New Vision

“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, and make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it. For you shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth into singing before you, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree; and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.” Is. 55: 10-13

As we were praying about our recent trip to Sydney, I felt the Lord direct us to this passage in preparation for what He was going to speak to us at the conference. Isaiah 42 was the chapter that God spoke to us on our first trip to Australia to attend the Calvary Chapel ministry conference on the Gold Coast back in 2009. That chapter became our theme for the adventure that was to come as we transitioned from the ministry of Calvary Chapel Forks into missions with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) which ultimately led us to N. Queensland and Papua New Guinea, where we completed a year long staff internship program with YWAM, Townsville. As mentioned in Isaiah 55, the life transforming truth of God’s word is central to our relationship with God, for it expresses His heart, nature, character, and plan for humanity’s salvation. Heb. 4: 11-12 states, “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” Thus when I read that God has a distinct purpose in delivering His powerful word into the lives of a needy world, I get excited because we get to be apart of that work. We get to be His mouth, His hands, feet, His ears to touch the lives of hurting people and as it is apparent, the people of Australia.

It was with great difficulty that Cameron and I left Sequim, WA to begin our 12 day trip to Sydney. Difficult because this would be the longest that we have ever been away from the kids and though we were very confident that they would be fine in the capable hands of our relies (relatives), we knew that we’d miss them terribly. Nonetheless, we found ourselves over thirty hours later in a very nice home in the Northern Beaches area of Sydney reunited with both old and new friends all who share the same burden for Aussies. We spent three days getting to know one another better and generally enjoying the fellowship. We spent much time sharing worship songs, ministry stories, and time praying for the nation. Leading up to the trip, Cameron and I had been in contact with some of the key members of the team and had been very interested in their plans and considered what involvement we might have but remained unsure and not entirely committed even through this preliminary period. All that changed though, when the conference began in earnest.

We had been praying for months and had as many people as possible praying for us also so that we would know clearly what the next step for our family would be. Sure enough from each of the speakers came a wonderful message of God’s great love for us and His clear calling of our family to continue serving Him in the Australian mission field.

The plan, as it stands is to spend the rest of the school year in the States and prepare to set sail again for Australia come July/August 2012. So far there are a hand full of families and some individuals who are likewise preparing to relocate around that time, some are Aussie nationals while others are from the U.S. The hope is to get established in the Sydney area near downtown and launch a Calvary Chapel affiliated church by the beginning of 2013.

During the conference, one thing that was clear and is felt by many is that God is ready to move powerfully and significantly in this country and has gathered all of us together to be apart of the work. How is it going to happen? How will we get the visas, the finances, the people and resources? I’m confident these questions will be answered in the near future. In the meantime we will all be in disciplined and fervent prayer for how to take the next delicate steps. We are emboldened by the confirmation of our calling and incredibly excited to be apart of His work. All of the team members are remarkably gifted and experienced men and women of faith and we are honored and blessed to be working with them.

So, another chapter is beginning for us and we can’t wait to see how it will all unfold. One thing for sure, serving the Lord is always a challenging adventure and rarely dull. We are so, so grateful for your prayers and your partnership in the ministry. I can’t fully communicate the ups and downs that we’ve experienced over these recent months but we are always comforted by the words of encouragement, prayers, and support that are expressed constantly by all of our friends and family. Thank you again for investing in the Lord’s work through us.

The Botkin Family