Book-Satterlee Noticias

Exploring and Visitors

2012-02-24T13:26:00.000-08:00

On Saturday my (Leah) cousin Lawrence came to visit us for a week while on his reading break from University of British Columbia. It has been fun for us to have an excuse, or "pretexto" as we say in Spanish, to explore both Mexico City and its surroundings. Between playing tourists we have squeezed in work as well, I began two new Bible studies this week, and Kevin has continued interviews for the Work Design project. Fortunately (although perhaps unfortunately for him) Lawrence has two exams when he returns to school, so the down time works for him as well. Below are some pictures from on our excursions courtesy of Lawrence. :)

Entering Taxco, one of the "Pueblo Magicos" of Mexico.

It is known for it's silver and its picturesque (and steep) streets.

Enjoying an ice cream together on our Taxco excursion.

Lawrence made it to the top of the town where they have a statue of Christ.

We made it about half way there with Eliana!

Picturesque Taxco

More Taxco streets

We had our family over for a BBQ

Yummy Mexican food! Carne from the grill, nopales and grilled onions.

View overlooking Mexico City on a hike.

My favorite tree, the jacaranda. This particular one is in the

center of the center of the city in front of the Palacio de Bellas Artes.

Arriving in Puebla, about an hour and a half outside Mexico City.

This is the only city in Mexico that celebrates 5 de Mayo

because it commemorates a battle fought here.

Center of Puebla

It has been so fun to have Lawrence with us. He has been a faithful visitor, visiting us each of the times we have lived in Mexico! I am also really excited for the two studies I started this week. One is as a participant with some ladies from our church. The other is in more of a discipleship capacity with one of our Spearhead participants. Kevin and I also have really been enjoying a six week marriage study we are going through with couples from our church. Eliana enjoys playing with all of the kids from the other couples who are part of the study! This week we are going to be attending Eliana's school for a "parent day" to see what and how they are teaching our children. I am looking forward to meeting some of the other parents and perhaps developing those relationships.

Missions Moment

2012-02-11T14:50:00.000-08:00

One of the newer and exciting development that has come out of Spearhead, principally headed through our co-worker Wendy Der, is the work towards developing the Mexican missionary movement. This has long been a passion for Wendy and she has done quite a lot to develop, encourage, and promote Mexican missionaries in a number of different ways. One area she has been developing is a short-term mission trip to Honduras for Mexican youth from all over Mexico City. Our Spearhead students have also had the privilege in the past couple of years to participate and organize the trip, which has been a great experience for all involved. This year twenty-something youth and leaders are heading to Honduras during Semana Santa (Holy Week) in order to serve alongside Honduran churches, and share the Gospel. One young man from our church here in Mexico City will be participating in the trip, Kevin spoke of him in a previous blog, Rafa. One of the neat developments from previous trips is that being involved in the missions movement in Honduras has encouraged many of the young people who went on the trip to become more missional here in Mexico City.

Each person involved in the trip is responsible to raise their support, which as it is for all missionaries, has been challenging, but has also really encouraged these young people to trust God to provide in a way they might not have before. Tonight they are putting on a benefit concert at a local church. If anyone is interested in supporting this trip whether it be through prayer or finances please email us and we will let you know how you can be more involved.

Praying for the Actions of our Mexican Friends

2012-02-06T14:18:00.000-08:00

So after a busy weekend, the blog for last week had to wait until today. It is a holiday here in Mexico, so it is kind of like an extended weekend of last week.

I (Kevin) have had the privilege of getting to know a few guys from our church more deeply. And as I'm getting to know them on a deeper level, I'm more and more impressed by how the Gospel has touched their life deeply and how profound they are. These men are wise and passionate.

One has continued to show me his qualities of growth and leadership in his reflections. He is quick to examine his emotions and move himself more into the presence of God, giving his life to God, freeing him of momentary selfishness or frustration. Twice we have chatted to which he has been led to seek God's presence and been conformed to see what God can teach him. Rafa, is a young man, young also in the faith, but interested in youth ministry. His qualities of coming before the Lord will make him an outstanding leaders. I feel so blessed to be able to encourage him.

The second guy I have gotten to know is named Chui (or Jesús). Chui is also younger in the faith. He is incredibly passionate about indigenous people and the unfair treatment they get throughout the globe. Being Mexican he has a very strong interest in serving Mexican indigenous folk, but also is open to serving indigenous folk throughout the continent (here in Mexico The Americas are a single continent). He is working with a ministry of our church called Corazon Valiente, or Brave Heart. Those involved work with a few indigenous urban immigrants who have come to the city to find some financial prosperity. While they might find a bit more money, they typically find crowded living conditions in unstable and dangerous neighborhoods. They are often ill-treated and many do not speak a lot of Spanish. The kids pick up on the language, but theirs is a dangerous situation. It is very common to see indigenous children on the streets performing or selling things. They might be barefoot and often no adult in sight. This makes them very vulnerable and also makes it very difficult to get an education. They tend to get trapped into a life-cycle of drugs and alcohol as well as abuse. Chui, while studying how to interact with the systems so as to provide help, also makes it very apparent that personal relationship is important to him. He's not just a Christian activist lobbying the local government, but he celebrates the life of individuals. Corazon Valiente mostly works with the children, tutoring and encouraging them. I've had the privilege of learning from Chui, hearing a length about his passion and conversing with him about local community development. I feel so blessed to be able to encourage him.

Our Mexican friends are doing some amazing things. They are more than colleagues but teachers. We are humbled to learn from them and feel it is awesome. I feel especially blessed by the growing relationship with these men of passion who truly live a missional life transformed by the Gospel. They want to be a part of God's reconciliation. And I am put in a position to where I get to encourage them.

My mission statement or life purpose statement is: To enliven in others their potential to participate in God's restoration of the world. God brought us to Mexico and already I know that I'm able to minister from my mission and purpose statement.

Thankful

2012-01-28T14:19:00.000-08:00

A few things for which I am thankful this past week... (in no particular order)

1. A yummy Mexican BBQ with our family. The whole hamburger and hot dog BBQ really can't measure up to the yummy carne asada, quesadillas, BBQed onions, and savory salsa. MMMMM!

