Moving Along Under Restrictions

“MANY ARE THE SORROWS OF THE WICKED;  BUT HE WHO TRUST IN THE LORD, LOVINGKINDNESS SHALL SURROUND HIM. BE GLAD IN THE LORD AND REJOICE YOU RIGHTEOUS ONES AND SHOUT FOR JOY ALL YOU WHO ARE UPRIGHT IN HEART.” PSALMS 32:10,11

         Sorry to be so late with this update . Time just flies by these days. We have been doing well these past months. Skip continues to do therapy two days a week and fono also and is much easier to understand these days. However, his left side remains partly paralyzed. So, he has a brace on his hand and arm which I put on every day to keep the hand from curling in. Works fairly well.

He does fono twice a week and is getting a little better at us understanding what he wants to say. His mind is very clear and he remembers the birthdays of his siblings and things about our children. He reads the Word many times a day and prays. He does not pray out loud though, but I am sure the Lord knows what he is saying. He loves to walk around the yard and sit out on the back porch for a while each day. He misses no church service except when it is raining or very cold. We had our yearly checkups and so far, all is well. Just have to watch the blood pressures and diabetes.

We were blessed with a visit from son, David, in June to have dental work done. It was so good to see them and Skip enjoyed listening to him play the accordion and piano.

I fell in our back yard last month and hit my head real hard and bruised my left shoulder. Spent the afternoon taking x-rays and taking medication for pain. I am very thankful no broken bones were found and hope I never fall that hard again. I fell full force when I tripped and fell and don’t know if I tripped on my feet or an uneven place in the cement. We have helpers to help us old folks. I just turned 85 and very thankful I can still walk and feel fairly good.

Our church has not grown very much during the pandemic.  There have been so many restrictions that it has been hard to keep going. But we managed and now we meet in person in the new building but still have the mask, alcohol gel, and distancing in effect.

Our extra activities have been on hold, trying to get back on track with children and adolescents. However, we are planning to try a VBS come January 2022. We will be shorthanded but I think we can make it. Just don’t know how many pupils we can count on. Our ladies’ group is still meeting. We are studying the book “A Mary Heart in a Martha World.” It has been such a blessing and encouragement to each of us.

Our construction of the new church bldg. has been on hold, too, these past two years because of the pandemic. Also, the funds have not come in as we hoped even with the fundraiser, we, the ladies, have worked with. Now we have inflation. The price of building products has skyrocketed and so we are praying that we can get that ceiling put in to help with the echo in there. Our sound system is not the best.

However, we have two new  members by acclamation and two ladies studying for baptism with the pastor who have been saved. So, we are encouraged.

We are saddened by the news that our pastor is leaving us the end of December. We are searching for a new pastor as of January 2022.

We want to thank you all for your faithfulness in praying for us and giving so faithfully. So glad you are in our lives. May God bless you all richly as we wait for His Coming which is soon, we trust.

Yours for Brazil,
Skip and Betty Harkins

PRAISE:
For our health
For two new members  
For the two ladies who are studying for baptism

PRAY:

For the search of a new pastor, that he will be the right man for this area.
For our church construction funds – the needed funds to complete the ceiling
For the two members, that they will be an asset to the church
For the two ladies that are studying for baptism
For the political situation in Brazil: inflation on the rise, hunger on the rise, and increased iniquity (robberies, rapes, murders  etc.)