Over the next months, God did amazing work. I went from saying I would never leave the country and did not feel called into missions, to saying I was ready to be used by God in any way and was ready to sell everything I owned and follow Him. Soon after that, we did just that; we sold everything and went to serve an indigenous people group in Mexico. It was a beautiful 11 years of my life and I am thankful I surrendered to His calling and left my comfort zone in Asheville, NC.
When we were getting ready to hit the mission field.
Our first prayer card.
Farm fun.
Our first Christmas in Costa Rica
If I hadn't surrendered to that call on my life, I have no idea what direction our lives would have taken. I don't know what job Greg would have done, or what schools our kids would have attended. I don't know if my kids would still have the passions they do now or have the compassion for people that they do now. So many things would have changed for our family if I had dug my heels in and said, "No Lord, I am content and can serve you right where I am." However, Greg had been praying for me, I had been praying for His will to be done and I had been crying and seeking Him. He moved mountains during that time. I mean, there are a string of stories where He made Himself abundantly clear to me and gave me a peace about everything. I knew it was His will and what He wanted for our family. Amazingly, I surrendered, however, to most people it looked as if one day we just decided to become missionaries and move to Mexico. They didn't see all of the struggling, all of the prayer, all of the God stories behind the preparation of getting us to a point to where we surrendered to His call. So, once I surrendered to the call, I thought everyone would be thrilled for us. Thrilled that we were doing exactly what we felt the Lord was calling us to do. However, that was not the case. We were met with resistance from family and friends as they were just hearing of this news. They hadn't been praying and struggling with these decisions for a year. That is when I had to take a deep breath and realize they would get to a place where they could encourage us, but they just needed time.
Annie learning to play in the dirt.
Annie's friends.
Alex entertaining kids.
Me loving on little kiddos.
The boys in their fort.
Greg sharing the Christmas story.
Annie sharing a Bible story with her friends.
Sharing shoes with friends.
I tell you all of this because there have been many changes taking place in my life lately. As I mentioned in my last post, the Lord has moved in my heart and brought Mark Evans into my life. It has been interesting to see how He has directed our paths over the years and brought us both to a place in our lives where we are ready for our hearts to be mended. We have prayed and cried and searched scripture for God's guidance. I had been praying for a year and a half when I met Mark and he had been praying for 6 months before we met. So, now that we have been together and God has answered more prayers than I can count I am in that same place as I was when I surrendered to the mission field. I am ready to move forward and know that God is at the center of this relationship. So I am ready for everyone to be excited for us as we both know that this is 100% what God has planned for us. But, this is all new to everyone else. I am realizing that it is hard for others to see me and Mark together or even to hear us laugh again as we haven't done that in so long. I now see that when God reveals His will to some, He doesn't necessarily reveal it to others at the same time. I am okay with the awkward stares or the sad looks when people see us together because I know that some just haven't had time to fully comprehend what God is doing. I would simply ask you to try and see things the way God does. He has taken two very broken hearts and put them back together in a way that will bring Him glory. All the two of us want to do is share God's love with people.
Our families together.
Mark meeting Honey. (MamaSay was there too, just at home)
Annie and Eric
Annie and Mark at the beach.
Mark and Annie at Olive Garden
Playing games at the beach arcade.
Annie, Mark and Eric
The two of us having fun cooking.
On the Gator.
Mark visiting with my kiddos in Lynchburg without me. 😞
Hiking
Just being together and rejoicing in God's goodness!
We love you all and thank you for your prayers and support of our families. Please pray for us as we continue to seek God's will during all of these transitions.