2. Lots of Work Styles related meetings and work for Kevin this week -- I am thankful things are starting off in a great direction!

3. A church where we are beginning to feel more and more at home.

4. Way fewer diapers to wash now that Eliana has started potty training!

5. A husband who has a servant's heart and who loves his family.

6. Encouragement from friends.

7. Mangoes! They are just coming into season here, and Eliana and I LOVE them. :)

8. A babysitter for Eliana so that we can participate in a marriage course at our church.

9. Cuddles with Eliana every morning when she wakes up.

10. Game night with the boys for Kevin.

What are you thankful for this week?

Busy Week and Date Night

2012-01-21T07:41:00.000-08:00

This week was a full one for the Book-Satterlee family. Between meetings, classes, and just normal responsibilities of life we were going from event to event, but it was good. On Tuesday after school Eliana was delighted to have her best friend Ana and Ana's brother Andres over for the afternoon and evening.

Paul and Nydia, Ana and Andres' parents, had to drive about 3 1/2 hours in order to fill out paperwork for their van which was stolen months ago. The van was actually found some time ago, but bureaucrats have been reluctant to give it back. For months Paul and Nydia have spent whole days filling out paperwork going from one place to another in order to recover the van. Now the judge in charge of the car will make a decision whether they can have the vehicle or not. If he decides to give it to them they have to pay a fine for the government keeping the car for them, close to $1500! He could also decide that he isn't going to give the car back, in which case the insurance will pay Paul and Nydia for the loss of the van. Please be praying that the judge makes a decision quickly so that this difficult situation doesn't continue to stretch out, requiring both time and money for Paul and Nydia.

On Friday afternoon Paul and Nydia took Eliana so that Kevin and I could go on a date. We had been wanting to see a particular movie for a long time, but hadn't had a chance. In the end we went to three different theaters before we finally were able to find it in English at a decent time. It was quite the adventure. After living on the farm where baby-sitters abound, we have been quite spoiled. Although we have supportive family and friends here in Mexico, the baby-sitting availability isn't the same as what it was in California, so Kevin and I have had to be more creative about how to spend time together alone. It also has brought up some difficulty in participating in events with church etc. In a city as large as Mexico people don't often leave their children with baby-sitters, rather with family members. We are hoping to become involved in a marriage course offered through our church on Saturday mornings that lasts about a month and a half, but again we don't know who to find to care for Eliana. Please pray for us as we look into options, that we might find someone that we can both trust and that Eliana enjoys.

Sickness and Farmer's Markets

2012-01-15T06:47:00.000-08:00

So....I am already a little late on my New Year's resolution to post at least once a week. My plan had been to post on Friday, however, the littlest member of our family woke up having thrown up and running a fever. Thus far whenever Eliana has a fever (which hasn't been that often), she pretty much wants to be in my arms, on top of me ALL DAY LONG! Other than the fact that my baby is sick, there is a part of me that enjoys this time because normally she isn't such a cuddle bug. However we literally didn't move off the bed on Friday the entire day and she dozed on and off on my chest. We also watched a LOT of her most recent favorite show, Dragon Tales. Normally she is lucky to watch maybe one episode a day. I won't even mention how many episodes she watched on Friday :). Yesterday her fever was gone, but her clingy-ness was not, needless to say, by this morning I am ready for a little bit of alone time.

One of the things that I really like about Mexico are the tianguis. Tianguis are outdoor markets that sell fruit and veggies, clothes, toys, make up, shoes, items for the house, music, movies, you name it, they probably have it. We have a huge one that is only a few streets up from us every weekend. The only thing a little disappointing about most tianguis is that the people who sell the fruits and veggies are not the farmers, nor in any way really connected to the food. There is a HUGE, and I mean blocks and blocks and blocks, market here in the city called el Central de los Abastos. Truckloads of produce are brought there from all over Mexico, and then the intermediaries -- those who sell at the tianguis, come and buy the food there and then re-sell it on the street. One of the things that I have learned recently is that I prefer to know as much about my food as possible. I want to know what it is I am putting in my body. This morning for the first time I am going to visit an organic tiangui that deals only with direct producers, that is to say, everyone who is part of it is a farmer/producer. This particular tiangui only meets twice a month on Sundays, so it has been difficult for me to go. But since our church starts a little on the later side, 11 am, I am going to go first to the market and then come back to watch Eliana so Kevin can go to church. It will be some nice alone time, and I am also excited to see what this market is like.

Happy Sunday!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-04T16:09:00.000-08:00

My one and only New Year’s Resolution -- write at least one post a week on our blog! I apologize that we have been MIA, life has been very full for us, but that’s no excuse. Here is a recap of our last couple of months.

November 5th we had a joint princess birthday party for Eliana and her favorite friend, Ana. Eliana turned 2 on October 12th and Ana turned three on November 5th.

November 8th we welcomed our first visitor, our friend Erin! Thanks for visiting us Erin, we had a great time with you. Who’s next? (Somehow I didn't manage to take a single picture while Erin was here! Sad, I know.)

November 15th we moved into our own (rental) place! HURRAY!!! I cannot express how great of a blessing this has been for us. I still, two months later, wake up almost every day thanking God for this particular blessing. Our neighborhood is very middle of the road Mexico City and we love it. Almost everything we need or could possibly think of needing is within easy walking distance including a park for Eliana a stone’s throw from our house. We live in a two story house that is divided as a duplex, our house is on top and we have a very kind family with two almost adult children living below us.

On November 25th we celebrated American Thanksgiving with all the other LAM missionaries in and around Mexico City. (A day late, I know!) We had a great time hanging out, hearing what is happening all around the city and eating yummy food! Eliana had a hard time eating, though. The family who hosted had an amazing play house and LOTS of baby dolls as well as a little car. She was pretty much in heaven! Don't let the somber face in the photo confuse you, she was asking the kids to give her all the dolls and she cried when I pulled her out!

