Bending the Bow Int'l

Thank you so much for covering us as we traveled.

To start with, I really wanted to stay at the Embassy Suites Hotel for different reasons. Simply put, it was a desire in my heart. We certainly did not have to stay there, but God knew my heart. I called, they had a 24 hour shuttle and rooms that would accommodate the six of us and Karen and our 200 pieces of luggage…the Beverly (a.k.a Tuolumne County) Hillbillies would be arriving minus one rocking chair atop the car.

As it turns out we didn’t end up needing the Embassy Suites and, as always, I love to save money, so I did a Hotwire.com hotel. I picked the cheapest hotel with a shuttle. They never tell you what hotel you are getting until after you pay. The Lord loves me so much He gave us the Embassy Suites hotel at about half-price. I love the way He loves me….to go out of His way to give me something I desired, but didn’t need or expect. He is good to us. His goodness is never dependent on me receiving something as lavish as the Embassy Suites and yet He chooses at times to kiss my heart with gifts like this that are simply special to me.

When we checked in I asked about getting a 3:30 a.m. shuttle. “No problem, Mrs. Sponsler, it will be ready for you and your 200 pieces of luggage, 25 children, and of course the 3 of you mildly insane adults at 3:30 a.m.” Just to make sure I called again at 10 p.m. and they reassured me it would be no problem. However, being the seasoned traveler, I was compelled to call and check once more when we got up at 3:00 a.m. Good thing I did!!! The night shift lady was puzzled and could not figure out why someone had not informed me that the first shuttle did not leave until 4:30 a.m. She said I should probably call a taxi. The picture that flashed through my mind of all of us and our luggage crammed into a tiny little taxi was hilarious!! Of course that was not going to work. We would have to take 10 taxis to accommodate all of our stuff. (By the way, our personal belongings do fit into 4 suitcases …2 for clothes, one for medical stuff/ministry stuff, and one for school stuff and books)…the rest of the suitcases we take with things to leave with our friends.

Eventually, the front desk people agreed to get us a shuttle that they paid for since they had promised an early morning shuttle. They also gave us a great box filled with dried fruit and nuts and a box of cookies. The Lord took care of us above and beyond what was needed.

After we arrived at the airport, we were moved to front of the line to check our baggage through and get our boarding passes. The Lord really gave us favor. Everyone was extremely kind and helpful…this is rarely the case, and so we are so grateful to the Lord for going ahead of us. When we finally got to the gate we were paged. I went to the desk and the gentleman handed me 6 tickets. He said “We need your seats in the back of the plane, so we are going to have to move you guys into our business class.” He smiled and winked at me. Again the hand of God on us…favor and blessing. My only sadness was that they were unable to move Karen up there with us.

Of course in Business class, we took lots of pictures; who knows when we will see that wonderful place again!!! Hehe Those huge seats fold out into recliners; each kid got their own touch screen personal video player; we had menus for crying out loud. It was a very fun special memory we will not forget. I always love to pray for “first class upgrades” for people when they travel. God truly gave us this on this flight. We had a lot of unsolicited opportunities to share Jesus with people on this flight, as well. It was just the beginning of our sweet time of travel to South Africa

The next two flights were great. Great food, good movies, personal movies screens with games etc. (You can tell what is important to me…I NEVER get tired of flying on airplanes!!) We had a blast! Yes, we had squishy seats and 18 hours worth of flying, but it was fun. They kids did great. And we arrived in JoBerg a little early even. As we got off the plane, Hannah turned and waved to everyone completely unprompted, “Bye! Love you all!” That sweet girl cracks me up .

We got our luggage minus one suitcase; It belonged to Karen. They are supposed to deliver it to Wernich’s home soon. Out of all that luggage, I am not sure why her only piece was THE missing piece, but God knows. Please pray it arrive soon and in perfect, untouched condition. Also Karen is not feeling 100% great. She was a little sick this morning.

Thanks again for covering us as we continue on this journey. We love you guys. You TRULY make us strong!!!

Prayer Points:

· Quick transition into this time zone and getting over jet lag.

· Continued healing from my cold.

· Tonight Seth and I will speak to the youth. This is our passion and we both are very excited about the opportunity.

· The Holy Spirit will move on our kids and take them to a new place with Him. That they would be marked for life by His great love for them. That they would encounter Him and fall in love with Him.

· Anointing and ability to flow together as Seth and I minister together

· No Starbucks here in South Africa; easy transition for me…Hehe J

· Healing for Karen and rest

· Quick recovery of Karen’s suitcase

· Safety…as we travel. There is a lot of unrest here and in Mozambique. We feel very safe and protected, but please continue to pray for this area, not just for us, but for the people we are ministering with (Wernich, Angie…and people like Pastor Surprise)

Praise:

· The many times the Lord has blessed us so far (Embassy Suites via Hotwire, Early Shuttle taken care of, being moved to the front of the ticketing line, no problem getting through security and customs, nice people at the airport….that is nothing short of a miracle, airplane upgrades, good food and movies, wonderful children who love Jesus and travel well, the tremendous blessing of Karen Hembree traveling with us, safety:

· Safety so far

· Health

· The kids are such great travelers. They have had little sleep and have each, even Hannah, carried their own carry on’s without complaining. I am so proud of them. I am so glad they are on MY team. They bless me so much.

· Karen: I am so grateful she is traveling with us. She is probably the easiest person in the world to travel with. She is positive, always sees the good, so flexible. She reminds me a lot of Alma. Being with her helps me grow and inspires me to become better, to trust Him more, and to look for the goodness of God everywhere I go. I love Karen!!!!!