Coping with Curveballs and Less than One Week Left

We have less then a week left in Western NY!   Where has the time gone?!   The past couple weeks have been very busy.

God seems to be constantly saying, "Trust me!   I've got this."   I've frequently thought of Abraham after first leaving his home and arriving in the Land of Canaan in Genesis 12.   God tells him to leave his land and relatives and to travel with his wife to a land God will eventually show him.   The passage doesn't really give a lot of detail, but I can only imagine how Abraham's conversion unfolded with family and friends as he shared God's plan.   I can only imagine his times of doubt and worry in the middle of the night.   But he goes.   He arrives, builds an altar, and praises God, calling on the Lord by name.   Happy ending.   Oh wait.   No.   There is a curveball.   The very next line, beginning in verse 10, reads, "There was a famine in the land."   Come on, God!   That's not fair!   Couldn't they have a little milk and honey?  Didn't Abraham follow Your command?   Wasn't he obedient to Your calling?   You led and showed Abraham the land, and then there is a famine.  In fact it is a pretty bad one.   "So Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, since the famine in the land was severe."   And God is saying, "Trust me!  I've got this.  Maybe this wasn't part of plan that I shared with you, but it is still part of my plan.   I have led you this far.   I'm not going to let you fall.   I will not abandon you."   And God brings even more blessings into Abraham's life, blessings that he would never have received had there not been a famine and went to Egypt. 

I am willing to bet, that had God told Abraham more, Abraham may not have said yes.  "Go and lead your family to the land I will show you (etc.) and when you get there, there will be a famine, a really bad one.   You will not be able to settle down, in fact you will have to keep on moving and go to Egypt, and I will give you even more blessings."

And then Abraham said, "Ummm....  I'm not a big fan of that follow You to a Promise Land, only to have it full of famine, and having to leave.   I have an idea...  let's do it this way...  hows 'bout I stay here with my extended family, in my comfort zone, till the famine is over, and then I'll go down.  Oh God, yeah, that makes a lot more sense."

Hmmm.... I wonder why God didn't tell Abraham about that little curveball.

Needless to say, we have encountered a good number of curveballs in the past several months,   Family losses, illnesses, home buyers falling through, etc.   God is telling us, "Trust me.  I've got this.   I have always had this.   I didn't tell you earlier about it, because I didn't want you to say no.   I didn't want you to say no to Me and the blessings I have in store for you and others.   This is not a passive-aggressive approach that I am entitled to as deity, because the purpose is not a particular utilitarian end or a manipulated outcome, but a relationship with Me.   I desire to call you more deeply into My love, to know just how far you can trust in me.   I am your safety net, not your plans or your sense of control, not your intelligence, your jobs, your income.   Be still and know that I am God.   I am the one with you in the boat tossed by wind and waves.   I am the one kneeling by you in the agony of your gardens.   I am the one that gave you this morning's sun rise, that sent that phone call with encouragement, that put the smile on the face of your loved one that warms your heart."

Where are the curve balls in your life?   Where is God telling you, "Trust me.   I've got this"?   Please share with us, so we can pray for you!   Comment below or send us a message/ prayer request.   For the past several months we have been writing down people's prayer requests in a journal.   Everyday we pray for all the names and intentions listed in that book.

So here are some updates and our upcoming plans...

After our previous buyers fell through, we had an open house on August 7.   The following day, we had an offer.   The day after, an inspection.   Two days later, the bank did their inspection.   We have an estimated closing date of mid-September.   And the price...  exactly what we have been asking God for in prayer.

We finally got everything out of our house.   All of our belongings fit in the small Amish shed that sits on my parent's property minus a couple things that we are keeping in their house.   Everything else has either been sold or donated.

Thank you to everyone who came to the Praise and Worship Night on August 10!   It is always a blessing to praise our loving God with you.   We want to thank St. Gregory the Great for hosting the event and for Patrick in maintenance in helping with the set up.   Thank you Kevin, Jeff, Carrie, Dan and Tom for sharing your musical talents with us!   It is always a grace filled joy to work and pray with you!   Thank you spouses, families, and friends who brought snacks and refreshments!   Thank you Sarah for putting together the flyer and bookmarks with our information.

My parents have return from their 6 week / 500 mile trip hiking the Camino across northern Spain.   They come full of stories and encounters with Christ on the trail, at meals, going over mountain peaks and down into dark valleys.   Their hearts burned within them with each act of generosity, kindness, coincidence and blessing that seemed to be sent their way by a loving Father joyfully leaving gifts to be discovered by His precious children.

Days have been filled trying to get time in with family and friends.  It is impossible to place priorities of time spent with some over others.   We wish we had more time to spend with everyone.   It has been hard having to limit play dates, cups of coffee, and meals with so many dear friends.

We have been getting well-visits and check-ups in with doctors, dentists, optometrists, and mechanics.   Plans and preparations are underway for packing and traveling with enough clothes for a family of 7.

On Sunday, August 28, there will be a commissioning mass at 12:30 pm at St. Gregory the Great Parish in Williamsville, NY.   The family will receive a blessing from the parish and Aron (8 years old) will receive his First Communion.   We are so excited that Aron gets to receive this spiritual nourishment in Eucharist as we are sent forth.

Tuesday, August 30 we leave Western New York and will spend the rest of the week visiting Maria's family in southern Ohio.   Labor Day Weekend we will join more of Maria's family in Indianapolis as we celebrate the wedding of her cousin, John, and Sarah.

