The right size?

Four kids.  That was always the perfect sized family to me.  After all that was how I grew up. A good even number. Four is what I had always hoped for. We were happy and content with three children and, after some loss, we were VERY surprised when Lillian made her appearance in 2013. 

And four was enough - any bigger than that was too big for our family....so I thought.  But in the back of my mind was always that nagging question "Will Lillian struggle being so much younger than her siblings? Will it be hard for her that Reid and I are older parents, not having any siblings her age to share that struggle?"  Still the thought of having more was daunting....and then the Lord surprised us by answering that question Himself.  So here we are....just got home from an ultrasound and heard the heartbeat loud and clear. April 13th is the due date (on a side note, that's a big snow month for us normally and we're a good 2 hours away from the hospital now that we've moved out to Grand Lake).

It seems that for our family, God thinks five kids is the perfect size. And we're ok with that! :)

Ian's Trip

In today's blog I'm going to post Ian's recent letter about his vision trip to India. If you have any questions, leave a comment below or send us an email or Facebook message and we'll get back with you.  Thanks so much for taking some time to learn about this opportunity that Ian has. We're excited for him and trust the Lord will provide if this is what He has for Ian!

 

Dear Family and Friends,

    This is Ian and I wanted to let you know that I have a big opportunity to go on a vision trip to India. Why is that so important? Here is an explanation of what I  am going to do there:

Well, for one thing, my parents brought our whole family into a missions ministry just about four years ago when we came out here to Colorado and joined the staff of Timberline. Timberline is a Bible school and outreach center that belongs to a network called Torchbearers International. And Torchbearers also has a center in the north of India that is also about evangelizing, discipling, and teaching people (of all ages), including, in this case, new converts from Hinduism -www.htbindia.org (for those of you at Winter Park Christian Church, the director of this center, Satish John, will be speaking at all three services next weekend! You won't want to miss it!).

My grandparents also worked with Torchbearers in Germany in the past, but the past several years, my grandfather has been the U.S. Director for another mission agency. ReachAcross, as it’s called, aims to bring the Gospel to unreached Muslims, and so last year my grandparents visited a mission* group in South India (Mercy Mission) in order to get to know some Muslim-background believers in Christ. Now they’ve been asked to go back and teach the Bible in both the North (Torchbearers) and the South (Mercy Mission). And there are other kinds of things that Indian believers are doing in both of these places. (www.mercymissionvzm.in/welcome.htm). Here is a video about Mercy Missions - even the first 4 min give you a good idea of the work they are doing.

I have the opportunity to travel with my grandparents and see what missions looks like in both of these places. There is an orphanage with kids my age at Mercy Mission where I can help, too. I might be able to speak in some of their English classes.  In fact my grandparents tell me that one never knows what they will end up asking me to do!  Whatever it is, I’m sure it will be challenging and stretching!   My grandparents tell me that most missionaries were challenged about their commitment to serve Jesus long before they finished high school, so I want to give God a chance to speak to me about that, too!   

I need to raise around $4,500 to cover plane tickets, train tickets, accommodations etc.  (update on 10/29/2014 - Ian still has about $350 left to raise at this time before he leaves on November 11th. Additionally, a typhoon hit the area where the orphanage is and has caused tremendous devastation. Any additional support given to help with relief work at Mercy Missions would be a tremendous blessing to this wonderful ministry!). If you feel led to support this trip, you can send gifts to Reach Across, PO Box 2047 Lexington S.C 29071-2047. You can include a separate note that the gift is for this upcoming trip.

I also am in great need of prayer support.  I need at least 20 regular prayer people who will pray for me and my parents as I will be gone for a while and they will be sad. Please pray that God will provide the funds and the visas and make it clear if He wants me to go on this trip . Please pray that I would have a safe trip and that I would learn a lot.  

Sincerly,

Ian

Relentless

Life at Timberline

Life here is in full swing. It's funny to write life at Timberline - because as I type this I'm 35 min away. But there are two loaves of banana cocoa bread baking in the oven in anticipation of Steph, Olivia, JP, and Dene arriving shortly for our first official covenant time together.  What a blessing that Steph offered to drive out here today (she didn't even know how much that would be an encouragement to me!).

On Monday the students had their mountain biking OESF (outdoor education and spiritual formation), and then got woken up at 2:00am for the surprise hike up Mt. Ida in the Rocky Mountain National Park.....one day I'd like to go with them.  But so far it hasn't been the season to do so.

We're looking forward to getting to know this group of students!

