Moldova

We have had a long trip so far but we can tell that God is with us. I am looking forward to what he has planned for us this week. I know that I have finally put down all of my barriers and I am ready for his will. We have a great week planned and look forward to see what happens when we use God's this week. I can't wait to see it fulfilled. I know amazing things are going to happens with the group of talented people we has seeking God's will and purpose for these kids.

God just use us as a tool for you and let us put what we want to do aside and make you the focus for the kids and let us be careful to make sure we give God all the Glory.

Traveling to Moldova

This is Sheila, I am using Jon's blogging address because I cannot seem to sign on for myself.  It is now 10:30 on Monday night.  This is how our travels went:  We met at First Baptist Church Whitehouse at 9:30 Sunday morning.  We packed the bus ant trailer and Pastor Ray led a prayer of protection and God's will be done before we loaded up.  We rode the bus to the DFW airport where we ate at TGI Fridays.  We joked about how there is always one who gets stopped in security, well guess who it was first.  Me of course!  I had forgotten to empty my water bottle and they had to search my luggage   From there we flew to Dulles airport in Washington D.C.  there we met up with Jon and Kelsey from Tennessee and Carolyn from Canada.   Then we headed for Frankfurt Germany where they got me again.  My flashlight caused them to search my bag again.  However this time I was not alone,  Kelsey's converter caused her to be taken to a separate room while they checked it out.  We continued on to the German McDonalds where we received a chinese fortune cookie which was an advertisement for a duty free store.  Rae did a wonderful devotion before we left there and we continued on to Chisinau airport in Moldova.  From there an interesting ride to the house where we are staying.  The people we have met so far are wonderful and dinner was great.  I did my turn giving the devotional and we have been organizing supplies and making goodie bags all in preparation for going to Ivancea tomorrow.  We will build beds and start the Bible school tomorrow.  Please pray for the weather to hold out so we can play outside.  Moldova has had more rain this year and while everything is lush and green we do not want to get rained out on our games.  We are getting to know each other and am sure when we get home there will be many interesting stories.  (Ask about Tony's headwear!)  God Bless!

We are here!

We made it! We had an incredibly boring trip... LOL No real issues except for a poor lady worried about her laptop bag, but Tony straightened her out. She quieted down after that. Tony's school principal skills have already paid off. I didn't sleep much until the last plane ride because we had room to stretch out. I skipped that meal, but the sleep was worth it. We decided the van ride from the airport was more scary than any of the plane rides. CJ did a great job, it's just the traffic and kids running out into the street! Once we got to Victor and Valentina's home, we were blessed with a wonderful home cooked meal of chicken and potato soup, bread, and cookies. Drinking my coke without ice is a MAJOR adjustment for me, but I did it and survived. The weather is beautiful tonight with cool winds, which I think is a good thing because there is no central air. Tomorrow morning we will start building beds and then start the VBS in the afternoon. We are all very excited to meet the kids and share God's Word with them. This trip has obviously been blessed so far with easy travel and no security issues. Thanks for all of your prayers. Keep it up! Someone will be updating every night. It's about 10:30pm now and we need to practice some line dancing steps. Much love, Tracye :O)

The Journey Begins....

Clothing....check....Toothbrush....check....iPod....check....Oh hey, I've been asked to kind of kick things off with some talky talk about getting ready for our First Baptist, Whitehouse, Texas effort to Moldova...It's hard to really describe the state of mind I'm in right now...things are kind of crazy at work with it being the end of school year so I don't know if everything has really sunk in yet (about the eminent approach of our departure to Moldova)...my son graduates tomorrow...my best friend from high school gets married (finally) on Saturday...and our team heads to Moldova on Sunday....Needless to say, my thoughts are a bit scattered....Where did I put my toothpaste?? The one thing I can say at this point however is how amazed I've been at God's provision and direction for this undertaking. He has been faithful through this entire process of preparation and I am soooo excited about the potential of this team and this opportunity. I read earlier this week in my Experiencing God workbook how "...our world is not seeing God because we are not attempting anything that only God can do." It is my prayer that each of us on this journey believes with God-sized faith that He can accomplish whatever it is He desires. If we trust and believe He can do anything, God-sized results will be seen during our time with these precious kids. I'm sitting on my suitcase now....found the toothpaste.......ughhhhhh...there....Now to weigh it....65lbs??? I guess I'm not taking the DISH TV after all....I'll blog again once we are in Moldova!! God Bless!