Hidden Valley Thanksgiving

We hope everyone had a wonderfully joyful and calorie-filled Thanksgiving and are getting merry with all of the festivities that are associated with Christmas, our hearts ache not being able to spend time with our family and friends back in the States but God is consoling us with our new family here in Townsville. Our Thanksgiving was a memorable one for sure, right up there with the Thanksgiving my family endured in the Laguna Mountains of Southern California when my brother Jason and I were kids. I say endured because we were camping and got snowed on overnight (our tent collapsed) after enjoying some teryaki chicken for dinner. It sounds "fowl" but it is actually a very fond memory. Likewise, though there was a hint of enduring in this camping trip, we really enjoyed our time with good friends who shared our appreciation for God's blessings while soaking in the sights and sounds of the Australian bush. Dinner was chili if I remember correctly and we were just recovering from one of many hard downpours which were often occompanied by lots of lively thunder and lightning. Our campsite was the same one that we had visited back in late June and early July for the annual staff camp-out. Located a little over 3000' in elevation and up a road that resembles the tight curves of the seven foot python that I almost ran over on the way up (see photo). It is an easy highway drive about and hour and a half north from Townsville to the turnoff that leads up the afformentioned sickeningly windy road, about 45 minutes of nausea to the sleepy mountain town of Paluma. From there the road mercifully straightens out and the scenery slowly changes from damp tropical rainforest very similar in appearance to the area around Forks, to more open bushland thickly populated with Eucalyptus Trees with various kinds of somewhat familiar looking underbrush and crusty bright orange dirt. When dry this dirt was easy to manage while driving and beautiful but once the thunderstorms moved in and the rain began to fall in buckets, again Forks comes to mind...it turns into an absolute nightmare. This must obviously be where the Aussie phrase, "Quit mucking about!" comes from. From Paluma it's an easy twenty minute drive to Hidden Valley where we set up our little villiage of tents and equipment.

The first week was spent in lectures watching Bible studies projected onto a sheet on one of the walls of the main out-building. Though it was a little hard to see in the day, it was a cool place to sit while the sun radiated its 90 degree heat and dry when the clouds flew in with their bomb-bay doors open to release their watery cargo. Cows constantly wandered through the camp, we even had a couple of bulls knocking their heads together resulting in a couple of tents being trampled and one of the bulls sulking away ashamed. Ants and other bugs are prolific in the bush. Many bite and all are a pain in the neck, especially the scorpions and hand-size centepedes. The kids absolutely went bananas over all the wildlife. Aubry carried the shotgun shell sized, Realtree camo Sacada bugs everywhere and any giant moths that she could find. Ryan managed to find a huge Rhinosarous Beetle and secured it on various parts of his upper body and face (see pictures). Sean was constantly interested in the ants until one of the red ones bit him on the back of his leg while he tried to dig into their nest with the toe of his shoe, I reckon he got off easy. Kay didn't show a lot of interest in the bugs though she patiently spent time scanning the surface of the creek to see the elusive platypus that playfully floats, dives, and surfaces in the early morning and afternoon. One day it rained so long and with such volume that mostly everyones' tents filled with water either from leaks in the ceiling, water seaping up from the floor, or both. Our tent faired pretty well with the ceiling holding up but, with the lack of good drainage in the soil, our tent was enveloped by an evergrowing puddle, or rather a pond, that threatened to soak everything we owned. Good thing we had inflatable mattresses to act as life rafts for our luggage and gear keeping it certain peril. The crazy weather merely added to the fun and adventure with lots of bright flashes of lightning and mostly distant rumbles of thunder both day and night. Apparently, it was unseasonably cool and stormy for this time of year, it was extremely pleasent even slightly cold at night.

The second week a Kiwi man named Mark Parker arrived to lead us in lectures on the "Lordship of Christ". He's full of energy and excitement about the Lord, much more than you'd expect for someone in their mid-50s who's faithfully served the Lord for many decades. For some reason I picture someone like this as being the more mellow sage type but not Mark and though a little "in your face" and some might say offensive in his presentation, the content was golden. I think I can speak for most of us that he was a real blessing to be around and to be taught by. Throughout the camp-out we enjoyed many intimate and often boisterous times of worship and prayer with the students really going for it as they led out using their gifts and talents, what better place to be loud and joyful than in the bush and under God's stary cathedral! As staff, Cameron and I spent much time in conversations with the students, overseeing events, praying for and ministering to the students during "ministry times", all while tag-teaming kid duties. All our kids were active and present during much of the teaching times and worship but Ryan easily got the most out of it. It was amazing to see him take part in the intensive "ministry times" and generally focused and tracking during the teaching and really worshipping during the worship times. What a blessing and privelege to be apart of it all, I must say. We enjoyed a movie night out in the main field under the stars with the movie being shown by projector on a sheet hung off the side of one of the YWAM vans. There was also an amazing talent show with virtually all of the students taking part. Singing, dancing (shake it Aubry!), skits (good on ya Ryan), poetry readings (Cameron going deep), joke telling (silly Aubry), and a few other acts that didn't cease to entertain. Many s'mores were consumed as well as a few Aussie favorites, the names of which escape me at the moment but all were super tasty and fun to prepare and eat. We kept active by dipping in the local creek which also made a great baptismal for a dozen or so students on our last evening, playing a lot of ultimate frizbee, kicking the rugby and soccer balls around and just taking long walks alone with the Lord and in small groups. Practically everyone left the mountain with stories of special intimate times spent with the Lord where He spoke clearly to them and they responded in surrender, worship, and thanksgiving.

It was just the right amount of time to spend out in the bush. Any longer and it would have started to become miserable and a lot of work. As I winge (whine), I am once again reminded and amazed by the courage, faith, and fortitude of the many thousands of families that have, throughout history, travelled across rugged land like the Oregon Trail and the unforgiving outback of Australia to settle and make a life for themselves. We are so fortunate to live in the era that we do and yet even today millions exist and even sometimes thrive with little more than what we went camping with and are happy in their condition. We are spoiled rotten! The weekend was full of transition for us as we made our way back down the mountain barely avoiding blowing chunks on the curvy road. Sunday was spent cleaning the house and doing load after load of washing (we're still doing laundry!) but on Monday we finally had a proper Thanksgiving dinner. Every year the base puts on a grand potluck dinner in honor of God's blessings and provision and this year we were priveleged to be apart of it. Lamb and chicken took the place of the turkey but it was all very lavish and filling and we thuroughly enjoyed ourselves. Ya, it was a memorable Thanksgiving for our family, we hope yours was a blessing as well.

