While we were away...

What was going on in Albania while Whitney and I were in Turkey and America? Kris took a few photos of some of the events that we missed out on.

The Rock Jump and Swimming Hole


Kris took the girls to a cool river nearby for a day of adventure with some other kids from our church. This cold river flows down from the mountain range nearby.



This deep swimming hole has a rock that juts out over it and is a popular spot for rock jumping. Kris said that Kaitlyn was the only girl that jumped off the rock into the pool. He said that he had to jump off after she did because it would have looked bad if he was shown up by his 11 year old daughter. LOL! She is definitely not afraid of heights.

First day of school



Whitney missed the first day of school while we were in Turkey. Kaitlyn, Sierra and Breanna are pictured here on the stairs of GDQ, the K-8 evangelical school here in Tirana.



Here is Breanna on her first day of Kindergarten. She was so excited to be going to school with her sisters. Daddy and Kaitlyn helped her get ready for this big day. She had her big girl backpack all ready for a couple of weeks before school started. I can't believe that my baby girl is off to school.



Here is Sierra with one of her best friends, Abby Doci.

Seminary graduation



On October 5th, the Southeastern Europe Theological Seminary, where Kris is a professor, held it's first graduation. There were 5 Albanian men that graduated with their Masters of Divinity degree. This event and some details about it will be highlighted in our upcoming newsletter.

Although I was very disappointed to miss out on the girls' first day of school and the graduation, I am thankful that Kris took some photos and that he was here to make those events special for the girls. We are even more appreciative for God's design in creating a family unit after these weeks of being apart. I am more aware of and grateful for the stability and leadership that Kris brings to our family and Kris is more aware of and grateful for the day-to-day duties that I do that help him focus on his job as provider for our family. God certainly used this time to grow our marriage and family. Thank You, Lord for this lesson in love.

16th update on Whitney

Our flight left Houston at 6:10 a.m. on Sunday, October 12th. We enjoyed one last McDonald's in the airport and then boarded a plane to Chicago. The Chicago airport has a really cool children's museum and play area. That was a blessing for us because we spent 5 hours at that airport. I had a great opportunity to talk with a woman and her husband, Michelle and Jim, in the seating area of that playground. He is a pilot and she is a pediatrician in the states. They are not Christians, but asked a lot of questions about why we chose to move to Albania.


Here is my first sight of home. Albania! After a super long delay of 7 hours in the Munich airport I was so glad to see Tirana. It looked so small compared to some of the other cities that we have flown into recently (Istanbul being the most massive - 12 million people!). I could not wait to get off that plane and into Kris's arms!


Here we are all back together again. After 34 days of being separated, we had so much to catch up on. Whitney got right back to school the day after we arrived. We took some time to go walking in the park down the way from our house. (Not the typical American park though - no playground equipment, broken hypodermic needles on the ground, used condoms in the brush, shattered bottles on the path, lots of trash around, animal and human feces to watch out for, and packs of dogs to beware of - just a nice walk in the park. LOL. Really, it is kind of pretty if you just don't look down too much. However, we are thankful for it because it breaks up the concrete jungle of the city.)



Kris was so happy to have all the girls back in his loving arms. They spent lots of time having daddy/daughter tickle time. He is such a super daddy! I pray that each of my girls marries someone as godly and terrific as their dad.


>October 17th

Faithful praying friends and family,

We are so thankful to God for His tremendous mercy to us these past weeks. We are so happy to be back home in Albania now. Here is a quick update on how things are going:

• Praise God that the doctor’s visit Friday the 10th was quite encouraging. Whitney’s vision tested at 20/50 (compared to the 20/100 when we first visited on Sept. 19^th)! She still has the “blind spot” from the hemorrhage, but the doctor believes it will dissolve over the next weeks and is not in danger or re-hemorrhaging at this point. Although she may recover some more of her vision in the next 3-4 months, corrective lenses will not help her see any better. The damage to her eye was to the retina and glasses will not help the vision impairment in this area of her eye. Thankfully, Whitney does not seem affected by this “disability” in the least. I praise God that He is giving Whitney the strength and maturity to handle this life change.

Pray that her eye would continue to heal and that the hemorrhage would dissolve quickly. Pray that Whitney’s vision would continue to become clearer in the next few months.

• Praise God that Dr. Khawly, the retinal specialist, will follow up with Whitney’s condition via the internet. It was so gracious of him to offer his time and expertise, free of charge, to confer with the ophthalmologists here in Albania and in Turkey until we see him again during our furlough in 2010. It is such a comfort to know that we can call or e-mail him with any further issues or questions we have. Also, the injection of steroids into the retina that he gave her in the surgical procedure, adds another level of comfort in being so far away from specialized care.

