2016 Family Prayer Requests

As we head back to Kenya on March 15, it is always difficult to leave our children behind.
Please join us in praying for our family.

1) That God would guard our hearts and heal our ache for each other and help us to focus on the tasks He has given each of us to do.

2) That God would help Abbey and Joe get moved into their house.

3) That God would help Abbey and Melissa as they attend school to do well in their classes and have the time and energy they need for their studies.

4) That God would help Abbey, Joe, Connor and Melissa to have clear direction in the job opportunities that arise and that they may hear His voice in the careers they are offered and that they choose.

5) That Ross and Mama Ross will knuckle down and get him caught up on 5th grade in homeschool. That we will be able to stick to the schedule we have outlined to make that happen.

6) That Ross will adjust well to transitioning back to Kenya. As the youngest it's possibly the hardest for him to travel back and forth.

7) That God would lead us and guide us, keep us healthy for His service, grow our relationships with each other that we may honor and glorify Him in all that we do.

Separated

We have arrived back in Kenya.

1. Please pray for our family as they adjust to being separated.  Abbey and her husband Joe and Connor and his wife Melissa are in the USA, while Alan, Leah and Ross are in Kenya.  Please pray for us in those difficult times when we really miss each other.
2. Please pray for Ross as he adjusts to life in Kenya.  There is much more walking here. There are fewer "fun" things to do. Foods he will miss. And most importantly he misses Abbey and Connor. However, he has a lot more opportunities to play with children his own age here and he LIKES that.  Pray that he will adjust and be happy living here.
3. Pray for our physical health. We have already experienced several medical issues.  

• Alan has a blood blister on the bottom of his foot that is almost as big as two dimes. He got this two days before we left for Kenya and of course has had to do a lot of walking on it.
• Leah hurt her knee on Sunday (May 20th) She was going up a flight of stairs and it experienced a stabbing pain on the 3rd or 4th step and she had to endure that pain up 4 flights of stairs and  then back down the 4 flights of stairs. Today (Monday) it is still giving her trouble.
• Ross came down with a high fever. We managed to get it back down, but several hours later it    was up again.

Thank You for Praying !

Leaving Soon

As we get closer and closer to our departure to Kenya we covet your prayers for our family.

We anticipate being able to leave the US by the end of March, providing that the Kenya elections go peacefully.

While we are eager to return to Kenya it will definitely be difficult to get on that plane and leave our two adult children and their spouses behind. Hard for us and hard for them.  Please pray for God's peace, comfort and resolve to follow His call.

A Beautiful Testimony of Love and Comittment

Connor and Melissa were joined in Holy Matrimony on January 5, 2013.

Both of our older children made commitments to God and their future spouses to remain pure until their wedding day.  Melissa had made the same commitment as young girl. This commitment was beautifully displayed as Connor and Melissa exchanged their "purity rings" on their wedding day.

We are very happy to have Melissa as the newest member of our family. God has blessed us beyond measure with two wonderful spouses for our two oldest children. We have no doubt that He will some day bless Ross the same way, though we hope that is quite a few years off.

Connor is getting married on January 5th

We never dreamed that before we returned to Kenya that we would see both of our children married to their life long partners. But you just never know what God has in store for you.

We have often wondered why so many delays and we see Him putting together His perfect plan.

Please pray for Connor and Melissa as they put together their plans for their wedding, go through marriage counseling and work and school at the same time.

Pray that God will knit them together for their life of service to Him and that their lives will honor and glorify Him.

We are very grateful to our Heavenly Father for bringing both of our children such wonderful mates.
Thank you Lord!

The Nest Has One Less Child in it Today

Our middle child, Connor, moved to West Virginia yesterday.  He will be living near to Abbey and Joe, working at a restaurant, helping with an artist that works with Joe's band and eventually going to school.

It is a difficult and a happy thing when a child leaves the nest.  We have mixed feelings, as do most parents. We are grateful that while we are so far away that at least our two oldest children will be close together.

Please pray for Connor as he lives on his own and learns the ropes of independence.

Please pray for Abbey and Joe that their relationship will grow stronger every day and that it will glorify our Father in heaven.

Please pray for Ross as he adjusts to being the only child left at home.

Please pray for Leah and her mother's heart as she adjusts to the absence of Connor.

Please pray for Alan and his father's heart as he adjusts to the absence of Connor.

Pray for us to have peace and comfort and to do the work that it takes to continue to build our relationships with our children from long distances.

Thank you,

The Fleming Family

Refocusing on Kenya

With the wedding this month we have been challenged to focus on our return to Kenya.
It seems that at every turn there was something that had to be done for the wedding.

Well, the wedding is over and the bride and groom are honeymooning in Florida and we find our selves finally able to focus on Kenya once again.

It will be a tremendous adjustment for us. Our two older children will stay behind in the USA and Alan, Leah and Ross will head off to Kenya without them.  We covet your prayers in this matter for it will be the biggest challenge we have faced. 

Thank you for all you do when you bend your knee to pray for us. It means more to us than you could possibly know.