Praise reports:
All are healthy and physically doing well
We're gettting back into our normal routine of homeschool and work at the base
Cameron's receiving more help around the house by DTS students volunteering
God continues to provide amazingly for daily needs
God has blown our minds by providing for many of the staff and students of the DTS who were having trouble paying their school and outreach fees (though there's still some work to be done)
The church van is still available for our use and is running well

Prayer Requests:
Provision and preperation for Ryan and me as we go to Papua New Guinea in less than 3 weeks!!!
Protection and peace for Cameron and the kids while we're away
God's blessing on Ryan as he takes part in a week long youth event at the base called, "Impact Summer"
God's direction in the big decisions that we're going to be making over the next few months regarding our future after our visa runs out.

God is Good, Life is Good!

What a dream we're living!  Everyday I wake up and look outside and can't believe that we're in Australia serving God.  
Things have changed drastically as our family has lost one of its key members.  Our good friend and adopted Auntie,
Peggy has decided to move back over to the States to reenter the life that she was more accustomed to.  We are so,
so thankful for her friendship and partnership over these last three months.  She has selflessly served our family in countless
ways and provided a bit of familiarity in a very unfamiliar place.  She leaves us missing her greatly and looking forward to
the next time when we'll be reunited, in the meantime we'll keep her up to date through Skype and relying on her prayers
and ability to communicate our needs to our church friends and family in San Diego and abroad from an experienced
perspective.  God Bless you Peggy if you're reading this!

There have been many other things to catch you up on over these last few weeks, the first being the seminar season
which we just completed.  This began back in October with the kicking off of three schools, the Discipleship Training
School (DTS), the Introduction to Primary Health Care (IPHC), and the School of Music in Missions (SOMM) and an
internship program.  After a couple of weeks another leadership training program began called "Slingshot" and continued
for three weeks into the 1st week of Nov.  After another week there were a few days of meetings and events having to
do with the handing over of operations for the Pacific Link, the YWAM medical/dental mercy ship to YWAM Townsville.  
This was, as you can imagine, a huge deal and many heavyweight YWAM men and women of God were on hand to take
part in the ceremonies and celebration.  Our family really feel privileged to be apart of this momentous occasion. The
following weekend the base hosted a two day set of meetings for the national YWAM Australia base directors and then for
the next week we hosted the National Leaders Meeting with YWAM leaders from Australia and all over the world, probably
well over 100 in attendance.  The base was certainly hopping during this time and all the staff were working overtime.  
Nonetheless, all went well and the Holy Spirit really ministered throughout this season.

While all of these events were occurring, Cameron and I were blessed to be asked to help staff the October DTS, something
I'd considered before but didn't really think we'd have the opportunity to do for quite some time.  So we jumped at the chance
and though we've entered into a huge commitment we are excited to be used by the Lord.

Here is a general schedule of events for the school:
Oct-late Dec. will be lectures here in Townsville
Late Dec.-Early Feb. will be outreach in Papua New Guinea (Ryan and Jeremy will be serving in this outreach
for about 3 weeks)
Feb.-early Mar. will be outreach in Northeastern Australia, in and around Cairns (The whole family will take
part in this 3 week trip).

The school consists of 35 students almost evenly divided between men and women with 9 staff including Cam and me.  The
ages of the students are 18-34 with various nationalities represented including Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Japan,
Sweden, Switzerland, N. Ireland, England, Canada, and the USA. They are all very different and having varying degrees
of understanding of what YWAM and the DTS is and what it means to know God personally but they are all hungering to
know Him more and to serve and make Him known and that's the most important thing. We've completed 5 weeks of the school
so far and have enjoyed many speakers presenting on topics such as Friendship with God, the Father Heart of God, Identity
in Christ, Relationships, and Design and Destiny.  There is lots of good information and challenging times of spiritual
and emotional transformation.  As staff we take part and assist in all areas of the school from planning events, to hosting
speakers, meeting one on one with students, leading outreaches, and generally ministering as the Lord leads.  Very cool
for our family as we absolutely love doing this kind of work and have been in transition for the last year keeping busy with
other things, so it's good to get back in the saddle again.

Here are Some Prayer Requests:
Peggy's transition back to life in the USA and ours without her.
Balancing time in ministry with family.
Finances, with all the extra traveling coming up our expenses will also rise ...About $2500 for the Papua New Guinea
Outreach and$1000 for the Australia Outreach on top of our regular budget.
Making good choices in obtaining the next visa to help us stay in the country longer...our current visa allows us to stay
in until June 2011 but it's always a good idea to start researching our options. 

Praise Reports:
God continues to provide for our every need!
Seminar season went well and is behind us.
Home schooling is going really well.
Our health has been good.
The Church van has been a huge blessing and is mechanically doing well.

Grandpa Red's Visit

It was amazing to me how easily Cameron's Dad, Jerry adjusted to the weather here in Townsville. It remained quite warm and humid for the entirety of his two-week visit but he said he'd been well prepared by the hot tempts back home in El Cajon. Nonetheless, I figured the humidity would effect him more. We had a great time hanging out and really enjoyed introducing him to our new life here in Australia. After a few tough plane trips, he arrived around noon and climbed his weary body into our chitty chitty bang bang van to be toured through the waterfront and downtown area eventually, making back to our home in the West End. The first day was pretty mellow to allow him to adjust to the new environment and get some rest from all the traveling. The rest was short lived though with so much to see, so many people to meet, and so much Grandpa and Dad time to be enjoyed. The next day I went to work at the YWAM base finishing my duties in Community Life in order to be fully focused on staffing the October Discipleship Training School (DTS). Cameron and her Dad showed up at the base after a while and got a chance to see all the departments, the people, and functions of the ministry. I was really blessed by Jerry's interest about YWAM and our involvement in it. It seemed he received a real peace about it and had his perspective broadened greatly. I know many of our family and friends have had a degree of understanding from our blogs and communications but I think Jerry would agree that coming, seeing, and experiencing everything personally makes a huge difference in having peace about our step into missions. But since not everyone can make the trip, we will certainly continue to stay in touch and describe to the best of our abilities our adventures with God.
Jerry got to taste some of the local food, though with the cost of everything so high we enjoyed most of our meals at home. We had a lovely BBQ at River Way Park just a few kilometers from the house and enjoyed the refreshing public pools which built a wonderfully ravenous hunger in each of us to fully enjoy the steak and veggies that were just about ready by the time we got dried off and changed. He got to see much of the surrounding area as we walked around the waterfront, Strand area of the city, made our way north of town to Bushland Beach to watch the boys (Ryan and me) skate a local park with the rest of the Youth Street Team. We even went inland a few miles into the bush to visit the oldest building in North Queensland which has been transformed into a country tea house. We passed on the $50 coffee they offered, Kopi Luwak (the same mentioned in the movie, "The Bucket List") but enjoyed a late breakfast and some tasty meat pies. It wasn't the Sydney Opera House or Ayer's Rock but he got to see some pretty neat sights, even some things that were new to us as well.
It was quite sad to see him go, we wish we could have all of our friends and family from the States jump on a flight and move in next door but for now we're content with where God has us and feel very excited for the ministry that He's called us to. We are also very thankful for the many friends and church family that God has surrounded us with since we arrived. It is truly miraculous how smoothly and relatively easy things have gone in making this great transition. We've certainly had our share of challenges but I thank God for His faithfulness in sustaining us in every way. PSALM 95

