Visas, Octopus, and a Party

We have a huge answer to prayer - our visas have come in! It took a total of about 10 days from the time I sent it in to the time they were sent back to my parent's house. We were told to expect the process to take about 6-8 weeks. I think that if you include the work done in Indonesia, it probably did take several weeks. But we are so thankful that this last step has already been completed. Please pray for the rest of our team to be able to get their visas in a timely manner. God has been so gracious!

We ate octopus last night! Kadin and I just ate a small tentacle. We were at the Grand Buffet, eating out as a school team. Our family had never been to such an interesting buffet! It was a Chinese restaurant, but it included everything from pizza to octopus. The food was great, and it was fun to simply hang out as a team. After dinner, we went to NICS' home office. It was neat to see the place where the folks we have been talking or emailing with work. They have a wall with a map of the world and pictures of the NICS schools. I included a picture of Kadin and Erin looking at the map.

Today is Kadin's birthday! Erin has worked the party out for today. Just a few minutes ago we saw him and his friends having a party. I will post a few pictures below. All week long the kitchen staff have come out clanging pans and singing happy birthday to the (un) lucky person in the room. Tonight, the staff will have a small cake for Kadin when they " surprise " him. Even some of our Bandung team got Kadin a gift!

PFO is going strong, and we are learning a lot. We come home exhausted each night.

Below are some pictures - from flying kites to the party Kadin had with his new friends. Thanks for your prayers and support! God bless you and have a great weekend! -mekj

Live from PFO

Not really, but we wanted to update you on what's going on with our family at PFO....

First, Kadin and Jace are loving life. We thought they would not want to be separated, but they have enjoyed the time apart. We have seen Kadin interacting with the other kids in his class, and it has been fun to watch! Jace too, loves his teacher and class- during the initial parent meeting, he sat next to his teacher instead of us! So this has been a huge answer to prayer- Erin and I can relax knowing the kids are not just in good hands, but that they are loving the time as well. (We think the plan is to keep the kids so busy that they are plumb worn out by the time we get them back in the evening.....)

So with the kids gone, it's kinda like PFO is like a date instead of lectures for Erin and I :-)
For us, we have met folks we have talked with and emailed over the last five months. Within a minute of arriving, Mrs. Parks, our first contact who helped place us in Indonesia, came up to us and we met. It was fun to finally meet in person! On Tuesday, we met Pete, our director. Jace went up to him immediately and gave him a huge hug! It was cute.

We have also met our fellow Bangdung teammates, as well as starting friendships with other couples/singles. The classes have actually been useful, and we are learning a lot. We have learned how to pronounce "Bandung" correctly, too, thanks to the three staff that have come to help at PFO as well.

I started to write this last night, but instead of finishing, I started talking. Our host family has been so gracious, and last night the husband and I just hung out and talked. It was a blast talking with a fellow believer and learning from each other! Our hosts have two wonderful boys, and it has been fun to watch all four kids interact!

We have so much more to talk about, but for now I need to go. We thank everyone for your prayers and support. Have a great rest of the week! -mekj

This is Kinda Long....

Tomorrow we leave for PFO in Mississippi (this is our missionary training for two weeks)! That means half the summer is already over! Yikes! I don’t feel nearly ready for that history class, but I am trying to get some knowledge crammed into my cranium!

I have to recommend a book- Give them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus by Elyse Fitzpatrick. My mom has read the book already, and I have just started it. It is all about NOT raising “good kids”, but kids transformed by the reality of the Gospel. The author asks a good question- how is our “Christian” parenting different from any other parenting that teaches good morals? If you are a parent raising kiddos, this book is a keeper!


