Mission to Athens

On Tuesday we flew to the UK for the first time ever! Seeing our friends from DTS, the Fishers, was a delightful breath of fresh air! Its been over 2 years since we finished our mission school together! We had a few hours of a layover in London and had a blast catching up with them and their daughter, Abi!

Leaving London we had a night flight into Athens, it took about an hour and a half before lift off for some issue they had with a cabin door not closing properly. Then finally after that 3.5 hour flight, we landed safely. Its 4:00am and find that there are no trains running not just because it was too early, they arent running all week! So, we must take 2 taxis to get to our apartment. We arrived to a very narrow, dark alley looking street with all our bags and manage to get in to find a small place on the 4^th floor that I arranged with AirBnB.com a month ago. I had the area scouted out, knew that it was more congested being closer to the city center. It was exactly what we wanted, to be with the people. Its cozy and has many small businesses around I found when searching for coffee. We like to frequent a place (grocer, coffee shop, burger house, etc.) that God shows us and connect deeper as He leads us. Being in the city, everywhere we go, we walk. No big deal! Because we brought our stroller for Banner! And with the big kids getting bigger, that part is getting easier!

Anyway, back to the apartment when we arrived...All the beds were dirty, we were pretty disgusted quite honestly. Everything else was clean. But we had to strip the sheets from all the beds, find clean linens and remake the beds. We were not happy and had pretty grumpy attitudes if I'm totally honest. Our expectations were a little high I suppose, and we were just total zombies from the 2 days of flights, travel and hardly any sleep and needed some shuteye, laying flat!

So now at 6:30 am we get settled down in bed, and what was only going to be a bit of sleep turned into all day sleep! I woke up at 2:15 in the afternoon! Welcome to jet lag! It took the kids a few hours to come to complete coherency, get ready and get out the door later to grab some food and then groceries. Its probably 7pm when we walk through the plaza that we didnt realize we were in at first, we thought we were starving! Then we find our favorite burger and gyro place, Goody's. After a good fill of yummy food,  And its dark by now...we step outside of Goody's take a few looks around to see where we can possibly find a store to grab some bread, cereal, milk, lunch items, etc...and just as I spot one and we head that way, we start to notice the people in the plaza/square...under the street lights, throughout the square, on the sidewalks and at every bench sat people...kids were running around kicking a ball, a woman nursing a baby sitting on the ground off to the side against a wall with 2 other small children playing around her, and by this time I'm about in tears... We get our groceries and head back a half mile or so away to our cozy little apartment for the night, where we know we will be able to feed our children when they are hungry, snuggle them in a warm and clean bed for every night while we get to stay here in Athens. Yet..so many dont have that comfort. And my complaints about dirty sheets seem so very petty. A while back, we were told about how the refugees were kicked out of the camps around the city, but did not know exactly where they were living now... its just a little sobering to see it with your own eyes...

We've been settling in to our place here and trying to shake our jet-lagged headaches, but....our hearts are broken tonight...seeing so many people without homes is wrecking us. Without a home and without hope is a sorry place to be. But we know God has had a plan in this move, this huge Exit from the Arab nations where they've fled from...maybe making it easier for them to be reached, and their hearts more ready for the gospel Truth.

Keep us in prayer, we want to be led by God to the right people to reach. We can't reach them all, please pray...We only have 10 weeks here and we want every day to count. 

 

READY, SET, RESTART!

Hey So its been awhile since posting here in this blog! My energy lately is put into our website and my husband's energy goes into vlogging on YouTube.com check out our channel here!
Check out our website here!
NOT to mention being busy with our homeschool journey and my husband, Israel's last mission trip, which was SOLO, to Belgrade, Serbia! Check out that trip here!
Single mom-hood was not all bad UNTIL the last weekend! PROPS to the SUPER mamas out there that do it more than me! 
I actually depend on my man more than most probably. As I don't have a lot of outside resources, or co-ops, play dates, etc. I honestly don't even go to the library~ (I'm ducking, if you just threw a book at my head!) No seriously, I found an app! Thriftbooks  I get super cheap books, free shipping and earn free books! I live like 20 miles from a town with a decent library! So this has been more beneficial for me! I read reviews online about books I hunt for my kids and once I find something I like, I search it on my Thriftbooks app.
AAAANND Just so you know I have no affiliate marketing going on yet on this blog or our videos! We just don't have the followers yet to make a difference I guess. We are actually learning about that stuff right now!

MEXICO SUMMER TRIP IN JULY....

*Planning and gearing up for our next family trip!*

We haven't been down since before Banner, our 4th child, was born! Many years have gone by... and friends are missed! And theres plenty we can do while down there! We hope for the means to take some food down to the village and encourage our friends in the Lord!

