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Daily Things

Finn-tastic!

Back from Finland! We had a great time getting organized and energized with our team this week. We spent some time discussing how we can use our strengths in ministry and the directions we'll be taking in the near future. I'll tell everyone more about that soon!

We also got a little taste of home: Pizza Hut and Subway! Small things, but wow.

On Monday, we'll start back to language school. It's the second part and bound to be more challenging for us. Please keep that in your prayers and the relationships we've started there, too.

To Ikea and beyond!

Hello all.

Today was test day. The Estonian university system works like this: there's a semester, then that semester is divided in half. After each half there's a test. Hence, today was test day. Josh and I are glad to report that we did pretty well (we think) on our language test. Thanks to everyone who has lifted us up on that account.

Now, we're catching a nice break. There's a week off between the 1st half and the 2nd of the semester. So, on Monday we're going to catch a ferry to Finland. It'll be our first trip to Helsinki. The purpose of the trip is for some team meetings (goal setting, planning, ikea, etc). It should be a great time. Expect pictures.

Tonight, we're going to meet up with a few of our classmates for a birthday party. Please pray that we can get to know them a little better, and that we would be able to share the love of Christ with them.

Catching up...

Over a month ago we started language school. We go everyday in the afternoons. Most days it's incredibly challenging. It's cool to be learning another language; the downside is that it occassionally makes your brain hurt. In a few weeks Josh and I will be making a little video to show what we do and where we go for day to day stuff, and I'll be sure to post it in the blog so you can check it and get an idea of how life is over here.

This past weekend was a little out of the ordinary for us. We were invited by some friends to join them at their country home. In Estonia, almost everyone has a country home that they go to on the weekends. So, we went down to the very southern part of the country with them. It took about 4 hours to drive from the very top to nearly the bottom. On the way down, we saw the first signs of snow on the ground!

When we got there, they took us around to all sorts of different landmarks: the highest point (a really big hill), a "desert", some granite cliffs, caves, an abandoned Soviet military base, and nature reserves. It's a really beautiful place, not to mention it was great just to be out of the city for a few days.

Most interestingly though, we had the traditional sauna experience. Basically, you sit in the sauna and someone slaps you a few times with birch limbs (like exfoliating), and then when you're too hot to stand it anymore you run outside and jump into the nearest body of water (if there is one) to cool down. Even when the water is iced over in the winter, they'll go and chip it away so you can jump in. It actually felt pretty good, even though it was just about freezing outside.

Spiritually, it's a step in the right direction. As we've been for months, we're allowing our relationships with these friends to grow. Please pray that they will see the mysterious presence of Christ in us. We've not been able to have conversations on that level, but pray that when we do, our actions will have spoken ahead for us.

They tried to make me go to rehab, and I said...oh, alright...

Since I desperately want to avoid surgery in two months, yesterday, I figured it was time to start rehabing my knee. The doctor told me that I should be cycling and swimming (but, not the breast stroke, he kept repeating) at least three times a week. I should also be loung-ga-ing (emphasis on the middle G) and keeping my knee at a very specific angle, which he modeled, with a pillow beneath it.

So, yesterday, I joined a very nearby gym. Today was my first day working out there. It was a little lesson in humility and in feeling really awkward. For starters, I couldn't figure out how to lock my locker and had to ask. Then, I couldn't open the door to get out. Later, I couldn't open the door to get back in. Someone had to show me how to do that, too. It's all very complicated. At the same time, I was the only person (female or male) in the whole place wearing a t-shirt. Everyone else looked like they were coming out of a Nike commercial.

Tomorrow, I'm going to go back in there like a pro. I'll know how to open my locker, and how to get in and out of the door. But, one way or the other, I'm not caving on my t-shirt. After a few months, who knows, maybe I'll have built some relationships and opened a new avenue to our ministry here. Maybe I'll have converted them all to the t-shirt.

The American Beauty Car Show

Last weekend we rode with two Estonian friends in their 1960s Cadillac, to an event called the "American Beauty Car Show." It was being held in a 13th century castle. When we got there we were surprised to see hundreds of cars parked around the fortified walls and out in the fields around it. Even crazier, in this place that would be a national treasure in the states , they parked the good cars, (the ones remodeled especially to be shown), on the inside of the castle grounds.

