Home and waiting

We had a good trip home from Guadalajara; I enjoyed a 12 hour drive to Laredo to bring our vehicle out of Mexico, then flew to Calgary. The other 3 Thiessens flew directly. I had to bring the SUV out as it also had a 6 month tourist visa. Coming through the border was easier than going out as I had good advice and overhead aerials of the streets so I was able to find the correct office to get my tourist sticker removed. It was a bit of a close call in getting stranded in line without gas as I was coming out...I had just under a 1/4 tank when I got to the border, but sitting in lines with the vehicle running had me on empty when I got through.
A wonderful place called steppingstone guesthouse gave me a place to sleep and park the vehicle as we return to Canada. I met an excited and amazing man of 69 who is ministering to young people in Mexico. He shared his testimony as I helped him load his van with items he was selling. I was challenged by his zeal for ministry and excitement for God's powerful movement in Mexico.
At 4 am I was off to the airport as my good host gave me a lift so early. When I arrived in Calgary, my phone didn't work, as I had misplaced a phone number I needed, and couldn't use the pay phone to get the number. I was wondering, "What now?" Well I was a reluctant facebook user, but it sure was a good help this time. I found a message waiting for me as to how to get to where I needed to go.
We left Calgary Wednesday, the day of the flooding, without a clue it was coming. When we got to La Crete the next day, we heard what was happening.
The terrible disaster has a small side effect for us... the Mexican consulate is in one of the worst hit areas of downtown. We now don't know how long it will be until we can have our interviews for our visas so that we can return to Mexico. We were scheduled for July 3-4th, but are doubtful they will be able to get in the office this week. We are very empathetic for the many Calgary residents and pray that they will be able to clean up and recover quickly.
But for this reason, we may have to stay in Alberta longer than anticipated and take a short break from Language School. We tried the Vancouver and Saskatchewan consulates, but they are very filled with appointments and advised that we continue with the Calgary consulate. We trust God has a plan in this for us. Pray with us as we wait and ask that He conform us to His will.

Faith building is hard work. And not very fun. And not always our choice. It seems that God chooses to build our faith at times when we wish it was all very easy. I am learning that I need to let go and let God. And stop worrying about it. If I continue to worry, I really have not let go. I am hanging on to the rope and getting very burned and blistered hands. Want some context? Well...

I resigned from teaching 1.5 years ago. I missed the deadline for asking for a one year leave of absence by a week. We had to raise support for the position that we volunteered for, so that we could pay for our plane tickets and some other outgoing expenses. God built my faith in His provision through His church - in 2-3 months our tickets were pretty much reimbursed.
When we came back from Zambia, where we had volunteered, I applied for a teaching position again. I thought I would not have a problem, but with gov't cutbacks, there were not positions available for me. So I asked around, and was advised that substitute teaching would be sufficient income. Well, it has helped, but sufficient it is not for longterm provision. A great blessing was when I was able to fill in for 2 straight weeks at a school teaching Gr. 2. I had never taught full-time any grade lower than Gr. 5, so it was a stretch, but I loved the kids. It was a great experience.
Another job opened up at a school, so I applied for it. I did not get it. Now another has opened up, and I am praying and hoping that I will get that one. No more taking things for granted, my reputation or history are not enough. I need God to help me get the right job. He is faithful, and if I don't get it, I am trying hard to trust that he has reasons for my good, and my families' good, to not be working full-time.
Another faith building event has been the support of best friends. They have welcomed us back to our town, and have even given us a vehicle to use until our next leg of missions service. May God bless them richly!
We have had many asking how long until we head onto the next leg of our missions journey. Well, we have to raise support, monthly support, as we have been accepted by a faith mission - TEAM, which means raising money for all expenses, including the ministry expenses. A long time ago I would have never wanted to put myself in this position. But now I am excited to see how God is going to provide. He has amazed us in the past, and I trust we will be amazed again, though not surprised, for He is faithful, and sure everytime.
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Peace Midst the Stress and Unknowns

Time is ticking, the countdown is on and yet we are so far from being ready to go. The stress is rising, the unknowns are still not answered and yet......there is peace. How can that be? We have no idea what we are doing with our house or our stuff, Anthony has some health concerns that need to be checked into, we're trying to finish some projects, our tickets need to be bought but we don't know if there is money to buy them with, we've hardly packed and yet life continues to go on. I wish there was a way of stopping time so that we could catch up! I feel the stress and yet there's an underlying peace that I can't explain. I know that God has not brought us this far to abandon us now. I take encouragement from these verses in Psalm 138:3,8, "When I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by giving me the strength I need...The Lord will work out His plans for my life - for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever." I know He's calling us to trust Him to work out the plans for our future and to wait on Him as He does. This peace I feel midst the stress is foreign to me, usually I'm plagued with worry in times like these. I now more fully understand the kind of peace that Paul was talking about in Philippians 4:6-7. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." We appreciate your prayers as we continue on this journey, one step at a time. ~Karlene