| Please Pray for the Biedebachs
Our dear friends and ministry partners, the Biedebach family, have been on furlough in California since mid-October. We have greatly missed them, their friendship, and their eagerness to strengthen the church in Africa.
 This last month has been a difficult time for the Biedebach family. In mid-December, Anita had an appendectomy, ending a long period of medical frustrations and unknowns. Then, on Sunday, January 3, Anita started to experience seizure-like episodes and was rushed to the hospital. After a week of tests in two different hospitals, doctors have just diagnosed that the seizures are related to the shock her system experienced from appendicitis. While it’s a relief to have some answers after a week of mysteries, Anita’s treatment is just beginning. You can follow the Biedebach’s blog for their latest updates. Naturally, this unexpected emergency has led the Biedebachs to delay their return to Malawi by a couple more months. While we can’t explain everything, we know that God is both sovereign and good. Please pray for the Biedebach family as Anita begins her treatment in California. Please pray for us as well, as we serve at the church in Malawi without them. Most of all, pray that though this incident, God will be exalted! Fill the House!  We prayed that the Lord would give us a house with a big living room so that we could have lots of people over - we have that big living room now, and we’ve filled it! We have 2 Bible studies meeting in our home, we love having church families over for lunch on Sundays, and we decided to invite lots of people over for the holidays!
There were 14 of us for Thanksgiving dinner; Americans, Malawians, and one Welshman. We had a great time with old and new friends, and encouraged each other in thankfulness to God - for our salvation, for our families, and for the church body.  For Christmas, we hosted about 60 people from the church in our home over two different nights. We played games, sang Christmas carols, and together read the Christmas story from Luke chapter two.
We are so blessed to be forming these relationships with the people of International Bible Fellowship. We love the role of facilitating fellowship and as we get to know each of these families and individuals, we see more opportunities for ministry and discipleship. Group events have opened doors to spend time with these people one-on-one, laughing, crying, and praying together. Please pray with us as we strive to make the best use of our time and energies in ministering to the family of IBF!  Baby Floreen! Yes, it’s true - we’re expecting! Check out our blog post for a larger image and more information on the wee one. 
Another Family Addition If planning for Baby Floreen isn’t enough, we also recently adopted Simba, a Great Dane/Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy. You can check him out on the blog too!  Mosquito Season And if you’re wondering what rainy mosquito season looks like for us, we also did a blog post on the precautions we take against malaria and mosquitos. Thanks! Thanks for being part of our team, for your prayers and encouragement! We know that this is not something we do on our own, but that we have the privilege of being a part of the body of Christ. We are so blessed to serve here, and cherish your prayers all the more in these coming months! - Matt and Rachel |
Floreen Newsletter Update