December 8th we celebrated Christmas with our Spearhead Year Out team before we sent them home for Christmas. We had a lot of fun, and experimented with some traditional Mexican "Christmas" foods -- bacalao (Norwegian cod), and romeritos (Romeritos is a Mexican dish from Mexico City, consisting of sprigs of a wild plant known as Romerito that looks like rosemary, therefore its name. Usually they are served with patties of dried shrimp, and potatoes in a mole sauce. -- Def. from Wikipedia). We sang Christmas carols, passed out secret santa gifts and enjoyed just hanging out.

A couple days later on December 10th our new church, La Fuente, had a Christmas celebration. Eliana participated in the little play the kids put on and still continues to sing "Go Tell It On The Mountain" (in Spanish), one of the songs they sang, all the time! We also got to experience a little earthquake in the middle of the pastor's talk. It shook everyone up (sorry, not trying to be cheesy here, just couldn't think of anything else to say), but eventually everyone recovered and the show went on! One Mexican Christmas tradition is the pinata. Eliana has come to love pinatas, and as they hang pretty much everywhere during this season she is constantly saying, "Look mommy! A pinata!!!" The pinata traditionally has seven spikes which represent the seven sins. It is beautifully decorated to demonstrate the power of sin, which must be broken and when it is the sweetness of God's blessing rains down. Kind of cool, huh?

December 11th Kevin ran a 10k with a number of friends, he had a great time and hopes to run more this upcoming year.

December 16th Eliana's preschool had a Christmas celebration. She has learned so much Spanish that now she often will speak more Spanish than English. Though, most of the time she speaks with a mixture of both. Below is a picture of her giving her Christmas gift to her teacher.

The next day, December 17th, we celebrated Eliana's Mexican cousin, Aaron's birthday. He had a super hero theme. Afterwards we headed over to his house and all the kids had an impromptu dance party!

On December 24th we celebrated Christmas with our Mexican family. Traditionally Mexican families all get together, have a dinner together and at midnight celebrate Christmas opening gifts etc. Eliana has learned how to stay up late, and being a true extrovert if there are people around she enjoys every minute of it! We headed back to our house around 2 a.m.

Christmas day we worked on recovering from all of the late nights, in the 10 days before Christmas Eliana was up after 12 am at least half of them. We missed our families home in the States, but we had a great time with our Mexican family.

On December 30th we got to go ice skating in the Zocalo, which is the square at the center of Mexico City. Every year (since 2007) the government puts up a huge ice skating rink and offers free skating. Needless to say LOTS of people, considering there are aroune 30 million in the city, line up to have a turn. The system works out that you line up first in order to get a ticket which gives you an entrance time. Fortunately we got to skip all of that as Irma, our Mexican sister-in-law, works for the government and gets a few tickets to give out. Fun!

On December 31st we spent New Year's Eve again with our family and had a blast. We left around 3, but they didn't sleep till 8 am! Crazy. Maybe some day we'll be able to manage that, but not quite yet. :)

So that pretty much wraps up our last couple of months, if you have made it through this ginormous post, congrats! As much as we loved the festivities of this last month we are excited to get back into normal life. Eliana started school again yesterday, Kevin begins meetings for Work Design next week, and tomorrow we have our "welcome back" meeting for our Spearheaders. Life is good. Many blessings from our family to yours!!

In His Time

2011-10-20T18:14:00.000-07:00

For many North Americans one of the major cultural adjustments that has to be made is the switch from being time-oriented to event-oriented. One of my professors from Fuller, Sherwood Lingenfelter, gave some helpful pointers as to how these differences can play out in a book he co-authored called Ministering Cross-Culturally: An Incarnational Model for Personal Relationships. Below is a brief summary of what it looks like to be time vs. event-oriented.

Value Continuums in Society

Time - Events

Crisis orientation - Non-crisis oriented

Dichotomy - Wholistic

Object as goal - Person as goal

Vulnerability as weakness - Vulnerability as strength

Prestige achieved - Prestige ascribed

Brief Descriptions of Each Value:

* Time: structured around specific hours and minutes.

* Events: life's activities are structured around a social environment, and the relational event.

* Crisis orientation: behaviour of preparation and prevention.

* Non-crisis oriented: behaviour based on dealing with issues as they arise.

* Dichotomy: views the world in segmented parts.

* Wholistic: views the world as an integrated whole.

* Object as goal: completion of the task is vital.

* People as goal: relationships are foremost in importance.

* Vulnerability as weakness: transparency of character is seen as weakness (western).

* Vulnerability as strength: transparency of character is seen as strength.

* Prestige achieved: through effort and accomplishment.

* Prestige ascribed: through criteria set by the culture.

This being said, we as a family are slowly, and sometimes painfully, figuring out what this means in regards to getting settled here in Mexico. Very few things occur within the time frame we regard as "optimal." For instance, we are still without a place to call home. We had reported in our previous newsletter that we had found a place, and we did, but after our prospective landlady kept pushing our move in date back and some of the details weren't working out, we felt it best to look for another place. This was a difficult (because it meant being back at square one) and yet peace-filled decision. Now we find ourselves possibly at the brink of renting a new place (so please be praying!), but again the time frame of working through the rental process is hardly expedient!

I (and I believe Kevin as well) pictured ourselves moving to Mexico City, taking about a month to get settled in and then diving into life and ministry. But the truth is the process has been far more "messy" than we anticipated. As our "settling in time" has streched on and on, life has snuck up on us and we have had to jump in whether we were "ready" or not. Lingenfelter talks about the time-oriented culture as seeing the world as a dichotomy, or segmented parts. I have found that to mean that I see my settling in to Mexico (finding a house, car, moving, setting up house, learning our new neighborhood etc.) as one part of my life, and when complete I can move onto the next, establishing relationships, engaging in ministry, figuring out life here, etc. But having all my ducks in a row before proceeding has presented itself to be much more complicated and stressful than I ever imagined. So now I am working on seeing the world more wholistically or in a more integrated fashion. I am trying to trust rather than stress as we take on responsibilities and commitments without first really knowing what our life will look like.

Some of the "life" events that have been set into motion within the last few weeks are:

* Kevin was able to participate in a Latin American Theological conference here in Mexico City and make many great connections.

