We're Here!! (Part Two)

Picking up where I left off, we can't even begin to thank Jake's AMAZING parents for driving our moving truck for us as well as helping us get settled in. We love you guys so much and although it's incredibly hard to be away from home, we're able to do it because we have supportive parents who remind us that this is where the Lord has pointed us. So, thanks Mom and Dad Posey! We love you!!

We were so thrilled that the Lord also allowed us to see some of our very best friends, Ryan and Kirsten Kurvits. They were on their way back to Canada and were in Jackson right as we arrived. The Lord is so faithful to bring along a little encouragement right when you need it, and these two have never been anything but encouraging. We are so thankful for you two and for all the help you gave to get us settled! We're SO excited to see all the Lord does in your lives as you start back up at the Missionary Training Center!!

We were able to get settled pretty quickly (hallelujah!) and we love our new home sweet home! When we found out we'd be living off campus, we were excited, but also a little worried about how that would work out as far as us being involved, and getting to know other students as well as staff. The longer we thought about it, the more we realized the Lord had put us there for a reason. We'd always said we wanted a place we could open up to others, where we could invest, encourage and enjoy the company of the students and staff. We are SO excited to see the opportunities the Lord will give us to be an encouragement to others and pray that our home will be a fountain of His grace in the lives of those around us.

Since we got to school about 2 weeks early and we got unpacked a lot faster than we anticipated, we were able to go up to Grand Rapids, MI to visit Jordan and Lauren (and Rowan)!! Best 3 days ever! The fact that we have family only and hour and 45 minutes away is so comforting! We LOVE these 3 (soon to be 4!!) and were so glad the Lord worked everything out for us to get to spend some quality time with them before school gets hectic. Thank you two for opening your home! We love you!!

Thanks to everyone who's been praying for us as we get settled! The Lord has already proven himself faithful in a million different ways, and we're anxious to dive deep into His Word and have it transform the way we look at life. How amazing to know that we have everything we need to have life and have it abundantly!!

 We love y'all and couldn't do this without your prayers! Keep them coming!

We're Here!! (Part One)

This time last week, Jake, his mom, his dad and I were going crazy getting everything ready to finally make the big move up to Jackson, Michigan. This week, I'm sitting here peacefully thinking of how I'm going to put into words just how vastly the Lord has provided for/blessed us as we traveled/arrived/unpacked. It's probably best just to dive in. :)

We went to sleep last Monday night looking like a couple of raggedy orphans after spending all day in the Alabama heat loading up the truck, semi unloading and rearranging it again all the while trying to figure out how were going to make it all fit (both in the truck and our car, but more importantly in our living space once we got to school). It was all hard to believe that the waiting was over, we'd both finished our last days at our jobs and we were just hours away from hitting the road to come up to the Bible school. We finally got most everything packed and decided to call it a night and get some rest. Well....we were WAY too excited to sleep, so when we both woke up around 3 AM and couldn't fall back to sleep, we decided why not just get the show on the road already!?! So we did...at 3:45 in the morning. This ended up being great because not only did we avoid a lot of traffic, we were able to stop in Nashville to have breakfast with my (Jasmine's) cousin, Justin. 

This is the sun FINALLY coming up after driving for about 4 hours.

The Lord gave us a great trip and we were able to make it to Jackson around 6:30 PM. Not bad timing when you've got a pregnant lady in the car who has to stop every hour on the hour! 

Happy doesn't even begin to describe how we were feeling when we saw the Michigan sign!

Our home away from home.

When we got in, we were immediately welcomed by a wonderful staff couple (Scot and April Keen) who, when I was in Bible school, let me share in their family Thanksgiving when I couldn't go home one year. We were SO encouraged by their kindness as they opened their home to us, fed the weary travelers, and then came over to our house (that's right I said house, more on that later) to give us our keys, and show us around before we headed to our hotel. I can't say enough about this sweet family and the graciousness they shared. They have always been a testimony of God's goodness and make being away from our own families a little easier. God truly does use the Body of Christ to both build up and encourage. Thanks Keen family!! We love y'all! 

