Waist Deep in Boxes

In one month we’ll be on a plane to Africa, where we plan to live and work in Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world. Our September 15th fundraiser deadline has come and gone and we are on to the business of putting those funds to good use. Living overseas isn’t new for us. John served on an island in the Indian ocean with the navy, and I was an exchange student in Vienna, Austria during my junior year in high school. Most of you know that we also lived in Brazil as a family for several years. But, moving is not a science and it’s never easy to decide what to leave and what to take, and when you do, it’s time consuming to make it happen. Currently our days are filled with scheduling and organizing and packing and buying and selling. It’s a lot, but we’re taking it one day at a time and hope to make it to moving day with no major incidents or omissions—like cans of pumpkin and cranberries for a makeshift Thanksgiving dinner soon after we arrive.

Many of you have asked what you can do to help. First of all, we need you to pray—not so we can get what we want, but so that we will accept God’s will in this. We’re about to face something difficult, and we’ll fare much better believing God is in charge of the details. Otherwise we’re likely to kick and scream to change our circumstances and find ourselves working against Him. We don’t need to write God’s will, we need to find it and live in it, and that's something that requires much prayer.

We also still need financial commitments. We have enough to make the move but not enough to sustain for very long. Our sponsoring church has agreed to fundraise for us, but we will be the ones to feel the burden if we’re lacking on the field. Please give what you can when you can. Every little bit helps. Very soon this blog will be about all the great things God is doing with your resources and it will be so rewarding to know that He’s using you to make it happen. 

As we gear up to learn a new way of life and a new kind of service to our fellow human being and to God, we look forward to your encouragement. Electricity in Malawi is spotty and internet coverage can be the same, but we plan to take advantage of the gift that social media is to mission work. We’ll do our best to continue to post updates and photos and we ask that you take the time to comment and give us feedback. If you really want to get involved, you might even consider a visit.

Here's a link to give to the mission work through the church: Westworth Church of Christ

It's Official - We're Moving to Africa

Sunday we visited a church in Fort Worth for the fifth week in a row. It’s the kind of place where we could actually know everyone by name in a short while. We were first invited by homeschool colleagues from our P.E. co-op where John coached last year. They saw our Go Fund Me video and asked us to come meet their congregation. 

We’ve been attending for a month, but last week was special. I was nervous, waiting for the announcement I knew was coming after the service: The church had decided to sponsor us to move to Malawi and work with orphans. I hoped the details that were about to be shared would be accurate and well received. It’s not that I doubted the ability of the speaker, it’s just that I know our enemy delights in manipulating words as they travel from mouth to ears.

As the elder, who has become our friend, began to speak, I relaxed. His voice broke and he teared up as he recounted the weeks and months prior to our first visit, in which the church prayed for missionaries. I didn’t know that! Suddenly, God was there and all was right. He went on to encourage everyone to get to know us—their new family members—as we prepare to leave so soon after our introduction. We were warmly greeted by some of the people we hadn’t met before, and others invited us to their homes.

We’ve been trusting that this would happen by paring down our possessions little by little, but now we’re unloading almost everything we own in a hallway-moving-sale at The Gem. We’re replacing some of those things with others we would only ever need in a place like Africa—a solar-powered phone charger, battery-operated reading lights, and water purification tablets, to name a few. We’re also shopping for tickets to leave towards the end of October, trusting that the rest of the funding will come in. 

The church has agreed to sponsor us, meaning they have assumed responsibility of the mission and will help us fundraise, but they can’t afford to cover the cost of the mission entirely. We’re still lacking money for both moving and monthly working expenses. Thanks to those of you who have already given or have committed to a monthly amount while we’re on the field. For those of you who doubted this would actually happen, you’re not alone. I could say I knew it all along, but then I would be adding the sin of lying to my sin of doubt. It’s official now, and we want you on board. Please visit our Go Fund Me page or contact us to support the mission. Then follow us on social media and subscribe to this blog to see the the wonderful things God will do through all of us on the team for the orphans of Malawi, Africa.