When God Closes A Door

What do you do when God closes a door? What feelings run through your mind? While I have had many times where God has closed a door, there was one time that stands out more than all the others. I believe that we should learn from our life experiences and grow from them. So, as I celebrate my 50th birthday I want to look back over a period of time where I struggled and grew the most in my faith. I want to share that with you so that you can know you are not alone. The struggles are real. We all have them. 

In 2009, we changed churches. We had been members of a different church for over 22 years so it was not an easy thing to do. But we felt God was closing that door and opening a new one. We joined First Baptist Church of Arlington. We had been working with a ministry that is connected to that church for the past decade and a half, Mission Arlington. It seemed right. They are very missions oriented and had great programs for the kids. It has been a huge blessing to our family. The younger two kids have grown up in this church and are now in high school and the leadership in the preschool, children and youth has been the same since we joined. The pastor has been here for over a decade, too. And he just leads the flock with such love and compassion. 

In 2010, we had some HUGE ups and downs. We struggled with our teen through some difficult years, this one bringing it all to a head. We struggled financially and lost some land in Colorado and a vehicle. In January we began mission training. At the end of the 5 months of Perspectives training we both felt called to missions in a different country full time. In the fall we started a more in-depth mission training, Panorama, to prepare us for the full time commitment to missions abroad. The two kids had their own training as we did ours. We felt they needed to be prepared, too, so they came up with teachers to work with them. It was great. We also got involved with ministry that does low cost water well drilling. John felt that this what the type of work God wanted him to do. 

In 2011, we started part two of the Panorama missions training. We touched on some deep subjects. We also went through some testing through the counseling center that everyone who goes into the field through our church must go through. We did a week long training with Water for All, the water drilling ministry. That was really great. We were asked to go to Kenya with another group that summer for 3 weeks. John was to do water well drilling there, teaching them how to do it. Our two younger children went with us. They were a part of all our missions training. They even sat in the back of the room of our Perspectives classes. The trip to Kenya was a once in a lifetime experience for all of us. But my son really didn't want to do that full time and he was quick to tell us. He didn't want to move away from our home and our church. Our daughter didn't voice it, but she probably felt the same way. 

After ALL of that training and experience, the doors SLAMMED shut. We were told they would NOT send us. Here is one of the hard parts for me. It was because of me. In the testing it revealed that I need people too much. I made friends while I was in Kenya. I feel like I would have done OK because my needing people would have just drawn me to these people in whatever place we lived. But it didn't matter about our trip to Kenya. It didn't matter that the kids did well. It didn't matter that John really enjoyed his time there teaching them how to drill. 

I was hurt, mad, and upset. I even became very bitter. Other people were being sent. We planned on making this a lifetime commitment. A couple who had done the water drilling training at the same time were sent to another country in Africa. They have been there all this time. They now have foster adopted 2 children and are expecting one of their own. I was so confused as to why God closed the doors. Every time they would announce in church that they needed people willing to go, my mind would scream inside "WE WERE WILLING AND YOU SAID NO!!!" It hurt for so long. I did my best to pretend it didn't matter that the doors just shut. But it did matter. 

I honestly can't remember when those feelings stopped. But they did. I no longer feel angry or bitter. And I look back at the training and the mission trip that the 4 of us did together and I am so thankful. We have life lessons and experiences that we would not have had otherwise. We have friendships from those trainings and from the trip. I would NOT trade that for anything. 

The following year God took our apartment ministry church through Mission Arlington and moved it into an actual church building. Our congregation tripled in number. We began meeting not only on Sunday mornings at 11 but also on Wednesday nights. John now is a part of a worship team on both of those days. He also teaches the older kids in Bible study both days. He has done ESL classes, too. Our church there is all Hispanic. Most are from Mexico. So in a way, God is using us to reach people from a different country, just not in that actual country. John hasn't been able to do any more water drilling but you never know what God has planned for the lessons He teaches you. 

In the years that have followed the relationship with my oldest daughter has grown by leaps and bounds. It was in a very precarious place at the time. That is something I would not have had IF we had moved overseas like we thought we were supposed to. We would not have been here for our granddaughter's birth and first year of life. Our other son would not have gotten to know his sweet girlfriend and fallen in love with her. Our youngest would not have found her love for dance and been a part of this wonderful dance school for the past 3 years. I would not have reopened my preschool and had the wonderful children and families that have been a part of it in our lives. I would not have found a love for fitness and become a Beachbody coach. 