Rolling Stone

It was a bit of a drive to Rolling Stone, about forty-five minutes north of Townsville on the highway toward Cairns. We left with partly cloudy skies and a hot sun making us sweat in the high temperature. The further north we traveled, from suburbia to bush and agricultural fields, the cooler and more cloudy it became. By the time we pulled off to our swim spot the rain had begun to gently fall and we were ready to exit the van and test the cool water. "Youth Street Teams" takes place during the day on Saturdays and is a great time for the kids to focus on an activity that they really love and to build relationships with their peers and with the adult staff. Our particular team is called, "1: 21 Skate" after Paul's great statement in Philippians 1: 21 "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." Most Saturdays we gather and skate at a local park for a few hours before coming back to the YWAM base where we continue to hangout and skate on the base ramps, but this time we were in for a treat, a swim at a local creek. Not all that different from the Calawah River in Summer time back in Forks. Beautifully scenic, slow moving fresh water with slippery mossy river rock covering the round river rock bottom. Immediately upon arrival the kids jumped in and began playfully romping about like a bunch of young platypuses. Though the river was quite low it was clearly evident by the large exposed sand banks and debri strewn around that the water level rises quickly and often, I'm sure the next time we visit we'll be able to dive in headfirst without any fear of injury. After the kids played a while, we headed back up to the OKA, our 4X4 monster truck (see photos) and got lunch cooking on the barbie. The traditional meal of Australia is a sausage or "snag" as they call them, cooked up on the barbie and placed on a piece of regular white bread covered in roasted onions and tomato sauce (a sort of ketchup) or BBQ sauce. We have had this meal countless times since we've been here. At first I "relished" it and gorged myself on them. But after about the fortieth one I got a little sick of them and had to take a break. Now, I've begun to eat them again but with more caution and self control. With full bellies and a few handfuls of chocolates, we were off to the next swimming experience, the bridge! A short distance up river, there was a tall highway bridge with another smaller and shorter one-lane bridge next to it. This was all new to me but the kids new the drill, by the time I reached them, they were all launching themselves off the bridge and into the water about a 12-15' drop. It was neat to see Ryan without hesitation jump into the water. I guess all those trips to the Rogue River in Oregon have enboldened him to jump off anything...that and the fact that all his friends were doing it too. We spent another hour there at the bridge pushing each other into all kinds of daring and rediculous jumps. Thankfully, the Youth Street staff had arranged for a qualified lifeguard to be there but more importantly that God had His angelic lifesavers present as well. God has blessed me greatly in developing relationships with these kids and its through these kinds of activities that bonds are developed, it really reminds me of doing youth ministry back in San Diego at Calvary Chapel Point Loma. Much prayer goes into these Saturday activities and it really pays off when wonderful breakthrough conversations occur. I was told later that night during the Youth Street Live time (the time when the kids eat dinner together and enjoy live bands and ministry related speakers) that one of the kids from another team struck up a conversation with his leader which developed into the young man giving his heart to the Lord! How awesome to be used by God and see troubled kids find value and purpose in life. so many of these kids are at risk, coming from broken homes, abusive relationships, and heavy peer pressure to give in to destructive choices. It is a huge privelege to be part of the solution rather than sitting on the on the side longing to be in the mix.

Trip to the Billabong

I’d like to spend some time sharing about a recent trip that we took with YWAM staff and students to the Billabong Wildlife Refuge, a relatively small zoo which keeps Australian indigenous animals.
We departed from the base after breakfast on a Sunday and drove our caravan of two packed vans and a bus a little south of Townsville by way of the coastal highway past the dump and raceway to the Refuge. It surprised me how quickly the views on either side of the highway turned to rural, rugged bush. Grassy brown, steep rolling hills similar to the Grapevine north of Visalia, CA. thick with gum and eucalyptus trees dipped down and rose again like the curves of the roller coasters at Magic Mountain trailing off into the distance. It was another sunny warm day but our brief winter was evident as the humidity was low and the temperature remained in the high 70’s.
Making our way through the visitor center gift shop, the entrance and exit to the Refuge, we descended the wooden ramp to the edge of a huge billabong (Aussie for ‘pond’). There was a main dirt path that we followed that wound around the circumference of the pond with various side paths that sprouted out from it leading to enclosures of birds, creeks filled with fish and turtles, and even a smaller pond fenced off to provide protection for/from two crocodiles! Many of the animals housed in these enclosures were brought here to rehab from assorted accidents and have become permanent residents. Among the most visible of these are the koalas. There must have been close to ten of these cute, fury critters we observed slowly munching away on eucalyptus leaves in their enclosures, there was even one which had a baby ‘bear-ly’ visible in its pouch.
For most of our visit there were a couple of Refuge staff members that toured our group around the facility showing us important sights and answering questions. The first stop that we made as a group was to a small amphitheater where the staff brought out some animals to show and talk about. First came the koalas, very cute, as I mentioned, but not real exciting to watch. Nevertheless, they are very interesting and fun to hold. Next, they brought out the wombats. These marsupials are quite large and look a little like the R.O.U.S.es of the Fire Swamp in the movie The Princess Bride. Unlike those rodents, these are pretty docile and have an interesting feature which was brought to our attention when the staff member turned the wombat around to show us its rear end and then proceeded to thump its tail-end strongly with the knuckles of his closed fist. This was a little surprising and is not something that you’d expect from a trained refuge staff member, but he was making an interesting point since with every blow you could see that it didn’t affect the wombat any more than if it was a tortoise having his shell knocked on. Indeed that is what the wombat has just under its skin, a strong shell-like shield of cartilage to fend off predators when it is digging its way into the ground to make a burrow.
After some more questions from the audience and a bunch of photos, we made our way to the crocodile pond where there was a nice, solid fence built to separate us from these prehistoric carnivores. One staff member placed himself on a small platform that jutted out over the water like a balcony while the other staff person entered the enclosure and managed the animals from the grass next to the water. Both were armed with a stick in one hand for protection and in the other a stick for feeding the crocs. The feeding stick had a line attached with parts of raw chicken meat to entice them out of the water and into view. This was a bit dangerous but the staff had it all under control.
Lastly, we made our way to another small meeting area where the staff brought out some of their more scaly inhabitants. A couple of long, thick snakes and a baby crocodile which, thankfully, had its jaws taped shut. Again, we were instructed about the animals, their habitat, diet, etc. but the fun part came when they lined us up and gave each of us a chance to hold them and get photos taken. Some of us were at ease, others really had to stir up some courage, and a few opted out. I was especially impressed by the courage displayed by Cameron, Sean, and Kay!
After a full stomach from a traditional Aussie lunch of snags (sausage), chips, and veggies we gathered our tired family up and piled into the vehicles, purchasing some souvenirs on the way out. All in all a wonderful day full of great sights, new information, and exciting encounters. We’re looking forward to our next visit since we were blessed with a smok’n deal on a family pass good for a year. So, for anyone who wants to make the long trip over for a visit, know that the Billabong will be on the list of attractions.