Blessings,
The Fleming Family

Gaining a Son

We are adjusting to the idea that our little girl is getting married.
Sometimes, even when you know it is the right thing, it is still hard to handle change.
But God is giving us grace and wisdom and we are eagerly planning the wedding.

Joe lives in West Virginia and of course we live in North Carolina. So he and Abbey do not get to see each other very often. They average once or twice per month.  This is making it quite a challenge for them to submit to pre-marital counseling. All four of us think that it is very important for them to do this. Please pray that we will be able to work out a schedule that will allow that to happen.

Please pray for their life together that it may honor and glorify God.

Pray for the rest of us to be spiritually, physically and emotionally ready to head back to Kenya while Abbey and Connor remain in the USA.

Thank you for your faithfulness to pray,
May the New Year be filled with God's blessings.
The Fleming Family

A Wedding

For over 10 years we have been praying for our children's future mates.  That prayer has been answered for one of our children. Abbey is getting married to Joe Barnosky on February 18, 2012.  He is a strong Christian young man and we are thankful that he is going to be a part of our family.  Our God is amazing and we are grateful for such a wonderful answer to a fervent prayer.

So we need your prayers for wedding preparations.  We need your prayers for the hearts of Mom and Dad to be ready to walk our little girl down the isle. Though we are certain that Joe is the right one it is still the passing from one season of our life to another.  And with this new season we will be returning to Kenya without Abbey and Connor. God continues to prepare the way for us to have peace to do that and this step in Abbey's life is a big peace to our hearts. 

And we need your prayers as we try to make final preparations for our return to Kenya in the midst of wedding planning.  We are excited we get to be here to participate in this planning with Abbey, but it also puts a LOT on our plate to be done.

Thank you for your prayers and we pray that each of you have a very Merry Christmas!

One last Fall Together

We are grateful that all of the Flemings are living in one house again.

Our daughter Abbey moved back in with us.  We are transforming the
basement of our house into a college pad.  When Alan was working construction last winter he redeemed A LOT of thrown away lumber from the dumpster and now we have found a use for it.

It is a happy time for us and we are enjoying being together. The days when we will all be separated are coming quickly and we need your prayers for the strength to leave our 2 grown children in the US while, Alan, Leah and Ross head back to Kenya early next year. 

We are not certain on when next year, we are still working on raising our monthly support and we have not yet begun to raise the ticket money to get back.  In God's time He will provide all that we need and we are working hard to raise it while also patiently waiting for Him to provide it.

Thank you for praying for us.
The Fleming Family

A Month Gone By

It has been over a month since we left North Carolina to come to Texas.

By the end of May we will have been gone from N. Carolina for 46 days.
We will have spent 26 of those 46 days in a bed other than our own.
We will have spent 15 of those 46 days traveling over 3000 miles.
We will have packed and unpacked our suitcases TOO many times.

People say to be careful what you ask for. We asked God to fill up our calendar with speaking engagements and He has done that.  Though we feel like this traveling from place to place speaking about what God is doing in Kenya is what we need to be doing, it is also draining. On the other hand we are thoroughly enjoying being reunited with friends and family.

Please pray for our patience, our endurance. Please pray for Ross as the constant transition is difficult on him.  Pray that we will be able to provide him stability in the constant moving about. Pray for God's guidance in our speaking and for His Holy Spirit to bring in the pray partners and the financial support we need.

Thank you.
The Fleming Family

Facing Separation Again

As we head to Texas next month we will once again be separated from Abbey. We are thankful that it won't be for long, but it will be a challenge for all of us.  It will especially be difficult for Ross.

It seems like a large portion of  my (Leah) conversations with Ross center around when he will get to see Abbey on any given day.

We are praying for Ross' salvation. We are praying that Ross will come to know Jesus before we go back to Kenya. Please join us in this prayer. 

Thank you!

A month of challenges

Dear Friends,

February has been a month of challenges for us.  We are grateful to our heavenly Father who has helped us through these trials.

We have had a bad round of the flue and are thankful that everyone seems to be over it, with only a few lingering coughs.  Leah seems to have managed to dodge getting it, please pray that she continues to avoid it.

We have had several challenges with our transportation.  Alan has been using an older model truck that belongs to his brother. He has been using it to travel back and forth to work.  The truck broke down earlier in the month.  Once it was finally repaired, then the battery began to give us trouble and we had to replace it today.

We are thankful that in the midst of all these challenges we had the please of celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary.  Alan was still down with the flu, but our children and our sister-in-law prepared a lovely meal for us and we had a beautiful quiet dinner at home.

We continue to struggle financially and ask for your prayers for God's provision for our daily needs. We are planning on traveling to Texas in the middle of April and we need to have money to make that trip as well as maintain our house here in North Carolina.

Thank you for all your prayers, they keep us going every day.

"Is Furlough a Year-Long Vacation?"

Many people wonder, 

"What do missionaries do on furlough? Is it a year long vacation?"

Our furlough has many elements to it.

1) God has been doing many fantastic things in Kenya. 
We are here to give that report to our prayer supporters.

2) It is a time for us to reach more people about our work, 
and gain more prayers support.

3) It is a time for us to reach more people about our work, 
and gain more financial support.

