Live The Great

Hey everyone – did you think we forgot you?!

We have been busy packing and we are happy to say….we are almost done. Thanks to many friends who helped us and helped with the garage sale too.

Neal and Amy are doing really good adjusting to their new home.  Neal is still having problems with his stomach and was really sick Monday night, throwing up every hour so finally he went to the medic and they hooked him up to two IV’s.  We heard from him today and he is doing better.  They said that him having E-Coli has really messed up his immune system….so we are going to send him some stuff that he can take naturally that will help.  But, please pray with us especially about this since he needs to be strong for the missions ahead of him.

Tomorrow, he goes before the board for a promotion to sergeant.  Please pray about this too.  Amy will be before the board as well, but we don’t know what her date is – at that time, she should be promoted to Corporal.  They really want/need these promotions so pray God helps them to remember all the information they are required to learn to get it.

I have the prayer calendar done….well, I should say, Wendy got it done.  She did a beautiful job so I will be getting those to you.  We have already started sending packages and mail to Neal and Amy.  They got my first card today with gum in it J  So that means, regular mail takes about one and half weeks to get there.  We are hoping it only takes one week or less for the boxes we sent them.

When it is your turn to pray and send mail, always feel free to call or email me about what to send – otherwise, we put a short list of things they like/need.  And of course, you are not obligated at all to send a package, but you did commit to pray and send a card or letter during your week.  They love getting mail/pictures/stuff from home.  Keeps them very encouraged.

I attached some pictures too…Hope you enjoy them.  They send their love to everyone and REALLY appreciate the prayers.  We talk about all of you to them and let them know what is going on with you and your families when they call….gives us lots to talk about.

Here’s their email:  themcgaugheys@live.com and their mailing address will be on the prayer calendar.  I will hand you one of those or mail to those of you who are out of town.

Mark and I leave April 1st and will say our last goodbyes to everyone at our house between 5-6pm.  That’s the plan anyway.  They we will drive to St. Louis – from there to Birmingham, AL and stay with his sister Linda then on in to Jacksonville.  We close on our new home April 4th and take possession that day.  Our movers will be there ready to unload our goods….then the fun begins all over again with setting it all up!  We love you and thanks so much for praying with us through this whole adventure….we still need you beside us and we are grateful for friends like you who truly do remember and love us.  You are the BEST!

Our new address is:
12547 Kernan Forest Blvd.
Jacksonville, FL  32225

mmcgaughey@epcjax.com
cmcgaughey@epcjax.com

We will keep our KC mobile phones through 8/1/08 so you can reach us by phone just like you have been used to doing…call us while we travel.  It will be nice to hear your voices.

Love ya,
Cathy and Mark

Click here to view their most current newsletter: winterreport2008.pdf

Inward in Fellowship, Upwards in Worship and Outwards in Evangelism

Change! We can all tell by the political candidates this year that America is in for a big change. We don’t always like it but it is apart of life! This is why I love this verse…“For I am the LORD, I change not…” Malachi 3:6 and we know that He is the same…“yesterday, and today, and for ever.” Hebrews 13:8

One thing that will never change about God is that when He does speak it will usually follow a pattern something like this…He speaks through His word, prayer, people and circumstances. Over the last year God has spoken to the Bakers and we too are now in a time of change!

God has spoken to us about the work in England and we have listened. The result is that we have ordained Mark Jackson into the ministry in January and he is now the pastor of Monnow Road Baptist Church in London.

We must admit that it was just as exciting to turn the work over as it was to start it! What a joy to watch Mark and his wife Sara grow into this role as leaders among Gods people. It has happened just like God said it should…“And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” 2 Timothy 2:2

We arrived in London in 1997 with this verse and a ton of faith in Gods plan for people. Slowly over the last ten years God has allowed us to lead people to Christ, disciple them and gather them into a local New Testament church.

We left Mark with a mature growing church in the heart of London. Monnow Road is a church that fully understands their mission to Win people to Christ, teach them to Walk in the Spirit and then put them to Work in Gods Kingdom. The church is actively involved in local community mission and worldwide missions. The church has a full time youth pastor and a vision to reach London with the gospel. Even since our departure, the church has seen four souls saved and three baptised.

We are now in the States starting a furlough. Through much prayer and consideration we have been led to stay in Springfield for this period of time. We will be joining South Side Baptist Church, under Pastor Wayne Barron and can be contacted through the church office at 417-869-5496 or by email at stephenally81@hotmail.com

We will need to raise our support level by 50% during this furlough and ask that you pray for us that God would lead us to like minded churches with a burden for Europe.

