Merry Christmas!

"My soul magnifies the Lord, 

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior..."

Luke 1:46-47

(Etching by my mom)

Hope you have a Merry Christmas!

More Fires

I appreciate all who have been praying for us here with the fires. This one was burning near my high school.

This fire is now contained, but the large one burning north of us is still only around 25% contained.

 So thankful for the firefighters and the brave work they do. 

God's Work in God's Time

I praise God for His ongoing work in Inhambane! 
I'm thankful for all of my Mozambican and missionary co-workers from Maputo who are taking trips to visit the house and the churches in Inhambane while I'm on medical leave. 

Pastor Daniel and his wife Luisa, along with a missionary family from Guinea Bissau, Tchedna (taking the selfie here) and Marcilene Siga, visited Inhambane this month.

"A patient person will eat ripe fruit."
African proverb 

Faithful Witness in the Sky

"The moon is round!"  (Jim Elliot)

"There is wholeness, all things are complete in Christ, even when they appear to be partially shadowed...life is full in His will and brings promises of good things yet for us here." 
(Jim Elliot) 

 "...the faithful witness in the sky." (Psalm 89: 37b)

Love in Action

The Snowden family (here with my mom and me) came to California to say goodbye to their son/brother before they leave for Mozambique.

Please pray for God's provision and preparation for this family as they look forward to serving as missionaries in Mozambique. (And I look forward to serving alongside of them when I'm back :)  

"Dear children, don't just talk about love. Put your love into action. Then it will truly be love."

1 John 3:18

Renewed and Refreshed

I Praise God that my Mozambican alien resident visa was renewed!

I was refreshed by my Mozambican and missionary family.

I shared an update on my health and God's faithfulness.

What a blessing to see Pastor Juka, who came back from his studies in Brazil to renew his passport, here with Debbie and Michelle.

Reuniting with the leaders of Women with Purpose.

Praising God for all He has been doing this year in the national church, Igreja Evangelica Palavra Viva, with my dear brothers and servant leaders, Belarmino, Daniel, Abel, Juka.

What a joy to see Ivanildo, who was mentored by my friends Scott and Lisa Harris in Inhambane, who is studying at the Maputo Biblical and Theological Seminary.

OMS missionaries, Michelle, Debbie, Larry, Luke...

...Melvin, Jeff, Courtney, Sharon, and Susan (and Darren and Sherilyn too) praying for Mozambique.

I was encouraged by my missionary family praying over me for my healing and return to Mozambique, and for teammates for God's work in Inhambane.

Thank you for praying for this trip!

Resident Visa Renewal

Lord willing, I'll be traveling to Mozambique from September 1-11 to renew my alien resident visa. 

Besides working on my visa renewal process at the immigration offices, I look forward to seeing some of my Mozambican and missionary family in Maputo!

Short Video

I haven't been able to travel to share with those of you who support me in prayer and finances, but I am so grateful for your understanding and support in this time. I cannot do this without you. 

From Maputo to Inhambane, God is at work!

There is also a link for "Mozambique Facts" on the upper right side of this blog, as well as a link  for "Aimee's Youtube Channel" where clips and videos are now posted!

Fires

I am so thankful for firefighters. 

California has been battling many wildfires these last days, and one was threatening our neighborhood. 

I took this picture from my Mom's front yard.

The fire has moved eastward, but firefighters are still working to contain it. 

I'm so grateful for the heroic efforts of our firefighters. 

OMS Visit in Indiana

I've just visited the One Mission Society offices in Indiana to meet with Melvin Kelly, the leader for our Mozambique team. I was also blessed to see Bruce and Mabel Callender, who started the OMS work in Mozambique just over 20 years ago.  

Bruce, Melvin, and Mabel at the OMS offices.

Melvin and I had a good meeting about my health progress and my return to Mozambique, Lord willing at the end of this year. I thank God for my missionary team in Mozambique, who have been faithfully praying for me and checking in on my house and my ministry in Inhambane.

