antsy pantsy.

Oh lawdy.

I feel it again. The urge to move. To meander. To pack up my (few) things and move across the world.

This feeling is inevitable when the majority of your adult life has been spend doing exactly that. Since I was 19 I have been able to pack almost all my belongings into a travel bag. I have more stamps in my passports than most people I know, and I have an entire box of clothing only meant for wearing overseas (mostly long skirts and baggy sweat-stained t-shirts).

I would have it no other way. Since being married, Steven and I have not even spent more than a year living in the same place. Come this April, it will be a year that we have been in Salem (which freaks me out!) Our lives have continually been on the go, without hardly a moment to catch our breath.

Now, I don’t mind it really either. It’s exciting and adventurous and continually challenging my beliefs and strengthening my faith. This last season of being here with ywam salem has been really good for us, too. We have a small house, we painted the walls (!) and we actually have a real honest to goodness couch in the living room. I mean, this is as settled as we have been since africa.

But change is in the wind.

We are gearing up to lead the Spring Engage DTS (discipleship training school) where we will have an african slant for the outreaches. We have an amazing group of staff, and we are now praying for students to come.

I like it, though. I like that at a moments notice we could sell our few belongings and set sail. I like that we are not in debt, and that we have the freedom to move about the earth. There is nothing quite freeing as the knowledge that you are completely unencumbered to pursue your life, dreams and calling. True, we don’t live by the typical american standards of wealth, but the more I get to know God, the more I realize it is most likely for the better (for our calling, anyway.)

I have written a few posts about my desire to have less, and experience more, and that challenge has only gotten more real and more difficult. The longer I spend in America, the more convinced I am that I need that iphone, that car, or those boots. But the more I think and pray about it, I know that the devil is continually trying to dull my senses, make me busy and make me lethargic. I have to confess that the more things I usually own, the more disconnected I am with reality and with relationship with those around me.

My brave sister has decided to do a facebook fast for the entire year of 2012. I am so proud of her, and somehow envious. She understands the waste of time is can really be, and that pursing real community around her with real people is probably a better use of time. I am definitely not giving up facebook (i love to snoop) but I do understand her desire.

So here is to change! We don’t know if we will actually be leading a team overseas (depends on the number of students we get) but we will at least go and do pastoral visits for the teams who do go. It is exciting to think that Jubalee will get her first taste of africa at such a young age (she will most likely turn 1 over there!)

We are getting ready. We are excited.

11 bests.

Alright, it’s time for my annual list of bestest things that happened this last year.

So so so much happened in 2011, and it will be hard to narrow in down, but here are the 11 best things that happened:

1) Obviously, numero uno on the list is JUBALEE, born on July 26. She is a beautiful little package of joy, lungs, smiles, giggles and angry babbling. I truly think that having a kid is one of the hardest/best things that has ever happened to me.

2) Steven getting his green card. This was epic. We had ZERO money, and had ZERO idea what we were doing, but thanks to dear friends and family (and a helpful lawyer named Matt) we finally got Steven his green card. We don’t have to worry about expired visas anymore which is a huge relief, being as we are kind of a traveling family.

3) Finding out I don’t have a brain Tumor. As many of you know from my post “the brain cloud uproar”, during my pregnancy I went to the eye doc, who (in short) told me I had a brain tumor. One MRI, seven major freak outs and a million prayers later, we discovered this to be false. Also, I really don’t recommend Wal-Mart optometry, in case you were looking.

4) Moving back to Salem. After staying around the portland area for half a year, we finally made it back to Salem, and are happily working with ywam again. It’s nice to be back in community.

5) Being asked to lead the Spring DTS (discipleship training school). Steven was asked to consider taking on this exciting challenge, and we felt God say yes. Now, we only have 3 months until it starts, and we couldn’t be more excited/nervous/expectant.

6) Spending a whole year in the states. It is nice to be stable for awhile, as for the last few years Steven and I have been roaming vagabonds. I never thought I would want so much stability, but hey, even us vagabonds need some structure.

7) I turned 25 and Steven turned 30! Both major birthday milestones, if I do say so myself. I mean, we are legitimate adults now, who can rents cars and in just 10 short years I can run for president of the good ol USofA.

8) working (and QUITTING) at seattles best coffee. Working in corporate america was good for me, if only for a short while. It reminded me why I do what I do, what is important in life (giving, loving, risking) and how I really am not cut out to just make money (and how hard a mission field america really is). I like global missions. I like authentic community. I don’t like petty drama or being yelled at for wearing nail polish.

9) Only 2 (count em) 2 visits to the ER this year! Excluding the brain cloud drama, and pregnancy stuff, we kept the medical emergencies down to a dull roar this year. Steven was in the ER once in 2011 for an abscess tooth, and I was in once for a malaria scare.

10) Steven is alive! After accidentally breaking a gas line at our base, Steven had enough sense to alert his authority figure about the situation, and after evacuating the lower half of our base, they figured out the problem and no one blew up! It was kind of a huge deal, and we are so so grateful that everyone is in one piece.

11) Sudan became it’s own nation this year. This is a big one, and something that will affect Steven, Jubalee and I for as long as we live. Sudan will always intermingle into our lives, even if we are not living there at the moment, and we look forward to what God is going to do in that nation (both north and south.) We can’t wait to go back.

 

So there it is. the list. I hope you found it pleasant, and I hope that this year of 2012 will be filled with even more adventure, love, romance, joy and faith than ever before. A few things we are looking forward to are: leading a DTS, possibly leading an outreach, and taking Jubalee to africa for the first time (if my mom lets her go…)

goodbye 2011. helllooooooo 2012.