Here we GO! The story unfolded.

Commit your work to the LORD,

and your plans will be established-

Proverbs 16:3

Many of you have already heard the news about us leaving for Iraqi Kurdistan in August. Some of you have already heard us talk about the past 4 years and how God's been LAYING out His plan for us as we have been "committing our work" to the Lord and His global purposes. This has not always been easy, not always comfortable, but isn't that ok? I think walking with God often means doing things that others and the world view as crazy. We are NOT going to Kurdistan to do something crazy. We have seen God's hand of provision guiding us to Kurdistan, leading us up to this point and we are going to walk in faith and in His peace by putting our "boots on the ground".

I would love to write this journey out. Habakkuk 2:2 says to 'Write my answer plainly on tablets' I want to do this to remember God's faithfulness and timing. Thanks for allowing me to share this journey with you.

I remember when Andy had briefly mentioned being workers for the kingdom overseas in our small basement apartment, 4 years ago. "Seriously? We aren't even telling people about Jesus here, why would we move across the world to do that? We have dreams! Let's do a week or 2 trip but not long-term."

That was the end of that conversation :)... for that night, anyway! Shortly after this, Andy said he wanted to take the Perspectives class together. I put up a fight and believed the lies of "We don't have time... we don't have money" I decided the right thing to do was follow Andy's leadership... Something that I continue to need grace in!

But that's where I see it starting (although God knew all along) Here's the journey God has been taking us on as He ultimately has brought us closer to His will. Reaching all the peoples on earth with God's love.

• Perspectives- From night number one my world was beginning to be rocked. I couldn't believe after 4 years of reading the Bible, I didn't see His heart for reaching all nations that is placed from beginning to end in the Word. Wow! Sweet stuff! Our "final" was to write a paper on an unreached people group: people group with no indigenous community of believing Christians or adequate numbers and resources to evangelize this people group. We wrote our paper on the Kurds. Coincidence? Find out more soon :)
• TOAG- This was a year long internship that is designed to help prepare us to go overseas. As a group, we learn values, goals, and skills needed to spark Jesus-community movements among people groups who have not yet heard the good news. We focused on having relationships with internationals here in Iowa City and using contextualization to talk about Jesus.
• TOAG 2- During this time, we were really trying to figure out WHERE God would have us. Our desire was Jordan since we've been there, loved it, knew people there, etc. We also desired mentor-ship which we thought we would get when a potential mentor suggested going to this school in Northern Iraq (School of the Medes) where "the harvest is white "(John 4:35). We starting looking into it, getting excited, but then the mentor couldn't commit to doing it because of commitments here in the states. So we closed that door and started looking into other options.
• Zander- Our life was going to change with the addition of our sweet little baby, and our minds were focused on that for a good chunk of the year...expected! We weren't as intentional with international relationships here or taking steps forward looking at overseas opportunities.
• Women's basketball- In the meantime, I became connected with leading chapel for the Iowa Women's Basketball team. Remember the post? Well anyway, I truly believe God used it in a HUGE way. Not in a narrow sense, where I felt like I HAD to do basketball, but that God has given each of us abilities, knowledge, and experiences and He wants us to use them for HIS kingdom and at the time I thought that meant sports ministry. I started looking into Athletes in Action and making connections with a couple teams in the Middle-east. I was getting pumped, but Andy was just going with the flow (big surprise huh! thankful for a little balance in my life!) He never felt at peace about it, but I was pushing it because I was doing something that gave me energy instead of draining it.
• Fund Raising Boot Camp- Andy and I went to this conference about how to develop a partnership with long-term supporters for full time ministry. At the beginning of the conference we had to share our "VISION" with someone we didn't know. To make long-story short, I broke down because I didn't know what our vision was after waiting for an opportunity for over two years! I wanted to do sports ministry, Andy didn't, and we didn't know what long-term meant for us, so we didn't really have a "vision" that was about us and God. Anyway, Andy came and found me after I left the room crying and we had a heart2heart-get real-this is how I'm REALLY feeling about stuff- talk. God used this time of brokenness to bring us closer to him and his will.
• Unity- We were challenged by friends/mentors to seek God in Unity in this vision. So every morning we woke up before Andy left for work and sought God in what this was for us. Around the same time Brooks gave a message at Grace about fasting to seek God's vision. (Acts 13:1-3) Andy and I decided to do this for the work God had for us. After one of our lunch prayer times, I asked Andy if he felt like God was speaking in any kind of way. He said that we need to make a decision to be IN.... Option 1: buy a house, settle and do ministry here. Option 2: Dive into a "shorter term" option that could get us landed in August which is something we had been praying for most of the year. We didn't have peace about option 1. but didn't know where for option 2. hmmmmmm. more praying!
• Colorado Trip- We went to Colorado at the end of March. On the way out there, Andy talked to a team leader in turkey doing sports ministry that would allow us to land in August. It was good, but still no peace. We were also reading "Visioneering" by Andy Stanley on the way there. One of the questions in the book was about "Career Vision" Andy shared with me that it wasn't in Physical Therapy but possibly some kind of teaching.
• Easter weekend- On the way to family Easter, I said to Andy "what about School of the Medes"? (remember from a year ago, when we dropped it because we wouldn't be mentored?") SWEET! How could we forget? or how did we just NOW remember that... Anyway, we said we would call on Monday and see if they still had openings and if they thought August would be possible.
• SGI- Servant Group International (the organization that sends workers to School of the Medes) still had openings and had confidence for us to land in August for the fall semester there! Whoop Whoop! 20 page application here we come! Which we finished by the end of the week, which they called the following Monday to ask us for interview in Nashville, which we went the next week, which gave us PEACE AND UNITY AND EXCITEMENT AND VISION AND CONFIDENCE that this is what THE LORD has for us next!
• Open doors- We prayed that doors would slam shut if this is not what He would have for us and every door that we passed was just reassurance in continuing to GO FORWARD with this. Walk by faith. Dependence on Him. What a glorious thing! Do you feel my excitement? Please do!

