Meeuwse's. Papua: Grace got to meet Grandpa and Grandma Jones

Back in May we were able to take a week and visit Grandpa and Grandma Jones in Hawaii! This was the first time they got to meet Grace! We were a bit nervous about flying for 5 hours with an infant, but it was good practice before our big plane ride to Indonesia! She did really good! We actually knew the pilot, so when we landed Gracie got special treatment on the way out. She really liked all the cockpit lights. Once we were on the ground Grandpa was there and very excited to meet his little grandchild! It is amazing the amount of power God gives to children! They can melt peoples hearts very quickly! We all got in the car and drove to the opposite side of the island where we would spend the rest of our time. In the mornings we would all hang out and swap stories, drink coffee, and just be together which was very nice. Most days we would end up at a beach somewhere and snorkel around to see what God made underwater! We got great videos of sea turtles, crabs, and even an octopus! Grandpa loved babysitting while Amanda and I got to swim. He enjoyed praying over her and just being able to bond!

It was fun having him show us around the island, and seeing all the things they have to adjust too! They moved from Alaska to Hawaii, so we got to see all the fun fruits and sites that they love. One of our favorites was getting young coconuts to drink and eat! Sure is tasty after a long day of swimming! We are looking forward to having those in Indonesia when we get there! I think Matt will be living off of coconuts and passion fruit! Amanda fell in love with the most gigantic avocado she had ever seen! It was a very exciting moment for her knowing that avocados could get so large! Our other mission was to spear some fish! Dad and Matt went out first and speared a few small fish. Amanda was determined to spear a fish before she left Hawaii, and after a few days of trying, she emerged with a victory! Unfortunately there was only enough for Grace on this fish :)

Our trip was very relaxing! We had a great time of fellowship with family and got to know some local people! Life is always an adventure and we had lots of those on this trip! It was nice to get away from the daily grind and just rest and reconnect! We loved the scenery in Hawaii and it was so fun to see God's creation especially underwater! The sunsets He painted most nights were amazing! On our way back home dad took us to the YWAM university of nations campus. While we were walking around we came to a fountain that was surrounded by the flags of the nations! Also around the flags were rock pillars holding up Bible verses. Matt began to look for the Indonesian flag, but a pillar caught his eye first. The verse was the verse God used to call him into missions! After he was done he looked up and directly above the pillar was the Indonesian flag! This was a "goosebumps" moment for us! God met us at YWAM and was confirming to us that this is His path for us! We left YWAM very encouraged and blessed! It is very cool to see how God can speak to us! What an amazing God we serve!