Fundraising Time!!!!

I just saw on Facebook recently that there are only 18 more Fridays until Christmas! My immediate thought was "I only have 19 more Fridays until Kenya!!!" It really hit home that I don't have time to sit around and count the Fridays until we leave. There is so much to do right now! We need to call and schedule an appointment for Rianne to get her Passport. We need to schedule an appointment at the County Clinic to see what travel vaccinations the kids will need. I need to fill out a request for the kids to miss school for an educational trip. And we need to order plane tickets...which means we need to raise money fast!!! I am currently gearing up to hold another online Facebook Auction. I have done two in the past. One to raise money for our group to go to Jamaica, and one to raise money for myself to go to Kenya and the group to go to Belize. Both times they were a lot of work, but quite profitable. 

The last two I had a lot of help from the other people benefiting from it, so I was a bit worried about trying to run this one one my own. However, God always provides and some wonderful friends have jumped on board to help me!!! I hope they realize just how much that means to me! One friend to going around and asking businesses for donations and another friend is going to keep track of who owes what and who has paid. Several friends have also donated some really wonderful items and talents! (One of my favorites is the Africa painting pictured above).

I'm hoping to start the auction in a little over a week. If you are local to Washington, PA and would like to donate a new item or service, we would love to take it! If you want to bid on items, be sure to Facebook friend Ben or I. It is a really fun two weeks and there is one special evening that Ben and I are donating that will hopefully be a big hit! Say some prayers that everything flows smoothly. 

Jehovah-jireh,

 Anne

Every Little Bit Helps

I spent the weekend, thus far, working hard with some really good friends to help out with upcoming expenses. Yard Sales are not glamorous, they take a lot of effort and have very little return. However, I got to do it in some really good company which eases some of the burden. We descended on my friend's house with a copious amount of kids' items and God blessed us with two glorious days of good weather! I didn't make enough to pay for our survey trip, but seeing as I only brought over one car load of items and a playhouse I am happy that I made enough to pay for Rianne's passport and the printing and sending of our support letters. It may not be much, but every little bit helps!

Blessings-Anne

P.S. If anyone is in need of a flower girl dress, size 8, I know where you can find one. ;)

"Wise words bring many benefits, and hard work brings rewards." -Proverbs 12:14

Coming Soon to a Mailbox Near You!

And so we have embarked on my least favorite aspect of mission work...the asking of money. It's not the writing up of the letter, the printing, the folding, the stuffing, the addressing or the stamping (you can see from the photos below that I enlist my children to do a good portion of that). It is simply the act of asking for help. I wish that when God calls you to do work in His Name that the exact amount of money that you need would just miraculously appear on your doorstep...or do I?  

Hmmm, if God did just drop the money at our feet what all would we miss out on? We would miss out on the hours of time spent in prayer with God, growing our relationship. We would miss out on experiencing the unexpected places the money comes from.  We would miss out being able to show our children one more way that God provides. We certainly wouldn't receive the blessing of having the tangible support, the knowing that a particular family is rooting for you and believing in you. We would rob our friends and family of the opportunity to contribute to mission work when they aren't called themselves. And I also believe, that our supporters would miss out on the opportunity to receive their own blessings because of their obedience.

Do I think everyone must give financially to take part in His work? Absolutely not! We all can not possibly give to every cause! I know we must be good stewards of God's money and that requires listening to where He wants us to spend it. I do believe though, that if God is calling you to give; whether it is $5 or $500, that you should give. So I ask each of you to pray, to see what role He is asking you to take. And then obey.

So, 110 envelopes will be put in the mail tomorrow. More than likely, if I have your address you will receive one. When you go to open it, please start in a moment of prayer. Ask God what He wants you to hear in the letter. Maybe He is not calling you to give, but to get involved in other ways. At the top of this Blog we have a page entitled "How You Can Help". Feel free to check that out to see what else you can do. Just know that we are reaching out in love and obedience. We can not express how much each of you means to us! We have already had one generous supporter pay for one airline ticket! (Go God!!!). We believe that was an early sign from God that we are following His Will. We are so excited to have you on this journey with us! Check your mailboxes!!!

Lots of Love,
Anne

Annabelle putting on the stamps, Rianne putting on address labels, and Noah stuffing envelopes

"Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don't have." -2 Corinthians 8:12

How Did We Get Here?

How can you possibly put into words when God moves bigger than you ever dreamed about; when He calls you to something larger than extravagant dreams; when He alters a life so completely that you almost can’t recognize it? How can I fill you in on the details of everything He has been doing over the past year…the past 35 years…. Really, I can’t. But if I may, I would love to share with you a few of the highlights, the ways that God has transformed me, to bring us to this blog today.

Imagine for a moment a young girl. She is so shy that her parents aren’t sure if she really knows how to talk. They worry about sending her to school for fear that she will get swallowed up in the interactions. That same young girl pursues a dream to become a dancer. On stage, she feels alive and bold, completely outside of her timid self. That teenage girl meets a boy. A boy who loves her like no other and accepts her exactly the way she is. God decides that dancing is not part of her future, so she gets thrust into education. The fear of public speaking all of a sudden turns into a passion and a joy. God is working. He is preparing her.

The boy and girl get married. The girl has her heart set on a life of simplicity, security, and predictability. Life gets crazy for a while, but God places the girl in situations and environments where He can hone her leadership skills. The wallflower is thrust out of her comfort zone and into a world that she surprisingly enjoys. God brings the couple to a church where their eyes are opened to a world of missions that they never really considered before. Their faith is grown, stretched and deepened as they seek to follow God’s Will for their lives.

God calls their family to spend a week in Jamaica which strengthens them in ways they never imagined. He also calls the girl for more in-depth mission work. God begins to stir a question within the girl: “What if He wants us to become missionaries?” She doesn’t say a word to the boy for fear that he will think she is crazy…or even scarier…agree. God pulls the boy away for a week to place within him the very same question.

The girl goes to Kenya for two weeks. All the time asking God if this is where He wants them. Doubting. Questioning. Realizing. The boy and the girl pray. They pray hard. Their friends pray hard. Their family prays. All the time, marveling at the absurdity of it all. Wondering how they even got to the place where God would ask this of them. Laughing at the irony.

Which brings us to today. The boy. The girl. Their children. God. The Kenyan team. The realization that a life living outside of God’s Will is no life at all. Realizing that regardless of the cost they must be obedient. Deciding to take the next step.

And so, we would like to invite you on this journey with us. A journey into the unknown. A journey that will take us to places never imagined. A journey that will bring blessings untold. A journey to Kenya.

Please join us in prayer and support as we take the next step. The Fisher family is headed to Kenya at the end of this year for two weeks to decipher God’s calling for their lives. To finally find out if all the preparation was indeed for this.

 Many Blessings,

                      Anne

“The LORD directs our steps, so why try to understand everything along the way?” –Proverbs 20:24