Preparing for Departure

Well friends, the time for our departure from Oklahoma is approaching very, very rapidly! Our plan is to leave tomorrow (Thursday) at about 5am. We've been spending the last couple of weeks either packing, selling, or giving away things! We're on the home stretch now and are cleaning out the house we've been renting for the past year.

This Saturday marks our one year anniversary - it's been a wonderful year! We have loved living here together in Rush Springs and getting to know so many great people. The brethren here at Rush and the surrounding communities will always hold a very special place in our hearts. We're so thankful for all the love and support they've given us - especially as we prepare to leave for East Tennessee.

 We've had some hot, dry weather here in OK. The temperature has been 100˚ or above for the past month, and hasn't been below 95 since May 31st! Crazy stuff! You definitely need to keep some water nearby when you're working! We also haven't had much rain to speak of almost all year, so the fire-danger is VERY high and the farmers are all being hit hard. Please pray for the people of this area as they deal with all of this!

We also would be grateful if you would keep us in your prayers as we make our trip to Tennessee. We will be stopping in Mississippi to visit one of our supporting congregations and some friends along the way, so we are planning to arrive in TN on Monday. We'll be pulling a trailer with our belongings and hauling a bunch of frozen beef that was a gift from Lee's parents with us, so we have quite a load of blessings! A big "thank you" to our brother-in-law Scott for making this snazzy bed-cover for our truck!

 Of course we have mixed feelings about leaving... On one hand, we're sad to be leaving family and friends, and it will be hard to say goodbye to them. We'll miss you all terribly!

How we feel about saying goodbye :(

 But on the other hand, we are so happy and excited about this opportunity we have to go to school together and learn more about God's amazing Word! Thank you to each of our supporters for making this possible.

How we feel about going to school together! :)

 We look forward to meeting a lot of new friends and learning some truly valuable lessons during our time in Tennessee and we feel confident that our loving God will continue to bless us as He already has SO abundantly! What a wonderful Father we have! 

May you all have a wonderful day in His service!

Packing!

Today marks 6 weeks and 2 days from our scheduled departure date! Lately, I've been sorting through our things and trying to decide what we need to throw away, what we need to sell, and what we need to keep and pack! 

You'd think that with us being married for just under a year, we wouldn't have much extra stuff to get rid of, but it's surprising how small things can really add up! So many wonderful people have given and loaned us things while we've lived here and it's been great! But we need to pare things down a bit for our move. :)

We've been able to get some banana boxes from Walmart for our packing, which has been really nice. Nothing like free packing supplies!

 We are really starting to get more and more excited as our time to leave draws closer. We have been so blessed to live here in Oklahoma for our first year of marriage. I've loved getting to be close to Lee's family and getting to know them. The brethren here have been so good to us and we are sad to say goodbye, on one hand. On the other hand, though, we have so many wonderful opportunities stretching out before us and we know that this time spent at school will help us grow in many, many ways.

Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for our move and wrap things up here. We'll try to keep things up to date here on our blog as events come and go!

In Him,

Julia

Blessed Beyond Measure (A Look at God's Providence in My Life)

As the time for our departure draws ever closer (T-Minus 64 days until Operation Move officially commences) I am reminded of how great our God truly is. For many years I have prayed that I might be a more effective worker for God. Now that He has opened this great and wide door (1 Corinthians 16:9), I look back at how He has prepared me for this new adventure. 

In November of 2006, I was approached by a kind older lady about preaching the gospel at this small congregation about 12 miles south of where I lived. I agreed, thinking that this was only to be a "part-time and temporary" arrangement. On January 7, 2007 I delivered my first sermon to the Midway church of Christ. They asked me back the next Sunday, and the following Sunday after that. Eventually I figured out that they meant to keep me. I have been there ever since. God truly blessed me by allowing me this opportunity to grow and learn. 

During this time I became very involved in online study and outreach efforts. I eventually came to serve as an administrator to two interactive study forums: The Preacher's Files, and the Bible Truth Forums (now thechurchofChrist.ws). Through these forums the gospel is taught to thousands of people all over the world, plus swords are sharpened through discussion with fellow Christians and debate with unbelievers. My sword started out rather dull, but it sure has been sharpened (Proverbs 27:17). 

While praying for opportunities to serve, I was also praying for a partner to walk with me in this life; God provided. I met Julia first through her mother, Joy, and she found me through the Bible Truth Forums. Joy got to know me through my writing and through direct discussion with me. The forum also served as the first line of communication between Julia and myself. While we would eventually find other means of communication, the forum provided an essential link between a girl in Africa and a boy in Oklahoma.

Now we flash forward, preparing to enter an intense two year training, and of course our God has blessed us in this regard. Our fundraising went remarkably well, and we have now reached our goal! This is a truly wonderful feeling. While the spiritual aspect is the most important, we do need to eat, to sleep, and to cover ourselves. It is a calm and peaceful feeling knowing that these needs will be met.

Needless to say, my God has been mindful of me! His wonderful providence is seen clearly, and if this much is visible to me now, I can't wait to see what else He has in store for us. 

-Lee

A Good Start

We are off to a wonderful start in our preparations for school! The encouragement we have received from brethren all over the world has truly made us feel very, very blessed. Knowing that so many are praying for us and supporting us is an incredibly humbling feeling.

Raising financial support has gone so well for us thus far. You know, sometimes preachers, preacher students, missionaries, etc. get discouraged - especially about fundraising. There's this inward struggle that goes on that is often very difficult for many to deal with. It has a lot to do with perception....

See, most people have a sense of decent pride and want to provide for their own. No one wants to feel (or have others look at them) like this:

There's also the worry that you don't want people to think of you like this:

No one wants to be seen as a beggar and no one wants to be viewed as someone just "in it for the money." Of course we realize there are some people out there who may really be in it for the cash, but most aren't...   and I would say that most of the time, no one is thinking that about us! But sometimes those feelings might start to creep in. What do you do when you're concerned about projecting the right image... when you want to be a pure Light on the Hill and you know at the same time that you need to eat? What helps keep our perspective in its proper place most of all?

"good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over"

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.       Matthew 6:24-33 

 God has truly taken care of us, and we don't need to worry! We are dedicated to trying our hardest to serve Him and He has blessed us so richly! People from so many places have showered blessings on us and we are awed by the love of our brothers and sisters in Christ. So THANK YOU! Thank you for helping us in our desire to go to school and for easing our burdens. Thank you for loving us and for allowing us to forget those worries that spring up when we are anxious because of what people might think. Thank you for your many prayers on our behalf.

We are excited about starting this journey and look forward to sharing our story with you all!

In Christ,

Lee and Julia