Phyllis Hovey was the first to share. She and her husband, Brian, were called into mission work and started an adventure to share God's Word in Chile. Though they had planned to remain childless due to some medical issues, God had other plans for them! Phyllis told us about the beginning times of realizing she was pregnant and shared a funny anecdote about trying to buy a pregnancy test from behind the counter of a Spanish-speaking pharmacy where she ended up playing a sort of game of charades with the pharmacist to communicate her needs. Then, once she had the test--all the instructions were in Spanish, too! God knows how to provide what we need and He led Phyllis to someone who helped her get set up with an English-speaking OB/GYN. Even though she was nervous, she remembered that our kids are God's kids and HE is in charge. She reminded us that we should, "Give God the pen in your story."
Phyllis also shared these important verses with us:
Praise the Lord. Blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands. Their children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Psalm 112:1-2
Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3:20
Phyllis, along with her husband Brian and son Gunner, soon will be headed to Pennsylvania, and plan to continue mission work in Papua New Guinea in the near future. You can follow their experiences though their blog.
Our second speaker was Jamie Stanislav. Jamie has been part of our group for several years. She has been married to her husband, Matt, for 8 years and has two little boys, ages 4 and 2. Inspired in part by a foster care panel we held at MOPS a few years ago, Jamie and Matt prayed and felt led to learn more about the world of foster care. Over the course of several months, they met with other families that were foster parents or adoptive parents. Even though their initial feelings when they first heard about it was that foster care was probably not for them, God slowly changed their hearts. The county only requires 6-10 hours of training, but Jamie and Matt used the experience of others to learn more about the process.
Jamie and Matt, along with their two boys, welcomed a baby boy into their home this year. They have cared for and loved him and have given him a wonderful home. Jamie said that some of the most common questions she gets are, "Won't it just be too hard when you have to let them go? Won't you get too attached? What if the place they are going still isn't a good situation for them?" Jamie's response to these questions felt so profound. She said, "The whole point is to pour love into the child and it is impossible to not get attached. If we said "no" to taking him in in the first place, that would be far more difficult for the child that us having to say goodbye to him at the end of our time together. We have to trust God."
Please take some time and watch this video, ReMoved, that Jamie recommended. It shows an example of what life is like for foster children through their own eyes.
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Our "Silver Spoon Award" winner for the week is Sarah Peterson! Please click on the link to see the recipe for her winning dish:
Blueberry Cheesecake Crescent Rolls
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Announcements:
- Pre-registration for next year is now open! We will have forms available for you to fill out during the meeting, so please bring your checkbooks! If you register before June 30th, you can save a few dollars off the regular fee! Pre-registration fee is $22.95. If you have to miss the meeting or forget your checkbook, you can mail in your registration form to Bethel Church Attn: MOPS 1611 Hemlock Ave., Owatonna, MN 55060
- We are currently working on planning our 2nd Annual MOPS Family Picnic! Stay tuned for more information....
- Do you know someone would make a great mentor mom? If so, please let someone on the steering team know! Thank you!
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Looking forward to our next meeting on May 17th:
At our meeting this week, we will make a fun craft that will inspire you to think outside the box when planning summer activities to do with your kids. For the craft, please bring either a mason jar (no lid needed) or a clean, empty can. If you have extra, please consider bringing a few to help out those that might forget. We will also be enjoying some fun with friends at our tables and we will have some great prizes and treats to give away. Don't miss our end-of-the year celebration!
The EXQUISITE and SPIRITED tables are on for breakfast and the JOYFUL table is in charge of bringing items for MOPPETS this week. We have enough snacks for the kids, but we are still in need of Dixie cups and napkins. Thank you!
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