Guess What We Just Did??

Today.  Today is a very big day.  

Today we sat down at the computer and bought 6 one-way tickets to Ukraine.    

After we finished our transaction Jed and I just stood there looking at each other with really stupid grins on our faces.  HA!  

"We just did that!"  

I've traveled a lot, but I've never, ever bought a one-way ticket...or SIX one-way tickets!  

God is so faithful to us.  We had budgeted $7,000 for airfare based on the rates we had seen and paid before.  The tickets we bought this morning totaled a whoppin' $3,600.  WHAT???  That's right!  Praise God!  

So, November 12th (11/12/13...yes!) we'll be leavin' on a jet plane, bound for our new life in Ukraine.  

Giddy doesn't even begin to describe it.  Scared out of our brains doesn't even begin to describe it either.  Happy as clams and sad as can be at the same time.  82 days and we'll be off!  YEEHAW! 

Do you have questions for us?  I'm preparing to do a big detail-filled post for your reading pleasure :) We try to fill you all in on the details, but it's easy to forget what we've told people and what we just think we've told people.  Ask away and we'll be more than happy to give you an answer!

Saying YES is SO FUN.

We are alive!  We really are!

I have been a bit of a blog slacker lately, it's true.  It's not because I have nothing to say...we all know that would never be the case!  ;) It's just that we've been go, go, going like crazy and I simply haven't had the time to tell you all about it.

Delicious stop along the way

I'm a broken record, but I really can't believe how good God is.  Every time we have a worry He covers it.  A couple weeks ago we were worried about how we would be able to get the word out further than just the people we know right now.  We didn't have speaking engagements lined up, though we'd put the word out to many, many pastors.  We just weren't getting a response.  Oh dear, how we love to just hop in and take matters into our own hands.  All the while God just watches us with a little smirk on His face like "Oh this'll rich.  I can't wait to see what they do."  And all the while He KNOWS exactly what HE wants to do, and if we'll be still enough to give Him the right of way things turn out so much better.  Whew.  Still learning that one...obviously.

Tongue of concentration

We were worried about getting the chance to share and then when we had nothing left to do but sit and wait God had His way.  BAM.  We've been busier than ever sharing the word about Wide Awake and it couldn't be more awesome.

A couple weeks ago we got to share about Wide Awake with a church on the coast.  The people were so welcoming, so warm, almost giddy with excitement to hear what God is doing.  Awesome.

 

Then this past weekend we got the extreme honor to share Wide Awake and our story of "Yes" with the Vineyard youth of the NW at "Anthem", the NW regional youth conference.  Oh man, so stinkin' fun.

We stood in awe as many young men and women said yes to Jesus.  We got to pray over them, encourage them, cheer them on in following Jesus one step at a time.  We cried tears of joy as one girl said yes to Jesus for the very first time.  The Vineyard youth of the NW are AWESOME.  We made many new friends and hopefully we'll see many of them in Ukraine some day sayin' yes to Jesus.  :)

A big bonus of the trip was that several pastors who were there with their youth got to hear about Wide Awake and we've been invited to share at 4 more churches!  Praise God for that big answer to prayer!  The visions and dreams God has given us are too big for our church to support on its own.  Many, many hearts must get behind this thing.  We are thankful for the opportunity to share with whoever will listen!

 

What's up next
-The Wide Awake website should be up and running THIS WEEK!  Be on the lookout!  That webpage will be a great place to direct your friends who need to hear about Wide Awake.  It will also have easy ways to give financial support online.

-This blog will soon be moved to a Wordpress site.  I'll let you know when that happens, but just be forewarned...changes are a'comin!

-We'll be traveling almost every weekend between now and October, sharing Wide Awake at churches, saying goodbye to faraway family, and spending precious time with dear friends.

-This is Jed's last week of full-time work as he transitions out of his job.  His last day of work at his current job is September 12th.  (just typing that gives me goosebumps on my arms and butterflies in my stomach simultaneously)

If things go as planned we'll be making our big move in approximately 14 weeks.  Good gravy.

  

PS: Although we have a lot of speaking dates lined up we are not too busy to share with you and your friends!  We would love to come to your home or your small group to share about Wide Awake.  We have all the time in the world to answer questions and meet with those who want to hear.  Bring it!

Good Gifts

"The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save.  

He will take great delight in you, 

he will quiet you with his love, 

he will rejoice over you with singing."

Zephaniah 3:17

You know that feeling when you're about to surprise your kids with something they really love?  I don't know about you, but when I know I'm about to bring my kids joy I can hardly contain myself.  I get so excited, looking forward to their reaction- the squeals (or screams) of joy, the huge smiles, the knocking-over-with-force hugs.  The fun things in life are that much more fun when I get to watch my kids enjoy them.  I delight in my children.  Greatly.

