The begining of the trip!

(Sorry but there won't be any pictures since we are working on the internet at 9.86kbs per second! Pictures won't even upload at that speed! Enjoy the story from here on out!) Wow, what a trip! It started on Friday afternoon with a family lunch. We were all able to get together and share a last meal before taking off for Tala. Thanks Mike and Heather for joining us, it was a great time! When we got back home we packed the van and were able to get all our packages into two vans. Then we had to say our goodbyes to Mark and Tarrin (Justin and Amanda came to the airport with us). It was a little harder than I expected but I made it through with only a few tears. I’m so thankful that we will have a phone for texting and calling so we can stay in touch. I hope that we can get internet fairly steady so that we can also keep in touch via email or Google talk!
Then it was off to Phoenix Sky Harbor. The traffic was pretty bad at the airport and we had to circle the parking garage a couple of times to find where Justin was parked but we finally parked at 5pm (our flight was scheduled to leave at 7:40pm). When we got to the parking space, Chuck had already taken our two luggages and a couple of boxes into the terminal for check-in. Then he brought a sky cap to us and we loaded the rest of the boxes and took them inside to be checked in. We had a total of 21 packages going to Nairobi! My prayer is that they all arrive with us in Nairobi!
Then we had another round of good-byes for Justin and Amanda. Still harder than I expected but again we told them we would have the phone as soon as we arrive in Kenya. Thanks Michele for sticking around and letting me cry a bit on your shoulder! The security line went quickly and then it was off to our gate to wait for our plane to board. I get motion sickness when on the plane so I made sure to take that medication before boarding. The flight from Phoenix to Heathrow was uneventful, thank you Father for a smooth flight and some sleep! The only thing that went wrong was I didn’t take another dose of my motion sickness meds before landing and I got very sick. Luckily I didn’t throw up but it was close. (Sorry for the graphic details!) And the whole time we were in line for security to get back into Heathrow terminals I was keeping a close watch on the bathrooms. It was not a good scene. When we finally made it through security we found a place where I could lay down for a bit (which turned into two hours!) But when I woke up I had a slight headache but was feeling much better. Satan couldn’t keep my excitement down though because that was all I could think about was getting to Nairobi and seeing my Kenyan family. We got something to eat, fish and chips in London of course, with mushy peas (yes that’s what it said on the menu and here’s a picture to prove it!) And Chuck’s mom would be bummed because no free refills, I kept a watch on how everyone else was handling that and they all drank most of their soda after their meal! So Chuck and I were trying to ration our drinks to last the whole meal! After our meal we got a coffee, sat for a bit then changed clothes and brushed our teeth. My timing is all off but I’m trying to be on whatever time I’m at. Let’s hope that works for us in Kenya!
I remembered to take my motion sickness meds before boarding and I’ve learned my lesson to take another dose before landing! So that is our journey thus far. I will write more after we arrive in Kenya! Praise God for His providence and His grace to us all!

Departure time has arrived!

Habari za asubuhi! (good morning in Swahili) I can't believe it's here so quickly! Six months ago it was a far off adventure, but Praise God, He brought things together bit by bit despite Satan's attempts to dissuade us, frustrate us or discourage us.

I've added a couple of neat items to the blog as you can see to the right. The current time in Tala and current temperature in Nairobi (which is only about 1 1/2 hours away from Tala)

Here are the boxes packed and ready to head off to the airport. We have approximately 3/4 of a ton of items! We'll have to take three vehicles to the airport to carry it all! But that is a praise in itself, that God provides the items, space and finances to get it all there! I hope to plug in while we are on our seven hour (approximately) layover in Heathrow and update the blog with the first leg of our journey! Continued prayer is always welcome and needed (as my stomach is doing a few flips this morning!)

Video journaling!

Peace of God be with all of you this fantastic Tuesday! I'm trying out my webcam on my computer and seeing how it works with the blog. I plan on having more video as we continue this journey. I feel that Satan is trying his hardest to put little roadblocks in our way, but God is knocking those down along the way. Jesus' name is a strong tower and when we call on His Name nothing can stand against it!

Saying goodbye to our church friends :0(

We thought we'd have next weekend to say goodbye to everyone but since British Airlines cancelled our flights and we had to move them up to the 29th this was our last Sunday with our church family. The hardest part for me was realizing I would be missing the teaching every Sunday. I am excited, however, to hear the Word being preaced in Kenya. What an opportunity to hear, see and experience God's love and grace in an area surrounded by widows and orphans.

