True Peace Amidst The Storm

Massive changes in our lives over the past couple months have drawn our entire family closer to each other and to God. Amidst the storms God has revealed His grace, mercy, and amazing peace in our lives. Just when you think you have had crazy times and it couldn't get any crazier, life continues to unfold in ways never thought imaginable.

Many of you know we were headed to Bahrain this Summer for two years and thrilled to be reuniting with old friends and enjoying our old hangouts. Just weeks before our packers were to arrive and ship all our household goods we were thrown for a loop with short notice order changes and told we were headed to, of all places, Virginia. With deep breaths and lots of prayer we made adjustments and began shifting life completely.

All of Mike's Arabic training seems wasted...... BUT God will use it.
All of our tribal knowledge on the Middle East seems wasted..... BUT God will use it.
All of our plans seem wasted..... BUT our plans are NOT God's plans and he will use our hearts desires to glorify Him.

Some how in the chaos of all the struggles God has given us amazing peace and shown us that He will provide and care for us and that He has a better plan for us. Not just because He loves us, but because He is teaching us to continue to trust Him in every area of our lives.

I'm sad to be leaving Monterey and all the amazing relationships we have had here. It totally amazes me each time I think about how quickly He placed us in each activity and relationship and how deep and meaningful all of those people and activities became to us. We will truly miss Monterey and our friends here.

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Blogging Again

I never really have time to Blog, but I enjoy writing and musing about life and spiritual matters. I'm currently involved in helping teach the book of Colossians to a small group of women at an International Institute here in Monterey.

We are studying chapter 2 and I thought this was a good lead-in to me blogging again. Part of the concept here is to 'Keep Making Spiritual Progress'.

"In the Christian life, we never stand still: we either go forward or gradually slip backward." As Hebrews says, '... Let us go on to MATURITY...!' When we aren't making spiritual progress we are open to attack from the enemy. Satan is walking around like a lion seeking whom he may devour.

One of my favorite books is 'Screwtape Letters" by: C. S. Lewis. It is a fabulous look at how Satan's goal is to keep us complacent and unfocused. He recognizes that if he pushes us to far we will run to Christ, but if he just keeps us fat, dumb, and happy (on a worldly level) then we will remain that way. And, in this state be totally ineffective for the kingdom.

In order for us to battle this complacency we have to be STEADFAST in our desire to seek Christ and learn more about Him. "The Christian life is compared to a pilgrimage, and believers must learn to walk."

It is difficult to set aside worldly desires for Kingdom desires, but it is a daily challenge that all Christians must face. We must trust and lean on Christ to give us the strength. I know from personal experience that when I lean on my own strength, I fall. So, let us go forward trusting and relying on His strength to guide us and carry us through each day.

FIVE WEEKS TILL HAWAII AND CALI

It's hard to believe after 5 1/2 years in Japan and 9 1/2 years overseas that we are headed back to the states. It is with extreme mixed emotions that we leave Japan. We have loved our time here and cherished our friendships. God has blessed us beyond our wildest imaginations. We have seen and experienced things that most people will never experience in their entire lifetime. We could seriously have a reality TV show based on the Amis' adventures!


California Here We Come!
I am prepping for our 14th move since we have been married. You would think I was a pro by now and I guess by most standards I am, but I still stress and have to work hard to make things run smoothly. I have to remind myself that no amount of preparation will make everything run perfectly. So, I rest in God and His faithfulness to supply all our needs, and off we go!

This is a photo of beautiful Monterey beach. I'm thrilled to be headed that direction and seeing a part of the US that the kids and I have never seen. Also, we can hardly wait to see Mike's stomping grounds from when he was little. So much to do and see and so little time to do it all!