Yesterday I learned that no matter if my kids are small or grown, that delight in watching their joy won't end.  The same with our God.  He delights in us, His kids.  He LOVES bringing us joy and giving us good gifts.

So, I'm here in Anaheim for the National Vineyard Conference.  When my dad heard I was heading to Anaheim for this thing and we would be arriving a couple days early, he asked the burning question, "Are you going to Disneyland?"  Well, if you know me at all you know that I absolutely ADORE Disneyland.  I can't even adequately describe to you my love for all things Disneyland.  I love everything about it.  It's my most favorite place ever.  But, we were just given a trip to Disneyland in March and we're trying to pinch every penny to save for our big move, so I didn't think I could justify spending the money for a day in Disneyland.  My dad, delighting in his grown-up daughter simply replied, "Oh, you're going to Disneyland!"  He said if I could find a way to get there he would pay my way to spend the day.  You should have seen the grin on his face when he saw my joy.  Dad's love giving good gifts to their kids.  

So, the question remained, "how would I get to Disneyland?"  I was coming to the conference with our pastor (Lanny), his wife (Anne), and their two grown daughters (Christen and Abby).  I knew I wouldn't have a car, so I would just have to wait and see if it worked out.  We arrived in Anaheim and realized the little condo we are staying in is literally RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from Disneyland!!!!  Shut the front door!!!  Case closed.  Disneyland was definitely happening on Sunday.  (Plus the wifi password at the condo is "TO DISNEYLAND".  I took that as another sign.)  ;) 

On Saturday night as I prepared for Disney I was super excited, but a tad bummed that I was going by myself.  I mean, don't get me wrong, I could enjoy Disneyland alone- no problem.  But, I did realize it's much more fun to share your joy with someone else.  Annnnddddd the love of parents stepped in again.  Abby, Christen, and I were in the bedroom chatting and Anne walked in and asked the girls "Do you guys want to go to Disneyland with Kim in the morning?"  You should have seen the looks on their faces.  "Ummm OF COURSE!"  Anne let the girls know they would pay for them to go to Disneyland in the morning.  No matter what the age, parents love delighting in their children and giving them good gifts.  (I may, or may not have been jumping on the bed with joy...)

I know you might find it cheesy for me to use Disneyland to talk about the Father God's love for His kids, but if you do, you don't know me well enough, or understand the extent of my love for Disneyland.  :) When we were on Space Mountain I was just laughing- out loud!  I could not believe God gave me that opportunity before we head to Ukraine.  Before heading to Anaheim I actually had quite a bit of nervousness and anxiety about attending the conference.  I felt like "Who am I?  What business do I have attending this conference and chatting with other missions folks?  What makes me think they'll be interested in what we're doing?"  Well, Jed put me in my place about that.  He reminded me again that it's not about us or our abilities.  It's about obedience to The Lord.  All we have to do is say yes and tell our story.  The rest is up to Him!  This has never been about our abilities or lack thereof.  This is about what God is doing and His ability. 

When I was on Space Mountain I felt like God was saying, "Look at what I've given you today!  I am taking care of every single detail.  I love you and I love delighting in you and watching you laugh.  I delight just as much in my children in Ukraine in their cribs.  I'm their Father and I want to give them good gifts.  You don't worry.  No one will stand in my way.  I'm gonna give my babies good gifts and delight over them with singing- and I'm going to love every minute of it.  The joy you feel right now is just a glimpse of the joy that's on its way." Oh my word.  It brought me to tears.  I don't care how cheesy it sounds, God spoke to me on Space Mountain in a big way and I won't be the same.  

Today, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, know that YOUR Father in heaven delights in you.  He loves you.  He rejoices over you with singing.  Maybe things are rough for you.  Maybe you feel like you have nothing to be joyful about.  Maybe you think "Easy for you to say, Kim.  You don't know hardship!"  Maybe I don't know your hardship.  Maybe I've never experienced the pain you've experienced, but I've experienced the delight of the Father- and He is your Father too.   I know His Word is true.  If He can bring joy and delight to children wasting away in cribs, and He promises to do that, He can bring joy and delight to you.  Fix your eyes on Him and allow Him to father you.  This is not about your ability.  This is about God's ability and His great, never-stopping, overflowing, abounding love for you.  I see Him with a big ol' grin on His face.  That grin is for you just as much as it's for me.  

"Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." 

James 1:17

We Need Your Stuff!

Summertime is in full swing around here!

You know what that means...

Swimming lessons

Swimming lessons!

Popsicles

Late nights

Ice cream

What happens when you have 4 kids...baby boy gets pink goggles...whatev...