The church in the village celebrates their anniversary with a huge service and dinner, with several surrounding churches coming to join in! We are praying this is a huge outreach to unbelievers and also those discouraged in life. May the gospel be preached, the Word spoken the Holy Spirit free to move, and lives changed for eternity! AND most importantly God be glorified in all we partake in!

Thank you for your prayers friends! This summer is filling up already and we are excited to see what God has in store!

blessings mission friends, Les

Reality Check!

So, last post ...I said this was a lighter quarter...I'm not sure if I was wrong or every season just has its own hardships and challenges...

This past month everyone in our household has had some form of a tummy bug...and Nate may have had it twice...
Also, with our calendar that fills up, its hard to catch our breath! From staff meetings to conferences, now birthdays are coming around the corner, all good things! JUST. SO. BUSY. Am I being a good mom too? Are we failing at homeschooling while trying to juggle lots of different things? Are we going to master this season just in time for a change?

It just makes me look to the sky, where my help comes from, the Lord of heaven and earth! His grace is sufficient for me! And I will say of the Lord He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in Him will I place my trust!
When struggles come and hurdles seem to just get higher and higher, we must remember to look up!

If His plan for me is good and His word is a lamp unto my feet, I should not plan or look too too far down the path(or calendar!) to check on the future! For He holds it in His hands!

I must remind myself how faithful God has been to me, how around every corner and every mountain...He shows Himself to be who He said He would be. and in the words of that song...Its gonna be worth it! Because Jesus is worth it. every. single. day. And when we struggle with our kids, with our task at hand, with our marriage, with our finances, our future, being in God's "perfect" will, all these things add up to ...trust! He only asks us to trust, obey and rest. Why worry about tomorrow... He's got this!

Being Sustained...

What Lies Ahead for 2018...

January

Graciously, we have a lighter load this quarter. We are leading the Mission Focus for DTS and we only meet with the students on Friday mornings. But we will be available to them easily throughout the week since we live on base with them here. We have plans to share with them about our lives in missions, have guest missionaries share also, and to introduce them to some new culture and ethnic foods! ...We will be a safe place for them to process what God is doing in their lives, the topics in their classes, and hope to help them prepare for their outreaches come April.

We have felt the Lord say its a year of establishment and also sustaining.

So 2 things...of discovery...

What can we do to be established as a family?

What can we establish in our lives that will sustain us in missions?

There are other things on our weekly calendar besides the Mission Focus. We have plans to seek out ministry opportunities in the city with refugees and whoever God puts in our path, of course.

We have some connections to the refugees here in the city that we will be working with, as well.

God as a sustainer

...Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me. Psalm 54:4

The eternal God is your refuge,
And underneath are the everlasting arms...Deut 33:2

My life verse has continually gone back to ..

Matthew 6:33...Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. 

So this verse...the way I see it, gives a command and a promise! When I live for Him to please Him and put His plans first above all, He promises to sustain me!

We have seen this time and time again in our lives in missions/ministry as we have sought Him in making decisions. Its times that we jumped ahead of Him, acted out of insecurity and frustration in our marriage that we made stupid financial decisions and regretted it, taking us years to pay off our mistake! It takes patience and a listening, humble heart to follow God. Because He doesn't microwave the answers we need! Sometimes, it takes TIME! So...it takes us...waiting!

..... .....

Walking out the waiting, being diligent with the task at hand, patience producing character...it can be a challenge to keep JOY in your attitude. Especially in small living spaces! 

We currently live in a 2 hotel room spot on base here. We are praying and waiting for a larger space to open for us to become more established with our family, providing the kids with more stability. But also trying not to count my chicks before they hatch, so to speak! 😜

This is a process for us to keep trusting the Lord for direction and provision in all areas as we walk by faith.

Stay tuned...

Guess who is 16 months old now? Banner Isaac is growing into a charmer with these big brown eyes and contagious smile! We love and adore this boy of ours!

Plans Change...its life, Roll with it!

Flexibility - its a good thing!
Sometimes we make our plans and God directs our path a different way then we expected to go! The good thing is - to keep GOing! Time is precious.
All to say, we are coming home! Australia will have to wait for us ...maybe one day we will make it there! Only God knows~ This season of training and outreach overseas is coming to an end and whats around the bend? We'll be praying into that and enjoying our family this summer at the same time. We need a break, especially the kids - to relax, to breath, and to hear from God on whats next. We could throw you an idea of sorts but there are several ideas in our hearts at this point.

This summer we will focus on finishing the year of homeschool with the kids, and having fun with them at the same time! The past 2 months have been quite strenuous on us all. We hope to vacation some and soak up the sun with friends and family as well.

