Which Way is Up?

Well the Lord has been stretching and blessings us like crazy these past couple weeks.  Sometimes to the point I'm not sure which direction I'm facing anymore. :-)  It started a couple weeks ago when I agreed to preach at our home Church here in Steinbach.  Talk about a huge responsibility, not to mention there is something different when I'm speaking to friends and family rather than strangers.  It did go well in the end as I was able to give a challenge and some encouragement from the fig tree story in Mark 11:12-21.   For those that weren't there and would like to hear it you can find it online under the Audio tab at http://cornerstonebiblechurch.ca/.   During this time of preparations we were also preparing our house for sale and within 3 days of me pounding our For Sale sign in the front yard we have a signed offer to purchase and by the 26th all the conditions should be removed.  This was the timing of God as we were defiantly caught off guard and never really expecting it to happen so fast not to mention how easy it has been so far.  As we had elected to try and sell it on our own first.  And along with the good however comes the scary proposition of now being house-less.   I was reminded today in Psalms 23:1-3 that God will take care of us regardless if we own a house or not.  In fact I in many ways had forgotten this promise as I had lived a lot on my own guidance and strength but as I look to a some what uncertain future it cause me to fall on my knees more and more and place my trust in my Shepherd.  Which is a very good place to be, not always the easiest place but the best.  And through all this and as we prepare for Easter my heart has been ever aching for the lost here and around the world.  Which has kept me moving forward through the down times these past couple months knowing that ahead of us lies great opportunity to be used to help save the lives and souls of those around us.  My carnal mind tends to put the scare into me as I think of what I'm "giving up" but when I consider these things in light of eternity I'm not "giving up" anything of real value but rather investing temporal things into what I trust will give eternal rewards.  I have been struggling quite a bit recently with my carnal mind not wanting to let go of my earthly things.  I'm very thankful for this means of transparency that God can use to show me some of my own faults and short comings.  I can then commit them over to Him to work a change in my heart and mind.

Blessings Greg

Buy & Sell

This week marked the next two small steps of faith towards our journey.  Step one was putting a deposit on a small cargo trailer that should arrive in a few weeks.  This trailer will become our mobile storage shed for the next year and a bit as we move across the country a couple times.  We start with a move to Michigan where we will remain for 12 months and after that we will pack up and move to Idaho for a few months.  And finally we will probably move the remains of our stuff to Alberta where it will be stored as we travel to Indonesia.

The second step and probably bigger one was that we placed some add's for our house on Steinbach Online and Kijiji Winnipeg.  We will give this avenue a try first before we spend money to sell our house.  Lord willing we will be homeless by June.  A strange wish but another step towards our ministry with MAF!

Our planned travel plans before we move to Michigan for the spring and summer are;  May 8-24 Greg will be traveling to Vancouver Island to give an update and to share so more with our friends and family there.  As well during the week he will be helping his uncle on a project.  Early June our whole family will be returning to Alberta to pick up where we left off last fall.  During July 24th-27th we have the privilege of being apart of a missions conference in Waldheim SK.  After which we hope to turn our vehicles east for Michigan with a stop back in Steinbach before the final trek out of the country for the next 16 months.

Bananas, Packing, Riding and Traveling

Here is a hojpoj of pictures from our life as we've known for the past few weeks.

Going bananas might be a good way of describing life at times in our home. But we love it just the same.

Our closet after we emptied, sorted out what was now trash and what was to give away and what we would keep. Why do we keep so much stuff? Don't answer that it was a rhetorical question :)

I forgot to take a before picture of the closet in our office/classroom but this is what the living room looked like after we emptied it. You can't see it in this picture but our kitchen table and counters were covered too.

Our neighbor giving Franklin and Isaac a ride own their new toy. Isaac didn't enjoy the first ride too much but we were able to talk him into a second one which he enjoy a lot more.

This was our weekend home (green roof, the other building was the local Church) as we traveled through the Upper Peninsula of Michigan on our way down and way back home. It made a wonderful resting stop on our travels to and from Michigan.

