Saturday, July 23, 2011

Catching Up

So sorry for the delay.  Life has been more busy than usual.

Kid's first day of class at CIT
The first week of June we started our classes at the Center for Intercultural Training.  Both Jamie and I and the kids were in class for seven hours a day learning about ourselves, our mission field, and how to communicate and minister the gospel cross-culturally.  God really opened our eyes to see ourselves for who we are and Him for Who He is.  He taught us a lot about the diverse cultures He created and how we catch a broader glimpse of His character and personality through them.  We learned a lot of do's and dont's and now have a lot to think about and consider.  We still have much to learn!  We are praying for the opportunity to return to CIT in October to attend their Dynamic Teams classes.


We're thankful for the relationships we were able to build with other missionaries from around the world.  We learned so much from them and cherish the five weeks we had to become a part of each other's families and share what God is doing in our lives.  God changed us through our relationships with you.

Our future "home sweet home"
God provided the truck and trailer for us to live in once the house sells.  What a blessing.  The paper work has been a bear, but He's working it all out.

The day we finished with CIT Jamie headed up to West Virginia with the truck and trailer.  He had to pick up the teens from our church and take them to camp in Florida.  My sister came up to N.C. to pick me and the kids up and take us to her house in Jacksonville, Fla.  Then she drove the kids and me to the camp to meet Jamie and the teens and spend a few special days with us there at camp.

The living room of our villa at camp
Camp was crazy.  There were goof ups with the housing so instead of staying in a tiny camper we were able to stay in a villa for the same price.  Score!  The schedules were not synchronized so we were always missing the teens and late picking up the kids.  It was a mess.  But through it all one of the teens accepted Jesus Christ as her personal Savior.  The rest of the kids grew spiritually and made life changing decisions.  Please pray for all of them that they would continue to grow and live out the decisions they made at camp.

Lorelei's new big girl bike!
Now we are finally home again after six weeks of travels.  A lot has changed in the last six weeks.  We have a new perspective on missions and ministry.  We've grown greatly in our view of God.  We have a new vehicle and a new future "home".  Lorelei learned how to ride her bike without training wheels, swim on top of and under the water.  Jorja and Warrick learned how to go under water and like it.  God provided a second form of transportation.  We've gained life changing relationships.  The list could go on and on, but those are the biggies.

Please continue to pray that our house sells.  We've had many people interested in either land contracts or renting, but not many wanting to buy.  Pray that God would bring the prefect man in to fill Jamie's position at Bethel.  The church is now starting the procedures of a search.  Please pray that I will be able to keep this house clean and "showable" with three small children living inside.  Pray also that Jamie would be able to continue to get his school work done on time and keep his GPA up.

We so appreciate all the love, support, and prayers offered on our behalf.  We don't take any of it for granted.