a part of the adventure

all started well, leaving the Hopewell parking lot after many tearful goodbyes. Not even an hour into our journey Nathanael looked back to see one of the trailer tires had completely blown!

It was in pieces. The spare was replaced but air leaked out. We abandoned the trailer on the turnpike, and got a pressure pump to re-fill the tire  After almost 3 hours, we were on our way again.

Another hour past and Nathanael noticed a sudden drop in the power. He stopped to check fluids, inspect the van.  After a process it was discovered we had a faulty transmission. My uncle rescued us from the side of the turnpike. At this point it was nearing 11:30 at night. We were an hour and a 1/2 away from their house our intended destination). Thankfully they are farmers. He had a truck and pulled our trailer. He also stopped at Wal Mart for a temporary transmission  fix. (as Tom Sadler more about this as I am not a mechanic by any means) This fluid made it possible for Nathanael to drive the van (slowly) to the farm.

It was nice to be in the comfort of family. It was also reassuring that we have a mechanic we can trust.

While the transmission was being re-built, we were able to explore some Johnstown history (yay for field trips that count as school days). My cousin even gave us a pass so we got in for free!!

My aunt spends a good amount of her time caring for my grandmother. It is humbling to watch.

Yesterday we had the opportunity to see my Pop-pop from my dad's side. He took us to Eat'n park (His favorite restaurant).

 

The kids have been enjoying running and exploring the farm. Zephaniah could spend weeks without getting bored.

I for one am enjoying the PA landscape for one last time.

We should (finally) be leaving this afternoon.  We are so thankful to the Hunsburgers for their hospitality and tolerance of our unexpectedly long stay! By the way my aunt runs an awesome Bed and Breakfast if you are ever in the Johnstown area. :)

A re-do of our schedule

Border crossing (Texas to Mexico) to happen hopefully Monday but possibly Tues (9/4-9/5)
One night in Mexico "alone"
One night with the Stevensons outside of Mexico City
One night alone
Bringing Belizean Border crossing to Thursday (or so)

Thanks so much for your prayers!

We are not leaving on a Jet plane

I am aware that our newsletter shared how a friend blessed us with a van. We wanted a 15 passenger van for use in Belize. Most people who attend church don't have a vehicle. Culturally, the churches in Belize have a vehicle or bus to pick up members. We were so blessed, and will be using the van in this fashion in Belize.














The real question of the hour is how are we getting to Belize?

We will be driving. Today the final stages of packing are being completed including loading up the trailer.

For those of you who want to pray through our schedule:


Saturday Nathanael and I will be attending the Overcoming Anger seminar at Hopewell. We are excited that we are able to do this before leaving.

Sunday we will be at Hopewell, then leave from there.

We should be crossing the border between Mexico and Texas either the 31st or 1st of September. We will be one day by ourselves (Sleeping in a Hotel) Over the weekend we will be visiting missionaries in Mexico, Bob and Bonnie Stevenson.

After Mexico City, we have one day in southern Mexico.

We should be crossing the border into Belize around Tuesday September 5.

Please be praying for:

Family peace!!

Taxes both at the Mexican and Belizean border. If you noticed we "defaced" our trailer and van, that is all removable paint.

Safety on the road

We will try to update as often as we can on the ride.

Once we arrive in Belize we won't have internet at home, not sure how long it will take to get it. Last time it was a few weeks..

Thanks so much for your prayers!

commissioning x2

This Sunday we were commissioned, and Nathanael licenced as a pastor through the Hopewell Network.

Joel Kolb stood up front and talked about the fact that we are actually ministering to a community within a community. We are ministering to Belizeans and within that culture Deaf Belizeans. (or it could be looked at the other way around, ministering to Deaf, and Deaf within the culture of Belize. )

All of that to say we had 2 commissionings. We were first commissioned last week through our Deaf sending church: Connecting Deaf.

We were blessed to be a part of the service. Todd preached on all of our callings to the world. This can be right next door, or around the world.  They had a time of prayer for us. (Of course I neglected to get someone to take a picture.)


They then treated us to an awesome lunch at Mission Barbeque.

This week as I stated before was our commissioning through Hopewell. Nathanael was confirmed as a pastor. We then had a time of prayer. The elders and our families prayed for us.  

We had a time of goodbyes after the service. We were so thankful to those who came and spent this time with us!  

Here is a link to the service incase you wanted to see the prayer time: 

Live streaming Hopewell Telford Service, go to August 13th Service

The prayer and confirmation start about 1:45:10 

We are in transition.

This is the state of our basement "living room" area currently. It is a mish mash of thrift store items, things to be packed, and things to be put in storage. I would venture to say this is the state of our entire house.. (sorry mom!!)

