.
After a month had elapsed, with no word from the embassy, our lawyer phoned us this past Friday to ask for our updated information. When I mentioned we had not received our passports, he asked when had we applied. Mid July was my answer. He informed me, that on average it's taking at least four months from the date of application, and that's with constant communication with the embassy. We discussed various scenarios and options should our passports not arrive before our visa renewal in a couple of weeks. We decided to wait on it, and see what, if anything would develop over the weekend. We ended the conversation on a general note of anxiety and despair.
Yesterday morning, at the breakfast table, after rehashing the lawyers conversation, and fed up with worry, we committed the matter to God, trusting him for whatever the outcome. A few minutes later, national pastor Alish called me to say, our meetings had been canceled for the day, and that I was free to do whatever. A few minutes after that, Hannah came down from upstairs, having just heard from the embassy that our new passports were ready and waiting, and that if our schedule permitted, we could come that day for pick up. I grabbed my hat, wallet, and keys, and with my old passports in hand, headed to Sofia. I returned, twelve hours later, exhausted but rejoicing.
My text for today's meetings was, "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God." Philippians 4:6 Thank God, The Lord knows what we have need of before we ask, and when we ask he can sure get it done in a hurry.
More paperwork to get done this week, and then we reapply the second of September. However, knowing the Lord is on your side makes things a lot easier. Pray for us.
On a personal note, we're doing well. Carrick will begin first grade in a few weeks. He's our top student at LeFevre Home-School Academy. For the last two years he's been our only student. However, this year he will be joined by new enrollee, Christian. I would say that Christian is excited to start school, but I think that would be an exaggeration. I think Christian is intrigued by the concept of school, it's the mandatory attendance and participation he might find difficult. We'll see.
As many of you had heard, Carrick suffered a fractured ankle mid July, an unfortunate accident on a trampoline. He has now been officially cleared to resume life as he knew it. After the doctor's pronouncement, he was so excited to show me he was better, he jumped off a high porch nearly sending us all into cardiac arrest. He landed safe and sound and all smiles, until he saw our terrified expressions. We gently urged him to reconsider jumping from heights for the immediate future, to which he responded positively.
Dixie Joy is ten days away from turning one. She can say Daddy, and that's it, but that's enough for me. She is on the verge of walking, like she is on the verge of saying Momma, almost, but not quite. She is petite for her age, still in nine month clothing. She has white blond hair, bright blue eyes, and an infectious smile. She prefers the company of anyone who will promptly put her on the floor to crawl around.
Hannah is well, and more than anyone else, ready for school to begin. The temperature has dropped into the low seventies here, the sky is gray, and portending rain, and Hannah is in her element. She loves this time of year. Very soon the house will be decked in all the glories of Fall. I haven't the heart to tell her the weatherman is giving Summer another few weeks to do its worst.
The meetings I attend to are all doing well. A couple of weeks ago, my brother Zachary attended with me. It made me very happy to be in church with him, just to lead singing and listen to him preach. All of the churches were blessed, and entreated his soon return. With the break in the weather, services will be a little easier. It's a shade difficult trying to sing and preach when it's ninety-five outside and no breeze inside. By the second meeting you look and feel like you've been to a baptism and fell in. Alish had started packing extra shirts on days with multiple meetings.
Whatever the weather, I'm thankful to be here. These Gypsy-Turks are a despised people, oft neglected of men, sometimes rightly so. Still, the Lord of Glory is a frequent guest in their hovels, and I'm blessed to be there when He is. Yesterday, at our little house church in Krivnia, fourteen souls gathered to worship God, and He came to accept it.
Moses was a man "learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians", "mighty in words and in deeds", but one day it came to his heart to visit his brethren. I reckon after that visit, he was never the same. He refused a place in Pharaoh's home, the pleasures of sin, and Egypt's treasures to bear the burdens of the people of God. Moses chose his crowd, knowing the cost, but confident in the blessings. One day it came into my heart to visit God's people, and like Moses, things were different after that. I'm not as smart as he was, and certainly lack the education, but you don't have to have exceptional intelligence to choose right or good, just enough to know the difference. Like Moses, I made the people of God my choice, and haven't regretted it. I'd rather be in the little unknown unheralded gypsy meeting, singing the praises of our great Redeemer, and testifying of His grace, than anyplace else on earth. And I think the Lord would too.
Pray earnestly for us. We love and miss you all. May God continue to richly bless you for Jesus' sake.
Because of a living Saviour,
The William LeFevre Family