Okay, about that house! We had been planning on moving into an apartment in the main school building until about 2 weeks before we got to Michigan, we were given word that we'd actually be living in a small house that is owned by the school. We were blown away!! What a blessing to have a little more room as we prepare for our sweet Harbor to arrive as well as a place we can open up to students. Since I'm not a student, I knew we would have to be really intentional about getting together with people so I wouldn't skulk back into my hermit ways (being the introvert that I am) and never know a soul. We are hoping and praying that our home will be used to bring glory to the Lord as we open it to staff and students. 

Well, I am FAR from finishing about this week, but for now, we'll call it a night. Thanks for reading! We'll try and put up another post in the next few days. Until then, know that we are missing family and friends like crazy, but are resting in the Lord knowing we're exactly where He wants us to be and he is making that more evident with each passing day. 

Flooded in His Grace

Hello dear friends! Now that the crazy of moving (the first time) this summer is over, I figured it was probably time for another update. 

Baby Update:

So far Baby Posey is doing great! I've been feeling little kicks here and there which excites me more than I can even put into words! We were delighted the last time we had a Dr.'s appointment and he told us we could come two weeks earlier than we'd thought to find out if little P. is a boy or a girl! We'll go in on July 7th and we are SO thrilled to find out. A lot of people have asked us what we think we're having and we vote girl, but we would LOVE to have either a boy or girl. Stay tuned to find out the gender and the names we've picked out!!

Summer Life
We have loved all the time we've been spending with Jake's parents since they opened their home to us at the beginning of June. It's definitely been an adjustment, but what change in life isn't? We're encouraged and blessed by their attitudes and servant's hearts. I was also able to spend much needed time with 2 of my sisters this past weekend which was a blast since our schedules hardly every line up and the summer is flying!

Jake recently built a coffee table for some sweet friends of ours at church and when we dropped it off at their house we had such a sweet time of fellowship. They have adopted 3 kids and are currently fostering 2 others (so 5 kiddos in all!). We are constantly encouraged by the love they have poured out in the lives of these sweet kids. It's a gift to be able to see them trusting the Lord with every baby that enters their home and to be able to see their faithfulness in trusting Him even when things get crazy. We couldn't be more blessed to have such good friends to call on in the thick of new parenting starting this fall.

We were able to meet with our pastor this past week to talk about our future ministry, how to support network, and how to get our church involved with our training. Having the support of our church has always been something we wanted and after talking with Jason, we can leave confidently knowing our church is behind us in our decision to start training with New Tribes Mission (NTM) which is a huge answer to prayer. We love our Rock Mountain Lakes Baptist Church (RMLBC) family! We're so thankful for a church that sees the importance of sending laborers into the field whether that be through the short term trips to Arequipa, Peru or long term investments in other parts of the world.

Provisions:
Seriously yall, the Lord provides! When we moved out of our apartment, we'd thought we would get a security deposit that was around $200. Well, that didn't happen and they said they keep the "Move-in" fee regardless of whether the apartment has damage or not. Bummer! But life goes on and we forgot about it. Well today we check the mail and there was a letter from a company I'd never heard of that looked like it may be a check, so obviously the cynic in me says it's probably junk. I opened it anyway just to make sure and it's a good thing I did! We got a check from our apartment complex for a "Move Out Refund" for $590!!! They never said anything about that, but we're not going to turn it away haha! We were blown away by the Lord's graciousness and so encouraged to see Him providing above and beyond for our needs as we get ready to head up to training this fall.


Prayers and Praises

• Pray: That our Dr.'s appointment on the 7th goes well and that Baby P will let us find out if it's a little boy or little girl.
• Praise: Quality time with our family has been such an answer to prayer. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!
• Pray: We would be good stewards of our time as we work to support network/keep up with the blog/save for school, etc. 
• Praise: The Lord is providing at every turn of the way when it comes to raising money for school. He is MORE than gracious. 

 "How precious is your steadfast love, O God!

    The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

 They feast on the abundance of your house,

    and you give them drink from the river of your delights.

 For with you is the fountain of life;

    in your light do we see light."

Psalm 36:7-9

How can we be praying for you?? PLEASE let us know! We pray for you all often and hope the Lord encourages you in a special way this week. Thanks for keeping up with our little family! 

Love, Jasmine (and Jake)

Morning By Morning New Mercies I See

Well, we officially stink at keeping blogs updated, but I (Jasmine) am DETERMINED to make it a habit! Since it's been awhile, I thought I'd do a quick update on what we've been up to, what the Lord is doing in our lives, praises and prayer requests.

