The Girls' Perspective

While some have asked what we are going to do with the girls (yes, they are coming with us), the rest of you understand that this is a family endeavor and the girls are very much a part of this decision and the reason we are going. We have come across these writings the girls have done (on their own!) and decided that this week they can speak for themselves.
Kylie Grace - age 9 (until Friday!)

"Dear Hannah, I may move back to colorado if we don't go to mercy ships. I don't mean to make you mad but I think of you alot of the time, but I also think about other things too including a lot of my amazing, scary, wonderful, embarressing, and eciting adventures in africa. You are one of my true friends, a one who comforts me when I'm sad, you enchorage me when I'm sad, and a one who wants to play and make our friendship deeper. Missions is something that has changed my life. We are lucky that we have parents. Some of the kids in the orphanage don't. But they still are happy and brave. I hope this letter will help your feelings about Africa better.

Yors true, Kylie"

Savannah Joy - age 7

"Savannah

I am thankful for everything god has in mind for us when we go to africa on december 18. We are going with Mercy ships a ship that gives surgerys for the worlds forgotten poor."

We are blessed to get this glimpse into our girls' minds and see what God is stirring up inside them too. While this week is full of the bitterness of goodbyes and the beginning of transition to starting over, we are encouraged to know that God is IN THIS and He is good. We have all been changed by missions and we are excited for what God has in mind for us.

Preparing for Gateway

The balancing act continues for us as the countdown for Gateway approaches. We have less than two weeks left in California - two weeks full of finishing up school, AWANA, swim clinic, small groups, work, side jobs, and all our regular routine. And two weeks of the continuing to par down, sort, pack, give, sell, and wait.

Complicating life for us is the fact that it's winter where we are, and where we are headed temporarily. We won't need snow boots and ski caps and gloves and scarves in Sierra Leone, but we will need them in Colorado, and we might want them in East Texas where the weather will be in the 20s-60s fahrenheit range for our stay there in January.

We got an email today with our schedule for Texas - we have been asked (and were wondering ourselves), what will you do for a month in Texas? What sort of training will you be doing? We will be in class from 8-4:30 every day, with evening sessions again from 6-8:00pm a few nights a week. Our topics include:

• The God We Serve


• Kingdom Principles


• Principles to Live By


• Communication with God


• Conflict Resolution


• Basic Safety Training


• Fire Safety


• CPR


• Living & Working in Harmony


• World View Issues


• Tensions in Working with the Poor


• Cross Cultural Communication


• Transformational Development,

as well as team building activities, silent retreats, and preparing for our field service practicum, which will be in Sierra Leone.

This school will have 35 students, from 11 different countries. Not including our 7 and 10 year olds, the students range in ages from 19 to 74! It's never too early, or too late to serve our amazing Lord! Check out the states or countries of origin and the job titles of our classmates.

One of the beautiful things I love about Mercy Ships is that your gift can be used for the glory of the Lord in a simple way. I may not be a nurse or a doctor or an anesthesiologist, but I can use the gifts & resources that God has blessed me with, and put them to work in part of a bigger scheme. While I have not yet been assigned to a job role, I'm sure this will be part of our work in Texas - helping them to identify my skills and put me in the right role there. So, for now, my job is to help get my family there, be organized, and stay sane!

So, we continue to sell off our things (the Camry sold this morning, the piano should be picked up any moment), and trust that God's perfect timing is never late and He knows that selling our fridge and washer and dryer earlier rather than later would be a huge inconvenience. So, we wait and learn patience and dependence on Him!

The Irony of Stuff

I find myself thinking a lot these days about the dichotomy of this crazy world we live in. Stuff. Especially as we enter into the "Holiday Season," we are being bombarded by advertising telling us we need all this great stuff. We start to believe that we'll feel better, be happier, and live easier with all this stuff. Maybe that's true for the first few days of getting a new purchase. But then you have to worry about it breaking. Insuring it. Updating it. Getting all the do-dads and accessories to go with your stuff.

