Trusting Him: May 2015

Friday, May 29, 2015

Change is coming.

I can hardly believe that next week at this time we will be in Haiti. We have talked, prayed, and planned for this moment for many months. God has heard our prayers and filled us with a peace and excitement that can only come from him. We are ready to transition into our life in Haiti.

Some of you may be wondering what will happen when we get there. We will not move right into the Grace House. The staff at COTP has been busy getting ready a 2 bedroom apartment ready for our family. We will live there for the first 3ish weeks. In those weeks it is our hope that we can acclimate to Haiti before moving in and caring for the kids. The container has not arrived in Haiti yet so we will only have what we bring down on the airplane. We are thankful that we will have our own space. We are prepared for some hard first weeks as we all experience different emotions and adjust to the heat and life in Haiti.

I want to thank you all for praying for us. We can definitely feel them. God is so faithful and good. He has blessed us with an amazing support system. I often say that I feel like I should be in a state of panic and fear but I am not and it is just another way that God has provided for us and answered our prayers.

Specific prayer request:
- Closing of our house - we were supposed to close on June 1, now it looks like it will be June 5. Kevin's dad will need to take care of it. Please pray that there will be no problems.
- Our family- Say goodbye is hard and sending the ones you love to another country is even harder. Pray that God will remove their fears and worries with only a peace that can come from him.
- Smooth flights - flying with 5 kids will be an adventure! But in Gods great provision he provided a traveling partner. Our friend Joel Doorlag who moved to COTP last October is coming back to MI. He is returning to Haiti on the same flights as we are. What a great comfort to have someone who has done this before travel along with us.
- The Grace House - The current house parents and their kids, the nannies, and the Haitian kids. Pray for each of their hearts as they prepare to say goodbye to each other. It is going to be extremely difficult for each one. They truly are a family and have grown to love each other deeply.
- Transition/Change - its never easy. Pray that we will keep our eyes fixed on the one who has called us. On the hard days help us never to forget God's promises.

I love the words to this song. I pray that whatever your circumstances and wherever God takes you that He will be enough!

I give you my life
I give you my trust
Jesus

You are my God
You are enough
Jesus, Jesus

My heart is Yours
My heart is Yours
Take it all, take it all
My life in your hands

I lay down my life
I take up my cross
Jesus

You are my God

Whatever the cost

All to Jesus I surrender
All to You I freely give
Oh I will ever love and trust You
In Your presence I will live

We love you all and will miss you deeply! We hope to keep you updated on our adventures and how God continues to work and move in our family.

"God be with you until we meet again."

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Final weeks in Michigan and please pray....

June 4 is very quickly coming and we are not just talking about moving to Haiti, we are starring it straight in the face. I don't really have much to say other than this stage is difficult. Saying goodbye is hard. I don't really like it and I really don't like when I can see my kids and family hurting. There is much that needs to be done, details to take care of, people to see, things to do and stuff to pack. Every day brings about different emotions. We can feel completely confident and ready one day and then the next we want to run the other way. The life we have grown to love, the family we love deeply, the friends, the church family, the normal things we do as a family, summer camping, beach nights with dear friends, school, Kevin's job, all the things that have made us feel safe and comfortable are very soon going to change and be drastically different. I would be a liar if I told you we weren't afraid.

But one thing that I am confident in is that my God loves me and He loves my family. He has clearly called us to serve in Haiti. He has made a way for us to get there. He has shown His faithfulness over and over again to our family. He is with us when life is going just great and He is with us in our fears and life isn't want we wanted. We daily need to adjust our vision. We daily need to take our eyes of ourselves and place them on God and His promises to never leave us. God wants us to be uncomfortable because its in that when we need Him the most. This world is not going to give us true peace and joy, only complete dependence in Him.

The verses below are read daily or even multiple times a time.

" The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you, he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged. " Det. 31:6

" Let the beloved of the Lord rest secure in him, for he shields him all day long, and the one the Lord loves rests between his shoulders." Det. 33:12

" So do not fear, for I am with you: do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

Please pray for our family these last few weeks in Michigan. Please also pray for us and we soon will be transition into our life in Haiti. It's not gong to be easy and it will present us with a whole new set of challenges. Pray that through it all we will keep our eyes fixed on God cling to His word and promises. Pray to that through it all that God receives the glory. It is certainly not about us, but the work God is doing through us.

Enjoy some pictures of the fun we have been having the last few weeks