Promise

First of all we just wanted to say we are so sorry for not updating our blog sooner. We have heard a lot of you say you would love to hear what is going on and I am sorry we haven’t taken the time to update it.  This past month has been full of amazing things God has done here in Tanzania and in our lives.  It has been a refining last month as well.  In this past month Nick went on outreach to Singida to join the rest of his team in the work God was doing there, the Holy Spirit moved and 8 people met their Savior,  I met another family from Canada and Hannah and Hailey had their first “playtime” with kids speaking their same language,  my parents returned to Tanzania and celebrated a late Christmas with us, we received our car, went through a month of a lack of water coming into the base, Nick along with 31 other students received their DTS certificate of completion, we took a trip to the coast for some good family R&R and just last week we became official staff at YWAM Arusha! .  We would love to expand on those things but I really just feel like the Lord is speaking to me to proclaim the promise He has fulfilled in my life. 

Are there times in your life where you feel God has put something on your heart; a passion for something but you feel as if He put it there and then never did anything with it? A promise not yet fulfilled? 7 ½ years ago Nick and I stood at the altar and made a covenant to stand together in life, to walk hand in hand and serve the Lord faithfully with our lives.  To go wherever He is leading us to go.  At our wedding we had 2 songs played.  When planning the wedding these two songs were thought out by the two of us for a long time. We didn’t want to play just any song but we wanted the song to be a proclamation to the Lord.  Something we would hold to in our marriage throughout our lives.  One was talking about going to the nations and that being the cry of our heart.  The other one is called “eagles wings”.  It says:

“Here I am waiting, abide in me I pray. Here I am longing for you.  Hide me in your love bring me to my knees. May I know Jesus more and more. 

Come live in me all my life take over. Come breathe in me and I will rise on eagles wings”

Whenever I hear that song my heart longs to sit and be with Jesus.  To join in the song He is already singing over my life.  The song always reminds me of the promise, the passion God put in my husband and my heart to serve him overseas.  To take over all my life and take us where He wants us.  These past 7 years of marriage have been amazing.  There have been so many amazing opportunities to join in the work God is doing in America, to be missionaries to our home land.  I wouldn’t trade those experiences  for anything but there was still a longing in my heart to see that promise He had given us carried out.  I knew He had placed it in our hearts.  All of this is brought up because last Monday at the weekly devotions at the YWAM base they sand “Eagles Wings”.  Out of all the songs they sing, mostly Swahili, for some reason this song was on the list and it moved me to tears.  We have been here 5 ½ months and to be honest the transition here with a family has been a lot tougher than we expected, but when I heard this song it brought back the passion and the promise He put in my heart at 16 and in Nick and my heart 7 years ago .  I was living in the promise all along but now I feel like that longing has been fulfilled and is being replaced by a new passion, a new vision for ministry here in Tanzania.   7 years later we are here!! No more saying someday.  No more wondering what/where God is taking us in this promise. I know that with Jesus creating new passions in our hearts we will start to experience the “when” questions again but as of now I sit in His peace, here in Tanzania with my family of four after waiting 13 years I feel as if I am sitting in the middle of the rainbow of God’s promise, experiencing his faithfulness daily.  Thank you Jesus for meeting our needs, for listening to our hearts and for giving us the opportunity to know you and your heart and join in the work you are doing.  Help us to constantly be reminded of how faithful you are.  Thank you Jesus for letting us be part of your plan.  Thank you for what YOU are doing here in Tanzania and everywhere else around the world.  Thank you

Please be praying for us this coming week. Nick has the opportunity to teach in the DTS at the Kilimanjaro YWAM base.  We are excited about the 5 days we will be away and it is such an important time of growth for the students. We know God will move there and teach them using Nick as his vessel.