Pray that the steroids will protect her eye from developing any dangerous blood vessel growth to the injured area of her eye. The doctor said that if she begins to have some blood vessels develop in her scarred area in the macula that her vision would be affected immediately. If we can catch that soon enough we can have it surgically repaired in the states.

• Praise God that we made it back home to Albania safely on Monday afternoon. Kris and the girls picked us up from the airport in Tirana amid tears and hugs. What a joyous reunion! Even though I really enjoyed our time in the states, I was so excited to go home and be reunited with my family. God has blessed me immensely with an awesome husband who took care of everything in such a phenomenal way while I was gone. Praise God that he is feeling better as well.
• Praise God that I was able to give a copy of C.S. Lewis’s book, Mere Christianity, to the nurse Michelle at the doctor’s office in Houston. Also, during the 7 hour delay in the Munich airport I met an Albanian woman, Monica, who lives in the USA. She is a nominal Muslim, but has attended a Protestant church once with her kids in New York. God gave me the opportunity to talk with her about a relationship with Christ and how religion is different from a relationship with the Living God. She was very receptive and said that she would go back to that church when she returns home.

Pray for the salvation of Michelle and Monica.

• Praise God that Whitney is back at school and is settling in just great. Thankfully, we were able to keep up with her homework while we were in the states, so she is not too far behind her class. She was especially excited to get back to P.E. I talked with her P.E. teacher and it doesn’t seem that her vision problems are causing her too much difficulty with depth perception in sports. We are so thankful to God for allowing her to be able to be involved in something she really likes and excels at.

Pray that God would protect her eye from any further injury during her day-to-day life. We don’t want her to live in fear of vision loss, but to be aware and careful at the same time.

• Praise God that we can continue to monitor Whitney’s eye condition with daily updates on the blind spot and blurriness, monthly eye tests at home, visits to the eye doctor her in Tirana every 3 months, and a visit to Turkey every 6 months to see the retinal specialist. We are just so thankful that Dr. Khawly gave us some concrete things we can do to follow up with her recovery.

Pray for wisdom as we monitor Whitney’s vision. Since I am not a trained eye doctor, I need that extra wisdom from God to discern the slightest changes in her vision that could be really detrimental. Also pray that we would have a spiritual impact on the lives of the doctors and care givers that we will be interacting with often in the next months.

• Praise God that I had so many opportunities to talk with Whitney about God’s character and share the truth of the gospel with her. She does seem to have more spiritual sensitivity than before this “accident”.

Pray that God would continue to work in her heart and that she would become a young woman radically committed to the Lord and sold out for His glory to be known in the world.

Donald Grey Barnhouse once said, “Jesus is the God of detailed circumstances. Nothing has ever happened that has not flowed in the channel that God has not dug for it.”

I just love that! It has given me such comfort as I have reflected on its truth in our lives over the past few months. What a mighty God we serve! He is so deserving of our passionate and whole-hearted worship and thanksgiving.

God has called us to a new level of thanksgiving in the days of uncertainty, loss and pain. I have been meditating on these words in Psalm 50 recently. “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving…Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me…He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me” (14a, 15 & 23). Many times it has been a hard and painful thing to thank God for Whitney’s eye injury. Sacrifice always costs something. What I “sacrificed” (self-pity, the distorted view that Whitney deserves to have good eye sight, a false feeling of control, a fleeting sense of security that comes from relying on human strength or wisdom, etc.) was a pittance with what God lavished on me in accepting my meager (and often weak attempts at) thanksgiving. The amazing thing is that what God commanded of me (“offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving”), He also gave me the strength and desire to do (II Cor. 9:8). Then, He rewards me with peace, joy, intimacy with Him and a confidence in the unchanging character of God. Wow!

There are really so many things to thank God for regarding Whitney’s eye injury and the circumstances surrounding it. As I look back at all the ways He provided for us, directed our paths, answered specific prayers, gave us amazing opportunities to share about Him with others, comforted us through His Word and the body of Christ, and grew our faith in Him I rejoice that He brought this “momentary, light affliction” (II Cor 4:17) into our lives. We certainly have seen that “He inflicts pain, and gives relief; He wounds, and His hands also heal.” (Job 5:18). His purposes truly are for our good and His glory. Blessed be the name of the Lord!

Well, I will not be sending out any more updates about Whitney unless something changes in her condition. Please feel free to e-mail us at stirealbania@gmail.com or check out our blog at www.stiretestimonial.blogspot.com for further information or just to keep in contact with us. Of course, you can hear about our whole family and ministry here in Albania monthly, in our e-updates. If you are not receiving those and would like to just contact us and we will add you to our mailing list.

Thank you again for all your faithful and loving prayers. We thank God for you and for the way He cared for us through you.

