The Beginning of a New Adventure

We’re finally here!  Exactly seven months after we got married we stepped off the plane in the beautiful country of Belize ready to start our new ministry together.  It’s a little strange sitting here on the couch in our home (something I’ve been excited about for months now!), watching the rain (it’s pouring as a potential hurricane gets closer and closer), and I think about everything that happened to get us to this point.

The first four months of our marriage consisted of a mix between David spearheading the deputation process to get us back here in Belize and me finishing my final semester at CSUF.  We actually got into a pretty good rhythm even with the unexpected mishaps (our car’s AC going out as we drove through the desert and then us breaking down right before sunset…just to name one).  Then the week after I graduated we were off to the Midwest to spend time with his parents and connect with more churches.  While travelling so much has been tiring (I don’t tend to sleep much in new places), it was a lot of fun to get to know David’s family better.  Plus, my mother-in-law and I got to make some pretty good desserts (Cake Balls!!) and watch Hogan’s Heroes….all in all our time in the Midwest was good! 

One of the highlights of our summer for me was getting to fly home and participate in the beautiful wedding of my brother and his new wife Miriam.  So much love and joy in one day!  I can’t wait to see how there new adventure together plays out.

After returning to the Midwest for another week we headed to Toronto for some cross-culture training.  I think this is where it started to hit me about the life David and I were stepping into together.  I had just spent the past two weeks packing up my life, saying goodbye to both sides of our family and friends, crying way more than I had expected (I’m telling you there was some serious bawling going on), and then heading the opposite direction of Belize to Canada.  The amount of stress was rather high, to put it lightly…  I feel like I should ask here, did you know traveling just through the airport itself could be incredibly stressful??  The night before we flew to Toronto we spent at least two hours moving around just a couple pounds between our five suitcases and carry-ons just to make sure we weren’t overweight.  We got to the airport and held our breath as they weighed our bags.  Success!  Now we were carrying around probably a hundred pounds between us in our carry-ons we waddled though the airport (well…I waddled…), but we made it on the plane.  You should have seen the size of my backpack!

Our time in Toronto was very good.  While the classes were helpful (there were a few that were outstanding!), the main thing that was nice about the trip was getting to connect with so many other missionaries that were also preparing to pack-up life and home and move to other countries around the world sharing God’s love and mercy.  The connections made there are ones that I’ll take with me everywhere we go.  Not only did we get to know people in our classes, but we were able to go with friends heading to Honduras and Canada’s First Nations to a part of the city where we had dinner in China town, walked through an area that seemed Jamaican, walked into a Jewish Synagogue at the beginning of Sabbath, went through what seemed to be the Hispanic quarter with some really good looking restaurants, and then eat some Italian gelato.  So much diversity!  The next day we went with friends that will be serving in Benin to Niagara Falls and spent one of our final days there.  By the end of that final weekend in Toronto David and I were refreshed and ready to head back to Belize that Monday…but that was not going to happen…

Do you ever have those moments when you just know Satan is doing everything he can to stop you?  That’s what happened when we got up Monday morning.  As a whole, everything that could go wrong did go wrong that day.  We got up at 2:30 in the morning to head to the airport for our 6:15 flight when I looked at my phone and saw that our plane had been delayed five hours.  Now on one hand that might not seem so bad because you would think that maybe you could go back to sleep for a few hours before the flight, but no.  We had to check in for our original flight (and we were surrounded by a bunch of grumpy people who were also missing flights).  Our hope had been to get on another flight that morning so we could make our connection to Belize (since there is only one flight from Atlanta to Belize a day), but that would not be the case.  The best they could do was get us on the same flight from Atlanta the next day and give us a hotel for the night.  While we were extremely frustrated with the delay there were little things that showed us that God was still in control (like us being the first people in line that needed our flight rescheduled and the lady being extremely nice and helpful while everything else seemed to be falling a part).  There were still so many little things that kept going wrong all day.  Do you ever get to the point where so much goes wrong that it almost becomes comical?  Don’t get me wrong, we were tired, frustrated, and really wanted to just go home, but it was still funny to see these things go wrong and know that either way we were going to end up in Belize and if God really wanted us there this couldn’t stop us.  And it didn’t.  We made it to Atlanta, had even more mishaps, and fell asleep in another hotel early that night.