Pray also for our family as we re-adjust to the American culture. Most of you know that Ally is a British citizen and there have been some big changes in the immigration laws. We have just started the process of getting her visa and we need to raise $1400 to send with her application immediately, please consider helping us with this unexpected cost.

It’s all for Him,
The Baker’s
Steve & Ally Baker Mariah, Tori & Hannah

Ropeholders,

We are having fun in Bible College here in Mumbai, studying the Psalms and finding each specific spiritual medicine. In Psalm 17 the problem is envy and dealing with opposition from people who want “their portion in this life”. We found the medicine was to let God visit you in the night (Psalm 17:3) and decide to make it your goal to have your portion in the next life!

Last week we had missionary visitors from a poor state of India called Orissa. Orissa is a backward state that has recently seen much persecution of the church. Last year in Bangalore I discipled a man named Pradeep. He is from Orissa and went back to his native state. (Orissa is on the east coast of India, just south of Calcutta and north of Hyderabad.)

Pradeep and I kept in touch, and he visited me in Mumbai in January. Pradeep has a gift of leadership and pastoring. Pradeep has a passion and vision to reach his poor state of Orissa with the gospel. We decided it was time for him to start a church. Pastor Karl Silva asked him to bring 4 of his disciples on the train to Mumbai so we could get to know each other better.

I was in charge of these 5 men for 5 days in our big metropolis of Mumbai. You see, people from Orissa are what Americans would call “country bumpkins”, or “simple folk”. This was their first time to the big city of 15-20 million of Mumbai. Pradeep would translate everything I said to them. And I had to pretend like I knew what I was doing taking them around the city. It was like bringing a bunch of Mississippi boys to New York City. But we had a lot of fun.

So, Pradeep went back fired up about starting a new Greater Grace Church in the city of Rayagada, Orissa. Soon they will start a Bible college as well. (Pradeep is 29 years old and has a wife and 2 children)

I had received an extra financial gift last month that I was glad to use to give to Pradeep to pay deposit and rent on a new church building to start him off in this new church plant. In a way, this is like “my baby” so in the coming years of my mission in India I will be spending some time in Orissa discipling Pradeep and the new church there. Pastor Melvin and I already have airplane tickets to go there April 2nd for 4 days to disciple the core group who will start the church with Pradeep.

God has given me the Greater Grace church in Bombay and Pastor Karl Silva as a wonderful homebase. From here I can travel to Orissa, Nepal, Gujarat and others places for special discipleship training missions in the future.

Finally, when I was taking these friends from Orissa to visit our Karuna Sharan Orphanage and school, while on the train, God gave us people who initiated to us to share our lives with them. We made friends with Jitendra who showed up to church on Sunday.

Then, 2 young men that just happened to board our same compartment on the Bombay train, and Pradeep called out their name and talked to them in their native “Oriya” language. Pradeep said, ‘These are 2 men from my same village in Orissa, and I had no idea I would ever meet them again.’

Wow! Divine appointment indeed that they got on the same small compartment of the large Mumbai train, that Pradeep could minister Christ to his old friends from his village who had immigrated to Mumbai 2 years ago.

I mentioned last email that when we did Friday outreach in Bombay, I led a man to Christ named Llama, who is from Kashmir. He was from a Hindu and Buddhist background, near the border of Tibet. So, Llama is continuing to come to church and we gave him a Bible in Hindi language which he loves.

At the bottom is a picture of me with Llama(on left) and Jitendra. The 2nd picture is of Pradeep, who will start the church in Orissa.

your missionary to India,
Doug

Dear Prayer Partners,

It is difficult to believe that it is already March. Part of the reason for this is that the temperatures have been in the 60’s most days through January and February. I must say, I don’t miss Missouri winter.

I was invited to the graduate student Christmas dinner. This is such a talented group of individuals. We had a great time and the food was spicy Indian cuisine (not so easy to find in Portugal).

I have been teaching alongside a talented medical doctor in pharmacology practical classes at the medical school. I have learned so much from this colleague. Our mutual love for teaching has opened doors for conversations about religion. In learning that he does not believe in God, I was able to tell him that church is more than a religious act for me.  It allows me to be involved in a community that is built on a relationship with God and with others. Please pray for Christ to be seen in me as I teach and interact with colleagues and students. A photo of our department Christmas party is below.