Seeking Him,

Chelle Stire (for the Stire family)

Photo journal of our last week and a half in America

Fellowshipping in Montgomery - October 4th-5th



I was so thankful to get together with a handful to dear friends the last Sunday that we visited our home/sending church, Lakeside Bible. Our pastor and his wife, Ken and Kelli Ramey, we so gracious to have us in their home.



Whitney remembers this day as one of the best of the whole trip because she got to jump on a trampoline. She is such a sweet blessing from the Lord!



Here is Whitney with some of her little girl friends on the trampoline.



Amy Jacobs and I are caught on film (or jpeg or whatever digital cameras do) laughing at something funny. I am so thankful that God gave us this refreshing time with friends that challenge me spiritually as well as rejoicing my heart with lots of fun and laughter!

Benihana with the Drumms. October 9th



Whitney and I were honored to have dinner at Benihana (yeah!) with Claire Drumm and Katie Drumm (and their husbands who are brothers). God has knit our hearts in a special way because I was privileged to disciple each of these women and see them grow from new birth as Christians to mature, committed disciples of Christ who serve Him faithfully in the their families and at church. What a joy to see them flourishing in the faith.

Last days with Poppy and Meme. October 10th-11th



One of the places that Whitney frequented the most was the local Shipley's donut store. It was a morning routine for Poppy and Whitney. There are on better donuts in the world (in my opinion).



I made sure to get lots of hugs from my dad to tide me over until I see him again.



Whitney loved spending time with Meme. They talked about all sorts of things and had a great time together. Whitney is blessed to have such amazing grandmas and godly women in her life.



On our last night out on the town we had a yummy Mexican meal and caught a movie on the big screen. It was a real reminder of how different things are in the states. Despite all the comforts and neat things about being in America, I was ready to get back home to Albania.



I have a mental picture in my head of me, age 9, sitting on my dad's lap driving our old Oldsmobile down the dirt road to our house in Colorado. It looks so much like this photo of Whitney sitting in my dad's lap driving the last bit of road to his house in Houston. Dad was so comfortable with her driving ability that he even took a call on his cell phone! She did a super job. However, she will NOT be driving in Albania any time soon!

The Path of Suffering

This is an article that Kris wrote for our church's bulletin on October 12th.

The Path of Suffering

There are many subjects found in the Bible that Christians enjoy studying. Unfortunately, suffering is not one of them. I say unfortunately because I believe that many Christians lack a biblical understanding of suffering. They don’t like suffering, they don’t want to think about suffering, and so they aren’t prepared when they find themselves on the path of suffering. On the 31^st of August, my daughter Whitney threw a stick into a tree to knock down some beautiful flowers high amongst the branches. As she looked up to see if any flowers were falling, the stick struck her right eye causing substantial damage. Whitney has visited many doctors in three different countries to receive medical care. Currently, she only has 40% of her peripheral vision in her right eye, and five weeks after the injury her vision has not improved.

This has become a significant trial in the life of our family as we consider the health and future wellbeing of our daughter. I must admit, I have been tempted to wonder why my good and loving God would allow such a horrible injury to happen to my child. Why would He allow our family to suffer like this? How easy it is for me to praise God when the circumstances of life are good, and yet I know from God’s word that God is just as good and just as worthy of my praise when He purposefully allows and even causes the circumstances of my life to bring suffering (Job 2:10). Even Christ acknowledged that a man was born blind so that “the works of God might be displayed in him” (John 9:3). Jesus did heal this man’s blindness, but God used the path of suffering in this mans life to prepare him to place his faith in Christ alone. This eternal blessing of salvation far outweighed the suffering of a life of blindness.

God also brought Joseph along the path of suffering. He was sold into slavery, falsely accused of assaulting his masters wife, and left to rot in a jail cell. Genesis 50:20 records how years later, Joseph realized the Lord had taken him down the path of suffering to prevent the death of thousands from famine. What Joseph’s brothers meant as evil, “God meant it for good.” When God places us on the path of suffering, we must remember that He is still in control, still good, and still able to use the trials of life for our good and His glory. I may never know why God allowed Whitney’s eye to be injured, but I do know that I must embrace suffering, trusting that my sovereign God will cause “all things to work together for good” (Rom 8:28). May we strive to “consider it all joy” as we travel the path of suffering. “Knowing that the testing” of our faith will produce an endurance which will perfectly result in us becoming more like Christ (James 1:2-4). May the Lord use suffering to drive us closer to Him (1 Pt 4:14; 2 Cor 12:10).Kris Stire

15th update on Whitney

October 8th, 2008



Whitney and mommy outside the surgery center on Wednesday, October 8th. We were all ready for this outpatient procedure that would help protect Whitney's eye from complicating factors of her injury in the next few months.



While we waited for her turn in the surgical room, Whitney worked on her homework. She has been able to get class work from Albania via the internet. Thank God she will not be too far behind her class when she returns. She has only been in school 2 days this academic year.



