Baby is Here!

After a full day of inducements, our precious Kezia Faith Thompson emerged on September 19th at 11:55pm, officially weighing in at 3.65 kg (just over 8 lbs) and 50 cm's in length. Though it took a long time to get going, once the time came it only took a couple of pushes. Lucy and baby have both been healthy and fine, but tired and sore from the big day. Doctors and nurses were exceptionally friendly and helpful. The biggest challenge here has been paperwork and red tape. Lucy left the hospital after three nights, which was the soonest possible in order to get all doctors and nurses to sign off on everything. We needed a lot of documents to get the hospital birth certificate completed, which was needed in order to get the official Indonesian birth certificate, which is needed to get Kezi a passport. On top of that we needed to get an Indonesian marriage certificate (and pay a late fee cause we were married 5 yrs ago) to complete the process.

Fortunately, Lucy and baby were able to make it home for Sammy's birthday, which we celebrated yesterday with toys, games, and McDonald's feast. You may not think of McDonalds as a feast, but Sammy certainly did. He does enjoy his daily rice and tofu, but cheeseburgers, fries, soda, and ice cream will not be surpassed in the mind of our now 4 yr old boy. Not to be outdone, Livi nearly finished a whole burger by herself.

Heading Back

Once we finish our paperwork process and Lucy her "confinement" period for recovery, we will be heading back to Ohio. We hope to make the journey on October 17th. Our further job searching has also begun. We are leaning toward a move back to S. Cal, but are open to anywhere God leads. Please let us know if you hear of any church ministry openings in your area. We appreciate your prayers too.

For those of you calling for pictures, we apologize as we have no functional camera here. We do have a camera on a cell phone, but the phone is not activated and we don't have the usb cable needed to transfer to the computer. Thus, pictures will have to come later...

Prayer Points

1. Praise to God for a safe delivery and beautiful baby
2. Timely recovery for Lucy and baby Kezia
3. Smooth processing of our official documents needed for travel
4. Discernment and guidance for our continued job search
5. Safe and smooth travel back to the States

A Great Reversal

We have just recently made the stunning decision to decline the position of Associate Pastor at JIBC and ultimately to head back to the U.S.A. Our decision has come as the result of a long process of discernment as to whether or not God is calling us to live and serve in the Jakarta area. Our reasons for coming to Indonesia from the beginning have been to deliver our third baby, to be closer to Lucy's family, and to discern God's plan for us regarding a new church home and ministry. We have strongly sensed God leading us to be here during this time. However, in spite of pressing forward and holding on to hope regarding our future in this area, Lucy has had an increasing sense that she is not meant to live here in Indonesia. Though we love and cherish our family here, and have greatly enjoyed JIBC, due to Lucy's struggle we feel compelled to move on. We have felt that Lucy's realization about not wanting to live here after years of looking forward to it effectively releases us from a perceived call to this area. Ironically, the way everything has worked out here seems to confirm that to us. Now we feel free to serve the Lord wherever he may be leading us. Right now, it looks like we will be back in the States.

We don't really know what God has in store for us, but we trust that he has a plan. We have greatly appreciated all of your prayers and support for us all along the way. Please continue praying for us as we seek God further for the next step on our journey.

Looks Like We are Staying in Jakarta

After a long process of interviews over the last couple of months, we have found a new church home and ministry. Jay will begin Oct 1 in the role of Associate Pastor with a focus on Youth, Missions, and Outreach at Jakarta Int'l Baptist Church. The church has a number of eager youth and families and structures are in place to do some great things. There are also several ministries the church partners with that we are excited about such as an orphanage and ministry to street children. We look forward to our adventures ahead.

Of course culture shock is always a reality for all of us and we would love your prayers and support. The church and our family members have been a huge support already in helping us get settled, and we have found a place to live. This is a huge blessing, and we will be moving in early this week. Feel free to email us for further details on our new home including address and phone #s, and to schedule your upcoming visit. We should be able to offer some pictures within the next couple of months, as soon as we find our own computer and get things a little more settled and hooked up.

Our prayer requests:
1. Praise God for taking care of our needs
2. Pray for His perfect timing with our moving this week and our baby due the end of the week
3. Pray for safe delivery of the baby and Lucy's recovery
4. Pray for His protection over our health and safety
5. Pray for God's anointing for our new ministry

We love you all and thank you for your prayers and support for us!