Here’s the next thing God taught me(through a Tim Keller sermon) recently: How to see anger in a Biblical light. I don’t often think of God as an angry God. Our society certainly likes to focus on God being a loving God. But if you love someone, you will get angry at things that threaten them. God is the same way. He’s angry at the cancer of sin in our lives. He is still a God of love, but the Bible is clear- God is “…slow to anger, and abounding in love.” (Ps. 103:6; Ex. 34:6) Christ, too, got angry- at the money changers in the temple, and the unbelieving religious rulers to name a few examples. (John 2, and Mark 3) My problem is that I tend to be angry at the person and not the sin. Or that I let my anger spill over into excess or that I want to act upon my anger instead of letting God handle the situation. Keller had a great soul-searching thought- “If you look at the things in your heart that most anger you and ask this question- What am I defending? You will find the answer to what your heart loves the most.” (Because the things we love are the things we defend and get angry about.) Keller points out that individualistic societies put too much emphasis on expressing anger, and communal or moralistic societies tend to tell people to suppress it. Only the Bible has a radically different view- that anger is good, but can be destructive when misused. Even Paul writes in Ephesians “In your anger, do not sin.” I need to recognize anger is not necessarily wrong, but I must be sure to focus it on the right thing- like the sin in my own life. 


So while we have been in Texas, God’s been working! What a surprise! I wish I could have great nuggets of wisdom to share all the time, but honestly, my walk with God is not always that exciting! I have prayed that I would grow closer to God throughout this journey. Sometimes I feel like he is stretching me, and other times I feel like I am in a fog. That doesn't mean God is unfaithful- it just means we walk by faith and not by sight- or how things feel. As we have told folks about our move to Indonesia, people asked if we had peace about the decision. And at first, we would tell people about the peace we had. But to be honest, this journey has not always been peaceful- for a variety of reasons- and peace is not what we seek. I am sure Christ didn't feel “peaceful” in the garden of Gethsemane before the Cross. On one level he had a settled–ness about his obedience, but on a very human level, he was stressed! So we don’t look for peace as an indicator of God’s will- but he does give us an assurance that is hard to describe. Perhaps that is what Paul talks of in Philippians when he discusses the “peace that passes understanding…” It’s a different type of peace than what we normally think of….. 


Thanks for listening to my ramblings! It’s fun to see how God is working in our lives! Let us know how we can pray for you and how God is working in your life as well! We appreciate your prayers and support. The time is short now. We are excited and sad at the same time! Ready and not so ready! Please continue to pray for the kids as they adjust to being in multiple places every few weeks. Pray too that the visa process will continue smoothly. I was called today and had to send a copy of our itinerary. I guess that means they are working on it!  God bless and have a great weekend. Church family- please know how much we miss you all! Sundays are the most difficult days because we are reminded about our family back in New Mexico. Who knew you could miss Crownpoint?? Take care everyone! -mekj

Visa News

Greetings from Corinth, Texas!  We went to ABC in the morning, and then traveled to Corinth Sunday afternoon.  As we headed toward Coleman, we could see dark clouds on the horizon.  We figured the storm would miss us, but by the time we reached Cross Plains, it had started to rain.   By the time we reached the interstate, it was pouring!  A few miles later, we thought there was an accident ahead- all the cars were slowing down, and it looked like the right hand lane was completely stopped.  It turned out that everyone was slowing down because you couldn't see ahead because the rain was coming down so heavily.  We slowed to about 20 miles per hour and trudged along.  The downpour was one of the worst I have driven in.  (the worst was probably in Florida, a few years back when my brother Marty and I actually had to pull over and wait the storm out.)  Luckily, we had Rain-X on the windshield! It allowed us to keep on driving as the water rolled off the glass clearly. (I highly recommend it.)  God was gracious- we made it through. 

Now for the real news- On the 14th, we received our Telex Visa!  This means the long-awaited visa process could be started.  On  Saturday, we completed the paperwork.  Pete, the director, was helpful in answering questions, and the school sent examples of how to fill out all the blanks.  Hopefully, we did it all right! The consulate in Houston should get the paperwork by Tuesday.  It will take some time for the processing, but eventually we should get our passports and visas back in a few weeks! Pray for a glitch free processing and return- we did the best we could filling out the paperwork in duplicates, but since it was our first time, I am a little fearful of having done something wrong or having left something out. God's just teaching me not to worry!  Duh!

