Haven of Hope Turgutreis, Turkyie

We have been in our home for almost 3-weeks, and we are still trying try to get acclamated to everything. For example it has been cold and rainy for the past week. The first morning it rained, we discovered that we had two windows that leaked around the frame, and we had a lot of water in a bedroom and dining room. We need to get some silicone around the frame, but until we do, we know to put a towel down under each window when it begins to rain. Pat has already had to treat the window frames for mildew.

Pat has had a more difficult time adjusting to the cold. In the states, many of you know, Pat was always the one that was hot, and I was the one that was cold. Since we have been here she hasn't been able to adjust to the cold. And I have been able to adjust just fine. We dress in layers for the day and especially at night in order not to utilize a lot of electric for heat. We have a bed warmer to warm up the sheets & jammies.

Our diet has changed the most. Although there is beef and frozen food available, the price is too much to eat on a regular basis. So we go to the Pzar on Saturday to purchase fresh vegetables and fruit and buy other food items from the grocery store.
Pat has been doing a wonderful job cooking from scratch for our evening meal. Although on some evenings, she asks me if I would like chicken or chicken,

We began Turkish lessons on Monday and will have a class 3-times per week. We really have a desire to connect with our neighbors, our Turkish brothers & Turkish sister at Grace Bodrum,and other Turkish people that we come in contact with. Pray that we can learn quickly. Pat and I study together, and she is really doing great.

One of the Turkish couples that are our neighbors speak English. His wife is the manager of a bank here in Turgutreis. When I have seen him, I always greet him in Turkish. Today I saw him leaving with his fishing pole. So when he came back, I asked him if he caugh a baluk. He said I want you to talk to me in English. I said really? I was thinking that I was killing the Turkish. He replied yes, "I travel abroad and lots of people speak English, and I am forgetting words. So you can help me." So pray that Pat and I can form a good relationship with he and his wife.

Last weekend we hosted our first couple on Friday & Saturday. This couple are in ministry and actuall pastor a church. She told us that she had no hope. Can you imagine being in full time ministry and not have hope? Can you imagine being a Chrisian and not have hope for your marriage? Wednesday evening the wife called us on SKYPE and said she now has hope. Praise the Lord and thank you everyone that caught our vision and has supported us in prayer and financially. You are a part of this ministry.

I have begun to try to do some networking with churches to try to begin to build a realtionship with them so that will know who we are and that we are here to serve their church or home church.

We are both upbeat and haven't woke up and said to each other "what in the world are we doing here? "We really know that God has called us here and can hardly wait to see what God has in store.