Holding Pattern

When I am on a plane, the thing that I hope does NOT happen is that the plane goes into a “holding pattern”. If you have flown numerous times then you know what I mean. The plane is making it’s descent and you are looking forward to landing and then the pilots voice comes on over the intercom, “Hello passengers, it appears that many flights have arrived at once and we are in a holding pattern waiting for permission to land.” Then the plane circles round and round until it can land. Of course eventually, it does.

This is the situation that we are finding ourselves in now. We have been given the “green light” from our mission board to go to Mexico. What a huge praise! We have been working towards this for the last 1.5 years. We were excited to purchase our tickets but quickly found out that our religious visas would probably not be ready by the time we wanted to leave. That was disappointing. Visa processes are complicated, and the more specific visa you get, the more complicated it is. We have to acquire some letters and have them signed and sent to different places. There are many moving parts. So now we find ourselves in a holding pattern. We are ready to land and hit the ground running yet the Lord has us circling, not yet allowing us to land.

We are in good company. I can think of several Bible characters who were in holding patterns: Abraham and Sarah waiting for a promised son, Joseph waiting to get out of prison, Moses waiting for the promised land, and Esther waiting for the perfect time to petition the king about saving her people. All of these people were waiting for God, they were expectant that He would fulfill His promise.

What we have to remember now is that God wants us in Mexico. He has prepared the way for us. He has us circling for a reason. Maybe we will see it one day, but maybe we will not. Either way we are called to have faith that God CAN and WILL release us to land when the time is just right. We don’t want to rush God.

Please be in prayer for us during this time of waiting. Pray that we will stand strong and have big faith. Pray that the process for the visas will be efficient and happen on a good timetable. We are praying for “soon” and we ask that you do as well.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank our colleagues for all the help they are giving us during this time.

Dan and MeLinda Nelson- They are working tirelessly to see that all the paperwork for our visas continues to move through the system. They are looking at houses for us, helping the kids get enrolled into school, and have offered to let us stay in their home when we get to Guadalajara until we find a house, and much more.

Lynn and Barb Conner- They have offered us emotional support and encouragement during this time. This in itself has been invaluable to us. Barb did the legwork to find a school for Malachi and get Malachi on the waiting list for a wonderful physical therapy facility.

Jami Strandberg- She has researched language schools for John and has narrowed it down to two. She will be assisting John when he gets to Guadalajara in choosing the best fit for him. She has also searched to see if I can get some of my favorite American products there.

Eric and Janet Johnson have encouraged us and have made us feel welcomed and loved.

Please be in prayer for our wonderful Central Mexico Team. They are awesome.

Thank you all for praying for us. We love you!