The Thiessen Talk'O - Winter 2019

The Thiessen Talk'O  Sharing The Love of God in La Paz, BCS, Mexico                      Missionaries To Mexico, Serving With TEAM & Associate Missionaries with EMC Mexico Here We Come!!! Well...our first home assignment has not gone like we planned but it has reminded us that, "we can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps." Prov. 16:9 These past 6 months have stretched us in many ways. Our hope and desire was to be in Canada for only 3 - 4 months but medical concerns, having to raise more support and waiting for specialist appointments and test results have kept us here longer then expected. It's been a difficult chapter marked by waiting and living in limbo while our hearts have longed to return home to the Transformados ministry and all the youth we've come to know and love in Mexico. God's been teaching us patience in the waiting, trust amidst the unknowns, that He is in control and we are not, to be thankful for the gift of unexpected blessings, the importance of not being so focused on the destination that we miss the journey and the joy of making memories. Even though this season has been a whirlwind marked by the struggle to understand His purpose and plan, the thread of peace that comes from trusting God's sovereignty, has been woven throughout the journey. Now God's timing says we have the green light to return to Mexico and for this we are incredibly excited and thankful!!! We appreciate all the prayers and support that have got us to this point! Here's an update on things we've asked you to pray about and our next steps over the coming weeks. Since it didn't work for us to return in November, we set our sights on the beginning of January. Unfortunately, when collecting our medicals, the Doctor told us she had concerns about Anthony's latest blood test. His elevated bilirubin levels started us on another round of tests, exams, MRI's and appointments. We ended up being here to celebrate Christmas and New Years with family, an unexpected blessing, and then Anthony traveled to Edmonton for his specialist appointment on January 9th. He was given a list of diseases/syndromes he could have and was asked to do more tests and scans to enable the Doctor to give a final diagnosis. At the same time, we made the decision to re-apply for our Alberta Health Care. We've been without it for the past 2 years because they now consider us non-residents even though the Federal Government considers us residents and we pay our Canadian Taxes every year. ABHC rules state that you have to be in country for 6 months every year, to qualify. Not having it meant our TEAM medical insurance premiums were higher and we had to pay upfront for all medical stuff done here in Canada. With these unexpected medical concerns keeping us here for 6 months, we decided to re-apply and were very thankful when it was re-instated. We finally received a diagnosis the second week of February and we praise God that Anthony's condition is simply a hereditary, non-life threatening syndrome that does not require treatment! Thank you for praying for him and his health! Thank you for praying for our monthly support needs as well! With a couple little tweaks to the budget, the reinstatement of our ABHC, some increases in giving by present supporters, new monthly partners added and generous one-time gifts, God has answered!!! We are once again, fully funded for the coming year and have been given the financial green light to head back to Mexico! We are incredibly blessed to have such an amazing support network!!! Being the recipients of God's provision, through His people, is humbling, heartwarming and encouraging. It reminds us that we are not alone, that we could not be doing what God has called us to do if it wasn't for all the people and churches standing with us and fulfilling this important role in God's Kingdom work in Mexico! To everyone who prays for us, to everyone who encourages us through emails, notes, cards, care packages, to everyone who financially supports us, thank you, thank you, thank you. It doesn't seem enough to say and yet our hearts are forever grateful! Receiving the medical and financial green lights from TEAM, made it possible for us to look at purchasing tickets for our return. After much prayer and conversation, we came to a creative decision. Monday, Februrary 11th, Anthony flew back to La Paz in order to keep Transformados running while our teammates attend a missions conference in the US. Karlene remained behind to give Josiah and Keyana the opportunity to finish basketball with their school teams. Our children knew that, when they started playing, they would probably not be able to finish the season. Had we been able to leave in December or January, this would have been the case. But when looking to purchase tickets we realized they were only 2-3 weeks away from divisionals and zones. With it being this close, we felt it was important to give them the opportunity to finish so they don't leave feeling things are undone or wishing they could have stayed to the end of the basketball season. Our desire is to help our kids transition as well as possible and sometimes that means minimizing regrets by giving opportunity to say goodbyes and enabling our kids to finish well. If all goes as planned, Karlene, Josiah and Keyana look forward to joining Anthony in La Paz by the beginning of March. Urgent Prayer Request Update We've been asking you to pray that God would grant us access again to the Jr. High basketball court in our neighbourhood. As we've shared, in our previous newsletters, we've used this court for the past 3 years with the blessing and invitation of the community president and the directors of the school. Unfortunately, this past September, on the decision of one Official in the Education department, this privilege was taken away from us. We don't understand why but based on his demeanor and comments during a meeting with our teammate, we wonder if this isn't a case of religious persecution. After countless conversations, phone calls, office visits and jumping through every hoop Transformados was advised to jump through, our teammates submitted documents, 200 petitions from supporting parents and community members and a formal request asking for permission to once again use the court. Then we waited and prayed. Unfortunately, we have received word that our request was denied. We've been told to wait until this Official is out of office and then reapply. This news has been disheartening to say the least. We continue to be thankful and grateful for the invitation of the local elementary school director to use their court for all of our basketball clubs. He's told us we are welcome to stay as long as we want. This is a wonderful blessing and yet we struggle with the size of the court and hoops and the age of the backboards. While we can't do anything about the court, we are working with the director to make improvements in the other two areas but its slow going. We've put in an official request to have evening access to our local community basketball court, but it was recently renovated and now due to politics, is locked until further notice. It also doesn't have a roof which makes