And this is a little slice of what life looks like at the moment…
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Give a gift to a missionary family this Christmas!
You probably know that we’re in the midst of a huge faith project as a family – fundraising and saving for a bigger vehicle.
We currently have a hatchback Nissan Pulsar, which has served us well for many years (even before I came on the scene!). We have loved her… but she is now quite literally bursting at the seams.
A little while before Judah was born we went camping with the DTS for two weeks of lectures. This is what the Pulsar looked like on that trip:
Ha ha! There is the proof that we are outgrowing our car – pretty sure we couldn’t have fit another sheet of paper in there!!! 
(And that was with only three of us!)
We’re so grateful for those that have already made donations and helped us toward achieving our goal. We have also learned a lot about saving as we’ve been working hard to be deliberate in setting aside as much as we can from our regular income each month. Combining those we’ve been able to make some significant progress and we’re just thrilled!
We still need to raise another $11,000 (assuming that those who have pledged will be able to fulfill their pledges soon and that we’ll be able to sell the Pulsar for a decent return), so there’s still opportunity for you to partner with us in this project!
Our goal is to get a near-new mid-size 7-seater SUV. These are normal 5-seaters with a big boot (trunk space) for normal running around town as well as trips and outreaches… and they also have a third row of two extra seats that can come up for carpooling, driving YWAM staff and students around, having five children (haha – probably not… but you never know, right?!), doing airport pickups, etc. We hope to get something reliable and versatile that will last us for the next 10-15 years.
Please see our “Give” page for ways to contribute a tax-deductable gift toward this project.
Only the beginning…
downtown cairo, egypt
Two-thousand-six was one of the best years of my life. I had moved from YWAM Brisbane to YWAM Perth the year before to work with an urban ministry called Megacities. I spent most of 2006 in that year’s Megacity: Cairo, Egypt. It was an exciting, challenging, adventurous, educational, heart-breaking, stretching, and thrilling year. I loved living in the Middle East and I loved working with Megacities!
While there I had the huge privilege of leading the Global Youth Outreach (GYO), which drew about 800 youth from all over the city. (Imagine 800 Egyptian, Sudanese, and international teenagers and young adults all in one place to seek Jesus and grow in their faith!) We gathered together to see them inspired and empowered to take up leadership in their own city by reaching out and serving those around them.
gyo photo by wally nell
On the last day of GYO we split into 50 different teams for the “Day of Compassion”. The youth spilled out into every corner of the city showing the love of God in practical, tangible ways to thousands of Egyptians.
gyo photo by wally nell
Since I was in charge of organizing this event, I was able to invite over a worship band from my home church to help lead worship along with our YWAMers.
[gyo photo by wally nell
The I Heart Campaign has rallied over 5000 volunteers to date, reaching over 15,000 people at community events in Central Oregon alone. They now organize I Heart events in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and California.
Isn’t it incredible to see some of the ripple effect of how God is using global service to inspire local service, and local service to inspire global service? A great example of a mission organization and local churches working in unity for multiplication of the gospel.
And this is only the beginning…
Thank you Judah
How an unborn* child has taught us to give thanks a little deeper.
[38 weeks and five days pregnant - Judah's birthday]
There are a thousand things I am thankful for. Literally. I’m sure I could write on and on about the good things in my life, the good things I see around me, and the good things I know to be true about life and humanity and the world.
But for my family this Thanksgiving is all about our little Judah.
Our Judah that the doctors said phrases like “chromosomal anomaly” and “down syndrome”… and then “dilated kidneys” and “potential bladder problems”… and even others more recently that I don’t even want to give “print” space to.
Each of those phrases caused concern and question and plenty of tears. But they also forced us to have faith and compelled us to be in hope.
And each of those phrases have fizzled in time as our son was born perfectly healthy.
We will never know whether some of those things actually existed while he was in the womb, or if they didn’t. We will never know if he was healed before birth or “healed” all along.
And that’s ok – we’ve made peace with not knowing.
For all of the “problems” and “abnormalities” and “threats” that turned out to be nothing, we are thankful. We’re thankful for the all the “nothings” but we’re also thankful for the so many “somethings” that have come out of the short few months during my pregnancy and now eight weeks in our arms:
Thankful for the opportunity to see the preciousness of life with more clarity.
Thankful for the peace that comes when God whispers in the storm.
Thankful for those that rally and pray and encourage and write and… bring zucchini bread.
Thankful to see that we are loved perhaps more than we realized.
Thankful to connect with people we never would have otherwise.
And thankful now for each little milestone that Judah makes – one more confirmation that he is in fact healthy and developing just as he should.
And there are other things he’s taught me to be thankful for too:
Thankful that I now see children with special needs with a deeper longing for them to experience love and acceptance and support in chasing their own dreams… because I’ve imagined my son in their shoes.
Thankful that I now see parents of children with special needs with more compassion and understanding and admiration… because I’ve imagined myself in their shoes.
Thankful that I now have a greater understanding of my own influence and role in championing and advocating their cause as I’m able.
There are a thousand things for me to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, but most of all I’m thankful for this year’s most special of gifts: the gift of our son Judah Matthew** and all that his life has meant to us so far.
Without words or actions or intention on his part he’s already taught us so much.
Thank you son. Thank you God.
We are beyond grateful.
*Our son is now of course born, but the lessons from this season began long before his birthday. **Judah means “to call on the name of the Lord and to praise, confess, or give thanks”. Matthew means “gift of God”.
Dear friends, what has been your greatest gift to offer thanks for this year? May you fully enter in to Thanksgiving this year – and offer thanks with a whole heart to the One who deserves it most.
Love, Adriel for the family