Here is my little trooper after her surgery. She did a great job. I don't think she will ever want an IV again though.



Dear prayer partners,

I just wanted to give you a quick update and let you know that Whitney’s surgery went very well today. Thank you all so much for lifting us up before the throne of God in our time of need.

Praise God that Dr. Khawly did not find any other injury during his examination of Whitney’s eye during the surgical procedure. He was able to inject the steroid into/behind the retina without any problems. She did have a decrease of heart rate during the surgery and needed a medication that boosted her heart rate, so she had a pretty nasty head ache in the recovery room. We are so grateful to the Lord that He protected her.

At this time she is resting on the couch with doctor’s orders to lay low for the day. He will see us for a post-operative appointment on Friday. During that appointment we hope to see that her vision continues to improve. We are still planning on heading back home early Sunday morning. Yeah! We can’t wait to be re-united with Kris and the girls. We have been away from them for 34 days during the last 5 weeks.

However, we can say with full assurance that “there is no one like the Lord, indeed there is no one besides You, nor is there any rock like our God.” (I Sam. 2:2). We are so thankful for this time of testing because we know that God has used it in all of our lives to conform us more to the image of His Son. There is a poem that has had a mighty impact in my life over the years and He has used it again in the past two weeks. I hope it encourages and challenges your heart during times of difficulty like it has mine.

“When God wants to drill a man,
And thrill a man,
And skill a man
When God wants to mold a man
To play the noblest part;

When He yearns with all His heart
To create so great and bold a man
That all the world shall be amazed,
Watch His methods, watch His ways!

How He ruthlessly perfects
Whom He royally elects!
How He hammers him and hurts him,
And with mighty blows converts him

Into trial shapes of clay which
Only God understands;
While his tortured heart is crying
And he lifts beseeching hands!

How He bends but never breaks
When his good He undertakes;
How He uses whom He chooses,
And which every purpose fuses him;
By every act induces him
To try His splendor out-
God knows what He's about.” Author unknown

“Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen” (Jude 24-25)

Held in His grip,
Chelle Stire (for the Stire family)

14th Update on Whitney

Written on October 7th

Dear prayer warriors and friends,

“Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.” Hebrews 13:15

It is with a heart overflowing with joy and thanksgiving to God that I write this update. God worked in amazing ways at Whitney’s doctor’s appointment today. We have so many things to offer up as a sacrifice of praise.

1. God gave me the privilege of sharing the gospel with one of the nurses, Michelle! Thank you for your faithful prayers for the opportunity to be a witness and for the hearts of the doctor and care givers. Michelle is a non-practicing Catholic. She has just recently bought a Bible, but has not begun to read it yet. It was a true joy to be able to share the hope of the gospel to her and to encourage her to read about the Living God in His Living Book. She had such a receptive and hungry heart.
2. Whitney’s vision was improved today! She was able to read most of the letters on the 3rd line and some of the 4th as well. God is exceedingly good to us!
3. The doctor was very encouraged by Whitney’s recovery up to this point and is anticipating that the procedure that he will perform tomorrow will greatly reduce her chances of developing the most dangerous problems associated with this injury – increased vascularization to the back of the eye that causes pressure, glaucoma and cataracts. I feel so relieved and much more confident to return to Albania on Sunday knowing that Whitney’s eye has this extra bit of protection for the next 3-4 months. Those months are the most important time of healing and would be the most probable time that she would encounter the vascular issues. The procedure tomorrow will involve injecting a steroid behind her eye, into the retina, while she is under general anesthesia. At this time, he will also be able to perform a more careful examination of her retina to ensure that she does not have any damage that has been overlooked.
4. God is again providing for us so graciously by having our insurance cover the cost of this surgical procedure. After the billing lady at the doctor’s office told me that piece of good news I was just having a little praise session in the room. When the doctor came in, and saw me in tears, I was able to share with Him how extravagantly My God had provided for us during this whole situation and how God had used him to be a part of His provision for us. I am praying that the Lord would use that testimony of the sovereignty of God to draw the doctor to Himself.
5. Whitney and I had a superb conversation today about sin and prayer. I was so encouraged that she began to specifically name what she had done today that was sin and then to ask God to help her know her sins so that she could ask God to forgive her. I am so thankful that God is opening her eyes to see who God is and who she is and how she should relate to Him.