Packing

During the last two weeks it seems like the most common word or term used in our house is packing. It started with the unpacking of the van from our time in MI and not a day later my faithful hardworking wife has started packing again. Only this time she has started to go through our stuff and decide what to keep and store, what to move and what needs to find new owners. I'm sure glad she is gifted with this kind of thing as I would be lost at doing such a daunting task and worse of all I would probably keep everything. We are also discovering that Isaac; does not like to part with things just like his father and has shed a few tears this past two weeks. It seems that he thought he needed to keep all of his stuffed animals instead of taking clothes with him when we move! In his mind this seemed like a great plan! Over all the first couple of days haven't been to bad but we haven't gotten to where a lot of my stuff is. And Julie will probably have to do most of that when I am not home so I don’t see what she is giving away. It sure is amazing what we like to hang on to and place value on only to keep in a closet. Thankfully, we have had a few people offer their assistance with sorting and some painting that needs to be done. And the weather here has warmed up enough that the children have gotten out their bikes and been able to do some bike riding while Julie has been sorting through their stuff. Even though this step seems overwhelming it is also exciting to be heading one more step closer to the field and following God’s calling.

Home Again

Well it is true we are home again. The trip home went well the kids traveled very well. They even were complemented by a waitress for their good behavior and that was near the end of our long day traveling Monday evening.

Julie and I are looking forward to spending the next couple months here in Steinbach with our friends, as these next couple months maybe the last time we are able to be in the area for a couple years. Our next step will likely take us back west and then on our return to Steinbach it will likely be a short pack up and move venture as we move to Ionia Michigan for the start of my Aircraft Mechanics course later this summer. So please don't hesitate to contact us if you are wanting to see us this time through Steinbach.

Blessings

Greg (Julie)

and the kids

PS it is very nice to be able to sleep in our own bed and room :)

Receiving God's Word For The First Time

The following link is of a 10 min. video of a people group in West Papua Indonesia receiving their first copy of the New Testament in their own language.

Kimyal New Testament Video

Special Moments

Well, the count down has begun as we prepare to head back home on the 11th of March. We are speaking at a church on the way home so it looks like we should arrive home in Steinbach on the 14th of March. Since, we are thinking about home I recently ask the kids what was the first thing that they wanted to do when they got home. And there was an overwhelming answer from all three children and that was they all wanted to go and sleep in their own beds! I guess that sleeping on air mattress for two months isn't very exciting after awhile especially when I won't let them jump on them anymore. Over all the last couple of weeks have been good and have held some special moments for me. One happened a few days after Valentine's Day at a special seniors banquet that Greg and I were honoured to attend. Now most of these people attend my home church here and my grandmother has some dear friends at this church and she misses them dearly. A few years ago she became very sick and had surgery to remove a brain tumor that was effecting her short term memory. Since then she has not been able to live on her own anymore and has moved to a seniors house where she has her own little apartment. Actually, Isaac thought that she lived in a huge palace before we explained that the building housed many different apartments kind of like a hotel. However, even after a tour by my grandmother he still didn't grasp the idea. Anyway, since my grandmother has moved she has not been able to see all her dear friends from church. It was a great honor for Greg and I to attend the banquet with my grandmother! I don't think that I will forget her face as she walked into that banquet and saw all her friends and saw all their happy faces. So she spent the evening visiting, eating, laughing, and enjoying a wonderful time of fellowship. Our next special moment will actually happen tomorrow the 3rd of March as Isaac will celebrate his 6th birthday. A birthday is always a special time but this year Isaac will to celebrating his with my family which has never happened before. He has been faithfully counting down the days and is hoping that he will receive a new Stars Wars space ship tomorrow. It looks like it should be a wonderful day for him tomorrow. However, we have had some sickness lately and we would appreciate your prayers as I am still not feeling well and both boys have not come do with anything. So we hope they stay healthy and that I start feeling better as we have a Mission Conference that we are attending this weekend. We thank you for all your faithful prayers, support, and all those wonderful emails that you send on our families behalf!

God Bless,

Julie