An Update...Prayer Request...And Photographs

Dear friends...

I had hoped to write an update a few days ago but alas!  Life has been absolutely exhausting these past two weeks that I have simply not had a chance to stop in for an update...

 

Thank you for your continued prayers and concern for our family...  We are so grateful for the love that is pouring in from all over the world and praise the Lord for brothers and sisters in the Lord who are rallying around our family through this very difficult time...

 

I have written a brief about below, but I would also like to show you some photographs of our house which burnt down on Wednesday the 7th of June...photographs make everything seem more real...  It is so very sad to see the destruction and I take no pleasure in sharing them...but I wanted to show you a glimpse of the home we loved so well! 

 

And now we trust the Lord to show us the next step in our journey and anticipate being able to share the many incredibly stories of the Lord's goodness and mercy!  What a wonderful King we serve... 

 

~

These were taken by my uncle last week.  I have not been back to the farm since that Wednesday morning we evacuated, as I think it would truly break my heart to see the ruin in person...  Sometime I hope to go back, but for the time being I am focusing on the present and surrendering every tear to the Lord who loves to comfort His children...

 

This is all that remains of our beautiful piano...this piano had such a special story...it belonged to a lady who came over to South Africa from England as a baby.  Her father whom she never met, died in the First World War and her mother, a concert pianist, decided to start a new life here.  The piano was a German make and over a 100 years old!  We were blessed to meet this dear lady a month or so before she passed away (also a concert pianist)...  Whenever Nancy played, we thought of the stories it could tell and the beauty that those keys created! 

My father reckons that the build up of heat in the house probably caused it to explode.  Thus, nothing much remains and one cannot even recognize anything!  The doorway on the left hand side was where our dining/living room was.

 

 This was the back of the house, looking out onto the fields.  I wrote ever so many blog posts from the window with the bush in front of it... 

 

 Part of the vegetable garden...this was where we grew our sweet potatoes...

Looking into what was once the school room.  I can't believe how unrecognizable everything is!

 

And now I have a very specific prayer request, dear friends...

We are urgently needing a new long-term rental home...one that is suitable for our large family and that accepts pets.  We need a decent sized garden as our little ones are used to living on a farm and having plenty of open space...  May I ask you to bring this request before the Father?  Houses to rent in this area are scarce, especially now when so many people misplaced by the fire are seeking new homes.

We are currently in a holiday home which belongs to a lady in our church.  She has graciously given it to us to use till the 10th of July...  After that, we are trusting the Lord for provision and learning to wait on Him even though it is quite frightening. 

 

It is so strange to think we have no home to go to and that we have to literally begin again...but the Lord is faithful, and He has moved on the hearts of many and we are being showered with the blessings of furniture...second-hand clothing...bedding, etc.  He is so good to us...

 

Can I also ask you to pray for my dear mother who is taking a lot of strain and is so very tired...

She also strained her neck and is having to see a physiotherapist and take time to rest which is not so easy at the moment...  

 

Thank you for your love and support, dear friends! 

I am overwhelmed by the many beautiful comments and emails I have received! 

You are all so dear to me...

 

I will stop in again soon...

 

With love in Christ!

Kelly-Anen