Our family is getting excited about our next trip- to PFO (prefield orientation). We will head for Mississippi June 23.  The summer is flying by, and it has been great to see family.  We have all talked about how we miss our friends and home in NM.  Sundays seem to be the most difficult, since we are reminded of where we used to be as we worship with others.  But we can see how traveling this summer is one way God is preparing us for the final goodbye in August.  Thanks for your prayers and support.  We hope everyone is having as much fun as we are!  God bless! -mekj

The Latest

Here's an update on what has been going on.... we've been a little busy and I apologize for the delay in posting something!

On Wednesday, I arrived in San Angelo with the Uhaul. The original plan was to take the truck to Amarillo and then transport our few boxes in cars and trucks. But, needless to say, plans change! So I ended up going to San Angelo by myself on Weds. I unpacked the truck, and then on Thursday, Jim Stanley picked me at the Uhaul place. Jim was gracious enough to then take me to the radio program he was doing! I was a little surprised when he said "WE" would be on the air, but it was really cool. Jim does a weekly hour-long call-in program on KCRN in San Angelo. Sometimes he gets a lot of calls, and other times not so many. But it was neat to see the "inner" workings at a radio station, and then to be on the air with my friend! One listener even called in with a question for me! (It was about if I was just called to be a missionary, or was my wife and family called too...great question!) The folks at the radio station were some of the nicest I've met, and it was fun to be a part of the program.

Since I had a few days of time alone, I started to work on our PowerPoint presentation. Jim had told me we would have the evening service to share/present, so it was time to get to work! Thirty or so slides later, we had our presentation ready. It was a blessing to be able to share with our home church in Texas what God was doing in our lives, and how we needed their help. We will meet with the elders of the church on our return visit after PFO. (The meeting is scheduled for July 10th, tentatively.) If you want a copy of the PowerPoint, email us, and we will send you one!

I say we have been a little busy, because in reality, we are simply enjoying time with family and friends. On Monday, we were invited to have dinner with a friend from ABC. The kids swam in the pool, but had to get out once the thunder started. For the first time in weeks, San Angelo got rain! (Of course it would be the day our car gets its bi-annual cleaning!)

Lastly, I had to share a cool devotional thought I got from reading Spurgeon the other day. The devotion was on Numbers 11:21-23. Remember the story about quail in the desert? Moses was told by God that the people would eat meat. Moses, thinking like we do, wondered how he was going to provide meat for all those people. God sets Moses straight in verse 23- "Is the LORD'S arm too short?" Why do we try to do things in our own strength when we have a God that is willing and able to work through us and for us? If God has said he will do something, why do we doubt or try to do things on our own? It was a great reminder for me- God's going to provide the way, I just need to trust in him! Well, that's enough for now. One of these days I will actually try to post a little at a time instead of waiting too long! Thanks for your continued prayers. Things are moving quickly now. We should get Visa info in a few days and that will be a fun adventure! Pray too for the kids- the transition has been hard on them, and just when they are getting used to one house, we will be moving on to another. Pray for Erin and I to have wisdom through it all! Let us know how we can pray for you too! God bless! -mekj

Cheers and tears

You ever had one of those weeks that was just packed with events? That describes our last few days! On Friday, we had a lock-in with the youth of the church. (A lock-in is where the kids have to stay at the church all night, doing all sorts of activities EXCEPT sleeping...) We tried to recover our sleep on Saturday, and then on Sunday we had our goodbye dinner at Crosslands. Monday we picked up the Uhaul, packed it, and drove to Albuquerque. Before getting to Albuquerque, we had to stop by Henry and Casey's house to say good bye one last time. (They leave right near I-40, and it was a great time of fellowship!) By Tuesday, we were in Amarillo, and today I am writing you from San Angelo. We will now live in Texas with our families for the next two months before we fly out on August 4th.

 So the last week has been full of fun times, and sad times- sometimes both at the same time! (did I use the word time enough??) The lock-in was a blast, but it was kind of sad knowing it was going to be our last event with the youth! Our boys loved being at the church all night, even though they did go to sleep around 1 or 2am.

