Living in a Car

So, we are now about halfway through out big roadtrip!  We are currently in Minneapolis, MN attending Mission Orientation with TeachBeyond.  We just arrived yesterday and have already met tons of amazing people and been given a wealth of new and helpful information about going to the mission field.  It has been very interesting to see old and new faces here and to get a grasp of what the Lord has been doing in the lives of His children as we participate together in his kingdom ministry.

Our travels so far have gone very well.  The only real downside was Austin got sick for a few days in Chicago with a fever.  Otherwise, the kids have done extremely well with all the traveling.  They have made great friends with the various families where we've stayed.  Every place we stay Austin says that he wants our trip to be over so we can stay at that house with his new friends :) We've enjoyed seeing and experiencing the boldness of our young ones as they share with their new friends and complete strangers about our journey to Germany and to BFA.  We've received some strange looks when this happens, but overall people are amazed and awed by our boldness to do such a thing, but deep down we personally know that it is the Lord who is orchestrating everything.  Clarence and I have loved having a chance to visit old friends as well and reconnect and share stories about our lives together.  Check out Clarence's Facebook page for some pictures of our journey so far!

Visiting Mommy's College

Thanks for your prayers for safety.  We will leave Orientation on Saturday (June 30) and then have another 22ish hours of driving ahead of us until we reach Calgary.  We're hoping to arrive in Calgary on July 4th, and then we will be settled again for a few weeks until we fly back to Ohio on July 20th.  Please continue to pray for safety and joy as we travel and share our lives with the people around us. 


New Friends

The Journey Begins! (and continues)

Okay, I guess our journey [of going to BFA] really began several months ago.  But the particular journey I’m referring to is our “Epic Road Trip”.  It officially began today with driving from Toronto to Ohio.  We will spend a few days here, and then continue on our big road trip totaling 4000km.  Here’s a rough overview of our itinerary:

June 12-15:  Pandora, Ohio

June 15-17: Mishawaka/Goshen, Indiana

June 17-20: Chicago, Illinois

June 20-23: Green Bay, Wisconsin

June 23-30:  Minneapolis, Minnesota – for Orientation with TeachBeyond

June 30-July 1:  Grand Forks, North Dakota

July 1-3:  Winnipeg, Manitoba

July 3-4:  Moose Jaw/Caronport, Saskatchewan

July 5-20: Calgary, Alberta

July 20-August 8: Pandora, Ohio

August 9 and onward – GERMANY!!!

So, this past week has been a crazy blur.  We packed up our house, got rid of all of our furniture, and moved in to stay with friends this weekend.  Monday we closed on our house, and Tuesday drove to Ohio.  It has been full of lots of sad good-byes as we say farewell to so many wonderful friends in Toronto.  Our church has really become a family to us, and we will miss them all dearly, but we’re very thankful for their blessings as they send us on our way in following God’s call. 

The past week has also been full of good news.  Our housing is finalized for where we will be staying in Germany, which we’re very excited about.  The school has recently purchased an old guesthouse/hotel which will eventually be turned into a girl’s dorm, but for this coming school year, our family will be living there on the main floor.  There will be another BFA family living in the bottom floor, and the upper floor will probably be available for guests and visitors to rent (yes, so we should hopefully have a nice place to house visitors!)  We also purchased a used minivan from another couple who works at BFA.  And finally, we bought our PLANE TICKETS!  Woo hoo!  It’s really happening!   We fly out of Detroit, MI on August 8 and arrive in Germany on August 9^th.  The only downside is that our housing will not be available until August 15^th, so we will be housed somewhere else temporarily for week or so. 

Finally, a support update.  I (Anna) am completely humbled and awed to report that we are at 98% of our monthly support!  God is so good.  I am so thankful that He has chosen to bless us through generous friends, family, and churches.  Praise God!