I know that God has MORE for me. The years to come are exciting to think about. God KNOWS His plans for me, even when I don't. HE KNOWS when to close the doors even when I am confused and hurt because of it. HE has great plans for my life. I just need to allow HIM to direct my path and change it when needed. As one of my friends says "Jesus is big y'all!" He really is. He has walked me through this journey for the past 50 years and He isn't going to leave me now. 

I tell you all this not to have you feel sorry for me or to judge me for my anger. But to be real with you. Feeling anger and disappointment is a very human thing. God understands. You just have to take it to Him and He will help you deal with it. I cried out to him many, many times. But I hung on to the hurt for longer than I should have. I was angry at people for deciding my future. When really, God decided it. He KNEW what He had for me that was so rich and worthwhile. So many blessings He bestowed upon me since that time. I am so thankful!!! 

When God closes a door, stop and think. Remember He has great plans for you. Then ask Him to show you what they are. He may not show you everything right away. But He will give you glimpses. You can chose to see good in things or the bad in them. Life is much better if you can find the good in each situation. Hang on to those good things. And let God handle the bad ones. Take it all to Him.

Until next time...blessings to you. 

Our Mission Story

My husband and I have been serving the Lord together since before we got married. We worked with the other youth in our small town church by putting on puppet shows and helping with Vacation Bible School. Over the course of our marriage our ministries have taken on many new aspects. We worked in the children's department of our church for many years together while also serving in other areas separately. For the past 14 years we have worked with Mission Arlington in apartment ministries. We pastor an apartment church that met on Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. for many years. 

In 2009 we participated in a study called Perspectives On The World Christian Movement at our church. It was during those four months that we began to feel the call to cross cultural work beyond our city. We had been working cross culturally for the past 8 years. But we understood that the "fields are white unto harvest but the workers are few" so we took the next step in that commitment.

In 2010-2011 we began another type of cross cultural training that took a year to complete. Our Panorama group met each Thursday night and we studied many different aspects of living and working cross culturally. We completed this training in August of 2011.

We began to look for areas of ministry that we could serve and something that came up for my husband was low cost water well drilling. He grew up in the oil field and it just seemed to call to him. The ministry that he found is Water for All International. He began talking to these gentlemen and learning the process by watching videos online and actually going out in a local area and doing some test wells. In March of 2011 we went to West Texas to train for a week with the WFA leaders and 5 others from all over the globe that came to get this wonderful training.

After our return home we were approached by a member of our church. They had heard about our training in the low cost water well drilling and wanted us to be a part of their group that went to East Africa in June of 2011. We were able to go for the three weeks in June, along with our two youngest children. We were blessed beyond measure.

When we returned the doors closed for us in all of these areas. We were unsure why but knew God must have a plan. We continued to work with our apartment church. We were moved to another apartment that had a larger ministry in 2012. During the summer of 2012 a church building was given to Mission Arlington and they moved our congregation into it. We not only meet on Sunday mornings, we now meet on Wednesday nights. John started an ESL class on Monday nights since the congregations only speaks Spanish and they have a desire to learn English.

We will continue to serve where we are planted and will try to share with you about the things going on at Fuller Street. If you even want to help our ministry you can always donate to Mission Arlington and address it for Fuller Street Ministry. I am sure they will get it into the correct hands to help our congregation.

We appreciate all of your prayer support. Keep them coming!

Until next time...blessings to you.

A Look Back

The day started at 5:45 each morning. We would gather at the breakfast table at 6:15 for food and the reading of a chapter out of the book of Acts. As we drove down the bumpy road from the house to the church one of the team members would voice our prayers for the day. As we passed those walking along the road or the houses with children standing outside we would wave and receive shouts of “Jambo” which means hello to tourists. Everywhere we went children would shout that and wave while huge smiles crossed their faces.

