Esmé recently moved so that she could live closer to where she works. The move coincided with the end of month procedures for March in the office, which was fun! …but amazingly, the Lord enabled everything to run smoothly.
Life in the office is never dull, and there have been plenty of new things for Esmé to learn on the job. She is still enjoying the role and is very glad of the internet connection, in order that she can still pick the brains of those who have gone before when necessary! Give thanks that things seem to be going well. Pray for wisdom for when she needs to make decisions quickly, and for a good memory to remember all the new things that she is learning. Pray most of all that Esmé would not get too absorbed with what she is doing in the office and neglect to put the Lord first in her life. (She had a tendency to allow teaching to overtake her life a bit when she was back in the UK!) Continue to pray for her walk with the Lord, that He may truly be first in her life – pray for spiritual well-being, protection of quiet times…and that she would remain close to Him.
Esmé gives thanks for the opportunity to keep in contact with people in West Africa – pray that she would be faithful in that. Phone calls are important culturally (especially when they are not able to visit in person)…and phone calls have never been easy for Esmé due to her hearing. Pray for the courage to make calls, even when she know it will not be easy and will possibly be frustrating for both parties too! Pray for wisdom regarding what to say – particularly to those who do not yet know the Lord. Pray she speaks His Words and not her own. Pray that Esmé would make time for people and prioritise the relationships she is so privileged to have.
Give thanks for another renewed friendship from Esme’s primary school days and for the many opportunities she has had to spend time with her church fellowship back home (albeit via messages and watching livestreams). The regular livestreams where Scripture is shared, songs are sung and testimonies given have been such a blessing to her. She has really appreciated being much more connected with people during this time. She has also had an opportunity to immerse herself in much Jola language through her local church WhatsApp group – she understands the odd French word thrown in, Jola greetings and people’s names, but not much else!
Esmé is thankful that an appointment was made for her to see a particular London consultant in July, which was an amazing answer to prayer…then recently this appointment was changed as it had been made in error for the wrong clinic and has now been made for early September. Under the current circumstances with travel, please pray for wisdom as to when she should reschedule her flights. With a likely enforced quarantine when she arrives, she will have to consider where to spend those two weeks and to ensure that she is back in time so as not to miss the rescheduled appointment. She will also have to reschedule other medical appointments too.
After all this, Esmé will still need a place to live when she returns to West Africa and someone to share with too.
Pray for Esmé to have wisdom for clear direction for the future, for teammates and in selecting which people group to serve.
Pray for her family and friends across the world who do not know the Lord and that many might come to know the Lord at this time.