We are so thankful for your faithful prayers. As we see God answering these prayers so specifically and spectacularly it causes us to say, “You are great and do wondrous deeds; You alone are God” (Ps 86:10). Please continue to pray that:

1. God would protect Whitney during her procedure tomorrow. She is scheduled to be prepped for this out patient surgery at 9 a.m. and then undergo the procedure at 11 a.m.
2. Pray that she would respond well to the anesthesia.
3. Pray that God would give the doctor wisdom as he performs this very delicate procedure and that he would be able to determine if there is any other injury that needs attention.
4. Pray for the nurse, Michelle. Pray that God would grant her repentance and that she would respond to His call on her life with faith in His saving work on the cross.
5. Pray for Kris’s health. He is feeling some better, but continues to struggle with the flu. I am so thankful that God has encouraged Kris’s heart and taught him so much during these days of separation. I can’t wait to go home and learn from him all that God has been doing in his life.
6. Pray for Kaitlyn, Whitney and Sierra. They are definitely going through “mommy withdrawals”.
7. Continue to pray for Whitney’s heart to be soft to the Lord.

My own heart has been so impacted by this situation. God has cared for me and taught me about His love in such intimate ways over these past 5 weeks. I think that one night in Turkey will stand out in my mind for the rest of my life. As I watched Whitney wrestle with her pain, my heart mother’s heart cried out to the Lord. I knelt by her bed and wept and begged God to take away her pain because it was so hard to stand by helplessly as she writhed in pain. I wanted to take that pain on myself if she could be spared. It was as that moment that God’s perfect love for me became so real. I recognized that He watched His own Son in unspeakable agony on the cross. God the Father could have spared Christ from that pain in His absolute power, but He didn’t. He didn’t rescue His own Son, in order to rescue ME! That just rocked my world. I don’t know if I had ever realized before how great His love was for me, a totally unworthy and depraved sinner. It was a profound moment for me. I think it was even more amazing because over the course of this past year God has been stripping away the veneer of spirituality and self-righteousness in my life. To be honest, this past year has been a tough year for me spiritually. I have felt dry and isolated and it seemed that not only was I physically in a foreign land, but spiritually as well. It was God’s abundant mercy that brought me to my knees in Turkey that night. When I look back over the e-mail updates that I wrote during those days I have thought to myself, “Who wrote those e-mails with such trust and hope and joy because I know, more than ever, that I am riddled with unbelief, doubt and discontent.” It was God alone! He carried me and has continued to carry me through these days. If anything good or praiseworthy has come out of this time I am certain that it was “from Him and through Him and to Him…To Him be the glory forever. Amen!” (Rom 11:36)

At the foot of the cross,
Chelle Stire

13th update on Whitney

Written on October 3rd, 2008

Dear praying friends,

Yesterday Whitney saw the eye doctor again. After two weeks of healing time, he wanted to see how the hemorrhage was progressing and if her vision was improving. I went into the appointment confident that we would have a great prognosis. In the intervening days she had returned to her normal level of activity (playing with friends, doing school work and even swimming with the doctor’s OK). I have been asking her every day about the blind spot’s size and density and monitoring her level of vision. I was really encouraged that she seemed to be regaining her vision. I was even thinking that we might be able to return to Albania a week earlier than we had anticipated. Therefore, I was really surprised when the doctor tested her vision and instead of having 40% vision or better, she actually could only see one letter on the second line of the vision chart (about 20%). In order to check into this further, he had us go to another facility to receive a specialized test. The results of this test showed that her hemorrhage was smaller than two weeks ago. We praise God that when the doctor did his office exam he was encouraged that her eye actually looked better than it had at the last appointment and that the test corroborated this. It seemed that everything was pointing to better vision, not worse.

I have to admit that at that moment I began to wonder what God was doing. In God’s extreme goodness I had read these words from Jesus, to a parent whose child was sick beyond human intervention, “…All things are possible to him who believes. Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, ‘I do believe; help my unbelief.’”(Mark 9:23-24) I still don’t understand what God is doing in this situation, but I am so thankful that “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who those who take refuge in Him.” (Nahum 1:7).

In response to this change in Whitney’s vision, the doctor has decided to give her an ocular steroid shot on Wednesday. This is an outpatient procedure that will require her to be under general anesthesia while they inject steroids behind her eye into the retina. The steroids will cushion the area of hemorrhage and inhibit increased blood flow and pressure to that area over the next 3-4 months. We will then need to go back to Turkey to have the OCT scan performed in order to make sure that the retina is fully healed. Next Tuesday we will see Dr. Khawly, in preparation for the procedure, and he will retest her vision to see if there has been any change.

God has been using other things, as well, to cause us to lean on Him and trust Him during these past two weeks. Ever since I left Albania Kris has been sick. God has been blessing Kris with extra strength to handle sickness, an intense work schedule, the girls’ schoolwork and carpooling, as well as all the housework. Thank you for your extra prayers for him.

