2nd Opinion

I got my second opinion today. Dr. Casad was great- really personable and helpful. She recommended that I go see a fertility specialist before we make any more decisions. So I have an appointment with Dr. Wilson on September 24th.
I am really pleased that she recommended we do this, instead of just going ahead with the surgery. Please continue to pray for us as we see another doctor, getting another opinion. Pray that we will have good advice, wisdom, and HEALING!

Catching up on August...

SCHOOL
We've been back to school for over a month now! We've completed Session 1 where we studied Sociolinguistics. It was a great class with lots of group and team work involved. Our class for Session 2 extends through Session 3 as well. It's called Second Language and Culture Acquistion. In this class, we are learning very practical skills about how to learn a language and how to teach someone to teach you their language. We are also reading and discussing great articles on culture acquistion. We have the opportunity to practice these skills while we are studying MANDARIN! We were a little nervous at first, but it's going well. We really enjoy our language tutor. Wish us luck! And don't forget to pray for our skills in tonal languages to increase!

SURGERY

It's possible that Elizabeth (Renee) will have to have another surgery coming up soon. Please keep us in your prayers as we get a second opinion and make decisions in the upcoming weeks. If you want to know more about it, just get in touch with us.

FUN

We had a great time entertaining John's brother and his wife (Brian and Jennifer) and their daughter (Allison) for a week in August. Our friend Jake was also able to come at the same time for a few days. We all packed into the mobile home and had a blast! Laura, John's sister, and her son, Alex, came up from Houston. They stayed with John's mom, Karen. And of course Sara, John's other sister who lives near us in Dallas, was there too. We played games, cooked meals, and just enjoyed being together. Because Brian's in the Air Force, we don't always get to see those Roetteles as much as we'd like. We are so thankful God gave us all that time together!

Here's cute Allison!

The whole gang!

We also a had few days visit from our good friends the Zechiels. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives.

The Zechiels and the Roetteles

Back to School

Hi everyone! Hope you had a great summer!
Ours is ending this week as we start classes again on July 23rd. Keep us in your prayers!

Changed Plans

Hi everyone, this is the female half of the Roetteles writing to let you know that our travel plans changed. We found out that I am going to have to have surgery on June 20th. It's a common procedure, out patient surgery, but there are a few unknowns, so we would appreciate your prayers. I would really appreciate them...having never even been admitted to the hospital before. Thankfully, I have a husband who worked in outpatient surgery to keep me calm! I am so glad to know that I have all of you lifting me up.
If you want to know more, just email me or call:
er.roettele@gmail.com
elizabeth_roettele@sil.org
918-857-5202

New tentative schedule:
June 10-15 Ohio
June 16-22 Dallas
June 23-July 5 At some point in this two week block we plan to be in Tulsa, OK.
July 5--- Dallas
July 23 Classes begin!

Here's a cute picture of my niece. Isn't she a doll?

Summer Time...Almost!

We’re about to finish up our first semester at GIAL in Dallas. We’ve just got about two weeks left before our seven week summer break. Sessions 1-3 were great, and we studied Grammar, Phonetics, and Phonology. During session 4, we’ve been studying cultural anthropology. We are learning how to define culture, to be aware of cultural themes, culture shock, and many practical techniques that will be so valuable when we are living in a different culture. Our favorite hands-on assignment has been our cultural “immersion” project. We’ve been visiting a church whose members are from Kerala, India. It has been so good to worship with them in their services and enjoy food and fellowship in their homes. At the same time, we get a glimpse of their language, Malayalam, and their culture.

Our tentative summer travel schedule:
June 6-10th Oklahoma
June 10-15th Ohio
June 16-20th Illinois
June 20th-23rd Indiana
June 23-July 5th Oklahoma
July 5th—Back to Texas!

We’d love to see you while we travel! Give us a call or an email to get in touch:

John’s info: 918-406-6721
john_roettele@sil.org

Elizabeth’s info: 918-857-5202
elizabeth_roettele@sil.org

We’ve really enjoyed this semester of studying, learning, and growing. We’ve also had a lot of fun! Here are just a few photos…

Baby shower for Elizabeth’s sister, Sarah















A visit from Sarah & Lindsey Dubberly















Planting a garden















Hiking with Stefanie & Jimmy Nance















Meeting Emilie Grace Skinner



















Enjoying a visit from the Briscoe family

It’s official!

We’re on our way to Dallas! This week we’ll be organizing, packing, and moving to our new home in Dallas, Texas to begin classes at the Graduate Institute of Applied Linguistics.

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. Here are some ways you can pray for us:

EMOTIONS: We are excited, thrilled, nervous, and sad all at the same time! Both of us have spent most of our lives in Jenks, Oklahoma. Although we’ll be joining John’s mom and sisters in the state of Texas, we’ll be moving away from his dad, as well as all of Elizabeth’s immediate family and grandparents. We are looking forward to seeing friends in the Dallas area, but as you can imagine, we will be missing our good friends in Oklahoma at the same time. Pray that we will be joyful in the Lord. Pray that we will be able to maintain good communication with everyone we will be moving away from. Please pray that we’ll make good friends among our fellow students soon.

CLASSES: We will be taking a full load of graduate level courses in the area of applied linguistics. Classes begin January 9^th. Please pray for diligence in our studies, ability to retain all that we learn, and good grades. We are eager to learn and really desire to honor the Lord by doing WELL in school.

FINANCES: We are moving out in faith, trusting the Lord’s leading that it is His time for us to begin our training. In addition to living costs, we are also responsible to pay for our tuition, books, and fees at school. We are blessed to see His hand of provision for us DAILY. The stories we could tell you… just ask! He reminds us all the time of His knowledge of our needs by providing in ways we could never think of. Please pray that our financial partnerships would continue to grow. Please pray that the Lord would guide us in making wise financial decisions. Praise Him for His faithfulness and pray for His continued blessing on our lives.

SPIRITUAL LIFE: We are facing busy, challenging months. Please pray for our continued personal times studying the Bible and in prayer. Please ask the Lord to help us grow in Him as a couple. Pray for our marriage- that it continues to grow stronger. Pray that He will teach us NOW how to be a family that worships Him together. Please pray that we will find a solid, Bible-teaching church with a heart for missions at home and around the world to be a part of and serve in while we are in Dallas. Ask for our protection on all fronts.

We are so thankful to be surrounded by your love, prayers, and encouragement. May you all have a Happy New Year!!

Blessings Despite Broken Bones

"Hey, honey! Guess where I am!"
(You've only been gone 45 minutes.) "Okay, where are you?"
"Minor Emergency... I think I dislocated my finger."
(Yeah right.) "Stop joking."

John wasn't joking. But he was wrong. The right-hand ring finger wasn't dislocated, it was broken. The minor emergency care physician gave him the name of a hand specialist to call on Monday morning. He needed to be sure the bone was set correctly and to determine if he surgery was in order. However, when he called the specialist, they told him they couldn't see him for about 2 weeks!
But God provided a way for John to see a doctor. Our Sunday school teacher's wife works for a hand specialist, and she was able to get John in on Monday morning. The doctor did a great job! John doesn't need surgery, and he's just in a small splint for about three weeks.
Thank God with us for getting John into the doctor quickly and that he doesn't need surgery! Please pray with us that his finger will heal quickly and be restored to full movement and use.
For those of you who are interested, check out these broken finger pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/er.roettele/JohnSFinger. Just copy and paste the link into your browser.