We reached the church before 8 a.m. and began to check people into the conferences.” Bwana Asifiwe” (Praise Be The Lord) was said in greeting by each person to shake our hands, to which we would answer, “Amen”. They were very patient with us as we learned what they were saying and what we were to respond. There were a few other phrases they would say. Sometimes we got them mixed up, but like I said, they were patient and took the time to tell us again what it meant and what our reply should be.

The conference attendees met together in the church for a worship time and short devotional. The music time was just a small taste of what Sunday morning worship can be like. When they worship it is with their whole being. They pour themselves into praising the Lord. Their prayers are the same way. They lift their voices to the Lord with great love and power behind it.

During the first week we had several different conferences going on at the same time. In the morning we had the discipleship training and some special topics conferences. There was a great turn out for both, all eager to learn more so they could teach others. The discipleship training was three weeks long. There was so much to cover but it was done in such a way that they were able to go in-depth and still finish it by the end of the three weeks. The discipleship participants were divided up into two groups, Never Thirst and Living Water. During the morning hours one group would be at the drill site working on the water well drilling. In the afternoon, after lunch, the second team would be out there while the first was in the discipleship training. The water well drilling was three weeks, too. We were served “tea” in the morning and then lunch around 12:30, sometimes later. What a great time of fellowship and new tastes. I know my kids loved the fresh fruit that was served daily. They found out I loved pineapple and provided it when they could. The last day there seemed to be an abundance of it. During meal times there was always plenty of food. They worked so hard to provide a wonderful meal for us each afternoon. And they took great pleasure in serving us that meal. It was important to them to feed us well and take care of us.

Our afternoon conferences besides the discipleship included a Sunday school teacher’s conference and a children’s VBS type conference that was lead by the children in our families. Seven “missionary” children led anywhere from 65 to 100 children each of the six days that we did the children’s conference. It was great to see how each one of the kids took their roll seriously and did their best for the children of Kilifi. They had Bible story time, craft time, sports time, and ended with snack time. The children always seemed engaged in what they were supposed to be doing as the story was told or questions were being asked. They had an interpreter for the younger children who hadn't learned English in school yet. When sports time came they just had a great time playing what we call soccer (they call it football).

We also had a conference leader go to a different school each day to give a special topic discussion. The schools and students welcomed the leader and took part in the discussions. Our Sunday school teachers training class had about 40 men and women who were very willing to get involved in the discussion and give input on each subject we talked about. You could tell they wanted to improve how they were teaching to reach the children. The students were so eager to learn in all of the conferences.

One thing that was very obvious when we were at the drilling site was the excitement on everyone’s faces. They knew how important this process was and they worked so hard each day. They didn't care how dirty they got or how hot the sun became. They greeted us with smiles as we got to the site. The kids took turns pulling on the rope and the boys even took turns at drilling. Even though we hit many hard spots and issues that we had to overcome, everyone still kept a great attitude. John and Joe worked every day of those three weeks instructing and helping to find solutions to each new challenge that came their way. I know it was very difficult for them to leave Kilifi with that well unfinished. But the people we were working with still kept the same spirit of willingness to keep going to see it completed. We were so blessed to be a part of this group.

At the end of our work day, we would stop by the store to pick up groceries or other needs, like bug spray. (The mosquitoes were our ONLY complaint. From now on, we have to have windows with screens or solid closure.) When we arrived back at the house the kids would rush to get in a quick swim before dinner. As we sat around the large wooden table, we would go over each area of our conference to see how everyone felt things went. It was always very positive. We also talked about anything new in the works for the next couple of days. Many nights we had a guest or two at our table. What a joy to get to spend time getting to know some of the area pastors and their wives. One night one of the pastors brought not only his wife but his infant daughter. The girls had a great time playing with her. Also, at the end of the evening you would see John and Joe with their heads together going over the drilling for the day and working out what needed to be done the following one. We would all head up to bed before nine o’clock since we got up so early in the mornings.

Sundays were a very special time. We attended the English service and the Swahili service. We would get there before nine and wouldn't leave until after one, sometimes even later than that. The service is very lively and fun. You could just feel the love in the room for each other and for the Lord. The songs were a bit longer than our traditional songs are, instead of 3 minutes the songs last around 6. But they just enjoy singing and praising the Lord. When we got back home that was one thing we noticed, how quiet our church service is. We love our American praise and worship times but we also enjoyed our Kenyan praise and worship. The children would come in and stand in front and sing and do hand motions for a few songs. The girls would get up there without hesitation and join in. It was great seeing them participate with the kids they had made friends with during the week.

