There is nothing I love more than to tell of the goodness and the faithfulness of our loving Heavenly Father. .
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But can I also tell you that I struggle constantly with knowing how much to share of our story and our lives here? In a social media crazed world where so much is driven by profiles, self, numbers and platforms, I find myself wanting to step away. I prefer the real life conversations rather than the competing and comparing noise of the internet.....and yet I am still here. I’m asking God for wisdom and discernment to navigate it all simply because I love to share of the gospel of grace through our lives. .
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I got a little glimpse this week again that it matters - sharing our stories and giving it all to the Lord - it matters.
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Seven years ago, in the guesthouse in Manila the @ethnos360 media team had me speaking on a video, sharing our story of a time when the Lord showed His power, faithfulness and answered our prayers. The video was “Lifeline” and it was posted on YouTube and shared around the internet. .
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I didn’t really want to make that video. I had just had Judah and I was tired and my thoughts felt so scrambled....but I was so thankful to the Lord that I felt the least I could do was to share.
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Yesterday, we met in our Training Team meeting and one of the young single men sat beside me and thanked me for speaking on that video all those years ago. He had watched it on YouTube and the Lord used it in his life to direct him into ministry with Ethnos360. He went off to Bible School with Ethnos360, followed our ministry in the Philippines and had been praying for us! .
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I was instantly humbled and teary. God is so big and yet so involved in the details of our lives. And of the 47 new students here at the Missionary Training Center, the Lord in His sovereignty has placed him in our group to be involved in his life, to point him to Jesus and to help train him to be sent out with the gospel - what a JOY! .
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Let’s keep sharing our stories for the Lord and leave the outcomes with Him.
Miss Izzy made her own chocolate cake from scratch today! And she decorated it to be a cat wedding cake...because...well she is 8, we were out of sprinkles and she loves cats, so of course. 😬 {Pic in my stories.} I have pictures of this little poppet baking with me since she was able to sit up. I made many a cake or a loaf of bread with her adding in what she could long before she could count or read. .
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At the beginning of the summer she announced, “Mama, I want to make a cake from scratch, all by myself with no help, before I start school again.” As I flipped the calendar this week and realised we have only one week left before school, I knew what we needed to do; give this girl the kitchen to herself. .
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I sat back and let her have full control, her brother held the recipe for her and encouraged her every step of the way. She was careful, responsible and so excited, it was a joy to watch her confidence and to see her joy in such a simple task. She glowed and hummed as she worked. .
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I loved those days of having her on my hip while stirring up a chocolate cake for some visitors coming through, but I’m loving watching her make her own cake just as much - if not more. .
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The seasons of motherhood change so quickly from letting them help, to letting them go so they can learn for themselves. Every stage whether hands on or backing off is fueled by love and for their very best. I am excited to always be her teacher, but I have no problem stepping off to the sidelines simply to be her biggest cheerleader. .
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And if you hear of some cats in need of a wedding cake, well you know who to call! 😂😂
Today, is the first day of class for the students here at the Missionary Training Center. Last week, this place was busy with 47 new students arriving, unpacking and settling in. On Saturday night, we got to meet our group of 12 students who we and another staff couple will personally meet with, mentor, train and do life with during their time here. You will hear me talk of our “Training Team” in the next months as we pour our lives into these new students. It’s a great responsibility, a great privilege and a pleasure to serve the Lord in this way. .
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As we met and mingled on Saturday evening, names were exchanged, food was enjoyed and stories were shared. We all come from different States, some different countries even and have many different experiences and yet here we are together for this season with like-minded hearts to serve the Lord and burdened for the unreached people groups of this world. .
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As conversations grew deeper and the evening drew to a close, I looked over to see Izzy, who had asked for some worship music to be turned on, smiling, singing, laughing and dancing with the younger kids on the team. It was a beautiful scene, she takes her missionary-kid-mentor-role very seriously. 😊
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And I thought maybe that’s where we should all start; coming together with all our various stories, weakness, strengths and callings and placing them in full surrender on the altar - these lives given in worship and adoration for our Almighty God. We have a great big task before us, a worthy calling to be teachers, ambassadors and disciples of His Word, but Lord let us always first be receivers, learners, grateful-servants and worshippers of your Holy Name. And as we join hands in this Great Commission help us not to compare ourselves to one another, but seek to be fully committed to giving our all to You. For in this place of surrender, worship and obedience we receive the gift of a grateful, joyful soul seeking only the glory for our worthy Savior.
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Lord, help us not to be overwhelmed with the task before us, but keep our eyes firmly fixed on You, the author and finisher of our faith.
On August 12th a new semester starts here at the Missionary Training Center. Danny and I have committed to be here for this next year as I still wait on my immigration and he gets his 6 month scans for another while. .