Psalm 145: 4

I was a bit nervous having not preached publicly for a while
but was excited and felt very privileged to have the opportunity
to share Jesus to a room full of Aussie kids. The Youth Street
Leader had asked if I would share a 15 or 20 minute message on 'freedom'
and include some movie clips to help illustrate the theme. I prayed on it
and considered what clips would be appropriate, settling on, of course, a speech
by William Wallace (Mel Gibson) in 'Brave Heart', a scene from 'The Fellowship
of the Ring', and a humorous clip from 'Chicken Run'. I broke the message into
three parts explaining three aspects of freedom,Physical freedom (body), Mental freedom (soul),
and spiritual freedom (spirit) and included throughout Paul and Silas'
Experience in Philipi. What a hoot! God brought nearly a hundred souls to listen
and kept them focused and tracking the entire time. We began with the shout, "Freedom!" and ended with a prayer of repentance and salvation and another "Freedom!" to complete a really
amazing night. What a blessing to be involved in God's plan in reaching the youth of this
Country, there's no better place to be than in the center of His will!

Hello again!
It’s occurred to me that many of you, our faithful readers, are not quite informed on what YWAM Reef to Outback does and what we are doing as staff interns. So, I’ll give you what I’ve seen, heard, and experienced so far and will fill you in more as we continue to serve. First, I’ll tell you about one very exciting ministry that has been and will continue to be effective in changing the lives of many, many needy people. It’s the YWAM medical ship called, the Pacific Link. This old Japanese training vessel was miraculously acquired by YWAM RTO a few years ago and has been in the process of getting fixed up and prepared for its main purpose, medical missions trips throughout the South Pacific Region. While the work has been done in getting the supplies and volunteers together, the directors have had it touring throughout the eastern coast of Australia visiting various city ports with the manifold intent of performing youth outreaches to the many troubled teens in these cities while also offering tours of the ship and giving presentations to groups, schools, churches, and the like who might be interested in being involved in the future medical missions. Lastly, the base is conducting a Discipleship Training School stationed on the vessel with the small number of students and staff (6 or 7) having their lectures and outreach onboard. Currently, the Lord has opened doors for the Pacific Link to motor up to Cairns for more outreach and promotion and then on to Thursday Island located at the very northeastern point of the mainland where they will stay for a short time before making their way across the channel to Pupua New Guinea (PNG). Everyone is ecstatic about this part of the trip since this is where the mission will really begin in earnest. The vessel will arrive in one of the main ports in PNG and make sure all their paperwork is in order and fuel tanks filled. Next, it’s on to the various remote towns and villages to meet the needs of the local people. The ship is equipped with eye surgeons, primary medical doctors and nurses, dentists and assistants and the facilities for these gifted professionals to perform their duties. Also, in preparation for this trip, many extremely generous medical and dental supply companies, private practices, individuals, and groups have donated copious amounts of supplies and financial support for the outreach. We are all super excited to be apart of this grand endeavor and can’t wait to hear the stories of those who are serving on board the Pacific Link. In the meantime, a small army of workers need to stay back and take care of the base and the other important ministries that are happening weekly…that is where we come in.
Next, here are some of the other ministries that are going on here at the base:
Youth Street: A weekly outreach on Saturdays to teenage youth in the community. It consists of many kinds of staff led activities, from art, to music, dance, and skateboarding all for the purpose of leading the kids into maturity in every area of their life, especially spiritually. Ryan and I are involved in the skateboarding team during the day and occasionally we stick around for dinner and the evening, Youth Street Live part of the ministry where the kids are often treated to bands, games, insightful biblical teaching, and other activities.
Mission Adventures: A youth focused ministry that seeks to send teens on short-term mission trips in order to stir their hearts for God, for service, and for missions. This is a ministry that Cameron and I are interested in being apart of possibly in the near future. Hopefully, when things slow down a bit, we’ll be able to take the whole family along for some nearby outreach trips!
Proper Way Productions: A ministry designed to reach out to native peoples of Australia and the Pacific Islands. It employs dance, music, and other culturally rich activities to touch hearts for God.
Discipleship Training Schools: These are 6 month schools which are split into two main parts. The first is a lecture series that mostly takes place on base with students receiving rich study in spiritual principles and incorporating living in the community of the base and serving in various capacities both there and in the community. The second part are mission trips which help the students to put into practice the principles that they have learned while at the same time experiencing what “missions” is all about. Being in and heading up certain aspects of the Community Life department of base operations, I get to oversee anywhere from two to four DTS students in their daily work responsibilities. This gives me the opportunity to get to know these young people and to encourage them in their work ethic and spiritual growth, what a blessing! In the beginning of October another school will be starting with a large class of around 40 students in attendance.
School of Music in Missions: This is a school especially for the ministry minded musician. It consists of lectures in biblical principles of worship, opportunities to work with other musicians in teams (bands), and trips across land and sea to lead worship and reach out to the unchurched world.
Introduction to Primary Healthcare School: This school is designed to prepare students for Christian medical outreach.
*For more info and probably much better descriptions of these ministries check out the YWAM RTO website at ywamrto.org
Here are some events that are coming up:In October the base is hosting a number of conferences, seminars, and meetings and as a result we will all be very busy accommodating and facilitating them. Some of these are: The National Leadership Meeting, The National Base Leaders’ Meeting, Slingshot (a leadership conference), Marine Reach Meeting (gathering of various leaders in the relief ships world). I have been asked to be a venue manager during these events so I’m expecting to be very active moving chairs and tables around and generally helping out.
In December an amazing, extravagant annual event takes place called, Stable on the Strand. What makes it so amazing is that virtually all of the churches and local government (and many sponsors) in Townsville team up to put on a huge Christmas celebration. YWAM is in the thick of it helping the churches to work together and providing many staff and student volunteers throughout the event. I have been asked to take a large role in this event and so I’m praying about it. It is clear that one can get overcommitted easily so Cameron, Peggy, and I are working on balancing our time and work load so we don’t get burned out.
It is amazing to be in Australia in the center of God’s will, being used by Him in the lives of many different people. It is truly a miracle and we feel incredibly privileged to be apart of all this. With all of the areas that God has us involved in, 1Cor. 10: 31 comes to mind and rings true in our hearts “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
Thanks again for your love, prayers, and support; you are a huge blessing to us!

