Mission Work

Bittersweet ending to the 1st group of Equip. We learned so much from them and we all grew so much together. They all impressed us in many ways and made us proud. Yes, there were some challenging moments as well, but it was a great dinner to celebrate all they have accomplished and get to say good bye!

We had our annual staff retreat! This retreat came at the perfect time. Equip had ended, school was out, everyone needed some rest and rebonding time as a staff. The couple of days we were here, it did just that. I love one photo Hannah took, we were all talking and playing card games around a campfire on the pavilion outside the main house.

Costa Rica

Costa Rica, wow what a blur that trip was. We had been praying for almost a year about Costa Rica, partially because it seemed God was leading us to reboot short-term mission trips for the ministry, rather than just Equip. As we were praying about where to go, Costa Rica kept coming up. So, we booked our first exploratory mission trip to see if God was truly calling us there and to start building connections.

We were asked to help with building a house for 2 days of the trip and we love to help, so we did. At the beginning of the week, it ended up being 2 WHOLE houses, and then another 3 WHOLE houses were added in at the end of the week. The program we worked with is called Homes of Hope. They build homes for families in need that meet their guidelines: it must be a whole family (to encourage the dads to stay and be part of the family). They are then invited to a church, whose pastor we got to meet. Their last guideline is not a requirement, but they strongly encourage them to help their community after their house is built by helping build more houses.

We did not know what to expect on this trip, but God knows the plan, right? His plans, not ours? We intended to get to know the culture, make connections with local pastors and other ministries, get to know the people there, and find where there are needs to see if we can meet them. Well, we really got into the culture and got to meet lots of people. We met a local pastor so passionate about his community that he came to help build houses with us in hopes to make connections. We also met so many other people coming from other ministries to help be support staff there.

We stayed at the YWAM Base in Libera. Another thing God showed us while there was that not only did He want us to reboot short-term mission trips for more than Equip, but He also wanted us to reboot support staff mission trips. Part of the reason we were pulled into building 5 houses was that there was no available staff to do it. They were all in different locations and were not going to be back for these groups. Most were with their students on their outreach. The Directors of the base, Tony & Roselle, were praying for God to provide a team to help them with these groups. Coincidentally, our interpreter from the Equip Mexico trip was our contact that we ended up working with. He was there and all these other people just started showing up just to support each other and this cause and it was a glorious gathering of fellowship with believers. We were so hot and sweaty, but it was an awesome trip. I LOVE seeing God work and gather believers to spread His Kingdom.

Home Life

Joel turned 42 this month!

I guess it should be Happy Servaversary! LOL Not a word, I know! But we have been at CMTS for 4 years now! Feels like longer and not that long all at the same time. Still loving this choice! Would do it all over again.

Joel had a boy’s weekend away and the girls and I had a girl’s weekend in! We went to go see the new Spiderverse movie in theaters and played games. The boys went to a house in the Pocono Mountains, played some mini golf, and went swimming.

Homeschool Corner

We had our evaluations for homeschool and we all passed to the next grade! Woohoo! Here comes summer!

For summer, some think reading books all day is the best way to spend a summer! LOL I will let you guess which child this is……ok, it’s Kylie! She asked to do the summer reading program at the library this summer as well. Parker is sort of into it, but not like Kylie.

I have been working on this school year’s lesson planning all year as well. I am a little behind, but I guess I always feel that way. LOL We are getting close to being ready. There is a lot of Biology happening this coming year. Ace is in Marine Biology, Peyton is in Biology, and Jett is doing Human Anatomy.

Prayer Requests

• Support: We are still not fully supported and are actively raising support.
• Homeschool: that is an ever going prayer
• Guidance, wisdom, and discernment as God leads us as we lead the ministry.

Family Needs

Support

We are currently at $1,050 monthly and where we need to be is $3,570. It has been by the grace and provision by God that we are making it. We could really use your help. Prayers and awareness of this need to others is much appreciated!

Here is further breakdown in each category:

Retirement: We are saving up to retire one day and being a good steward with our time in the future.

Misc.: Savings for emergencies and medical expenses like braces and casts. Education and field trips. Fun days with the kids as a family out, date nights with Joel & I (Danielle), and saving each month for vacations.

Transportation: gas, car insurance, maintenance, and repairs.

Living expenses: electricity, propane, internet, cell phones, clothing, food, and household items.

Would you like to join our team? We need your help to continue to accomplish God’s vision for us at the ministry. Would you join us as a monthly supporter so we can continue the work God has started? We want to take you along for the journey and we would be honored to be able to share the experience with you. You would become part of the team and we would share how God is working and the impact it is having on His Kingdom. Please pray and ask God if you should join us.