EXPERIENCING THE MAURITIUS MIRACLE!

VIP TREATMENT DUE TO OUR BABY

One of Christo’s clients made a comment, after learning we are going to Mauritius with our three month old baby. 

She said, “Christo, you will get preferential treatment due to your baby.  People love babies!”

She couldn’t have been more right!

After I told a friend we’re going to Mauritius, she suggested when flying, try to get the special seats just behind business class, with the basinet for babies. Christo immediately put in the request with the travel agency and we got the seats.  What a blessing to sit in those seats! 

Michael fell asleep 10min after we took off, and only woke up after we landed in Mauritius (it was a 4 1/2 hour flight!). He slept most of the time in the basinet and I had a glimpse of the blessed holiday stretching out before us.  

On the return flight, he again slept for two hours in the basinet, giving my body a rest from holding a baby. 

In the mean time Christo had a dream flight having more leg space, almost like first class!

Since people are afraid to fly next to a couple with such a small baby, a fellow passenger booked to sit next to us, asked to be moved to an open seat further back in the airplane and we had three seats for ourselves, although we only had two seats booked!

The Lord is so good!

On arriving at Mauritius Airport, standing in the long queues to get through passport control, Michael woke up and started crying bitterly.  I was carrying him in the Ergo and while having my hands full with hand luggage, tried to nurse him, but he only cried louder! Next an officer tapped me on the shoulder and an airport assistant accompanied us to the VIP Customs counter - red carpet and all!  There were only two business men before us and within 5 minutes we were through customs and claiming our baggage.

Part of our Holiday package was a one day trip to a beautiful little island, Isle De Deux Cocos, only 5 minutes from Mauritius.  

As we arrived on the island the island manager immediately took extra notice of us since we had a baby.  He more than once came to make sure we were comfortable with our baby. When we needed to move due to the moving sun, he was there to carry our things. He even put us at the best table on the beach for lunch.  While having lunch, Michael was sleeping in the ergo strapped to me, he came to ask me if he could fetch me dessert.  

When leaving for the island in a tour bus from our Hotel, we had two young honeymoon couples with us in the bus and both of them where from South Africa.  It was great to experience the day with these friendly Afrikaans speaking people!

While having lunch on the island there were two native table hopping musicians, playing and singing any song you named.  After singing ‘Can’t help falling in love with you’ for Christo and me, they also sang a baby-song for Michael.

Isle de Cocos is the most interesting little island.  Apparently a British officer, recognizing the beauty of this island, built a house on the island for times when he needed a break.  

It is the most, beautiful house, but have only space for 4 people - not big enough for my family!

The main bedroom.  The swans are towels!

Except for the two bedroom house there is nothing else on the island.

We swam with Michael; went on a glass bottom boat trip to look at the coral and fish;

Had lunch; lay in the sun and went on the 7 minute-walk around the island!

When it was time to leave the island, our Island manager helped us again gather our belongings and helped us onto the boat.

I never could have imagined, having Michael with us, would assure VIP treatment. 

OUR VIRTUAL BABYSITTER

The next story was most probably the biggest blessing during our holiday!

We wanted to make video calls through SKYPE to help the little ones see us physically while we were away, so we left my MacBook Pro at home for the children, and took Christo’s MAC along. 

When we arrived at the hotel, we opened Christo’s Mac and was connected immediately - since the hotel had free internet access. 

Since we were on the ‘Island of love’ we wanted to enjoy romantic evenings together. Dinner was between 19h00 and 22h00 and by then Michael would be exhausted, after a day in fresh air and plenty of sun and would need to be in bed. The hotel did have babysitting facilities, but I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving Michael with a stranger.  As we discussed possibilities of babysitting, a unique thought suddenly entered our conversation - definitely Godly inspired! We would setup a Skype call with our children back home in South Africa and then place Christo’s Mac next to our sleeping baby. We could then go out to our romantic dinner while our older children 'baby sat' Michael. If he awoke sometime during the evening, CJ (watching the Mac screen back home) would see and hear baby wake up and give us a call on Christo’s cell phone. I could then quickly make my way to the room, make little Michael comfortable again and return to our table.

