Only to pray...

"Do not worry about anything but instead pray and ask God for everything you need and always give thanks. And Gods peace, which is so great we cannot understand it, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." Phillipians 4:6

Tonight was our last night at Brainerd Baptist Church before leaving for training. What a blessing to have such a special church to be a part of. It was amazing to hear all the kind and supportive words that our dear friends at Brainerd had to say. Our hearts were somewhat saddened to say goodbyes to so many who have meant so much in our lives throughout the years. However, we also felt joy to hear so many are praying for us as we head toward the field. Travis and I are so thankful for all those wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ that we know are lifting us up to the Lord. At this time with so much to do and emotions running wildly from tremendous joy and excitement to self pitying sorrow the only thing our hearts can do is cry out to God. It brings us the greatest comfort to know there are those who are also crying out on our behalves.

These next two weeks are going to be tough. There are so many things to pack and details to take care of. Please pray specifically that we will not be overwhelmed in this process

God brought us to this place

Many have wanted to know how we came to our decision to go on foreign missions. The answer is fairly simple -We believe God brought us here. However, it has been a very long journey. We have definitely not always been willing participants - in fact, you could say some tantrums have been thrown upon the way - but God spoke to our hearts and changed our lives in such a way that we cannot possibly ignore His presence. It is either follow Him or live with unsettled spirits knowing that He has called us. For those who have asked, we would like to share with you how...God brought us to this place....

We will go....



"Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, ' See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.' Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ' Whom shall I send and who will go for us?' And I said,' Here am I. Send me!'" ( Isaiah 6:6-8)

On January 20, 2007, Travis and I were married and began the path of life as husband and wife. We immediately began to ask God to show us how we could serve Him as a couple. Both of us wanted His plan for our lives. We longed to follow Him but had no idea what that would mean.

We began to be drawn towards missions around the world. Travis and I had each experienced Gods call towards missions as teenagers and college students but had simply dismissed the burden on our hearts as a momentum to go on week long mission trips once or twice a year- We never thought it possible that we would be candidates for full time missions. We simply didn't meet the "qualifications."

The burden on our hearts was so strong that we began the application process with the Southern Baptist International Mission Board the summer after we were married.

We will go; Send us Father....

No eye has seen...

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him." ( 1 Corinthians 2:9)

As soon as we began the application process with the IMB, doubts began to assault our hearts. What do we possibly have to offer? They don't have jobs for people like us. Maybe God was just trying to get our attention. We would have to move across the ocean, learn a new language, this is just not a good idea for us....We would rather live where we are and begin a family....

Travis struggled the greatest as the spiritual leader of our home. We talked and prayed often and God and I both constantly heard these words from his mouth - I don't have anything to offer. I am not a good public speaker. The only things I know how to do are with my hands.

We had both made up our minds. God doesn't want us. He wants someone else. Let them go.

Neither of us could fathom that missions might be what God had for our lives. It was if we were on a ship in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight. We couldn't trust the captain. We didn't believe he knew where he was taking us. What we thought we heard had to be wrong. There must be something else on the horizon. We had boarded the wrong ship going to the wrong destination.

I had been searching for a job for some time and in August of 2007, one came along. We took this new job as an answer to our prayers. We decided the burden on our hearts wasn't real - We stopped the application process and settled down into life. Our eyes couldn't see the plan God had for us.

No eye can see . . . .

When God Speaks ....
"But Moses said to God, 'Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?' And God said, 'I will be with you....' Moses answered,' What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say,'The Lord did not appear to you?'

Moses said to the Lord, 'O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow in speech and tongue.' The Lord said to him,'Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.'

But Moses said, 'O Lord, please send someone else to do it.'" (Exodus 3:11-12; 4:1, 4:10-13)

Shortly after starting my new job, I decided to look into graduate school and Travis began the process of beginning his own heating and air business. At the same time, we put our home up for sale and began looking for something bigger so we could begin to add to our family. Still, we prayed that God would speak to us and show us his plans for our lives - We were still certain there was something out there we were missing.

After we halted out application process with the IMB, it seemed that every door we ventured to open was closed tightly. Previously, Travis had more heating and air business than he could handle - now, that business had come to a complete standstill. No one was even coming to look at our home and grad school seemed so far out of reach for myself.

Again, we were praying - Where are you God? What do you want from us? The burden for missions was still heavy on our hearts but still the doubts were there. We didn't know what we possibly had to offer God in the area of missions and still continued to dismiss our hearts.

In November, Travis went with a gentleman from our home church to preview a mission trip in the Dominican Republic. He returned with an excitement about the ways that God was working not just in the lives of the Dominicans but in his own heart.

Shortly after Travis returned, I was reading in Exodus chapter three during my quiet time. In that chapter, Moses has a conversation with God about leading the Israelites out of Egypt. The words that I was reading sounded distinctly familiar to my ears and it was around that time that both of us realized the burden on our hearts and the roadblocks in our lives are what happens... when God speaks....

Like waves on the sea ....

