Week 4 Midweek

Wow, we are almost at the halfway point! It has been another fast paced and informative week. In the mornings, we have been looking at the definition of a New Testament church and specifically how churches are planted in the book of Acts in the Bible. This has brought out some brand new insights that should be very useful to us. Monday we had seminars on “Culture Shock” and “Staying in Love on the Field”, the latter of which was extremely funny, yet informative about what couples go through under the stress of cross cultural life. Tuesday was information on men’s health (there was supposed to be a women’s health seminar but the speaker got sick—so Chara got a much needed early afternoon!). Today our European affinity group met to go over communication with churches back home. After that we got to take pictures, so if we ever come speak at your church you may see our pretty mugs from this afternoon!

Pray that we will have mental endurance as many times our brains get on overload! Thanks to all who keep us lifted up in prayer, it means the world to us!!!! 

Week 3 Midweek Update

This week, like the previous 2, is flying by!!

Over the weekend we had a group outing to a mall, where we talked to various people of different  backgrounds. This was an excellent experience in starting up conversations, and we look forward to getting even more opportunities to engage the culture around us, even in Virginia.

We started the week with sessions on anthropology, specifically looking at several of the cultural differences we will experience overseas. We also looked at "culture shock," a common occurrence for virtually all cross cultural workers, as well as how to minimize it.

Although the food is very good, we were ready for a small break, so yesterday after class we checked out one of the vehicles and went to Walmart to load up on munchies as well as a welcome stop by Chick-fa-lee!

Today was worldview training, and we attended separate trainings for the two worldviews we will find most prevalent in our part of the world.

We continue to be amazed and appreciative of the incredible training and preparation we are receiving. Continue to pray against attacks from the enemy and that our faith and trust may grow stronger each day!

Week 2 Midweek Update

We have had an incredible week thus far. Dr. Tom Eliff (president of the IMB) came and spoke for 2 days on developing a passion for prayer. The challenge he gave us is that we must be WITH God, not just simply trying to do things for Him. It is extremely easy to get busy for God and neglect spending time in prayer, and when that happens our hearts become dull. Prayer is truly at the heart of any work we seek to do for God, because our first priority must be to align ourselves so that we are not simply on a parallel track to God's will, but we are actually chugging along on His railroad track!

Mixed into that teaching have been classes on things like goal development, benefit package, and some other odds and ends.

Today we spent some time discussing the difficulty in the transition process, and we were reminded that the first few weeks of service overseas may cause anxiety and confusion for a little while, until we settle into a routine. It was great to hear that everyone deals with that, so if we do we won't feel like we are the only ones.

I continue to be both humbled and amazed at the amount of support the SBC provides to those called to serve, much of which comes from the donations of churches who probably can barely afford to give financially but understand the incredible harvest that will come about if they do.

On top of that, the staff here is incredibly supportive and see their roles as ministry. Even one of the cafeteria workers we have gotten to know has given us tremendous encouragement for our Christian walk, which is awesome!

My prayer is that we will both absorb and become everything that God wants us to be so we can do everything He wants us to do!

Pray that we will:
1) intentionally pursue Christ passionately each day as priority #1
2) with the rest of our day, seek to absorb as much great information and equipping as we can.

FPO Week 1 Recap

Wonderful yet a little nervewracking are the best 2 ways to describe our first week at orientation! Other than a small weather related delay at the Atlanta airport, we made it to Virginia safely. We got settled into our quad shortly after arriving on Monday night (we are in a building with 4 apartments). "The Farm" as some refer to it is about 7 miles from the nearest town, but we're enjoying the secluded environment. There are approximately 140 trainees (some short term, some long term) and we've gotten to know some wonderful people. We were in meetings good portions of the day on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday on everything from child safety to spiritual preparation. We also have assigned tasks, with David on the Cross Cultural Worship Team and Chara on the Library Team. We're excited about what God has planned for next week, stay tuned for more and send up a prayer if you think about us!

What have we been doing??

Well . . . the better question is, what haven't we been doing? We have sold David's truck, worked on our house,  preached and presented our missions presentation at Pine Forest Baptist Church near Beaumont, TX, and visited with our family as well as retired missionaries.

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind, but we are looking forward to the new challenge that awaits us 1 week from Monday, when we fly to Virginia for Field Personnel Orientation (FPO). Stay tuned for more . . .

What is the Gospel?

We know that some visitors to this site may be confused about the Gospel, so here is an imaginary situation to help you understand it better:

Let's imagine one day you willingly drove through a school zone going 100 miles per hour, killing an innocent child.

You go before the judge and say, "You know, I helped hundreds of children throughout my life. Can you just let this one fault slide?"

Only a corrupt judge would do that, right? 

A good judge would sentence you to either life in prison or maybe even the death penalty.

Let's say you got the death penalty and are lying on the gurney about to get lethal injection, when suddenly that same judge stepped up and said, "I love you so much I am going to take your place!"

If you ALLOWED him to take your place, would it change the way you lived going forward? You probably would spend your life going around the country and helping to prevent innocent kids from being hit in school zones, right?

Well, that is similar to what God wants to do for you. You have sinned (broken God's laws), right?

-- Have you ever lied?

-- Have you ever stolen anything?

-- Have you ever taken God's name in vain?

There's others too . . .

All it takes is one sin to be a sinner, and after you die, you must give an account to God for every sin!

You may ask, "God, can't you just let it slide?" A corrupt judge certainly would, but not a good judge.

A good judge would require that you pay for your sins in hell.  

But God took off the judge's robe, came down in the person of Jesus, lived a perfect life (never sinned once) and suffered on a cross to take the punishment for ALL your sins -- 100%.

But here's the catch: He won't force you to accept it. He waits for you to repent willingly and turn to Him in faith, and then He will forgive you and apply your sins to the cross in exchange for Christ's perfect righteousness.

So spend some time thinking about your sin, and then think about what you will tell God when you stand before Him.

There is still time to turn!

Should you decide to make the u-turn and receive Christ as your Lord and Savior, pray this simple prayer:

Jesus, I am sorry for my sins and I trust that Your work alone on the cross is sufficient to forgive me. I trust You with my life from this day forward!

How's the weather???

Novosibirsk sits in a humid continental climate, which means it has warm summers and cold winters. Whereas temperatures can go as high as 95 degrees Fahrenheit during the summer, they have been known to drop as low as minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit in winter (although these extremes generally only occur a few times per year). Snowfall is generally light and steady, with snow falling about half of winter days. Sun is also quite common even during the winter, although the temperatures tend to be a little higher when it is cloudy and snowy. Although we know the weather will be much different from what we are typically used to in Texas, we know that the God who calls will also provide the grace and strength we will need to develop new routines. However, we can always use additional prayer for the transition to the new climate!