missing them so bad, it hurts.

So much of our ministry here is a blessing to us as a family. We have met new friends (who are now as close as family), we have had the opportunity to see beautiful sites, we have had experiences beyond our expectations...and most importantly, we are where we believe God wants us to be right now; serving Him, and growing in His love.

But it is really hard when confronted with the realities of what we have to give up. Today a beautiful new member of our family was born to Rebecca's sister. I really have no idea when we will get to hold little Rylinn for the first time. My sister Amy will be getting married in July. We won't be able be at the ceremony and again, I am not sure when we will get to meet this new member of our family. Only Rebecca was able to be with her family for her dad's funeral. We've missed countless birthday celebrations, family vacations, and holiday celebrations. We've been absent from our friends' birthdays and weddings. We just flat out miss those who we are so close to.

This life living "overseas" is hard. Our hearts ache when we think about all that we miss. We miss our family, we miss our friends. Yet, while we hurt and cry when thinking about these things, we still rejoice and try find joy in all the things with which God has blessed us. We're not sure how long we will lead this life of overseas service. We pray for God's comfort during these times of joyful heartache especially if He continues to keep us in this ministry.

Please pray for us...and all families serving abroad as missionaries. While we may get to "live the dream" and live in places that most people only dream of visiting, it can be a lonely life. We love serving our Lord in this way...but I guess no one ever promised us that it would be easy.

Thanks for reading. Thanks for praying. We love you and miss every one of you.

Comments

Who are these kids at ICSV...

Hi everyone... The first week and a half of school has been absolutely amazing! We have had some great opportunities to begin building lasting relationships with the students that God has brought to Vienna to be educated at the International Christian School of Vienna. Rebecca has been adjusting well to her role as secondary secretary. She is learning quickly the many demands of her new role and is doing quite well in supporting us teachers and the rest of the staff. Rebecca hard at work I have been really enjoying my classes. I have a total of 43 students spread out over 4 periods. The students I have represent 14 different home nations, with many of the students who are "Austrian" are first generation, so they are of other nationalities as well. I have also had the opportunity to begin working with the soccer team...again, many nationalities are represented on the field, truly an international squad. Here are some pictures of the team training at the local club

Almost a Year - A reflective poem by Rebecca

It’s been almost a year since we got on the plane. Knowing that we were leaving friends and family; we would never be the same. What has it been like leaving everything we know? Laughter and tears; sun and snow. Up and down; love and fear. All while trusting God for the reason we are here. Relying on support and prayers from the ones you care for, Though scary, freeing, challenging; it means relying on God even more. I’m so thankful to be part of a team who sees that Christ is our need Whether they can see the impact first hand or not, they have blessed students at ICSV. The students and families are so precious, eager to learn and understand What it means to love the Lord with all their hearts and to follow His command. At times I feel so left alone and wondering why God has called me here But then I talk to a student, or go to a school event, that’s when it all becomes clear. God never said life would be easy or even how we think it might be We just need to rely on Him, as He

Clowns and Hospitals

Many of you might remember the 1998 film starring Robin Williams that chronicled the early career of Hunter "Patch" Adams. He began using humor as therapy in his sessions and opened a free hospital in West Virginia. Here is a clip from the film... Fast forward 13 years to a hospital in Vienna, Austria...to a children's surgery ward. As we were sitting talking with some visitors we noticed Justin had more visitors... They proceeded to hand out musical instruments; here's the problem...this was less than 12 hours after Justin's surgery. It really hurt him to laugh at this point...and he still felt horrible After that nonsense, the clowns made 2 more appearances; once when they delivered lunch, and once later in the day when we had our friend Tom Mason visiting. Tom is a fellow missionary serving as a pastor at a local church and a teacher at ICSV. He is also a amateur magician. Pictures of him doing tricks have found their way onto this blog

Johnstein!

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