When I got up Tuesday morning I was a little weary about the day, wondering if it would be as bad as the day before, but with God’s help (and David and I getting pretty good and maneuvering through airports), we made it on the plane with all bags checked (again) and headed for Belize. 

 I’m going to take a quick moment here to brag on my husband.  While I’ve mentioned only a few of the stressors of our travels (and believe me, there were WAY more), David stayed so calm and controlled and got us through everything smoothly.  I don’t know if I could have handled it without him…  I’ve got myself a keeper!

For Monday to be so awful it was quite amazing to see how smoothly Tuesday ended up going.  We got to Belize safely, made it through immigration and customs without a hassle, had wonderful friends there to pick us up, went to the diocesan office to take care of some paperwork and finally made it to our home. 

It’s a little funny being here this time.  I’ve been to Belize three times before now (two of which were exactly this time of year) and every other time I’ve had David there waiting for me, had an automatic countdown start in my head of when I would have to leave, and experienced everything from the outside.  But this time David was there from the beginning, we were starting an adventure together, and there was no countdown…we’re living here now.  I thought it would feel strange when we got here (and to some degree that’s true), but you know what? The biggest thing I felt when we got here was “finally home”.  Since we got married David and I have sort of been in transition, not really having a settled feeling, and we got to a point where we made everywhere we landed “home”.  Now that we’re here though that feeling is even stronger.  It’s been seven months since we said our “I do’s” and now were home again.

So that was a kind of long summary/reflection of the last seven months.  I could add so much more, but I’ll probably hold off for now.  Overall, looking back over everything I can see how God carefully guided us to this point.  And now I can’t wait to see what plans He has for us here in Belize.  “The Adventure Continues!”

Almost There

Greetings from the Toronto Airport! Mary Beth and I are sort of stranded today: we should have been in Belize today, but unfortunately a delayed flight has pushed back our arrival until tomorrow. In the meantime, we figured this is probably a great time to write you an update as we exit North America and enter into a new life and ministry in Belize (Lord willing) tomorrow.

Where to begin? The last few weeks have flown by! We returned to California for a few days to attend the wedding of Mary Beth's brother, and in addition to finalizing the bulk of our packing, said some painful goodbyes to family members and close friends. The same could be said for the next week that we spent with my family in Indiana and Ohio. Our hearts are full, to the point of being heavy with the pain of parting and distance, but at the same time we are enjoying the growing anticipation of our being back in Belize and serving the Lord in mission there!

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As our ministry launch in Belize has been drawing closer, we've been keeping a close eye on the progress in our financial support. Thanks to many, many faithful partners, our monthly support has come to just over 80% of our overall budget. Despite the ongoing deficit, you can how pledges and gifts have grown, and this has meant that (as of today) Mary Beth is now officially a SAMS employee with salary and benefits.

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This also means that, of the support that we had to raise when Mary Beth was accepted as a SAMS missionary a year ago, we have 26% left to raise. We are so grateful when we see everything that the Lord has done to get us to this point, and we are trusting him to get our mission all the way to 100% as soon as possible! Please keep our financial support in your prayers, and if you are interested in partnering with us financially, please let us know!

The last two weeks of our journey has taken place in Toronto, as we joined together with missionaries from many denominations and many parts of the world for MissionPREP's IMPACT training. We loved making connections with so many incredible people involved with missions, and we felt the Lord challenging us at various points of the two weeks together. In many ways, it was the perfect way to transition from life and ministry in North America to life and ministry in Belize.

And so here we are: almost there. It's a good place to be. As we prepare to return, we would ask that you pray especially for the following requests:

• Mary Beth's visa paperwork. During our first few days in the country we will be applying for Mary Beth's missionary work permit visa. There are a lot of hoops to jump through, and we ask you to pray that we move through everything quickly and smoothly.
   
