Where Did the Time Go?

This is a commonly asked question that really doesn’t have an answer.  We all know that the clock ticks at the same pace day after day – and yet there are times when it ‘seems’ as if the days go by at double speed.

That’s how Gary and I feel about our three months in the United States.  Our sturdy Chevy Equinox logged 5,125 miles as we drove north from Las Vegas to Montana’s Bitterroot Valley, then further north into Alberta, Canada and back down to Las Vegas.  Reconnecting with family and friends, ministering at partner churches, marveling at the beauty of God’s creation.  Our hearts are filled with gratitude for everyone who hosted us, fed us an allowed us to stay in their homes. Truly the Family of God in action.

When you travel a lot, there is no routine.   It takes a conscious effort to stay focused and aware of the Lord’s purpose and presence in our lives.

When everything in our lives is changing – the Lord is our Rock.  His Word, His presence anchors us to His heart.

I love this passage in The Passion Translation: 

So it is impossible for God to lie for we know that his promise and his vow will never change!

And now we have run into his heart to hide ourselves in his faithfulness. This is where we find his strength and comfort, for he empowers us to seize what has already been established ahead of time—an unshakable hope! 

We have this certain hope like a strong, unbreakable anchor holding our souls to God himself. Our anchor of hope is fastened to the mercy seat in the heavenly realm beyond the sacred threshold, and where Jesus, our forerunner, has gone in before us. He is now and forever our royal Priest like Melchizedek.  Hebrews 6: 18 – 20 TPT

Breathtaking Reminder of God's Faithfulness

Tim Hortons Coffee - a Canadian Tradition

Gary and I could never have imagined this life.  We find ourselves continually in awe, wondering how God got us to this point.  We are living out our dream, our calling.  It is the most rewarding life because we are following His heart, His voice:  saying Yes Lord.

NOW: Take your seat, buckle up and prepare to go with us around the world in this five-minute video. 

•  In this brief summary of what God is doing around the world you will see photos from Ghana West Africa, Thailand with the Akha people group, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), and of course India – where we are based. 
  
  
• These faithful men and women are serving God in their home nations where we often cannot go.  We are blessed to support them in prayer, encouragement and financial support.  They are seeing a harvest of souls and transformed lives right where God has placed them.

God is moving through ordinary people like you and I.  Each of us has a mission field: it is right where our feet our today, touching those within our circle, within our reach. Say Yes to God.   Don’t give up! Don’t forget His promises to you personally. Follow after His heart and see what He will do.  

 The Journey Continues with our Faithful God  ~ Pat

 Follow this link to make a donation online

Airport Run on Empty Roads

Tuesday's early morning airport run on traffic-free highways took us about 45 minutes.  

By 6 am, rush hour is at full capacity, and the same commute would take twice as long.

Colombo Airport

Sadly, we could not delay bidding bon voyage to Cyndy who is now back on US soil.  We will miss her inquisitive mind, organizational skills, and decidedly positive outlook.  Not to mention that I will miss the joy of spending time with my 'little' sister.

Enjoy Cyndy's views of her home state at Montana1aDay

Driving the new highways of Sri Lanka sometimes seems surreal.  

We could be anywhere in the world.  Well, anywhere that they drive on the left side of the road that is.

Stay tuned for more of our Sri Lankan Journey with God. ~~~ Pat

Road Trip: North To Kilinochchi

As soon as we finally landed in Colombo on Thursday, our Sri Lanka hosts, Layasing and Deepthi, picked us up at the airport to immediately commence a 6-ish hour drive north to Kilinochchi. 

When I say driving, you have to toss out any American notions of a road trip. Far beyond driving on the left side of the road (a loose generalization), road travel in Sri Lanka is strange and mesmerizing. Imagine a mad melange of every genre of vehicle you can think of - motorcycles, shiny new Priuses, tractors pulling farm carts, 3-wheeled rickshaws, snub-nose minivans, bicycles and scooters carrying multiple riders, and the occasional civilian Hummer - plus some you'd never imagine, like the seeming conjunction of a large roto tiller and a farm wagon.

Add the audio components, primarily revving engines interspersed with abrupt down-shifting and braking, accented by horns cheerily beep-beeping to notify overtaking on the right, roadside market chatter, and cows bawling. 

Now toss in a few modifiers: bony-hipped cows claiming a lane at will, dingo-looking dogs lounging at the roadside, and separate gaggles of boys and girls in various crisp school uniforms at crucial morning and afternoon traffic times. 

Finally, add movement, keeping in mind that lane markings are a suggestion, at best: all of the above is crucially orchestrated to hurtle individually in the desired direction as fast as possible, while leaving the barest minimum clearance between any other object, regardless of which direction it is traveling, and without running into or over any other components in or near the roadway.

Sri Lanka is a feast for the senses. Our route took us through numerous villages and towns, past rice fields and banana and coconut groves, and alongside picturesque shrines, churches, parks, and shopping districts. All of this varied beauty  exists despite over 25 years of civil war that killed an estimated 70-80,000 people, only officially ending in 2009. But the beauty of the landscape is mirror to the hearts of a very gracious yet hurting population. I count it a high privilege to be part of a hands-on outreach that supports local pastors and church leaders in offering very real solutions to physical, emotional, and spiritual needs. 

Thank you for joining us in this journey. Tomorrow, I'll post more about the eye clinics. Today has been a full and long day, so I will leave you with photos to tide you over. 

(P.S. The food is as amazing as I'd been told!)