The Lovo and send off went really well, and the food was delicious!  There was chicken and fish, 2 different kinds of potato, posami and pineapple slices.  The ripe pineapple here is really good! 
John had the opportunity to preach twice, and after the afternoon service they had our family go up to the front of the church and the pastor and one of the other church men said a few words as a farewell.  After that, all the men came up to the front of the church and they had a prayer for us, then allowed all the church people to come up and shake our hands and say goodbye.
I wish that we had some pictures, but I forgot to ask someone to take pictures for us. :(

Yesterday we went up to a beach with the Dakus.  It was great!  Even though it was rainy.  John was able to go out in a kayak, and later took Uriah out.  He had a blast.  There is a long pier that you can walk out to deeper water and fish, swim or jump off of, and there were some Fijians jumping off the end.  It made John's day when they invited him to join them!!  So then he was doing all kinds of cannon balls, front flips and back flips off the pier.  Since it was raining, the other ladies and I were sitting in the van with the babies.  They saw it all, but John was very disappointed when I said that, from where I was sitting, I couldn't see it.  The older kids were doing some fishing and did catch a couple, but they were too small to keep.

Today we will be doing some last minute shopping, packing and cleaning to get ready to head home tomorrow.  Tomorrow we will head to Nadi in the morning and go to a place called Fun Factory, an indoor, airconditioned play area, to celebrate a couple of birthdays that have happened in the last couple of weeks, then we will have to leave to check in to our flight about 3, then hopefully they will let us go back in.  Check in for the flight starts at 3:30, and the baby bassinet seating is given on first come, first served basis...So we want to get checked in as soon as we can. 

We would really appreciate your prayers for a safe, smooth, and uncomplicated flight.  Hopefully the boys will be worn out enough at the Fun Factory that they will again sleep through most of the flight.

God Bless,
The Elwoods

Trip to Rakiraki

It’s hard to believe that we will be home in just over a week!

This last weekend we traveled back up to Lautoka where we attended the morning service.  In the  afternoon we went from there up to Rakiraki to a church plant that is just getting started.  John preached and played the guitar for the singing part.

Last Thursday his sore throat got much worse, and then he started to have trouble breathing.  So Pastor Paul took him to a private doctor in the area who informed him that he had a throat infection as well as what looked like an allergic reaction.  He took some antibiotics and Benadryl, and things began to slowly improve.  He is now thinking that he will stay away from anything mango, as it seemed to get bad after he drank some mango juice.  Thankfully, it seems to be pretty well cleared up now.

On Monday, I was invited to the Christmas Ladies meeting in Lautoka, where I was also asked to give a testimony.  I hope that it was a blessing to the ladies, as I’m not the world’s best public speaker! 

We played a couple of games that involved gathering things together…one of the things we were supposed to get was a frog!  Everyone was outside looking in the bushes, drains…Anywhere, but only 1 team was able to get one. 

On Tuesday John went out soulwinning with Pastor Warneke and Bro. Joe from Ba.  They were gone from about 10 in the morning until about 4:30 in the afternoon, and 2 people were saved that we know of.  Praise the Lord!  Last Wednesday, the Warneke’s called and their middle son wanted to call and tell John that, because of the message he preached on Sunday, he got saved!  It was such a blessing to hear.

It was a blessing that, while we were in Lautoka we were able to stay in a hotel, so we were able to have some real “vacation” time in amongst the busyness.  It was nice to be able to relax together as a family, as we ended up staying for 4 nights.

This Sunday the church here is having their church Christmas Lovo dinner, and will have a send-off for us, as we will be heading out next Wednesday.  Some of you know what Lovo is, but for those who don’t, it is a meal cooked underground.  They lay rocks down in a pit, light a fire to heat them, place the foil-wrapped food on the heated rocks, cover that with leaves, cover that with a tarp, and cover that with dirt.  A few hours later, they dig it all up and eat it!  I have heard that it is very good.  Generally they only do it for holidays or special occasions.

Yesterday and today John is helping build benches for the church.  We will try to get pictures tonight and post them up!  We will also be helping put some Christmas baskets together to distribute to some of the less fortunate families.

Teaching how to play volleyball!

This is the couple that hosted the church service in Rakiraki.

The 2 young men in the back are the 2 who were saved during the soulwinning.

This is a church service that was held during the soulwinning time that John was also able to preach at.