We knew we were in for something right at the entrance because by a big row of port-a-potties, were cars of every American variety decked out in flags. They weren't Estonian, Russian, or EU flags. They were American, and the vast majority Rebel flags. They were draped over windshields, tied from antennas, and even tied like capes around people's necks. People were all decked out for the occassion too, with boots, some pearl snaps, and some European twists on Western wear. My favorite was the guy with very long hair in a cowboy hat, boots, and a knee length fur coat with the arms cut off, whom we saw head banging later in the night, hat held high.

Apparently, collecting American cars, classic or no, is becoming quite the hobby in Estonia. Of course, they buy muscle cars and that kind of thing, but they buy regular stuff too: 1990s Oldsmobiles, newer Mustangs, Mr. T inspired vans, ordinary minivans, Jeep Cherokees, Wranglers, Suburbans. They'll get anything, as long as it's American.

This is a once a year event, and everyone with an American-built car comes. They bring their tents, as we did, and camp out by their cars. They grill, rev their engines, drink, and listen to a ton of American music. From five in the evening to noon the next day, we heard non-stop everything, from AC/DC, Dolly Parton, Dwight Yokum, to Hanson and (hours of repeated) Ace of Base.

The funny thing was that being American made us minor celebrities by the grill that night; especially, once I mentioned that I grew up in Texas. People were visibly excited about it. It really gave us an avenue to talk to people who might not ordinarily open up to us. For instance, I spoke to one girl about where she should go visit in Texas, life in America, and how she'd seen that money didn't necissarily bring happiness. She and I also got to talk about some deeper matters, like the faith of Johnny Cash, and my own experience with faith and grace.

It was a weird and bizarre night, one that didn't end, even after we tried to go to sleep at 3:30 that morning. All night long people were up singing, playing music, and some Estonian guy was yelling, "Wakey, wakey, eggs and bacey." Being around all those rebel flags, the country music, and revved up engines, it felt a little like home. Or, like your redneck cousins' house that you visit once a year.

Born in the U.S.A.

Not so long ago, Estonia was granted their freedom and given the rights of an independent nation. A big part of getting there was through demonstrations in the song festival. The festival has been happening every fifth summer for the past 140 years. Rain or shine, communism, facism, or democracy, Estonians pour down the streets for hours to file into the song grounds. 70,000 strong, they sing traditional songs together for several hours. Just so happens that this year the song festival has landed on the 4th of July weekend.

A couple of days ago, Josh and I went with two friends to dinner and then stumbled on an early celebration. There was dancing, singing, and lots of accordian action going on. We got there just as an old fashioned looking boat arrived to the shore, carrying a flame that had been taken through the rivers of Estonia and onto the Baltic Sea to make it to Tallinn. As we were leaving, our friends told us about how, as young kids, they had been a part of the human chain that ran the length of the Baltic nations.

So, tonight, we got together with a few American friends. We ate some dessert, popped a handful of fireworks, and listened to a little of Bruce Springstein and Tom Petty. And, maybe this year more than others, we were thankful for the freedom we've had all this time, and oftentimes take for granted.

Tomorrow, we'll go catch the second day of the festival and pray that those 70,000 might find a new kind of freedom that can't be taken away through politics, arms, or the will of any opposing army.

A Change Gonna Come

One day, our blog is not gonna have a thing in it about health stuff. Today's not that day, but it's coming, promise.

We've been in Budapest for the past week getting checked out by the awesome doctors at the awesome facilities there. Turns out Josh's stomach problems have been caused by a bacteria and they're easily fixed with some medication. I also had an MRI taken of my knee, and it'll be about a week before I know definititively what's going on and what will have to be done for it. It seems likely that it's a meniscus tear and might have to be fixed surgically. So, we'll both have to get some follow-up stuff done pretty soon. The main thing is that we are incredibly thankful for the support of our organization. They're a well run machine when stuff like this comes up.

Also, being in Budapest made us feel super fluent in Estonian. You don't realize how much language you've learned until you go somewhere and don't know a word.