One of the Saturday’s we were there was a full day that was dedicated to the ordination of Joe and Tammie Friberg. It was taken very seriously by the Kenyan people. Everyone dressed up like you would for a wedding. They even killed a cow to feed us with in the celebration that followed. John had the privilege of announcing them to the people that attended. There were several hundred that came.

At the end of the three week period, we held a graduation service. Participants in the Church Planting/Water Well Drilling conference received a certificate and a study Bible, and a CD with Bible study software, Theological study materials, Sunday School lessons, and a wide variety of resources for their churches.

The three weeks we were there was so much more than just teaching. The discipleship conference, the water well drilling, the special topics conferences and children’s conference, and the ordination service were wonderful. But we did something even more amazing in those three weeks. We spent three weeks building relationships with the people of Kilifi, Kenya. We got so close to many in that short period of time. It was very hard to leave when the time came. Even the children made new friends with other children and the adults. It was so easy to become close to them because you could see the love in their eyes. I know for my family that we left our hearts back there and hope to return very soon. If the Lord opens that door we will walk through it with happy hearts. If you ever want to go on a Kingdom mission, this is a great place to go. And Equip Disciples is a great team to be a part of. My family has been blessed to be a part of E.D. and we hope to be partners in the Gospel with them for a very long time. 

~Terri

More Kenya Thoughts

July 4, 2011

I have been home for over 24 hours now. I have slept much of that time. I’m not really trying too hard to stay up. I just want to sleep when I want to sleep. I know, that sounds so stubborn. I can be that way. One reason I just want to sleep is because of all the work I am going to have to do to get the house in order after emptying the suitcases and getting school stuff ready. I think I am avoiding it and sleeping is a good excuse.

I am having mixed feelings about being home. Is it normal to feel culture shock coming home after only three weeks? And is it normal for someone who didn't get it while there? It was good to get home. It feels more “natural” doing things here because I have lived here for the past 45, almost 46 years. But even in the middle of doing things I normally do, I felt out of place somehow. We drove home from the movies and the streets were so clean and paved. There wasn't a person walking anywhere. There were no cows or goats walking alongside the road or in fields, there were no fields. There were only buildings and apartments and houses. I began to feel guilty because of how nice things are here. I don’t think the people in Kilifi want things to be the way they are, they just are. The poverty levels are staggering. I found out that they live off less than a dollar a day. How can people live off that little? There has been a shortage of rain for the past 4 weeks and I thought that because it rained for ten to twenty minutes each day that it was good. I found out that it wasn't enough. They need fresh water so badly. They need to be able to grow food to feed their families.

One of the places I saw daily was a milk cow plantation. We were staying on that plantation because some very wealthy people had built fancy homes overlooking the ocean there and rented them out. The “houses” that the people staying and working on the plantation didn't look like a house to me. It was cement walls that connected 7 or 8 rooms in a row. It didn't look like there could be more than one room for each but there may have been some rooms sectioned off with sheets or something. Our guess is that they were maybe 12’. There was another concrete box for each “house” that had one opening towards their home. That was the kitchen. It was about 5’ x 8’ or smaller. I am not sure all the homes had the “kitchen’s” because on the ones that faced the road those families would gather in the front yard and cook on a pile of wood. That is how they did it in the concrete area but this was on the ground. Their laundry is laid on the ground to dry at some of the homes. There are a few that have clothes lines but not all. The place we stayed in had a lady that did our laundry. She would wash them in a tub with a scrub brush and lay them on the ground to dry. We gave her a clothesline when we got there but she never used it. We would find out clothes laying in a long row during the day. They would iron them before they put them in our room. It left them feeling very odd. And kind of not clean or dry even though they were.