The Lord has been doing much in my heart to confirm our direction and give me peace about serving in Townsville with YWAM for this season of our lives. Since we arrived, I’ve been really searching for God’s purpose in bringing us to Townsville and how our connection with YWAM could be apart of it all. I mentioned that we were praying about starting a Bible study in our home on Sundays and we’re still praying. In the meantime though, we’ve been attending a local church fellowship in the central district of the city called, Townsville Central City Mission an affiliate of the Uniting Church of Australia. This denomination is quite vast is Australia and as I understand it varies drastically from one congregation to another. Some are extremely liberal in theology even to the point of rejecting the inspiration of the scriptures and allowing practicing homosexuals to serve as pastors and elders, to much more conservative and evangelically traditional. As I’m told, the Uniting churches in the state of Queensland tend to be more conservative and this specific fellowship certainly leans that way, as a result we feel we’re in agreement on most things spiritually. We were introduced to this church by some friends from the YWAM base and felt really accepted from the start. We’ve attended other churches on our stay but this one has been a good fit in that it is biblically based, somewhat contemporary in style of worship though there are a few hymns included (Cameron especially likes this), it is very family oriented with attendees ranging in age from newborn to the elderly, even folks in their eighties and nineties! It’s conveniently located (just a few miles away and on the opposite side of Castle Hill from our house) and is strongly missions minded and inviting of the various minorities such as Pacific Islanders, Southeast Asians, and of course Aboriginals. They also offer their facility on Sundays to a South Korean fellowship. We’ve really connected well with the congregation and felt a unity in their heart for city outreach and international missions. I’ve begun attending a men’s fellowship on Tuesday mornings and have been asked, to my delight, to produce curriculum for a study through the book of Ephesians, I can’t wait to see how the discussion go! The Church is on a scheduled reading through the scriptures on Sundays, but the morning message is not often chapter by chapter and verse by verse as we are used to, nonetheless we’re blessed to be in a good, loving fellowship and we’re praying for God’s will in growing together with them. Who knows what God will do in this new relationship…

Recently Ryan and Aurbry participated in an event at the church called “40 Hour Famine”. The purpose was for the kids to experience in a small degree what it’s like to live as a kid in a third world country. Throughout their over-night stay they and their young friends got to bake bread and make butter from scratch, see the sights at the local dump to get a whiff of what it would be like to live and work there as many children do around the world. They made beaded jewelry like many do who’re stuck in sweatshops, had to make creative shelters with materials that the parents had strewn about creating a post cyclone scene. They carried water in buckets around the neighborhood and ate only a couple spoonfuls of plain rice for dinner and experienced hunger through the night and into the next day as they didn’t eat until after lunch. Overall, both were really blessed by the experience and agree that they have a better understanding of life in other countries.
Saturday was another day of outreach for me as I took part in Youth Street teams. Ours is called Skate Team 1:21 in honor of Phil. 1: 21 where Paul bravely states, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” We had 8 or 9 kids this time and headed out of town to the area called the northern beaches, about a twenty minute drive. It was nice to get out and see some new sights as we have only been skating near by and at the base. It was another graffitied cement park in a small community with a KFC fast food restaurant right next door. It’s brutal to exercise and have that smell wafting through the air. The park was packed with local kids, mostly scooting and riding bikes. A local kid and I were the only ones skating until the end when a couple more locals showed up. For the most part it was controlled chaos as everyone did their own thing. I was pretty overwhelmed by all the people and resigned myself to mostly just watching all the action. There were certainly some impressively gifted athletes out there but it was also evident that all the dangers that I faced as a kid were alive and well. I’m not referring to the dangers of hitting the cement or other kids. There were older kids there slamming power drinks, smoking, and generally carrying on setting a bad example for the younger ones. It’s not a surprise nor is it an unnatural thing but one where I can see myself in them when I was their age. All I wanted was to have fun, skate well, and be respected and accepted by my peers. What I didn’t realize was that I was seeking acceptance from the wrong source, people. The acceptance that I needed was from God. His acceptance and love is unconditional and consistent where all other avenues come up short. His love is perfect and without end. I always try to be conscious of any opportunity to shine the light of Jesus into the lives of the guys I see at the parks but what’s utmost in my mind are the lives of the kids that God has me overseeing. They’re all really great kids and the Lord has opened some neat occasions to connect with them on their level. When I see the moves that some of these kids are doing now, I realize just how anciently unskilled I am yet, there’s still the connection that is made regardless of whether I’m a skater or scooter or biker and I pray that the Lord will use that connection to influence their lives for His good.