We're totally excited about this coming week. We're going to our regional conference, which means a chance to get back together with some friends and colleauges, speak English, be loud Americans, share our experiences from the past couple months, get new ideas, and new energy to come back out again. It's going to be a great time.

Also we're hopeful that when we get back, we'll have some new friendships develop out of acquaintences. It's going to be great to see how God moves.

The Hope Festival

A week ago, Estonia hosted Franklin Graham and a hand-full of bands from around the globe. Some of the musicians were Americans: Dennis Ajadarian (the Guinness Book of World Record's fastest guitar player), John and Anne Barbour, and Michael W. Smith; yet, there were also a variety of European based musicians (from Ukraine, Russia, Finland, and a few of Estonia's own). One Estonian artist in particular, Tõnis Mägi, is very popular, and it was really powerful to hear his songs, usually played in a secular context, reconsidered by his fans in light of the message of the cross. 

As one of the videos I posted earlier said, for many, the Hope Festival may be the only Christian based event they have ever been invited to or attended. We considered it a blessing to be there as our Estonian brothers and sisters were energized again through gathering together; moreover, to see our community of faith grow. We pray, and hope you'll join with us in praying, that a simple alter call won't be the end of the spiritual journey for those who felt compelled to go down. We pray that their experience would grow richer and more powerfully as they are drawn into relationship with the Living God. And, we pray that the festival would not be a weekend event, but a catalyst for the country of Estonia. 

Hope in Estonia

Encounters, Volunteers, and Doctors

Hello everyone,

This is Josh. Meg has been giving all of the updates since we began our blog, but this week I thought I would give it a shot.

In the last couple of weeks things have really been on fast-forward. The football team that I have been practicing with is really starting to pick up. Meg and I went bowling with one of the guys from the team and his girlfriend last weekend. It was a great chance for us to meet a couple our age here in Estonia. They were a lot of fun, and we hope to be able to see them more in the future and continue to build a relationship with them. We also have recently met an Estonian girl who was excited to not only get to know us, but to also "swap" languages with us.

This week there is a volunteer team in from Houston, Texas. They have really been great to work with and get to know. We have spent the majority of the time walking around lifting up certain areas of the city. They will also be helping with the Franklin Graham Hope Festival that is here this weekend. Please be lifting up this event. One of the couples on the team has a son who is transferring to NSU to play QB!

We have also made a few trips to the doctors recently. Next week I will go for ultrasounds to try to figure out what is going on with my stomach. Meg also has been having some pains in her jaw area. Hopefully that will go away with some anit-biotics. We covet your prayers for us during this time.

If you have any questions for us, do not be afraid to e-mail, facebook, skype, etc.

"I was like Hulk Hogan, except not green..."

I've mentioned that we've been playing quite a bit of sports here. On Monday we went and played soccer. I think I mentioned that I'm really bad at soccer. I was dribbling the ball, and had an accident. I kind of stepped on the ball, and then that leg kind of slammed into the ground, and then that knee kind of popped, buckled, and went the other direction than the rest of my leg. Kind of a bummer. So I went to a general practitioner yesterday, and I'll be going to a specialist today to get an MRI. On the bright side, it feels a little bit better everyday. I can put weight on it and get around fairly well. The doctor yesterday thinks it's probably a tear, but I'm hoping maybe it's just partial, or something.

Another bright side, Josh has been feeling a lot better. We really appreciate your prayers on his behalf.

Tonight we go to a friend's birthday party. The same friend who provided the title for today's blog. We're pretty glad to even be invited. Birthdays are a pretty big deal 'round here.

Good things are happening with the football team; we've got high hopes.

Keep on praying!

Palun mulle "hotdog."

Things are blooming, AND green, AND there are leaves on the trees! Yesterday, I took an awesome walk through the park and ended up at the beach. It gave me one of those, "Wow, I live here!" moments. Those are fun.