it virtually impossible to use on Saturday mornings or during the summer when we run morning camps. This has been a discouraging turn of events but we have been encouraged to see the level of parental and community support Transformados has. While we thank God for His present provision, we are praying for a better alternative. Whether it means speeding up the needed improvements at the elementary school, or gaining permission to use the community court or a change of heart granting us the return to our former place, we know that God will continue to provide. None of this has taken Him by surprise. We recognize that this might be His way of encouraging us to step out in faith and pursue the dream of having our own Transformados property with a youth centre and basketball courts. We don't know what God has planned but we know He has a plan and that it is a good plan. Please pray with us for wisdom, discernment, patience, trust and courage as we seek God's will for the future of Transformados! We want to be in step with His leading, not running ahead or lagging behind. This is His ministry and we don't want to get in the way of what He wants to accomplish. Our desire is to simply be vessels that He can use to fulfill His plan for Transformados. Thank you for your prayers thus far. We ask that you continue to lift up this request in prayer and together we will look forward to what God is going to do! Thank You, Thank You, Thank You... We have been so blessed and so loved during our home assignment. Thank you to everyone who has poured into our lives during this season. Thank you for the holiday trailer to live in before the snow flew, to both sets of our parents for putting us up in their homes, for the vehicle to drive and the fuel to operate it, groceries, childcare, numerous coffee visits, gift cards, invites to homes and fellowship over meals, listening ears, encouraging hugs, laughter and fun and even shared tears, invites for our children to be a part of your children's lives, rides to school, opportunities to share about Transformados, genuine interest and good questions, games nights, hosting us on overnight trips, prayers, prayer times and shared worship, continued support, increased support, new supporters, one time supporters, thoughtful gifts and discounts, shared family times, renewed friendships, new friendships and loving farewells. For all of this and more, we are incredibly grateful and eternally thankful! It is such a wonderful gift to be loved and cared for by an amazing network of people. To all of you who have blessed us so immensely, we say thank you. Our prayer is that God will in turn bless you for the help and encouragement you have been to us and may He continue to use you to touch the lives of countless others! PRAYER Although our request was denied, we know God is still at work. Please continue to pray that He will provide a better solution for our basketball court situation. We know He can open access to the court again if He so chooses. However, we also realize that He might be preparing and calling us to something even better! Please pray with us for wisdom, discernment, patience, trust and courage as we seek God's will for the future of Transformados. This season of waiting and living in limbo has been difficult for us. We are excited to get back to Transformados but we are also sad to leave and to say goodbyes again. Please continue to pray for strength, patience, faith and trust in God's timing. Pray especially for our children. Being here longer then expected increases those tug of war, torn between 2 places they love, feelings. Pray that they will feel they have finished their time here well so they are better able to handle another move. Pray that we will have the love, compassion, insight, patience and wisdom needed to help them navigate goodbyes, loss, change and transition. Pray for us as we are apart during this time. Pray for Anthony as he leads the Transformados ministries by himself and for Karlene as she is single parenting, packing and preparing their return. Pray for our adjustment back to life in Mexico and the busy schedule of ministry. Pray for our teammates who are in the US for 2 weeks attending a missions conference. Pray that they will find time to rest and relax and refresh after many months of leading Transformados without us and the heavy workload that was for them. Continue to pray for our Transformados youth who have given their lives to Christ. Pray that their spiritual hunger will grow and that their faith will deepen. Pray they will be wise and strong in the face of difficult family situations, temptations, peer pressure and more. The challenges and distractions they face are many. Pray for us as we try to effectively mentor, disciple and love these youth. Please pray for Octavio who is away attending University. Pray that he will find a Bible teaching church to attend and Christian friends to encourage him in his personal relationship with Jesus. Pray that we can find ways to disciple him from afar and when he is home during school breaks. Pray for the many Transformados youth who have heard the truth but still haven't realized their need for a Saviour and a personal relationship with Him. Pray for our new teammates coming to join Transformados. Pray for them in this season of planning and support raising. Pray that God will use this time to prepare their hearts for all that lies ahead, to ready them to handle the changes and transitions with His peace and strength. Please continue to pray for complete healing for Anthony's knee. It has still not fully recovered. This concerns and frustrates Anthony as the pain and diminished mobility prevents him from being as active as he would like to be. Please continue to pray for complete healing for Karlene's hip. Even though it has improved a bit with physio it is still giving her problems. Please continue to pray for our marriage, our children, our family, our health, our protection, our energy, our continued language growth and the relationships we are building. We cannot continue to serve in Mexico and serve well without your faithful prayers on our behalf. Pray as the Holy Spirit leads because He knows our needs, our weaknesses, our struggles and the challenges we face.  PRAISE ...that all our medical appointments are finished and we've received medical and financial clearance to return to Mexico! ...that Anthony was given a diagnosis that isn't life threatening and doesn't require treatment. ...for everyone whom God has used to help us get back to full support! We are humbled, blessed and thankful to have an amazing network of people and churches standing with us! ...for the many people who have loved and cared for us so well during our home assignment. ...for the new teammates who are on their way to join us in La Paz. We have a family and a single woman who are joining our team and another lady who is coming to serve short-term. ...for the amazing growth we have seen in our basketball clubs. More children and youth means more to reach with God's truth! We want to thank you for your continued support and prayers and trust that you have enjoyed reading our latest update! Until Our Next Talk'O Together, The Thiessens :)