DEPARTURE DATE...CHECK!

Well, we finally have our departure date!
We've purchased our tickets and will be leaving Jan. 31!!!
Praises:
~We have the funding needed for the first year and part of the second is committed.
~We have the green light from Beautiful Gate that they are ready for us.
~ And we have an offer on our home!
So the packing and the farewells begin. My last day at Talsma Furniture was Dec.24 so thankfully I will have plenty of time for these things. Ron will be finished at work on Jan.16 and Grace will continue with her part time jobs until the week before we leave.
We enjoyed the Christmas season with extended family and our parents which were treasured times. And we were so happy to be able to spend our last Christmas on Van Raalte with our precious children and grandson. We had such a wonderful, memorable time. Those times will surely be missed.
Prayer requests:
~For our children and family members we will be leaving behind
~For the goodbyes...already have had a few...harder than we thought :(
As we look forward, we continue to trust in God's provision in all ways. We were called to this mission and believe God will equip and provide for that calling...and He already has!
Philippians 4:19
"But my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory which are in Christ Jesus."
Thank you again for your financial and prayer support, without which none of this would be possible.

Love and Blessings

YEP, EVEN WHEN WE CANNOT SEE!

God has certainly been moving!.... In ways we can see and in ways we cannot see!  We can see God working and are always encouraged by that. And we are also finding out as time goes by that there have been many things happening behind the scenes that we cannot see that amaze us and quickly cause us to be in awe of our great provider. The old hymn speaks truth: God moves in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform.
We are thankful to announce that we have our first year funded!
Thank you to those whose gifts have made this first goal possible ...you are a part of this amazing story and the furthering of His kingdom! We cannot express enough the gratitude we feel towards your generous hearts. We are truly humbled.
The next step now for us is to finalize the sale of our home. We have some options we are working on with the bank and our realtor and are hopeful we will be able to work out something that would allow us to leave soon!
Our goal is to leave around the end of January if all works out with our house and also our housing in Lesotho. As of right now there are some great possibilities. But again, as challenging as it is to do; we trust God and His timing.
Praises:
~Funding for the first year is in place
~People are coming forward to help before we even ask
~We are in training to 'wait on the Lord'
~We get to spend our last Christmas in the house with our kids and grandson
Needs:
~Large suitcases. (We have plenty of carry on size) We are fine with used suitcases and we continue to  check thrift stores for them.
~Prayers as we start to make final preparations and say our good-bye's

Thank you so much friends and family for your love, encouragement and support!
Hopefully our next blog post will have a definite departure date included!

He Is Always Moving Even When We Cannot See

It has been a little while since our last blog post. In ways a lot has happened and in other ways not much has happened since then.
This journey so far could be described as a roller coaster ride, with many high points and many low points. For me personally, I have a hard time not letting my emotions get the best of me. Trusting is hard.
But all in all, God has proven to be faithful and true to His promises. He encourages when we need encouragement and gives guidance and leading when we don't know which way to turn.
I am happy to report that God is blessing the fundraising efforts and the goal is getting a bit closer.
We enjoyed a beautiful benefit concert on Saturday night listening to some very talented people and experiencing the blessing of family and friends. The prayer time, the encouragement, the emotional and financial support were amazing. What sweet fellowship! Thank you to all who came and helped make that night possible, we were truly blessed!
Our church also blessed us on Sunday by taking an offering on our behalf..wow! God provides! Thank you Haven family!
Also our deep gratitude to those who have sent gifts to AFBGI already....it is making a difference, thank you!
Updates:
1. Our desire is to leave mid January but need more funded to be able to purchase our tickets and set the date.
2. The interest in the house stays consistent but as of yet, no offers. There are things brewing under the surface and we sense the Spirit's working here, just praying for discernment on what direction to go.
Prayer requests:
1. That we not get discouraged when we don't see things happening.
2. For discernment. We hear many voices and sense many things but we are not always sure what God is saying through those things and if it's even Him saying them.
3. For the funding to be there so we can set a date. We are excited and want to go soon!
We praise God for His moving and for His provision and we want to continue to give Him the glory in all of this!
Thank you so very much for your love and support. We will talk again soon!
Karen