So the day of departure is getting closer and the excitement is building! God has been, and will continue to be, a guiding light on this journey. Thank you to everyone who is financially supporting this ministry and those keeping us in your prayers. God continues to humble us as He uses us in His plan for Tala, Kenya.

A personal prayer from Colossians - I pray that my life will have compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience (3:12). Until the next post, may God bless you with insight into His will for your life.

Change of plans and a slideshow!

Praise God for His fantastic timing! We went on the Internet last night to purchase our "excess baggage" allowances and were informed our flight from Heathrow to Nairobi was cancelled! After the stomach did a couple of flips we proceeded to find another flight that would work for us. We needed to make sure we arrived in Nairobi in the morning so as not to be on the roads after dark. If we had not gone onto the website at that time we may have had to wait another week before traveling since no night flights were scheduled (except the one on Saturday the 1st) that week. We would have checked in for our original flight two days after this flight was scheduled to leave! So God's timing is great and I will never doubt that! His plan and purpose for this trip will be accomplished in spite of Satan's attempts to change, cancel or frustrate them. So with that in mind here are a few pictures from Nice View. Many more will be forthcoming once we arrive and I start taking pictures and video!

Counting down the days!

Praise His Holy Name! Greetings everyone. The packing has started! Chucks mom and dad have been busy little beavers packing everything! Thank you Father for a loving and supportive family. We have 16 boxes packed so far and anticipate taking our entire allotment of 20 "packages". Chuck and I will have one luggage apiece and the rest are boxes filled to the 70lb limit with Bibles, books, clothes, medical supplies and an abacus! Please pray that all the packages arrive with us in Nairobi at the same time!


This last week will be a busy one. Our prayer is that it will continue to go smoothly and God will always be our focus even in the hecticness of preparation.



Please keep this mission trip in your prayers and all those who are being helped through God's Grace.

The Countdown Is On!

Praise God for His mercy and grace! He has been so gracious to us while we are preparing for this trip. Our house looks like a storage unit right now until we can get everything packed and ready to take with us on the 3rd. All the bibles have arrived, supplies have been bought and last minute details are being ironed out. I've had a couple of emails with Pauline, Gideons wife, and we are both very excited to finally meet each other face to face. We are sisters in Christ and it will be so wonderful to be with her and her family. What an exciting time too when I can finally meet the children at Nice View. I will be getting a photo of each child and posting those to the website along with any information I can obtain about the childrens birthplace, parents, etc. Plus I have approximately 60 hours of video tape available and I plan on starting that soon in order to have a video journal of our trip, from begininng to end! So keep an eye on our website (http://www.savedbygodsgrace.org/) for upcoming video.

We are putting our trust and faith in our Creator and we know that He is guiding our steps along the way of His path. Psalm 25:4 - "Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths.." Please continue to pray for this ministry and for everyone involved to always seek God's will and direction in our lives. I pray for God's blessings to be with you and your families.

"...whoever is kind to the needy honors God." Proverbs 14:31

Blog is up and running!

Praise God for He is awesome! You probably noticed that this is our first "live" post to the blog but we have two other posts in January. I wrote those to give some background information on what's been happening. As many of you may already know the violence in Kenya is still occurring. Prayers are needed that the leaders of that country will put down their differences and work together for the good of the people. Also that those around them in the different tribes will see their anger and hatred for each other is not accomplishing anything but strife. "Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted..." Proverbs 11:11

Thankfully God has protected the children in Tala from any physical violence. However, it has affected the shipment of food to the orphanage, but Gideon is able to "overcome" that obstacle and continues to feed the children by the Grace of God.

Because of the violence 80 children have shown up on Gideon's doorstep for help. He is able to feed them because of the funding that has occurred thus far, but has had to turn several children away for lack of food, clothing and housing. This is one reason it is so important to continue work on the new building. When that structure is finished the orphanage will be able to house 380 children (right now they have 230). Please tell your friends, coworkers, family and anyone you come into contact with about the situation in Tala, Kenya. Direct them to our website (http://www.savedbygodsgrace.org/) and God will move hearts. I am confident that God hears the cries of those children in Tala and through His people will provide for them.

I'm getting quite excited to meet and hug my "adopted kids" in Tala! I know the culture and conditions will be a shock but God will be in the midst of it all, and if God is for us who can be against us? Please keep the ministry, Tala, and all those involved to continue to follow God's guidance and be in His will always.

Peace and Grace be with all of you!