• Acclimating to our new life. Belize right now is hot and humid, and a tropical storm is brewing in the Caribbean as I type this. Additionally, we anticipate many things to have changed in our world in San Ignacio, our churches and schools, and though it will certainly take some adjusting for me, it will take even more for Mary Beth. Please pray that we would make all these adjustments well, with a good attitude and flexibility, and we would soon be feeling at home.
   
• Health during the transition. With all the traveling, our health (especially Mary Beth's) has been up-and-down over the last few weeks. As we undergo the stress of this transition, please pray that our health would improve, and that we would find a new and healthy equilibrium in Belize.
   
• That financial support. As I shared above, we would like our financial support to reach 100% as soon as possible. Please pray that the Lord would raise up passionate partners with our ministry for the coming months and years.

Again, thank you all for your prayers and support! May the Lord richly bless you!

Next Steps - Big Steps

Hello, dear friends! We have news to tell, and big plans to share.

As Mary Beth shared last month, she had an amazing recital! By May 21st (two weeks later), she had taken her final exams and graduated summa cum laude with her Bachelor of Music! I am so proud of her, and I'm happy to report that she has been undergoing a fantastic period of "academic decompression" over the last month.

A few days after her graduation, we ended our lease and moved out of our apartment in Fullerton and the, having packed up a few belongings, we headed to my parents' home in Indiana to continue our deputation (raising support) among churches in the middle of the country. Hitting the road has been hard, and more than a little stressful at times, but the Lord has led us to connect with some amazing people, and we are so grateful for the new relationships we've been given!

But now, it's crunch time. SAMS has worked with us to put together a plan for returning to Belize on August 1st for this year. This is not due (as we had hoped) to our having raised all of our necessary financial support: on the contrary, we are still about 25% short of our budget. However, our belief and hope is that we ought to begin ministry in Belize and continue to keep our supporters (including you!) up-to-date with what we are doing. Our prayer is that the Lord will stir up the hearts of current and new supporters to give and help us meet our budget in the next month before we leave (again, our arrival date in Belize is August 1st).

For us, this means that we are hurriedly trying to get everything ready for our return to Belize in five weeks. Tomorrow (June 28th) we fly back to San Diego for a wedding and to finalize the move of our California belongings, either to storage or to Belize. The following week we return to Indiana to visit with a few more churches and leaders, and to similarly finalize the move of our Indiana belongings. And then July 17th we fly to Toronto, where we will participate in a two-week MissionPREP training. From Toronto we will fly directly to Belize and begin this new (now married) missionary adventure in ministry.

Does this sound like a whirlwind? It's felt like that to us.

We genuinely need your prayers for us in this transition, especially for the following:

• Financial support: pray that God will meet our financial needs and help us raise full support as soon as possible, whether before or after we return to Belize.
• Logistical success: pray that God will go before us and make our steps smooth as we prepare to return to Belize.
• Spiritual nourishment: pray that God will sustain us spiritually as we continue moving from place-to-place, and then plant ourselves back in Belize.

Thank you all so much, for your prayers and encouragement and your support! May the Lord richly bless you all!

The Recital was a Success!!

Hi!

We are now three days past my senior recital and I'm here to tell you it was a great success!  Thank you for the many prayers both leading up to Friday and during the recital itself.  God is good!

Friday started off with seemingly every single person trying to keep my stress level low (something I greatly appreciated!).  My mother and sister drove up early to do my hair and makeup, doing a fantastic job I might add, as well as to just spending time with me praying and talking...again keeping me calm.  David was the perfect husband, helping with last minute details and even running to the store to surprise me with blueberry muffins and chocolate cupcakes.  I was still very nervous as it got closer and closer to my recital, but the prayers and support of so many people was evident throughout the whole day.

