Passport picture taken at three days old.
Thanking God
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights
. . .” (James 1:17, NIV).
We’re a little late in getting out our monthly newsletter, but we know you’ll forgive us and understand why when we tell you about the birth of Benjamin Donbor Lyngdoh, our first grandchild. Our daughter, Stephanie, gave birth to Little Ben on January 30, 2008, here in Tokyo. As we wrote about this miracle baby in our blog of last week, “Ten fingers. Ten toes. Nose and eyes like his Papa. Lips like his Mama. Brown hair, the synthesis of both Papa’s black and Mama’s light brown. Already and forever our lives have been changed by this tiny bundle of love.” Yes, our hearts are full of praise to God for this “good and perfect gift,” especially when we remember that there was never any certainty that Stephanie would be able to become pregnant in the first place.
We also remember the anxious time one week before Little Ben’s birth when Stephanie and Donald became concerned that the very active baby hadn’t moved for as much as 12 hours. And when the doctor agreed that he should check things out, the nearly hour-long drive to the hospital seemed like an eternity. After the fetal heart monitor showed that Little Ben was fine, we all breathed sighs of relief as we gave thanks to God. We were reminded that life is a gift—one of God’s good gifts—and that it should never be taken for granted.
Prayer concerns
At only five days old, Little Ben was presented at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo to apply for his passport. The embassy official indicated he may be the youngest child ever brought in for a passport. (It is a requirement that he appear in person, but at least they didn’t expect him to answer questions!) We do have some concern about whether the passport will be forthcoming in enough time to allow for his visa to be processed so that Stephanie can return on February 24 to the country where she and Donald teach at an international school. (Donald will return on February 16.) Please remember this concern in your prayers.
Please also remember the following prayer concerns that are uppermost in our prayers and hearts:
1) Tarumi Church in its pastoral search. It has been nearly five years since we left Kobe to move to Tokyo, and the church has continued without a pastor. Many people are quite tired and discouraged;
2) The Church of God missions history book project on which Cheryl is working with her father, that she can get back to working on it quickly (when she’d rather be holding Little Ben); and,
3) The Church of God in Japan as it prepares to celebrate its 100th birthday in August. Pray especially that the church will gain a new vision for what God desires of it in its second hundred years.
Thank you for being among God's good gifts to us.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights
. . .” (James 1:17, NIV).
We’re a little late in getting out our monthly newsletter, but we know you’ll forgive us and understand why when we tell you about the birth of Benjamin Donbor Lyngdoh, our first grandchild. Our daughter, Stephanie, gave birth to Little Ben on January 30, 2008, here in Tokyo. As we wrote about this miracle baby in our blog of last week, “Ten fingers. Ten toes. Nose and eyes like his Papa. Lips like his Mama. Brown hair, the synthesis of both Papa’s black and Mama’s light brown. Already and forever our lives have been changed by this tiny bundle of love.” Yes, our hearts are full of praise to God for this “good and perfect gift,” especially when we remember that there was never any certainty that Stephanie would be able to become pregnant in the first place.
We also remember the anxious time one week before Little Ben’s birth when Stephanie and Donald became concerned that the very active baby hadn’t moved for as much as 12 hours. And when the doctor agreed that he should check things out, the nearly hour-long drive to the hospital seemed like an eternity. After the fetal heart monitor showed that Little Ben was fine, we all breathed sighs of relief as we gave thanks to God. We were reminded that life is a gift—one of God’s good gifts—and that it should never be taken for granted.
Prayer concerns
At only five days old, Little Ben was presented at the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo to apply for his passport. The embassy official indicated he may be the youngest child ever brought in for a passport. (It is a requirement that he appear in person, but at least they didn’t expect him to answer questions!) We do have some concern about whether the passport will be forthcoming in enough time to allow for his visa to be processed so that Stephanie can return on February 24 to the country where she and Donald teach at an international school. (Donald will return on February 16.) Please remember this concern in your prayers.
Please also remember the following prayer concerns that are uppermost in our prayers and hearts:
1) Tarumi Church in its pastoral search. It has been nearly five years since we left Kobe to move to Tokyo, and the church has continued without a pastor. Many people are quite tired and discouraged;
2) The Church of God missions history book project on which Cheryl is working with her father, that she can get back to working on it quickly (when she’d rather be holding Little Ben); and,
3) The Church of God in Japan as it prepares to celebrate its 100th birthday in August. Pray especially that the church will gain a new vision for what God desires of it in its second hundred years.
Thank you for being among God's good gifts to us.