In addition to these things, Whitney’s dog, Oreo, ran away from home last week. This was an especially hard blow for Whitney because she was so looking forward to going home to Oreo’s kisses. I praise God that I could use this loss to remind her that God is actively trying to get her attention. He has continued to pursue her and to call her to Himself. It is encouraging to hear her pray that God would bring Oreo home. I am praying that God would answer her prayer so that she would know that He loves her, He hears her, and He answers her prayers.

We do have a major praise and answer of prayer to report. The insurance company IS going to pay for the air ambulance to Turkey! This is a really big deal because they were originally not going to pay for this large expense because it was not a “life or death” situation. They will also cover the doctor bills and hospital charges, minus our deductible. God is our extravagant Provider!

We would appreciate your continued prayers for our family.
1. Pray that God would heal Whitney’s eye and restore her vision.
2. Pray that God would protect Whitney during her procedure on Wednesday. Pray for her to respond well to the anesthesia and the steroid shot. Pray that she would not have any adverse reaction to the invasive procedure.
3. Pray for our witness to the doctor and to his staff.
4. Pray that God would heal Kris and continue to be his support and strength.
5. Pray that Whitney would submit to the call of the Lord on her life.
6. Pray God bring a little lost dog home and magnify His glory to a little lost girl.

We continue to thank God for your love and support during these past weeks. We have been so encouraged by your faithful prayers for us and for the ways you have loved us so practically. Thank you.

Amazed at His goodness,
Chelle Stire (for the Stires)

Photo journal of our first 2 weeks in America

Hanging out at Poppy and Meme's house. September 18th-25th



Whitney really loves to paint and draw, so Poppy got her all set up with an easel and paints. She loved painting on the back porch. Of course, there was so electricity because of Hurricane Ike, so it was really pleasant to just be creative and hang out.



Here is our little artist and some of her lovely art work.



Whitney was fascinated by all the squirrels around my dad's house. He lives on the bayou and they are abundant. Poppy and Whitney decided to make a squirrel bridge from the nearest tree to the porch and put food on it so that the squirrels would come a little closer. It was a really poignant thing for me to see her helping my dad in the garage because I used to help him do projects like that when I was her age.



Amanda/Meme (my dad's wife), Stephanie (my sister), Rose Ann/Nonny (Kris's mom), Whitney, Elaine/Grammie (my mom), and Bill/Poppy (my dad) are enjoying a super meal on the back porch of my dad's house. My sister and mother-in-law surprised Whitney and me by flying in from California for a few days. My mom drove about 2 hours to be with us as well. It was such a treat!



Whitney and I got the privilege to thank Mr. and Mrs. Reeves in person for getting us in contact with the retinal specialist in Houston. They are dear saints and such sweet friends. Praise God for them.



One thing that we don't get in Albania is good old Texas BBQ - or any BBQ for that matter. We had a wonderful meal after church at Goodes Texas BBQ complete with a life size moose (stuffed of course)as decor and all you can drink sweet tea in super size cups (what a novelty)



With no electricity (just a small generator to power a lamp and a rotating fan) we spent our evenings playing games, talking, praying and just fellowshipping together. I really enjoyed this time together. I did find it rather ironic that Kris had 24 hour electricity and internet in Albania (a 3rd world country with unstable power) while I was without both of those in America.



I sure miss my sister and my dad! This was the last night that Stephanie was in Texas before she flew back home to her sweet husband and 2 kids in California.



God was so good to allow me some time with my dear sister, Stephanie. We even got to celebrate our upcoming birthdays together on the last day.



One highlight of our trip to Houston was visiting KHCB, a Christian radio station. While we were in Turkey, Whitney and I were so blessed by the e-mails and kids radio shows sent to us by Bruce Munsterman, the president of KHCB. We got a super tour of the station and Whitney got to sit behind the DJ desk. Bruce even recorded her voice in the recording studio.



Here we are with Bruce Munsterman at a local Mexican restaurant. My dad and mother-in-law and Whitney and I were so thankful to get to spend some time with Bruce.



Whitney learned to play backgammon while we were in the states. Here she is playing with Nonny. She is a great player and beat both mommy and Nonny.

Visiting in Montgomery, Texas. September 27th-29th



Whitney and I went for a few days to visit our home church, Lakeside Bible Church, and hour north of Houston. We had a great time staying with our friends, the Pigotts. Chelle and Jennifer had a wonderful time together at Benihana (my favorite restaurant).



On Sunday, we went to Lakeside Bible. I was so excited to worship in English. I praise God that He gave me the joy of fellowshipping with dear friends, like Kelli Ramey. This time at LBC was so refreshing and was a gift from God during after all these weeks of difficulty and uncertainty. He is so good to us!



It wouldn't be a visit to Montgomery without eating at Fajita Jacks Mexican restaurant. These sweet ladies have all been part of my life in friendship and discipleship. What a joy to see them walking in truth.