We were a little nervous about the setup, as we knew MANY things could go wrong with technology. Well (as expected from MAC) nothing went wrong with the two MAC's. We stayed at the hotel for seven days, and every night we had our children, thousands of kilometers away, baby sitting their little brother. One evening I even found the children entertaining Michael on the screen after he awoke, and they even managed to stop him from crying!

God is SO creative!

FUN IN THE SUN!

I remember when Christo, just after we got word that we won the Mauritius holiday, brought home brochures of Mauritius.  Wow! The clear, blue water was almost to good to be true.  Was it really happening that I was on my way to such an exotic place?

Our airplane landed the Friday night and we couldn’t see anything. What great anticipation when Michael woke me, early Saturday morning.  I couldn’t open the curtains and glass doors quick enough and what a site was awaiting me!

What I saw and experienced during that 7 days was more than what the brochures promised an Island holiday at Mauritius would be!

We enjoyed hours in the sun!

Walked on the beach in the shallow blue water.

Swam in the lukewarm, crystal blue water!

Played with Michael in the water!  We didn’t expect that a baby of only 3months would enjoy the water so much.  But then, the sea at the southern point of Africa is not nearly warm enough to take a baby for a swim! 

When we didn’t swim in the sea, we swam in the huge, round, swallow pool in front of our hotel room!

When some of us became too tired of all the swimming and playing in the sun, we could just fall asleep next to the blue sea, in the shade of a palm tree...

DON”T FORGET THE FOOD!

Christo could enjoy espresso’s as often as he liked and I...

enjoyed numerous kinds of refreshing, ice cold, fruit and coconut cocktails!

The main restaurant served buffets with every meal, the evening buffets were a rotation of different countries, with the Italian food being the highlight, for Christo and me! 

With every countries’ buffet the decorations were different and a delight to the eye.

Coloured rice, with candles for the Indian buffet.

My dear friend, Petra in New Zealand, this picture has been taken specially for you! Unfortunately the inscription isn’t big enough - it reads New Zealand Butter!

At the beach restaurant we could order from a menu and one afternoon I had the most delicious tuna, vegetables and rice, with a Virgin colada!

PRECIOUS TIME TOGETHER

During our time in Mauritius, neither Christo nor I had the longing to drive along the island or do shopping.  We only wanted to be in each others company and enjoy the blessing of being together on an island! 

The past three months where very stressful and tiring on us.  We had our new baby, with new dynamics in the house and we moved our health shop, with Christo working long hours to accomplish it and lot of uncertainties. 

Even when we did manage to sit together for a coffee, we seldom could finish a sentence without being interrupted by a very important request, a discipline issue or mind blowing idea from one of our children.

I was afraid it would take us the whole vacation to find our way back to each others hearts, leaving us no time to just be together in peace and understanding!

I guess building a marriage on the right foundation makes all the difference. Knowing the God who put us together, never changed and while we stay close to Him, we will always be close to each other, even if we ‘feel worlds apart at times!’  From the moment we got onto the airplane in Cape Town, our hearts and minds connect and we had the most enriching time together. 

Both of us rediscovered the person we fell in love with and was pleasantly surprised to realize that we were still in love, because of everything we went through on a daily basis.  We both had matured through being the parents of our many children and making a living to provide for all.  If it wasn’t for our children and hard work, we would be shallow and immature and we most probably wouldn’t have had the enriched relationship we’re sharing right now!

And again we knew, God knows best and His way is the only way! 

With full ‘love tanks’ we could return to our busy schedule and be certain that we are one, even more so through the difficult times. Together we will change the world for good!

GOD LOVES TO ANSWERS PRAYER

The one thing that stands out about our Mauritius vacation is God’s amazing way of answering prayer.  For at least a year I was asking God to take control over the situation - His will and not mine! This made me remember a quote:

“Don’t bring God to your problem, take your problem to God.”

That was exactly what we did, and He provided in every possible way, above anything we could have asked, planned or imagined!

