Well, its been a little while since I posted last! Life has been a whirlwind, but God is still in control!
First off, I have been giving presentations at some churches, and have a few more that I'm working on scheduling! If you would like me to give my presentation to a church, bible study, small group, or really any gathering, please don't hesitate to email me at josh[dot]hedstrom[at]gmail[dot]com.
And as many people have been asking...what am I going to do now? Well, thats a good question, and only God truely knows the answer! As for right now, I am planning on attending AFLBS, the Association Free Lutheran Bible School. I feel like that is what God wants me to do, and so I'm going to do it, as a step of faith! I can't wait to see what God is holding in the future for me.
As far as videos...I am still working on some of them, and I am contacting the missionaries to see about posting them on YouTube. I need the missionaries to review them for any security issues.
Thank you to all who have been praying for me! God is certainly revealing his plans for me, step by step!
God bless you all, and don't hesitate to contact me!
--Josh
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Well, I finally got most of the pictures up!
The following link is the album that I put up on Facebook.
Trip Photos
I have more pictures from the first part of the trip, but they are on a flash drive that I bought in the capital...and it crashed. But there are backups of those pictures...somewhere on a hard drive in Germany! I'll put them up as soon as I get them.
Thanks for your prayers!
--Josh
The following link is the album that I put up on Facebook.
Trip Photos
I have more pictures from the first part of the trip, but they are on a flash drive that I bought in the capital...and it crashed. But there are backups of those pictures...somewhere on a hard drive in Germany! I'll put them up as soon as I get them.
Thanks for your prayers!
--Josh
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Well, I'm home
Well, I have made it home in Nebraska!
The first flight from N'Djamena to Paris was delayed by 2 hours. That made me nervous, since that meant that I'd have about 20 minutes to run through the airport in Paris, go through security again, and try to get on the next plane. Probably wasn't going to happen. So, because I couldn't do anything about it, I trusted God with the whole thing. And of course, God didn't let me down! Not only was the first flight delayed, but He allowed all of my other flights to be delayed at least an hour! Which means that I met my entire itinerary! Praise God for that!
I certainly have a lot to process about this trip. I feel like I've had 3 years of experiences in 3 months. And I am tired.
I've got a lot of video and photo editing to do over the next few weeks, and I'll start uploading as soon as possible!
Thank you all for your prayers and support! It is a God given miracle that I'm even alive. There are so many ways to die, from sickness to accidents to wild animals to rebel activity....its a miracle that we are alive! Praise God! He has shown me a lot during this trip. I have much to be grateful for. And I am grateful beyond words to all you who prayed and supported me in this adventure!
God Bless!
--Josh Hedstrom
The first flight from N'Djamena to Paris was delayed by 2 hours. That made me nervous, since that meant that I'd have about 20 minutes to run through the airport in Paris, go through security again, and try to get on the next plane. Probably wasn't going to happen. So, because I couldn't do anything about it, I trusted God with the whole thing. And of course, God didn't let me down! Not only was the first flight delayed, but He allowed all of my other flights to be delayed at least an hour! Which means that I met my entire itinerary! Praise God for that!
I certainly have a lot to process about this trip. I feel like I've had 3 years of experiences in 3 months. And I am tired.
I've got a lot of video and photo editing to do over the next few weeks, and I'll start uploading as soon as possible!
Thank you all for your prayers and support! It is a God given miracle that I'm even alive. There are so many ways to die, from sickness to accidents to wild animals to rebel activity....its a miracle that we are alive! Praise God! He has shown me a lot during this trip. I have much to be grateful for. And I am grateful beyond words to all you who prayed and supported me in this adventure!
God Bless!
--Josh Hedstrom
Saturday, June 29, 2013
Coming back to America
Well, thanks to everyone who has been praying! It is hard to believe that Lord willing I'll be heading home tomorrow! My time has flown by! We made it back to the capital city safe and sound. I will be going to church tomorrow with Lorraine Green, the lady who got me into all this. :-)
Please pray for safe travels, and also that God would direct my thoughts as I start to process this incredible experience. When I get to a better internet connection, I'll start uploading pictures.
Thank you all for praying!
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Praise God for healing me!
Thank you all so much for praying!
God does answer prayers. I didn't have dysentery....I took the medicine,
and it didn't really help. I was still having fevers and headaches and
body aches and general weakness. We talked to the doctor again, and by
that point, my fevers had started getting higher. He noticed an
inflammation on my tonsil. His conclusion was that I might have either
Mono or Strep, and only time would tell.
But with people here and back home praying, God worked a miracle! I
starting feeling better, my fevers got lower and lower, and as of
right now, I am basically healthy!
Friends, I was not getting better, I was getting worse. It was't
looking good. I was starting to think that it would be a miserable and
painful trip home. But through the prayers of his people, God worked a
miracle!
