The Longest 30 days

Our journey since 8/12/2016 in calculated terms for the last 30 day period.
1 job left
59.25 hours spent behind the windshield of a Chrysler Town and Country
5000 miles driven
14 states seen at varying miles per hour
4 churches/organizations visited to discuss our mission work in Cameroon
15 homeschool lessons from a hotel room, back seat of the van, or a picnic table
1 house sold
1 son that turned 11
1 van repair done
Innumerable amount of memories shared with family and friends.

I look at this list and realize why I feel as though our world, is not completely upside down, but definitely at a sideways slant. We have slept on beds with varying degrees of comfort.  Had our ups and downs emotionally. We have spent hours in the company of those we love so much and have missed spending time with.  We have met new people, and have been encouraged by them that we are on the right path to serve God to our fullest.  We have shed tears saying goodbye to those we hold dear with hearts breaking. Then step back with heavy hearts and realize that this is only the beginning of the goodbyes to come in the next 3 months.

The first part of our journey led us to a place we call our spiritual home Warren, OH. We spent time with our church family there and were able to present our mission work to them at St John the Baptist. We were delighted to hear all about the lives of those we have missed so much and to be able to reconnect with them.

We left OH and drove to St Augustine,FL. Upon arriving we were amazed to learn that the beginging of our nations history was there to be seen after just learning about it in the previous 2 weeks of homeschooling. It was a real life touching, seeing, and smelling history lesson! We were also able to meet with OCMC regarding the mission works they are doing around the world and were able to share some of our vision with them as well regarding our calling as a family for the future.

We then drove to Sarasota and were able to spend 2 days with my brother and his family.  We attended church with them and heard a message from Roberts Liardon about leaving everything and following Christ just as Abraham did.  What an amazing message and encouragement it was for us! That evening my brother and wife shared about their lives and the things God is doing for them.  I was thankful that again I was shown that if you are willing to serve, God will use you to do his work.  Before we left they prayed for us and my oldest niece Carmen prayed for us as well.  It was truly the most beautiful prayer I have ever heard.

We then climbed back into the van to travel back to Kansas City to close on the sell of our home.  We arrived safely and exhausted. Once there we had cleaning, papers to sign, tears to shed, and goodbyes to say.  This part of the past 30 days was probably the hardest.  My children both said goodbye to their best friends and cried and grieved for the past memories and future time that has been lost in their minds.  How was I to truly explain that the call to missions is one for the entire family and that they will be changed forever by this life in ways they could never imagine? The answer I am finding is that I cannot.  I can only love them and support them and allow that sadness and grief for a time.   I then try to show them Christ any way I can by reading scripture and discussing it, praying with them, or just holding them when they need held.

As soon as the house sale was over we were off to Branson to play on the water and spend time with Chris's parents.  We went to Tablerock Lake and were enjoying the day until we pulled into a cove where Chris, Micah, and Caja went out to some small cliffs to jump off into the water. While they were swimming over to the cliffs we heard a bump......bump..........bump.  My mother-in-law and I looked off the side of the boat and saw that there was a large tree limb or stump in the water hitting the boat.  My father-in-law started the engine and began moving the boat to get away from the tree, but found that the anchor was stuck. Let me tell you one thing..... We were going nowhere fast! He shifted to the the left and to the the right and then tried again and again. We were stuck.  He then tried to pull the anchor up, and it stayed unmoving in the same place. Meanwhile the kids and Chris had a blast leaping into the water.  They completed their cliff jumping and swam back to the boat and climbed aboard.  I took the kids below deck to make sandwiches and to get them out from underfoot.  My father-in-law worked and worked.  At this time it had been about 30 minutes and as I was below deck I could hear creaking and popping sounds that were concerning to say the least.  I said, "God,  we really need this boat to be freed from this tree. We need to keep the anchor and not have any damage to this boat.  Please Lord help us. Amen."  There was a course agreement of "Amen" from Micah and Caja.  Within the next 15 sec we heard a "clunk" and the boat began moving freely!  God  set the boat free with the anchor attached and no damage to the boat!  How amazing is that? It may seem like a small thing, but this was a real life example of God's power at work for my children to see first hand. Awe---some!!! We then left that cove in a rush and did not return there to play anymore.

After a couple of days our extended family went back home and we stayed in the Ozark's to have a couple of days together.  We relaxed, canoed, swam, and did some homeschooling also.  Sunday we drove to Springfield and attended church there at St Thomas. We saw some familiar faces and were also able to meet some new people.  We then drove to Kansas City to grab the last of our things from our friends garage, and then made it finally to our resting place for the next 2 months in Wichita, KS with our family.

