Housing in Ecuador- When God Gives You More Than You Need

The Lord is so amazing!  I don't know why I ever worry or stress about the details of life when the Lord is constantly showing me how He aleady has it all figured out.  We knew the Lord wanted us to go to Ecuador so we purchased the tickets, but we didn't know all the details of the trip.  We weren't really sure where we, as a family, would be living for 7 weeks, but we knew the Lord would work it all out.  We thought maybe we'd be in a mission guest facility, with our family sharing one room and others from the team in the others.  Having us there left others without a place to stay.  God already knew and was working as we waited....

About 3 years ago I (Stacy) went to the jungles of Ecuador with a team from our church.  The missionaries we went with live in Shell, which happens to be the same town we are going to.  A few weeks ago I heard a rumor that they would be in the States during the time we would be in Shell.  They called last week to offer their house to us for the duration of our stay!  What a blessing!  They have children so their home is set up for a family with all the essentials and more.  Not only that, they offered to let us borrow all the little things that take up room in luggage (umbrellas, rain coats, computers, school supplies, etc.).  I love how God does not only meet our needs, but surpasses them.... because He can! 

We're Headed for Ecuador!

Our family (all 4 of us) has been given an opportunity to help with the Spanish Recordist Training Course, put on by GRN, in Shell-Mera, Ecuador.  We will be there from September 26 - November 10.  We will be part of a team of leaders and recordists (around 20) from the US, Mexico, Australia, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Canada and Thailand.  This course has been designed for current recordists who are learning to use new equipment, staying current with recording protocol and understanding better how to bridge the gap of God's culture to unreached people groups.  The course will be an important part of laying the foundation for growth and expansion of the work GRN is doing in the Americas.  These recordists are hard at work seeking out unreached people groups and producing recordings of the Gospel message in their language.... and we have been blessed with the opportunity to be part of their world for about 7 weeks.  We are not yet sure what all of our responsibilities will be while there, but the Lord knows and we are excited to find out.  Becca and Tate will continue a bit of school while there, but will have a great opportunity to be part of the ministry and the culture.  Please pray for our family.  The Lord is leading and we know He will provide, but there is a lot to work out before we leave... finances being the top of the list.  As many of you know our monthly expenses are covered by the support of family, friends and our church.  This covers less than 40% of our total living costs (praise God, Emil has been able to do taxes and real estate on the side).  Because our living costs are not yet fully funded, our ministry costs are not funded at all.  The expenses for Ecuador and other ministry opportunities we are a part of are NOT covered by GRN which of course means the Lord will need to provide... and He always does!  Thank you to all who support us through prayers, encouragement and finances.  Please continue to pray for our family and this Ecuador team.  We will be using this blog to keep you up to date on our latest adventures.  Your encouragement is crucial to us as we push forward so please check in if you get a chance.