Christmas Pictures!
Hello everyone! Oh it's such a blessing to be able to spend time with family. And this year was so special for me and matt as well as his parents as we were able to spend Christmas in the US! There are not enough words to describe the joy that we all felt. God has been so good to us this year and more so for the next year! He will always be good and faithful. Matt and I are expecting a lot of great things to happen in 2007. It has always been a declaration for us as we enter into the next season of our lives.
We had promised to post pictures so here they are! Enjoy!
Matt and I in the plane before landing in Portland.
At the airport with mom. She brought warm clothes for us to wear. It's good to be in America!
Yes, that's me! By the tree! I love gifts!
By the fireplace.. now, that's something you don't see in the Philippines everyday! Hahaha. Feeling right at home in Roseburg. I just flowed right in just like flowing in the Spirit!
Gifts already?! How blessed can you get?? Matt and I just being cozy holding up one of our many, many, many, many gifts!
Look at that happy face! Mom and dad let us open "some" of our gifts that night.
Two generations of Coils...
Greetings from Roseburg!
Matt and I arrived in Portland, Oregon on December 24th. We flew from Manila to Tokyo for 3 hours, had a 2-hour layover and then flew from Tokyo to Portland for 8 hours. The plane ride wasn't that bad although that was my first long flight overseas. Mom picked us up at the airport and we drove for 3 hours to Roseburg.
It is such a blessing to be able to spend Christmas with family and now also New Year's! It was really a special time for us and for Matt's parents as well. God is so good! I know I keep saying that but that is really who God is regardless of the circumstances around.
Everything with my immigrant visa worked out in God's appointed time. I told Matt that it was a sweet victory for us because it was all in God's time. It was not my time nor Matt's time but it was KAIROS - God's appointed time! In every test comes a testimony! And in everything, He gets all the glory as all glory and honor really belongs to Him alone.
That's why as you spend time with your family and friends know this --- JESUS is the reason for this season! Don't forget to thank Him for all that He is and will be in your life. Don't focus too much on what you have or don't have, what the other person say or did not say or if you were offended by someone. Know what matters to you most, know that there is a bigger picture and Jesus is the superstar.
Anyway, we haven't put any pictures yet but there will be some soon! We pray that you enjoy your time with family and friends - people who are important to you!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Matt and Lindsay Coil
More Manila Pictures
Hey everybody! Before we leave for the US tomorrow, we just want to share some of the pictures we took during our Manila trip. Matt and I went to Rizal Park and hanged out at Manila Bay. It was great! It was fun for me to actually be on the spot where our national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal was killed and some other martyrs of our country during the Spanish time. I taught an overview of Philippine History in Spirit Life Bible College and have ever more realized and appreciated the heroism of our patriots.
Even though Manila is a very very busy city, it lies here some historical events. Also, Matt and I were able to spend some time with King Louie..
Hope you enjoy the pictures!
Flying to the US!
Whoohoo! I got my immigrant visa last friday. I picked it up at the US Embassy in Manila at 9:30am and then headed to a counseling at 10am that I had to attend as a requirement for me to be able to go out of the country.
Sooooo, Matt and I are flying to the US on December 24th and will be spending Christmas in Roseburg! Yey!
It has been a wild ride for us being in Manila. But God is just too much! He is not enough but more than enough! He is too much! Whatever the circumstances may be.. He is in control.
There is always more.. As Christians we live by faith and that is we must believe so that we will see. This is a word for next year - "Anything can happen in 2007!"
SM Mall of Asia
Matt and I went to SM Mall of Asia. We figured since we are already in Manila, we wanted to check it out. It has an ice skating rink which is really cool and an IMAX Theater that only costs about 4-6 dollars. Whoohoo! The mall has a loooot of stores and goodies that are not found in Davao so it's really nice to try different things and see different stuff. One thing for sure though - the prices are cheaper in Davao and people are more friendly there! Sigh I miss Davao. Anyway, I'll be in the states soon and am very very excited! I'll be seeing Davao again - in the appointed time!
Matt has the camera so he was the one taking pictures and I posed for him.
Immigrant Visa Approved!
Yey! I had my interview this morning and they approved me! Praise God! I was done by 9am. There were about 400 applicants earlier. It was all so fast and quick for me as some people spend a day there. God is so good! I had favor even for the initial interview where I was interviewed by a Filipino. I had all my requirements right and I praise God for the wisdom to do everything!
And the best thing was that instead of having the visa delivered to me at an address here in Manila, they proposed to have me pick up the visa instead! They don't usually do that. So instead of me waiting for 7 days to 2 weeks (that's what some approved immgrant visa holders told me the time they had to wait), the Immigrant Visa Unit of US Embassy will give me a call when the visa is ready which is tomorrow or thursday! Whew! God is so good! He blows me away all the time! I love it when the Lord does that. He does care.
So for all my family and friends in the US - here we come! We will be able to spend Christmas with Mom and Dad Coil after all! God is so good! I can't keep my mouth shut! This is another testimony entry!
For all of you who have been praying for us, thank you so much! Matt and I are looking forward to having a white Christmas! It will be my first time! Yey!