* On Sunday Kevin will be leaving for Phoenix. He will be there for a full week to receive further training for his position as facilitator for the Work Styles Prefences within the Spearhead program.

* On October 12th Eliana turned 2! We will be having a shared party for her in the beginning of November with her favorite friend Ana who will be turning 3. Below is a photo of Eliana at her birthday breakfast.

* Eliana started school! We decided to enroll Eliana in a small preschool a couple mornings/week to give her an intentional chance to interact with other kids and learn Spanish. Her friend Ana also attends the same preschool.

* Spanish class -- Kevin and I are both being tutored once a week (each) in Spanish.

* Spearhead commitments -- Although these are still relatively few at the moment, we are each involved in various aspects of the program and life is filling up quickly!

All in all we feel very blesed and we are thankful for the tremendous amount of support we have received from our Mexican friends and family. They have helped immensely, we both agree we can't possibly imagine doing it without them. Little by little we are learning to live to the beat of a different drum, and trust God for his timing rather than making it happen in our own.

Gone Fishing

2011-10-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

On Monday we joined Gary and Jann, the missionary couple we are living with, on a day trip up to the mountains surrounding Mexico City. Gary loves fishing and, since Eliana and Kevin had never fished before, he was eager to treat them to their first fishing experience! A great time was had by all.

Gary let Eliana choose the bait -- she was a litle apprehensive!

Eliana's first fishing experience

Kevin's first fish!

Miss Jann kept Eliana well entertained :)

She's got one!

Eliana's first fish

She's a little nervous!

Ay!

After fishing we went to a restaurant where they prepare the fish you caught for you (delicious!). Eliana had a quesadilla, notice her interesting technique for eating quesadillas inside first. :)

Some Reflections on Ministry

2011-09-22T05:38:00.000-07:00

Mostly this blog is about news updates from our family, however while reading this morning, I thought I'd put some of my reflections of my scripture reading here regarding ministry.

One the one hand Jesus tells his disciples to go out and those who do not welcome them in, dust their feet off and leave. I read about this the other day. Then, however we have the parable of the fig tree, where the owner seeks fruit from a specific tree that has not given any for 3 years. He asks the gardner if he should cut it down so as to better occupy the land with a fruit-producing tree. The gardner suggests waiting one more year and putting more effort into this specific tree.

There is ground to be sown in ministry, sometimes it is difficult and dusty ground. There are times where ministry will not be received, and Jesus tells us it is ok to look onward and dust off our feet. This is a tough concept in ministry, because it seems like one is giving up on a person or location. In a similar situation Jesus lets the rich young ruler walk away. There are always people to visit and places to plant.

I read today, however, this parable about the unfruitful fig tree. It seems very clearly that it discusses how in ministry, one might look at fruitlessness and instead of walking away try to pour into it a little more. And if it doesn't grow fruit, then I guess it is acceptable at the time to cut your losses.

Working with people, as ministry is a relational vocation, emotions cloud the clarity of these scriptures. In fact, the scriptures cloud their own clarity in a seeming contradiction. This is where wisdom must be exercised in ministry. Knowing when to dig in deeper, water, nourish and spend the extra effort, and when to brush the dust off your feet or let somebody walk away.

Feliz Dia de Independencia! Happy Independence Day!

2011-09-16T07:59:00.000-07:00

We made it!

2011-09-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

It’s just after nine in the morning and music fills our house. It’s coming from the street where they are setting up the weekly tiangui (an outdoor market -- similar to a farmer’s market, but much more extensive). Fortunately the music is a calm ballad, I am sure that by mid-day it will be something much more lively and celebratory as tonight all of Mexico is preparing to celebrate their independence with the “grito.” Besides shopping for our fruits and vegetables today, we hope to find something festive for Eliana to wear. Four years ago Kevin and I were in Mexico for the first time together. We celebrated by going to a party held by one of our Mexican family’s churches, then we went to one of the city’s main squares to join the ENORMOUS outdoor party and chant the grito of “Viva Mexico!” and “Viva los heroes!” (along with several others). This year we plan to join our family for a celebration at a church around 7, but then we’ll probably call it an evening after that.

Tomorrow will be our one week anniversary in Mexico. God’s hand has definitely been guiding us, (and at times carrying us!) through this whole process. When we arrived at the airport in San Jose on Thursday morning (amazingly fitting all of our luggage 13 suitcases, 6 carry ons, stroller and carseat into two station wagons), two airport workers instantly appeared to help when they realized the extent of our luggage. Below is a photo of Eliana climbing on top of our mountain of luggage that pretty much took up 3/4 of my mother-in-law's front room!

Our flight left at 7:20 am, so we had to be at the airport around 5. When I pulled Eliana out of bed at 4:30 I expected some crabbiness, but instead she sweetly laid her head on my shoulder and said "Hi mommy! I want to go to Meximo." I had put together a little back pack full of surprises for Eliana to open on the plane, and when she saw it she instantly loved her "pack-pack." Here she is at the airport terminal showing it off. In the second photo she is eating grapes (if you wonder what the weird green thing in her mouth is!).

When we arrived in Mexico we were prepared to have to open up every suitcase because we knew we were bringing more than you are allowed on a tourist visa. We planned to declare the items that were over and above the ones allowed and expected to pay duties on them. After we had gathered all of our luggage (four carts full plus) we wheeled ourselves (with some help from some friendly people) to the "declare" line. The woman at the front asked us if we were moving to Mexico and we explained we were here to get our FM3 residence visa. She then asked us if all of our things were for personal use. When we explained that they were, she directed us to run our suitcases through the x-ray machine and push the button that would flash red if we needed to be inspected and green if we could pass through. That alone was a miracle, perhaps there was a chance we wouldn't have to have every bag opened! After all of our stuff passed through the x-ray machine, we pressed the button and it was green! We were amazed and beyond thankful for the way God answered our prayers. I honestly didn't expect anything so easy. So thank you all who joined us in praying for our journey through customs! At the end of the day all we had to pay for was our extra baggage, which also ended up being a lower amount than expected. WOW!