4) We do not leave our witnessing tools in Kenya.
We continue to share Jesus with people we meet in our daily lives.

5) It is a time for us to renew our spirit, to draw closer to God, 
to prepare spiritually for our return to Kenya.

6) It is a time for us to visit our family and friends. 
One of the biggest difficulties of being overseas is being absent from our family. 

We  spend much more time doing the first four tasks on this list, than we do renewing our spirit or visiting our families. But most people have the misconception that we spend most of our time doing those last two.

We were given a car less than a week ago, so we are beginning to schedule speaking engagements to give our report.  Please drop us an email and let us know if you want us to visit your church. 

                                               
Thank you 
                                              

                                                                                                                                      
Have a Very Merry Christmas!
                                                                                                                                    

                                                                                         
The Fleming Family
                                                                                         

A Long Journey Ends

On the 26th day of October 2010 we stepped off an airplane and proceeded to the line for immigrants. Just moments after arriving at the counter the immigration officer said some beautiful words. "Well Benjamin (Ross' first name), since I have just stamped your passport, you are now an American citizen." WOW, what an amazing day! It was a long journey, but worth every step and every struggle.

We are nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains near little town called Thurmond.  Abbey lives on a farm just 5 minutes' walk from our house. It is peaceful and, thanks to our Wonderful Creator, it is BEAUTIFUL. The turning of the leaves for fall is a spectacular site. One we have not seen in 6 years.

Our reunion with Abbey is even better than we anticipated.  We wake up every morning and struggle to believe we are actually here and get to see her every day. 

Please pray for our time here in the US. Pray that it will be a time when we will renew our spirits, our strength and our determination. Pray that as a family we will grow closer to our Lord and be able to adequately proclaim the works that He is doing in Kenya.

Pray that we will soon be able to be reunited with Leah's family in Texas and the rest of Alan's family in Georgia. We currently do not have a vehicle and we are not able schedule a trip to visit them until we do.

Thank you for all your prayers.
Blessings,
The Fleming Family

Furlough Time is Finally Here

After 5 1/2 years we arrive in the US on Oct. 26th.

Upon arrival Ross will automatically become a US citizen. PTL!
A long journey, well worth traveling, has finally come to an end.

We are still looking for a house in the US and we need a car.

Pray for us to be provided with these two necessities.

Pray for God's guidance about where and when to speak.

Pray that we will not neglect to take time to rejuvenate and relax.

Pray that it will be a time of spiritual growth for our family.

Thank you,

The Fleming Family

A Glorious Day

Praise the Lord!  Ross' Visa is in our hand.

We are absolutely elated to have Ross' Visa stamped in his passport and he is now TOTALLY authorized to travel to the US.  The moment he steps on US soil he will automatically become a US citizen. That will be a most glorious moment.  We have about 1/3 of the money we need for our tickets to travel to the US, so we need about $4000 more dollars to have the full amount.

1) Pray for God's provision for these tickets.  We hope to travel by the middle of September, but we MUST travel no later than January 21st, because that is when his Visa expires.

2) Pray for God's wisdom as we decide when we will travel to the US.

Thank you for your prayers,
The Fleming Family

A Sad Time

We found out today that Leah's brother-in-law passed away.  She has not seen him in six years and this is particularly difficult news for her.  Leah's father died when she was only 10 and when her sister married Bob, when Leah was a teenager, he became a father figure for her.  It is difficult for her to have to be away from her family at this time. We are gateful for the fact that Bob was a believer and we rejoice that he is at home in heaven and that we will see him again one day.

We appreciate your prayers in this difficult time, for we grieve at his loss and will miss him, even though we have the hope of seeing him again. We covet your prayers for Leah, her sister Peggy and she and Bob's children, Robby, Terry, Curt and Kyle.

Thank You

A Good Interview

Praise the Lord our I-600 interview seemed to go well.  We have been waiting for them to contact us to let us know the results, approved or disapproved.  We got a call on Friday, June 25th, saying that the application has been processed and we can pick up the letter on Monday, June 28th.

We are still praying that it is a favorable decision and that we can move on to the application for Ross Visa.

Leah has recently learned that her brother-in-law, Bob Wilson, is in really bad health. Bob has been fighting cancer for several years.  He has been moved to a nursing home and is not expected to live beyond a few weeks. This is a difficult time for Leah as she would like to see him and she would like to be in Texas to give support to her sister. However, we also know that God has given us a very specific directive to go to Isiolo and do these projects. We are asking for prayer for Bob and Peggy and their sons and also for Leah as she struggles with being away from them during this time.

Another Step Forward

Praise the Lord we received Ross' Kenyan Passport on June 15th.

We have an appointment at 10 a.m. on Thursday (June 17th) with the US Embassy.  This is our I-600 interview. The I-600 is an application to be allowed to bring an orphan in to the US for the purpose of citizenship.  Once we pass this step we will be able to apply for his US Visa.  Please pray that we receive approval and that we can move forward with the Visa process.  (That is 2 a.m. Thursday Central Standard Time).

We need to get these steps completed and then move up to Isiolo for a few months and do the projects that God is leading us there to do.

Thanks for your prayers!