Walking in Faith
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
Well, we're not exactly afraid, but the past couple of weeks have definitely been discouraging. We've had some unexpected expenses arise that have stressed our finances. (Not what you want to have happen just before you move to another country to work at a facility that isn't actually paying you a salary!) Added to that, we have had constant battles with illness in our family ever since school got out a month ago. First, Hannah got Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease; next, I spent a couple days with a fever and intestinal issues, followed by a cold, followed by the diagnosis of a painful cyst (which thankfully drained on it's own by the end of a week's time); and ending with Eli, Hannah, Shay, and Bekah all coming down with Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease. (Poor Hannah got it twice in one month....so sad!) Gabe and I are worn out. Since I have spent much of the past few weeks caring for sick kids (or being sick myself), I haven't been able to accomplish hardly any packing at all yet. We leave in just over two weeks and there is still so much to do. It would be easy to feel overwhelmed, and believe me, I had a few hours where I was discouraged to the point of despair. But thankfully, we have a wonderful network of friends and family who knew what we were going through and who were praying for us.
There is a story in the Bible about a battle that the Israelites were fighting. In this story, the Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites. Moses went and stood on a hill and as long as his arms were raised up, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he got tired and lowered his arms, the Amalekites would begin winning. So Aaron and Hur placed a rock under Moses for him to sit on and they held up his arms for him until the sun set and the Amalekites were defeated.
When our friends and family began to pray for us, it was as though they knew how tired and discouraged Gabe and I were and decided to hold our hands up for us. Our troubles didn't disappear, but I began to feel a deep peace. We know that Satan uses discouragement to take our eyes off of God. Especially when people are heading off into the mission field. But God is BIGGER! Bigger than sickness! Bigger than financial shortfalls! If it is God's will for us to go to Mexico, surely He is going to provide. All I need to do is keep taking each day at a time, doing what I am able each day, and trusting that God will provide. And we are beginning to see some of His provisions already. Friends are stepping up and asking how they can help us in practical ways. We've been given some financial gifts to help ease the burden of our unexpected expenses. It truly is wonderful being a part of the family of God!
We continue to ask for prayer as we pack up and prepare our house for our future tenants. Please pray that health would be restored in our family so that I can be free to actually spend time sorting and packing. We are close to meeting our monthly financial goal, but would benefit from a few more monthly donors as well as some one-time gifts. And finally, pray that we would be able to balance our time wisely these last few weeks as we try to do everything in preparation for Mexico and also make time for fellowship among friends and family here in the States before we leave. Thank you to all who have been praying, but a special thank you to the "Aarons and Hurs" in my life who have supported me through the past week in particular. God bless you!
