Morley Update 2012 #24

Everyone,

One word to describe the last week - HOT! We have entered the season of sweaty kisses and trudging around in the heat. A team mate posted a thread on face book of "how you know it is summer in Greece". Here are a few: 1. You start sweating at 7am 2. You want ice cream at every meal including breakfast 3. You get in the car and burn yourself on the seat belt buckle (or even the black seat) 4. You need to water your plants twice a day 5. Your clothes dry on the line before the next load is finished washing and my personal favorite 6. You get to snorkel in the beautiful Aegean Sea! (There's nothing like it after a hot day at work!)

Last week was a busy week and I am still finding my way as to what I can handle. We had meal day on Tuesday. Team Meeting was on Wednesday morning and then I came home and cooked for team fellowship that night. Thursday is my Laiki and shopping day and I walk to do this - right now the laiki is quite a few blocks away - it moves throughout the year. I am dripping sweat by the time I get there, buy my stuff and haul it home. I also had reports to do this week and of course my update to write. Friday I cleaned house, did laundry and prepared food for our community group of refugee guys. After they arrived we shared for a while and then I got up to grill the hamburgers. All at once everything went double and I had to lay down for 1/2 an hour until it passed. I have been having short bouts of seeing double again but this was the worst one I have had since I got home from the hospital. Since then I have felt "off" much of the time. My "good" ear is still giving me trouble and the doctor here has sort of given up on it. He says there is still fluid in it but he doesn't know what to do about it so I should just hope it goes away. I think I will try to see someone when we are in the states. We are planning a very quick trip home in August just to see family. We have been here for 4 years now and this would normally be the year we took a furlough but with all the changes on the team and other considerations we just don't feel we can be gone that long right now.

Things are going well at work - right now we have three interns here for several weeks. Lindsey and Chrissa are staying with us. They have jumped right into ministry, connecting well with the kids and the women. They are also working to prepare some crafts ahead for the kids room. Charlie has also adapted well. He is developing relationships with the men and helping out wherever needed. We have a lot of teams coming and going this summer - we only take one "official" team a month but more and more we are getting teams who will be in the area for another reason and want to serve with us for a day or two. This is a big help but it means a lot of juggling of the calendar, doing orientations and training of new people. Since I am the person who schedules all this pray that I will be wise in using volunteers but not overbooking so that it puts a strain on the team.

I asked you to pray for "G" a few weeks ago, he's the young refugee believer who helps out in our kids program and with other things - like cleaning the bathrooms each day! He has been trying for over a year to get his "red card" which makes him legal for the time being and means he doesn't have to be afraid of the police. Thank you for praying. When he walked in to the house for community group last Friday the first thing he did was to pull out his card and show it to me with a huge grin on his face! We still have many refugee friends who are facing issues with papers as well as some team mates. Carolyn has not been able to extend her visa and is heading home to Canada again in hopes that she will be able to come back and get a new stamp with no problems. Susie has not been able to get a resident permit and so has overstayed her visa which may become an issue when she wants to return home. Heather and Chris Shepherd, who are trying to join our team, have raised all their support and are ready to come. They have been turned down for two different types of visa and now have a Greek lawyer looking into it. This may mean they will have to join a different ministry if they aren't successful which would be a big loss for us. We have heard of several people trying to come to help at other ministries who are being turned down for visas as well. I think with all the confusion in government as well as the increasing antagonism towards foreigners it may get harder and harder to get papers approved. Please pray with us for these things.

Thank you for all you do to support us and the ministry here - God is at work.

Serving Him Together,
Kent and Myrna Morley
Tripoleos 76
Elliniko 16777
Athens Greece
011 30 210 96 38 625
backhoeboy1@gmail.com
http://kent-uniquelymorley.blogspot.com
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