Mariangel.....a girl that was saved for a special purpose

What a tragedy!

How sad!

How outrageous!

How evil!

Unbelievable!

All of this has been said and even more since we heard of the murder of a single mother (Mirna Garcia) and the failed murder attempt on her only daughter Mariangel (she is in Valerie's grade). Mariangel did however suffer 5 bullet wounds! This just happened on Tuesday, March 2nd. The doctors who performed the surgery on Mariangel all say she is a living miracle. The wounds caused by the bullets should have taken her life. But they did not. God preserved her life for a purpose.

Every Thursday morning, several mothers from Academia Los Pinares (the school my children attend) get together to study the Bible. This year our focus has been to help our kids to build a Christian world view. Two days after this incident us moms gathered, together along with our children, to discuss God’s perspective on this incident. (Our children did not attend school that day since school was cancelled due to numerous cases of H1N1 influenza.) Since Valerie is Mariangel’s classmate, so she and her mother have been to our house on several occasions.

With this group of mothers and our children we studied the life of Joseph. All the kids volunteered different pieces of information about Joseph’s life until they put together the whole story. We remembered the details of the sufferings that Joseph had to endure. Then, we read about the perspective he had about his own life and suffering in Genesis 45:5-8 "And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance.” "So then, it was not you who sent me here, but God. He made me father to Pharaoh, lord of his entire household and ruler of all Egypt.”

Then we compared the life of their classmate, Mariangel, with Josepth’s life and these are the conclusions that children arrived at:

• She is suffering but God can take something wrong and make it good.
• God is in control.
• God saved her for a reason.
• God has a purpose we can not understand at the moment.
• Mariangel has to trust that God has a special plan for her life.

Valerie gave us the idea of everybody writing a letter to Mariangel to encourage her with this new perspective and with Scripture. When the timing is right, we will deliver the letters to her and read them together.

We left the gathering with another perspective on life. This life on earth makes more sense when we see in light of all eternity.

As mothers, we left determined to be change agents in all the ensuing conversations we have on this topic. Obviously every family at the school is appalled by the news. There is a bank account open so Mariangel receives aid with her hospital bills (see information below of how you could also contribute) and many mothers are doing shifts at the hospital to keep company to this little girl, but throughout any conversation, more than fixating on the gory details or speculations, we want to comment on God’s perspective and keep praying for Mariangel.

I invite you to be a partner in prayer for this girl:

Psalm 27:10 "Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.”

Let us pray that God will be Father and Mother to Mariangel and He makes her feel His presence in a supernatural manner.

Psalm 9:9-10 The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.

We pray for the preservation of her life against the evil ones. May she live free of anguish and anxiety and may she trust the Lord.

James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

We pray God leads relatives and close friends to make wise decisions for Mariangel’s future.

And eventually…

Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."

We pray that Mariangel will be filled with hope, joy and peace in spite of these circumstances.

PS: Tonight, God led me to the hospital to have the privilege to be at her side, first to ask about her relationship with Jesus, to give her the pressed flowers Valerie made for her, and then to review the details of a Bible class I had given to Valerie's second grade class on heaven. This served as preparation for when, together with her doctor, the hospital's psychologist, aunt and cousins, we gave her the news that her mother indeed was alive and well, but at Jesus' side in heaven. Please continue to pray for her as she deals with the shock of her mother's departure and the unsettling reality of having to move in with her aunt (who fortunately is a believer in Christ) when she gets out of the hospital.

*Basically all her hospital bills are being paid for by donations from families from the school. If God leads you to collaborate financially you may make a donation to Latin America Mission in my name, Lisa Anderson-Umana, work funds-Mariangel.

https://www.lam.org/donate/index.php?donate=Lisa+Anderson-Uma%F1a

God has a plan for you too Valerie and Victor...

We are moving from the current church we have been attending since 2004 to participate in a new church plant in our neighborhood, it's a daughter church called CCI El Hatillo (which is the name of the town we live in, by the way: CCI stands for Christian Center International not Christian Camping International!)

This week, after Alfredo preached his last sermon at CCI Fellowship, our Pastor John, brought the children and me up to the front with Alfredo.

He had the elders surround us and pray for us but first he spoke a word to each of us. He thanked me for the years of service as a Sunday School teacher and he seemed to be quite surprised that tears filled my eyes. But how could they not when we have experienced an amazing sense of community, made friends for us as a couple and also for our children, and loved serving together.

Pastor John thanked Alfredo for his leadership as an elder and preacher and perhaps what blessed me the most was his words for Victor and Valerie:

"Victor and Valerie, you also have God’s call on your lives and need to know that it’s not just your parents who are called but also you as well. So, be asking the Lord: What plans do you have for me there?