Mission Impossible

   When we (Karen and Ron) came back from our two week trip to Beautiful Gate in April we immediately started to talk about going back someday. Why not use our vacation time next year to go and serve again? But this time just the two of us to try and spend some focused time using our gifts. Our thoughts quickly went to staying for a longer amount of time. What if instead of two weeks we went for a month? The ticket price would still be the same, food wouldn't cost that much more, we could probably even get that time off work. That sounded great! More time serving the kids and working with the staff and a bigger percentage of our time actually on the ground and not in the air. Wait!!! What if?...
   Wouldn't it be great if we could go for three months?! Or even six months?! Oh, that's right... we have jobs. And we have a house. You can't just pack up and go to the other side of the world when you have a mortgage that needs to be paid, which means earning money to pay the mortgage. But there was something stirring in us that kept us asking those questions. The fact of the matter was the stirring had been there for quite some time already. It was several years earlier that God seemed to be calling us to the ministry. I (Ron) started taking seminary classes at the Christian Leaders Institute. We figured that I would end up serving in a church somewhere (hopefully local) as an assistant pastor or some secondary pastor type of position. It was not really on my radar to be a missionary, but to be honest I didn't know where this would all end up. What I did know was that God was preparing us for something beyond what our normal lives consisted of.
   So back to those questions. How long should we consider going for? And what would it take to go for more than a month? We began to have conversations with people. We skyped with Bryan and Anita the directors of Beautiful Gate and told them where we were at in our thinking and some of gifts and abilities. They were very open to the idea of us coming back. They always like it when people have a desire to come and serve. We also had a conversation with a couple from our church that actually went for five months. That was very helpful for us to hear that it could be done...they were (and still are) great encouragers of ours.
   But the questions kept coming to our minds and hearts... how long should we go for? We continued to ask ourselves questions about what that would mean in our situation and sought out answers and direction from God. So with more prayer and further conversation with Beautiful Gate it became very clear that God was calling us to serve there. In fact we made a commitment to serve for a minimum of two years. Two years?! That means we quit our jobs and we need to sell our house right? Not to mention leaving our family and friends. But, we wouldn't be the first couple to make this decision and do something like this.
   There is one big problem though...we are upside down in our house. No, we don't walk on the ceiling! We owe more than what the house is worth in the current market. That could be a problem. Actually it sounds almost impossible. But when we started to go down the path of serving as missionaries we knew that selling our house was going to be basically impossible from a conventional standpoint. The whole idea kind of felt like Peter walking on water. It cannot be done! You can't expect to step out of a boat and put your feet ON the water and stay on top! It's crazy to think you can...it defies logic and reason...it's impossible!! Except of course if Jesus tells you to do it. And you know what... Peter did it! Because Jesus called him out of the boat.
   We believe that since God has called us to do this, whatever needs to happen to fulfill the calling IS going to happen. Whether it's the house or the fundraising or the time frame we believe we will be there, all of it is possible because Jesus said to take this step. Actually there plenty of stories in the Bible about God doing the impossible in people's lives. Like Moses and the Isrealites standing at the Red Sea with Pharaoh's army closing in; or Abram and Sarai who were told they would have children in their old age; people like David facing Goliath or Daniels three friends, Gideon and on and on the list goes.
   But just like Peter looking at the waves and getting fearful, or Abram and Sarai coming to a point of wondering and impatience, we recently found ourselves fearing the circumstance we were in and becoming less patient to let God do it all. We tried taking matters in our own hands, against what we were convicted God would do, and in a matter of a couple days our peace in the decision was gone. The lack of peace was so great that it was starting to physically overwhelm me. It was time for prayer...desperate prayer, fervent prayer...a concert of prayer! We immediately called our prayer team. What came about after a beautiful Sunday night at church and an hour in prayer after was a complete restoration of the peace we had lost and the confidence to move forward with our original conviction that God has everything taken care of. We are again on the path where God gets all the glory because it will be His plan that is fulfilled.
   And as soon as we recommitted to what he called us to He began to bring back hope in amazing ways. So even though our house isn't sold yet and we have a long way to go on fundraising, we are looking forward with a hopeful, confident expectation of what God is about to do. And... because this is all God purpose and plan, and because it all rests in His hands...It really ISN'T IMPOSSIBLE at all!!

