Dear Friends and Family:
The pounding head and neck
pain could not eclipse the wonderful first few days that Tim and I spent with
our new daughter, Gabrielli. The pain,
however, did succeed in bringing me back to the hospital. Although I dreaded the thought of being
separated from our beautiful newborn—as well as from Antoine and Ana—the ceaseless
pain and onset of a fever convinced me that I needed to see a doctor.
The doctors said it was cephalalgia
caused either by a spinal fluid leak or an infection. Intravenous medicine ceased the pain, and
tests showed there was no infection. I
still needed to wait for my body to heal.
Despite the tears of longing to be with my children, I knew that God was
with me in that hospital room. My undesired
hospitalization incredibly turned into a needed time of rest, prayer and
renewal; it became the longest personal retreat that I’d experienced in years. One evening I was awakened by a nightmarish uncertainty
of how much longer I would be away from my children. I opened the Scriptures and heard God say, “Trust
me.” The next morning, the doctors said I could go home.
Give
thanks for Gabrielli’s life and for my health; though, please pray for
my full recovery.
March 2017 was one of the
most eventful months of our lives. It started with a rushed conclusion to a
search for a new car to fit our growing family.
We closed the sale on the right car at the right price, right before
Gabrielli’s birthday. Your months of prayers for a healthy, zika-free birth were answered when she came into the world at 4:08 P.M. on March 14th. Even the foreknowledge of sleepless nights
and the beginning of my headaches couldn’t dampen our excitement when
we took her home.
During my hospitalization, Tim made multiple, daily trips in our new car between our
apartment and the hospital, juggling numerous responsibilities with little
sleep. About 24 hours after my discharge from the hospital, Tim led a three-car-caravan of volunteers to the
city of Luque to coordinate an evangelistic event. Hence, our eventful month
concluded with the message of salvation being presented to an overflowing crowd
and many decisions for Christ. Please
pray for our next evangelistic event in the same city on April 15th
with a short-term mission team from Brazil.
 |
Pr. Gustavo invited the audience in
Luque to place their faith in Jesus.
|
March 2017 was
not an easy month, but it was a great month. In spite of all the ups and downs, we
found that we can take joy in the God of our salvation because he is our
strength.
Happy
Easter!
Margarita, Tim, Ana, Antoine and Gabrielli
