Courageous!!

This picture was taken rigft before they headed to the airport heading back to Atlanta!

Courageous is the first things that comes to my mind when I think about Joanna! We are putting out a major call for prayer and blessing for her. Joanna has been to Burkina several years in a row and we were blessed to have the opportunity to serve with her this past June. She has an amazing spirit, beautiful smile, heart for ministry, natural ability, and willingness to be lead by the Spirit of God. I LOVE being married, but I hate that I was so consumed with being married that I did not open myself up to being used by the Lord during my single years.

As you may be aware… I am not a home schooling mom. I so loathed the thought of home school that I told Chris while we were dating- yes pre-kids that if he wanted a wife that home schooled… it was not going to be me. For the record, I am a mom that supports home school 100%. I in fact, am jealous of the moms who do this and do it well. Seriously, each home school mom in my book has a hero metal to wear proudly.

Well, would it not be the case that God would have some type of home schooling in my future. Thanks Lord! In the past 6 months I have given up the right to not be a home school mom. Have not held back my feelings from the Lord, but have truly surrendered to walking in obedience even if that meant home school. During this time, the Lord made it very clear to Chris and I that we were to take this next year with Samuel and home school him. As the Lord revealed this to our hearts, we asked Samuel to be in on this process and asked the Lord to give Samuel a peace about this as well. …. He did!

We felt like God was asking us to take this time and invest in Samuel on so many more levels than schooling. He is a neat kid and is at the fresh I am starting middle time when so many things change. In thinking through what God wanted us to do over this next year, I really felt like God was asking me to do this home school part by myself. I really felt encouraged to look for someone that God would call to come and help us in this process. Well, I feel like we were blessed beyond what we could have imagined. After asking Joanna to just pray, I honestly was shocked when she responded. Not because she would not be obedient to God’s calling, but that God would give us greater than what we were praying for. We were asking for a teacher that would love our children and model Godly character. We are getting a teacher that is that and so much more.

Please pray for her. We are praying fishes and loaves as we know and have seen how God provides in times of need. We hate raising our support and we know the mindless energy that it takes . Our prayer is that Joanna will have every dime either given or committed as soon as possible. If her funds are there, she plans to come in January. Our prayer is that the months leading up to her arrival she will not have to focus on finances; rather, she will be able to prepare mentally, emotionally, and spiritually for this next chapter in her life.

Many people want to give financially but often feel like with their own financial plate, it is just not possible. Many have mentioned that they feel bad sending a $10.00 check because it seems so small and they feel embarrassed so it is easier not to give at all. PLEASE do not let that stop you. When 10 people give $10.00- that is $100.00. I am asking that you stop right now and prayerfully consider supporting Joanna. Take the money you would spend going out to dinner just one time this month and help her, help us, faithfully serve here in Burkina Faso.

To support Joanna financially: You can give a one-time donation or you can commit to a monthly donation. If you would like to do this, you can write a check to Engage Burkina with her name written in the memo line. You can send the check to Engage Burkina at 3522 Hiram Acworth Highway, Dallas, GA 30157. If you choose to make a monthly commitment, please include a note informing Engage Burkina that you would like to give a monthly donation and what that amount will be.