God has been so good to bless relationships here in Portugal. I spent Christmas with a graduate student in our department and her family. This was quite an honor. It is unusual in Portuguese culture for a new acquaintance to be invited into a home. I stayed overnight Christmas Eve and was treated to a traditional Portuguese dinner, complete with desserts. We exchanged gifts and enjoyed watching my friend’s little girl remind us of the wonder of Christmas. I have been invited to join her family for a weekend at their family home in the countryside of Portugal, in a region called Alentejo, in April. Please pray for God to continue to bless this relationship. We have discussed our mutual belief in God and that this belief is unusual in the scientific world.

January and February have been filled with teaching and day-to-day interaction with colleagues and students. I am reminded that many of those daily things that seem inconsequential are the things that God uses for eternal impact.

I have recently connected with a house church associated with Christian Associates International. This is an exciting group of Christians from the USA and Portugal that are reaching the Portuguese youth and younger adults with unconventional methods, such as a surfing ministry and a punk rock band. They focus on building relationships to reach the unchurched. They have been such an encouragement to me as God is clarifying his vision for me.

Have you ever reached a point of decision and realized that God has been preparing you for that decision? That is exactly what has happened to me in the last month. This is part of the reason for this letter not reaching you in February. Upon arriving at the pharmacology faculty here, I was impressed by their emphasis on research. The atmosphere of research can be exciting for me, as a scientist. So, over the past months, I have continued an ongoing discussion with the Lord about his call on my life. Who has God created me to be—a researcher or a teacher? These are not mutually exclusive, but they do each entail a different arrangement of priorities. During my time here dialoguing with the Lord, I have come to realize that God’s mission for me is teaching. He has made it abundantly clear that research is not his chosen path for my life. So, imagine my surprise when my boss at the university offered me the opportunity to stay here in Lisbon another year, if I would do research.

I spent some heart-wrenching days on my face before the Lord. This has been the hardest decision of my life. I have such a burden for Portugal and I really enjoy living here in this culture. But, I have felt no peace about staying here to do research. It is difficult to explain this, but God’s peace has flowed through me since the moment I realized that he is sending me back to William Jewell College. I don’t claim to understand all of this, but I know that God has used this time in Portugal to crystallize his call for the life he has given me. I am to prepare the next generation to go into the world. And, right now, I am to do that with a home-base in Liberty, MO. God has given me the gifts to be here in Portugal, but I have to be in the position that makes me most effective for his kingdom. If I am in the right place, God will be able to fit the pieces together to complete his plan for reaching the souls of Europe in a mighty and effective way.

I don’t understand all that has happened, but I do know that my time here is not wasted. God has given me opportunities to build relationships, learn about missions, see the spiritual landscape of Portugal (and of Europe) and experience living in another culture. All of this is part of my preparation for the next steps in his plan for my life. I’ll keep you updated on those plans. But, for now, let’s continue to focus our prayers on my remaining time here in Lisbon.

This prayer letter will end on an unusual note. I have sufficient funds to complete my stay here in Portugal. But, please consider continuing to financially support IICS.  If you contact IICS, the staff can tell you more specifics about other professors who might be in need of your financial support (www.iics.com).  Please also consider supporting our Leadership Development Fund which is utilized to help IICS recruit and place more professors around the world. I do not believe that this is my last teaching assignment with IICS, so whatever funds remain in my account will be used for future teaching opportunities that may arise for sabbatical leaves, for instance.  I am so grateful for your prayers and financial support.

“The certainty that I do not know—that is the secret of going with Jesus.”    Oswald Chambers

Teaching and still learning,
Lori Wetmore

Praises

• Growing relationships and open doors with graduate students and colleagues at the university

• Christmas-time with my graduate student friend and her family

• Fellowship with Christian Assoc. Int’l.

• Renewed vision for preparing the next generation, including my decision to return to William Jewell College, 2008

Petitions

• Receipt of my temporary resident visa

• Continued open doors with students and colleagues, especially with my teaching colleague and with graduate student friend

• Planned trip to Romania, March 18-29, to visit fellow IICS professors and Christian researchers

• Divine moments orchestrated by God to further his kingdom here in Europe

Dear Co-laborers and Fellowservants,

Praise God for your faithfulness to pray for us these past two months.  We are definitely on the front lines and the battle rages all around us with its destructive force.  Our flesh wants to quit but the Spirit enables us to continue.  Keep the prayers coming!