Now that he's able to recognize a little more Estonian, it's dawned on Josh that half of the football team can't communicate to each other, at all. A third of them are Russians, a third Estonian, and a third English/Dutch, but practice is held solely in Estonian. So, there's a lot of confused looks, shrugs, and pointing. All that, plus two-thirds are learning the game for the first time. But, one way or another, he's getting to know some guys (ironically, many speak English quite well).

Minor victory of the week: Josh ordered a hotdog, entirely in Estonian.

In a few weeks, we'll have our first volunteer team coming to prayer walk sections of the city where we'll be starting our outreach ministry to prostitutes/trafficking victims. At the end of the month, Franklin Graham will be coming to Tallinn for the Hope Crusade. The tickets for that have already sold out, which is totally exciting. Please be in prayer for that, for the football team, and for one specific friend who we're hoping will come.

Funny things happen in Estonia. We were at a park beside the beach in Tallinn, playing basketball with some Estonians and some Finns. We invited a really tall Estonian guy to play with us. Turns out, he was a professional basketball player for the Estonian national team. That's the beauty of living in a small country. You never know who you are going to meet, and how that person might completely dominate you in a "friendly" game of basketball.

Along the line of random encounters, last week we had a really spiritual conversation with a group of Latter Day Saint missionaries from the US. We got the chance to tell them the differences in our two religions, and to share our testimonies of coming to faith.

Otherwise, Josh has been playing some American style football with the (one) Estonian team. He's getting to know the guys, and teaching them a little about the game when opportunities present, (as they don't have a whole lot of experience). Sometimes, as conditioning, they'll put a monstrous, pot-bellied man on their backs and run around with him. Once, a player dropped the football in the huddle and one of the other guys screamed, "FAMBLE!" and initiated a dog pile on the ball. It's all very professional!

Hopefully, in all of our weird activities and chance encounters, we'll get to know a few more people, build some deep relationships, and be presented opportunities to give the reason for the hope that lies within us. That's something to pray for.

Through the wardrobe....

This week, we've felt a little bit like we're living in Narnia before the return of Aslan. No, not in some super spiritual way, although I could go there (but that would really betray how nerdy I am about those books). But, living in Estonia is like being one of the Pevensie kids, walking into Narnia, and meeting Mr. Tumnus, who then tells them that it's been winter in Narnia for a hundred years.

It's been a really long stretch of cold for two people from Louisiana/Texas. Having spent January to March in Richmond, them arriving to a cold April here in Estonia, it's really a shock to the senses. Consistent weather is...weird.

I say all of this to say, we are so ready for some summer and some never ending days. We're told that people come out in droves and lay out in bathing suites on any open piece of grass, anywhere in the city. Plus, the summer warmth is said to make everyone that much more open and willing to talk, even to two strange Americans.

Snowflakes on noses and whiskers on kittens...

Two weeks in, here are a few of our favorite things about Estonia:

1) Public transportation is cool. Between trams and busses, driving is so last season. 

2) Estonians are very orderly people. They don't jaywalk. They don't cross at crosswalks until the light turns green, even if no one is coming. 

3) They eat everything with a knife and fork, including pizza and hamburgers.

4) The language is crazy. Every word has fourteen cases, so it you just add an ending to the base of a word to change its relationship to something else. And many of the words are so close together, like "nagu" is "like" and "nagu" is "face". It changes upon pronunciation and vowel sounds.

Aside from that stuff, hopefully I'll do a far better job in the coming weeks of keeping everyone updated now. As for prayer requests, pray for this Sunday. Easter Sunday is called Egg Day here in Estonia. For many, it will be the only day of the year that they might pop into a church. Pray that the Holy Spirit would stir something up in them, and that they would see the truth and power of His Resurrection. 

Luke 24:5-6, "Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen!"

To God be the Glory

This week has just been insane. And tiring. And crazy. And whatever else you want to label it.

Thanks, everyone, for praying for Josh's health. He started feeling poorly last Friday,went to a clinic on Monday, felt worse than ever on Wednesday night, went to two specialists yesterday, and had a screening today with a gastrointenologist. Thanks be to God that they found everything was clean and Josh only has a bad infection. We're hoping that the antibiotics will kick in and he'll start feeling better soon. We should have an idea on Monday if he'll be in shape to fly out by Thursday. Please keep praying for him. Josh and I are incredibly relieved, but he's still hurting a good bit. Not to mention, we're REALLY ready to be in Estonia and giving updates on what's going on there!

