Johnstein!

Ok...so its official. We decided today to go ahead with the purchase of our plane tickets for the flight to Vienna. We will be leaving LAX at 5:35 on Saturday July 31st. After a short layover in London, we will arrive in Vienna at 6:10 on Sunday August 1st. This is a major step in solidifying our call to Vienna. Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we continue through the support raising process. Again, we would love to be able to share our calling with you. If you have a bible study group or other group, we be honored if we can share with you.

Last night we had the opportunity to share our call with the missions committee from Apple Valley Baptist Church (the church where we are members). It was a very encouraging experience to be able to share with members of our home church. Hopefully, we will soon be able to share with the entire church family. We also had the opportunity to meet another family who will be serving God abroad. Jay and Jackie will be heading to North Africa in June, and it was very encouraging to have a chance to speak with a couple who is a bit farther on the path of support raising. It was also amazing to see how God prepares individuals; through specific life experiences, gifts, and talents, to perform a specific role. This was not only encouraging to me as we learned about their calling into the mission field, but it was reassuring that our calling did not need to conform to what other people are doing. God is calling US to Vienna; He has given us a passion for the people and mission of VCS, He has ...

Hey everyone...we just got finished skyping with Ken Norman, the director at VCS. There is a pretty interesting update regarding visas for employees at VCS. The Austrian government is redefining which visa we will need to apply for. Now, employees of VCS must apply for a "key employee" visa... Some of the implications of this: - VCS must convince the government that my presence (based on my beliefs, experience, credentials, etc.) at the school is necessary for VCS to fulfill its purpose within the context of the Austrian education system. - This is a "better" visa, and it will include Justin. - It is more complicated as far as the application process goes, and also requires evidence of specific salary level PER EMPLOYEE...So, unless we want to double our support raising efforts; - This means that Rebecca will be officially classified as a volunteer. Doesn't change her status according to VCS, but it does for the Austrian government. The other issue wi...

We'll be doing a fundraiser at the Applebees in Apple Valley on Sunday, June 13. The cost is $10.00 and includes all you care to eat scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, flapjacks, and unlimited refills of your choice of juice, soda, or coffee. You can come at any time between 8 and 10 AM. This will be a great opportunity for us to not only raise some much needed cash :) but also to connect with many of our supporters in the high desert area. We'd love to see you there!

Hey everyone... I trust that everyone had a wonderful Easter. Easter Sunday for us was the culmination of a wonderful two weeks off from school. We kept busy, though... The process of raising support for our entrance into the mission field has officially started. We spent much of the last 2 weeks meeting with friends and family interested in supporting our call financially. After 2 weeks and 14 appointments, we are at $495 of committed monthly financial support! This represents 8 supporters and .09% of our total support! We are still awaiting final word from 7 others who we have met with but not received a final answer, so we hope and pray that our support numbers will continue to increase. God has been so faithful in the last 2 weeks by providing many opportunities to share with friends, family, and strangers... We are now officially a one car family! We sold our car to the local Chevy dealer...and although we had to pay a little to get rid of it ($900), but now our insurance co...