We are now staying in the home of a Free Methodist missionary couple we knew from our time in Mexico before. We are thankful for a roomy, comfortable place to stay and a car to borrow. Our time has mostly been made up of looking for a place to live. We have found one that we really like, and the landlady is a believer. We are hoping that this one will work out, it was actually the first place we looked explored. We will meet her on the 20th in person (she lives in another state) and hopefully be able to confirm the house as ours. Please join us in praying that if this is the place God wants us that everything will fall into place.

Thanks again for joining us on this journey through your prayers, encouragement, friendship, and support. Many blessings from our family to yours.

New Directions

2011-07-22T13:55:00.000-07:00

First and foremost I want to thank everyone for lifting us up in prayer regarding our visa appointment. In just the right timing our paperwork came through and it seemed as if everything was on track and our appointment was fine. However, God has thrown us a curve ball in regards to our plans for Spain, one that we were surprised, and are excited that it has come our way. If you are interested below I have posted our most recent newsletter that explains it all.

One thing I know, following Jesus is never boring! About four weeks ago everything seemed to be in line for us to deploy to Spain this fall. Our long-awaited letter of invitation from Spain was in place, and we were ready to apply for our visas. However, when Kevin traveled to Miami for work mid-June, God threw us a curve ball in the form of an invitation from LAM president, Steve Johnson. Kevin’s work the last few months has been to assist in a program called Work Design. As the mission is taking stock of its components, Spearhead began to rise to the top as one of the most important assets that it has to offer. Steve began to feel that in order to strengthen the Spearhead program, and eventually replicate it, it would be best for it to go through the Work Design process. In its most basic form Work Design will help to refine the Spearhead program and implement a five year plan, as well as identify and address current issues in Latin American missions in order to better train future missionaries. So, because Kevin has experience with facilitating the Work Design process, as well as strong ties to the Spearhead program in Mexico, it was felt he would be the best person for the job.

When Steve invited Kevin to head up this initiative we were both surprised by the timing of it, after all we have been dreaming of, praying for, and preparing ourselves for Spain. But as we prayed and considered all that God has been teaching us in the past few years, about contentment, change, living in the moment and trust, we felt more and more that perhaps this was the step that He was nudging us toward.

So…in early September we will be heading to Mexico! Once we made the decision, God has continued to fill our hearts with peace and excitement for this new adventure ahead. It is unexpected, to be sure, but before we even leave for the field we are learning that the only thing that doesn’t change is the One we follow, and it is to his voice we always want to be attune.

So that's the scoop! We are excited to continue on this journey and see what God has in store for us. As of now, our assignment to Mexico should last 2-3 years. When the Work Design process is completed we are still hoping to move to Spain to implement the Spearhead program in a new locale.

How Thin Can God Stretch Us?

2011-06-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

The title of this blog is not so encouraging. Let me first say that until an hour ago, things were progressing towards Spain fairly nicely. Still some support to ardently work towards, and some documents seem to be trickling in at the 11th hour, but I must admit I was thinking to myself, "Finally! We're so close." Yet sometimes so close can not be close enough.

This entire missions process has been two steps forward and one step back. It is incredible. We went to make our consular appointments today to find out that the first available ones are not until July! Some of the statute of limitation on our documents end in late June! So here's where we need some prayers for God to move or great favor. Please be praying for:

A. God to open up some appointments during mid-June. We'll be checking every day multiple times a day for an answer on this.
B. That if an appointment does not open up that somebody at the S.F. consulate would find favor and take pity on us and put our documents through anyways.

On a happy, but maybe "not-quite-good-enough" note, our first available appointment had been in late July. Then there was an opening in early July. Still not good enough for what we need, but somebody canceled and that opened up some opportunities for us, which we promptly snagged.

Please be joining us in prayer as we could use it.

Hot & Dry, Hot & Humid

2011-05-05T07:50:00.000-07:00

This week God has answered a financial prayer for us, covering our present needs before moving to Spain. We've committed ourselves since coming back from Mexico to getting to Spain as quickly as possible. This has meant passing up some pretty amazing opportunities, opportunities that would have severely tardied our departure for Spain. Our organization has generously thrown work my (Kevin) way in the areas of networking and recruitment, which has helped to sustain us. Now they've come up with a pre-field offer that is even more generous.

We were asked to move to Miami until we move to Spain. There I would be asked to help coordinate the restructure of recruitment and mobilization and help to put things in place for a new team to carry LAM forward on that front. It is something I've been passionate about and spoken into (often without solicitation) for the last 3 years. I feel very honored to have been asked. But Miami was just not going to be feasible.

Like I mentioned above, we've passed on attempting some amazing career opportunities because we know that God has called us to the field. Being in Miami would not be so bad, but our support-base and contacts are on the West Coast. We still have support work to do. It is not all just document procurement for us these days. With the dollar to euro ratio slipping into a wider chasm in value, the support-raising is all the more important.

Thankfully, while our family cannot move to Miami, our president asked me to come up with a counter proposal, which he has accepted. This proposal will allow me to work from home for more than half of the month. It will also require me to travel to Miami each month for a week to 10 days. That is a lot, and our family will miss each other greatly, but we know that God has indeed been answering our prayers (and my frustrations).

Chico is over 100 degrees in the summer, sometimes reaching 110 or higher. But it is dry. Miami is "cooler" in general - about 95 degrees or so, but with a humidity that is what I would call unGodly making it feel like 110 degrees or more. It is going to be a hot summer (it is pretty hot, though dry, in Spain as well). What is warming of the soul is to see how God provides.

The Advance Dance - It is a 3-Step

2011-04-14T06:22:00.000-07:00

We've been learning the Advance Dance in this process for missions. It is a three-step dance.

First you go forward two steps, and lift your hands in joy.

Then you take a step backwards and fall down to your knees.

And the music stops for a moment.

Then it begins again and you begin two steps forward, one step back.

Our letter from the Spanish gov't came!!!! We are very excited that our inviting organization was granted permission to invite us. The government completed the letter and we have that piece in hand. (2 steps forward)

But...

The name did not match the passport. (1 step back) So we have to resend it.

