May God bless you richly in 2009

It is only Saturday night, but we will be tied up until Wednesday night, so we want to send you our Tuesday update early! Our prayer is that God would bless you in new and wonderful ways during this new year before us. We will see many changes in the days ahead, as God is blessing us beyond our imaginations. You will hear more about our new adventure in the weeks to come!

Heavenly Father, we open our hands up to receive from You. Forgive us for rejecting your blessings in the past. Allow us to receive your manifold blessings in 2009.

Christmas Gifts from Jesus

We're grateful for this beautiful Christmas card we received from one of our prayer partners. They sent it to us via Dayspring.com

We wish you a Joyful Christmas!

Click image to enlarge

As we considered taking a photo of our family to send you, we decided that it wasn't a good idea. Sue is the only one wearing a shirt! As many of our partners are shivering with record cold temps, we are sweating in the typical tropical heat of Abidjan. We've had daily rain and RealFeel(R) temps over 105°F, with the humidity dripping at about 90%. Do you feel warmer yet?

You warm our hearts as we thank our Heavenly Father for you. Your prayers are the best gift we receive each day. May our Father's love warm your hearts, even in the frigid areas of His creation. May your Christmas be filled with His abounding joy!

With love and gratitude,

Mike, Sue, John, and Joshua Farho

http://farho.us

John turned 23 and is visiting us!

We've had some exciting days since we returned to hot and humid Abidjan. It is good to be back visiting our believers and friends again! We also enjoyed talking with our son John, who turned 23 on Dec. 12. He informed us that he will be visiting us from Dec. 20 through Jan. 9. The last time we had Christmas together was 2005, before he went to Iraq.

Our friend is leaving for his eye surgery in Togo on Saturday. They hope to be able to repair his vision.

Heavenly Father, thank You for allowing John to celebrate Christmas with Mike, Sue and Joshua. Protect John as he drives and flies many hours. Heal Mike's friend as he gets his laser retina surgery.

Back home in Abidjan

It is great to be home again. But we have heard a lot of bad news already. One good friend was riding home in a taxi one evening. He woke up in a hospital the next day. He found out that the taxi driver died when their taxi was struck head-on by a car running a red light. Our friend recovered OK, but both of his retinas are detached. His vision is black about 10 minutes a day. A European doctor in Togo will do his laser surgery as soon as he gets enough money together for his surgery.

Heavenly Father, we ask You to heal these two retinas and save this man's eyesight. Give the doctors wisdom and steady hands for this surgery!

Joshua didn't want to leave Kairouan

It's great to see how Joshua makes friends. He's a great example to all of us. He said, "I would rather keep freezing to death in Kairouan, than leave my friend!" He was thrilled today to play with his best friend in Tunis. We're looking forward to seeing our friends in Abidjan too!

http://AccuWeather.com says the RealFeel® Temperature is 48°F in Tunis and 105°F in Abidjan. So you know we will have another major adjustment to make as we fly back to Abidjan on Thursday. We also have important meetings starting on Sunday.

Heavenly Father, help the Farhos adjust smoothly as they return to their home in Abidjan. Give them strength and joy for their meetings.