And then what happens if you want to move across the world and live in a ship's cabin with your entire family? You have to get rid of all the stuff!! What happens when you can barely even give it away at your garage sale!?

You would think the burden would be lifted as you finally get those things you want to make your life simplier. But we are finding the exact opposite to be true. The burden is lifted when we are freed up from owning all this stuff. When those dressers or tables or chairs or kitchen items or wall hangings or (I could go on for quite awhile here, but I'll spare you...).... walk away with someone else, that is where the freedom comes in.

Update:

Thank you to all of you who have helped us during the past two months- watching the girls, contributing financially, praying for us, and encouraging us along this journey. It is definitely a big decision with lots involved. Slowly, but surely we are making it! Here's our current status:

• Thus far we have 51% of our total funds pledged! We are happy to headed in the right direction there!


• Most of our furniture & possessions have been sold - still to sell are the piano, acoustic amplifier, armoire, fridge, washer, dryer, cars.


• Our home has a renter, and our doggy has a new owner!


• We have been offered some storage space with a few friends & family to house our keepsakes.


• We have been communicating with a family on the ship who went through this process a year ago, and have been helping us walk through all the practicals!

Please keep us in your prayers over the next four weeks as we wrap up all loose ends in California - it is a bittersweet time as we say "see you later" to some dear friends and train up replacements in areas of work and ministry.

What is the Opposite of Nesting?

The rules of English would tell me that "unnesting" would be the opposite of the nesting instinct. But in reality, it feels more like uprooting. Instead of just taking apart the twigs and grasses that make up our nest, I feel like I'm digging up the entire tree!

For those of you who have experienced nesting (or been around someone who has), you know that overwhelming urge to get everything in order, clean, find its place, and create a sense of belonging and purpose.

I am going through those same emotions, but not to create a nest of my own! I'm trying to find a new home for every twig and blade of grass that has been a part of our nest for all these years. We have six and a half weeks left here in California before we go to Colorado and spend Christmas with our families. Then we resettle in Texas for a month. Then we go on outreach to Sierra Leone for three weeks. Then we move into a cozy, cozy family cabin onboard the Africa Mercy for two years of life afloat. Our nest is taking flight- going through a hurricane these days. So when our nest gets rebuilt, it might look like a hummingbird nest instead of a flamingo's.

Our day looks a little like this: list furniture, belongings, cars, appliances, electronics, toys, books, school supplies, and housewares on craigslist. Stack, sort, and pile for garage sale. Box and separate keepsakes. Sort, sort, and sort clothes, toys, electronics, photos, kitchen items in three piles: for the SHIP, to STORE, and to SELL. Research health insurance. Check on travel shots and immunizations. Get that last teeth cleaning scheduled. Plan farewells. Ask all those questions I still have no idea about regarding ship-life.

I feel very much like a Human Doing these days - ship, stash, sort, clean, list, sell, pack, ask, respond....verbs, verbs, verbs....

Yet in the midst of this, is a peace that surpasses all understanding. The reminder that this is just temporary stuff, and even though I like some of my stuff, it's not irreplaceable. They won't stop making these things in two years. I'm not moving to the moon. I think I can get a new pair of shoes in Africa when mine break, or if I forget to pack the right kind. And this stuff isn't what brings happiness and contentment and joy anyway. It brings clutter, and stress, and more obligation! So with this peace, I am finding freedom.

And I'm being reminded that this is a season - there is an end to this, and what we are working towards is worth the effort and the passion that keeps welling up in our hearts.

So while I don't feel like we're in a season of resting, (does an ant ever feel like he is resting?? Or a worker bee??) I do feel like we are being lavished upon with God's provision and His grace. He is just one little step ahead of us, luring us along, reminding us that He will never leave us. He will provide for our every last need and desire when we're in-line with His will. He will never ask us to do something that He wouldn't be willing to do Himself. And in this dying to self (and dying to stuff ), we find life. And that's the life that I want to find. Now where's that packing tape?

