It was much harder to say goodbye then I thought it would be. Over the last 4 week our family has had the privilege of being surrounded by 31 adults and 37 kids that have also accepted the call to bring the power of the gospel to the ends of the earth. These families represent ambassadors for Christ that will be ministering on the continents of Africa, North and South America, Europe, and Asia to make much of His name.

At MTI we learned, laughed, prayed, cried and made many memories together. We had many late night conversations with others about how God has powerfully worked in our lives, and how he continues to direct us as we journey towards the ministry that He is calling us to. In a very short amount of time we developed deep, meaningful relationships with many of the other missionaries.

One of the first days we were at MTI, we were told that if it hurt to say goodbye to each other when this ended, it meant that we had loved each other well. I didn’t think much of this statement at the time because our training had just begun. However, as the weeks went on I started to realize that saying good bye was going to be tough, it was going to hurt quite a bit, because we had loved and been loved on by so many at MTI. We all had built relationships that we know will continue on even as we serve our God across the globe.

And so today, it is with a heavy heart that we said good-bye to one another, knowing that we probably will not see most of these people again this side of eternity. It hurt to say good bye. Following breakfast we embraced one another and fought back the lump that starts to grow in the back of your throat and paralyzes your vocal cords as you say goodbye to each person that has had a profound impact on your life.

We are thankful for the relationships that God gave us while we were at MTI and we are grateful to God for the faith that he has given these families to proclaim His name all over the world. So we are sad to leave, and yet we are grateful at the same time. Trusting that He is greater, and trusting that Christ is worth everything!

Thank you to all of you that have prayed for our family while we were away. Our time at MTI was so rich with information that will help us adjust to ministry in Kenya. Next time I will share more specifics about what we learned. For now though, we just want to dwell on how thankful to God we are for the people that he allowed us to rub shoulders with over the last month.

Phil 1: 3-6

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy  because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.