The steps of a man are established by the LORD,

when he delights in his way- Psalm 37:23

• Preparing to GO! Since then we have basically entered into full-time support raising. Desiring to cast the vision Deep and Wide! It has been one of the most amazing times in my walk with the Lord and in our marriage as we continue to have peace about how God is leading us to Northern Iraq! One of the coolest things is seeing the body come together in unity with reaching people who have VERY little access to the gospel. Now, there are MANY who are apart of reaching the Kurds (remember Perspectives paper) :) AMAZING!

• Is this a sacrifice? It's going to be hard to not see extended family and friends that I LOVE and appreciate SO VERY MUCH, for 10 months but I'm at peace about this. I know that God will use it to bring them closer to himself during a time of absence mainly from Zander. It IS hard knowing that we aren't just the ones going to Northern Iraq but EVERYONE that loves us is also having to give, they are also affected by this decision. I pray for grace, understanding, and strength for them and that I would be sensitive to them during this time but to view sacrifice in how David Livingstone did...."People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a sacrifice which is simply paid back as a small part of a great debt owing to our God, which we can NEVER repay?....Away with the word in such a view, and with such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a PRIVILEGE"

I am honored yet humbled to see how God has been unfolding this story. What's even more glorious is that we are JOINING another story! What God has already been doing in Kurdistan for the past 20 years! Andy, Zander, and I (along with our support team) are joining another story! It has been encouraging to me to see how His hand was working even when I didn't feel it or see it in the past 4 years! He is sovereign and works all things for the good of those who love him and who have been called according to his purpose (Rom 8:27) Even if the "good" requires a little pruning, He knows what is for our good, even when it may not be comfortable, I pray that even during these pruning times I will know it is ultimately for His good and our good!

GENESIS 12:1-4

The LORD had said to Abram,

"Leave your country, your people and your father's household and GO to the land I will show you. "I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great,and you will be a blessing.

I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse;

and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you."

So Abram left, as the LORD had told him;