Quick Update & Prayer Requests

[Quang Ke Duong]

Hi friends

QUICK UPDATE: We have all arrived safely in Houston and have unloaded the truck and put everything into storage. I'll update more later, but in the mean time, I wanted to send out a prayer request. 

PRAYER REQUESTS: Steward has feverish since the day before we arrived in Houston. Carol and the kids left on Thursday morning. It is now Sunday night and he's still feverish. He's got some goop coming out of his eyes and his skin has been warm to the touch for some time. He has been fussy and has not been sleeping well. We're looking to see if we can take him to urgent care but are not sure if Medi-cal will cover it.

Please pray for us, even if it's a quick "Dear Heavenly Father, please help the Duongs in their transition to Houston."

If you have more time, here are a few things we are in need prayer:

• Health insurance in Texas. We have Medi-Cal in California, but are not sure if we can use it in Texas
• Praise God, Quang has a job interview Monday and Tuesday. Please pray for a full time job that provides health insurance.
• A place we can call home so that our family can begin to resume a normal life in Houston: church, school, friends, etc.

That is all for now, we'll send more news later. We missed you all this morning.

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†<><quang

[Quang Ke Duong]

Hi LBCLA,

Thank you for your many prayers and words of encouragement. They are all greatly needed and deeply appreciated.

UPDATE

• Praise God!! I had three job interviews at retailers and they all went very well. The first one offered a full time job. The pay isn't great but it comes with benefits after a 90 probation period. The other two are part time seasonal jobs and will end in January. All the interviewers think I would be a great addition to their respective companies. I will most likely take the full time job and also work one of the part time seasonal jobs so that we can earn extra money. The two seasonal jobs are good companies and said that a permanent position may be available pending good performance. The last interview I had such a good conversation with the interviewer that I was able to pray for her at the conclusion. She also promised to give my application to Human Resources to see if they can find me a permanent job more suitable for me for my skills and needs.
• Another reason to praise: Through connections here in Houston, we may be able to rent a three bedroom house for $1000-1200 month to month. This is perfect since it a good size house and the terms would allow us to leave whenever we need to without any penalties from breaking a lease. The home is also situated in a good location that would allow for easy access to work should the full time job require me to travel to a different location in Houston.

PRAYER

• Praise God for the opportunity to go to three job interviews so quickly. But please pray because nothing is certain with these jobs. The full time job promises to be long term but the interviewer also said that I would most likely be needed at a different location. It's a good thing our housing is month to month because my employment is in flux. Please pray God provide a permanent job soon. Ideally I would like to work for a good company that is full time with benefits, and would allow me to be in a position that would effect change.
• Steward is still having a REALLY!! hard time. Praise God that his cold seems to have gotten better, and the goop in his eyes has reduced. But now he's having a terrible time adjusting. I sat here for about 30 minutes watching him scream at the top of his lungs to the point where his voice became hoarse. Although I am not one to really cry, watching my baby boy kick and scream so much because he's struggling so much made me want to cry also. I feel so helpless... We believe it's because he's out of his element and his surroundings are continually changing, and therefore creating more confusion and uncertainty for him. Humanly speaking, we believe Steward needs a consistent home surrounded by his familiar faces and familiar toys and bed. Eternally speaking, we're praying that God not necessarily take away whatever it is that's bothering him, because God could be using his circumstance to draw us closer to Him. Rather we are praying that we would trust God to give us the strength and patience to love Steward, and that this would cause our family to depend on Christ all the more as we await for His return.
• Praise God Faith has been doing well throughout all these transitions. She's still a sinful little girl that has a tough time sharing with her brother and her usual disobedience and complaining, but for the most part, she's been such an adorable little trooper. We're so thankful that she's continues to be a happy girl in the midst of all the uncertainty.

Thank you all for reading thus far. I know this is a lot, but thank you again for your love and devotion to Christ and to our family. We miss you all.

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†<><quang