Aubry wanted to say something too…

I have had a great time in Australia so far. It is very silly that we live so close to the ocean but we haven’t gone there yet. I was hoping for some pets when we first got here. There was an old bath tub outside in the yard full of mucky disgusting water, the perfect place for Mozzy’s to breed. So, my Dad dumped most of it out. I was amazed one morning, when I looked at the water and thought I saw tadpoles, but they turned out to be fish! Mom and Dad found an aquarium at the thrift shop and decided to buy it for the family. Though the biggest fish didn’t live, Ryan and I found three baby fish left in the water and put them into their new home. Two of the fish follow one another around like best buddies. So, now we have some pets!
I just met a new friend named Anna and our family’s been going to her church. She is an Australian and uses words I don’t know sometimes. She has a very cool personality and likes joking around a lot. She’s eight years old and doesn’t have any brothers or sisters but has two cute puppy dogs named Rose and Cushion. She also lives just a few blocks away so we can walk there when I have a play day. I made another friend named Emily who is visiting from Hawaii and will be leaving in a few days. She’s seven but acts more like a nine year old so I’m pretty glad about that. She has two cool younger brothers that Sean likes to play with.
My favorite thing to do during the week is driving in our new bus. It has twelve seats and Mom and Dad are just learning how to drive it because they have to stay on the left-hand side of the road and the gear shift is on the steering wheel and they have to shift with their left hand.
We’re so happy now that we have a better washing machine since the old one used to travel right out of the laundry room. Peggy has been a great nanny for us and is constantly blessing us by hanging up our clothes to dry (we don’t have a dryer) and doing the dishes and other household chores.
Home schooling is not so fun but if I want to learn I must do it. Mom likes to read awesome books to us, like The Twenty-One Balloons and Helen Keller. My favorite subject is Math-u-see.
Mythbusters is about to start so remember, God made you special and He loves you very much…Goodbye!
Love,
Aubry

What an amazing place we live in! We have been seeing all kinds of new animals, multicolored, and varying in size. One thing that is a constant is that these animals, bugs and such have very little if any fear of humans. They see us as just another life form among a host of others. As the photos display, there are huge grasshoppers, cute possums, toads (reportedly abundant during the summer months), bats (locals call them flying foxes), and geckos. Not pictured but worth noting are the mice, wasps, disease carrying mosquitoes, and 3 inch long roaches not to mention the spiders and snakes but most of these animals are harmless and the latter seem to be pretty rare in the urban areas though the huntsman spiders are prevalent and tend to be quite big, about the size of Kay’s hand and are aggressive. Thankfully, though their bite is painful, they are not poisonous just really imposing especially when they unexpectedly leap a few inches off the ground when provoked...No Worries Mate!

Cam's Latest

Hello all!  Please accept my apology for lack of communication.  We still do not
have internet service at home.  Also no phone.  You really don’t realize how much you
depend on things until they are missing!  (Like a dryer, or screens on the windows &
windowless shutters :)

Yeah, as far as not realizing how much you depend on things until they're gone...not
having a vehicle has been a huge adjustment.  We have had to limit our groceries to what
we can carry or put in the stroller.  We were given a jogger stroller (pram) which is
awesome.  But guess what? The church we've been attending has a diesel 12 passenger
bus/van and they are thrilled to let us use it all during the week!  They only use it to
pick people up on Sundays and consider it a blessing to have it used instead of sitting
around.  I had tears come to my eyes when they offered.  AND I actually drove it!!!  Yes
on the LEFT side of the road, and it is a manual tree shift—you know the kind that shifts
from the side of the steering wheel—on the left side?  Yeah, AND I didn’t crash, praise
God!  Although I did turn on the windshield wipers a few times instead of signaling!

Ryan has gotten involved in a group called Youth Street.  Youth Street is part of the
YWAM ministry to young Aussies aged 12-18.  They get together on Saturdays.  From 2-5pm
they have teams, at 5pm they have dinner and from 5:30-10pm they have a huge youth group
type gathering at the YWAM Center with games, activities, music & bands, skateboarding… 
Youth Street has several teams: dance, music, skateboarding, recruiting new people,
sports, and art.  Ryan has joined a skate team (even though he’s only 11) and Jeremy is a
team leader.  Please pray for me because Ryan gets to stay on his own after dinner until
9pm…growing pains for Mom :).

Aubry has found a new friend at church.  The girls have gotten together a few times and
had heaps of fun.  Sean is Mr. Congeniality and all the missionaries at the base love to
talk with him.  Kay is coming into her own and talking so much.  She tries to boss all
the other kids around sometimes and the funny part is that sometimes they all listen to
her!  All the people here at YWAM love our kids.  God really uses them, probably more
than us, to bless people here.  It is really a blessing to watch.

Well, it’s 10:35pm and I’m at the base and need to get home.  Oh, I just love you guys. 
It is such a comfort to have your support through your love and prayers.  Please pray for
internet & phone at home and for continued adjustment into homeschooling.  I work two
afternoons in the accounts office and one morning is spent on base for worship, staff
meeting and then staff internship.  Jeremy is working full time in the community life
(Comm Life) office.  He helps oversee keys, security, and facility management.  The first
two weeks beginning July 11, we were both here at the center until lunch.  I did my two
half days and the other three days I went home.  Jeremy was in Comm Life all five days
after lunch.  He was only on his second week of working half days when the head of the
department left on outreach to Papua New Guinea and Jeremy was in charge!  He really did
such a great job managing it all.

OK, yes I have to go.  I love you.  I miss you all just too much (heaps, we say here). 
Thank you again for your support.  There are so many young people here struggling to
raise financial support as well as have their family’s positive support and blessing.  By
releasing us to be here, both by your financial support and your blessing, you really
enable us to be free to focus on what God has here for us.  You guys are truly amazing. 
Please write when you have time (email or snail mail).

Love yous (another Aussie expression),
Cam & Fam

Divine Encouragement

A friend gave me a small paperback book when we stayed overnight at his Mariposa, CA. home on our way to LA from the northwest. It was by Jack London and called Tales of the Pacific. I had read some short stories of his previously, but they had been set in the Yukon and since we’re going to be on the Great Barrier Reef I thought it would be interesting on both a cultural and geographic level as well as just being well written, granted it is London, not the most uplifting author, but one who’s great at adventure. So, I’m currently about a quarter of the way through it and have been delighted with the intensity of the short stories though they are rather grim. One in particular got my attention; it takes place on a Fijian Island over a hundred years ago with a few white men and some native tribesmen. The main character is a missionary who, having been fairly successful in his efforts to bring the local tribe to faith in Christ, feels inspired to continue on into the interior of the island to share the Lord with the other cannibalistic tribes. It is a tale of bravery conviction, cowardliness, and betrayal somewhat reminiscent of Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. Naturally, I put myself into the story as the missionary and wonder if I would perform the in a similar fashion though it ended tragically with his death and subsequent preparation for their dinner. This story was somewhat similar to Robinson Crusoe, which I listened to intently over a year ago in Forks, what a great and enthralling story! Therefore, when we were at the camping trip in the bush a few days ago and a stout Tongan man came over to me in an evening time of worship and prayer and but his thick muscular right arm around my shoulders and said in a very deep, broken English voice, “I pray for you?!” (I wasn’t sure if it was a question or command) I could not say, “no” and felt only a small fraction of the intimidation that the white men must have felt when first landing on the beaches of uncharted South Pacific islands. I was very impressed by the depth of this man’s prayer and the heartfelt love that he expressed toward me and God. His prayer covered a number of topics but what caught my attention the most was his emphasis on my working effectively with the youth of Australia. As I have mentioned with many of you in the past, when asked what I felt God’s call was for us over here I shared that God had called us through many scriptural references to bring the word of God to the youth, the next generation of Aussies. Also, that many of the references were from the book of Isaiah. Thus, you can imagine my astonished excitement when this Tongan man named, Isaiah prayed for me to be effective in youth ministry!

