EUZ Fundraising Meal - July 11

So on July 11 we had our second fundraiser meal. The menu was basically the same as the first meal, but the location was at my parents' church. We got help from my parents and a few others for preparing the meal and clean up. My parents' Sunday School class provided a large and wide assortment of desserts for the meal. Thanks for that!

The beginning of some endings

So, this week as it's almost over marks the end of some activities for us. Josh is working his last week and we are packing up what housing possessions we have left to store them. It's an odd somewhat freeing activity. It's amazing to see what earthly "stuff" we have gotten and how much (despite what the mass media wants me to believe) we can go without.

Had our second fundraiser meal at Ephrata United Zion, this past Sunday. This one was also a great time of eating and mingling with others. The final tally is not in yet as to how much was raised....stay tuned!

P. S. about 3 weeks and counting down...still much to do

Couple of items:

Pack up our house

Find renters for our house

Pack suitcases...ugh

Eat an Achenbach's donut :)...this one will be easy

Thanks to everyone for your prayers, financial support, encouragement and interest in this crazy, amazing, can't-do-it-without God Journey!

Blainsport Fundraising Meal June 27th

The air was thick and warm, but the aroma of Hamburger BBQ wafted from the fellowship hall to the attentive churchgoers upstairs. After the service, a hearty buffet of Hamburger BBQ, gourmet potatoes [no really, that's what they're called :)], cold veggies, relish tray, chips and assorted desserts filled our hungry stomachs. Food, fellowship and a good cause-that's the way to spend a meal!

Time flies~July already!

Wow is it July already?!~Time flies when you’re having fun and keeping busy.

Let’s start with some good news, and some not-so-good news.

The GOOD part, last week we received our letters that will be needed to apply for long-term missionary visas once we’re in the Philippines!! Yeah!!! (loud clapping/cheer whoops)

On the other hand, (the NOT-SO-GOOD news) I failed to realize that our birth certificates and marriage certificate needed letters from the PA secretary of state as well, so Josh and I drove back to Harrisburg this Tues. to get them. See, it’s much quicker to drive there and they process it while you wait, than to snail mail them back and forth. Then on Wed. I remailed that information to the Philippine consulate in NY.

Quick Update...

So a lot has happened in the past month. And I mean A LOT! To make a long story short, God has provided a great need. Basically, we needed to find a sending agency, and within 24 hours we basically had one. We are now partnered with The Second Tunic, a local sending agency that fit our needs perfectly. And everything was just perfect. They are based in Lititz, just 10 minutes from our house. The directors, Daryl and Mary Martin, have been to the Philippines to visit missionaries they support. They have been to Davao City and have had interactions with midwives from Mercy Maternity Center. Wow! Like I said, it just seems like a perfect fit. I really don't think God could have provided a better solution for us. Well, of course not. He's God, He's perfect, so of course it is a perfect solution.

So now all of our funds are being processed through The Second Tunic. We have packets of information we can hand out or mail to people. We have shared at our home church and at my parents' church the past two Sundays. We also have fundraiser meals planned for each church. Now we are in the fundraising phase. We have to have a lot of money raised or pledged before we can leave. When I think about it, I really have no idea how this will work out. But, knowing how much God has provided for us already, and truly believing that God has called us to go to the Philippines, I am simply trusting in Him that He will provide the funding for us. Our task is to be obedient to His call and move forward into the call He has placed on us.

So that's about it. We are selling furniture, raising funds, finding renters and life is just moving along quite rapidly right now. Two months from now we will be in the Philippines. Wow! All I can say is "Praise God"!

The Stretching of Faith

Christina writes,
So as I sit here contemplating this adventure Josh and I are about to take, with details that still need to be worked out, I can't help but feel uncomfortable.

My wonderful "I can handle it" humaness has been stripped away layer by layer, I feel vulnerable and dependent on God like never before.  I don't consider myself trapped by materialism but when I see the bills and required expenses and I see our bank account...well I'm not a genius but the two don't add up.  And I know God can move mountains, but this mustard seed of faith, that's mine, has yet to sprout.

I don't doubt our mission to go, that God is working in the Philippines.  That he wants to use me, to train me to help women who are pregnant, to show His love in a tangible way.  But right now I don't feel so useful.

Faith is the evidence of things unseen.

There's a memory verse I'm working on retaining:
"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God."  -Psalm 20:7

May you be blessed and encouraged by these words of truth.

Time to Update:

So I figure it's time to update this thing. The plan was to head to the Philippines in June to find ourselves a place to live for the next two and a half years. While working on other plans, it turns out God had a surprise for us. It turns out there is a family in the Philippines who are returning home for six months and needed someone to watch their home in the Philippines. And God filled their need through another family in the Philippines who are looking to eventually return home for some rest. So they would watch the home for the six months and get a chance to save money for their trip home and their future. So God filled their need for an "exit strategy". But then they needed to do something with their own home and all their furniture. That's where we come in. We will be taking over their home and purchasing their furniture. So God provided for their need to get out of their home and also provided us with a furnished home before ever setting foot in the country. How awesome is that? I'm amazed at how God can provide for three distinct families by getting everything lined up like that.

So, now this means we do not need to arrive in the Philippines in June to find a home. So we will be flying out of PA in early August. We fly to Oregon for a few days of orientation with the others who were accepted into this program. From there we all fly to the Philippines together. It sounds like an incredible opportunity and I'm told that they have never had any of their married couples there. So I guess I'll be breaking into some new territory (or something like that).

Right now we are working on plans to raise funds and figure out just how to make that all happen. We also are working on paperwork for getting our missionary visas once we arrive in the Philippines. Then there's the house we live in right now. The plan is to rent it out while we are gone. That in itself is new territory for us and is a bit stressful. Not to mention the fact that in three months we will have started the actual physical journey. It excites me so much to think about it. And yes it does frighten me a bit, but I believe in a God who has already provided me a home away from home. And I believe that He will take care of things for us as long as we let Him do the work for us.

Grace and Peace to you all.