Saturday Market

Church barbecues

Squishy Havalah in swimsuit cuteness

My iced coffee fail...more like coffee flavored ice water.  No bueno.

and last but not least...

GARAGE SALES!!!

Oh yeah baby!  One man's junk is another man's treasure, and all that good stuff.

Want to help support Wide Awake International but you don't have any extra cash?  How about having a garage sale for us?  We all have extra stuff laying around that someone else is just dying to buy, right? 

We are asking you to consider putting on a garage sale for Wide Awake International.  Don't have enough stuff to hold your own garage sale?  Gather a few of your friends, combine your unwanted goods,  stick it out in your yard, and watch the magic happen.  Doesn't that sound fun?  We think so.  Especially if one of your friends brings the coffee and doughnuts.  ;)

If you are local to us and you have goods you'd like to donate, but are not able to host your own sale, please let us know and we can gladly take them off your hands.  We'll be hosting a garage sale on July 27th, and there will be one in South Salem on August 3rd.  

Garage sales are a great way to spread the word about Wide Awake International, and a super great way to get your hands dirty no matter where you live.

So, what do you say?  Are you in?  

*See the "give" tab at the top of this blog to find out how to donate the proceeds of your garage sale to Wide Awake.  Thank you for your tax-deductible donations and your love.  We're feelin' it!  :)

Our Baby

Our hearts are full to bursting!

My view from here

Our Wide Awake event happened on Friday night and I'm not sure I've stopped smiling since.  

Jed and I were talking afterward about how we felt.  The best way I could think to describe my feelings was like one of the feelings you get when you have your first baby.  Of course when Addy was born I thought she was the cutest newborn ever (don't even try to argue with me, I'll win).  But there was a special feeling that filled my heart when other peopled oooo'd and ahhhh'd over her.  I would think she was cute regardless of other opinions, but when other people loved my baby it felt like a different kind of amazing.  "They love my baby!  They think she's something special!"

That's totally how Friday night felt for us, x 100.  

Wide Awake is like our baby.  Wide Awake represents all the forgotten babies on the other side of the world who have captured our hearts.  Of course we think Wide Awake is something special (we better or else we have no business selling all our stuff and moving to Ukraine!), of course we think the plight of the disabled orphans is something big and important, of course we think those faces in our video and our powerpoint are beautiful and valuable, regardless of what others may think.  God put that love in our hearts!  It all comes from Him.

Perty yard

BUT, on Friday night people oooo'd and ahhhh'd over our babies.  People were loving our babies and it felt amazing.  "They love our baby!  They think it's something special!"  :)

When you see people valuing what you value it brings hope.

When you see people sharing your event with all their friends and asking thoughtful questions you feel thankful.  

When you see people driving 3 hours because they love you and they are excited about what God is doing it makes you cry.

We had a fantastic turnout on Friday and we could not be more humbled and thankful.  

Thank you a million times over to every single person who came!

Thank you to those who invited a friend!

Thank you to those of you who gave generously of your time to drive over mountains to get there.

Thank you to those who gave generous donations!  Blown away.  Woohooooooo!

God is so faithful.  His love NEVER fails.  

Happy Father's Day to Jed!  He is seriously amazing.  Yes, I'm biased, and yes, I'm right.

House Hunting in Zhitomir

*If you are a local reader/fan of Wide Awake we would LOVE to see you this Friday night, June 14th at Broadway Coffeehouse, Peru Room #306 at 7:00pm.  We'll be sharing the story and vision of Wide Awake International.  It will be a great time to get the big picture of what God is doing.  All are welcome!  Bring a friend!*  

I've decided to stop apologizing for my lack of posting and complaining about my lame finger.  So there. That's the last you'll hear of those two things...but I just had to get them out there one more time.  I'm turning a new leaf today.  Aren't you glad? 

Housing.

House Hunters International Ukraine went pretty well!   I spent a few hours with Sveta, our realtor, and saw several places for rent. It was productive and necessary.  It gave Sveta a chance to see what we liked and didn't like in a rental, and it gave me a chance to see what Zhitomir has to offer.  One thing I wasn't anticipating was that our kids would be a major factor in us finding a place to live.  When Sveta found out we have 4 kids I thought she was going to have a coronary.  Ha!  It's uncommon for people who live in the city to have as many kids as we do, and many landlords don't want to rent to people wih a whole passel o' kids.  Maybe they think we'll be too noisy.  My kids?  Noisy?  Hehehe....whaaaaaaa.....

Sveta just kept saying (in Russian, or maybe Ukrainian) "Four kids is very difficult!"  Oops.  :)

Who could say no to this cuteness?