On a personal note:

Today's word ... Relentless. Today God has been relentless - yes, in His love....but also in His discipline and admonishment.  I'll be honest....it's not so much fun! :)

When is the last time you and I truly received, with gratitude, the discipline the Lord gives? The funny thing is...when we receive it - it gives life. His admonishment to me came today from Deuteronomy 3 - "Do not speak to me of this matter again, " and  2. Cor 12:9 --My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness..... "

and FB Meyer's devotional from Our Daily Homily on Deut 3:

"But have you not realized at times that God has said about some earthly boon you were craving?-'' Child, do not ask Me more, leave it with Me. I know what you want, and what is best for you. Seek first My kingdom, and all these things, literally or in their equivalent, shall be added." It is well when we have been praying eagerly, to allow God's winnowing-fan to pass over our petitions, to winnow away all that is not in His mind to give; so that only those desires may remain which His Spirit has indicted, and which He is therefore pledged to bestow. If He does not give the exact thing you ask, He will give the Pisgah view and more grace. He will say to you, as to Paul, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness."

Start of the Bibleschool Year

There are a bunch of excited and nervous students running around Fraser and Timberline as I type this. The kids and I will be heading over to TL after school and then the parents will be asked to be off campus as we have our first supper together with family introductions etc. and then first student/staff gathering this evening.  This week and next week is filled with activities as the students learn to adjust to Timberline, it's schedule and it's culture.  And of course, as a group, they will form their own culture as well.

As a staff we met yesterday and prayed for the school year, for all the activities and trips and outreaches, for staff and student relationships and most of all - that every student that comes would grow in their personal relationship with Jesus!

At Home:
We're adjusting to a new normal and with that come stressors that we have to work through. We're thankful to finally only be in one place - but it is still filled with boxes that we have not had time to unpack.  There are two items in particular that we are missing (one of our kids school binders and a bank card that came in the mail) that I've had to battle over not worrying about! In the mean time there are also a bunch of additional errands to run and trying to fit in Jenna's homeschool day in the midst of it all while coordinating Lillian's nap time with meetings and errands and school pick up times has sent me over the edge more often than I'd care to admit.  But I hope that we can figure out this new routine before too long and am thankful for the quiet hours that the Lord provides. (As I type this Jenna is quietly playing a little game with Lillian - so precious watching the two of them laugh and enjoy each other!). Since the older two are in school I don't have any fresh pictures of them as these were taken yesterday during our homeschool hours.

Alrighty - off to the next thing! :)

Conversations with Jesus

The conversation went something like this....

Me (to myself, worrying at night in the dark): "I really don't know how best to spend my time these next few days....do I drive to TL and clean the house, do I stay here and focus on unpacking, homeschooling, preparing CC etc. etc." and worry, worry, worry...more and more anxious thoughts crashing over me.

In the middle of all this, clear words enter my mind: "Why don't you ask Me what you should do tomorrow? And the next day. And the day after that. Don't you think I know best what I want to accomplish through you?"

And all of a sudden everything shifts into perspective and all the anxiety and all my worries completely dissipate. "Lord, what do you want me to do tomorrow?"

And with a few simple sentences back and forth, He clarified what the next few days needed to look like, ..... and that was it.

He is real, He is in communication with us, He knows our concerns, worries and anxieties - and He also has the answers. Why not just take it to Him in prayer?

Timberline:
These last few days have been crazy - we're so thankful for the many friends who stepped in and have helped pack and move heavy furniture or cooked a meal or prepared lunch! What a blessing you all have been! We CANNOT say Thank-You enough! 

One of the reasons we wanted to get moved this past weekend (finishing up this week with cleaning etc.) is because Bibleschool starts next Wednesday! And those first few weeks are crazy! Pray for the students as they prepare to leave their homes and all that's familiar - and also for parents as many of them say good-bye for the first time to their young adults. We're looking forward to building the relationships the Lord gives this year and we want to ask Him "Lord what do you want this day to look like? What do you want to accomplish today through me? That's what I want to be busy about today!"

Moving Day Approaches

In two weeks the halls of Timberline will once again be filled with the voices and laughter of students from all over the country, some even as far as England, Germany, Austria and Japan. And everything at Timberline is in high-gear for last minute preparations and everything that it takes to get ready for the new school year. We're excited about this year's yearunteers (volunteers for a year) as well as new staff members joining us. Will you join us in prayer for this coming school year!