Thank you dear God!

Preparing for the Miracle

CHANGING PEOPLE’S LIVES!

It was during our weekly coffee date in February 2009, when Christo broke the news! One of our suppliers of whom we are the Franchisee in the Northern suburbs of the Cape Peninsula -  was running a competition for the ‘Franchisee of the year’. The Franchisee of the year would be chosen not only on sales but also on the testimonies of life change in the people who benefitted from using their products!  And the price? A holiday to Mauritius! 

I remember looking at him and saying: “Mauritius here we come!” and promise to diligently pray that God would give him all the wisdom and insight to help every client the Lord send into our shop!

At Eirene Health Shop we have state of the art products, and it is daily changing people's quality of life. Thus it wasn't difficult to pray that God would send more people for blood analysis and favour Christo to help seriously ill people. 

Christo has a passion to teach people to take responsibility for and take care of their bodies themselves. 

Live Blood Analysis is our main tool in helping people to do so. We believe God appointed us to redirect people to treat their bodies as the temple of God, to stop stuffing it with bad food and chemical medicines and help them recognise heathy food and using God's natural medicine to treat it.  So often Christians’ bodies are in a terrible state when they reach the age of 40 to 50 years (heart diseases, diabetes, using anti-depression drugs, cancer etc). This is supposed to be the peak of their ministry, but due to their bad physical state they are then not able to fulfill their God given calling!

It was soon evident that God was answering my prayers. Christo was sending in amazing testimonies. But as soon as I realized Mauritius was actually in reach, I had to change my prayer. We wanted to change peoples live, but God must please keep us from being the Franchisee of the year! There was no way I could go on a holiday to Mauritius and leave my seven precious children at home  -oldest 15years old and youngest a mere 15 months old!  On top of it, I was pregnant again and we would have a newborn baby by the time the Franchisee of the year had to claim their prize.

Throughout the year, Christo stayed at the top of the franchisee list and I was on a roller coaster of emotions. I desperately longed for the opportunity to win the holiday in Mauritius, but what about my children? 

Daniel was still very small, I would have a newborn baby and we didn't know anyone who would be able to take care of 7 children for a week.

During December we discussed it with the older children and I admitted to them that we would not be able to accept it. They where very upset and insisted that we must take it if our health shop won! They even started to make suggestions of what could work.

TWO FIRST PRICES ON ONE DAY

On the 29th of January we not only became the proud parents of a healthy sixth son and eight child, we also received an e-mail announcing Christo as The Franchisee for 2009!  Clearly God wanted to bless us more than we could think or imagine and allowed us to win the holiday to Mauritius, 

but I had no idea as to how it would be possible to pull it off.  So, I diligently started praying again, asking the Lord to show us exactly how it would be possible to leave our children for seven days, and go on a Mauritius holiday with an almost newborn baby!

GOD SEND PEOPLE LOOKING AFTER OUR CHILDREN

We preferred that the children all stayed together and in their familiar environment.  It would be far to unsettling for them to be moved to someone else’s home, and the older children had extramural activities to attend, while we would be away. 

The older children preferred that we only get someone to stay with them during night times.  They knew the daily routines of the little ones and only needed help with supper, putting the little ones to bed and be there during the night. 

It had to be someone who didn’t have a family of her own and for whom it would not be too much of a sacrifice to come and sleep in our house. This was a tough call and I couldn’t think of anyone who would fit the above description!

Only 3 weeks after we got the e-mail, I ran into the mother of a young woman who babysat our children three years ago, after which she committed herself to a year of missionary work to young adults in the Silver Ring Thing program. 

She was now a working lady and would get married in December.  While I was talking to her mother, I heard the soft voice of the Lord - “She is the one you are looking for.” I almost loudly shouted out with joy! I called her the moment I arrived home. She was her bubbling self and full of excitement. 

She agreed to take care of the children after working hours. 


With great anticipation the arrangements for our holiday started, but a part of me just couldn’t be totally at peace.  Would my children really be okay during the day?  Would the older children be able to handle difficult situations with their siblings all day long, without the help and strong hand of an adult? 