Mercy Ships

So, what will this new phase of life look like?



Mercy Ships is an international, global charity that seeks to bring hope and healing to the forgotten poor of the world. The primary means of doing this is by offering free surgeries to those that have no access or means to receive this care on their own.



The areas of focus are based upon Jesus' incarnational (real, tangible, physical needs) model of healing laid out in Matthew chapter 11:

1. The blind will see (cataract surgery)


2. The lame will walk (clubbed foot repair)


3. Those who have leprosy are cured (VVF surgery - vesicovaginal fistula repair - this is a condition where women leak urine or feces as a result of prolonged, unassisted labor, usually resulting in the death of the child. They are shunned for their embarrassing yet uncontrollable odor)


4. The deaf hear (cleft lip/palate repair)


5. The dead are raised (those outcast by disfigurement and tumor growth that have been written off by their villages can now return and function in society)

Added to these, Jesus says the Good News is preached to the poor. We see it modeled to the poor by this unconditional love. Surgeries for free - no strings attached. The only requirement for help, is willingness and need. Through this outpowering of God's grace and mercy, His gospel is exemplified.

Where Do We Fit In?

Dan, with his medical experience and background will be able to use his training now in a ministry setting.

The girls will attend Ships Academy, a school onboard for the 50 or so students who live full-time on the ship. The classes have less than eight students per grade, and are involved in the community of the host country as well as just their academic subjects.

I will be able to work while the girls are in school at a position suited for my administrative strengths, or possibly my teaching background.

As a family, we have committed to serving for two years and know these next two years will be life changing for all of us.

I could attempt to try to describe what life will be like on the ship, but I'll leave that to Don Stephens, founder of Mercy Ships, in this video. I also encourage you to check out the website as it has a wealth of information.

Timeline

1. Now to December: Sell our home in California, sell our cars, sell our posessions, wrap-up homeschooling, and head to Colorado for Christmas.


2. January 8th: Report to Gateway, a four week training program including Faith Foundations, Working with the Poor, Personal/Interpersonal Development, and Basic Safety Training at Mercy Ships' Headquarters in Garden Valley, Texas


3. February: Fly to Sierra Leone for a 2.5 week Field Service time to apply what we have learned.


4. February 25th: Join the Africa Mercy at the port in Sierra Leone.

Needs

Unless you've randomly found this, you must have some interest in our lives (and for that, I'm grateful and flabbergasted!). Here are our needs for the present time:

1. Processing through all our "stuff" with peace/clarity/unity as we decide what, how, and how much to sell of our things
2. Prompt sale of our stuff, including our California home and our cars!
3. Procuring a safe place for us to store some of our keepsake possessions
4. Providing a new home for our beloved Jake, our 11.5 year old German Shepherd mutt who we rescued from the pound at age three months. He is easy-going, laid-back, hairy, but oh-so-sweet. We'd love to find someone we know who needs some companionship and would let us visit him when we are back stateside.
5. Peace as we go through these many changes and transitions.
6. Provision - we are working on our budget for life on the ship. We will be required to pay crew fees to live on the ship, in addition to travel to and from the ship, health insurance, and all the everyday cost of life. Obviously surgeries are not "free," so part of the way that these surgeries are funded for the patients (so they are entirely free to them) is by requiring crew fees for volunteers. Whether you're a eye surgeon, or a chef, you pay crew fees. We will be raising a team of supporters who will partner with us to help change lives in West Africa.
7. Protection - as we step out in faith, we are more susceptible to the enemy's attacks of discouragement.

Thank you for your love and support! I'll probably revamp this entry several times trying to get it right, but for now, I want to get the word out so you can know how to pray for us. :) Love you all!

How We Got Here

Well, it's a been a few months away from the blogging world, but that doesn't mean it's been a boring few months.

