March Madness: It's not just for basketball

If you know me, you know that March Madness is observed with holiday like status in my house. However, madness can also be used to describe the past week or so in regards to my journey to China.

First, yet another roadblock was hit. And unlike the other that required new paperwork or more official stamps this one has no clear ending which means a teaching visa isn't in the cards right now.

That leads us to plan B (or C, F, J who knows at this point!) A tourist visa!

So what does all is this means?

1. Most importantly, it means that I can go to China soon! In fact I have purchased plane tickets and will leave on April 24th!
2. Tourist visas are normally issued for 30, 60, or 90 day time periods. They are also either single entry, multiple entry for 1 year, or the new multiple entry for 10 years.
3. I have round-trip tickets for 89 days which means they will hopefully give me at least a 90 day 10 year visa.
4. I will be making a trip to Chicago in the next week or so to the Chinese Consulate to get my visa.
5. After the first short trip home to attend a family reunion and a friends wedding I will return to China. I will then have to leave the country again every 90 days in accordance with my visa.
6. This means that there is the added expense of travel for visa trips. At this point I don't know exactly how much more this will be, but I anticipate it being at least an extra $100 a month.

What can you do?

1. Continue to pray! Pray that the rest of the visa process moves smoothly and there are no snags that delay anything. Pray as I wrap things up here and prepare to move to China. Pray that the extra funds I need will come in.
2. Donate! Maybe you haven't been able to or couldn't give as much as you wished. Maybe you can't give a big chunk but something as little as $25 a month adds up! I treasure all of my supporters and know this isn't possible without them.
3. Donate! (yes, again) Maybe you don't want to give money but you want to give a tangible thing. One benefit of coming home for a short trip after three months is I don't have to pack everything at the beginning and will have more room for donations for New Day. If you are interested please let me know and I'll give you a list of most needed items!

I am continually seeing God through this journey and am so excited He is the one leading it. It hasn't been easy but it is so so good! It does feel like complete Madness at times, but isn't it more fun when the underdog wins :) 

Support Raising Isn't for Wimps

Right now I am deep in the world of support raising. It's a world I've entered before, and now more than ever I'm learning that it isn't for wimps.

• Support raising requires asking people to come alongside you and believe in your vision
• Support raising is putting yourself on the line
• Support raising is setting yourself up for possible rejection
• Support raising is entering the land of the unknown
• Support raising is going against the worlds idea of success
• Support raising can be seen as selling yourself

Yet, I've learned support raising really is a huge honor

You are able to continue a long line of people of God who were supported by others to do His work. In the Old Testament the Levites were set apart to do the Lords work, and God provided for them through the tithes and offerings of the Israelites.  God promises that He is their portion and inheritance and that they could trust in Him to provide all the needed (Numbers 18:20). Throughout the Bible there are countless examples of how people set apart for Gods work were supported by Gods people.

"If it were wrong to be supported by the personal gifts of others, Jesus Christ would not have allowed it in His own ministry. If Jesus became vulnerable enough to be supported by others, you and I must be willing to as well." -Scott Morton (via The God Ask) 

Jesus, our ultimate example shows us that is it perfectly ok to be supported by others, and if we are not ok with this, are we really following His example?

Having a support team is a huge blessing. You have a group of people who are behind you and are invested in the work that you are doing. These are people who will pray for you and celebrate each victory. By choosing to support raise you are choosing to allow people a chance to partner in Gods work throughout the world. You are allowing people to be a part of the Great Commission by sending you, which is just as important as the going, as one couldn't happen without the other.

Support raising requires faith, it requires confidence. If you approach support raising questioning if you'll raise the money, you never will. But, if you have faith that you will be fully funded, you will. "We never utter the weak phrase, 'If I raise my support,' but only the strong and faith-filled, 'when I raise it.' (The God Ask. The weak and wimpy say if, the strong and faith-filled say when. And that is why support raising isn't for wimps!

I have taken the leap and am full of faith that God will provide the supporters I need to serve Him in China. I have chosen to believe in Gods perfect plan and not to listen to the lies the world tries to tell me. I feel privileged to be set apart for this call and look forward to the huge responsibility God has given me to steward His resources well.

Do you believe this?

Do you believe God wants to use you as part of His plan to reach the nations?

Would you join me by becoming part of my support team? 

*If you want to know more about Biblical Support raising I can't recommend The God Ask by Steve Shadrach enough!