We are in the process of going room to room deciding what will stay (not much), what will go, and what we will get rid of. ( or bless other people with)

Recently a I was texting with a friend. She asked how I am doing. My answer: We are in transition. She asked if that meant we are packing and cleaning. Yes we are doing that. I was actually referring to a state of my heart.

Both Nathanael and I have read Looming Transitions by Amy Young which specifically talks about the challenges missionaries/expats face while going on to and leaving the field. We recognize that we are (and have been ) facing these transitions. We are thinking about saying goodbye, packing, anticipating change, and attempting to plan for it.

This past week we ran in a color fun run. I actually ended up with my niece who didn't want to run, most of my run was spent walking. On the way, we listened to this song:

I had chosen it, but I told Nathanael I hated it, and started to cry. Who wants to think about "when can I see you again?" as that is such an uncertain thing? I also have this "mom guilt" thing hanging over me, reminding me that "I" am doing this to our children. 

All of this post to say: Yes we are excited. We should be headed to Belize in the end of August! Please give us some grace as we navigate this time.  We love you and are thankful for you. YOur prayers and support are what has brought us to this point.

And for fun: Pictures from our run: 

Is Deaf church different?

I struggle with how to write this post as I don't want to come off as all knowing. I am far from an expert in Deaf culture.  Even Nathanael would be more "qualified" to write this as he's taken Deaf culture classes for his interpretation degree.

Let me then reiterate, this post is about me and my experience, perhaps to open your eyes to what Deaf church looks like.

One of the first things you will notice when walking into any Deaf event is it seems quiet. People all around you may be talking, but there isn't much noise when talking is done with your hands.

The call to worship looks similar.

Prayer..

Growing up I was taught to bow my head and close my eyes. In Deaf church you don't close your eyes. (how would you know what they were signing?) It may seem silly but this was an adjustment. Years of indoctrination about what you do when you pray went out the window. It has been a learning experience for me!

Worship is an interesting topic. Last month we went as a Family to the Anabaptist Deaf Retreat at Laureville. I had started this blog post before going. I am glad that I waited until after the retreat was over to finish the post.  It was really neat to be a part of the discussion relating to what Deaf worship looks like.

Since I'm not an expert, I would sum it up by saying I don't think Deaf worship needs to look the same as it does in a hearing church. I also wanted to say that as a hearing person it is not a good idea to sit in front of or even near the speakers at Deaf church. Deaf people love to feel the music!

Here is an example of Deaf worship I was introduced to this weekend.

Sermons look very similar, minus the fact that it's in ASL. Since I am still learning ASL, it is darn near impossible for me to take notes. If I look down at the page, I loose words! While in Belize Nancy took a lot of time illustrating her sermons with pictures. I found this very helpful. 

Conclusion: Deaf church is similar to what I grew up with in some ways, and others very different. We worship the same God. It doesn't have to look like I expect. 

Supporting Davis Missions to the Deaf in Belize

Support: cten.org/nathanaeldavis

All Quiet on the Davis Front?

I just read a post from a popular gossip column.  Apparently, a reality star couple was asking for financial support from their fans.  They are missionaries in Central America.  The website ripped them up and down for asking for support.


I personally felt my stomach turn as I read the article.  Gossip columns are meant to sensationalize, and that is what happened.  I find myself very thankful that I am not a reality TV star.

Since being confirmed with both EMM and CTEN, our biggest mission is now fundraising.  When people even hear it they feel for us.  Fundraising seems to evoke many feelings, mostly because it has to do with money.  EMM gave us a book as we first started with them called the Spirituality of Fundraising.  It was so important to look at fundraising from God's perspective.

We recognize that through our own efforts, we are unable to provide for ourselves in Belize. We have to depend on others to come alongside of us.  People who believe in what God is doing in the Deaf community in Orange Walk.

We are also aware that we have to put effort into it.  One lecture at our CTEN orientation was entitled "The Big Ask".  We were taught that statistically, the best way to raise support is to ask individually. This was a challenging, yet important thing to discuss. When we were speaking at Finland, Pastor Chris taught an important sermon about all money being God's.  How timely for us to remember.

So is our house quiet?  Nathanael has been spending every spare moment contacting people.  He is using facebook, texting, email and face to face.  I have been working at thank you notes to those who supported the work on our internship.

Fundraising has been a learning journey for both of us.  I can tell you went into it green, expecting, and dreading.  This being our second time at this, I can truly say this is a part of our journey.  God has taught us so much through it.  Is it our favorite thing?  Not really.  At the same time, God has guided, encouraged and surprised us.  We are thankful to him and to you for where we are.

If you haven't heard from Nathanael (or I) don't worry, you will :). Thank you for being our friends and for supporting us on this journey.  Every little bit counts. We are so thankful for the support.