11.20.2008

November Ps&Ps

Fall flies by once again, and as we approach thanksgiving, of course, we thank the Lord for all the blessings.

Family-wise, this year has been so different than last. Especially in the health area. We have been so excited to see the progress of Kevin with his prosthetic—incredible. The doctor says he is doing very well, very quickly; Kevin walked with a limp in the beginning (end of September), but now it is totally gone. He meets three days a week with a therapist, but that will be ending soon. However, the progress includes Kevin actually walking down the hill to our local park and he has begun to learn how to run again as well. Just amazing to watch.

Kevin has also been able to return more full-time to the ministries in which we are involved. At Sojourn Academy, he is back in the director’s chair, and that, in turn, enables Tia to return more to teaching in secondary English classes, which she totally enjoys doing.

Kevin also continues to administrate our ABWE Costa Rica team. Toward that end, we ask that you pray for the team to continue to develop and strategize for evangelism here in Costa Rica. One of our fellow families will be going home on a year’s furlough—the Salleys; and another family, the Lohrmans, will be moving into the interior area of Guanacaste in order to survey that area.

Pray, too, for the visa situation of our family as well as several other families on the field. The lawyer who has been handling that process for us did not come through with his end of the work; after finding out from immigrations that our paperwork was not as far as long as we had been told, several families have to begin again with the processes. Needless to say, this is not a “free” application process and requires an investment of time as well.


As we continue to attend church at “Vida Nueva” and support the work of the Colliers, Tia helps occasionally with children’s church, for which Colleen is actually on the teacher team. Watching Colleen grow up encourages greatly us as parents. Every opportunity in which she is placed, she shines and quickly takes up whatever leadership or teaching or translation needs exist. Naturally, too, she and Tara can do all that in both languages, and being that we have so many missionary kids in children’s church and in Sojourn, they have chances all over the place to help with these children going through transitions.

Speaking of children in transition, please continue to pray for Sean in his second year of college. As a third-culture-kid (TCK), he has a lot of different adjustments to conquer, and he would appreciate your prayers.

Katy, too, engages in her own adventures still. This week she will return to Costa Rica for a week. Since September, Katy has worked in Honduras with friends of ours who work on a medical missions compound near the coast (La Ceiba). Her primary role involves teaching two sixth graders in home school, but she also enjoys ministries with the local children’s center and music ministry with the local youth group.

Thanksgiving, yes, brings reflections and thank you’s
Bigger than we can express in words.
Often we do not realize
the moments or hours
that you take us with you in prayer.
But then we look back over the road we have traveled...
A road perhaps narrow and bumpy, but lit up with that light that is Christ,
His words and His care.

11.02.2008

Children's Church 10.24.08

The Lord blesses each week. Much of our work is at Sojourn Academy, the mk and international Christian school, but these photos here are from a recent turn at Children's Church at our church --Iglesia Bautista Impacto Vida Nueva.

10.18.2008

Transitions

The weeks fly by, and we still feel like we live in transition mode. Primarily in the health department, but in every other way as well.


Kevin's physical therapy continues very well. He generally uses a cane to get around, but he can walk without it. The gait still needs improvement as the muscles in that leg strengthen, and it's happening!

Pray for our transitions at school, where Kevin and Tia work together in the directorship (and Tia teaches twelve classes per week). Pray for the students there and the teachers. As you can imagine, our school revolves around transcience -- kids coming and going, some teachers coming and going, and currently our secondary math teacher, Val Wood, is on medical leave in the states--please pray for her.
Check out our photos on http://picasaweb.google.com/Tialrreilly from our culture day program. (Pictured here: Abby Graef, ABWE mk-er from first grade, representing Venezuela)

Please pray, too, for ABWE team efforts and for church where we continue to need larger facilities.

9.28.2008

Five months plus a day!


We are very excited! Five months and one day after the amputation in late April 2008, Dr. Dino Cozzarelli fitted Kevin for his new lower leg and foot (Dr. Dino's site: http://www.protesisavanzadas.com/).

Kevin spent all day on Friday at the offices there in Alajuela, Costa Rica (another city on the other side of the capital). In the morning a mold was made and by the afternoon he was walking with crutches, and even with just one crutch.

He feels so much better and more secure in getting around. We are just so happy to be at this point, and PRAISE THE LORD!

Also, this week, Tara celebrated her 14th birthday. We also received a note from the family which Katy is helping in Honduras--she is doing very well and an excellent job. We'll see her at
Thanksgiving.



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8.30.2008

Reilly Ps&Ps – August 2008

(Praises and Prayer requests)

 The summer has flown by, and now school starts up with the busy-ness of school and other activities, we remember the words of II Corinthians 4:5-6:  For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

 It is not about us and what we are busy with—it's about the message we were commissioned with.

 We praise the Lord for the continued healing of Kevin's leg—it's so much better now.  Although it has taken a long time to heal, we have seen a phenomenal change over the summer.  We will soon be at the next step in the process—the shrinking of the residual limb—and after that the temporary prosthetic. 

 We need prayer for wisdom in knowing which part of the process should be done in the States and which should be done in Costa Rica.  Still in Ohio, Kevin has two more appointments in these next ten days, which may help us answer some of these questions, and we are also waiting for complete approval for funds to be approved through the VA's Foreign Medical Program (FMP) in Costa Rica.  We do want to be all together again – SOON. 

For our Costa Rica ABWE team, we continue to request prayer for various projects underway, and toward recent meetings regarding strategy.  Please pray specifically for the churches:  Iglesia Bautista Impacto Vida Nueva, Iglesia Bautista El Camino, and Iglesia Bautista Roca Viva.  (The names don't sound quite as good in English, but translated they are New Life Impact Baptist Church, The Way Baptist Church, and Living Rock Baptist Church.)

This week, Sojourn Academy starts up in full swing.  Please pray for

  • The new teachers and student teacher:  Gary, Kim, Kate, Tricia, and Kim (yes, two "Kim's"
  • The new missionary students starting up language school and for their children to whom we minister – 67 new mks start on August 27, all the way from cradle to 12th grade.
  • All of us ministering together—lots of details to manage, and lots of unknowns to face.

 
 

Praise the Lord for

  • Safety throughout Katy's summer of work in Illinois – now she's off to minister in Honduras.

  • Kevin's continued healing.

  • Sean and Christina's adaptation to not getting married this summer and continued growth in their relationship

  • Colleen and Tara continue to minister at church with children of varying ages

  • Tia's graduate coursework over the summer:  it was very interesting, but she's still got about a third of the home projects to complete.

  • Successful summer camp program at Sojourn—thanks to all the work that the team here put together while we were gone.

With faith in Him,Kevin, Tia, Kaitlyn, Colleen, Tara