Thank you for your prayers and encouragement over the last few weeks. It’s been kind of crazy and some logistical issues have come up that needed extra time, but we have been praying that God will direct our path and this trip and we believe that he is answering. One big prayer point was my dad. He was planning to come as a team member, then he got pretty sick a couple of months ago. It turned out he had two kidney stones, both too large to pass, one embedded in the kidney wall. Dealing with them took a couple of surgeries and weeks of recovery, but he was medically cleared last week to go. Praise God!
A few days after Dad was confirmed to be cleared, we got word that another team member, Stan Leach, would not be able to go due to a family situation that needed his presence. Stan is the Executive Director of EFM and went on the last trip we took to this region. We were disappointed that he would be absent but supported his need to be home right now. Long story short, we gained another team member in his place, Patrick Neifert, and are again praising God for his orchestration. Patrick has experience in career missions and in leading short-term trips, and we are thankful to have his experience and discernment added to our team.
So, we’re back to five adults and two kids: Vivian Titus went on the first trip, Jon Fodge (my dad and our pastor), Patrick Neifert, and our family. Throughout this planning process, we’ve been trusting that God will put the people he wants on this team and that he will direct our time on the ground. Your prayers are a vital part, and we ask that you continue to pray specifically for a few things:
1) For team unity in discernment and for a clear answer to whether or not EFM should open a new field here.
2) For our conversations and interactions, that God would prepare our hearts and those of the people we will encounter. That we will listen well and witness to the Gospel well, and that we will be an encouragement to the pastors and missionaries we meet with.
3) For the health and safety of our team and that the kids will travel well. We have long flights and anticipate a lot of time driving on unfamiliar roads.
We leave on Friday, land on Saturday, and have two weeks in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. Are we packed? Mostly! Are we mentally prepared? Probably! Are we trusting God’s leading and excited to see what he does? Definitely!
In him,
Jonelle, for Fred, Alex and Jael
| Partnering with Us!If you would like to schedule a time to connect with our family, please email Jonelle at jonellel@friendsmission.com.
We currently have 163 prayer partners and have a goal of raising it to 500. If you know anyone who would like to pray for our ministry, please forward this form to them. We are currently raising funds for our monthly needs. There are four ways to financially partner with us:
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