Two weeks away
Dear Friends and Family,
We are two weeks from our departure on June 15th. The goodbyes are in full swing. We have had graduation parties, soccer parties, a staff banquet, many one-on-one meetings, and family dinners in the last three weeks in effort to finish up well. The emotions are running high and so is the stress. The reality is that we are leaving a home we have loved and though we hope to return for visits, there are no guarantees in life, especially where the hope is to see people again when everyone is living internationally. Therefore, our calendar remains full for the coming weeks in effort to see everyone and make lasting memories while we can.
We put sticky notes on the wall with requests on them so we could pray for them as we went up and down the stairs. Many have dates on them marking the date they were answered. Many are still in process. God is still working on those.
Our prayer wall is full of all the details that need to come together. Many have not been fully answered but we celebrate that there is progress. This is actually the third version of this letter I have written. Things have been changing fast and prayers are being answered faster than we can share the requests. We know that a big part of that is because we have people praying for us consistently and we appreciate that more than we can express.
We have a church in Ohio that is praying about serving as our home church. This has been a HUGE encouragement as they have already started helping us make connections to possible support networks, by helping us attend the GARBC pastor’s conference, which will be held at Cedarville University this year. They helped connect us with the house that we just agreed to rent this morning. and, they are offering the hope to return to open and welcoming arms as we have to leave the support system we have had for the last 20 years in Thailand.
Friends here have been helpful in connecting us with resources we did not even know existed. A friend told us about a resource that helps find cars for missionaries. So, we have reached out to them and already have a car secured.
Another friend told us about some resources for finding good used furniture. It feels a little frustrating basically giving away our things here, just to turn around to repurchase them in the US. It is the nature of this sort of move though, so having resources to make those purchases more reasonable is encouraging.
One more friend put us in contact with two families who want to share a shipping container to cut some of the cost. It is still much more than we anticipated but significantly less than the last quote we received. The company will be packing our things to begin the shipment on June 4th. We should then hopefully receive our items in Ohio 8-10 weeks later.
We know a lot of people are praying for us and that is the biggest encouragement of all. Thank you for your part in this. We really do appreciate it. A few weeks ago, as I was trying to work out what steps we should be taking next in order to raise support and help make details fall into place, God reminded me of one of my favorite verses, which He showed me in college. The verse is Exodus 14:13 and takes place at the moment that the Israelites are backed up against the Red Sea with Pharaoh’s army on the horizon. In the King James Version it says, “And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will shew to you today . . .” As a person who likes to fix things and is a “do-er” the command to “stand still” struck me. At this moment of our lives this was a good reminder to wait on God and His timing.
I love how God will at times confirm his messages to us by presenting it from multiple voices. The same week God brought that verse to mind, our church began a series on Exodus and it has felt like they have been preaching just for us. The pastor one week discussed the phrase in chapter 2 where it says the Lord “remembered” and explained that what that really meant was not that God forgot the Israelites, but instead that he had held off on his action until that point and at the point of “remembrance” He was stepping into action on their behalf. Putting this all together, I have been praying that God will help us to be still in his promises to provide and take care of us and trust him to remember us in his timing, not ours.
It’s not an easy posture to take, but we’re committed to it. Please pray that everything comes together in God’s timing. Pray for our hearts and minds as we process all of the transitions (new job, new country, graduation). Finally, pray for an underlying peace even in the crazy, that God will meet us in all of this and take care of it all.
By way of encouragement, we are listing the prayer list we had attached to the first version of this letter and highlighting the ones already answered.
With gratitude and love,
The Weber Family
Prayer Requests:
- That we will finish things up well with friends and family in Thailand (Stacy’s parents are here for Layla’s graduation and we will be leaving her sister who lives next door)
- Comfort for all the losses felt leaving Thailand
- That we will be able to sell the last few big items here
- That we will find good deals on items to restock a house in the USA
- That we will find a house to rent
- That we will find a car to purchase
- That we will find good relationships in the US
- That our dog will travel well and everything will go smoothly with her.
- That we will find time to appreciate the now
- That we will be able to make good connections for sharing our ministry at the pastor’s conference and elsewhere.
- For wisdom in all the decisions around phone plans, internet, insurance, etc.
- Comfort for us as we leave behind our Thai girls and for them as they see us go.
We will do our best to keep everyone updated more often on blogs and we will send an email update as soon as possible after we land.