I got to the hall an hour early to warmup before they opened the doors and it was at this point that I started to get both incredibly excited and increasingly nervous.  My piano teacher (probably the most helpful and inspiring mentor for me during my time here at CSUF) waited backstage with me to encourage and boost my confidence as the hall started to fill with the (surprisingly loud) audience.  Once the recital itself actually started the time flew.  There were ups and downs, but as a whole I was very happy with the result.  Plus, there is something special about getting to share the music and work I've been doing in the past three years at this school with so many friends and family.  I also want to point out that I was very aware of all the prayers from people for/during my recital.  One of my biggest fears going into the performance was forgetting my music and just stopping, but while I did have a couple slips, the music kept going for the entire recital.  Once again, God is good!

After the recital was when I got to go out into to the lobby to greet all the people that came to hear me play.  It was such an encouragement and great joy to not only see so many friends and family (I even had family fly down for this!), but also to see so many of our supporters from different churches, both in the area and also from quite a ways away!

Thank you to everyone who came, it was lovely seeing all of you there!  Thank you to everyone who prayed, I could not have done this without your prayers!  Thank you to everyone who sent notes of encouragement, they helped keep me going!  

This recital was the accumulation of all the work I've done during my time studying for my Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance at CSUF and I'm very excited for this accomplishment.  I have to say I'm also even more excited, post-recital, for the next chapter of music in my life as we continue to raise support to return to Belize where my love for music can move more into ministry role. 

As I wrap this up I have one more quick prayer request.  My graduation is less than two weeks away (yay!) and there are still some paperwork issues with my transcripts.  Please pray that all the glitches workout quickly with no complications!

Thank you again for all of your prayers and support for David and me!

Blessings,

Mary Beth

Sparks

Dear friends, this is a quick post to ask for your prayers for a peaceful resolution to the conflict between Guatemala and Belize that has escalated over the last week or so. Many of you are probably aware of the longstanding territorial dispute between Guatemala and Belize (in brief: Guatemala believes that much or possibly all of Belize rightfully belongs to Guatemala). But it's more complicated than that. As photographer Tony Rath fleshed out in an amazing 2014 piece, Belize is actually waging a war within its environmentally protected lands against Guatemalan poachers who are heavily financed, heavily equipped, and heavily armed. That same month, the death of tourism police officer Danny Conorquie (a graduate of St. Hilda's school) rocked our communities and served as a reminder that, so long as the territorial dispute continues, Belize's national sovereignty and its people's security are in jeopardy from outside poachers and illegal squatters.

Then last week tragedy struck. Guatemalan minor Julio René Alvarado Ruano was killed in the border zone by Belize military forces. These soldiers, who were traveling with members of the NGO Friends for Conservation and Development, maintain that they came under fire and shot back in self-defense, though family members of the young man contradict the military's account. The incident, which comes on the heels of the shooting of Belize sergeant Richard Lambey, drew heavy criticism from Guatemala's recently elected president Jimmy Morales who during his campaign for office had said that, "the worst thing to happen to Guatemala was losing Belize." Within days of Alvarado Ruano's death, Guatemala began amassing troops along the Belizean border, at least 3,000 in the last week, and the Guatemalan military has now occupied a famously disputed island in the Sarstoon River.

In other words, sparks are flying. Tensions between the two countries are practically as high as they have ever been.

In order to find a resolution, the Organization of American States (OAS) has been called in to investigate the situation, and Belize is confident that the story reported by its military and the accompanying NGO rangers will be vindicated.

In the midst of this tragedy, we ask your prayers for everyone involved:

• for the family of Julio René Alvarado Ruano, as they mourn his death;
   
• for the sovereignty of Belize and the security of its people, especially that of communities that lie along the border with Guatemala in the Cayo and Toledo districts;
   
• for clarity, justice, and discernment as the OAS investigates the shooting;
   
• for wisdom for the leaders of Belize and Guatemala as they seek to lower tensions and improve the welfare of their respective nations;
   
• for a decrease of Guatemalan troops along the border, and a withdrawal of troops from Sarstoon island;
   
• for a firm diplomatic resolution to the ongoing territorial dispute in such a way that Guatemala respects Belize's borders as they are currently drawn.

Thank you for your prayers for Belize and for our churches and our schools there, and thank you for your prayers for us and our ministry as we continue raising support! May God richly bless you all!