As you look at the picture above, I can tell you it is a far cry from the places I just described. I don't know why I didn't take a picture of those homes in the three weeks I was there. We drove by them at least twice a day, every day for three weeks. Maybe it was because I didn't want to seem like they were on display for visitors that thought them odd. As we passed by them we would wave and yell "Jambo" in response to their calls of the same. I am sorry I didn't take those pictures. I wouldn't WANT to stay in homes like that but I did feel a bit guilty for staying in a place like I did. It didn't seem like it "fit" with a mission trip. We were there to work with the people who needed it but we were living in a huge house with people who washed our clothes, made our beds, and prepared our meals. I'm not saying I wasn't grateful for those things. It just didn't feel right when each day I saw those who had so much less.

I do know that once on the field full time we will have a more modest home. One that will meet all of our needs but will not set us too much above those we have come to serve. And I am totally alright with that. I have a friend whose dad, a long term cross cultural worker, designed a house in another part of the world that helped keep the mosquitoes out and I am going to find a way to "borrow" that floor plan for our home. I was excited to hear about its existence.

Until next time...blessings to you.

The Countdown Begins

I can't believe that it is less than two weeks and we will be on our way to East Africa. WOW! We are leaving on the 10th instead of the 9th. And we will be home sooner than we thought, 3 days sooner. I guess that means John will not be gone from work quite as long as he expected. That could really help with our monthly bills.

John is at the drill site working on the local well he has been practicing with. We have been blessed with some great helpers. Thanks so much for coming out and getting dirty to help with this ministry. The kids went with him so I am at home with a little time to myself. There is much I need and want to do while I have the time. You might think it would be all about me but it isn't. I need to clean and organize many rooms. Plus do mountains of laundry so we can start packing for camp and our trip.

As I sit here thinking about how quickly time is passing and all that must be done before we leave I have made a couple of lists to share. One is a list of things that have fallen into place in the past couple of weeks. The other is the list of things that need your prayers from this point on.

God has really done so much in the past couple of weeks, I am just in awe. In the next two weeks many things need to happen to finish up our preparations.

• Our passports have gotten here.
• We have gotten our shots through our doctor and been covered by insurance.
• We have a donor match for up to $5,000 given towards our trip expenses.  
• We have had people give items for our garage sale to help raise money. UPDATE on that: We raised almost $400 with the garage sale and taking some of what we didn't sell to resale shops. Thanks so much!
• A HUGE praise is that John has been given a leave of absence from work. He will have a job when he returns.
• Plane Tickets are ordered.

Below are some areas that still need your prayers.

• Our trip is coming up soon. We have gotten the funds for most of the flight and room and board expenses. We NEED $2,000 more (at least) sent to Equip Disciples.
• We have some trip expenses that will not go through E.D. that we are trying to get funds for. We have to go get the Yellow Fever shot after all, that is a $400 expense. Our Malaria meds are about $400, too. We will need money for food and such in the airports and when we have long layovers. (This does not include any extras we might like to buy while we are in East Africa. We have not even thought about money for that.) We are selling other items in our home and trying to get the money that way. 
• Outside of trip expenses we have two cars that need repairs. John's car needs the ignition switch replaced and the car I bought for Sami and I to use needs some repairs so she will have a car while we are gone for three weeks. John is going to try to work on that car this weekend. We will have to find a time to put his car in the shop to change that out.
• Pray that we will be able to make it on half a months pay in July due to John's leave of absence in June.
• Pray for our daughter that she will not have any major issues with the house or car while we are gone. And that work would go smoothly for her. 
• Pray for our son in MO that he will continue to do well at both of his jobs.  He is sick right now so he needs healing prayers. We will not be able to talk to him for three weeks so that will be hard.
• Pray for a safe and fun time at children's camp next weekend. The kids and I are going while John stays here working on the well stuff for the trip.
• Pray for safe travel of all of E.D. team members.
• Pray for easy flight changes and least amount of hassles on the long trip
• Pray that God will put a hedge of protection around each of us because as we seek to do His will Satan will attack any way he can
• Pray that we will have a successful well, and/or wells while we are there
• Pray that the conference will go well and they will learn much to take back to their churches

I know that is a LOT to pray about for just one family but I know I have some faithful friends and family out there that are mighty prayer warriors and I can count on you to lift these things up! We love you all so much!

