Your Prayers Matter

Please pray for
1. Protection from viral and bacterial infections for all of us due to Ethan’s low immune system.
2. Provision for Ethan’s monthly blood tests, anti-rejection medicines and other medicines, and medical check-ups. Provision for a suitable house in Quezon City where we can move in soon; we are praying that we can transfer to a better place where air is cleaner & environment is more beneficial for Ethan's health towards complete recovery
3. Progress on Ethan’s growth and development - physically, mentally and emotionally.
4. Parental care: Wisdom, love, discernment, strength, and spiritual growth for us as we raise Ethan.
His Power, strength and wisdom manifested in Geoff as he juggles his roles in ministry.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21 (NIV)

7 months after

Remembering His Faithfulness
We continue to celebrate with you as we offer thanks and praise to our mighty God for His goodness to us, especially for Ethan. Last September 27th, we celebrated Ethan’s 18th month birthday, remembering and rejoicing over how the Lord has sustained, provided and granted Ethan His gift of life. Last October 10th also marked another breakthrough as we celebrated God’s continuous protection. It has been 7 months since the transplant and Ethan’s blood tests indicated that Ethan remains stable. Ethan’s doctor said that he needs to be stable for at least 6 months to 1 year after transplant, though he will continue to have a low immune system because he’ll be taking immunosuppressant medicines for the rest of his life. By His grace, God gave Ethan a smooth recovery and continued to protect him from any kind of infection. We always recall what Ethan had gone through until the transplant day and everyday our hearts just shout with joy not only for what He has done, but also for His continuous presence, His mighty hand and His character revealed through Ethan.


Resting in His Arms
As we celebrate God’s miracle through Ethan, these past 3 months also served as God’s way of granting Tina a “sabbatical” since coming back last June from Singapore... a time of recovery and rest - physically, mentally and emotionally. Though our hearts and minds have been consistently covered with His blanket of peace these past 18 months, there has also been a mishmash of experiences - of joy, of grief, of fear, of hope, of waiting, of sadness, of praise, of despair, of persevering, of rejoicing and of loving and being loved. And so Tina praise God for granting her priceless time of reflection, of rest and retreat (she has not even looked at her Facebook since last year!) and of embracing precious time with Ethan - keeping an eye on him, feeding, giving medicines and having fun playing.


Raising Our Little Boy
“Thank you Jesus...” is the gentle whisper that comes out of our mouths everyday as we hold Ethan tightly in our arms. And every time Ethan hears the word “Jesus” he puts his hands together and is ready to pray! This is just one of God’s awesome gifts to us as parents -witnessing his growth, discovering more of his personality and enjoying His gift of ministry in nurturing, shepherding and loving Ethan. As God guides us in our growth as parents, we all the more grasp the depth of His love and nature as our Father - as we learn to play the different roles of a teacher, a disciplinarian, a playmate, a nurse, a chef, a discipler, a prayer warrior, a friend and many other surprising roles. What a wonderful privilege it is that God has given us, to be entrusted with His precious gift, Ethan.

Raring to Grow and Go
Ethan has been very active and is getting a bit taller. He now walks while we hold his hand and has made several brave attempts to walk on his own on the bed, knowing that it won’t hurt if he falls.
He has also made us smile and proud because he's been absorbing a lot, learning and recognizing things. He loves studying his abc books with pictures. He hands his book over to us and crawls over to our laps so we can teach him more words and objects. He loves to be asked what he just learned and tries to figure them out and points at the objects. He still loves making dance moves whenever he hears music and consistently snaps his fingers. When asked how old he is, he sticks out 1 finger in front of you. Also he points to his chest when asked, "Who's gwapo (handsome)?"
When our neighbor peeks through our window and calls his attention, he always smiles, waves "hello", blows a "flying kiss" and shows his "beautiful eyes" by blinking a lot of times. Indeed, we thank the Lord for his continuous development and ceaseless joyful spirit. 

Recognizing His Grace
The endless miracles we behold each day continue to humble us. As we recognize His grace that is sufficient for us, He helps us remember His extraordinary ways and amazing people who came alongside us. And so we continue to thank you, you whom God brought to Ethan’s path - families, friends, missionaries, pastors, churches, foundations, doctors, nurses, perfect strangers, brothers and sisters in Christ from all over the world. To you who willingly gave, earnestly prayed, sincerely loved, frequently encouraged, enthusiastically served and faithfully journeyed with us as a family, we truly praise God for you!