Al and Dolly King just left after a three week visit.  Al seems to be doing well in spite of the effects of his cancer and the medicine he must take.  It was a blessing to be around them.  They hope to come back for a visit in May and an important meeting with some guests from the US.  Please keep praying for Al’s health and for Dolly and the rest of the family during this time.  I could not imagine what their life must be like.  Al is uncertain about the extent of his life.  Dolly is uncertain about her husband’s life and her own destiny and ministry.  They have both labored for 10 years here in Simferopol., and now nothing is certain.  Yet God is in the midst of all of our circumstances….

We have had an eventful month.  Even with the Kings here, we had to travel by train to Kiev to get our new passports and pick up our letters of invitation for our visas.  After that we travelled to Fastov and Zhmerinka.  You can check our blogs for details of these trips and pictures.  We had a great time in spite of the hours we spent on the train.  Last week the Russian church in Simferopol celebrated its 7 year anniversary.  There were 30-40 people in attendance for the service and many tears of joy for Al and Dolly’s presence.  It was a blessing just to sit and watch.  After the service we had a traditional dinner of plov, which is a popular rice dish - very delicious.

Tomorrow is a very special day for us - Lydia’s 18th birthday.  Few people can fully understand the selfless sacrifice missionary children make for the sake of the ministry.  Our kids have done it without a moment of regret.  There is not much comparison to a teenager’s life in America versus the rest of the world - especially the former Soviet Union.  But our children are such a blessing and testimony to us every day and think nothing of the American life they are missing by being here.  Thanks to those of you who sent cards and packages for Lydia.  We received one package today (actually, the only one we have received so far, but we are waiting for others that we are told have been sent) from Lydia’s High School Bible study group at church.  It was a real blessing to her! (Prov 25:25)  By the way, Lydia is doing her Senior year of home school, so in a few months she will ‘graduate’.  No, there won’t be any graduation parties, cap and gown pictures, or anything like we do in American culture.  She will just quietly finish her 12th grade curriculum.  She plans to start college in the States in the fall of 2009.

Please continue to pray for our housing situation.  We looked at a house yesterday and will look at a few more in the coming week.  The question is whether to buy or to rent.  Crimea is the vacation destination of the entire former Soviet Union, so land and housing prices reflect that - especially the closer you get to the sea.  We have limited financial resources (for the slow folks, that means we don’t have much money) but we want to be good stewards of what we have.  Buying allows some build up of equity but requires more up front money, while renting doesn’t require any up front money but the rent paid is never recovered.  We pray for wisdom in this matter.  We also need to purchase a car.  We are welcome to stay in the King’s home for the time being, but we would like to have something settled by the time we get our visas.  I just bought plane tickets for us to fly to London in April and get our visas.  This was another unexpected expense but we have a church in London that supports us and we look forward to seeing them and spending a little time there.  After we obtain our multi-entry Ukrainian visas and return to Simferopol, we hope to get tourist visas for Belarus so we can travel there and get the household things we stored there out of Belarus and into Ukraine.  Please pray for all of these life issues and details.

I wish I could tell you we have clear direction in ministry here.  We hoped to have a greater sense of clarity and direction after spending time with Al and Dolly, but it seems we have more questions now than before.  I am the interim pastor of the Russian church in Simferopol and there are plans to go ahead with the destruction of the old building and reconstruction of the new building which will house the seminary.  I am already scheduled to begin teaching three men, maybe more, in the seminary beginning in September.  The church needs outreach and growth, physically and spiritually.  We are praying God sends us some help in the form of like-minded missionaries who will partner with us to reach Russians, Ukrainians, Tatars, and the Chinese and English speaking students who attend the universities in Simferopol.  For the older crowd (like myself) who remember Saturday morning cartoons, one of my favorites was the Road Runner and Wile E Coyote cartoon.  Do you remember all of those times Coyote would set a trap only to have himself in the place where a huge boulder, intended for the Road Runner, would come crashing down on his head, driving him into the ground?  Recently, I was sharing my circumstances with friend, dear brother, and fellow missionary Mike Ireland.  He told me of once living in similar circumstances, and someone showed him a couple of verses in Isaiah, which he shared with me.

Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light?let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God.  Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks:  walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled.  this shall ye have of my hand;  ye shall lie down in sorrow. Isaiah 50:10-11

I felt like Wile E Coyote.  I had just been hit by a huge boulder that drove me into the ground.  Glory to God!  It would seem only logical to kindle a fire, create some sparks, if you are in the darkness - right?  But when we are exactly where God has put us, and we can’t see like we would like to see things, then our only choice is to trust His name and stay upon him - nothing more, nothing less (see 1 Cor.1:25-31).  If God’s Word is true (and we believe it is, by the way!), then we can trust him even when he makes us walk in darkness.