Since I've been better, I've been doing a few activities. Right now, I
am working on building a desk for one of the Downing kids. It's been a
real struggle every step of the way. The wood is sometimes just rough
cut with a chainsaw, and is warped and bowed and bent worse than
anything I've seen in the US! But once it's cut and planed and sanded
way down, it doesn't turn out too bad. I have a new appreciation for
places like Menards! I spent a whole day working just to get the
wood to a point where it looked like a Menard's 2x4!
Also, I've been helping the Downings plant a small corn patch. The
ground is hard and dry, but this is the beginning of the rainy season,
so it should grow! But not without much sweat and toil. We worked that
ground with hoes and picks and shovels, and this afternoon we planted.
About half way through planting it started to sprinkle, and we
continued to have a cool wind and rain until we were done! We thank
God that he held off the big rains until we got all the seeds planted!
Its hard to believe that I've only got a few days left in the swamp,
before heading to the capital. I'll be at the capital for a day or
two, and then start the series of flights back home, Lord willing!
A few things to pray for:
-Thank God for healing my body!
-A safe journey home: ETA the evening of July 1st
-That I'd be able to finish up things here
-Thank God for an amazing trip so far!
Thanks for your prayers! I can feel them!
--Josh
God does answer prayers. I didn't have dysentery....I took the medicine,
and it didn't really help. I was still having fevers and headaches and
body aches and general weakness. We talked to the doctor again, and by
that point, my fevers had started getting higher. He noticed an
inflammation on my tonsil. His conclusion was that I might have either
Mono or Strep, and only time would tell.
But with people here and back home praying, God worked a miracle! I
starting feeling better, my fevers got lower and lower, and as of
right now, I am basically healthy!
Friends, I was not getting better, I was getting worse. It was't
looking good. I was starting to think that it would be a miserable and
painful trip home. But through the prayers of his people, God worked a
miracle!
Since I've been better, I've been doing a few activities. Right now, I
am working on building a desk for one of the Downing kids. It's been a
real struggle every step of the way. The wood is sometimes just rough
cut with a chainsaw, and is warped and bowed and bent worse than
anything I've seen in the US! But once it's cut and planed and sanded
way down, it doesn't turn out too bad. I have a new appreciation for
places like Menards! I spent a whole day working just to get the
wood to a point where it looked like a Menard's 2x4!
Also, I've been helping the Downings plant a small corn patch. The
ground is hard and dry, but this is the beginning of the rainy season,
so it should grow! But not without much sweat and toil. We worked that
ground with hoes and picks and shovels, and this afternoon we planted.
About half way through planting it started to sprinkle, and we
continued to have a cool wind and rain until we were done! We thank
God that he held off the big rains until we got all the seeds planted!
Its hard to believe that I've only got a few days left in the swamp,
before heading to the capital. I'll be at the capital for a day or
two, and then start the series of flights back home, Lord willing!
A few things to pray for:
-Thank God for healing my body!
-A safe journey home: ETA the evening of July 1st
-That I'd be able to finish up things here
-Thank God for an amazing trip so far!
Thanks for your prayers! I can feel them!
--Josh
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Please keep praying
Hi all,
This is Josh's mom again. The missionary doctor thought Josh had dysentery so they gave him the normal 3 days of medicine for that. However he still has a 101* fever and he is weak with body aches. So they are not sure what sickness he has now.
So please pray that the Great Physician would completely heal Josh. We are so grateful for the wonderful experiences he has had on this vision mission trip so far. He is planning to head back to the capital city in a about a week. Then he will stay there a few days and leave Chad on June 30th. He will arrive, Lord willing, in Grand Island, Nebraska on the evening of July 1st. We will be SO GLAD to see him again.
Thanks so much for keeping Josh in your prayers. As he has said many times, they know when people in the USA are praying, and when we stop praying. So let's keep the prayers rising like incense up to heaven.
God bless you all!
This is Josh's mom again. The missionary doctor thought Josh had dysentery so they gave him the normal 3 days of medicine for that. However he still has a 101* fever and he is weak with body aches. So they are not sure what sickness he has now.
So please pray that the Great Physician would completely heal Josh. We are so grateful for the wonderful experiences he has had on this vision mission trip so far. He is planning to head back to the capital city in a about a week. Then he will stay there a few days and leave Chad on June 30th. He will arrive, Lord willing, in Grand Island, Nebraska on the evening of July 1st. We will be SO GLAD to see him again.
Thanks so much for keeping Josh in your prayers. As he has said many times, they know when people in the USA are praying, and when we stop praying. So let's keep the prayers rising like incense up to heaven.
God bless you all!
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Well Drilling
Thank you all for your prayers. We have been busy the last few days,
drilling and flushing a well.
Not far from the town we're staying in, there is a small village. A
few years ago, we helped a local team drill a well with local methods.