We appreciate your prayers for the last few days that we are here, as well as safety traveling next week.  John is feeling much better, but if you could also pray that he would continue to heal up from this infection and that it wouldn’t cause any more issues for him.

God Bless you all,

The Elwoods

Preaching and Frog-Catching

This last weekend we had the blessing to go up to Ba and minister in the church there.  We had some -very good fellowship with Pastor Warneke and his wife, who also have 3 boys.  The boys had a great time playing.  John was also able to visit with and introduce me to Bro. Joe, who he worked with during the Bible Project.  It was so nice to meet he, his wife and their children.  John was able to preach twice there, and we sang a couple of specials.  After church, there was a group of the men and boys that played a game of soccer!  It was so hot, I don’t know how they were able to play out in the sun.  Ba is the hottest place in Fiji.  I was unable to make it to the evening service, as I was feeling unwell, and thought perhaps it would be best if I got some rest.

It is mango season here in Fiji, so John went up into a mango tree and picked a huge bag of mangoes, only to discover that he is allergic to mango sap!!  He broke out in a rash all over, with the worst being on his arms.  We couldn’t figure out what it was, until we went up to Ba and John showed it to Pastor Warneke, who then asked if John had been picking any mangoes.  It was a relief to figure out what it was, as we had no idea what it could have come from! That ended his career as a mango picker…As he doesn’t feel the urge to climb any more mango trees any time soon.

John and the boys had been catching frogs yesterday.  There are literally thousands around, as there are no predators to keep them in check.  They caught over 20 of them.  The boys would run around looking for them and report where they were so that John could put them in a bucket, and then get really upset if any managed to jump out!  It was very comical to watch, and I got some pictures to share with you all.

John went out soulwinning with some men from the church this morning, and was able to lead a girl to Christ! Praise the Lord.

The next couple of weeks we will be pretty busy with various church activities here, as well as travelling out to one more church before we come home in 2 weeks! 

Thank you again for your prayers, they are truly so very much appreciated. Please pray that we would continue to have no problems with the pregnancy.  I have started having trouble with my blood pressure dropping, so would appreciate prayers that it would not be an issue. 

God Bless you all!

Danielle

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Birthday Seth!!

Today in Canada is Seth’s first birthday!  As the 3^rd of December was yesterday here, we celebrated by having the Daku family over for tacos and Cake and ice-cream.

It is hard to believe that our little guy is already a year old, and we are so blessed to have him.  He really is such a happy baby!  

We appreciate your prayers for him as he continues to grow, that he will grow to be a godly young man.

God bless you all!

Danielle

It’s  amazing to see God’s hand at work here in the “Uttermost parts of the earth”.

Last Saturday we went on visitation to some of the families that are struggling in the church.  One thing that I have noticed is that no matter what language you speak, or what colour your skin is “The old accuser” is still at work all around the world trying to bring divisions among the brethren.

  After spending 3-4 hours encouraging the brethren, we went on Hospital Soul winning. It was pretty Rustic conditions in the hospital. I went with Brother Delesh and his wife Sanjana(Pronounced Sunjeenee). Brother Delesh and I went to the mens ward and Sister Sanjana went to the womens ward.  The wards were two long hallways with beds on either side. We went from bed to bed witnessing and handing out tracts in the hot concrete and tin box. From a bed with a man dying on it to the next one with a man that is  blind and then on to someone thin and emaciated from hunger, telling each one of the Gospel and the saving power of Jesus.

Sunday began with Pastor Daku and ourselves picking up people for Church. It amazes me where and how most of these people live. Most of these people live in tin huts that are no bigger than most people’s living room. (With a banana leaf mat as there carpet.) I preached for the morning service, and Danielle and I sang some more special music. Then after the service was over I went to the Church plant that they are getting started in Marro village.  There was around 20 people that attended. They are meeting in a class room in the school there. I preached there too. The church there is fighting against the charismatics, which provide a much more exciting service. The people here are drawn to the Dancing and music of the Charismatics because it is so similar to the way they worship their gods with the witch doctors.

Thank you for all your prayers. It is so encouraging to know that others are joining us in prayer during this time. Please pray that the Lord will show his perfect will for our lives. 

It’s so good to know that we serve the True and Living God and unlike the Hindu’s that have 36 million gods that can’t hear, see, or be touched with your concerns. How blessed we are to know the truth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Your fellow servant,

John Elwood