Dumaguete..
Matt and I went to visit my dad and my relatives in Dumaguete from the 14th til the 18th. We had fun! I was able to see my dad, my siblings, my uncle (who was our chef during our visit. yumyum!), my aunt (my dad's sister) and my cousins! Oh it was a nice visit.
Me sitting at the porch of my dad's unfinished house.
Matt sitting on one of my dad's small bikes. This is one of the common transportation there where even pregnant women drive. So cool.
Us with my sister Corai and my petite and beautiful grandma! She is 82 years old and still runs a small store. She's also the treasurer of the senior citizens' group in their place. Wow. I found out that there is no such thing as retirement in my family. Hahaha.
Me at Dumaguete Boulevard.. Matt said it reminded him of Northern California. We had a beautiful breeze that day. Matt loved it!
Matt being himself! Hahaha. This is at a local park.. Some of the words engraved there are in Spanish as we had been under the Spaniards for over 333 years.
An old bell tower also in downtown Dumaguete. Very interesting.
My sister's street dancing competition
No that's not a fairy. It's my sister Corai in her street dancing costume. They had street dancing in Dumaguete. She was one of the four main dancers in front. I guess she takes after her sister (me!). It was fun watching her. She looks so cute. They grow up so fast! Hahaha. Matt and I enjoyed the different groups that performed that night. She had to be lifted up on a bamboo! See the pictures below and enjoy..
Medical Exam
Hi everyone! We're in Manila right now. I just had my medical exam at St. Luke's Extension Clinic. It went really smooth. Matt and I were there around 5am (yes 5am) and I got #19 as my priority number. Yes, there were 18 applicants who were earlier than me plus the people with them.
It was a very nice clinic. More than what I expected it to be. It has aircon (really strong!) and an active staff. I think they have 6 floors plus parking. And they are devoted to conducting medical exams for immigrant and nonimmigrant applicants for US (which has the most number), Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Usually it takes a whole day (if you arrive late) or even more than that to accomplish the medical exam especially if you haven't had the required vaccinations yet. I was done around 10am and didn't have to have any vaccinations because I already did mine months before and I took my vaccination records with me. Praise God. I just need to come back tomorrow to get my results.
I had to do an x-ray, blood and urine test, vital signs, eye test, immunization interview and physical exam where you "unrobe" everything because the doctor will check everything. I had a female doctor so no worries plus when I had my surgery done for my right breast I had a male surgeon, a male anesthesiologist and male nurses. I was on anesthesia so I didn't remember anything from the operation.
It's so cool also as I went to wait for the physical exam part, I got priority #5 and assigned to room #7! That's just an FYI for those who know that 5 & 7 are significant numbers for us. The number 5 means "grace" and number 7 is God's number. God is with us and His grace is sufficient for us! Amen.
My interview is on the 19th so please keep us in your prayers. Also we will be visiting my dad and my family in Dumaguete on the 14th. We will be back in Manila on the 18th for my interview.
Miracle Report from the Coils
Miracles do happen..
Praise God for He is worthy to be praised!
So here is the scoop. Two Wednesdays ago we took Lindsay in to have her breast examined. The Doctor examined the right side and found a lump and said it had to be removed. So the next day on Thursday she had Surgery to have it removed (it was a little bigger than a golf ball) and it went very well although the expenses for the surgery was a very large unexpected amount for us that we did not have at that time. We also had the lump checked which takes a week to see if it was cancerous or not. On top of that the Surgeon told us that he had checked the left breast and had found another one that needed to be removed. Wow that was a one two three for us.
It was hard seeing Lindsay go through that surgery let alone to have another one done. The Doctor told us to come back on Monday to schedule the second surgery. So we did and we scheduled it for Tuesday afternoon. Monday and Tuesday I had been fasting and praying for her healing and God had dropped a word in my heart that she was healed. I was very excited so I told her and then I checked her left breast but still felt something but we believed any way.
Tuesday afternoon we went to the hospital to check into the ER to prepare her for the surgery which is the procedure but we were so persistent to have her checked one more time before she goes in because we knew God had healed her. So after a while and a lot of funny looks from hospital staff we were able to have the Doctor check her breast for the lump one more time... As he was checking her he was giving puzzled looks then he used two hands to check her but WALA! (in their language means
NOTHING!) He could not find any thing! We had a big smile on our faces and some squeaks came out of Lindsay not just for the fact that it was gone but that also she did not have to go through surgery again. PRAISE GOD! THAT IS OUR GOD!
The doctor said to come back Friday after noon so he could do a final check to make sure and give us the report from the biopsy on the other lump that was taken out. So on Friday we had Lindsay checked again and... WALA again! He could not find anything and the lump that was taken out from her right breast was just a
Benign tumor and was not Cancerous! Praise God again and again! On top of that our home church took an offering to help with the expenses of the surgery and extra to help with all the other many miscellaneous amounts. Praise God again and again and again!
Thank you all so much for your prayers! Prayer is powerful. Also thank you GVCA for all your love and support. To God be the Glory!
God bless you..
Much love,
Matt and Lindsay Coil
Two generations of Coils...
