There and Back again!
Life has been on the move for us since our last update, and we have certainly had our share of ups and downs, but God is so faithful to us. Our last email sent out was a bit cringeworthy as we reported our support was not what we thought. We had made some major life choices and have now walked a road of great transition over the last few months. The road has not been easy, but God is so good to us.
About four weeks ago, I was on the phone with the field team in Peru. We spoke through the desire to acquire a property in the La Molina district of Lima Peru. This would be used as a ministry launching pad for the future. The property we were in pursuit of was slipping through our fingers and I was asked to consider making a last minute trip to Peru in order to help with a round of crucial meetings. That call was at 2pm on the first Monday of March and by 7am the following day, I was standing in Lima with a backpack, light weight carry on, and greeted by my good friend Steve and his son Joseph. Those two men mean the world to me and I was happy to be on Peruvian soil, though the circumstance wasn’t ideal. I was blessed to be able to serve in a meaningful way over the next 3 days as we navigated a series of difficult meetings. Debbie did an awesome job holding down the fort in my absence! Four kids with no back up for five days is pretty amazing. God was so good and though the result did not change and our opportunity with the property is now gone (as far as we know). God stoked a fire in me that is hard to describe. Peru is where we are called and I didn’t want to leave. Emotionally, physically, and spiritually, we are ready to launch. We intend to do so within the next few months. We believe, by faith, that God will raise up the needed funds for us to be fully supported soon. We are $1500 short right now in monthly support. If you are not a financial partner at present, would you consider that right now? We have partners that range from $5-500 per month and we are thankful for all of them!
Upon return to the states, Debbie and I set to work packing our home and finishing final closing items as we set out to close the sale of our dream home. Yes, for those who don’t yet know, Debbie and I bought an old Quaker church a little over 7 years ago and gutted it, building it out into our dream house.
We loved and appreciated God’s blessing to us all of those years and have now sold it. It was hard to let go, but we know this; Our dream home on this side of eternity is NOTHING in comparison to the place the Lord Jesus has gone to prepare for us. This world is NOT our home, and we intend to live that to the best of our abilities. The process took two weeks to box up, manifest, and load onto a shipping container. Huge thanks to the team from Living Waters (our sending church) who helped us load the container and a huge thanks to Saylorville Church (the church that sent us to help plant Living Waters) for putting us up in a fully furnished missionary house. These two churches are truly like family to us in so many ways and we are SOOO thankful for you!
Keep praying
That our paperwork is processed quickly.
That we have opportunity to effectively minister the gospel while here.
That God move in the hearts of His people to support His work in Lima.
Blessings on you all,
Cole