Then two weeks before we would leave, the Lord sent more people across our way who offered to keep an eye on the children.  A very special friend of Christo, who is in full time ministry, offered that either he or his wife would visit the children every morning, check on them and play with the little ones. 

A home school friend ‘gave’ us her 13year old daughter (this mother has little ones and her daughter is her right hand during the day!) to come help my older children with their younger siblings.  They also drove every day of the weekend and alternative days during the week (once got stuck in traffic for an hour, due to rain) 50 km, from Fish Hoek to come and check/play with the children!

Our neighbours promised to check on them every morning and the grandparents, 

my sister-in-law and another friend took turns to take CJ and Josua to horse riding lessons and Heidi-Mari and Danika to ballet classes.

WORKED OUT DAILY ROUTINES, -CHORES AND A MENU

The few weeks before we left, I prepared extra meals alongside our supper and put it in the freezer.  I worked out a detailed menu, telling them exactly what they must have for breakfast, lunch and supper, when to take frozen meals out of the freezer, when to put a bread in the bread machine and when to do laundry. 

I also worked out a detailed daily routine for every day.  Giving every child specific chores for the day and made use of the buddy system, assigning an older child to a younger sibling to take care of during craft projects, mealtimes and bath times.

The children obviously didn’t stay on these routines 100%, but it guided them through the day. It helped them to feed the little ones nutritious meals, like they are used to and keep the little ones in their sleeping pattern.

PRAYING FOR OUR CHILDREN’S SAFETY

The week before we left, we almost thought our holiday was doomed.  I got in contact with measles, while being out the morning and only realized it hours later, after I got home and kissed and hugged my children.  

We could only depend on the Lord for our family’s safety and protection and decided to use communion every evening, for the next 7 nights during supper - calling on the Lord for His divine healing.  It was an awesome time with every supper and strengthened our faith to trust the Lord with our children’s and our own health and safety while separated.  

Needless to say, nobody got seriously hurt or ill while we were away.

COMPASSION AND UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN OUR CHILDREN

While we were away we were pleasantly surprised by the sacrifices the older children went through for their younger siblings.

Heidi-Mari was responsible for little Daniel (21 months old at that stage).  The weeks before we left, we deliberately simulated situations during which she would came to his rescue and strengthen the already strong relationship between them, so he would experience as little as possible insecurity, while we are away.

Daniel isn’t a good sleeper at night and he was even worse while we were away, but still Heidi-Mari stayed patient and understanding and took care of her baby brother (he is only a bigger baby) every night, despite her deprived sleep. 

Every night she put him in the African Carrier and rocked him asleep! 

The African Carrier is 99% the same as the Ergo. 

CJ again was taking on the over all responsibility of looking out for his siblings.  We knew Danika would loose a baby tooth, while we were away.  Only two days after we left, the tooth was painfully loose.  

Big brother CJ, remembered how Dad did it, and with little formalities pulled her tooth.  

The special part was when he took into consideration his little sister’s heart and on his own initiative, made sure the Tooth Fairy paid her a visit...

After returning from Mauritius, I observed a stronger union between my children.  Josua especially used his ability to entertain his younger siblings and became more confident in himself.

In the next posting I will share Experiencing the Miracle.

Do You Celebrate Life or Death on Mothersday?

This mothersday, ironically falls on the 50 year celebration of the contraceptive pill. How shocked I was when I read all the 'amazing attributes' of the pill. 

Over the past few years I'm intrigued by the bad attitude and sad emotional state of women. Christo and I often debates why women become more and more bitter and depressed, the older they get.

A few months ago I ran into a woman whom we've met about 10 years ago while presenting a marriage enriching seminar. We met a few times over the past years during which she got divorced and remarried. The last time we met, was a few weeks before Michael's birth.  Within minutes after we said our hello's, her eyes became damped with unshed tears as she shared her deep desire to have another baby. But her new husband refused to have a baby.   She's in her late thirties and her children is moving into their teenage years now.  The reason she wanted another baby, was to feel needed again! Her children is growing up and her one daughter moved in with her dad, who also remarried and since had a new baby. She felt she didn't have purpose anymore, although she has a successful career and a new husband who deeply love her and who is at the peak of his career.    