One more quick story before I sign off. On Saturdays the YWAM base puts on a youth oriented outreach called “Youth Street”. It’s well attended and quite a production to be sure. Last Saturday’s was an impressively realistic version of “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” though on other nights they will have bands and or dance performances and the like. I have attended every Saturday since we arrived usually with Ryan and or Aubry in-tow usually to skate the small ramps they have and mingle with the kids to develop relationships and get familiar with everything. One Saturday we watched as one of the house bands played a lively set of worship songs and observed how the staff interacted with the kids. Earlier in the week I was feeling a little discouraged as I hadn’t seen where there was a real need for us at the base. I was certain that God had called us and paved the way but with eighty plus young fired up gifted Christians on staff it really didn’t seem like we could make much more of an impact than what was already being done. Really it was just the enemy trying to cloud my perspective and get me off track. It’s really evident that he’s put a bulls-eye on us since we got here. So, while we were watching the worship band, one of the young staff men came to me and screamed, “Can I pray for you!?” over the blare of the music. It took me by surprise but not wanting to miss a blessing I nodded and hoarsely yelled, “sure” as loudly as I could. What came next wasn’t a prayer as much as a word of knowledge straight from God. He said, “I feel God wants you to know that you are here for a purpose, that it may seem like everything is running well and that all the needs are covered but there are needs that you cannot see. I want you to be confident and walk in boldness knowing that you’re here because I have called you.” And with that he smiled and patted me on the shoulder and walked off. I smiled back and nodded nonchalantly but inwardly was absolutely stunned and blessed.

The moral of the story is, if someone asks if they can pray for you, let them. Also, as Pastor Chuck always says, “Where God guides, He provides” both in material necessities, fellowship, and in confirmation and encouragement when we need it. Speaking of fellowship, we have been praying about a church to attend and possibly invest in and are still searching, but the last two Sundays we have been holding church at home. Last Sunday it was due to many of the kids in the family being sick, but this Sunday it was because we had some YWAM friends respond to our offer to be apart of our home church. It’s a long explanation for another post, but we’ve found many of our peers at the base don’t attend church on Sundays and are very hungry for solid Bible teaching…How about that! So we’re praying for the possibility of starting a church in earnest. I feel I need to hear directly from God on this though and don’t want to commit fully unless He specifically directs us even though there is apparently a need.

Last week I mentioned that I’d try to be more specific on what responsibilities we will have at the base while the internship starts, so I’ll tell you what I know so far as it officially starts today, Sunday afternoon with a BBQ orientation. My supervisor, Jonathan has informed me that I’d be working in Community Life, a broad label for general base operations. That is, overseeing and set up of facility events, general base upkeep, housing management. Also, planning and executing events that work toward unity and family atmosphere among the staff and the students. The assignment is for at least three months and then I’ll have the option to move to another area or stay on for another three months and so on. It is also an option for me to be active with the Youth Street group on Saturdays if I choose. It will be interesting to see how much time Community Life will take up thereby allowing me to take part in other things, including studying for Sunday if the need may be.

Cameron will be taking part in the first couple of weeks of morning orientation lectures and then will attend weekly worship, prayer, and service times but will mostly be at home schooling the kids. Her service times will be two or three times a week working in the accounting office.

We are also looking forward to fulfilling our requirements for the outreach portion of the Discipleship Training School which we partially completed in Discovery Bay late last year. We’ve been told that we should be able to fulfill the requirements by taking part in outreaches throughout our year long stay in Townsville and we’re getting a jump on it by taking part in the Youth Street program offered on Saturdays (I’ll explain more next time).

So, we’re off and running. Still enjoying our time here and really blessed with our home, new friends, community, and calling though we’ve had some rough days in transition. One thing is for sure, it has made all the difference to know that we have a large group of friends and family who are praying for us and financially supporting us. We are greatly encouraged when we receive you emails and speak with you through Skype and Facebook. It would be much more difficult if we were more isolated and not able to stay in-touch. Thank you once again for being there for us! We look forward to more opportunities to connect and dialogue with each of you.

Answered Prayer:

­ Dressers and Shelf Units for the house: We had a couple young blokes show up at the house last week with a couple of large wardrobes for our clothes! Also, we purchased some furniture from the local thrift shops at pretty good prices (even a fish tank for the kids!). We’re nearly there though we need another dresser for the boys’ room.

­ For the family to get into our routines: All of our responsibilities have become more clear and the internship has begun so things are settling down nicely.

­ A good solution to the mosquitoes: Part of it is getting used to the local food (apparently the make-up of the food here helps to keep the Mozzy’s from biting as much. Also, we’re becoming more diligent with the repellent.

­ For God’s leading: We’re still praying for God’s will in the long-term picture of what He has for us.

Prayer Requests:

­ Jeremy, Cameron, and Peggy for wisdom and grace in fulfilling our responsibilities both at home and at the base.

­ A good church to get involved with or to start one.

­ Evangelism in our neighborhood.

­ Cameron and the kids to get hooked up with the local homeschool group.

­ Perseverance and wisdom with the kids’ homeschooling.

7/10
Praise the Lord, we’re here!