We saw some okay flats and a big house for rent.  But then we got a brilliant idea, and all credit goes to my smarty Mother-in-Law. :) You see, while in Zhitomir we were staying in a house that a Ukrainian man renovated into a sort of guest house, or hostel for people who come to visit MTU.  This owner lives in Israel and his mother manages the house.  We really liked the house!  It has 3 rooms upstairs and space for a living room downstairs, a pretty open kitchen/dining area, and it's a house...not 9 stories up!  The best part about that particular house is its location.  It's literally a 4 minute walk from there to MTU.  Best location ever!!!  My oh so smart Mother-in-Law, Cindy, suggested we ask if we could rent that house for our first year.  Normally it is rented out, a room at a time, and charged by night.  But, what if the owner would let us lease it for a year?  What if?  Why not ask?  So, Jed asked Ira, the director of MTU, if she would contact the owner and ask him about us renting it.  Now we just wait for an answer.

We would love it if you would pray with us that God would provide the perfect house for us, and if it's that one that the owner would say yes right away!  Rentals aren't usually agreed upon in advance, so this would be a truly unique and wonderful situation.  It would be so nice to prepare for our move and already have in mind the house we'll be at.  Thank you for praying with us!

So, that's the skinny on housing. :)

On another note, we have been blown away by the generosity of donors in the last couple of days.  Oh, My. Word.  Seriously!  We have gotten big donations from people we don't even know personally!!!  Incredible!!!  Oh the ugly cry, I couldn't hold it back.  Generous supporters, if you are reading this, please know we are so incredibly humbled and blessed.  Thank you doesn't seem adequate.  But, THANK YOU anyway.  THANK YOU!!!!

"Mommy, take a picture of Seth Kitty!"

One step at a time, one foot in front of the other.  God is making the path straight.  Wahooooo!!!!

Flights, Friends, and Beets

(Sorry in advance for the serious formatting/photo issues in this post...I can't get the iPad to cooperate and I've spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to figure out how to move pictures..grr..FirstWorldProblems...hehe)

Here I am!  Back in Ukraine.  It feels pretty surreal.  I can't believe it was a year ago that we first stepped foot here.  Now, after a year of remembering, dreaming, loving Ukraine and it's people from afar, I'm back.  The only thing I'm missing is my family.  :)

My trip here was fabulous.  Really!  God took care of me in some pretty sweet ways.

For one thing, on my flight to Amsterdam I had the best seat-mates you could ask for!  I got to sit with some George Fox University faculty who were taking some students on a trip all over Europe.  They know some people I know...small world!  I got to hear all about their fun plans for the next 3 weeks and thn I got to share Wide Awake with them!  It was just like The Lord to make a way for two complete strangers to discuss listening for His voice and saying yes to Him as we fly over the Atlantic on an airplane full of other strangers.  What a gift.  It almost makes me want to cry it was such an unexpected blessing.

On the next flight I got to sit next to an awesome Dutch Grandpa with the best giggle EVER.  We had so many laughs.  I wish I could just tuck him in my pocket for future fun.  He was the coolest.  How often do you get to belly laugh with a complete stranger when you're jetlagged like crazy and your feet are swollen like sausages?  Good memory for sure. :)

My friend Olya met me at the airport.  It was sooooo good to see her face in real life- not on a computer screen!  We set off on buses, metros, and mini buses and finally ended up at Olya's flat.  I'm so thankful to get to stay with friends!




We rested a bit, I skyped my fam, chatted with my sis Carli who was watching the kids (technology rocks), and then I began the task of staying awake till a decent hour.  Goal: beat jet lag.  I was feeling pretty good till everyone was speaking Russian and it was like wonderful white noise lolling me to a nice, cozy state of relaxation....AH!  I gotta stay awake!  So, we headed out to run some errands.  Whew!  Jet lag crisis averted

We got me semi-set up with a phone, chatted in the park, and almost got in trouble over my awe of beets.  Hehe

I was seriously in awe of the GINORMOUS beets in the store.  Think small cantaloupe.  What in the world!??  Hahahaha!  I generally detest being "touristy", but I couldn't help it.  I had to take a pic of the beets.  Then we decided to have Olya pose with a beet, and it all went downhill.  The security guard at the store was feeling protective of the beets and got pretty upset about me taking pictures, so the beet fun stopped there.  :)  Good times, good times...

I successfully stayed up till 10:00pm, and managed to sleep off and on till about 5:00am, so I would say jet-lag was defeated.  We'll find out as the day goes on.  Right now I'm awake and everyone else is asleep.  I whisper-skyped Jed and the kids in the bathroom, so all is good.

Thank you all for praying.  I appreciate it more than I can say.  I'm excited to watch God have His way as He puts His plans into place for the forgotten children of Ukraine.  What a joy to play a part.

THANKFUL.