~Terri

Donation Match

What a glorious Sunday we have had. It has been a day of worship and praise starting with morning worship at 8 o'clock right down to the youth choir leading our worship time this evening. As we sang and worshiped throughout the day so many things jumped out at me from the songs. One of the first songs we sang talked about an awakening of the soul and letting God's will be done in me. The one that really reached out to me was when we sang "Our God is Greater". As I lifted my voice up to God and sang "and if our God is for us who could ever stop us and if our God is with us what could stand against us?" all of the worries of the world just disappeared from my mind. The concerns about who will send us, where we will go, where we will get the money to go and many other questions that have been a concern for us. We are living our lives for Him and only Him. We are doing our best to put aside the worldly desires and only focus on the desires He places in our hearts. And if we do that we can be assured HE will see those desires to completion in His timing and in His way. What a comfort to be able to rest in that truth.

We in no way want to come across as only caring about asking for money for our trip to East Africa. Your prayer support is so important to us. We need major prayer coverage for this trip and our ministry in general. Without your prayers we will be under even more spiritual warfare than we will be with it. So we thank you so much for all of those prayers. Please keep them coming!

We got some wonderful news today concerning our fundraising efforts. Our total amount that we need to raise is $13,000. So far we have raised about $2,300. So we need approximately $10,000 more. There is a donor that is willing to MATCH our donations from this point on up to $5,000. If we can raise $5,000 it will be matched and that will cover the entire amount we have left to raise. What a praise!!! So I would ask you to please pray about giving at this time. We have 19 days before we are supposed to get on a plane to Africa. The tickets are being purchased this week. Any amount you give from today on will be doubled by that donor match. You can give online or you can mail it in. It is quicker if you do it online but either way is ok. Remember all donations are tax deductable. the information is below. There is no amount to small. We appreciate ANY amount you are willing to give.

Our passports are scheduled to come in this week. We have gotten our shots and are planning on filling our malaria prescriptions a few days before we leave (insurance doesn't cover the total costs so it's a bit pricey for the better meds.). John is doing lots of test well drilling here locally to prepare himself for the drilling in East Africa. I know he is getting very excited but also has many concerns. Please keep that part of this mission in your prayers. We want the test wells to be a success. Only God knows what will happen from this trip concerning those test wells. We are excited to see what God shows us on our return to the states. He has been faithful to show us the next step as we finish up the step before.

Thanks again for your prayers and your financial support. We can't wait to share with you what God does on this trip.

~Terri

Things Are Moving Forward

I just wanted to take a few minutes and update you on where we are in the process of our cross-cultural journey. We have many more steps to go but we have come through a great deal of them in the past year. All through the process we have told God that if HE opens a door we will be faithful to walk through it. We desire to bring Him glory in our lives and through the work He places before us.

We took Perspectives last Spring and that is where God grew in us a desire to reach those around the world that have not yet heard or had the opportunity to hear. That class was approximately five months long. FBCA co-hosts one yearly. If you are interested in doing any type of cross-cultural work here or around the world this is a great first step.

We are almost finished with our training with GCPN. We started Panorama last August and we will complete it in June. It has been a wonderful process. We have been in the class with several other couples and a few singles. We have grown so close over the last year that it is more like family than anything else. We learn so much from each other every week and grow in our understanding of what we might encounter when we are on the field. The children have their own teacher while we meet. For the first half of our training they had a couple that taught them with the wife being from Germany. It was great for them to get to know someone from another country. For the second half of our training they have had a wonderful young lady who grew up in Africa as a missionary kid herself. It has given them a new insight on living overseas. The kids have grown close to all three of their teachers.

John got interested in water well drilling when someone from our church did training and brought it to the churches attention. God really grabbed hold of him and got him so excited about this type of ministry. In March the four of us, John, Terri and our two youngest kids, spent a week in West Texas training with Water for All International. It was a wonderful experience and we learned so much. It gave both of us a passion for this type of ministry. We feel so strongly about meeting peoples needs through this water ministry and then getting to share about Living Water. Check out these pictures of actual drilling in those countries and how happy the people are to get fresh clean water.