May God steady our hearts and minds to hear from Him and rest that He is in control. A few things we do know, God is God! He is faithful and true.. gentle and kind. He leads with grace and helps us finish strong. Mere determination may only take us half way through when His strength meets us and whisks us away through to the end! Thankful for His unwavering love that has picked up our brokenness and allowed us to see others the way He has shown that He sees us. The best way to relate to those around us is to realize we all have brokenness somehow and all need the Savior to heal and mend the wounds of this imperfect and pretty bumpy road. The ride and adventure can be enjoyed looking through lenses that see blessing in the little things in between sleepless nights, runny noses, and sore backs. So we look for the little bits of grace along the way that puts a smile on our faces and just thank God we can keep going.

We missed home many times on this journey, missed the familiar smells and warm faces and hugs of family. It really is a sacrifice to do what we are doing. But we know the outcome will outweigh it in the end.

We are so grateful for those along the sidelines cheering us on! We couldn't do this if it were not for our family and friends to support us in the mission.

Visions and Direction

I still cant believe that we are here...it feels very surreal when I look out at this vast ocean. Who ever thinks they can bring their family of 6 to Hawaii and train for missions? People all around marvel at me, but really it is a challenge at times. Having to tote around a baby, feed him, care for him all along the way, homeschool the kids in the afternoons and keep up with what is going on in our classes. Believe me, its been so worth it. The adventure of a lifetime.

This past month has been hard, but beautiful. God has graced us with a wonderful couple who ministered to us for several weeks, taking us out to dinner, to swim at their condo and there we got to watch hula dancing girls and eat some wonderful native food, like their pulled pork that was roasted in a pit, fresh pineapple and a variety of other things...

Many great things going on around us and in us! God is planting seeds of vision that we hope to see come to pass! As we thrive in today, we trust Him for tomorrow! We will make our plans but He directs our steps! (Proverbs 3:6)

Here is a little vision that Israel had while we had been praying about the nations and our place in God's big picture...

"So the other day I was praying for clearer direction and I saw a picture of houses in a village...So I quickly drew it on a piece of paper. Then a few days later a speaker came to our Thursday night meeting and talked about new opportunities in Papua New Guinea. So that night, I typed in "Papua New Guinea House" into the Google search bar and this is the first house that came up! I was like wow! Because we are planning on moving to a base in Brisbane Australia, and it's really close to Papua New Guinea! Anyway here are the two pictures side by side." -Israel

Why Australia, then PNG?

So the opportunity came to us by Israel's friendship with the leaders at the base in Brisbane. Israel went through a DTS with YWAM at age 20 before we met! He has held communication with his friends there ever since. They do not yet accommodate families but we believe God is challenging us to go and He will provide the things we will need.

Israel would most likely take a secondary course of leadership. A Basic Leadership School will give Israel the tools to lead DTS schools and outreaches. This school is not offered at all YWAM bases, but it is offered at the base in Brisbane.

https://www.goywam.com/bls#bls2

Click the link above to learn more about the BLS and the base in Brisbane!

We are praying specifically for the nation of Papua New Guinea as a school here in Hawaii..

Visit this link to read about how YWAM is going to establish an education and training base, bringing in the University of the Nations! WHAT at opportunity for the people of PNG!!

http://www.looppng.com/png-news/ywam-establish-alotau-training-campus-50590

We are very excited to see how God will use us in this awesome vision and work in these nations!

A Great Beginning to a New Chapter..

The first 6 weeks of training here has been draining and overwhelming at times! But God has done amazing things in us and our family. Some things hurt, like discipline! Just the simple things like getting up early, kids pushing their boundaries in new things, and even at home with common things like reading and homework and obedience. In which, gives us insight to what needs better communication from us as parents as to what is expected and required of them... This takes time, energy and our very own discipline habits examined more closely... it was a rough week and we have had several rough weeks...but things always make a turn for the better and so we are thankful for mercy and grace. My hope is to be better...tomorrow I want to be a better parent, a better friend and a better student and disciple. If there's one thing we know for sure, it is that..we can improve! That's why someone goes to school at all right? And missions training.. well, all levels of life need improving for us to thrive in missions! DISCIPLINE - its just my word right now, I guess. Order and boundaries bring security and freedom and to embrace those things you must be disciplined!
However, at first the kids are not too thrilled with their new structure and order and way of life, but when they see it working in action, ultimately it brings them more happiness and contentment. Work isn't fun in the process but when you start to see results - you just hit the target! And that's a satisfying feeling for sure. Makes it all worth it!
We know all of this crazy effort of schooling is going to be totally worth it. Some days I want to crawl back into bed and give in to the flesh, but when I feel that way and press on and show up for worship or class, I am so glad that I did it and its those days that God really does show up too.
I am so glad we did this! I know our kids are having an adventure of a lifetime as well...we have made friends that may just be apart of our lives til the end of days. God has had a good plan for us coming here. All in all, I would not trade it for anything in the world.