What this woman is experiencing isn't an isolated incident. Since I have a baby every 18 months I constantly hear women's desires, similar to this woman.  The longing to have a baby again!  

But often they don’t see a way to having another baby. It is a universal desire - something God has put inside every women - the desire to have and hold babies!

This brings me to the 'celebration' of the contraceptive pill! The above story and stories of many more women I know, receives e-mails from and talk to, just confirm that over the last 50 years the contraceptive pill has left behind a blood trail of death and destruction. Not only is it killing thousands of babies every year through it's abortion effect, it also kills women in the essence of their creation! 

Woman are created to be Life-givers! We are created in the image of God as nurturers. But the feminist movement of the 1960's has come to make woman believe they've been freed by the contraceptive pill to become whatever they want to and what their sisters before them, could not. Over the past 50 years, due to the contraceptive pill, women have had control over their fertility and very often against their deepest desire prevented pregnancy. They lived the ‘Feminist dream’, leaving them bitter and unfulfilled!

On Thursday night Christo showed me an article on Health24. According to this article "the contraceptive pill gave women the freedom to choose when to have children and how many to have, and those simple choices profoundly changed their lives. Women could now follow a career, have advanced degrees, have equalities in the workplace, in the family, in education, in the sexual relationship itself and women have the legal right to choose to be a mom!”

But if it was true that the contraceptive pill gave women so much more freedom, why are these women so bitter and depressed and 'unhappy'!  I have yet to meet a mother of six or more children who is bitter, depressed and 'unhappy'.  These mothers flourish! They go through even more hardships than their sisters with one or two children. They work 24 hours a day, taking care of and nourishing their many little children, at night they fall exhausted into bed next to their beloved. Still, there is something else when you look into their eyes.  There is life! These mothers are living life, experiencing life, enjoying life!

Reminding me of 1 Tim 2:15

“Notwithstanding she shall be saved in childbearing, if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.”

According to the article “Beyond women dying in childbirth, the physical health of a woman who has two, three, four children as opposed to eight, nine, 10 kids - her physical health throughout her entire life is going to be much better as a result of being able to control her fertility," I would like to see the scientific proof for such a grossly, inaccurate assumption!  Except for God’s Word that says we will be preserved through embracing motherhood and the bearing of children, a woman’s body is created for this task and her womanly functions undergoes atrophy when they are no longer used, thus our physical health decrease tremendously when we ‘control our fertility’!

I like to quote some ideas from Nancy Campbell’s article in Above Rubies #77 - Preserved through Motherhood:

Preserved Physically:

“Ovarian cancer is on the increase today.  One of the reasons is that women are cutting off childbearing.  Pregnancy and breastfeeding provide a crucial resting period for the ovaries.  Because of limiting their families, most women today are ovulating about 450 times during their life time instead of only about 150 times.”  Since I, Linnie, have given my fertility to the Lord in June 2004, I’ve only ovulated 6 times!  That is 6 times in comparison with more or less 75 times if I haven’t had babies over the past 6 years. An article called, Timing of Pregnancy and the Risk of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer, states: “The accumulated evidence from epidemiological studies suggests that the risk of epithelial cancer of the ovary is strongly related to the number of ovulations throughout a woman’s reproductive life.”  Read more in Above Rubies #77 on the case studies on ovarian cancer and childbearing.

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in women.  With every menstrual cycle, cells in the breast grow and divide and therefore have the possibility of accumulating mutations which could lead to breast cancer.  Therefore, the longer a mother breastfeeds, the less likelihood of breast cancer.   

The level of Estriol, a protective estrogen hormone, is 1,000 times higher during pregnancy to protect the mother and developing baby.  This wonderful pregnancy hormone not only decrease the incidence of breast cancer with 58%, but also has anti-aging properties - just another proof of God’s way is always the best way - we are preserved through motherhood.