The music stopped, we sent in the corrections, and the record starts to play again.

On the support note, we can continuously praise God. Little by little we're gaining on our support goal. We only have about 16% left! The support dance = step, step, little step, little step, step, step, big step...pause. This dance has been a long, but quite rewarding process for us.

Thanks for watching us dance and for encouraging us when the music is playing and especially when the music seems to have quieted.

Career, Family = God's Gifts

2011-03-22T08:59:00.000-07:00

So much to do, yet what do I do? I write a blog.

Career and Family = Gifts from God.

At a marriage conference we went to a month ago, one of the things that they began the sessions off with is that one's spouse is God's gift to you. Sometimes that can be hard to see...but then that is when we begin focusing on the tough parts of relationship. Leah indeed is God's gift to me. Read on and you'll see. And thankfully I'm God's gift to her.

The idea of God's gift has then translated into other aspects of my life. I have MANY interests. What I am mostly interested in is learning about new things. I like the theory, but I like it applicable. Nonetheless I have trouble narrowing the field of interest. I am interested in personal study of: theology, ministry, cross-cultural studies, anthropology, sociology, social work, behavioral psychology/organizational leadership, mobilization and marketing, spirituality, biblical studies, family studies, human geography, library and information science...the list will never stop. If you think think that all those things hurt your eyes, think about Leah's ears every day when she hears..."Oh, I am interested in that. Maybe I should get a master's or even PhD in that." She probably hears that 2-3 times a day. Yet she is still around. She's God's gift to me.

Sometimes my scattered interests lead me into existential problems. Who am I? What is my purpose? How do I specialize myself with soooo many interests. As a result I try to also be a student of myself. I've had to take the Clifton StrengthsFinder test a few times for various seminaries and organizations that I've worked for. Currently I am an Input, Ideation, Intellect, Learner, and Belief. This means lots of time inputting information (study) and output (teaching/disseminating info). In reading the descriptions of these things, the should do's are "take time to study" and "find outlets to give your information".

So as a missionary who will be an internship director as well as giving courses and training, what do I get to do? Study and keep current on pertinent information (which seems like everything), and then advise and facilitate learners letting them input information and disseminate it to me. Awesome. God's gift to me.

Then, to go along with this career that I'm on, I have a wife who has wanted to be a missionary since she was like a fetus. God only contained her for 9 months until she broke in on the world and has been a missionary to people around her ever since. And our daughter, who is a pretty flexible traveler and handles new situations pretty well. My family is a missionary family. God's gift to me.

What is cool about all this, is that I get to be God's gift to my wife, my career, my family too. I think having these realizations mean I must be more consciously thankful for the gifts I receive and more consciously aware of whether I am truly being a gift myself or just a selfish receiver.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T06:47:00.000-07:00

We just recently listened to an Adventures In Odyssey episode about the underground railroad. It was a great historical episode of runaway slaves finding their way up to Canada. Some died, some made it. It was a good teaching.

Today celebrates St. Patrick who was at one point a runaway slave. He felt called by God to go back - a free man, yet slave to God - and minister in the lands where he was a slave. That is pretty crazy. I don't think that is a call God makes to everybody who was once enslaved, and who could blame Him. Very few people want to put themselves back in that position. Yet situations and opportunities have arrisen throughout history where slaves and captives have also been the ones to forgive and evangelize their owners or captors. I can think of numerous stories from WWII where former POW's have returned to evangelize their jailors.

Forgiveness and reconciliation are an amazing thing. We're studying about this in our married's Bible Study. What has come forth in the study that God is principally interested in repairing breaches, both between Himself and humanity and between humans. What struck me yesterday was how differences between people can still produce good partnerships and cooworkers (particularly in Kingdom work) as long as there is mutual respect and forgiveness. Alas, there have been so many rifts between Kingdom workers that forgiveness is abated and bitterness is a slow-dying poison.

Today on St. Patrick's Day, I remember a missionary who was sent back to the place that he was a slave. That is hard reconciliation, yet a powerful witness. I also remember those stuck in modern day slavery and pray for global abolitionist movements (see Not For Sale by Batstone or Disposable People by Bale). I also pray that God would heal these slaves, reconcile them to Him and raise up a mass of voices who were once oppressed, now freed, that proclaim reconciliation and forgiveness.

When you see green today, think of the Irish. But also think of green as the color of liberty and liberty freed for submission to reconcile. When you see green today, think of missionaries called to be freed people yet slaves of God participating in global reconciliation of the world. And remember, as you where green today, you yourselves are a missionary of reconciliation to your family, friends, co-workers, the poor and the oppressed around you.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Groundhog Day Movie and Missions Preparation

2011-03-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

People routinely say that the definition of insanity is to do the same thing repeatedly and expect a different outcome. Bill Murray personifies this well in the movie Groundhog Day. Here Bill's character wakes up and finds that his day has repeated itself. The next morning the same...and the same...and the same. The first half of the movie watches him attempt to avoid this monotony and break the cycle. The first half of the movie Bill Murray is insane and getting crazier. He's impatient, rash, manipulative and destructive. Bill Murray needed to grow in his character and all he was thinking about was how to escape his situation. After awhile he gave in, caught on, or whatever, and developed a number of skills as well as his character. Finally fate decided he'd achieved the character necessary to proceed with life. He gets the girl and the next morning he wakes up and everything is changed.

Sometimes we feel like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. We wake up with the anticipation that the day will get us closer to Spain. I think I could quite easily have gone insane, waking up with eagerness and anxiety, yet lacking patience. But thankfully we have community around us that has continued to remind me that this time is for development. We can develop skills and most importantly, character in our time of waiting. No longer do I do the same thing every day, expecting a different result. Rather I wake up with expectation and hope, but mostly with the fact that as I move closer to God in a variety of ways, that my character is growing. Little by little God reveals more about what is being set up in Spain, and especially what is growing in the foundation of our characters and spirituality.

