Overhaul to the Brickey Abode

So we're trying to get things organized for the great tasks ahead. We have finally started setting up our office. It was once a nursery, then a guest room, and then a dumping ground. For so long we dubbed the office "THE ROOM," dun dun DUN! If it was in "The Room," consider it lost until the next overhaul. Instead of just throwing all the files back into the file cabinet (a great temptation at this point), we're trying to go through them and throw out what's not needed. AGH! If LIFE WOULD JUST PAUSE FOR A MOMENT, then this all might seem possible! Now NOTHING has a home, and it's all in boxes in the new "Office." K, so we're making minute progress every day, so I shouldn't exaggerate too much. I'm really excited for how cleaned out our material lives will be by the time we leave (advice: move every few years to keep the clutter down), but the process is a little messy. I humbly admit that this job of cleaning out the office would have been done long ago had I actually felt motivated to do so. As it once was said, "Gillian, you are no domestic goddess." My next project is the attic and all the billions of baby clothes and boxes of memorabilia we have collected...maybe this is Freudian denial! I dread the attic more than the office, and am therefore using the office as a roadblock to the attic. Think it would fly in the psych ward in the institution for domesticity? Possibly. Okay, so I'm going to start working on the office. Pray for me. It ain't gonna' be pretty :).

Love,
Gillian

Raising Support, or Begging for Money?

Last summer, when I first realized that we had to raise support for my trip to Bolivia, I was sheepish. How do I ask people to send me on my own trip? God made a few things clear to me.

1. It wasn't "my own trip." I was going for the purpose of serving those people in Bolivia and helping to build a washroom facility.
2. There are people out there who want a chance to be involved in humanitarian ministry, and I was one opportunity for them to do that.
3. My friends and family love me and know my heart, and they want to see that God-given desire fulfilled.

So, last night I felt the old feelings of sheepishness rise up again as Justin and I drafted our first support letter, but God has reminded me of these lessons I learned last summer. This is a MUCH bigger trip. We have to give others the opportunity to be part of this ministry.

It's been a pleasure supporting a couple of missionary friends in prayer and support these past two years because they have been so great at communicating what's happening "over there." Justin and I will strive to follow their example and stay so connected with our supporters too, so they can see what their money and prayers are doing in Peru, and so we can stay involved in their lives in the States despite the distance.

Here are the numbers we're looking at:

$37,000 for outbound expenses like airfair, bumper salary, one-time set up costs etc.

$3100 for our monthly expenses like rent, utilities, transporation, food, clothing, schooling for the boys, etc.

Our first goal is $6100 by March 1 (part of the $37,000 outbound budget) to cover the cost of training in April. Yes, that's right, we're aiming to go to Guatemala in April for 3 weeks training as a whole family. Please pray for us as we seek to reach this first goal.

These are big numbers, but God has given us SO MUCH peace about it, it's amazing. My logical mind says that I should be floored, but I'm not. We actually were expecting a higher budget, so this is good! I must go and tend to da boyz. Much love to you, and thank you for keeping us in your prayers...you are certainly in ours!

Love in <><,
Gillian
PS. Please pray for other missionaries in this process of support raising as well. We know of one family in particular that is struggling with a sick child and many questions. Please pray for discernment each and every day through this process.

Budget

We now have our preliminary budget, and things look as expected. Justin and I have had such profound peace about the dollar amount. We know this process of support raising and missions itself is hard at times, but I look at it as one of those fulfillingly challenging experiences in our lives like being married and having children. The fulfillment far outweighs the challenges, even though the challenges are great at times. You know? We've had a slightly humorous hiccup today. In August we're scheduled to go to a three week training session with our children in Thailand. Justin was looking at airfare to and from when he realized a few things. Note that there is an earlier training session in Guatemala (Justin thought it was in Costa Rica), but we'd have to raise support in short order, and it's not as close to our departure date as Food for the Hungry would like. Here's the email he sent to our placement rep:
________
Lisa,
We were looking at flights to Bangkok and Costa Rica when loud bells went off in our heads. This happened first when we saw that getting to Costa Rica costs half as much as Thailand. This is NOT the thing that made us consider the earlier phase 2 [training]. The thing that did it was looking at a 16 hour flight form Atlanta to Bangkok with a 3 year old and a 2 year old. The next thing that sank in was the 12 hour time difference. Our jet lag is manageable, the day/night swap jet lag of a 2 and 3 year old is something to be taken seriously. The visual image that comes to mind is NOT pretty.

:) We have not heard back from our placement rep as of yet, but don't be surprised to hear that we're now going to Guatemala April. I just pray we can raise the funds to do so. It truly would make the training MUCH easier on the whole family.

Much Love,
Gillian

The Countdown Begins

We have set up our office and are getting organized for support raising. We are very excited to see what the Lord is going to do in our lives through this process. A verse that has stuck in my head over the past two months is Psalm 37:4 - "Delight youself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart". Over the past year we have truly been delighting ourselves in him and he has given us the desire to humbly serve him. I have never felt more fulfilled in my life than now. It is great to have the hope of sharing God's love with our friends in Peru. Now that I think about it, you may want to look at a slideshow of my trip to Peru and Gillian's trip to Bolivia. Click on the links below.

Justin's trip to Peru - May 2003 (Only a few of the pictures)
Gillian's trip to Bolivia - July 2004 (I am still working on this one)