Gearing Up

After several months of searching, God has provided a replacement vehicle for our family – one surpassing what we imagined possible. While it was initially outside our price range, God also provided a local brother-in-Christ who is a gifted negotiator: Victor knocked over 15% off the initial ask! The acquisition involved more red tape and hoop-jumping than expected – tax documents, cash payments, national holidays and proofs-of-residence combined to drag things out for nearly two weeks. Yet everything came together in the end, the new vehicle is helping in several encouraging ways… and the old minivan ended up serving another missionary couple for in-town travel.

The new Suburban has quickly made an impact, including on a recent visit from Amy’s parents. After Rob’s retirement from over 35 years of ministry in the pastorate, he and Laurie spent nearly a month with us in Chihuahua – eating good food, seeing local sights, and participating in everyday life in a way shorter trips do not usually permit. We acquired the new rig midway through their visit, and the very next day took it out to Cuauhtémoc – a nearby town with a museum sharing the history of the local Mennonite population. We also took advantage of other fun opportunities during their visit, like Amy’s dad sharing in the MK school’s chapel – and in general, richly enjoyed the blessing of this extended combination pastoral/familial visit.

In late February, a new ministry opportunity for Amy came to light. The mission’s MK school teaches in English, and some local believers’ kids come to get an education while developing English fluency. Two elementary students have faced particular challenges with that learning curve, and the school sought help in getting them through those adjustments. Amy is one of two ladies who answered this call, and has found that she greatly enjoys diving back in to the intricacies of Culture and Language Acquisition (CLA)! The students are responding enthusiastically to her help, and we are excited to note interest and gifting aligning for Amy in this area. We look forward to seeing how the Lord uses her along similar lines both now and in ministry to come.

For my part, I (Jordan) continue training in my capacities both as a Spanish CLA consultant and a member of the field’s Child Safety Team (CST). On the former front, only two more evals remain before I’ll be eligible to graduate as a full consultant. The biggest delay has been availability of learners projected to test at the lower levels I still need… a couple more have graduated since our last update, and another handful are on the verge of doing so as well! What a great ‘problem’ to have. Additionally, as Amy and I take on more responsibility with the CST, I have started working toward formal certification on seminary-level material in this area. We trust the Lord uses it to equip us well for this incredibly important ministry.

At one point, our family hoped to visit Las Moras this week. The same security issues which required our family to postpone that trip have kept the Nahuatl church planting team out of the mountain village since last fall, along with several members of that community. This is a challenging time for the team – no real answer is possible when asked “when will you go back?” For now, we enjoy seeing our Nahuatl brother Efraín while he is here at the Bible school, and it has been wonderful to see coworkers Katie and Rachel again while in the area. Team member Ryan Kurvits has been a particular blessing to me, as he (as well as two other missionaries in transition, Emily and Josiah) have worked with me on various ministry projects – making a big impact while waiting on the Lord’s timing for heading back.

We have experience with the Lord changing our plan in unanticipated fashion, and one application through our family’s years of ministry has been repeated delays to Midwest travel plans. Three times since 2012, we had specific dates scheduled for seeing ministry partners in states like Missouri, Wisconsin, and Michigan… and each time, those plans had to be set aside for reasons outside our control. Guess what?! It’s time to take another shot at it! This summer, Lord willing… we will hit the road in the aforementioned Suburban, and spend some long-anticipated time encouraging one another face-to-face with how God has been at work these past several years. Watch this space for more – we’ll reach out again soon to coordinate with you who live in that area, and see when and how we might be able to connect.

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For Prayer:

• Summer travel involves a lot of planning and expenses. Pray for God’s blessing on this long-anticipated time of re-connection with partners and friends, and for just the right amount of preparation while we continue focusing on the ministries God has granted us here today.
• God’s provision of our family’s Suburban is a major answer to prayer, from timing to logistics to finances… and even the old vehicle’s transfer to another missionary couple for whom it can be a blessing in its current condition.
• As always, please pray for the Nahuatl community and church in the circumstances insecurity has generated for them. Today we ask for particular prayer for our coworkers on the Nahuatl church planting team during an extended time of transition and uncertainty – they are resting in the Lord, but this has not been easy (and for the kids, it hits differently as well). Join us in praying for Amos, Dante, Katie, Kirsten, Rachel, Ryan, and Via.
• We have asked for much prayer for family health, and God’s response leaves us so grateful. Titus’ sleep and Amy’s recurring mono are both clearly improving (albeit slowly), and pain-free Joel has ‘graduated’ from doctor visit. Please continue praying for each of us, and also for Lily who is experiencing multi-week nausea.
• There is, as always, a lot going on in our respective spheres of ministry. May the Lord strengthen and equip us to His service in these tasks, and keep our eyes firmly on Him above all else.
• Two large rounds of CLA evaluations are coming up, one in March and another in May. Please pray for the learners; it’s hard to not be nervous even when knowing these checks are tools for their benefit rather than representations of success or failure. Pray for the consulting team as these large groups of evals add a lot to our plates in a short chunk of time, and we desire to be faithful both in this ministry and in the others God has granted us.