In 1997, during my first trip to Ukraine, I read a book called Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret. I was deeply impressed by this man’s willingness to trust God for his needs as a missionary. Hudson Taylor never asked people for money; he made his needs known to God alone. When I read that, I immediately knew that this was what God wanted for my ministry as well. Nearly twelve years later, I can say that God has indeed held up His end of the bargain. Not once have my family and I lacked for any need that we have ever had on the mission field. We make our requests known to our Heavenly Father, and He meets our needs in amazing ways. This post is a small attempt on my part to honor the Lord by documenting some of the ways that He has provided for us in recent weeks. I hope it will be an encouragement to you that our God is very, very faithful.
Archive for the ‘Family Updates’ Category
When God Provides
Monday, March 23rd, 2009
Our trip to Krakow
Monday, March 9th, 2009To everyone who prayed for our recent trip to Krakow – thank you! It went very well. I was able to get my visa, though not for as long a term as I had planned. There was a misunderstanding with the paperwork, and I ended up with a visa for only six months. However, in September I can apply again and, Lord willing, should be able to get my full five year visa at that time.
We got one of the locals to snap this shot of us standing in front of Krakow's Florian Gate.
Headed to Krakow
Sunday, March 1st, 2009Once again, Kels and I are embarking on one of our mandatory, twice-a-year “vacations.” Even though we have Ukrainian multi-entry visas that are good for five years, the law still states that we have to leave the country every six months and come back in again. (sigh) Technically, there are ways around this (yes, we know about registration), but for us, a trip into Poland twice a year has historically been cheaper, simpler, and infinitely more pleasant than the alternative.
One of the many elegant courtyards inside Krakow's famous Wawel Castle.
Love at First “Height”
Saturday, February 14th, 2009Five years ago, around Valentine’s Day, my dad took me to a special restaurant for dinner. A looong discussion ensued regarding my future and what steps I should be taking. Together we decided that I should continue to wait at home for God’s direction. I would continue serving in my local church, pursuing studies, and helping my family. Only two days following this conversation, Joshua wrote to my Dad for the first time, beginning a correspondence which would shortly result in our courtship and marriage.
This week in L’viv
Tuesday, January 27th, 2009With the arrival of a new team member, preparations for this summer’s outreach, the ongoing development and upkeep of our correspondence Bible course (CBC), and two growing little girls, our family is keeping pretty busy these days! Here’s a quick news update to fill you in on the latest.
Bryan Shufelt
When Bryan got here on January 16, he hit the ground running. For the time being, he has been living at our ministry center and has busied himself by handling some of the paperwork related to our correspondence course. This includes things like putting together “starter packets” for new students in the course, and packaging up full versions of Good and Evil for mailing. I recently gave Bryan the crash course on how we track our CBC students using a web-based application called CBC Admin. While much of the course management requires a knowledge of Ukrainian (such as answering letters or grading lessons) there are several things that Bryan can assist us with right away. And what a blessing that will be!
Joshua and Bryan work on grading Bible lessons which we recently received in the mail from some of our students.
We have a one-year-old!
Thursday, January 22nd, 2009It is hard to believe that our little baby girl is already one year old! Her actual birthday was on Saturday, the 17th, but we were so busy we didn’t celebrate until last night. At least when they’re this little they don’t know the difference!
Our little Rebekah Praise
Merry Christmas!!
Saturday, December 27th, 2008
Abigail Hope and Rebekah Praise, Christmas Eve 2008
We spent Christmas Eve with our dear friends, the Beals.