Our family is in the process of moving and we would covet your prayers for this weekend as well.  We're all battling a cold that has been hanging on since staff retreat and are feeling weary and worn out. Just as the Lord usually acts, He came at the midnight hour, so-to-say, when some dear friends of ours from church made a home they are currently renovating available to us. It overlooks Lake Granby and has breathtaking views, especially at night, of the town of Grand Lake.

The down side is that it is 30-35 minutes from Timberline and that it will be in the renovation process
for quite some time. But when it is finished it will be a beautiful home - four bedrooms with a big kitchen/living/dining room all in one. We're so thankful for our friends, Dan and Renita McGrail, who have been a blessing to us countless times already. Our plan is that we would be at Timberline on Mondays and Wednesdays after I pick the kids up from school and through supper. So we may end up spending more time at Timberline than we did this past year. As you remember our family we would love your prayers, especially for the moving process, and also for stamina and to handle the school year and the traveling back and forth to Timberline well.  

So you see - moving day is fast approaching for a lot of people - for us, for the students, and many staff members have already moved and relocated to their new homes for this season as well. We trust that the Lord will bring forth His fruit out of all the changes He has orchestrated.

(Over the next few posts, I'll include some more pictures that our friends Michael and Meriah Mozingo took - Mozingo Photography - what a treat to catch up with them while they were here!! And so amazing to watch all that the Lord has done in their lives since we first new Meriah 15-20 years ago now!).

There's No Place Like Home

Ever notice how we seem to have to learn the same lessons over and over and over again? I have friends who have been through multiple job losses, others who have lost several loved ones, and still others who deal with several difficult close relationships.  The Lord repeats certain lessons in our life as well - one of them is the uncertainty of our home life. This seems to be a Timberline theme as staff housing has been an issue since it's conception back in 1995.

So here we are again! :) We have to move out fairly quickly, and to put it frankly, affordable housing in Grand County is very difficult to find. Would you join us in this urgent prayer? We're looking for a home for the family that would provide space to host our Family Group of students, covenant group, staff etc, out of town guests, is close enough to Timberline to allow us to be able to continue to serve the students and staff, and would also provide some stability if possible. The kids are entering their teenage years now and have not experienced much stability when it comes to our living accommodations. My Mom's heart longs for a place where we can stay a while, space for the kids to explore/run/be outside, room for a little self-expression (pictures etc.) in their little spaces etc.). But I also know that sometimes the Lord calls us to live more transient lives here on earth and not dig down our roots too deeply. So really, we just want what He wants for us.

Please also pray for our current landlords, the Mohrmann family (the picture above was taking from our drive way by our friends and Asheville, NC - based professional photographers - Meriah and Michael Mozingo!). The Mohrmann's really need to sell this house. We're all seeking the Lord together on direction and housing etc.

Celebrate Recovery

A brief note about Celebrate Recovery - we attended the Summit in California last week and left with information overload - as is often the case at these meetings. A few thoughts that have stuck with me....there are two kinds of people, those in recovery and those in denial.....therefore we should be mindful of thinking of people with addictions as "Those" people. I was struck by the attendees and the variety of walks of life and backgrounds. The Lord uses all kinds of people in His kingdom, rich, poor, those who seem to have it "together" (whatever that means) and those who absolutely don't! I was struck by the honesty that those in the recovery process live with. No hiding the ugly, no pretending, just "this is who I am apart from Jesus - and this is how Jesus has saved me." What freedom!

Anniversary

Reid and I celebrated our 16th anniversary while in CA. We spontaneously booked an Ueber car to Laguna Beach and enjoyed seeing the Pacific Ocean for a change! What an unexpected treat!

Staff Retreat

Our flight home was delayed and we had to catch another plane the next day. This meant we didn't get to say good-bye to my sister Julie who left early that morning.  We're super thankful for our friend Christine and the Hammond Family for keeping the kids after Julie had to head to the airport. Our late return  gave us only a few hours to pack and head back out to Mt. Elim Bible camp for our annual Timberline staff retreat.  The kids especially LOVE this retreat. Ian's favorite are all the games we play as a staff (Kubb tournaments, Settlers, Dominion  etc.), the girls love playing with the other staff kids. As a staff we get to reconnect on Walk-N-Talks, be encouraged in The Word (Dan shared on discipleship this time), and we find out who our covenant partners/students will be for the coming year and pray for all the students arriving in just a few weeks.

Well - signing off on this week's update. Thank you for your prayers!! Praying for our friends and family all around the globe as the sun sets this evening in CO. We love you!