The Encore

It seems a very long time since we sent out a newsletter. Probably because it has been, also so much has happened.

As I recall, last time we updated the world it was the middle of a Michigan winter and we continued to support raise for our mission to Germany. Now I sit in sunny and warm Victoria, Canada, where we are still trying to get home to Germany but find ourselves caught in the throws of the pandemic, finally stopped by the inevitable.

If you don’t want to read this update, watch this video and get the whole story told to you ;)

Support raising...

We ended our full time support raising campaign at the end of February and were amazed at what God had done. He had more than doubled our monthly support and more than a hundred more people were praying for us, our family, and ministry. It is so encouraging to not be alone in this effort to disciple believers and serve God’s kingdom. We are so thankful to God for providing just the way that he said that he would and that we can now go back to Germany and be more fruitful as a family and in our ministry. Thank you to those who have joined and prayed for us.

Travel

After finishing our support raising in Michigan, we packed up our camper and headed back to Canada where we were to store our camper in Saskatchewan. We arrived mid March, quarantined, packed up our lives, and headed to the airport on April 6 ready and excited to get back to house, friends, and jobs back in Herrnhut. But that day did not have the destination that we had thought. We were denied boarding on the grounds that our Covid test was too old (by 5 hours) and we now needed a visa to enter Germany when we have never needed on for the last 8 years of flying there.

Though this was not wholly unexpected, as everything has changed in the pandemic, we thought we had all we needed and were very disappointed to find that we did not. We then were faced with the provincial governments closing the borders between provinces, so if we were to get back to BC, were I am a resident, we had to leave Sask almost immediately. (We probably could have made it regardless of border closures, but we just got denied going to our German home, so I wasn’t going to let that happen again to our Canadian home).

So by April 23 we were back in Victoria BC where we had started this whole adventure a year before. It threw us for quite a loop to be back at ‘the beginning’ but we were thankful to be with family and to have a place to live.

After attempts to get visas to Germany, it turns out that we just need to get the full vaccination and we will finally be able to get back to our home in Germany and continue our ministry! Amazing! So Matt and I will be getting our second dose hopefully next month and, if all goes well, will be heading back to Germany in August. We will have to take one more trip to Saskatchewan to catch our flights since, though we could move our flights, we could not change the departure location. But this just means that we will see the beautiful praises once again before leaving again for our last two years in Europe

What Then?

Our mission at YWAM Herrnhut has always been to disciple believers and to serve practically. Whether that has been in foreign in countries or at our base in Herrnhut, we have followed Gods call to walk with the lost and disciple believers. For this next two years we will be focusing on leaving the ministries, local and foreign, the staff therein, and the incoming staff in the healthiest place that we can. We see that God has much that he wants to do through YWAM Herrnhut to reach the region, nation, and surrounding nations for the Lord, especially in this Covid/post-Covid world. So we want to mentor and equip them to be able to do that well. We will not be there much longer but investing into the future of what God is doing will see much fruit in the long run.

As for now, we have to do some more waiting, seems to be the theme of 2021. But through it all, God has been clear. He is not rushed nor anxious. I have been. It has not been easy to wait and seeming to do nothing as He makes a way. It has been frustrating. But He has made a way and I see where I could have rested in His plan instead of trying to make my own.

Well, thanks for reading this far and we will let you know how things go. Please pray that all goes well and we are able to get home after our second shot. Till then...

Matthew, Gillian, Elaina, and Emeth