We have begun our evaluation process with our church. We are being evaluated in many areas, mental, relational, marital, and missions. The children will also undergo evaluations in an educational format to make sure they don't have any extreme educational needs that would be hard to meet overseas. We found out a plus in that area is that we have been homeschooling for a long time and that is one less thing for them to adjust to with a move. We are trying to prepare them as much as we can.

When we returned from our training we were approached by Equip Disciples about joining them on a trip to East Africa in June. They have a church conference for pastors and other church leaders. They have asked John to go to do the water well test drilling so that the church leaders and church planters can take that into the different villages that are so in need of clean water. Terri will be working with the children's Sunday School teachers and training them in areas like finding resources, simple crafts and building relationships with the families. The kids will even be a big part of the church conference. They will be leading a children's conference with the local kids there, doing a Bible lesson, a recreational time and craft time. We feel so blessed to be asked to go. Plus, it is a requirement that the church and other groups asked us to do before we could move forward in the process.

Since we needed a trip as a family this presented us with just that. A chance for the four of us to go overseas for longer than three weeks. We have ordered our passports. The kids have gotten their shots for the trip. We are scheduled to get ours next week. We are planning for our time in East Africa. We are raising money to cover the costs. And we are praying daily for the provisions to come in. We are also attending weekly planning sessions with Equip Disciples to prepare for the conference. We are doing a daily Bible study as a family to prepare our hearts and our minds for the trip. We are spending time in the Word allowing the Lord to fill us so that when we need it He can bring it to our minds.

The cost of the trip is a lot. But we know God can do all things great and small. We are having a couple of fundraising opportunities. One will be a yard sale on May 19, 20 and 21. We are accepting donations for items to sell and will also have a bucket to accept cash donations if someone wants to donate that way. Anyone can donate any amount, big or little. Even five dollars is welcome. It all adds up. Please pray about how God is leading you to give to sponsor us on this trip for HIM.

We have been taking one step at a time. Right now, we don't know what is after this trip to East Africa. But God knows. We trust Him to show us the next step when we get back. We will share that with all of you when we know what it is.

As always, please keep us in your prayers. Those are needed greatly. We love you all.

~Terri

Mission Trip Information

We would like to share with you an opportunity that we have as a family to join in a mission trip to East Africa June 9- July 3. Equip Disciples is a Christian ministry working in east Africa that equips local churches for ministry. An important aspect of this trip will be to test drill water wells in the area. Many of you may know that John has been learning the technology for providing low cost water wells for the poorest of the poor who have no clean source of water. We recently spent one week training in West Texas as a family.  You can learn more about our ministries and the water wells on this mission blog. You can sign up for updates on this blog. Check out these pictures of what actual water well drilling in those countries looks like and how happy the people are to have fresh water.

This area of East Africa is a half-Muslim area. Many of the local church leaders have not had any formal education. They have limited study resources. Yet there are many unreached villages and unreached people groups in need of a Christian witness. This mission is sponsored by Equip Disciples, which focuses on discipleship and building up the body of Christ for the work of ministry. Terri will be helping with the adult and children’s conferences. Jonathan and Jennifer will help lead the children’s conferences. John’s primary mission while there is to gather supplies and work on the test wells. There are several churches that are interested in bringing it to their villages.

Finally, as you might imagine, travel to Africa is quite expensive, and each volunteer is primarily responsible for paying their own way. With a family of four it is  great deal of money for airfare, passports, visas, food, lodging, travel insurance, immunizations, etc. We are trusting God to provide the resources we need.

Thanks for your friendship and your prayers.

In His Service and Love,

John & Terri

We did our first week long training with Water for All International in Paint Rock, TX. We trained with 6 others that week. It was a great time of learning and fellowship. The kids and I hung out at the house most of the time but there were times when either all or one of us went to help out at the drilling site. 

They are setting up the tri-pod up the first day. Then they kept on drilling. You can see part of the team pulling the rope on the left. The rest are working to get the tri-pod even so they will drill straight.

After you get to the water you have to pump the water for a bit before you finish out the well. Even Jonathan had a go at it.

After the well has been cased and cemented in you can build a frame around it and pour cement in it. You smooth it out and form an angle down the side for the water to run off. 

The spent much of their time building the parts that are needed to drill and finish out the wells. It was a very thorough class. But we know there is always more we can learn.

Until next time...blessings to you.