Otherwise, let me just say that this week was pretty stretching. In trying to take care of Josh and get him where he needed to be, I realized how much self I had been storing up. It wasn't a pretty ephiphany; it's not even pretty to admit it in writing. Early on in the week, I prayed that I would start learning to die to myself and become a servant of others. God took me up on it. What I didn't understand is that death is painful, particularly when there's self involved, and it doesn't wanna go. I don't want to overspiritualize, particularly since I'm not the sick one (just to brag on him, Josh has been an awesome and positive sicko), but I do hope that I'm a step closer to that. I hope I'm closer to walking in stride with the Father. What I know for sure is that God made himself visible to us in how he worked out schedules, how He gave us peace, and how He called others to minister to us in their prayers and kindness. I'm thankful for that.

13 days and counting

Only thirteen days left to go! We don't have a whole lot of news or any really phenomenal stories to relate about a resurrecting phone or defiance of persecution, or anything like that. So, I thought I'd take the time to show you another angle of Estonia. 

I put some pictures up a few weeks ago showing the countryside and the capital city, Tallinn. Take the time to check those out; Estonia really is a beautiful place! Today, I added a video from the LonelyPlanet website that talks a little bit about the city itself. 

My hope is that you can begin developing a mental picture, and it might enable you to pray more specifically. If you will, take a minute and pray for the people and areas mentioned. Pray that, "The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them, (Isaiah 9:2)." 

Thanks, continually, for joining in with us on behalf of people that you don't know and might not ever meet (in this life). What a gathering it will be in the next, when they get to see the the faces of those who prayed so diligently for them. 

The Difference in a Day or Two

Sorry to all for missing the blog over the weekend. Last week started with a snow day and ended with sunshine and flip-flops. It was amazing. 

The snow began Sunday night and didn’t stop falling until Monday afternoon. It went a foot deep. We grabbed some sleds and went down the hills directly behind our dorm. It was a great time. One group of people made an igloo big enough for four people to crawl into, and there were several giant, seven foot snowmen built around the campus. It’s the only legitimate snow day I’ve ever had; enough to shut down Louisiana schools for a month. In all the fun, Josh put his phone in the pocket of his jacket and went down a hill. Needless to say, by the time he was emptying his pockets that night there was no phone, but more on that later. By Saturday, though, the weather was back in the eighties, which was just awesome! We’re enjoying one last flip-flop splurge!

Back to the phone, Josh found it at the end of the week. It had been buried under the snow the whole time, but he picked it straight up and dialed his voicemail. Unbelievably, it worked. A small miracle for sure, but God is in the small things.

 

In The Face of Persecution

Persecution was the theme of our early sessions this week.

Several years ago in Russia, churches weren’t shut down. Some were permitted; one for every several hundred miles. To go might take days, which would equal taking days from work. Employers weren’t crazy about the idea; churches were empty. One man decided that to teach his children about the Lord, he would start studying the Scriptures with them at night. Soon, his neighbors noticed their routine. They asked if they could join with them. The man replied, “But I’m no preacher. I’ve had no seminary.” They came anyway. Together they sang, they prayed, they read the word: seventy-five of them. Their gatherings began to grow until their apartment was stacked full of people. So many comings and goings caught the attention of the KGB. Unauthorized churches weren’t allowed, the KGB told the man. But, he said, “We aren’t a church. I’m not a minister. I’ve not been to seminary. We just sing, pray, read the Scriptures, and give our money to those in need.”

The KGB left, but they came back and more violently the next time. They entered while everyone was gathered at the man’s flat; they found him and began to beat him severely. On their way out, one of the elderly women of the gathering pointed a gnarled, arthritic finger at the KGB leader and said, “You have beaten a man of God. You will not live through the week.” The KGB leader died in his sleep the next night.  The gathering doubled within hours.

