The last of week before the boy's went home-by the Riegel's

This has been exam week for all the boys. With exam week comes a lot of changes around the home. Usually during the week the boys go to school around 6:30am and are home in time for lunch, but with exams, their schedule is different. Different grades in school go to class at different times during the day, different schools have different times and different days, so this week, it has been hit or miss with the boys during the day, but like always we all come together in the evening to pray and read scripture. The boys are very serious about this time; this is THEIR time together and together with God. Please continue to pray for the boys as the semester ends and they prepare to go visit their families until school starts again in January. The boys travel a lot during this time and though they are anxious to see their families and we encourage this time, we pray and anticipate for a safe return in January so they can continue with the second half of school. We will miss them while they are home with their families.
Whiskey- Whiskey has really stepped up over the past few weeks with exams and school coming to a break. Whiskey celebrated his 21st birthday on the Dec. 5th with his cake and his closest friends. Whiskey is like the big brother of the boy’s home and we appreciate his help so much.
Jocelyn- Jocelyn has been the silent type this week. Every morning (early) we can hear Jocelyn climbing the stares to go on the roof with his books to get that extra quite time to study and listen to God. Jocelyn always has good incite during our devotions and seems to be really diving in to what God has for him as a young man of God.
Jn. Robert- Jn. Robert has been in his books a lot lately preparing for his tests. He has been really busy keeping up with his studying and his chores, but Jn. Robert always finds a little bit of time in the evening for a quick game of Dominoes.
Mackenson- Like Jn. Robert, Mackenson has been caught in his books a little more than normal these past few days, also preparing for exams, Mackenson is stepping up to hit next semester running !
Elira- This boy is all smiles, all the time, even with the pressures of tests and school, Elira is not sweating it. Elira brings joy and laughter everywhere he is and is always willing to give out the extra hand!.
Jacky- Jacky was giving the short end of the stick this exam week (not a short-joke). He is the only boy that has to be at the school before 7am. While the other boys have that extra couple of hours in the morning, Jacky is up, dressed and out the door. Go get’em Jacky!
The boys have been really good with the Rigel's in our absence. They absolutely adore Blayn (the Rigel’s 11 month old son) and are having a blast the Rogelet (the Rigel’s 11 year old son). Rogelet fits in just fine playing games and watching cheesy Kung foo movies.
God has really begun to turn this house into a home, giving these boys a safe place to learn and grow. This home is a family, and they keep it that way. Of coarse all brother argue and step on each others toes, but you will not find a better group of young men seeking out what God has for them and taking advantage of such a great opportunity that they have been given. May God bless these boys!

It is interesting to see what other's see. Nixon and I ache to see our boy's again. We will be back in Haiti before we know it. Our prayer is always the same for our boys, that they would grow up to be super close to our Lord. He loves them so. Our love for them is only a teeny tiny piece of His love for them.

Our boys are missed

More than ever Nixon and I realize what an important role the boys play in our lives.

We knew that having the boys gave us a great sense of satisfaction and fulfillement.

We knew that the most important role we feel we play with Joy In Hope is having the Boy's Home. But just like there is a point when we go from knowing God to REALLY KNOWING God, we have come to the REALLY KNOWING that we love our boys.

We miss their unique personalities and hearing them downstairs. Yeah, I even miss their spending all weekend in our house, sometimes even in our room strewn all over our bed.

I find myself wondering what they are doing and how they are really feeling. Every time we call they say they are doing fine. I know they are, I just miss them.

Praise the Lord for Georgette and Mike who are there for our boys. Praise the Lord that they could do this for them, and for us. Thank you both for that, I know you are doing a fantastic job.

Saturday was Jacky's birthday! We kept calling the digicel numbers and somehow we were not able to get through so I was disappointed. We celebrated before we left though. I am glad we did.

More than ever I pray that our boys grow into responsible, mature men. I pray that they will have a heart that beats for the Lord. This is the greatest wish that a person could ever have for another. I pray we all have that heart.