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We are getting excited to meet the 47 new students arriving, we are neck deep in preparing the classes we are going to be teaching and we are writing off emails to the students we will be specifically mentoring during the coming year. So much potential and ministry ahead. .
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And yet my heart still aches for the Philippines. The lost, those not yet reached with the wonderful news of redemption through the Lord Jesus Christ. I allowed myself to go back through old photos today and wept; for them, for their souls, and for a life we loved and long to return to. .
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And yet I am so grateful to be here right now. .
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It’s complex and hard to explain the constant tension. .
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I’ve spent so much of this past year trying to chose between one place or the other, which leads easily to discontentment. I’m learning that when I am more concerned with placing a surrendered heart before the Lord, the place, the location and the timeline all fade away to the background. .
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The Lord has been tender to my heart, allowing me to come to peace with the word AND. I am so grateful to be here, to have a ministry with Danny AND I miss our life and ministry there.
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Instead of always asking the Lord to take this tension away, I’m accepting this may be His will for me AND He has a plan and purpose even in that. .
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So, I thank Him for today. I write off another email. Read through another book preparing for a class. AND I stop to pray for the believers we love on Palawan, the lost of the village we moved into up north in Luzon AND I praise God that we can always be involved in both worlds through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit. .
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It’s not a burden to love more than one place, to love and miss people all over the world, it’s a gift! A gift that helps keep our mindset of this present world as the temporal and the hope of the eternal shines all the more brightly. .
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Thank you Lord for the joy AND the tears.
I’ve said no to lots of things this summer. We have had quite a few visitors and these weeks have felt busy despite the break in semesters. I struggle with the constant scheduling of this western culture. I like to leave the kids with margins for creative play, time for them to work together, work things out, make choices with their time and see the results. I see our kids burdened and stretched when we fill their hours with activity. .
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Izzy and Judah’s favorite place at a local State Park is this little area under a bridge. It is cool in the shade and they spend time stacking rocks and looking for insects. It takes patience, time and observation, I fully embrace it. Their little faces peaceful and free. .
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Yesterday morning, though, they were bored- it still happens! But left to their own devices, Izzy was soon sewing and Judah was trying to read and learn about the country of Morocco. (Where apparently the goats climb trees.) .
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Later in the afternoon, when a work team came by cleaning the walls of the apartments they jumped at the chance to help them work, happy to have company and something new to do. .
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There are times when I feel guilty for saying no to a lot of the things, wondering if the kids are missing out, but as they worked together or happily spent time alone, sang along to music and worked with the team I could see joy and contentment on their faces being part of something worthwhile. I was reminded to not fear the word bored, or to feel like I always need to respond to it. .
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I am also realising with so many choices for entertainment here, it can be easier to chose any one of those over the patience and time required to endure through giving them space to be bored and learn the life-long-joy-giving mindset of contentment, discipline and gratitude.
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I am so grateful for how my childhood prepared me for the life the Lord had in store for me. I hope by listening to these little tugs on my heart, I am doing the same for them.
*Attention all missionaries and cross cultural workers.*
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As many of you know after years of church planting in the Philippines, we are now living in Missouri where we live and minister at the Missionary Training Center of Ethnos360 (New Tribes Mission.) .
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One of the classes we will be teaching in the up coming semester is a parenting class, some hours of which are dedicated specifically to raising kids overseas in a cross cultural context.
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We have learned many things over the years through our own family’s experience and those of our co-workers in the Philippines. However,as we prepare to teach this class we want to have a much broader mindset than our own family and the country in which we served. We are teaching students who will go to countries all over the world and have children of various ages and stages. .
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As we research and gather information I thought I would ask input from the missionary community here. You have valuable input and experience which can help us to teach and prepare young families with your field realities. Everything is relevant. .
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I’m interested in the specific hardships you are going through with your kids. Especially things you didn’t expect to face with them.
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I’d love to hear your story on how you navigated or are still navigating your kids through these difficulties. .
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ALSO ANY TIPS!! For example practical things that you did or heard of others doing that helped your kids transition to the field, make friends there, learn the language and embrace the complex life of a missionary kid. .
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I’ll leave you with one example I tried to do to help my kiddos. I brought toys into the village that I knew would be a BRIDGE for them with the village kids and not a BARRIER . Bridge toys could be; colouring books, nail polish, picture books, jig saws, chalk, frisbee, bubbles - things they could do together with little language that wouldn’t break causing ill feelings or embarrassment. Barrier toys were the opposite - expensive so your kids feel pressure to protect them and if broken can cause a barrier between kids and embarrassment to the village kid. Eg: Electronics, sentimental special toys. .
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DM or email me please!