1. Big News! 
Baby Posey is due November 30th! we are SO thrilled with the grace the Lord has shown us in allowing us to have this precious life. Everyday since we found out has been an utter joy, and we're taking each day as a gift, knowing there are many people who desire children and are not able to have them. He/She has already been such an encouragement in that we have been reminded to praise the Lord for this gift as well as ask for wisdom in taking on the challenge/blessing of parenthood. Our first dr.'s appointment went well and we'll go again on the 19th to hear the heartbeat for the first time (AHHH!!!!!).

2. We're moving!...TWICE! 
 After much prayer, thought and advice from friends and family, we are going to stay in Alabama for the summer. We had initially planned on moving up to school at the beginning of the summer when our apartment lease finished up (at the end of this month), but  Jake's parents have graciously opened their home to us so we will have the opportunity to save some extra money for school before we do the big move to Michigan in the fall (Lord willing, around August 9th). This decision was one of those ones that's so hard while you're making it, but once it's made you can totally see how the Lord's hand was guiding the whole time. We had been so anxious to get up to the Bible school it kind of seemed like a disappointment to have to put it off for a few months, but we're seeing now that we've been blessed with a whole summer of time to be well spent with our families as well as our church family. It'll be such a rewarding season of being able to invest in the people who will be supporting us while we're gone. The Lord is SO good.

Prayer and Praises

• Praise- Both Jake and I will be able to keep our jobs until the day before we leave. This is SUCH a huge blessing as it will give us maximum time with our coworkers (who we both love) as well as being a huge help to our school fund. 
• Prayer Request- Our church is sending a team down to Peru again this summer and it's breaking our hearts that we can't go, but we are thrilled that people who haven't been able to go in the past are getting to go this year. On this trip, the team members will have the opportunity to experience Peruvian culture as well as minister to orphans and other children living in poor communities. We have partnered with a church in Arequipa (Calvary Baptist) which is also an answer to prayer as they've been able to expand our reach and find new ministry opportunities every year we go. Pray for the team as well as those who will be ministered to. 
• Praise- The application process for Jake to go to New Tribes Bible Institute this fall has gone extremely well and I got the word that I will for sure be working in the school office. These are both HUGE answers to prayer! 
• Prayer Request- We will be meeting with my OB/GYN on May 19th to hear Little P's heartbeat as well as get a million routine tests done (eww blood test!). Please pray for another good report! 
• Praise- We are just 1 and a half weeks away from our 1 year anniversary and we could not be more encouraged by all the Lord has taught us throughout the year. If year 1 is any foretaste of what's to come, we couldn't be more excited to see what he has in store. 

Lastly, I wanted to leave you all with a verse I stumbled upon the other day that has been on my mind ever since. It comes from Psalm 143 and says, 

Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,

    for in you I trust.

Make me know the way I should go,

    for to you I lift up my soul.

There's something about knowing the source of our joy and finding complete satisfaction in Him. Jake and I are so excited with the prospect of getting to deepen our relationship with the Lord through the training with New Tribes Mission. Would you join us in prayer as we seek to know Him more? 

November 8^th, 2013

Peru Trip Day One: Airports-The Classroom of Humility

So Jake and I voted to go with the “old people” and spend the night before the big trip in Atlanta to avoid having to get up at 2:30 in the morning and ride in the church van that has a less than credible history of breaking down half way through trips to ATL. Call me boring, but the mere mention of a slight possibility we could find ourselves breaking down on the road to the airport when we’re under the time crunch of making a flight, having had had virtually zero sleep, didn’t sound like an adventure I wanted to add to the books. In the end, all 15 members of our team made it safe and sound with no break downs and no major melt downs (those come later). 

