We're only 3 months into 2020, and a lot has happened! It's been a season of intense focus on Silas, adjusting to being first-time parents, lots of travel, and getting everything prepared for our return to Zambia.
It turned out that we had to push our return flights to Zambia back a month to April 2 because Libby needed extra recovery time from some complications related to her labor and delivery. This unexpected change ended up being a blessing as it gave us time for Libby to get the medical care she needed, and we were able to make more visits to churches and family.
Silas went to church for the first time when he was just a few weeks old. It was the first of 4 churches that we were able to visit to share stories with about what God is doing in Zambia. He got to be quite good with road trips! These visits were the close of our travels for fundraising for this season, and they were all fantastic. We got to spend some quality time with old friends and make lots of new ones on our journeys. As we came and went, we felt very encouraged and also that we were an encouragement through our time in church gatherings, coffee houses, restaurants, and homes. Thank you for those of you who welcomed us during our travels, and we also want to thank those of you who decided to become a partner with us in our ministry. We are grateful for each one of our partners!
I (Pete) went to two Hollands early this month. On the way back from Foundry Church in Holland, Michigan, Libby dropped me at the airport in Chicago and I flew to Holland in Europe for a week. Overland had bought two more ex-military trucks and trailers to expand our Zambian fleet. These trucks are essential to getting more people out doing evangelism in our growing number of areas of influence. Joe and I stayed with our friend Hendrik and his family as we got our hands dirty getting the trucks mechanically ready for their journey to Africa. While I went east, Libby took Silas west to San Diego to visit family. Silas met more extended family members for the first time and Libby got to spend quality time with siblings that we won't get to see again for a while.
Thankfully, we all arrived back in Chicago just before everything shut down because of the coronavirus. We had just gathered ourselves to accomplish the few final tasks in our remaining two weeks in America when we heard the news that made us change all our plans. South Africa had enacted a travel ban that completely prevented us from making it to Zambia. There was now no way to get back because of the cautions necessary to limit the spread of the virus. After flights being canceled twice and spending a couple hours on hold with the airline, we booked the first available flights back, but they're not until May 1, a full month after we had planned to leave. Believe it or not, there's still work that can be done from home though, even for us missionaries. I'm on the phone with coworkers in Africa every day about vehicles, imports, and tech issues. Like most of the world at this point, our lives look totally different than what we expected, but we're still finding ways to grow, stay healthy, and be productive. Our mission has not changed, and our heart for the people of Zambia is bigger than ever!
We pray that you and your families are healthy, happy, and discovering how trustworthy and faithful our God is even when the world looks upside down.
Blessings,
Pete, Libby, & Silas
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