Whitney was especially glad to be able to run and play with her friends. She asked me if it was OK for her to jump while she was with her friends. She was been on such a restricted activity level for so long, that just to be able to play chase and climb on the jungle gym was a treat. I was thankful that she could do all these activities while we were still in the states in case all this activity caused some problem with her eye. Here is the little gymnast on the rock wall.



Elise and Whitney had such a fun time together. It was a blessing to me to see Whitney really blossoming in her friendships.


Spending time with Grammie, my mom. September 29th- October 2nd



My mom and her husband, Charles, live rather close to Houston and we were able to spend some time at their home. The small Texas town that they live in, Somerville, is a great place to relax on the front porch and watch the sunset. We celebrated Charles (Granbud's) birthday while we were there. Whitney loved hanging out with Sunny Cat and cooking with Grammie. I loved drinking coffee with my mom on the porch and just talking with her. I miss her so much!



My step-sister (Charles' oldest daughter), Jamie and her 5 kids, came to visit us in Somerville. Jamie and her husband and kids will be leaving next year for Africa to be missionaries. We had a "Happy Birthday Everyone" celebration with cookies and cupcakes. Thanks Grammie for all the special memories!



Here is my mom and me on our last day together at her home. She blessed me so much with her warm and inviting home that was bursting with love. It may be another year and a half before I see her again (in person), but I have so many special memories of our unexpected time together.



Whitney really loves Grammie and misses her intensely. God was such a loving Father in allowing Whitney to be able to spend this one-on-one time with Grammie. Whitney's middle name - Laine - is in honor of my mom, Elaine. (Whitney Elaine had too much eeee going on). They have a special bond in name and in spirit.



Well this girl has no fear of trees even after a stick did all this damage. She loves to climb trees and said that Grammie and Granbud's tree is the best climbing tree. I am glad that she is not afraid to get "back on the horse", so to speak.

12th update on Whitney

September 15th-16th



Whitney and I had a relaxing, but very long, flight to America. We flew from Albania to Munich, Germany and had a few hours in the Munich airport. Then we boarded a jumbo jet and flew to Washington D.C. Whitney thought the best part was having her own TV screen on the seat in front of her.



Here was are on American soil (the Washington DC airport) for the first time in 14 months. The first thing we did after we got off the airplane was stop at a Dunkin' Donuts and get a chocolate sprinkle donut and soda with ice. Woohoo! You can see the sign, "Welcome to the USA" in the background. It was great to be back in a place where I could understand all the conversations and read all the signs.



The day after was arrived in Houston we went to see Dr. Khawly. He is a retinal specialist. Whitney did a great job at the appointment and enjoyed playing in the exam chair.

Dear friends and prayer partners,

As I write this e-mail, Whitney and I are in Houston, Texas. We arrived here late Wednesday to see an eye specialist about Whitney’s eye injury.

Last week, when we left Turkey, Kris and I began praying about the possibility of taking Whitney to the states for follow up on her condition. We prayed that God would make it very clear if was His will for us to make this journey. Once in Tirana, we followed up with an eye doctor who has studied and practiced abroad. He actually performed an eye scan that was not done in Turkey that showed us very clearly the injury to the middle part of her eye and the hemorrhage involved. At the time of her appointment with him, 3 days after her last visit with the doctor in Turkey, Whitey’s vision had not improved at all. The doctor in Turkey had hoped that her vision would continue to improve past the 40% in the peripheral vision as well as the blindness in the center part of her eye that she had at discharge from the hospital in Turkey. After examining her, the doctor told us, with quite a lot of certainty on his part, that she would never recover any more vision than what she has. He also said that because of the “break” in one of the membranes in the macular (vision) area of her eye, that the membrane was weakened significantly. This type of injury (traumatic coroidal rupture) has the danger of further vision loss as the underlying membranes begin to push through the healed “break” causing macular degeneration, cataracts and other eye issues. He was also concerned about the hemorrhage and stated that she would not be able to play sports again. Actually, he said she could play the vigorous game of chess. This was quite disheartening for Whitney because she is the most athletic of all our girls. With all of this information building on what we learned in Turkey, we began searching out options for further care in the states.

In a way that only God can work, He had already moved in the heart of a family friend in Texas to pursue getting us in contact with the “best of the best” ophthalmologist in the Houston area. He said that if we got Whitney to Texas, he would make sure that we got in to see this doctor that he knows through his wife’s own extensive eye surgeries. While Kris and I were, and are, content if it is God’s plan for Whitney’s eye sight to remain at 40% or even to worsen, we also want to make sure that we being wise stewards of the daughter that God has given us to care for. Our prayer for clear guidance about whether we should leave immediately for Texas was very definitively answered by the severe hurricane that hit the Galveston/Houston area on Saturday, the 13th.