"But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind." ( James 1:6)

It seemed so clear in the immediate weeks after Travis' return from his preview trip. We could in no way compare ourselves to a man like Moses and the calling God had on his life. However, the dialog between Moses and God was so similar to the converations we continuously had with Him. We had asked our Father to show us how we could serve Him and He had answered. We were to follow God to a place He would show us and serve Him in whatever capacity was asked - believing that He would provide the abilities with which to do so. We had so selfishly doubted His faithfulness.

In January of 2008, we began the application process with the IMB for the second time. Travis and I were determined to follow the road ahead until God closed the door. We wanted to follow our Lord with faithful abandon and watch where He would lead - no longer to be... like waves on the sea....

Lilies of the Field ....


"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is life not more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or stow away in barns, yet your heavenly father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single day to his life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow." ( Matthew 6:25-28)

The next couple of months proved to be difficult. Doubts continued to assault our hearts yet we determined that until God closed the door, we would charge ahead. We still hadn't sold our home and were unsure of what we would do concerning our finances. Although worry more than trust was present in our hearts and we continuously doubted Him, still, God proved faithful.

In March, Travis' sweet grandmother passed away unexpectedly. Although it seemed unreal at the time, God worked her death into His plan. Only a couple of weeks later, we received an offer on our home - above the asking price ( a miracle in itself!) and with a request to take possession in a short matter of weeks. We still needed a place to live until we were to leave for training just 6 months later. Apartments are costly to rent without a contract and to pay for a storage unit for our belongings would have been quite expensive. God provided with the mother - in - law apartment Travis' grandmother had lived in until her death. Although the apartment was small, it is more than adequate for our needs. Not only did we have a place to live but a place to keep our belongings as well. A storage building did not have to be rented because generous friends stepped up to offer space in their homes for items that wouldn't fit in the apartment. And the lilies of the field grow....

In June, we began to question what the future months would bring. We were scheduled for conference in October yet I needed to quit my job in September to be able to pack and plan. I carried the insurance for the both of us and taking out insurance on our own for a month was going to be a large financial endeavor Because of recent health problems, I was scheduled for surgery in a matter of weeks which meant going without insurance for a month was not an option. We began to pray.

The middle of June, I received what we thought at first was discouraging news - my company was going through a rough financial time and were begining lay offs. My job had been eliminated effective the first of July. I heard the news on a Friday and we prayed through the weekend for God to provide.

Monday morning, I almost came to tears when I was given the information on my severance package - insurance through November at our current rate plus severance pay. What we had thought was a roadblock was in actuality a blessing. I was able to recover fully from surgery without any stress of returning to work. I had ample time to spend time with my family and have packed and organized to my hearts content without rush. We must remember...the lilies of the field....



His plans ....
"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord,'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)

When we finally were able to trust God and his plan in our lives for missions, the next road was determining exactly "what tribe" we were supposed to reach. We had always felt drawn to the Latin American culture and people but wanted to be open to whatever God may have for us.

We talked and prayed. Lord, please show us where you want us to go. We want to follow your will. We made it very clear to everyone how open we wanted to be - We aren't putting any restrictions on God!


And then came the inevitable. It was almost as if it just slipped out unintentionally.

But, we would rather not go to Mexico.

In our selfish human minds we wanted something more exotic. Something more romantic. But when the decisions were to made, it was obvious what God had placed on both our hearts. A city with 28 million people and so few to tell them about Jesus. A city where catholicism is the most practiced religion and only two percent of the population are evangelized Christians. God was telling us Mexico City was where he wanted us to serve Him.
God changed our hearts - Mexico City is where we will go.

Plans to give you hope....


Now go....

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." ( Matthew 28:19 - 20)

On October 20th, Travis and I will arrive in Richmond, Virginia for two months of intensive "missionary training." We will fly out of Atlanta, Georgia on January 2, 2009 with our destination to San Juan, Costa Rica. 3- 6 months will be spent in language school in San Juan. Once we have successfully mastered the language, the departure will be made to Mexico City, Mexico where we will reside until, at earliest, October 2010. The job assignment: Operation Go Saturation Leaders. We will be bringing groups from the United States to participate alongside local hispanic churches in mission trips. The ultimate goal: that a gospel be placed in every home in Mexico City. Please remember - there are 28 MILLION people that live in the metropolitan area!

Please pray for us and what lies ahead.
Please pray that we have positive attitudes as our style of living is completely changed and we are forced out of our comfort zone.
Pray that we will not have frustration when learning the language and that we will study faithfully each day.
Pray that we will make lasting friendships in Richmond so that we can receive encouragement and we can be an encouragment to others.
Pray that we will continuously grow in our relationship with the Lord.
Pray that we never forget why we are going or who we are serving and that we would never become prideful in ourselves but remember that everything we have and everything we are comes from God.
Pray that God will send groups to work alongside us in our mission whether it be for a week, a summer, or years to come.
But most importantly, please pray for the hearts of the people in the Middle America and Carribean region that they may be opened to the truths of Jesus Christ.

Pray for us...as we go....