V&V have been struggling greatly with this move. It is perhaps the most difficult thing Valerie has had to face in her young life, trusting God that this is for the best even though she leaves her best friends back at the other church. So, I know that the Holy Spirit will use that question to cause her to reflect. Please pray with Alfredo and I for her to learn to trust in God's direction and seek His will in the face of uncertainty.

Prayer for a family grieving the loss of their little boy...

We ask your prayer for a family that lives just a few houses down from us in Tegucigalpa. Their son of just 3 years old died a few days ago of smoke inhalation when their home caught on fire.
A friend of mine, who knew I lived close by, called me and asked me to go see what was happening since her fire was on fire. Tragically, this woman's little boy was caught inside the home and they couldn't get him out until it was too late, so when the firemen came, they could not revive him.
As I sat in the ambulance praying for this mother and her family, I watched her embrace her little boy to her chest cry out to the Lord. It seemed her son had only fallen asleep. With several of her friends we interceded, asked God for a miracle, and agonized with her pain. I shared with her husband how we were praying since he was out of town and returning as quickly as possible.
Everyone present, friends and family, neighbors and others were in a state of shock but at the same time prayers were on all our lips. We prayed against the onslaught of guilt and fear of recrimination. We prayed that through this first wave of anguish and pain their family would be strengthened, that their other two children (2 years and 8 years--in the same grade/school as my son) would be comforted, that the spouses would support one another unconditionally and that this incomprehensible tragedy would be used by God to unite them all.
The entire neighborhood and school has been impacted by this tragedy and so we ask that you would accompany us in prayer, that they would sense God's presence and that their thoughts would be aligned with His truths:
…We are here on this earth for a short time (John 14:1-4)
… This world where sin and death rule is not our final destiny, we are en route to a New Heaven and New Earth (Rev. 21)
… That God is good and He loves children (Luke 18:16) and will care for them (Matthew 18:10)
…That God's sons and daughters will spend eternity together in His presence and that it is right and good to look forward to this gran reunion (I Thess. 2:19-20; 4:13-14, 17-18)
…That our children are on loan to us, they are gifts from God (Ps. 127:3)

Pray for this family, but let not our prayers be: Oh Lord, may this never happen to me, but rather, Lord, please manifest Yourself in the life of this family.

PS: We were fortunate enough to have a friend of mine, Eduardo Mena, from Costa Rica, who also lost his daughter, Rebeca, in a car accident, email me a Spanish copy of David Wiersbe's book: Gone but not lost: Grieving the death of a child.

Lord willing, I will be meeting with this family this Sunday morning to share this book and a little booklet called, Heaven, by Randy Alcorn.


Look Inside This Book

Valerie's 10th birthday celebration!

Happy New Year!
We celebrated Valerie's 10th birthday end of December . Valerie is now in the two-digit numbers! She invited some special friends over for a slumber party. When I asked her where she got that idea from, she replied: "I saw pictures from when you were my age..." Oh the dangers of leaving behind evidence! :) We all enjoyed celebrating with her. Thank you Lord for these 10 years with our Miracle Baby!
(click here to see 2 min. video clip)


What were some of your favorite memories of birthday celebrations as a child?
Share them by posting an observations below!

Victor's journey in gymnastics (2003-2009)

Here's a 3 min. video clip of Victor's participation in gymnastics since he was 3 years old. He started in Pittsburgh, attending one class per week and has persisted until now, with plans to continue. We rejoice with God's gift of excellent health for him and continue to pray with him that whether he wins or loses, all will be for God's glory!

Valerie Umana-Anderson's journey in ballet

Since 2004 til now Valerie Umana-Anderson has pranced and danced in every Christmas performance, delighting the Lord with her use of the rhythm and grace God has given her. For God's glory and joy she dances!
Enjoy this 2 minute video rendition of photos we've taken over the years!

Nice to meet you Senor Turkey!

Nice to meet you Senor Turkey! I have only seen you in the movies. I have always wondered what Thanksgiving was all about.

Such were the words of our Honduran friend, Cesar Alonzo, who for the first time met a real turkey (and no, he was not referring me to me! :)





We delighted in telling them the story of Thanksgiving starting with a multiple choice question:
Thanksgiving is....
a. A historical event
b. A US holiday
c. A Christian way of living
d. All of the above

We shared that according your belief, that's how you celebrated. If it was just an event in the past, you would associate Thanksgiving with Pilgrims and Indians. We did read them a story about the event itself in 1621. If you believed it is just a US holiday, you would appreciate the day off and remember to "be thankful", not to anyone in particular, but just a neutral kind of feeling. Lastly, if you believe Thanksgiving is a Christian way of living then you would make special effort to express to the Lord God all that you were grateful for.
Indeed, Thanksgiving is all the above, and we are thankful at having shared with our beloved friends and family (Silvia and Alfredo's cousin Alejandra were present) the joyous occasion.