Overall we are doing well and have learned a lot about ourselves, others, American History, and about the nature of Christ.  Please keep us in your prayers as we continue on this journey to Cameroon.  A few things you can pray for us about
-Our visa applications go through without any issues.
-Our faith and trust in Christ will continue to be unwavering.
-That Micah and Micaja will thrive in their homeschooling.
-That I will have the patience and ability to teach them.
-That Chris will be safe in this travels for work as he is still working in MO.

As always we would love to hear from you and would love to pray for you about anything we can.

In Christ,
The Gifford Family

"The Will of God will not Take you where the Grace of God cannot Protect you."

Where's the strength I should have?

Have you ever picked up items in your home and are instantly transported to a place and time in your past?  Such as a little blanket that is no longer in use because your child has grown too large to use it. As you brush your fingers over the stitching you remember the smell of your baby after they got out of the bath.  The smell of baby lotion fills your memory.  They would stretch out that little arm as far as it would go and yawn as big as they could.  The sound of the wind exiting their lungs fills your ears and just as their arm would drop down to the blanket they would fall asleep.  A little coo warms  the heart.  Then you nuzzle your nose on the top of their soft head and your lips remember the feather soft fuzz tickling them.

These flashes happened in rapid succession for me over the past week with the numerous items in my home until my mind was in a state of being stress paralyzed.  Thankfully my mother-in-law Della, father-in-law Daniel, and brother and sister-in-law Matthew and Amber came to KC this last weekend to help us get everything either out to the garage, into a moving truck, or to Goodwill.  Words can never completely express my gratitude for them during this time.  I do not know how I would have ever been able to get it even halfway done if they had not been there.

Sunday I woke with a terrible cold and feeling like I had been in a car wreck my body ached so much.  The kids and I rested on Sunday while Chris worked a 48 hour shift at the ER in the hospital.  Monday the work week started and I was still sick, but being the last week of work I could not justify missing any days. Tuesday on the drive to work I was still not improved and really struggling with all the things still left to do at the house and working full time.  I was listening to the local Christian radio station and the verse of the day was Psalms 73:26- My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart: He is mine forever.  Immediately I was encouraged and thought about how this is so true.  I thanked God for putting that out there for me to hear and know that once again He is my strength and portion. 

I want you to encourage you saying the same thing. Christ is with you! Even if you are selling/getting rid of the majority of your things to follow Him.  Or if your health is failing you to the point of exhaustion and irritability is abounding.  Christ is your strength and HIS strength is unending and in abundance!

As always please continue to pray for us.  We thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers as we continue on this journey to Cameroon.   Please feel free to email us at emergent2016@gmail.com if there is anything we can pray for you about or if you just want to say, “Hey”. 

Ashley and Family

“The Will of God will NOT take you, where the Grace of God cannot protect you.”

Are We Really Safe?

I thought I was prepared for the upcoming moments of the day.  They told me it would be this way. And yet the moment the AK-47 and the shot gun fired I jump out of my  seat and hit the floor face down.   Heart racing, pounding in my ears, hands shaking I sneak a look at the one’s firing the guns.  They yell, “Don’t look at me!!  Give me your phone and money!”  I slide my bag as gently as possible across the floor and with trembling hands reach into my bag and get out my wallet and set it on the desk for the ones that are robbing me.   I rest my head on the floor and wait for it to end.  The yelling quiets and I hear, “Let’s get out of here! The cops are coming!”  One guy flies by me and then………SILENCE.

“ACEDEMIC MODE!”

This was the first of many situational role playing models that were simulated during the next 6 hours for our safety /security training.  They explained the importance of being prepared and not paranoid.  The goal is to know that we are able to go to Cameroon with a plan of action and awareness of situations that may occur.  We were told over and over again to remember Matthew 10:16- Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.

This was just part of the 11 days in training with CMDA and Samaritans Purse for our medical mission work.  Chris and I were taught about cultural awareness and the differences that we may experience while abroad. We were given a tour of Samaritans Purse and shown the many aspects of the organization that is sending us.  Let me just announce that we were given wonderful training and information, and  I personally came away from the experience encouraged and at the same time slightly overwhelmed by the gravity of moving. 

I am extremely thankful that we are going with an organization that tracks their Missionaries and makes safety a priority.  This gives me great comfort as that is one concern that not just myself but almost every other family there expressed.  I know that ultimately safety can be an illusion, but in Christ is the safest place anyone can be.  I found this scripture; or rather this scripture found me and it brings me back to place that I can be assured.  Joshua 1:9- Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. Isn’t that awesome!! 

As always please keep us in your prayers during this time of preparation and transition.  If you will look to the right column there is now a space where you can enter your email address and it will add you to the loop to be notified when a post is made.  Please feel free to enter your email address there.  If you have any questions or things that you would like us to join you in prayer about you can email us.  It would be our honor to pray for you. 