We were up by 5:30 and out the door to the airport at 6 where we’d meet up with our team coming in the van and catch our flight to the (not so) beloved Mexico City airport. For some of us who have gone on the trips to Peru before, a stop in Mexico City = Customs and Immigration. Welcome to the land of anything goes and the ultimate game of terrifying chance where as you are scrambling to get yourself through customs, sweating with fright and the load you decided to pack, and the time comes for you to push The Button of Spontaneous Shame- green light means go, red light means you get to have the pleasure of a random customs official baggage search. In our case, they demanded (in spanish) why we might be carrying baby formula when we clearly have no baby. If you haven’t guessed already, the button turned bright red and Jake and I were shuffled off to a customs clerk. Terrified, I looked at Jake in a panic, desperately trying to recall any spanish I may remember from my pitiful efforts in my high school Spanish classes. Flustered, sweating, and looking like the saddest specimen of pure panic, 4 beautiful words suddenly came to mind. I hurriedly blurted them out to the dear clerk that it was “LECHE PARA LOS NINOS!” I’d done it. I’d conquered my fears and the Lord had graciously spared me from more uncomfortable and awkward glances from the flock of customs clerks that had come to try and help this poor pitiful foreigner who clearly had no knowledge of what is appropriate to carry and what is not. She smiled at me and said in broken english, “This time okay, next time you must have baby!”. Let me tell you about a wave of pure relief! I quickly zipped our bags back up and Jake and I got our tails out of that line and back with the team as fast as our tired little legs could carry us. 

I’m not sure if we’ll end up running into a baby as we serve in these orphanages, but whatever baby may get this formula is well worth 10 minutes of panic stricken fear and embarrassment. Lesson learned: be able to laugh at yourself (maybe not in the moment, as I can’t see the customs clerks finding this very amusing) and thank the Lord for adding a little spice to your life. 

After our little adventure in Mexico, we made our connection to the Lima airport in Peru. We had to go through customs again, and thankfully we didn’t get the Red Button Drill of Insanity this go around. We arrived around 10 PM and our final connection to Arequipa wasn’t until 6 in the morning. As you can see, this gave us 8 hours to kill. 

By this time, some of our team members had been up for at least 18-24 hours so needless to say, we were beyond exhausted. Now, when I get put under stress (like traveling overseas, going through crazy customs, security checks, making sure everyone is still together, etc) I more often than not have the tendency to get real annoying and snappy. I really struggle with this and it’s something the Lord is constantly having to reveal to me. After we’d been wandering around the airport for awhile trying to figure out a plan of attack, the Lord convicted me of how my attitude needed an adjustment. I’d been getting rally agitated and ugly and I was letting little things really irritate me, so Jake and I decided to go take a walk around the airport just for a bit of a break. We had both been kind of ugly to each other about things that were really trivial (like where we were going to sit in the food court….seriously, the things that seem like such a huge deal when you’re sleep deprived are so clearly RIDICULOUS when you are able to step back and look at how minuscule they really were). We ended up just talking about why we’d gotten so bugged at each other and about things that were clearly not a big deal and  let me say, just being able to “air our grievances” was such a blessing. We were both able to see what big idiots we’d been acting like as well as see that we were allowing our flesh to get a foothold in our desire to boss each other around. 

It’s always so convicting when the Lord reveals how little it takes for me to take stock in what my sinful flesh is saying. I could not be more thankful that the Lord has given me a husband who actively seeks to call me out when my attitude is taking a turn for the worst. The fact that he diligently communicates with me about how the Lord is the only one who can change our hearts with grace helps me to be faithful in doing the same for him. Because of the Lord’s grace and diligence in our lives, we’re able to call each other out not because we see it as a chance to really dig deep into the other person’s character, but because we know we’re both completely flawed human beings who desperately need a constant reminder of our need for God’s grace and faithfulness. Proverbs 27:5-6 says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love; Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy”. I love the fact that Jake values my betterment as a believer more than tickling my ears with what I may want to hear. I’ve told him this once and I’ll say it till the day I die, I would rather live being humbled in love, than to think I’m being loved because I’m never driven to being humbled. 

The Lord never ceases to amaze me with how He chooses to teach us the boundlessness of His love. I thought I was coming down to Peru to minister to orphans when in reality, maybe the Lord is using this as an opportunity to show me (again...and again...and again...) how I need Him. It isn’t always a life altering change or adjustment that causes our eyes to be opened to our desperate need of Him. A lot of the time, I think we just have to step back and see that day to day, minute to minute, second to second we are being lead and guided by the Lover of our very souls. And THAT is what brings me some of the deepest comfort. He must increase, I must decrease. 

I could not be more thankful for this guy! so glad the Lord has allowed us to share Peru again! Thanks for all the prayers and keep them coming:)