Jonny and Lisa Lobel

The past weeks have been full of exciting and sometimes sad events.  My great uncle Jim Janssen van Raay died in the Hague and I took time out for the funeral.  A couple students are putting their last applications in to American universities and I have been overseeing that process.  Of course, Lisa and I both continue to teach, pray, and wait for God to do great things in our lives, church, and community!

The Netherlands
I took a couple days off, traveled to the Hague last week, and stayed with my extended family there.  My dad emigrated from the Netherlands to America when he was about one year old.  He still speaks fluent Dutch, though he never spoke at home with us.  We maintain a fairly close relationship with our extended Dutch family.  My sister, Mandy, even spent a summer there learning Dutch a few years ago.

Uncle Jim was the center of the family.  He was the last surviving sibling in my grandmother’s family.  They were born in Indonesia just before the Second World War and four out of five of them survived a Japanese concentration camp. As an adult, Jim became a politician and member of European Parliament.  His outgoing, gregarious personality charmed everyone he met.  One of his last big trips was two years ago to Chicago for our wedding.  He passed away quietly at the age of 77.  You can read about him in a Dutch newspaper, which I have translated into English using Google Translate.

The funeral was a sad time, but also a celebration of life.  We sang his favorite hymns and ate his favorite food (Indonesian) together.  I believe it was a special time of closeness for the family where Jesus was able to quietly speak about hope and comfort.

BMA
The endless cycle of teaching, learning, and developing the white and grey matter in students’ skulls continues as usual.  I’ve felt recently that I am seeing good developments in myself as a teacher.  The students we have at BMA also may be the best crop (on average) we have ever had, in my opinion.  I’m expecting amazing results from my homeroom class on their oral exams in a few months.  They are all currently applying to various universities around the Czech Republic, and some around the world.

I am overseeing the application process of two students applying to Moody Bible Institute.  These are the last overseas applications this year, and I am glad because I am exhausted!  I am so proud that BMA students step out into the unknown and apply to universities around the world.  They have also applied to several universities in the United Kingdom this year.

Family
Lisa and I travel to the States next week to visit with my family.  We are thankful to have a week off school for the spring holidays!  Mom Lobel hasn’t been improving much over the past two months.  She has been in the hospital for the last week, though should be home soon.  We are eager to spend time with her and the whole family.  Please keep praying for a miracle.  You can follow her progress at http://cindylobel.blogspot.com/

Lisa will also be stopping in to see her family for a few days.  She has some little nephews and nieces who don’t see their aunt nearly enough!  During that time, I will be at the annual conference of the New Canaan Society, a group of hundreds of Christian men who want to see God’s life in their families, jobs, and communities.  I’ll be doing some fund raising and getting quality time in with my dad and brother.  After a few days, both Lisa and I will return to Albany to be with Mom and the family.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support!

Jonny