August 2015 Prayer Link +

 . . . an addition to our August 2015 Prayer Link

Cultural Training

There is so much to share with you this month that we just can't fit it in our regular Prayer Link (what an awesome problem, right?).  Right now as I write this we are in Kansas City, MO for what has been thus far incredible cultural training.  Dr. Richard Lewis has been sharing with us how to identify and think through culture in context with reaching them with the Gospel.  This wraps up today.

Jetting Across the Country

Next, we head to New Mexico, then to Virginia, then to New Mexico (what?).  I'm sure you're asking at this point, "did he not think through this when he scheduled?"  I did!  But, when two pastors call in two very different states and want you for their conferences, I'd be crazy to say no.  But what is deputation if nothing but an adventure.  Please pray for our family as this will be Eleanor first flight and we truly have no idea how she will enjoy/cope with this new way of travel.

PROJECT: Connected

The time has come to retire my Mac.  He has had a long and faithful run, but just can no longer keep up with the pace at which I run.  So much of what we do on deputation is communication/technology related and a functional laptop is a must.  We are looking for one time partners who can come along side and give towards this need.  We currently have $200 of the $1300 for the replacement.  To give go to our website.

Where Do You Call Home?

While visiting a church recently, the woman at the nursery check in desk casually asked, “So…where do you guys live?” Without missing a beat I responded, “Springfield, MO.”  At the exact same time Brennan said, “Iowa.”  The woman stared at us with raised eyebrows and I chuckled nervously.  Her question wasn’t a complicated one and it certainly sparks some questions when a married couple gives two different answers.  The truth is, this isn’t an uncommon scenario.  

We’ve been traveling most of the time for almost a year now.  We receive our mail in one state, register our car in another, and stay in a third when we’re not on the road.  To be perfectly honest, when people ask “where do you live?” I’m pretty confused about that myself.  It’s hard to tell where home is when I feel like an alien everywhere.  Our location changes by cities and sometimes states every week and each place has its own little culture shock.  At the grocery store, I find myself wandering down aisles looking like I’m lost…because I am.  I never know what to order on the menu at a local diner, and you’ll always find a GPS on our dash because we never recognize the places we’re in.  

I feel like I’m a resident of everywhere.  I have favorite restaurants and coffee places spread throughout the country.  We’ve made friends and connections in more than 30 states.  I get my hair done in a different salon every other month. I love this adventure we’re on.  I really do.  We’ve seen some wonderful places and met fantastic people.  I enjoy being on the road with my little family, but loving the adventure doesn’t make the question easier to answer.    

Sometimes this chapter of life makes the easier questions complicated to respond to.  Am I homeless? No.  Do I have a home? No.  Where do I call home? I don’t really know.  Sometimes it’s here, sometimes it’s there.  

Paul tells us in Philippians that, as believers, our citizenship is in Heaven.  When I feel like a foreigner in all places, I can rest in the fact that I know where my eternal home is.  I can trust that during my nomadic journey through deputation, I don’t have to feel out-of-place.  I’m beginning to realize that I’ve put too much security in my physical location and I’ve allowed that temporary fact to become part of my identity.  So for now, I may stumble through an answer when asked where I live, but if you ask me where I’m going I can confidently respond to that.