An April Update

“Pray that people would give: pledges are coming in very slowly, and we only have 60% of the support pledged that we need to return to Belize!”

— David

Dearest friends, it has been a while since we posted an update about how our support raising while newly married is going, and we do thank you for your patience. But the website has a new look (finally!), and we should let you know the status of things here in our North American sojourn.

We have been busy over the last few months, criss-crossing the American Southwest as we have visited churches and met with potential supporters. When last I wrote, we were preparing for the Western Anglicans House of Delegates meeting in Newport Beach, after which we flew up to Christ Church of the Sierra (Reno) for an amazing weekend with an incredible, mission-minded congregation. Since then, we have been all over:

Feb 21 - St. Luke's (La Crescenta)
Feb 28 - Christ Church (Fallbrook)
Mar 6 - Christ the Redeemer (Yuma)
Mar 3 - San Diego Deanery Meeting (Oceanside)
Mar 13 - St. Paul's (Lake Elsinore) & Epiphany (La Mirada)
Mar 20 - Resurrection (San Marcos)
Mar 24 - All Saints' (Long Beach)
Mar 25 - Epiphany (La Mirada) & All Saints' (Long Beach)
Mar 26 - Gold Line (Highland Park)
Mar 27 - Holy Spirit (San Diego)
Mar 30 - Miller Valley Baptist (Prescott)
Mar 31 - Arizona Deanery Meeting (Phoenix)
Apr 3 - All Saints' (Long Beach)
Apr 10 - New Wineskins (Ridgecrest)

As you can imagine, though we're excited to be sharing about our mission in Belize, we're also a bit exhausted from the travel and inevitable stress that comes with it. In particular, pray that people would give: pledges are coming in very slowly, and we only have 60% of the support pledged that we need to return to Belize!

As we continue on in our support-raising adventure, we will be traveling to Grace Anglican (Oceanside) tomorrow for the installation of the Rev. Bill Mugford as rector, and then on to spend the night in Arizona where we will be attending the dynamic Christ Church (Phoenix) and sharing about our mission between services. Please pray for our energy level, as we will need to come right back on Sunday so Mary Beth can keep on practicing for her recital.

That said, Mary Beth's recital pieces are coming along very well, and we are very excited for her big day on May 6th. She will be performing pieces by Scarlatti, Chopin, Schumann, as well as Beethoven's Waldstein Sonata. Please pray for her continued preparation, and that she excels at this capstone project for her Bachelor of Music degree!

Mary Beth's health continues to fluctuate some, but there is genuine improvement despite all of our travel and sometimes unpredictable arrangements. So many people have gone out of their way to make us feel welcome as we have come through visiting, and I am praying that over the next few months (and with the end of school) she will continue to make gains toward a full recovery of health.

SAMS celebrated its 40th Anniversary by having us pose by the statue of Captain Allen Gardiner.

As we look past April and May (almost all booked up by now!), we are asking where we should go next to share about the mission? We need to move on from Southern California, and various possibilities may be opening up for us as we continue deputation: possibly the Kern area (near Bakersfield, CA), possibly the Dallas/Fort Worth area, possibly the Southeast, or maybe even the Midwest. Please pray that the Lord would lead us to the supporters that he has for us, and that he would provide for our needs as he sends on these errands.

Thank you all for your steadfast prayer and support. We could not do this without you. I hope you enjoy the new look for the website, and be checking up occasionally for when we might post more pictures or videos. May God richly bless you all!

As of today - February 11th

Greetings from (a very) sunny California! News has been slow in coming over the last few weeks, but it is time for us to give you an update, and ask for your prayers as we continue the process of Deputation and seek partners to continue our ministry and mission in Belize!

But first things first, many of you have been waiting for pictures from the wedding! Our photographer has sent us the final cut of over 700 pictures, and they look amazing! Please feel free to check them out and to share in our joy!