The well worked fine, until recently when it stopped working. When we
opened it up, we discovered that it had filled with gravel. We're
still not quite sure how it happened. We tried for a whole day to
flush out the gravel in the well, but we were unable to. So we decided
to dig a new one. We hired the same team, and spent an entire day
drilling the well. We did not use our machine, since we didn't have
time to get it ready.
The local method is hand dug. But not with shovels...with a drill.
Basically the equipment consists of a 6 inch handmade drill bit,
mounted on a 9 foot pipe. Then there are 4 handles that attach to the
pipe. Four guys grab hold, and spin that thing around. Slowly, with
quite a bit of pressure.The mud pump pumps water through the drill
bit, lubricating the bit, and pushing the cuttings up to the surface,
where they flow down into a pit. After 7 or 8 feet, they attach another
drill stem section, and keep going. Those 5 guys rotate shifts, and
spent about 10 hours drilling that well. By the then of the day,
they'd gone 42 meters into the ground. I tell you what...that is back
breaking work. I would be hard pressed to find another set of 5 guys
that would be able to work that hard, and still have a smile on their
faces at the end of the day. But they were pretty much wiped out. It
was incredible to see them do it. I took lots of pictures and video,
which I will put up on the blog when I get home!
Then a few days later we took a generator and an electric pump to the
well, lowered it in, and flushed the entire water system for about 2.5
hours. When the water was starting to look clear, we pulled it out and
dumped some bleach down in it. We'll go back in a few days and set the
hand pump.
The whole village was overjoyed to have water again. The women had
been walking over a mile to muddy water to drink, ever since the first
one broke. It provides great opportunities to talk about the Living
Water!
It's hard to believe that I have just a little over 2 weeks left in
this country. My time has flown by here. God has given me many
experiences, and taught me many things. I have much to be grateful
for!
And thank you again for all your prayers. Without your prayers,
nothing really can happen out here. Because people like you are
praying, we can stay healthy, have water, and have great conversations
with people about the True Way.
A few prayer requests:
-That the city water would come so that we don't have to keep buying
handcarts of water
-That the team here in the Swamp would continue to unite in one
purpose and passion
-That there would continue to be peace in this region, and that the
enemies of God would not rise up and cause trouble.
-That God would give me strength and endurance to finish my time here
-That God would work through us and the conversations we have with people
-That in all things God would be glorified!
God bless you all! Hope to see many of you this summer when I'm back!
---Josh
drilling and flushing a well.
Not far from the town we're staying in, there is a small village. A
few years ago, we helped a local team drill a well with local methods.
The well worked fine, until recently when it stopped working. When we
opened it up, we discovered that it had filled with gravel. We're
still not quite sure how it happened. We tried for a whole day to
flush out the gravel in the well, but we were unable to. So we decided
to dig a new one. We hired the same team, and spent an entire day
drilling the well. We did not use our machine, since we didn't have
time to get it ready.
The local method is hand dug. But not with shovels...with a drill.
Basically the equipment consists of a 6 inch handmade drill bit,
mounted on a 9 foot pipe. Then there are 4 handles that attach to the
pipe. Four guys grab hold, and spin that thing around. Slowly, with
quite a bit of pressure.The mud pump pumps water through the drill
bit, lubricating the bit, and pushing the cuttings up to the surface,
where they flow down into a pit. After 7 or 8 feet, they attach another
drill stem section, and keep going. Those 5 guys rotate shifts, and
spent about 10 hours drilling that well. By the then of the day,
they'd gone 42 meters into the ground. I tell you what...that is back
breaking work. I would be hard pressed to find another set of 5 guys
that would be able to work that hard, and still have a smile on their
faces at the end of the day. But they were pretty much wiped out. It
was incredible to see them do it. I took lots of pictures and video,
which I will put up on the blog when I get home!
Then a few days later we took a generator and an electric pump to the
well, lowered it in, and flushed the entire water system for about 2.5
hours. When the water was starting to look clear, we pulled it out and
dumped some bleach down in it. We'll go back in a few days and set the
hand pump.
The whole village was overjoyed to have water again. The women had
been walking over a mile to muddy water to drink, ever since the first
one broke. It provides great opportunities to talk about the Living
Water!
It's hard to believe that I have just a little over 2 weeks left in
this country. My time has flown by here. God has given me many
experiences, and taught me many things. I have much to be grateful
for!
And thank you again for all your prayers. Without your prayers,
nothing really can happen out here. Because people like you are
praying, we can stay healthy, have water, and have great conversations
with people about the True Way.
A few prayer requests:
-That the city water would come so that we don't have to keep buying
handcarts of water
-That the team here in the Swamp would continue to unite in one
purpose and passion
-That there would continue to be peace in this region, and that the
enemies of God would not rise up and cause trouble.
-That God would give me strength and endurance to finish my time here
-That God would work through us and the conversations we have with people
-That in all things God would be glorified!
God bless you all! Hope to see many of you this summer when I'm back!
---Josh
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)