January, a month of hope

January flew by. I can't believe it already came and went! We had a great trip to Mexico and San Diego in the middle of the month, which I don't think I had posted about at all before we went. We headed to San Diego on January 9th and spent one night with Jesse's cousin Jerry, his wife and their baby. The next day we met Neal Pirolo and his wife Yvonne at their house with the rest of the Mexico team. This was our last big assessment before the Board of Directors for Sacred Road made their final decision whether to call us or not. We spent a week in a Mexican village taking classes about cross-cultural missions and interpersonal relationships with Neal and Yvonne. In the afternoons and evenings, we spent time with our host families, which was a new level of cultural submersion for all of us, I think. It was a beautiful week of change, growth, challenge, and excitement for us all, and Jesse and I were refreshed and overjoyed to spend time with other like-minded missionary candidates. We got to know one other couple who is going through the same process as we are to pursue long-term placement in White Swan with Sacred Road. We love Bill and Tina and can't wait to see them again this spring when the come out to Washington from Alabama. We think our personalities and priorities will mesh well on the field.
This last Wednesday, Jesse and I were waiting with anticipation for the Board meeting to take place, hoping we would hear one way or another. In the middle of our Bible study (providence!), Jesse received a phone call from Chris affirming our call to Sacred Road, which was met with excitement and wonderful support from our dear friends. The next steps: propose a budget, come up with a list of potential supporters to contact, and get moving forward! I have no idea how this road will wind and what speed our travels will be at, but I trust fully in the Lord to care for us as only He knows how. We ask for prayers for protection from the evil one, continual growth and strength for our marriage, and above all, for the gospel to be heard in White Swan and all of Native America. Let us know if you have any questions or want to be on our list of possible supporters so we can contact you!
I have pictures from our trip to Mexico and San Diego (where we spent 3 days on the tail end of the trip) but will have to post them later - I've run out of time!