Never the Same

We find ourselves experiencing a flood of emotions as we come to the end of our time in Bolivia.  We are at peace and at the same time amazed, at what has taken place in the past year.  God has shown us what we thought might be possible and stretchedthat even beyond what we dared to dream.  We are blessed with two beautiful homes with a loving and sacrificial staff who serve our 35 children 24 hours a day, seven days a week continuallyreminding them through word and deed that they are in a safe place and have a perfect Heavenly Father who will “never leave or forsake them”.  

We have an incredible feeling of confidence as we have witnessed TJ trust and follow God’s leading by passionately carry out his role as Executive Director of Fundación Esperanza.  It has been a blessing to witness TJ doing the very thing that he loves and is passionate about.  This combined with an incrediblepartner in Lifesong for Orphans and a dedicated and passionate board of directors leads us to believe that God has BIG long lasting plans for the His mission in Bolivia.  

We are blessed and will be forever grateful for the opportunity to serve here in Bolivia; we will never be the same.  We are thankful for the prayers, encouragement and support that all of you so generously provided to us at just the right moments.  It was because of you that we were reminded in the valleys that“we will get through this” and on the mountain tops that we serve an incredible God.  Each of you played a tremendous role in our lives making what nearly a year ago seemed like absolute craziness become an unforgettable time of spiritual growth and reliance on God.

We are overwhelmed by the love, kindness and patience the Mitchell’s showered on us from the day we arrived.  It is not easy when 4 grown people invade your life, let alone your home for 3 weeks, when you are learning to adjust to 4 year old adopted twin daughters!  It is hard and frustrating enough just to open your life up to someone, but throw in cultural changes, homesickness and language barrier and it just starts tocompound.  From day one they have shown us a perfect example of love and grace.  We are so very thankful for their help, advice, friendship and example over the past year.  We are reallygoing to miss the Mitchell family!  We are going to miss; the games, the coffee, the Mango smoothies, the movies, the food (Tammy is an incredible cook), the laughs and their gift of hospitality.  We have always considered TJ & Tammy to be people of character and integrity.  Throughout our year together we have seen these characteristics on display continually.

Now the part we dread thinking about the most, let alone writing about……our hearts are being torn out of our chests thinking about leaving these 35 precious creations.  It literally feels like we are forgetting to bring something with us, something incredibly important to us, a part of us.  Oh how we will missthe daily interaction with each of these gifts.  They are all amazing and wonderfully made and if it was possible we would take every one of them home with us.  How we will miss the morning greetings, the smiling faces, kissing the tiniest hurts and their microscopic inspection to find more, rocking them to sleep, bottle feeding x 10, and the daily gift of God working in their lives to make them more and more comfortable which in turn slowly reveals their true endearing personalities.  What a treasure it is when one who has been abandoned, rejected, forgotten (whatever word you want to use) lets down their defenses and returns the love you give them.  We are not worthy of such love, but oh how grateful we all are for this, the greatest reward of our journey over the past year.  

So what’s next for the Simpson’s you might ask?  Well, we are headed off on another adventure.  Mike has accepted a CFO position with a company in Melbourne Australia.  The private equity firm that he has worked with since 1999 acquired a new business in Melbourne and commented that “if we could live in Bolivia, surely we could live in Australia!”  After much prayer and discussion as a family, we have all agreed to step out in faith and see what God has waiting for us in Australia.  Our plan is to depart in July and we will be in Texas for about the last 3 weeks of June.

I know many of you have been praying for Kim’s health.  I wanted to let you know that the doctors have officially diagnosed her with Multiple Sclerosis.  We are thankful that we finally have a diagnosis and she is now getting the proper medication to stop the recurring episodes.  Please keep her in your prayers as she continues to adjust to life with MS and pray that the medication will continue to be effective.

Although we will no longer be on the ground in Bolivia, we will continue to fulfill our roles as members of the board of Fundación Esperanza, with Mike continuing as board President.  He will also continue to provide financial services to the foundation.  Our primary focus is to advocate and raise sufficient funds to support the growing mission of Fundación Esperanza.  There are several ways you can get involved; financial contributions, child sponsorship, prayer support andopportunities to travel with us to Bolivia to meet our kids and encourage the Mitchell family.  We are also in prayer for those who God will lift up to serve in long term missions with our team.  The two best ways to find our more are to email me atmwsimpson13@gmail.com or visit the Lifesong web page at:www.lifesongfororphans.org/countries/bolivia.

We are grateful for your friendship and encouragement during our stay here in Bolivia. Our hope is that you will continue to partner with us as we witness God work through Fundación Esperanza forever changing the trajectory of children’s lives in Cochabamba Bolivia.  

Blessings,

Mike & Kim Simpson

May 18, 2014