One thing Bill Murray had was the ability to have time stopped. Day after day, the same day, he developed skills and knowledge and character. Once that day broke, he had his skills to carry with him and a developed character that to others looked like an overnight change. We do not have the luxury of stopping time (quick reference to Evie bringing her two fingers together in the TV show Out of this World). This means that we have our cultural pressures to avoid this holding pattern and patience period.

One thing we have that Bill Murray didn't have was a supportive international community of family and friends. Not only do we get to have our character's stretched, we are productive in life. We might feel the weight of inactivity (yet we are constantly busy) not being rewarded in titles or a salary, but thankfully our family does not see this as an issue and nor do our friends. It is very encouraging to maintain patience and continue in the calling we feel God has called us to.

That is another thing we have that Bill didn't, knowledge of our purpose. Ultimately our purpose is to draw closer to God. He will send us to Spain, we believe. The reality is, that sometimes God will divert His calling, or at least His revelation of His calling, drastically. Yet He expects radical obedience and ultimately He expects us to be ever-growing in our characters and spiritual life.

I was listening to "Hosanna" by Hillsong United this morning, sung in Spanish. What else can I do but praise God and thank Him for the life. My character again grows closer to Him and I'll continue doing the same thing - giving praise and thanksgiving - but not expect anything different. The constant approach to life will hopefully provide a constant result - growth of character.

For today, I am thankful of the opportunity to get to have a rooted community here in Chico. I am thankful that I've had the opportunity to develop skills while pouring into Latin America Mission and I'm most of all thankful that God has continued to impress upon me the importance of loving my wife and my daughter. They are my first and foremost ministry and I am actively involved in this career daily.

Stubborn Cows & Stuff

2011-03-01T13:35:00.000-08:00

I (Kevin) grew up in the suburbs. Cows were something we smelled driving on I-5 to my grandparents' house, but I can't really even remember hearing a live cow moo in my childhood. I'm sure I did. That to say, I don't do big animals. So in this transition between mission fields we move to the Book Family Farm where they have BIG horses and cows.

Last night we got two more milk cows. They are a bit stubborn. Naturally, if you kidnap me, stuff me in a trailer and drive me away from my home for a couple hundred miles, I think I'll be a little stubborn too. I wouldn't know if I was going to become ground beef or what. Last night when the cows arrived they had to be milked and while very leery, they were somewhat compliant. This morning however one was not. She was stubborn and I had to push on her very poopy behind to try to get her to move into the milking barn. Not what I expected as a suburban kid.

So am I just suffering for the Lord, waiting to get to the mission field. I think putting my hand in cow poop is suffering, I hate mess as it is, but this was a lot. Frankly, though, I did not suffer because I didn't have time to think about it. What I am doing is being active in the midst of patience.

And in this time of activity, I am able to reflect. How often am I as stubborn as that cow when God is trying to lead me? Leah's dad has to milk the cow out so that she doesn't develop an infection. It is just as much to her benefit as it is for hours. I'm sure that God is not trying to literally milk me (I would have to have some very strange anatomy for a boy) but I think he is spiritually milking me in these times.

What living at the farm has done, living in Chico has done, is given a space to come to God with greater and greater trust each day that he will empty me of me so that I would not get a spiritual infection. And he feeds me, just as we do the cows, so that he would fill me.

As I placed my hand on poop, I didn't have time to think this through, but I did when I began to wipe off my hands. I was once a stubborn heifer, untrusting and yet bloated. Thankfully the Book Family Farm has helped me to learn how to trust more and empty myself so that I would not get a spiritual infection.

Wandering

2011-02-02T07:53:00.000-08:00

Ever since Kevin and I got married over four years ago we have been journeying on a path of God's calling. While we have always been certain of the path, we have not always been certain about where it leads. For quite some time both of us have yearned for an "arrival" to a destination. Currently that destination is Spain. More than anything I think that both of us are ready to leave the nomadic life and plant roots somewhere, to have a place of our own, a community to invest in over a long period of time, and to be involved with the ministry we love.

Somehow, however, it seems that the "destination" eludes us. It is always just a little further ahead, but just like the rainbow's end when you "arrive" the destination has moved once more. Little by little God seems to be revealing that HE alone is our destination and we can reach that destination wherever we are on the road of life. We will always have that longing to "arrive," but the truth is that that longing won't be completely fulfilled until we're in the physical presence of our Creator one day. In the mean time we walk forward, continually convinced that right now God is leading us on the path towards Spain, but he can bring us fulfillment and contentment (e.g. Philippians 4:11-13) wherever we are on that path as we lift our eyes to him, the Author and Perfecter of our faith.

On a side note Eliana is growing like crazy, she is definitely not our "little baby" any more. She has about 30 spoken words in her vocabulary (plus some signed), and every day she tries to repeat new ones. Below are a couple of pictures, the first is her Tio Lawrence right before they went back to college, we took him out for milk shakes at Shubert's (contrary to this picture, Eliana only got sips, not the whole milk shake!). The second is the first time I was able to pull all her hair back in "big girl" pig tails. It isn't a great picture, but it's hard to get her to hold still now a days. :)

Back From Spain, Final Countdown

2011-01-20T12:28:00.000-08:00

I (Kevin) am back from Spain! It was a great trip and crucial to our placement in Spain. I was able to formally meet future key relationships for ministry and legal residency. At the beginning of this process we were "gearing up." Now it is time to "countdown."

Support:
At the beginning of this process we needed to raise $5518/mo. We have now gotten close and only need to raise $773/mo!

Ministry Placement:
At the beginning of this process we were headed to Madrid, then Valencia or Sevilla, then Malaga, and now to Granada (with a likely future move to Malaga). We now have the key relationships in place to be mentored while learning the language and the culture and to begin planning and planting Spearhead - Spain, the practical missions training program.

Visa Procurement:
At the beginning of this process we had no partnership to invite us formally for our visa, nor the required monthly necessary funds for sustainability of our program. Now we have reached the required funds to seek out our visa and have the inviting organization to serve as our legal reference in Spain.

It has been a very exciting and long process, full of unsurities, anxieties and much testing of our faith. We are in the final stretch it seems and the various countdowns will begin. Soon enough we will know when to buy our tickets to move and a daily countdown can begin. Please be praying for all the final pieces to come together and for us to begin the daily countdown until departure.