On the day following, the KGB returned once more, this time to arrest the man. They put him in jail for seven years. The prison was kept dark, and crowded. He was placed on a block with fifteen hundred hardened criminals and allowed no access to a Bible. Every morning he would rise, raise his hands high and sing at the top of his lungs his heart song to the Lord.  The first day, the other men jeered him mercilessly. They yelled, threw things, banged things against their bars.  To keep Scripture in his heart, he would scavenge all day for small bits of blank paper. When he’d find them, the man would cover them entirely with whatever He could possibly remember from the world. When he finished, the man would place the paper as high as he could in his cell and sing again, his heart song. The guards would, every day, enter his room, take down the paper, and repeat, “Do you not remember? These words got you here,” before they beat him again.

One day, as he was searching the yard for paper, as if it were Christmas day, he miraculously found a full, blank sheet. The man wrote as small as he could, covering the paper with Scripture entirely. He placed it as high as he could on the walls in his room, lifted his arms and began to sing. The guards came down, infuriated this time. They swore that they were going to kill him. As they raised their fists to beat him, every prisoner from their cells raised their hands and began to sing the man’s heart song. The guards stopped where they were, and said, “Who are you?” and they left.

The man was later released and is still faithfully preaching the Word. His son, whom had witnessed the devotion of his father, is now a minister at the same prison.

Pray that we will all, you and I, have a faith like that, to sing in the face of persecution that others may join in with our song. 

Upon Every Remembrance of You

I come with little to offer, only something that reminded Josh and I of the affection we have for all of you:

Philippians 1:3-11:

I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to think this way about all of you, because I have you in my heart, and you are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and establishment of the gospel. For God is my witness how I deeply miss all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you can determine what really matters and can be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Aside from Paul's words, it's been a good week, and we're thankful for that. Time is marching on. We're officially halfway through FPO and growing more and more excited about the work to be done in Estonia. Our supervisors are apartment shopping for us this weekend and beginning to nail down more of the details for our first few months there. It seems it's going to go something like this: we'll have some tourist time, work with a volunteer trip at a Franklin Graham crusade, go to the regional meeting in Greece, begin (what's promising to be a groundbreaking) ministry to prostitutes and human trafficking victims, and start with our language training at the university all before the end of the summer. 

Thanks for hanging in there with us. We give thanks upon every remembrance of you. 

Megan & Josh

A New Week

Hello all.

I've got to be honest and say it's been a tough week. I've found out some challenging news from home and it's taken a toll on me. I can see hope in it; but, it's been tough not being at home, or even near home, while everything has been going on. We talk a lot about grief here, at orientation. The common theme is that many will delay the grief of leaving their families. My experience within the last week has brought my grief forward a bit. Maybe that's a good thing? One piece of advice we've been given multiple times is to write down our call, what brought us here in the first place. I feel like now maybe the time for me to do so, and maybe it should be to all of you because when we get to Estonia, you might have to remind me why I'm there after a while. So, please forgive me, it's a little long this week.

I didn't always want to do this. I thought that people leaving their families to move to another country and spread the Gospel was a little bit crazy. I know Josh felt the same way. Our idea of the people in our current line of work was that they dressed poorly and had six or seven red-headed children (which, as it turns out, is completely untrue).

My change in heart started with a friend who was going to Africa. Her heart was completely alive for missions in Africa. She spoke about it, dreamed it. Everything was Africa. It was contagious. Soon, I wanted to know what missions was all about, and I began to slowly hear the call that she was hearing. A year later, I was allowed the opportunity to go to Tanzania. I went with an odd combination of thoughts. I missed Josh, a lot. He was in Nepal at the time, and had been for around five weeks. I filtered a lot of what was happening through missing him, so it changed the experience some for me. But, what I did find, was that I loved getting to share Christ with people. I'm not big on striking up conversations with strangers, but I was allowed the opportunity to help explain the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, to someone who had never heard before. God was gracious enough to use me, someone who loves stories, to tell someone (for the first time!) the greatest love story ever told. More than that, the family we were working with was so...normal. They enjoyed normal things and related to one another so casually. It was a complete revelation to me, and even after I made it back home, it wasn't unusual to smell the smells of Africa in my head, or hear the sounds of the mosque in the morning. It just stayed with me.

