How To Eat An Elephant

Wow.

The last two weeks have been an overload of information on the Wycliffe/JAARS side of things.

To give a brief update...

-We've been accepted as official members of Wycliffe meaning we can start our training in February. This means that the aviation department in PNG wants J, so we were approved there as well. PRAISE GOD!!

-We received very detailed information concerning our first few months of training in PNG. Let's just say, my blogging days will be on hiatus once we leave for a few months. My mom did say she'd update it when she heard from us so you, my loyal followers (the 15 of you!), won't be left in the dark! Maybe mom will love blogging so much she'll start her own! Okay, maybe not but she can just hijack this one if she has something to say :) I'd be happy to share this little piece of cyberspace with her!

-Just today we received more information on information we'll be getting in the next couple of weeks :) Nothing like details right?! I mean, it was good to know what to expect and to know I'll be expecting more information...soon! They also had a checklist of things that we will be doing over the course of how many ever months this process takes place. I printed it out and told the kids, "You see these blanks? All of them have to be filled before we can leave for PNG." They just stared. I think maybe they were overwhelmed too?

-The next couple of months will be full of training, including 2 weeks in Orlando but before that we're preparing to be a part of our church's missions conference in February.

Did I mention I'm a *little* overwhelmed??

I said that to J today and he says, "Well, if you're going to eat an elephant you have to start one bite at a time."

Hmmm....

And while I don't advocate the eating of elephants, the analogy is clear: this is a BIG thing we have going on. But you know what? This is a GOD thing and my God is bigger than the total scope of the situation.

I find myself, daily, giving this whole thing back to the Lord any time I start worrying about all the many, many details. Needless to say, He hears from me alot. I fully admit that if we tried to do this on our own, we'd fail the minute we started. But I have peace knowing that when we walk with Him and let Him guide us, we can't fail.

I found my stack of verses I've tried to memorize over the last year and a half or so and was reminded of this:

Deuteronomy 7:9 (ESV)

Know, therefore, that the Lord your God is God,

the FAITHFUL God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love Him

and keeps His commandments to a thousand generations."

So whatever elephant you're trying to swallow right now (child rearing, weight loss, job situations, family problems) God loves you and He keeps His promises.

He IS faithful.