Truly Blessed

It has been a few weeks since we have returned from Florida and needless to say, that job opportunity didn't work out. Unfortunately, we are still at ground zero for job opportunities, so we keep praying and trusting that God's time is much better than ours. In the meantime, Mike and I have been on many adventures and have loved meeting new people. We are continually reminded that while we do not have jobs yet, the Lord continues to meet ALL our needs. We are truly blessed!

Perhaps Tampa

Mike and I will be traveling to Tampa, Florida next Thursday-Saturday. We will be visiting a Christian organization that houses at risk female teens. The teens are required to stay at the organization for 1 year where they will live, go to school, and be encouraged in their walk with God. We are visiting the organization because I am looking into a house parent/mentoring position at the organization. I would be responsible for 9 girls and would work with them day in and day out with the ultimate hope of seeing life change occur in the girls. We would receive room and board, although Mike would not be employed with the organization. Ideally, this would be a great opportunity for Mike to knock out his masters degree. He is actually more excited about this possibility than I would have thought, after all he did just finish his undergrad work a few months ago.

We would appreciate your prayers as we travel down there (about a 6 hour drive) and as we try and decide whether this opportunity would be a good fit for both Mike and I. We look forward to keeping you up to date as this journey unfolds.

You Know You're in the South When...

You know you're in the south when...

10) You are asked where you are from because you don't say "ya'll".
9) If you are a man, you ditch all your undershirts because it is just too darn hot!
8) If you are a female, you have a new appreciation for summer dresses (a natural form of air condition).
7) There are still Blue Laws that restrict what you can buy on a Sundays; better plan ahead of time!
6) You are scared to have a picnic under a tree because a black snake might fall out of it.
5) You can park your car in your front yard, literally, and you are not consider strange...in fact, you are strange if you don't!
4) You only eat fried chicken.
3) The confederate flag flies higher than the American flag (or so it seems).
2) You have to peal your skin off of leather seats due to the nasty percentage of humidity.
1) When ordering ice tea, you must specify that you do NOT want sweet tea. Note to self: do not say that you would like "regular tea", regular tea is sweet tea! Ordering non-sweet tea can be as if there is a language barrier between you and your server- good luck!

Waiting

Now that life has settled down a little, Mike and I have started the 'full time job' of searching for jobs. We would appreciate your prayers as we try and sort through God's will for our future. While the wait is hard, we continue to trust in God's perfect timing and choose to believe in a God that cares and provides according to our needs.

Grabbing Life by the Horns

My sister had her wedding this last Saturday. We were worried that it wasn't going to be an outdoor wedding as planned due to terrible rain the night before; however, God must have heard Mandy's cries for good weather because it was perfect weather. She said it was just how she wanted it to be. While the planning for the wedding was quite exhausting, the fellowship with my extended family was great! My grandparents and aunts and uncles live in Washington state, so needless to say, I rarely see them. It was such a delight to spend almost a week with them.

I talked with my grandpa the most. He is a retired bull rider/cowboy and boy did he have some great stories. He told stories about winning bull riding competitions, rounding up 1600 cattle on the Mexican border and barely escaping rattle snakes, lightning bolts and deadly storms. It was so incredible to hear all the stories of this 82 year old man's life. It is quite evident that he has truly LIVED his life.

It is through my grandfather's adventurous stories that I have been challenged to live life to the fullest. I do not want to become old some day and not have any stories to remember back to or tell my grandchildren. I want to have exciting stories of me embracing life and enjoying the ride that God has blessed me with; stories that inspire my grandchildren to go out and grab life by the horns.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

For those who actually read my updates, which I am assuming are few, a lot has happened in the last few weeks! I have watched Mike graduate twice; once from Camp Forest Springs and one from Grace University! I am very proud of his accomplishments, he [we] has worked so hard to get to this point!

The question that has been asked so many times to us lately is, what's next? We wish we had some great story to tell about what our next adventure is; however, God is still testing our patients. He has yet to guide us in a clear direction, so for now we wait. Which I am learning becomes much more difficult the longer I have to wait. In the midst of our waiting we will be enjoying a wonderful cruise vacation with Mike's parents. We leave in 2 days and I am VERY excited. We have never been on a cruise before, so needless to say we are anxious to get on board. After the cruise we will be celebrating my sister's wedding in South Carolina and spending some extended time with my family. We have not had the opportunity to spend extended time with my family recently, so I am very excited for that as well!

While there are fun times just around the corner, I can't help but be anxious about the future. God has reminded me of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 in these last few weeks. This is a passage that I hope to practice and master some day, but am realizing how difficult it is at times. I cling to these words:

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

To all who are counting down with us:

One week from right now Mike will be driving a big yellow Penski truck while I follow behind him in a little smaller vehicle. We will be headed south to Crystal Lake where we will unload our belongings in Sharpmack storage and then we will head to Omaha for Mike's graduation! I am so proud of Mike and I am very excited to cheer him on as he graduates from Grace. Can you believe that our Wisconsin journey has come to an end so quickly? We certainly can't!

In this next week we humbly ask for your prayers as this transition will be unique for us. God has yet to show us our next step in life so we are literally taking a step in faith. Please pray that our moving travels will be safe and that we would be sensitive to hear the Lord when he whispers our future to us. This is truly a time of trusting in God's promises and believing that God will direct our future.

Thank you for all your love, prayer and support!