Oxytocin and Prolactin are hormones produced in the pregnant and nursing mother.  Oxytocin is a ‘calming’ hormone.  When the mother puts the baby to the breast and the milk lets down, she experiences a calming feeling that comes over her.  Often she will fall to sleep on the job!  I know of very few other jobs in the market place that have that effect on women - quite the contrary!  Prolactin also has a calming and sedating affect upon the mother.  This hormone binds the mother to the baby and cases her to be very motherly and protective.  I, Linnie, experience being a ‘better’, more loving mother with every new baby!

Here are just a few more plusses you receive from progesterone which jumps up 100 times when you are pregnant.  Not only does it guard you from breast cancer, but it protects you from cardiac-related health problems and also promotes the function and maintenance of the brain.  Progesterone helps alleviate anxiety and depression by increasing your production of GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid), the neurotransmitter that causes you to feel calm and relaxed.  GABA is often called the ‘sleep inducer’!  I, Linnie, can testify for this too. I never mind for being awake so often with a new baby, I fall asleep very easily again, because of this hormone! 

If all this is not enough, progesterone also improves the immune system, builds bones, improves hearing, protect from seizures and decreases allergies, irritable bowel syndrome, interstitial cystitis and water retention.

Preserved Emotionally:

As we have already learned, God gives calming hormones to nursing mothers that help her stress levels - no need for Prozac and all its terrible side-effects!

Having children delivers us from a self-centered life!  Before we have children, we have time to dote on ourselves.  We are prone to self-pity and selfishness but children take our mind off of ourselves as we minister to their needs.  We are much better, emotionally, when we care for others and especially for babies and little ones!

We can rejoice that motherhood deliver us from emotional weakness.  For the sake of children we must not give into emotional stress.  We have to be strong and take courage, exercising self-control and a disciplined life.  Again I, Linnie, can testify to this truth!  I don’t have time to indulge in emotional weakness and depression.  Looking into the innocent face of my baby or hearing my toddlers play and laugh together is the best medicine for feeling down!

We come back again to the eternal law that Jesus gave, “Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.” (Luke 17:33)

Preserved Spiritually:

Due to the contraceptive pill, thousands of women have been lured from the home to “follow a career, have advanced degrees, have equalities in the workplace”.  Women have been deceived to think that childbearing is an inferior task when all along it is the greatest mission given to them. Women came to believe they can only find status in doing what a man does, whereas a woman doesn’t have to do what a man does to find her worth.  She finds her worth in who God created her to be - a Woman!  She has been given the wondrous gift to conceive life, to nurture it in her womb and to nourish, mother and train this life!  

How deceived has our generation become, to believe that we can celebrate motherhood and the pill, together! To believe woman have the legal right to choose to be a mom?

May the Lord have mercy on us and bring us back to His will for Mothers.  May we come to our senses and acknowledge Him as the Life-giver, giving back to Him the right to choose for us whether we are a mother and of how many!

I'm Back Again!

I was so touched by everyone’s e-mails of concerns that everything was all right at the Lues household, since I didn’t do a posting for two weeks!  Thank you for your prayers!

Yes, everything is fine in the Lues-household. Coming back to normality after two very interesting weeks!  Christo, Michael and I have just arrived back from an amazing 7 days in Mauritius! 

In January, Christo was chosen as the Franchisee of the Year for Sevenpointfive and we won a holiday in Mauritius.  After hours of prayer and planning we pulled it off and God blessed my husband and me (and little Michael too) more than I could ever have imagined!

This week in Mauritius was not only a week in which my husband and I could talk and talk for hours, 

enjoy the island of love, 

and have excellent food (which I didn’t need to prepare myself - what a blessing!), 

but a testimony of God’s love and faithfulness.  

I cannot wait to share it with you, so it can be an encouragement for you too, of the greatness of the God we serve! 

But, for now I’m going to wrap my beautiful children in love and enjoy upcoming Mothersday!

This morning - I'm somewhere between my children and the blankets!

Blessed Mothersday to you all!