For a couple years after Africa and Nepal, Josh and I were in a waiting period. It could more accurately be called a preparation period. All the while, we were letting things sink it. Every sermon I heard seemed filtered, "Go." It was persistent. I listened intently any time the topic came up. I read books about people who'd gone. I ate up the words of anyone traveling and speaking about their experiences. I didn't know where, when, or for how long. Only "Go." We finally got another chance through the NSU BCM to lead a team to Nicaragua. By that point, Josh and I were already talking to each other about the similar feeling we were having, but everything was still uncertain. When we went to Nicaragua, it was like trying missions on for size. We weren't disappointed. In our preparation for the trip, we were reading from the Gospels about how those who wish to keep their lives will lose them, but those who give them up will truly live. That's what the reality was in Nicaragua. We literally had to ditch out things on the side of the road at one point to be light enough to make it up the trail. And, it was okay. More than okay. I've never felt a more singular purpose, and that purpose was liberating. By the end of the trip, we were so sure that it scared me. As we were driving through Managua I thought, "If you do this you'll be by yourself; these friends won't be here with you. Look around, you'll be on your own among a people you won't be able to communicate with." I nearly lost all nerve then, but that night, I went outside and spoke to God: "If this is what you want, you're going to have to show me because I'm really freaking out right now." And He did. I was alone, and I felt His presence in the very air around me, and clearer than day, a star fell directly in my line of sight. I knew, with every ounce of conviction, He was communicating with me, reassuring me.

Fast forwarding a bit, that's what's brought us here. We've both since been reassured. Thoughtful words by friends and their belief in us, even how tailored God has made us for our job and the people we'll go to serve have given us both a conviction we're in the right place. But, sometimes it helps to be reminded. I hope that when I start complaining on here, or when Josh does, that you'll point me/us back to this. Remind me of whom I serve. He's kind of a big deal. Also, if you'll please pray for the family situation that I mentioned earlier. Because of the nature of the request, I don't want to say it specifically, but please pray for healing.

Grace & peace.

Megan

The Singing Revolution

Some revolutions are about hope...

Matthew 12:21---"And His name will be the hope of all the world."

How the Day Sounds Through This New Song

Hello again. 

So glad to be able to get back to you today about what's happened this week.  Dr. Jerry Rankin, president of the Board, came and spent three days with us discussing spiritual warfare.  He instantly became a personal hero for so many of us.  I'll spare you all of the details, but he gave much of his testimony from his time in Indonesia.  Many stories sounded as if they were being retold straight from the book of Acts: demonic possessions, martyrdoms, crazy illnesses, family tragedies, and people giving everything they had to spread the Gospel of Christ.  

Some of you may have heard this before, but Dr. Rankin told a story I feel compelled to share. A woman named Gloria was with her family, living and proclaiming the Gospel in Mexico. She went with them and three visitors (who were helping with the work there), to the beach for a birthday party. While at the beach her daughter was swimming and was taken out by the surf. Gloria's husband immediately went in after her, as did two of the workers. None of them made it back to the shore. The body of her husband was brought back in shortly, and a crowd of locals gathered around, as people are prone to do in those sorts of situations. Instead of cowering in sadness, Gloria saw God working in the midst  of her grief. She turned to the crowd and said (I'm paraphrasing here), "My husband is now with his Savior. If you were to be lying on this beach in his  place, do you know where you would be?" As the result of her faithfulness and reliance on the Spirit, most of those standing on the beach came to faith in Christ and a new church began. 

Gloria's story is not unusual. Of those who are called, many are called to give everything: their lives, health, or grief in the loss of family and friends. Yet, God is always faithful. This saying isn't original to me, but it's true none-the-less: being in the center of God's will is not the safest place to be; but, it is the only place to be.

Aside from the awesome time with Dr. Rankin, we have been doing a little Estonia research. As it turns out, seventy-five percent of the population of Estonia believes that there is no God. One-third of the people of Estonia are Russian, yet are isolated from the native population and considered completely unengaged by the Gospel. Estonia, as I may have mentioned before, is the most secular country in all of Europe, which is the most secular continent in the world. Please pray that God will begin preparing doors to be opened for us to bring His word. Pray that God will be calling out persons of peace who will allow us to become friends with them. It can be hard for the citizens in a country that's been overrun so many times, by so many countries to open up to strangers, particularly foreigners. 

