"Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you."

Dear friends, when I read this verse in Zechariah 8:23 I decided to make it my prayer that people would say this to me. The situation described in this verse is a ratio of 10:1. Ten people will grab one Jew by his garment and plead with him to show them the way to the Lord. We know this will happen in the future, it is a prophetic word that will come true. But I know that God wants us to be light and salt right now where we are.

Sadly, it is often in times of extreme trouble that people (and even we ourselves) turn to God. The hunger for God's Word is the strongest in places and times where nothing else provides comfort for the soul. Whether it is Romania with poor and neglected senior citizens or Gypsies - or in Southern Italy where thousands of refugees from all over Northern Africa are squeezed together after a life-threatening sea voyage in little nutshells. Every day many don't make it. With no earthly hope left, many seek the Lord and find Him. What a challenge for the small evangelical churches that reach out to them!

We are glad that we can help by sending truck loads of clothes and other things they need. And those who receive these things are stunned that there actually are people who care!

Our country is in the process of providing temporary quarters for those African and also Syrian refugees. Every county is turning some places into shelters, like gyms, former military quarters, old school buildings, etc. But not all Germans want these people. Many are afraid of these strange and desperate people. Who knows if they are not under-cover terrorists? There is a lot of fear on both sides, and there have been bad incidents of physical attacks and arson.

Does anyone have answers and solutions for these issues? I don't. Only God has a plan - even for these unwanted people. He knows what it is like to be unwanted.

The humanitarian aid we collect is in great demand, of course.

Besides all these challenges and his work in Romania, Mark is also still helping to re-establish our former church in Weil am Rhein who had to give up their facilities and had joined a church in another town years ago. Now they are having regular Sunday meetings in a part of town where the majority has a migratory background. Not many Germans live there, and this is a great chance to bridge the gap both between ethnic groups and spiritually.

 

And now some news from our family:

First of all, Mark, Jana and I will be in the US from June 10 to July 22. As soon as our itinerary is all set up we will send out another letter.

Jana got a very good report card for the first semester. Not all "A"s, but for her this is marvelous. She has a wonderful (male) teacher who has the gift of bringing out the best in his students. Her reading and writing are improving with the special program for her to learn to deal with dyslexia, and she still has a special math class for herself and another student until she has caught up with the others.

Lisa's job situation (in Maryland) is still open. Right now she is working for a large company where she does office work for their landscape architects. She could apply for a permanent job there, but this company does not do the kind of projects she would like to do. But she is very thankful that she is earning enough money to keep herself going and for all the experience she is gathering along the way. She had some job interviews and has to wait for the outcome. Her problem is that she does not have US citizenship. Her future employer has to apply for a work visa, and this costs him about 5,000 $. She needs to find a permanent job within the next few weeks, otherwise she has to go back to Germany this summer.

Susi is still unemployed. But with the unemployment benefits she can manage. In a few weeks she will hear if a great opportunity is going to work out. She would work for a weather forecast company as a student and do her bachelor's in international business management at the same time. We are glad that her health has been getting much better after they fixed that hole in her heart in 2013.

Cathrin and Mike are still in the process of planning their wedding (last weekend of June, Saint Marys, GA) and making decisions about their future. And living almost 5 hours apart does not make this easier.

From Doris and Chad in Detroit, MI, I hear that they are doing fine. They are both starting to work on their master's degree this year.

My school is going well now. I am teaching 2 advanced German classes (grades 5-8) with lots of opportunities to share my faith in Christ. Some students come from non-Christians homes and are sent to this school for missionary kids because of its high standards. I also do a lot of other things for the school, translating and organizing where my German is helpful. All this keeps me quite busy. But I still treasure my bilingual Wednesday morning CBSI bible study, where I translate back and forth for the opening and the lecture part. This is a great opportunity to reach German ladies and help them grow in the Lord. Some just come because it is bilingual and they can improve their English - and find the Lord along the way. And for me it is a valuable time of fellowship within my own small group of missionary wives. Kandern has a large English speaking population because of the Black Forest Academy. Quite a few missionaries who travel a lot or who can work from here choose this for their home base so that their children can attend this school without living in a dorm. Several missions have their German or European headquarters here. But most BFA students live in dorms. Some of their parents are working in very dangerous locations and are glad to have their children at a safe place.

And now I would like to add a few thankful thoughts on a part of our family life I have not written anything about so far.

With always enough money to live, we could not do things other families did for recreation and fun. But God has blessed us with a variety of animals in our own "family amusement park". This was not only fun and work but also a great playground to learn responsibility and invite friends. Over the years, we have had birthday parties, school field trips, youth group outings and visiting friends, and God reached out to all of them. For teenage girls it is wonderful to hug a big dog or a pony instead of hugging a bad choice. Around animals the heart of young and older people opens up more easily. Our animals were part of deep conversations and often heard the gospel shared. The ponies' manes dried many tears, and their ears heard laughter and shouts of joy. 

Last summer we had to part with our white mare Lea. She had had joint problems and suddenly could not walk anymore. Our girls had bought her with their own money 18 years ago. They had saved every penny for years. And living on the edge of a small farm town with pastures for free, this was affordable even for us. This pony turned out to be the most reliable, faithful and friendly creature. She was a big help in raising our girls, and she was my own physical therapist for many years, strengthening my muscles and easing my back pains. Even though it was very sad to let her go, we are very grateful for the many blessings God gave us through this animal and all the others as well. Years ago, this was also the starting point for our daughter Cathrin to become a therapist. We still have Avalon, the brown pony, and keep him together with another pony whose owners share the work.

But we could also talk many girls out of wanting a pony for themselves, showing them what it all involved. And it was highly appreciated by girls and parents that we shared our animals with them instead. Everything we own is from the Lord and belongs to Him. He can use it to His glory and to draw souls towards Him.

God bless you all, and may He use all of us to cause people to seek and find Him.

Maria and family