It’s a wonderful, but very emotional weekend at our house! David, Melissa and their five kids are here during their final days in the US prior to boarding the plane on Tuesday at 11:00AM for Papua New Guinea, where they will serve as missionaries under Wycliffe Bible Translators. Their term is four years long, and they won’t be able to return to the US until that term has ended. On Friday, Marie prepared a “Thanksgiving” feast fit for kings! We had the whole thing….turkey and dressing, smoked deer meat (Thanks Millie and Chip!!), plus sweet corn, Mamaw’s “bean hulls,” cranberry sauce shaped like a can, and, of course, banana pudding, chocolate pie and a lot of festivity….It was a day that we wished would never end….but it did end. Now, it is Sunday afternoon and their time here is growing short. We plan to leave for Memphis on Monday, take a leisurely trip there and spend the night. On Tuesday morning, we hope to have time for a nice breakfast before we put them on the plane for their 50+hour trek to Ukarumpa. We’ve had lots of tears, hugs and plenty of love to go around. Yes, this will be difficult for both them as they go and for us as we stay behind. But, God is with us! We are all confident that this is God’s will for David and his family. And, it does this old man’s heart good to watch my kids serve the Lord with their very lives. I am really looking forward to hearing stories of how David’s group has provided the Word of God for many different people groups who will, for the first time in their lives, have a Bible in their hands in their own language and accept Christ as their Savior because they put forth the effort of translating the Bible so they can read it. I cannot begin to express how my heart is welling up with joy as I’ve watched these kids work so diligently to raise their support, then to give everything they own away and prepare for this work of love for people they have never met. Their passion is simply incredible, and it is their love for God that will see them through the dark nights when they feel all alone and discouraged. If you’re not already aware of it, any mission field is filled with those things. That is why it is so important that we pray for our missionaries! As a Dad, I have nothing but a heart full of joy and pride as I look at our kids and contemplate what they’re doing. David and Melissa, I am so very proud of you two! And, I know your Mom is, too! And, although it will be difficult to let you go on Tuesday when you board that plane, we will be able to do it because we know that God is in the midst of it all. All of our love goes with you half way around the globe as you enter this next phase of your lives in the service of Christ. We are asking our friends and family to please pray for our family as they enter this new chapter in their lives in Ukarumpa, Papua New Guinea as missionaries! Marie, David, Melissa, Drew, Vern, Jeniffer
Posted on: Sun, 07 Sep 2014 21:17:05 +0000
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