The Stephen DeLong family - Serving Jesus in Honduras

2 Years Old!

thedelongs — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 06:19:32 +0000

Daniel Dale

Today (Oct 26) we are celebrating the 2nd birthday of our son, Daniel Dale. I was remembering how a doctor doing an ultrasound of him before he was born told us that there was possibly some problems. But, God intervened and gave us a healthy little boy. Daniel fills our home with lots of smiles and laughter. He loves mornings and wakes up with a smile on his face. He spends his day following his best friend – Hannah- around and copying her words and actions. The other day I was teasing Hannah and saying, “Hannah doesn’t love me.” Of course Hannah assured me that she does, so then I was singing, “Hannah loves me.” Daniel piped up and said, “Mommy, me too!” I am so thankful for the blessing of his little life and I am trying to hold dear every minute because life is so short and he is growing up so fast. Happy Birthday to my favorite little boy!

A few hours old

1 Year Old

“I Love You, Mommy”

(Please excuse the shirtless boy. I love the expression)

Oh, the sparkle in his eye. Mischievous??

(hmm…must get it from his dad)

“Sitting still for a minute…..hurry take the picture quick”

How much do you weigh?

thedelongs — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 06:50:22 +0000

A certain 4 year old in my house was discussing with her mother that she was getting bigger

“Look, Mommy. Do you want to know how much I weigh? I weigh from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet. I weigh 4, 5, 6,7!”

In other news – Honduras is on its way to the World Cup 2010! Why do I care? I don’t really. But you have to live in Honduras or other foreign countries to understand how a country supports its soccer team/teams. When there is a game going on, everyone knows it. How? Well first of all on game day there are flags, t-shirts, bracelets, hats, etc. being sold in the streets. Then the streets become deserted as everyone flocks to their TVs to watch the event. The neighborhood comes alive everytime a goal is made with yells, fireworks, horns honking, and any other noise they can make. And if they win, be prepared for loud music, fireworks, and partying for several hours afterwards. Anyway, so why am I writing about this? Well the USA soccer team was here last Saturday night and beat the Honduran team. The topic on Sunday was very “spiritual” – THE GAME. We took some ribbing about being Americans since “our” team won. Well, tonight we were minding our own business, getting ready for classes tomorrow when the neighborhood erupted. If we hadn’t known better we would have ducked our heads and run for cover with all the booming taking place. Then we remembered, oh yes, there was a game scheduled for tonight between El Salvador and Honduras. Well Honduras won, but not only that, Costa Rica and the USA tied in their game, which made the score just right for Honduras to come in at the top and be on its way to the World Cup event. And finally, what does this really mean? Well for us it means – NO SCHOOL TOMORROW. Yes, that’s right. The government decided that the Hondurans needed a day “off” to celebrate so they called a national holiday. All schools, banks, government offices, etc are shut down tomorrow. How crazy is that? So, maybe I can get a little extra sleep tonight….that is if the neighbors ever decide to stop celebrating!

Family photo

thedelongs — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:48:13 +0000

Family

thedelongs — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 22:40:56 +0000

It was a treat to be able to be together with all of my family, even if it was only for a short time. We haven’t all been together for almost 3 years so it was a special opportunity.

Stephen and Kezia

Yvonne, Steve, Hannah & Daniel

Tim and Nicole

David, Elizabeth, Harmony, Elijah & Addy

Gary and Karen Mills

Lucille Lukens (Grandma & Great-Grandma)

Even though we came home for reasons not too pleasant, we’ve had the privilege of spending about 2 weeks each with both sides of the family. We’ve also “tried” to get some much needed rest. But, all good things have to come to an end sometime…. Tomorrow we fly back to Honduras while most everybody is still sleeping or climbing out of bed. (6:00 am! We have to leave the house here at 2 am) But even though we have a 4 1/2 hr layover in Miami, we will be “home” by 2:00 pm. Please pray for us as we go back. We have some big challenges ahead!

Somebody’s Praying Me Through

thedelongs — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:04:22 +0000

Last week Steve and I got the chance to get away for a couple of days by ourselves, which was a rare treat. We went to see a Bible play and heard the song “Somebody’s Praying Me Through” by Allen Asbury. The words of the song moved me up as I thought about the people all over the place that have been praying for my family through the past few weeks. Just today we received cards from 3 families that we don’t even know. All of them were expressing their sympathies and letting us know that we are in their prayers. It has been so amazing how God has been carrying us through and we know it’s because there are hundreds of people that have been praying for us. Thank you if you are reading this blog and you have prayed for us. We appreciate it more than we can say. We miss Joanna so much, but we are continuing to trust in God’s perfect plan for our life.

I want to share the song that touched my heart. It’s not necessarily my “type” of music, but the words are great and really meant a lot to me.

In Loving Memory of Joanna Brooke DeLong

thedelongs — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 22:04:18 +0000

The funeral for our daughter, Joanna Brooke, was held on Friday, September 4, 2009 in Plainfield, Indiana. The funeral went beautifully and God’s presence was near. Thank you to everyone that has prayed for us. God has been pulling us through and we know He will continue to do so. I’m am posting some pictures of Joanna and a few of the funeral.

Joanna Brooke DeLong

Born: August 18, 2009

Took her first breath in Heaven

Our 3 precious children -

Hannah, Daniel & Joanna

Aunt Lydia, Hannah & Joanna

God gave us a special blessing by keeping Joanna’s body beautiful until we were able to meet up with her again in Indiana.

