I am finding this to be more true every day! I remind myself daily that all that we are enduring now is preparing us for the field full time - every heartache, every tear, every joy, every step out of our comfort zone, every set back, every trial, every success, every delay, every victory - ALL of it is being used to shape us and mold us to be more like our Savior and for His work! We are getting there inch by inch, step by step and leap by leap, however and whenever they come. We are finding that we have to be faithful in the small things, if we are not faithful in the small things and are not doing them now - we will NEVER do them on the field.
We have come to realize that if we are not doing things now, we will not magically or instantly begin doing them when we get to the field. If we are not disciplined in the here and now, it will not happen in the there and then. Fact is that we will be busier than ever when we get to the field and will actually be working 6 days a week with only 1 day off (not exactly what we had envisioned for retirement years, but that is OK) so it is vitally important that we are disciplining ourselves now for the field. Fact is that things will become more difficult when we get there not easier. The spiritual warfare will become more intense which will make everything more difficult. But we are gearing up for it, because we know it is coming. We are already experiencing it here so we know when we get to the field, we become even more of a threat so it will increase.
I was given a devotion book when we were at our Area Meeting and I have savored every page since getting it. It is a devotion book written by a woman missionary and it has been like salve for my heart every single day. God always provides what we need before we know we need it or don't know what we need.
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| Group shot from our Area Meeting - great looking missionaries right :-) |
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| Here are all the TCK's that were there - they had a great time! |
School is starting back at the Ranch and we sure wish we could be there to start the new school year, but we are praying for all the missionaries there and all the students coming in. We are praying that the transition will be good for them all. It is a bit more difficult when you have staff leave and new ones come, and everyone is trying to learn each other as well as the kids and I know it can be stressful at times. Please join us as we lift them all up to the Lord for a great school year. Below is a picture of one of the classrooms coming together.
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| Jason's classroom coming together |
Hopefully soon we will be able to get an update on how many kids are there this year and how things are going. We are letting them get settled in before we bombard them with our many questions. We also are not sure of the staffing needs, we are aware of several teachers leaving and going elsewhere to either start or help start other deaf ministries in other places. This is exactly what we are to do! The bible gives us clear instruction to share, teach, train and send out. We are so excited about being part of God's work that does that.
We are at 30% of our needed 90% of monthly support to be able to leave. We are excited to tell you that we have clearance to do our FINAL (can you see the excitement!) training in September!!! Once we have completed that all that stands between us and leaving for the field full time is at least 60% of our monthly support coming in. Reality is that if just 60 families/groups/individuals give $52 a month -WE LEAVE!!! We are beyond thrilled about that. So with that news comes lots of stuff to get done, but we see it as a privileged not a burden! Although we may need to be reminded of that in the middle of it all when we are tired :-) We have a speaking engagement this month and we have gotten a lot of our promotional stuff done and are finalizing the rest of it. So we are ready to go!
We are still looking for anyone, any place and any where that will give us an opportunity to share what God is doing in our life. So if you happen to know someone or some place - please let us know. We will be grateful for any opportunity. Thank you for keeping up with us and standing with us. We are so thankful for each of you.
Prayer Needs:
1. The teachers and students returning to Rancho Sordo Mudo.
2. Our spiritual growth over the next few months
3. The selling of our home - quickly and at the right price.
4. Opportunities to share with people
5. God's blessings on those who have already joined us prayerfully and financially
6. An unspoken
7. Encouragement that we need on the hard days - however God chooses to send it!