The doctor that has been working on my neck discovered an issue related to my jaw and my C1/C2 vertebra, which are hitting each other. This has caused problems with the vertebra and with muscle tension in the head. 

I've started wearing a mandibular orthopedic re-positioning appliance on my lower teeth that will move my jaw into the correct position within the next several months. 

After so many doctor visits, researching, and testing, I am so thankful for both of these discoveries about my neck and jaw. I am hopeful and trusting in God. 

Throughout this time, this verse has been on my heart,

"Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore He exalts Himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for Him." 

Isaiah 30:18

I appreciate all the prayer and support in this time. 

Mom and Health

I'm so grateful for my Mom!

Health 

I've been continuing to work on a solution for my chronic headaches/migraines. A head and spinal care doctor discovered a childhood injury to the top vertebra of my spinal column, the C1 or Atlas, that has caused altered blood and oxygen flow to and from the brain, which is a possible root cause of my headaches since childhood. 

Although I've had frequent headaches since I was young, they had worsened until the point of becoming chronic within the past 18 months, possibly due to stress, food sensitivities, etc... that have exacerbated the existing neck issue.

I'm currently working with the doctor on treatment for the injured area of my neck. If this is the root cause of my head pain, I should see some results by the beginning of July. 

I've also been praying about my own need for teammates in the ministry where God has led me to serve in Quissico, Inhambane.    

"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore, ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest." 

Matthew 9:37-38


~ I appreciate your prayer ~

Happy Easter!

Mozambican Women's Day

April 7th is Women's Day in Mozambique.

Would you pray for the beloved women of Mozambique today?

Thank you for Praying

As I continue treat my migraine problem, I've been grateful to receive much prayer in this time, from both near and far. 

Thank you

Being prayed for at my Uncle and Aunt's church nearby. 

"Graces unexercised are as sweet perfumes slumbering in the cups of the flowers; the wisdom of the great Husbandman overrules diverse and opposite causes to produce the one desired result, and makes both affliction and consolation draw forth the grateful odours of faith, love, patience, hope, resignation, joy, and the other fair flowers of the garden. May we know by sweet experience what this means." 

C.H. Spurgeon

Update on Inhambane!

Before leaving Mozambique at the end of last year, I asked Carlos Njango, from the Palavra Viva church in the Maputo province, if he would be able to finish the last discipleship Bible studies for those in Inhambane who wanted to be baptized. 

Carlos, above in green, doing a wonderful job teaching the church group in Cala, Inhambane!

My dear Brazilian colleagues, Paulo and Fernanda, here with Pr. Daniel, committed to checking on my house in Quissico while visiting the church groups in Inhambane for the Bible studies about once a month. 

For those who completed the first part of the discipleship Bible study and wanted to be baptized, Carlos and Paulo baptized them. 

The group that was baptized in Inhambane!

While the baptisms were going on, Fernanda was baking many layers of cakes for the first ever wedding for the church in Inhambane! 

While I was there, a couple had been preparing for marriage. Carlos and his wife Tina became the counselors for this couple.

 On the wedding day, Carlos and Tina can been seen here standing on each side of the couple receiving gifts from the church group, (which is a somber and important occasion in Mozambique).

Praise to the "Nothing-He-cannot-do-One"!

D. Hillis

Health, Sisters & Brothers

Thank you for praying. My medical test results uncovered a problem, that among other things, results in migraines, but I praise God that it is treatable. 

It is my hope that this is what is causing my chronic migraines and that if I am able to resolve the problem, that the migraines will also cease. 

However, this means that I will need to stay in the US for another several months. This is unexpected and it is difficult for me to be away from Mozambique. 

But I am reminded that this is true for all of us in whatever season we're in, 

"The day is His, and the night also is His." 
Psalm 74:16 


While I'm missing my sisters and brothers in Mozambique, it's been very good to see my sister and brother here.

Sisters 

My sister's husband and children 
(in their giant Mozambique shirts) 

With my brother and his family.

~

I appreciate prayer as I go forward with this medical treatment here in the US, that it would go according to God's will, and that I would be able to return to Mozambique in God's time. 

Thank you!