The Giffords

“The Will of God will not take you where the Grace of God cannot protect you.”

June 2016 Update

The past month has flown by in a rush of activity.  We have done some travel for a wedding of a family member and were able to speak with the pastor of a church in the town we were visiting.  This was an enjoyable time and we were encouraged by the words that were spoken during our time together.

We have put our home on the market for sale and have had several people come to look at it.  There are not any offers on the table as of yet, but we know that God has a plan and the house will sell the moment it is supposed to.  However, let’s be honest the waiting, for Chris and I, has been trying.  We are people of action, and are once again reminded that we are not in control and reminded to Be Still and Know that He is God.

Raising financial support continues to be a slow process, but we are moving forward and know that what we are doing and where we are going is the plan and will of God for us at this stage of our lives.  We continue to pray that we will stay in line with that and keep our hearts open to the will of God and leading of the Holy Spirit. 

Please continue to pray for us. This is one need that every person can meet. If you would like to email us please feel free to do so.  We would love to hear from you and stay in communication with you.  You can send a message to emergent2016@gmail.com . Also if there are any of you that would like to meet up with us before our departure please let us know via email. We would love to discuss our plans and future with you. Thank you for your love and support for us.

 

The Giffords

“The Will of God will not take you where the Grace of God cannot protect you.”

Chris Passed Boards!

Hello all! I hope that this post finds you all well and blessed. We have been in run, run, run mode as you saw in the previous post on 5/12 and that has not changed yet. 

Since 5/12- We were able to present to our home church Holy Trinity Orthodox Church on 5/15 and were able to gather many prayer partners and were given wonderful financial support. We are once again blessed by the kindness and support of those who after hearing what our mission is are willing to back us and go with us on this journey.

Biggest news of the month is that CHRIS PASSED HIS BOARDS!!!!! Whoot Whoot! We are proud of him.

We also had a garage sale this past weekend. Overall, it was good and we were able to make a little money. It did cause some emotional strain, but we made it, and are feeling a lot better 5 days post garage sale. We are also very aware that we have a ton of things left to sale that did not get sold or did not even make it to the garage for the sale. So........that means another one is on the horizon.

This week on Tuesday the kids and I had run some errands and were discussing the events of our day. Micah got up and went upstairs to get something. When he came back he handed me $7.

I said, "Buddy, you only owe me $3 for the baseballs that you bought at the store out of your money from the garage sale."

He replied, "I know, but we need the money more to go to Africa. You keep it."

My heart just melted at his response. This is the boy that has had some major ups and downs during this journey to Africa. Right then: It showed me that though it may be hard at times for him to accept or get excited about going to Africa he is willing to go where God is leading us as a family, and also that he in support of it.

I pray that we continue to lean on Christ and trust that He always be in charge of the path our lives will take.

We pray that you are blessed and that Christ continues to guide you.

In Christ,

Ashley and Family

"The Will of God will not take you where the Grace of God cannot protect you."

Christ Has Risen!!

We have had a full month since our last post. We celebrated Pascha in Wichita, KS, presented at The Eagle's Nest Church, drove to Nebraska for a funeral, and in between that worked and attempted to get our home ready for selling.

We are so blessed that The Eagle's Nest welcomed us and were able to give us prayer and financial support. It means everything to us. I personally enjoy being able to attend from time to time when I am in Wichita, KS and see the familiar faces from my childhood and the new faces who are kind and welcoming to my family and I. We truly appreciate your love and generosity.

We were able to have some New friends to dinner on Tuesday, 5/10 the fellowship was welcome. On Wednesday, 5/11 Dr Dennis and Nancy Palmer came to our home for dinner and fellowship while they were here for a short time from Cameroon. They visited with us and are so full of experience and knowledge. We are grateful that they carved some time out of their busy schedule to send an evening with us.  (I know that we are going to learn a lot from them in the coming 2 years.)

Chris will be leaving this weekend for a Tropical Medicine course in Minnesota. He has been gearing up for the travel and the intensive course that is ahead. This has required many hours sitting in front of a computer doing modules and listening to lectures. (Glad I am not him. Yikes!)

On Sunday 5/15 we will be presenting at Holy Trinity Orthodox Church to explain our upcoming mission work and hopefully to gain more prayer and financial support. We want to state our thankfulness for the doors being opened to us and the opportunity that we are being given by our church.

We thank you for all of your encouragement and support. We pray that you are blessed beyond measure through Christ. Please message us or comment if there is anything we can pray for you all about.

Ashley and Family

"The Will of God will not take you where the Grace of God cannot protect you."