We were able to hold her one more time. The grandparents got the chance as well to hold her. Although we knew it was only her body and that she is really in Heaven with Jesus, it was a special opportunity for us and our family.

Daddy and Mommy holding their little girl once last time

Funeral Service

Funeral Arrangements

thedelongs — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 22:15:52 +0000

I just wanted to let everyone know that we will be having a funeral service for Joanna Brooke.

Date: September 4, 2009

Time: 11:00 am

Place: Calvary Bible Wesleyan Church

Plainfield, IN

For obituary and funeral information www.sprolesfamilycares.com

Arrival of our new baby

thedelongs — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 20:06:22 +0000

Joanna Brooke DeLong was born on August 18th in San Pedro Sula, Honduras. She weighed 8 lbs, 8 oz and was 21 3/4 inches long. She took her first breath in Heaven. Following complications of a ruptured uterus, Mommy is recuperating and thankful that God spared my life. At one point the Doctor indidcated to Steve that he didn’t know if I was going to make it either. But, God saw fit to allow me to remain awhile longer and raise my two other precious children that He has entrusted me with. We are all hurting as we’ve had to say goodbye to Joanna Brooke after just a few short minutes with her. But we know that she is ultimately in a better place and that God knows what was best for her little life. Even in our questions of “why” we know that He loves us and knows what it best. Thank you for those that are praying for us. Please keep praying for a complete recovery and for God’s strenghth as we go back home without our precious little girl. We will be shipping her body to the States and be having a funeral there within a couple of weeks. I will post more information about this when all the arrangements have been made. We have felt the prayers and concern of many and we are being upheld by the arms of God.

Joanna Brooke

This and that

thedelongs — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 02:00:20 +0000

This post is just to play “catch up” with what’s been happening around here. I apologize to those that keep checking the blog only to find that nothing has changed. I’ve really been sitting with my feet up, eating bon-bons (a family joke) and having a leisurely life. NOT!! Even though I look like an elephant, feel like a hippo, and waddling like a duck, I’ve been BUSY. You ever heard of the term “NESTING?” That’s been me that last several days. I think I’m driving my husband nuts. Example – 11:00 the other night my linen closet was bugging me because it was a mess. So before it was over, everything had been taken out, the closet shelves cleaned, and all the linens refolded and re stacked. Thankfully I haven’t killed myself in getting my house cleaned, just driving my maid crazy. We’ve cleaned all the windows, ceiling fans, changed bedroom furniture around, and just about torn the house apart getting things cleaned. All in preparation for the newest member of our family who will not care a tiny bit whether the ceiling fans are clean or dirty. Oh well, at least I feel better. Well kind of…….

I am ready for this pregnancy to be over. I keep tell my hubby, “I’ve had enough!” (Well, he probably has too! ) My due date is Wednesday and I’m really hoping it doesn’t go one day longer. Hannah keeps telling her baby sister to “come out” but the baby is enjoying her last few days of peace and quiet before being bombarded by two rambunctious siblings who can’t wait to kiss and hug on her.

Enough about me……on top of the “nesting,” we are feverishly preparing for the new school year. Steve was not planning to do any major construction in the school this year, until his brilliant wife gave him some great suggestions of making more learning center space and moving the office area. So, now the saw is whirring and construction is under way. In between my saying, “Honey, could you please plant these flowers for me…(yes we planted some flowers in front of our house today…..see what I mean?)… he is spending the other hours working at the school and trying to get everything in place to begin. I’ve been over there as well, cleaning out and rearranging closets, giving “great” suggestions, preparing ideas for bulletin boards, and assisting as I can.

The good news is- we have 4 new students registered. The bad news – it looks like two of our students from last year will not be returning and we are not sure about another one. Please pray with us because we need students to meet the school budget! We also do not have a school principal yet, which is causing some stress and concern. Please pray that God will lead us to the right person for this very important position. The third concern is the lack of a teacher for our kindergarten and preschool. At this point the only option I see is that of me going to the classroom every day with a brand new baby. And, by the way, my husband won’t even discuss that option with me, so I guess that’s out. It does seem that God is answering prayer and is trying to send us some help from the States, but that individual can’t come right away. So, we are trying to figure out what Plan B should be and how to improvise until that person gets here. Please help us pray!

And on a final note – we are looking forward to some visitors in the next few weeks. It’s amazing who shows up when new babies come around. Just kidding. We are so thankful that Steve’s sister, Lydia, arrived this past Wednesday and will be here for 3 1/2 weeks. Then my parents are coming – my Dad for 5 days and my mom for 3 weeks. So we should have lots of help around here for awhile.

Well…..keep checking for pictures of the new little one. Hopefully sooner than later!

Eight years and still counting!

thedelongs — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 15:18:09 +0000

I remember 8 years ago today when we were literally counting the minutes until it was time to walk down the aisle and say the “I do’s” Yes, today Steve and I are celebrating 8 years of marital bliss. I told him yesterday that if he knew what he was pledging his life away to he might have changed his mind, but he assured me that wasn’t true. Ha-Ha. In eight years we have moved 7 times, lived in 2 foreign countries, finished college, pastored a church, and opened a Christian day school, welcomed 2 (soon to be 3 any day!) children into our home, and shared lots of experiences that many couples don’t ever get the “privilege” to do together. God has been faithful to us and given us a beautiful family and home. So, for me, 8 years is just a beginning and I’m going to keep on counting, knowing that each and every day with a wonderful husband that loves Jesus first and then me is a blessing from God.

I want to say, “Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart. I love you with all my heart! You are truly God’s gift to me!”