Over the last few weeks, we have been visiting with churches and other supporters, even as Mary Beth has begun classes and we have almost completed the process of moving into our for-the-time-being studio apartment in Fullerton. On January 31st we were honored to visit Holy Trinity Parish (Ocean Beach), and the following Sunday, January 6th we returned to our primary sending church, the Anglican Church of the Resurrection (San Marcos) where they are already missing Mary Beth, her presence and her piano playing.

This weekend itself will prove to be quite busy. Tomorrow (Friday) I will be headed to a clergy meeting for the Diocese of Western Anglicans, and on Saturday will be presenting about our mission at the annual meeting of the diocesan House of Delegates (i.e. Synod). Immediately afterwards, we will then fly east to Nevada, where we will spend the rest of the weekend with the good people of Christ Church of the Sierra (Reno) who for years have been key supporters of our ministry. We plan to be back in Southern California again by Tuesday so that Mary Beth can get back on campus, preparing for her senior piano recital to be held on May 6th.

In other news, Lent has begun and with it a serious and introspective character to life. It is difficult for me to be away from my friends and ministry in Belize, and the somber mood of preparation for Holy Week and Easter seems to resonate for me during our sojourn away from the mission field proper. Financial support is coming slowly, and it is tempting to lose heart as we wait on the Lord. But Mary Beth and I believe that the Lord has indeed called us to Belize, and he will prepare the way for us to return. And so we ask you again to join in praying for God's provision and providential hand in preparing the way for our speedy reunion with our beloved friends in the Cayo District.

In the meantime, things continue on very well at St. Andrew's and St. Hilda's. This past Sunday both churches held their Annual General Meetings, and with the guidance of Bishop Wright and Deacon Tulloch, the leaders for 2016 are already jumping into action. My "State of the Church" addresses (one for St. Andrew's and one for St. Hilda's) were given in my absence, and I commend them for your reading as well. I am excited to see where the Lord takes our churches over the next few months, just as I am excited to return and be wtih them once again.

So, thank you all for your prayers, for your support, and for your encouragement. May the Lord richly bless you!

The Wedding Update

It's time for an update! Let's work backwards ..

Mary Beth and I are married!

On January 2nd, Mary Beth and I entered into the covenant and sacrament of marriage in a beautiful ceremony that took place at a Lutheran church in San Diego. We surrounded by many of our family and close friends from all over the world, and the Triune God was definitely present as he blessed us with his grace and love. The next day we flew to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina for a couple weeks of honeymoon rest and relaxation, and we have come back to Southern California ready to commence the long but rewarding process of deputation, that is, our being deputized by our partners and supporters in the United States to continue our missionary work. In regards to the budget that our missionary society SAMS-USA has given us, we have approximately 50% of our pledge support raised. We will have to reach 100% before we can resturn to Belize.

We began deputation yesterday, January 24th, by visiting All Saints' (Bakersfield) and sharing about what God has been doing, and is further calling us to do, at our various churches and schools. We received an incredible welcome by former SAMS missioanry Fr. Richard Menees and others in the congregation who quickly made us feel like a part of their community. We are looking forward to deepening this relationship over the years, and providing a link to their ministering alongside of us in Belize one day.

This coming week, we are very much looking forward to visiting Holy Trinity (Ocean Beach) and similarly sharing about our ministry in the Anglican Diocese of Belize.

I ought to share a bit more about the last few months, particularly leading up to Christmas. To be frank, they were very difficult months for me and Mary Beth. For me, November and the first part of December were consumed with issues relating to the school. Without going into too many details, I found that I was having to step into a managerial role to support teachers and principals with regard to a number of crises, crises that were emotionally draining both because of their nature and also because of the time they required. The Lord sustained me during those difficult weeks, and I thank you so very much for your prayers and for the encouraging messages that many of you sent me.

They were also difficult months for Mary Beth. As she and I have shared before, she has been wrestling with an assortment of health issues that reared their ugliest heads during a very stressful semester at school. The Lord sustained her as well, and she earned the highest possible grades and received "jury approval" for her senior recital this coming spring. Nevertheless, it was truly exhausting.