Dear brothers and sisters, please continue to pray fervently for us and the ministry here.  May God bless you all richly!

Pressing toward the mark,

The Nebel Family
Missionaries to Russian Speaking People

Dear Friends

The past few months have been a whirlwind of change.  I do not mean that in any negative light, but more importantly, it has been exciting to watch the Lord do his thing.  Last summer, there were plans put in place for an ESL Team from the U.S. to come to Taiwan.  It was followed up with recruitment from local Kansas City churches as well as KCBT.  Well 16 individuals have signed up for that trip this year.  They have started meeting, preparing and practicing for their trip to Taiwan.  They are coming to Taiwan for an ESL outreach.  They have already started to meet and train for the classes they will conduct.  They meet twice a month and will continue through the end of June.

Here in Taiwan, Jami I and the youth leaders at Lyou Bau Church have been preparing for our end of the outreach.  Recently, the beginning of March, we have started meeting with over 60 college students who have signed up to participate in a community outreach program being administered by Lyou Bau Church.  This program allows students to do community work, while at the same time receive free ESL classes here at Lyou Bau weekly.  Jami and I have already started the Friday night ESL classes and we are now in the process of connecting with all of the participating students.

Starting in May, we will be establishing email connections between the students and college kids on the Team coming over and some other Americans already here teaching in Taiwan. The final activity will be a two-week trip where Americans coming from the Kansas City area will be involved in three ESL camps.  They goal, using these established relationships with Taiwanese college kids to connect and share their respective cultures.

Needless to say, we are excited about what is happening over here.  We have been praying for an opportunity to start a bilingual ministry to residents in the Lyou Bau area, patterned after the work being done through the ESL outreaches based in Grace International Church.

This same Team coming from the states will also participate in a three day Christian camp south of Taichung.  This camp, being sponsored by Grace International Church, will be inviting friends of college students already participating in ESL college outreaches being conducted by church members.  The theme is “American Treasures”, and we are expecting well over 50 students to participate.

Other opportunities being given to us are a presence in the public school system in the Lyou Bau Church area.  Recently, they have opened a new Elementary school in the area.  Because of an outreach to underprivileged kids during the last year, God has used a leader at Lyou Bau, Justin Tsai, to connect with the principle of one of the area Elementary Schools.  Out of the blue, this same principle has taken a job at a Lyou Bau area school.  Because of the work we did last year, the principle has invited Justin to provide an English Class on Saturday morning for those students that cannot afford to pay on their own.

The original plan was to have 15 students and two teachers, but it has grown to over 60 students, three teachers and three classrooms.  Jami and I take care of one classroom, and we see God using the outreach to establish relationships with families in the area.  This same school will be Abbey’s school next year.

Because of the excitement created by the free English classes on Saturday, the same principle has invited Jami and I to do 30-minute English story times three times a week.  This has opened the door to over 600 students and their families.

I have to admit; Jami and I have not really much to do with the opportunities given to us except for being ready to respond when the Lord opens the door.  These activities are being watch closely by the school officials, and will be a model for the future.

We thank the Lord for his Grace and Opportunities.  At the same time, we are thankful for your commitment to our mutual ministry.

For his Kingdom
Jami, Abbey and Marc

Click and open to read the March 2008 update:

2008_03_march_kedrovsky_newsletter.pdf

Dear Everyone:

Here’s the newest update. Mark and I are currently in Jax, FL and we are returning to KC tomorrow to begin packing our belongings for the move. We feel like we have lived in a whirlwind the last month with so many things going on around us - but God has been so good to us in every minute of the highs and lows. Here’s a bullet point look at our last month:

February 1st - We found families for our two puppies (they were both one year old) Gizmo and Bella - Gizmo is at home now with Dr. Updahl and his family and Bella (now named Baby) is at home with The Kellar’s. They re-named her since they have a 4 year old daughter named Isabella and they call her Bella. Both of the dogs are doing great and they LOVE their new homes. We miss them, but we know God has given them even better homes than we could provide…they have kids to play with them and they live only houses apart - so even Baby and Gizmo get to play together.

February 4th - We put our house on the Market and began to show it.

February 11th - We got a contract on our house - in one week, it sold!