It was an amazing feeling finally flying over Townsville for the first time. Curiosity and a sense of adventure had filled our hearts over the last few months, but now actually arriving in our new home there is an overwhelming sense of relief. Sure, the blue ocean, green and brown craggy hills and historic architecture in the city are amazing and beautiful, but my greatest happiness at this point is just getting into our new home and unpacking. Traveling can be very exciting especially when many of our stops along the way have been with friends and family, but it is wonderful to be done and settled in.
Our first flight from LAX to Sydney was uneventful and went by fairly quickly. Thanks again to Mom, Brad and Shannon for helping us get to the Airport and sending us off. The real trial began as we changed planes and made our connection to Townsville. I won’t go into too much detail now, but it rates right up there with one the most difficult experiences that I’ve ever gone through, quite the boot camp. Kay threw up twice at baggage claim, then fell and knocked her head on the tile floor and she and Cam were quickly surrounded by medics and strict looking airline workers who nearly prevented us from catching our flight. Not to mention transporting 17 50 pound bags, guitar, 10 carry-ons to a different terminal! Nevertheless, it is mostly out of my mind now and the events of the last few days and excitement of the future is now paramount.
We had nearly a week to adjust to the time difference and to get moved in (more about the awesome house and yard later and our first Sunday morning church experience). During that week we had a few opportunities to be exposed to some of the ministries offered by the base. First, we enjoyed a sausage BBQ dinner at the base which is open weekly to the community. This was well attended and neat to see many of the staff mingling with the locals. Second, we were driven down to the Townsville harbor where we were fortunate to be able to take a ship tour on the Pacific Link, the YWAM Mercy Ship which motors through the western Pacific doing outreach to Aussies and medical missions to Papua New Guinea (PNG). The ship has facilities for dental, ophthalmology (eye surgery), and general medical. There are many health professionals and general ship staff/officers to run things as well as Discipleship Training School students on board to help out. Lastly, we attended the weekly youth outreach called Youth Street. This is an event on Saturday nights which gives the local youth an opportunity to listen to live music, watch dance and other kinds of performances, skate the small skatepark (Ya!), and generally goof around in a safe environment with many Christian staff to oversee and mentor the kids.
Having settled in a bit, Monday morning came and we were up and ready for our first real YWAM Reef to Outback event: the annual staff camping trip. With all the traveling and transition our family has gone through lately, I was not real hot on the idea to go camping, but I knew that this would be an invaluable opportunity to meet and spend time with our new co-laborers. We traveled north for about 40 minutes to an innocuous turn-off leading west across sugarcane fields to a place called Paluma. I was warned from here on up to the campground the road would get a little curvy but like many sayings in Australia it was a gross understatement. I was so thankful to be in the front seat and that it passed without any regurgitation from any of us. I guarantee next time though, I’m taking Dramamine! The camping area called Hidden Valley was the epitome of Australian bush. At about 3000 ft. of elevation we camped on privately owned cattle ranch land. We spread all of our 150 or so campers on about 50 acres of land bordered by dirt roads and a shallow chilly creek. At the center of the area was a field with abundant coarse wild grass and a steel outbuilding on a slab for nice shade where much of the cooking was done and all around us were hundreds of eucalyptus trees of varying sizes and shapes providing more valuable shade. The Kookaburras and gigantic huntsman spiders visited our camp daily as did various other critters such as miniature Kangaroos, their real name escapes me, and the odd grazing bull (Ryan thought it was a camel at first as they look quite different!). Being at elevation, the nights were clear, brisk, and full of stars, totally different stars than what we’re used to and the Southern Cross was plain as can be. The days were pleasant, though it is evident that the sun is of much greater intensity here. I’m told that you must buy Australian made sunscreen because other lotions aren’t potent enough to protect adequately. Our big goofy looking straw hats blessed us once again with valuable shade and we were envied by many because of it.
Our days were spent fellowshipping with our new friends, fishing in the creek, exploring the immediate area, playing board games, cards, and practicing field games like Frisbee, baseball, and especially Footie (did I mention I got to play in my first ever organized footie or Aussie Rugby game…I’m still sore!). The staff put together some great meals including an authentic island style pig roast and we all enjoyed extended times of worship and prayer in the evenings. On that first morning of our arrival in camp I realized and tried to explain to Ryan, that I was experiencing stepping into the photos and television shows that I had intently watched and studied in the past, what a strange feeling. After two nights and three days, we packed everything up and headed back down the windy road to the highway and on to Townsville. It’s nice to be back. I feel even more settled now and am eager to get to work.
The house is awesome!! It’s what’s known as a classic Queenslander house, up off the ground for lots of air flow, high ceilings, fans, some windows and shutters throughout (no windows on the shutters and no screens--pray for mosquito or "mozzie" season). The many doors and fans keep air moving thereby bringing some relief to the stifling heat which abounds for much of the year. We do not have any air conditioning and apparently with the right construction it’s not really needed, though we’ll wait on making a decision about that until the temperature starts raising. There are three bedrooms, a really comfortable living room area, two French doors that open onto a large covered back porch, and modern kitchen (the envy of many of the RTO staff). There is one bathroom with a jet tub (can you believe it!) and separate shower. There's also another toilet outside connected to the laundry room. There is a washer but everyone here line dries their clothes since the temperature is so high most of the time. The yard is a large, tamed jungle, perfect for four kids who are ready to get outside and explore. There's a see-saw, small rope swing, a yet-to-be-reinforced fort for the kids. With such nice spacious digs Peggy has fit right in with us. We are so thankful for her presence, and the extra money that we save as a result we believe to be good stewardship.

Last Sunday we visited a local non-denominational church that meets conveniently at the RTO base. It is a good church with many lovely Believers who’re really excited about the Lord, but not quite the flavor we’re looking for. We’re looking forward to getting settled into a comfortable fellowship, but the search will continue for another Sunday.
Blessings to you all, we’re so happy to be in God’s will and look forward to the next post when we’ll be able report with greater detail what specific ministries we will be involved with as the internship program begins July 11 and we’ll be working diligently in the ministry alongside our new friends.

Thanks again for your prayers and support!
The Botkin Family and Nanny Peggy

►Answered Prayer:
-We got here safely and only had one of 17 bags misplaced and that was only for a couple of hours.
-The kids made the plane flight fairly well, except for Kay's difficulties, but she was very much the survivor!
-The folks at the base have been extremely hospitable and loving toward us; all are excited for us to be here and say they've been praying for us.

►Prayer Requests:
-Dressers and shelf units for the house, so we can organize and put stuff away. (There are no closets or cupboards, except in the kitchen).
-For the family to get into a routine of napping, cleaning, schooling, cooking, and working.
-A good solution to the mozzies which will only get worse as the weather heats up and moistens, they especially like Kay and Cameron.
-For God’s leading in placing Jeremy (and Cameron part-time) in the ministries that are most appropriate.