A true answer to prayer came, however, a few weeks before Christmas, as a medical specialist was able to identify what is most probably at the root of the many horrible health issues she has been experiencing. The treatment she is undergoing is straightforward (though the worst of it involves and incredibly restrictive diet), and we are so thankful for the many people who were praying for her health and recovery. And please, continue to keep her in your prayers.

So, thank you all! As life returns to "normal" we are looking forward to being in touch again very soon. Take care, and may God richly bless you!

A quick update from Mary Beth in California - November 13th

Hi everyone!  I apologize that it’s been a couple months, but here’s another quick update from me! =]

As you may know, about five weeks ago I fell and sprained my knee.  While I’d like to have some cool story to tell you as to how it happened…my dogs knocked me over when they were playing fetch.  Who knew playing fetch could be so dangerous?!  I’ll spare you the gory details as to what my knee did when I fell, but needless to say, lots of pain and now a helpful (if not entirely convenient) knee brace.  Yet through lots of prayers (and less walking than normal) I am getting better and walking a little easier each day.  Thanks be to God! 

In other news, the semester is quickly approaching its end.  Yay!  I truly appreciate all the prayers as my workload increases in what has proved to be a rather difficult/stressful semester.  I ask your continued prayers in the next month as I prepare for juries (my piano performance final), write lots of papers, and continue to prepare for David’s and my wedding.  Lots to do, but exciting just the same!  Less than two months till we get married =]

Sorry this was a short, but I wanted to catch you all up and thank you again for the prayers and support.  We couldn’t do this without you!

As of today - November 4th

It's a big day in Belize: Election Day! Some weeks ago the Prime Minister called for the dissolution of the legislature and for national elections to take place on November 4th. Since then, supporters for the two main parties, the UDP and the PUP, have been campaigning day and night in preparation for today. Please pray for peaceful, safe, and fair elections, and please pray for those who are being elected to govern the country of Belize.

In the meantime, I have withdrawn to a location in the countryside to get some work done in peace and quiet, far from the crowds of campaigners and voters. It also serves to give me a spot of rest after what was a very stressful previous week. I want to thank you for your prayers for my immigration process! With God's help and the cooperation of the government workers in Belmopan, my application for residency has come close to concluding. On Friday I was allowed to pay the standard fee to become a permanent resident ($1,000 USD for U.S. citizen), and I surrendered my passport to be stamped with the appropriate seals. Waiting for this stamp takes weeks, and it is unnerving to be without my passport for so long. Please pray that nothing happens to my passport, and that this immigration process is concluded smoothly and quickly!

In the meantime, life and ministry continues here in Western Belize. This past Sunday we rejoiced to baptize six new Christians at St. Andrew's! Two of them are adolescents who have been considering baptism for months, and we are so excited for them to step into the new reality of the new life in Christ! One of them was willing to sit down with me for a little interview about following Jesus for a young lady her age is really all about:

Please keep Dekada and these other new followers of Jesus Christ in your prayers!

November is a busy time for us as well as we prepare for our episcopal visit just in time for the Feast of St. Andrew on November 29. We have about a dozen candidates for Confirmation at St. Andrew's, and about half a dozen at St. Hilda's, and we are working hard to make sure that they are prepared to profess their faith in Christ and receive the laying on hands when the Bishop comes.

In other news, life and ministry continues. It's a joy for me, as I prepare for my own wedding in January, to preside over the renewal of vows this coming Saturday for the acting principal of St. Barnabas' School and her husband! Having been married for 25 years, I asked the two of them to share some of their insights for young couples like me and Mary Beth who are just starting out, and this what they said:

I ask that you continue to pray for the two of us. Our wedding is just around the bend, and we are in the midst of many preparations, and it is quite difficult to get everything done while she is in the middle of her semester at CSU Fullerton, and while I am here in Belize. And please also pray about our financial support: we are eager for new partners in our ministry who can give to meet our new budgetary needs as a couple, needs that have to be met before we can return to Belize in 2016. Please keep us, and all these things, uplifted to our heavenly Father who knows our needs before we ask! Thank you so much!