I'll try to paint this picture simply, but the fact is, it's more of an intricate tapestry woven together with thousands of strands that worked uniquely to help us arrive at where we are today.

Upon our return home from Iris Ministries in Mozambique, we experienced culture shock in reverse. Our hearts were broken (and a little disgusted) at how quickly we get lured into the trappings of "stuff" and self-obsession in the land of convenience. Our hearts longed for the simplicity and utter faith we saw in Africa - of people who depend on God and rely on Him because they don't have a plan B. We prayed long and hard about returning to Mozambique to serve long-term with Iris, but felt that ultimately, our heart had been to find a place where we could all serve together and feel like our talents were being maximized. While Dan had an obvious fit in the medical area there, it would have been quite isolating for the girls and a real struggle to carve out family time.

We spent May wrestling with these issues - still feeling our hearts broken for the people of Africa, but not knowing how to move forward. We decided to lay it on the table and not go searching out ministry/service opportunity after opportunity on a goose chase. We felt like the Lord would bring something to us if we let him have the chance.

So, we tabled our mad pursuit. Dan was set to start a new job back in the rush of trauma medicine in June following a trip to Colorado. On our visit we met with many friends and family, among whom were my aunt & uncle, Joy & Steve Brien, who served many years overseas with Mercy Ships. We compared notes on our experiences in Africa, and matter-of-factly, Steve asked, "I hate to state the obvious, but have you considered Mercy Ships? It seems it would suit your family very well."

This question left us perplexed. Not at why it would suit us, but at what point had we stopped considering it. Back in the dating years (oh so many, many years ago now!), we had talked of Mercy Ships as being an integral part of our future. At some point along the way, this plan had been tossed out. Dan thinks I had an aversion to boats (but I think that's another story.:)). I don't remember exactly, but it was encouraging for us to hear that after serving with them for several years, Steve & Joy would be pointing us in that direction.

We started researching as much as we could, and the more we learned, the more our hope swelled.

Meanwhile, Dan started his new job, and in matters we can only explain as God closing the door, lost that job just four days into his training. As we sought counsel on this and were trying to figure out what the explanation could be, repeatedly people would ask, "Weren't you going to move to Africa? Don't you think that is what God is doing?"

So, we took a step of faith and completed our application with Mercy Ships. Dan took a 13-week travel nursing assignment at a local hospital in the Sacramento area leaving our options open for this fall. In September we attended an Introduction Seminar at Mercy Ships' headquarters in Texas and were continually impressed by the heartbeat of the organization, their accountability, and vision.

We have been waiting since July to hear if they would have room for our family. You see, the ship is large (499 feet long, with 474 berths), however, only 26 of them are for families. So, we waited for them to fill the urgent positions, and give precendence to those candidates who might have families to bring on board.

Our nerves were getting a little bit batty - this happens when your life is full of a bit of uncertainty (okay, almost complete uncertainty). I'm sure you've experienced it. Our answers included a lot of, "We'll see...," "Perhaps," and "Who knows."

Thursday I had hit the end of my rope with uncertainties. I was bombarded with lots of ugliness this week (weird dentist appointments, car problems, financial issues, etc.) and a friend reminded me that right before we get an answer is often the hardest oppostion. Then I attended a Bible Study where the entire message by Beth Moore was on TIMING! and what it looks like to wait on the LORD instead of waiting on a thing. So, we discussed this and realized that in our impatience, we needed to back off and let God do His thing. When we wait on the Lord, He renews our strength, contrary to when we wait for something else and we are left exhausted.

Sure enough, Friday morning we received word that they have room for us on the ship, and for the girls in the school on the ship. We are elated and feel utter peace (even though now our brains are going about a million miles an hour trying to calculate all that needs to take place in the next two months).

So today, we are thankful. Grateful. Excited. Emotional. Hopeful. Anxious. Overwhelmed. Equipped. And ready.

See "Mercy Ships" posting for how this will pan out.