Well, on Tuesday morning, the 16^th, Whitney woke up and informed me that the blind spot in her eye was bigger, darker, was “blinking”, and that everything else was blurrier. After a whole day of praying, contacting doctors in London and Texas, and seeking the counsel of our family and our mission organization, Kris and I decided that Whitney and I should go to Houston for further care. Just to remind us of how intimately He is governing all our ways, God allowed us to get a special airfare because of Whitney’s medical situation. We had been looking at spending quite a bit on next day plane tickets from Tirana to Houston. To add blessing upon blessing, Whitney and I are thankful to able to stay with my family while we are in Houston to cut down on costs of food, transportation and housing. God is such a tender Father and our lavish Provider!

Yesterday morning, Thursday the 18^th, Whitney and I went to see the retinal specialist. He gave us a very encouraging prognosis.

• Whitney does NOT have a retinal tear as we had been told in Turkey.
• Whitney will, more than likely, recover more of her central vision once the hemorrhage fully dissolves in the retinal area. Based on where the injury occurred in the eye, he thinks that she will not ever recover full vision, but that it will be more than she has now.
• Whitney WILL be able to play sports as long as she has protective eye gear on.
• The doctor told us that the injury she sustained was a severe one, but that if the eye was to have this kind of injury the placement of the tear and the angle at which the stick entered her eye was the best possible scenario. The tear is only a millimeter from her eye’s vision center and if it had been any closer she would have been permanently blinded. No one can tell me that God isn’t sovereign in the details!
• Whitney does not need surgery at this time. There is actually no surgery that can help fix this eye injury.
• Whitney is very likely to have cataracts and some other eye issues, later in life, due to the tear in her membrane, but those can be treated if they are detected in time. He suggested that I do a monthly eye test, at home, to make sure her vision is not deteriorating and have her see an ophthalmologist every 4 months or so to watch out for any change in the membrane tear.
• Because Whitney’s eye is still more prone to be re-injured, she must wear eye protection at all time (glasses, sports glasses, sun glasses).
• In the next 4 months or so her eye should have recovered and healed as much as it will and at that time we will know what her life-long vision will be. Corrective eyeglasses will not enhance her vision, but may “crisp up” some of the blurriness.

WOW! We are just speechless at how God has answered all our prayers in such a magnificent and gracious way! And, just to be super extravagant in His blessing to us, God moved on the heart of the doctor to see us free of charge! I just stood in the office and cried. He is SO good to us!

As we were travelling to the states, uncertain of what was happening in Whitney’s eye, I read this verse in Psalm 17, “Keep me as the apple of Your eye, Hide me in the shadow of Your wings.” (v. 8). The apple of the eye is a reference to the pupil of the eye. Although I have read this verse many times, it has taken on greater meaning to me now that we are dealing with Whitney’s eye injury and I have learned so much more about the eye itself. God used this verse to comfort me immeasurably that He is protecting us and caring for us as carefully as He created the whole body to care for the small and most delicate part of the eye. We are in the center of His watchful care! Although we can’t see clearly all the purposes of God in this situation we can rest securely with the knowledge that He sees and directs with perfect omniscience ALL our steps. I just love how God uses His Word to speak to us so specifically!

Our family has been so blessed by your faithful love and prayers in these past weeks. I know that God has used you in our lives to strengthen, comfort, encourage, and remind us of His special care through His body. Thank you for continuing to pray as we move forward with Whitney’s care. Here are a few specific requests to pray for:

• Continue to pray for healing – whether that be through the medical care given or through His miraculous touch. Our greatest desire is for God to be glorified and for His power to be magnified in our lives.
• Pray for Kris and the girls as they remain back in Tirana. The doctor told us to plan on remaining in Texas for 3 weeks so that he can keep watch on her hemorrhage and her vision recovery. It was very difficult for me to leave my dear husband. I know that God is giving Kris the extra strength and ability to care for 3 girls, but I know he would appreciate your prayers on his behalf.
• Continue to pray for Whitney’s spiritual eyes to be opened and that God would use this “trial” to bring her to repentance and salvation.
• Pray that the doctor and all care givers involved would see Christ in us. I don’t have a language barrier this time, like in Turkey, and look forward to taking every opportunity to share the hope that I have in Christ!
• Pray that Kris and I would learn all that God desires for us to learn during this time. We know that God never wastes pain. He has already used this to refine our faith and to recall us to focus on eternal things. He is not done working yet and we want to reflect Christ’s character more fully at the end of this time.
• Pray that Houston would have it’s power restored and that the city would recover quickly from the hurricane. It’s kind of ironic that Whitney and I are leaving Albania, where we are used to frequent power outages, to go to Houston where we will not have power at my dad’s house.

We will continue to keep you updated about Whitney and what God is doing through this circumstance.

Held in His grip,

Chelle (for the Stire family)