Sunday was a difficult day. We went to church, and it was difficult seeing and doing things for the last time. Erin and I found it hard to sing the praise songs without tearing up- partly because the songs are so meaningful, and mostly because we knew it would be a while before we would sing with our church family again. Then we had the big dinner after the service. It was fun talking with friends and hanging out. There was a lot of laughter and smiles at first- until they had a time of sharing after dinner had been served. This was the beginning of the end- the part we have all been dreading as a church family for months. It was touching to hear what our family had to say about us. It is hard to put into words what happened. We felt honored to be able to see how we had impacted the lives of our church family. I say church family, but in reality, our church was our family. Most of the families have watched our children grow up, and two in particular loved to spend time with them on a regular basis. We would drop the kids off and go on a "hot" date to Gallup (laugh, laugh- if you know anything about Gallup!) Another family we have known for over 20 years. We have been through a lot together! Our pastor was more than simply our preacher- he and his family became close friends. His son and Jace have become best friends over the years, and it was especially touching (read: gut wrenching-) to see the tears as the goodbyes were said. It was not all tears- folks made jokes (about me especially) and we were all thankful for the times of laughter. But there was no denying the emptiness we all felt knowing that this was our last day together. The only comfort we had was the sovereignty of God. We knew we needed to leave and walk in obedience on this new path, and our family at Crosslands knew they had to allow us to go. So we rejoiced in the way God worked, even if we were sad about having to be apart from one another. Even as I write this days later, it is hard to find words to express our feelings. It was an honor to serve, and very difficult to say goodbye. But we will meet again, and with modern technology, it is much easier to stay in contact and make the long distance between us seem shorter.

Have you ever seen the Duvall movie Get Low? (The analogy isn't perfect- but we were blessed to see what folks thought of us!)That's what I asked our church family when it was our turn to speak. Being able to see and listen to stories about how God used us in the lives of others was a privilege. I told our friends that we weren't dead yet- just going to the other ,side of the world! Another thought we had about the Sunday dinner was how great heaven will be- there won't be the need for goodbyes- we will all be together, glorifying our Lord! We ended the event with the church laying hands on us and praying for us.  Then we began the tearful hugs and last words to friends we won't see for about two years or so.  We all cried like babies, but that's okay.  I am still sad writing about all this, but there is a calm reassurance as well- to disobey and not go would be far scarier than heading to Indonesia!  So we are excited and sad at the same time.  It seems like a paradox, but it's not- don't worry, we aren't going crazy- I did that a looooong time ago!   It's late- I better close for now.

Thanks for your continued prayers!  We want to thank our family/friends out in the Thoreau area for the wonderful dinner and time we shared on Sunday.  Across the ocean, our friends in Indonesia have started getting work done on the house- things are getting ready for our arrival.  Cabinets, window screens, internet, etc. are all being worked on!  Our thanks goes out to Wendy and Courtney especially as they have encouraged, advised and helped us get the house ready!  Thanks!  We will speak at Angelo Bible Church this weekend- it's the church we grew up at- please keep that in your prayers!  I wanted to include a few pictures of the move- the kids tried to help as much as they could, and then they simply played around the truck!  God bless and good night!
--mekj

Jace wants to help!

This is Uhaul's smallest truck- a 10 footer....

Kadin helped too (he's taking a break here....)- we used about half of the space for our stuff..... 

Fun in Crownpoint

Today was our goodbye party with our church family.  It was a time of sweet and sad fellowship.  Before I post about that though, we wanted to share some pictures of the fun we had in Crownpoint.  The carnival came to town, and we figured, "When will the boys get to do this again?? " We have never gone to any of the carnivals we have seen set up across the reservation.  But we wanted to create a cool memory of Crownpoint, so we took the plunge!  It was extra fun because we got to do it with our adopted family and their grandkids. 

The boys loved this one ride, so I took a few pictures.  Kadin got sick on another flying/spinning ride and that was a whole other adventure!  We will discuss the goodbye dinner tomorrow or the next day....  I am too emotionally drained to post about it now.  We are so blessed to have a loving church family, and the chance to create memories of fun.  Thank you Lord! -mekj