February 19-26 - We left KC for Jacksonville to find a home. Within a few days, we found the home for us. We had prayed that God would give us no more than what we had in KC - He was so good to allow us to find something that had the space we would need for entertaining friends (four bedrooms/three baths) and Mark even got a three car garage. The house is nice and we have a 2 1/2 acre pond in the back complete with bass, birds, a large turtle family and some otters that return every year.

February 27th - We thought we were going to get to be home for about a week, but Neal called and some things were up in the air with the deployment so rather than take a chance and miss them, we got on a plane and left for Jacksonville, NC arriving late that night. We were there, along with Amy’s mom, Irma. It was good to be with them and help get all their things packed…they needed the help for sure.

March 2nd - Irma returned home to KC and we left for Salt Lake City where Mark and Jeff would lead a ski retreat with many of our friends and contacts. Neal and Amy’s deployement was only changed by one day. So after the retreat, we left Salt Lake City and returned to Jacksonville, NC to see them one final time.

March 2-8th - We spent this time making the final move of their furniture to the storage unit and tying up all the loose ends. We got a hotel for the last two nights in Jacksonville, so we could sleep in a bed…the floor was starting to get hard for all of us We just are not young anymore and all this moving was about to kill us - and yet, we haven’t even started our own moving yet! Yikes! Thank God for our friends in KC who have been helping us so we can see and help our kids. It was hard to say good-bye as you can imagine, but we did it and they were on their way….we at least we thought they were. About 15 minutes after we returned to the hotel (at 1:30am on Sat. morning) Neal called and said that as the crew was pulling the jet to the loading area, they had gotten one of the landing gear in the mud so they were not going to leave until 1:30pm — so Mark left immediately and picked them up — good thing we kept their hotel room! They were able to go to bed and rest - they really needed the sleep too. Those kids were so tired. We all woke up the next morning and ate together then headed off for the base to say good-bye once again.

This time was easier as the night before was so hard. Megan (my smart daughter-in-law) said it best “for some reason, it is easier to say good-bye in the daytime rather than the evening when it is so dark…the night seems to make it more difficult.” I think she is right! The kids were more rested and they were even having a good time with us and each other just laughing so when we said good-bye and left them, they were doing so good and their were no tears - they stood in the doorway of the staging area and just waved at us like crazy - it was so them and that scene comforts my heart even now - though we miss them so very much already.

We talked with Ryan and Megan through all of this and yesterday, we all had a hard time knowing we couldn’t just pick up the phone and call them - we are already feeling the distance between us.

March 9-11th - We have been (and are currently as I write this) in Jacksonville, FL. We drove Neal’s car down here so we would have one less car to get to our new home. Mark preached Sunday and we are getting to know several people here. They have been so kind and such a blessing to us. One of the small groups is going to clean and paint the inside of our house for us. This will be a huge help.

March 12-28th - we will be packing our house and loading our things for the move.

On March 27th, we close on our KC house and they take possession April 1st.

March 29th - We have a party at the Nixon’s with some of our closest friends and family.

March 30th - Will be our last Sunday at KCBT and they will host a party for us in the gym from 5-7pm. Please come and see us there.

March 31st - we will have our final breakfast with the staff at KCBT and then I (Cathy) will leave for Florida. I am going to fly out early to close on our Florida house so we can take possession early to get the cleaning and painting done before Mark arrives with the goods on April 4th. Ryan, our son, will hopefully be coming with Mark to help drive.

As you can see…God has just ordered each step in His perfect timing. There was just so much going on that HE was the only one that could make everything just seem so in order. We haven’t even moved yet, but we have been gone from KC over the last month. We miss Ryan, Megan and the kids so much already and can’t wait to see them when we get home tomorrow. Many of you have asked how they are doing and Mark and I want you to know that we have the best kids…they are doing so well and are really supportive of us. We all know it will be difficult at times and we will miss each other very much, but there is no denying God’s hand in all of this…and that alone, gives us all so much comfort. We know that whatever HE starts, HE will see through to the end and will comfort us along the way - giving us chances to connect and see each other as we get settled. We are so grateful for HIS provision and hand over us in every situation. Besides….you all are part of our extended family and we know you will love our kids for us in our absence.

Keep praying for us as we pack and seriously, we do hope you will come and see us on March 30th at KCBT if you can. We love you and can’t thank you enough for you notes, letters, prayers and calls during this time of our lives…it is exciting and a faith journey for us. We will try to post some pictures of the house and family soon.

Our love,

Cathy and Mark