Thursday, August 2, 2012

July 2012


Hello everyone! This has been a whirlwind month for me. The second week of July, I was notified that I needed to move down to Orlando to start work, because there are some trips coming up that I need to help prepare for. Praise the Lord that I had already found a place to live! So I packed up and moved to my new home in Orlando on July 22. I’ve been settling in, going to work at the office, and exploring my new city in the evenings.

I am so thrilled to be here. I’ve felt very welcomed by my housemates and my coworkers, and I jumped in with both feet to the projects at work. One thing I’ve been helping with is finalizing our English story set that we’ll use as a model while we’re overseas holding these trainings.

Thank you so much for your continued prayers. I miss Columbus, but I’m also discovering that there is an enormous peace that comes when you are right where God wants you to be.

Prayer Requests:
--While I’ve started work, I’m at 90% of my support. Technically, I’m not allowed to be working until I’m at 100%. So please continue to pray that God completes my support team so that I can be here “legally”. I need about $500/month and I’ll be there! At this point, every little bit makes a HUGE difference, so if you are on the fence about supporting me, now is the perfect opportunity! Go to give.cru.org/give/0624028 to start! J

--Pray that I soon start to feel at home here in Orlando. My housemates, Sarah and Audra, are great, and they’ve been a huge help in making me feel at home, but I still feel like a guest in their house.

--Pray regarding the trips I have coming up. There are several in the works right now—most notably one to Zimbabwe that will hopefully happen within the next few weeks. Pray that all the details and permissions work out and that we can go lead a 6-week storying training for the nationals there and elsewhere! 

Thursday, July 26, 2012

June 2012



“You seem so full of joy. Why are you so happy?”

The question comes from a wrinkled Tajik woman garbed in a long black dress. She motions to the woman next to her. “This woman, my friend, is always asking me how she can be happy again, and I never know what to tell her. She is a widow, and has three young daughters. She works as a janitor at the school and makes only $20 a month. It is barely enough to buy food. She doesn’t have money to pay for school supplies or clothes for her daughters. They have one pair of shoes that they wear in shifts. I never know what to tell her when she asks me that. But you all are happy all the time. What is your secret?”

What an opportunity! As I sat there on the cushion that is the Tajik equivalent of a couch, 1 Peter 3:15 echoed in my mind: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” After a moment, one of the women in our group spoke up.

“We’re not always happy,” she said. “We’ve all been through many tough things in our lives. But God helps us through. Let me tell you a story about a widow like you, and how God provided for her.” She went on to share the story of Elijah and the widow, and how when a famine struck the land, God kept the widow’s oil and flour from running out so that she, her son, and Elijah always had food. It was amazing to see these women’s eyes light up as they listened to the story. “So you see,” she concluded, “God loves each and every one of you, and He promises that He will take care of you if you put your trust in Him.”

***

My trip to the central Asian country of Tajikistan was an amazing success. We had three goals while we were there: to hold a womens retreat for some local believers, to be an encouragement to the national staff, and to record stories in four different languages.

The women’s retreat was fantastic. It was amazing to get together with these amazing sisters, hear their stories, and see God working among them.  On the last morning, they were overflowing with gratitude for the conference. “I’ve never before been to a retreat just for women,” one of them told me. “It was exactly what I needed, and it was so nice to just relax for a few days and get away from all the daily work of running a household! It was also so good to be among my sisters in Christ. We are all so isolated from each other. It’s so great to remember that I’m not alone.”

While we were there, not only did we get the chance to interact with the women, but also with many of the men that are either staff members with Cru, or are volunteers with the ministry. It was so nice to be able to be a blessing to them, to remind them that there are brothers and sisters all over the world praying for them. The national director was overflowing with gratitude that we had come.

I’m also super excited to report that we successfully recorded all the stories in three of the languages and got a great start on the fourth. It was a really exciting process despite some of the setbacks that caused delays. One of the languages we completed has no Old Testament, so it was a special thrill to record a dozen Old Testament stories in that language. It’s so amazing to think that there are native speakers of that language who will now hear some of these Old Testament stories for the very first time!

***

Thank you all so, so much for praying for this trip. I feel like God was really present, and it was clear through some of the travel delays, sickness, and technical difficulties that Satan was really against us doing any work in Tajikistan.

Please pray for the believers there. They are such amazing people, and they have become extremely dear to my heart.

Also please continue to pray for my support. I am coming back from this trip with an even bigger sense of urgency. I am really needed ASAP, for there are places where the window of opportunity for us to make these translations is slipping away really fast. There are so many places, in Tajikistan and all over the world, where there is so much darkness. They need the Light.
I want to use this blog to communicate with my ministry partners and friends. It'll be a place where I can keep you updated on my ministry with StoryRunners, Campus Crusade for Christ's ministry to unreached people groups through oral Bible storying.