Dear Family & Friends,
The
rumor is becoming a reality!!! We are
writing you to officially announce our plans to move our family to Alaska for DTS
(Discipleship Training School). God has
been calling us into mission work for some time now and the doors have finally
opened with YWAM Arctic Mercy in Homer, Alaska.
YWAM (Youth With A
Mission) is an organization the was started in 1960 and is dedicated to one
goal...…to make HIM known. To all nations, all cultures, all
people. They have bases in over 180
countries and reach millions of people.
The goal of doing a DTS is to bring us into a more intimate relationship
with God and to discover what part we have in God’s purposes for the
world.
The DTS we have signed up for will last 6
months. The first part will be a lecture
phase where we will learn more about God and how we can grow to be more
effective in serving Him. We will do
this through lectures, guest speakers, daily living in the community, and
practical training. Then we will move on
to the outreach phase. We will get the
opportunity to apply what we have learned through cross cultural experiences. This is a chance for us to meet people and to
serve them in whatever they need. This
could mean doing construction, teaching school, helping with church services,
watching children…..whatever THEY need.
We have been to Alaska and have fallen in love with
everything that this beautiful state has to offer. We have also seen the needs of the
people. There is depression during the
long and dark winters, drinking, gambling, and the breakdown of the family
unit. We truly believe that through the
training we will receive that we can bring help and hope to those that God
would bring our way. We have realized
that now is the time for us to step out of our comfort zone and truly become
the hands and feet of Jesus for those in need.
How can you help us achieve our goal to serve the
people of Alaska? PRAYER!!!!! Lots and lots of prayer!!! Pray that God will go before us as we take
our family away from family, friends, and all of the comforts of “home”. Pray for the people that will be teaching and
training us. Pray for the opportunities
to share the love of Christ that will come our way, and for the people that we
will be able to help both physically and spiritually. Of course, another big need is financial
support. As you can imagine the cost for
a family of 6 to live in Alaska and attend school is substantial. If you feel God leading you to support us
with a love offering of money we would greatly appreciate it.
