An unexpected trip home

So Stephanie and I leave for the United States on Monday. A three hour car ride to Frankfurt followed by a nine hour flight to Newark. We purchased our tickets just two weeks ago. We hadn't planned to go back this summer, but because of some changes that are happening for us next year a trip home became part of the plan.

As many of you might know and some might not. Steph and I will be making role changes next year. We'll be moving from working within the school as teachers and administrators to residence life as Dorm Parents. Quite a change.

Throughout the year we've been subbing at HBR dorm on Thursday evenings and have developed a strong belief in the importance of quality residence staff. BFA has been blessed by having tremendous dorm staff that mentor and impact BFA students on a daily basis. It didn't take much time of being in that environment that we began to feel pulled.

We feel honored the school feels comfortable entrusting us with such a responsibility. Typically the age of dorm parents has been older with actual parenting experience. The thought is the pros of having younger people in this position (more energy, relatable, less distraction, etc…) might make up for some of the cons. It is in some ways an experiment. One made with excellent support made available for Stephanie and I, and one we’re excited to be involved in.

Some people think we're a little nuts. Its an exhausting job. We'll have twenty girls next year. That's right... girls. Those of you who know me best might wonder how I'll do in such an environment, and I'd be lying if I didn't say we have some healthy concerns. Personally, I'd feel there was something wrong if us if we didn't. Most people have been tremendously encouraging and have placed their support firmly behind us. The decision process would have much more difficult without them.

In the end. We feel confident this is what God has for us. We hold no illusions it will be a pain free experience, but will move through the year day by day humbly pursuing God as we go. That for us will be key.

This brings us back to our trip to the states. We’ll be home for four weeks. Two of those will be spent in New Jersey at my parents place. We’ll be visiting and sharing with our home church what the change will look like for us. We’ll also be doing some fundraising in preparation for year two as self supporting missionaries at BFA.

The third and fourth weeks will be spent at a Conference in Houghton, New York. We’ll be attending the Pre-Field Orientation conference for TCKs (Third Culture Kids). The school believes it will help prepare us to better understand the unique characteristics and needs of missionary kids. We’re excited to see our friends and fellow missionaries, Jewel and Evan Evans as they will be part of the leadership conducting the conference.

We’d appreciate your prayers as we enter the next month. For a relaxing time with my family, for a successful fund raising endeavor, and for valuable personal discovery and applicable info we can take away from the PFO conference in Houghton. If anyone would like to connect with us while we’re in New Jersey don’t hesitate to shoot us an email.

-LW