After the wedding, we will spend some family time traveling down to Louisiana and the headquarters of Family Missions Company.   Training (AKA Intake) begins Monday, September 12.   We plan on moving in and settling in a couple days prior.

We look forward to continuing to share our journey with you.   Our goal is continue to write blogs on roughly a weekly basis.

Looking for Monthy Prayer Partners

Prayers are so important!  I have often heard visiting missionaries ask for prayers when they come to our church.  I usually just took it for granted that this would be a request and I've thought to myself, "Of course you are asking for prayers.   It is kind of a God thing and it part of your job to encourage people to pray."

Needless to say, my perspective has changed.   We are dependent upon God and those that He has brought into our lives.   God has made us for Himself, and He made us for each other and companionship.  We were made to support each other.  From the very beginning, after creating man, God declared, "It is not good for the man to be alone," (Genesis 2:18).

St. Paul explains in greater depth how we need each other, "But as it is, there are many parts, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I do not need you,' nor again the head to the feet, 'I do not need you.'   So that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same concern for one another.  If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy," (1 Corinthians 12: 20-21, 25-26).

Many of you have assured us of your prayers.  Some have even committed to pray for us daily.   Thank you!  We can hardly begin to express how truly grateful we are!

We would like to extend an invitation to have you partner with us as members of our prayer team.   In the left sidebar we created a list where individuals, families, or groups can commit to praying for us in a particular way once a month.  Now of course this does not mean that you shouldn't pray for us more frequently.   But that once a month you will keep in us in prayer in a special way.   Maybe you decide to pray for us the 5th of every month, or maybe the 12th.   Maybe there is a significant day of the month that you would like to pray.   Or if you are interest but there isn't a particular day, we can randomly assign one to you.

On you day of the month, it is up to you to decide how best to pray for us.   It could be as simple as mentioning us in prayer during grace at your families dinner table, or to have us mentioned in you children's bedtime prayers.  (Don't ever underestimate the power of a child's prayer!)   You could decide to offer in prayer for 30 minutes on your day, or to go to a holy hour, or mass, or to pray a rosary for us.   Or perhaps you decide to fast for that day or make some other sacrifice.   It is up to you to decide what is best for you and your situation.

If you are interested, you can let us know by sending us message in the "Send us a message or prayer request" section on the blog.   You can also send us a personal message on Facebook.   Be sure to let us know on which day of the month you are interested.  Days of the month that not taken are labeled "available."   When you take a day, we will replace "available" with your name.   If for some reason you do not wish to have your name listed but you are still want to sign up for a day, let us know in your message and we will put down "anonymous prayer partner."

Here is a month view of the calendar...

Remembering God

First things first, we need to give a huge shout out to the Niagara Falls Mom's Group and Catholic Women of Buffalo for hosting a fundraiser for us during their picnic.   Your generosity has blessed us with an additional $1000!   That is approximately one month's worth of living expenses for our family!   We would be amiss if we didn't mention all the left over cupcakes!   That donation of sugar will last our kids about 48 hours!   :)

So don't you love it when God calls you out?  In our last blog, we shared about being grateful and trusting in God even in difficult situations and in moments of loss.   Why does it often seem that God's grace is so evident in the larger situations like the passing of a beloved family member, but in the smaller situations, it is so much easier to become irritated and disheartened?   Why is it so much easier to be robbed of our joy, faith, and hope by the small stuff?  We learned early last week that the buyers that we thought were strong, were actually unable to get a loan.   After looking into a variety of options, they had to back out.   Needless to say I felt a little frustrated, and perhaps even a little duped.   Everything was coming together so nicely, and then... boom... this happens.   What was I saying about being thankful?   How quickly I forget!   How quickly do I let frustrations and anxieties take over!   Is not our God trustworthy?   Has He not put so many pieces together for us so far?   We need to remember!

How many times did the Chosen People, the first to hear and to respond to God's invitation, forget all that the Lord has done for them, how He freed them from Egypt, parted the Red Sea, fed them manna, gave them water, and the list goes on and on.   A moment later, they grumble as soon as things get a little tough, or don't go exactly has they has planned.   I am no different.   I need to remember!

Throughout the Scriptures, each time God initiates something new, especially a covenant, there is a particular formula that it follows.   It always begins, "Remember you can trust Me.   Look what I have already done for you."

"Abram put his faith in the LORD, who attributed it to him as an act of righteousness. He then said to him, 'I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as a possession,'"Genesis 15: 6-7.

"I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery," Exodus 20:2.

"Now then, speak thus to my servant David, Thus says the LORD of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to become ruler over my people Israel. I was with you wherever you went, and I cut down all your enemies before you. And I will make your name like that of the greatest on earth,'" 2 Samuel 7:8-9.

How often I forget all the good He has done for me.  

One of my prayers for well over a year now, ever since we began to really look into FMC, has been that the Lord would reveal to me and free me from whatever holds me back from knowing His love and following His will.   To be honest there have been days when I really wonder how stupid and crazy is this prayer.   It is a guaranteed way to see dark areas of my life that I do not like.   And yet God's love is still in these place.  "Where sin increased, grace overflowed all the more," Romans 5:20.   I have been praying for the grace to be detached, to be detached from our possessions, security, comforts, our home.   And I never thought I would be so ready to sell our house.   I never thought I would come to see our home as something that could hold us back from doing God's will.

So please join us and pray, pray that the perfect buyer comes quickly, that our home will be a blessing to whoever the next owner may be.   Pray that we would be free from whatever holds us back.

On a much lighter note....  Guess who now has their passports and are free to travel outside of the country?

Also for those in Western New York, please come and join us for a night of praise and worship!