In a bit of exciting news, we also found out that we'll have access to a car, a Honda Fit.  It's a little bit bigger than a smart car, picture that for a minute (pretty comical).  We also have a Saturday off tomorrow, hallelujah. Hopefully, we'll get to go in to a bit of Richmond and explore. We're also getting a Mac compatible video camera, working on getting the software to connect our regular camera, and I'm hopefully gonna make some upgrades to the blog soon. So things should be getting better and better. 

Thanks for keeping up with us and for the continual support.  May you see the Father today.  May others see the Father in you, too. 

Meg & Josh

No turning back...

Hello there. 

Thanks again for checking up on us.  This week has been a crazy one, indeed.  We arrived in Richmond with no problems at all, AND without having to sacrifice anything but a really heavy sweater to make everything stay under the weight limits for the plane.  God was especially nice in welcoming us to Virginia.  When we woke up the next morning the snow was falling, and by breakfast everything was covered with snow and ice.  The rest of this week has been a blur of meetings and more meetings, but it's been phenomenal. 

Today, in particular, was wonderful for the whole group.  We spent three hours in reflection time, praying, praising, and essentially, taking up Jesus on His offer when He invited us to "Come follow him to a quiet place..."  It was a period of refreshment for everyone; all who were a little bit on the haggard side.  We were reminded today of why we're here, for the Glory of God the Father.  

Something resonated for me, personally, in that time too.  As I was walking over the grounds, the words, "If the Son has set us free, then we are free indeed" rang out, continually.  The more I walked, the more they sank in, "If the Son has set us free, then we are free indeed."  I couldn't help but feel liberated.  As the time was ending, I sat on a hill overlooking a frozen pond, listening to a song that many of you will remember from your hymnal, "I have decided to follow Jesus/I have decided to follow Jesus/No turning back/No turning back." 

Thanks for your prayers this week.  Josh and I have felt the answers to so many of them already.  We were placed in a wonderful dorm with many people who will be living in the same region, and even so soon, feel a great kinship with them.  If you'll continuing praying, pray that we'll be given a fresh energy for the days to come.  Pray that we'll use this time to grow and learn.  

As for me, I'll be praying that all of you will see the face of the Father today, that you'll recognize the place you're in, the very ground you're standing on is Holy because He's standing alongside. 

Grace and peace. 

Megan

...Here we go...

Hello to all, and thanks for checking out our blog. Just a note on the obscenely long title: I've been listening to a lot of Phil Wickham, and thought, if there was any message I'd like to take to the people of Estonia, Phil's message of "Divine Romance" would be it. He says, "For You I sing I dance/Rejoice in this Divine Romance/Lift my heart and my hands to show my love." The hope of my heart, and for Josh's as well, is that those we meet would connect to the God of the universe, whom in so many ways is seeking to sweep them off of their feet and into a revolutionary love.

In this blog, we want to share our accounts of what Jesus is up to in Estonia: how He's moving and bringing people into Himself, and how He's using broken, but redeemed, people like Josh and I to do His work. I'm ridiculously excited to share with y'all. Please keep looking to see what's up. Wherever you are, you are partners in prayer, and those prayers will be invaluable. And, we'd like to pray for you too. Keep in touch.

Now, we get down to business. On Monday morning at ten, our journey will begin. We'll be flying out from Shreveport, to Houston, to Richmond so we can start eight weeks of training. Please pray that we'll be clever enough to rearrange our luggage so we stay under the weight limit. Pray that all our travel stuff goes to plan, and for all the others traveling to Richmond. There are a bunch of us coming from all over. Pray that we can make strengthening connections to the brothers and sisters we'll be living in such close proximity to for the next eight weeks. Finally, pray that God grants our families a lasting peace about our leaving. Thanks to those who've already been doing so in that regard. It's been a little hard, but I think we've actually grown closer as a result. We love you all.

---Meg