Following God's Call

Following God’s Call to Ministry

What does a truck driver, a furniture store receptionist and a high school grad that chose an alternate route all have in common? All of them have been transformed by God to be used for His kingdom purpose!

God has been stirring our hearts for some time now. He has been preparing and shaping us on many levels. Different training and experiences, life lessons and trials all have been used in this preparation so that we were ready to say yes when God's call came.

The Boersema’s have heard God's call to full time ministry at Beautiful Gate Orphanage in Lesotho, South Africa, and we are following that call to serve for a 2 year minimum commitment. Beautiful Gate is a Christian orphanage on a sizable campus, complete with a preschool, chapel and health clinic. They employ 45 local staff members and caring for approximately 65 children ages 0-5 years old that need love and care until they go back to their families or are adopted.

The staff members work very hard with much love and excellent care for the children and keep the orphanage running smoothly. But as you can imagine they need spiritual encouragement and renewal to continue to be effective in their roles. Some are unable to get off campus for regular church services and activities. One of their greatest needs is for spiritual leadership.  As of now there is no one in place filling that position. Their expressed desire is to have a Chaplain on campus. The Chaplain would provide weekend services, Bible studies, discipleship and basic spiritual support and encouragement, community outreach as well as meeting with area pastors to impact the community and surrounding areas.

Another need to be filled is that of the position of Operations Manager. The current volunteer in this position is finished with her term at the end of the year, obviously leaving a void and a need.  This position includes general administrative tasks as well as working with the social worker and the director, and corresponding with volunteering teams as well as writing an annual UNICEF grant and helping to allocate the funds for the children with educational toys and curriculum.

And of course the most obvious ongoing need is caring for and showing love to the children who call Beautiful Gate their home…temporary home. Along with that is the continual need of the Basotho people to hear the gospel message of Jesus love for them.

All of these needs are very real and need to be filled soon. That’s where we come in. Our daughter Grace lived and served at Beautiful Gate from January to July of 2014. She worked alongside some of the house mothers taking care of the daily needs of the children and providing developmental activities to help them as they grow. She also led Bible studies with some of the local staff and found great fulfillment and a calling in this. She hopes to continue this work when she goes back.

 Karen and Ron were part of a team of 21 members of our church that went there to serve for nearly two weeks in March and April of this year. We went with our eyes and hearts open to what God might show us about what He has in store for us. To use the common clique’ that “we've never been the same since” would be an understatement.  Upon returning home we began sharing our desires and what our gifts and abilities are with the directors of Beautiful Gate. They have extended the invitation and we have agreed to serve and fill these roles. . 

Our new roles:

-Ron will be serving as the first Chaplain of Beautiful Gate providing spiritual care.

-Karen will be filling the role of Operations Manager helping with the daily administration.

-Grace will resume caring for the kids and partnering with the local church to do evangelistic outreach.

-All three of us also hope to be encouragers of the Directors and their family.

Our prayer needs:

We need to sell our home! This means packing up our lives and belongings after living here 24 years.

Our house also needs some big things done to sell quickly. It needs a new roof, furnace and electric upgrade.

Preparing to move…not only the physical side but the emotional and relational side of leaving family and friends behind including our nearly 4 year old first grandson/nephew…and hoping for more!

Along with your prayers we are asking for your financial support. We need your partnership!

We need to raise the funds for living expenses for 2 years along with getting set up in a new home.

Doing work in God’s Kingdom is always accomplished by the efforts of the whole body of Christ. We couldn't do this without your prayer and financial support.

Thank you in advance for partnering with us in God’s call to serve Him and His children! And may He bless you for your generosity.

Matthew 28:18-20 ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”