Getting Ready to Leave for Israel

Good Afternoon!

We sit today on the threshold of an incredible adventure. We leave the United States shortly to begin an extended stay in Jerusalem! We will live at and serve God at the Garden Tomb. This site may or may not be the actual site of the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Is it the place? I don't know. But, it fits in many ways the biblical description of the place.

This adventure is for us the ultimate mission trip. If you have known us long enough, you know that serving God has been our ultimate desire all of our married life. We have accomplished that in many arenas. For over six years now that arena has been Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa, Florida. We have been able to serve God by teaching and numerous roles of leadership at our church. And we have been able to do something that we thought we would never be able to do, go on the foreign mission field. Who wuld have thought that God would have chosen to use us old over the hill has beens for His glory in the back side of Africa, India, Brazil, Bolivia, Nicarauga, and now Israel? But He did and is and we are thrilled that we can still serve Him.

Yeah but, Israel is hardly a "short term" mission! No it isn't. We do come home to the U.S. for Christmas. But we go back in January and may not come home until March. Add to that the fact that we have had so little time to prepare for this trip. We thought that IF we got to go to the Garden, it would not happen before 2010. We have had just over two weeks to get ready for today. We have been busy sorthing, packing, repacking, coordinating tasks that have to go on in our absence, meeting with people who have to pick up our at home tasks, preparing to close the house, arranging for the grass to be cut, making sure neighbors know what we are doing, seeing the doctor, getting adequate prescriptions filled, trips to the dentist for both of us, and hardest of all saying goodbye.

Why on earth are you doing this? Because God has called us. We have wanted to do this for a very long time but our "wants" are not what motivates us. We believe with all our hearts that God has called us. He has certainly prepared us. He has equipped us and He has made us able. He has called and we have said yes.

And here we are ... Sunday November 2nd, 2008 and we are on the threshold of departure.

You can pray for us...

1. Pray for our children & grandchildren left behind in the U.S. and for us as we all adjust to a lengthy separation.

2. Pray for us as we adjust to a new area of ministry and as we develop relationships with fellow workers at the Garden and in Jerusalem.

3. Pray that God will use us as an instrument of His grace in the lives of everyone we meet and that we will be a blessing to them.

We are on our way... until next time; when we will say "Shalom from Jerusalem!"