Health Update and Thanksgiving Outreach

Naomi’s joint pain returned. Meanwhile, Thanksgiving offers ministry opportunities.

Health Update

I (Naomi) was given an injection that contained epinephrine. This drug, unfortunately, reactivated my Epstein Barr Virus and has caused my Mono symptoms to return. Joint pain and fatigue came back in full force. I was able to see a Nurse Practitioner who suffers from Epstein Barr herself. She has gotten me on some wonderful supplements that have greatly reduced my joint pain. I am still struggling with fatigue and am relying on an afternoon nap to get me through the daily demands of life and motherhood. Zack has had to take over the majority of chauffeuring of our kids, as driving is especially exhausting to me. We would appreciate prayer, as this has felt like a very discouraging setback. 

Friends for Dinner

One wonderful blessing for me that has come out of this pandemic era is zoom prayer meetings. Even though I’m not physically able to drive and attend an in person prayer meeting, I can attend, lead, or host a zoom prayer meeting.

A Bridges staff member on the UT team recently asked me to host prayer for their Thanksgiving outreach called “Friends for Dinner.” This is a hospitality program that partners International students with American Christian hosts for the Thanksgiving holiday, in the hopes that friendships will be built and the love of Christ shared with these precious students. I was very excited to hear that the UT team is using an EveryInternational video (below) that Zack produced to train their hosts:

It features our friend and former Houston Bridges Teammate, Blake Ackerson. He has some wonderful wisdom to share about hosting an international in your home.

If you live here in Austin, the UT team is still looking for Americans to host. Please reply to this email if you are interested, and I can send you info. The sign up deadline is Sunday, 11/14 at midnight.
Please pray…
-Total healing for Naomi
-That God would enable Zack to be productive with video editing and handle driving duties for the family
-More UT students and American hosts would sign up for the Friends for Dinner program
-Deep friendships would be built that would lead the Internationals one step closer to trusting Christ
-Hosts would gain a vision for reaching the nations that have come to us

Thank you for your prayers and partnership in ministry.