¿Qué te pasa en Granada?

2011-01-15T09:33:00.000-08:00

What happened with me in Granada one might ask? Well I write this from Granada, so it is not over yet, but it has been eventful, particularly spiritually.

First, about the country and culture - it has far exceeded my expectations. I have heard that Spaniards are not quite as service oriented as I might have come to expect if I was in the States. Maybe that is true, but that has not been my experience on this trip. Even the Spaniards here have warned me not to take it personally if the bus drivers are terribly mannered. Yet, they have all been mildly friendly and even helpful. The ease of getting around has been fantastic as well, a lot easier than I thought.

I have had some upsets and some assurances, which have made for a ping-pongy trip. I came with expectations of receiving a letter of invitation and carrying that with me to the States so that we can have our visa appointment and get ready for moving. That is not the case. I came expecting to work under a certain leader here, but came to find out that things have changed. I then came to expect working for another component of the very same ministry and THAT has turned out not to materialize! So I've been forlorn on accounts and frustrated. By in large I have been confused. "God, we have been in this process faithfully for 2 1/2 years! Why is it not all coming together? The support is coming in, but have we followed the wrong path?" God let me stew in that question for a good portion of my day yesterday.

God's response has come from some good things. Unexpectedly a ministry I was interested in a while back does want us and its ability to house the future ministry of Spearhead is incredible. Unfortunately this can't be set up right away and they are changing their legal status and are unable to provide invitations at this point. The presiding board member of that ministry is also the head of the ministry that things have changed on us for, BUT he wants to be our inviting organization still. Yahoo!!! On top of that, I have had a couple of good conversations with LAM's president who has continually assured me of trying to do everything they can to get us to the field as soon as possible and has also apologized to me about the way things have turned out for us. We also have swapped stories of many missionaries we've known that have had an even more difficult time getting their placement together. So thank God for some movement.

Every day has required me to hit my knees while I'm here. And I've had to do it without Leah, which makes that physical separation all the more difficult. The hardest part about this trip has been that I miss her and Eliana so much, and I can't share with them the wonderful things I'm learning about Granada and can't come together directly in prayer for our future and where God is taking us. God has continually affirmed our calling and we will continue in faith.

I just want to thank all of our friends and family who support us in this venture both financially and prayerfully. I can only tell you all that God has been faithful, and I do feel it. Please be praying for things to continually be moving forward, for the Book-Satterlees to continually be putting it all in God's hands and to be released from our anxiousness. We are called not to worry about tomorrow, which for most North Americans is impossible. It is very impossible (as if there could be such a thing) for me without God's provision. Yet it seems to be a lesson we are learning and poco a poco (little by little) God is providing us with what we need and strengthening our character and our hearts.

So in this beautiful city and this intriguing country I have made friends, come nearly to tears, and rested my nights in peace because God has always ended my nights with a whisper - "I am here." That is what is happening in Granada this week.

Heading to Spain in Less than a Week

2011-01-04T11:17:00.000-08:00

Next Monday I (Kevin) get to go to Spain. I will be attending one day of board meetings with a missions training organization based in Malaga. I will have the opportunity to meet some theological educators, which will be fun, but also I will have the opportunity to meet with the head of the organization who is going to provide our sponsoring visa paperwork. Much prayer has gone into this placement and we are excited to get it down. Following that day I will be heading to Granada, where we will be living. This will be a time for exploration, to get to know the city, where we might want to live and pray for the people who will touch our lives and whose lives we hope to impact. I will also get to meet with the man who will serve as our boss during our transition year(s). Much prayer has gone into this relationship as well.

Please be praying for this time, that all the documentation we need will come through so that we can make our appointment on the 18th of January with the consulate in San Francisco (it is the day after I return from Spain.) Please pray for Leah and Eliana as they do not get to join me on this trip.

Bye Bye 2010

2010-12-31T08:40:00.000-08:00

Christmas has passed, but the tree is still up. We are going to have to get used to the 13 days of Christmas when we go to Spain, letting Christmas ring in the New Year. In Spain, they celebrate King's Day. King's Day is a Spanish holiday and is often the day that children open their presents. It is kind of nice to be able to let Christmas trail into the new year.

2010 was a good year for us, but in terms of getting to Spain, our preparation will be trailing into 2011, and even past King's Day. While we won't be opening up our King's Day presents in Spain this year, we are confident that next King's Day Eliana will be speaking 2-year old Spanish and be opening King's Day presents with her little friends.

We have seen an incredible increase in support in the latter half of 2010, we have been given a city of placement by our organization - Granada, and in two weeks we'll have the paperwork in hand to apply for our residency visas. Eliana has been blessed to spend time at the Book Farm with lots of family, has made numerous trips to Cupertino to spend time with family there too. We've grown deeper with our friendships in Chico, making it harder to leave, but their support launches us well into the new phase of our life.

2010 has seen some big events and the economy still seems to weigh on peoples' minds. Everyday NPR asks some economic analyst whether or not they expect the economy to bounce back or drag. Some people will claim it to be one of the best years of their lives and others, sadly, one of the worst. We have had a good year, but we look expectantly to 2011.

Today is December 31, 2010, and we fight the temptation to be anxious to get to Spain. The Lord tells us not to worry about tomorrow. So today we reflect on the year, let the twinkle of Christmas lights and ornaments gleam on our faces and watch as friends with new babies ponder Christ as a 6-day-old.

Goodbye 2010...

Rain, Advent and Preparation

2010-12-20T14:47:00.000-08:00

It is a dreary day in Northern California with an onslaught of rain to come. The weather for Granada, Spain is almost identical today. That is one little similarity in where we are and where we are going that reminds us that God's plan is congruent.

Advent has gone by quick this year, as it seems to every year. The advent festivities almost always overthrow advent contemplation of Christ's birth. For us, this advent is a time for celebration, contemplation and preparation. We are able to celebrate God's hand in getting us closer to Spain. Our support has gone up consistently in November and early December. It is time for us to contemplate the effects of the move in a few short months. And it is time for preparation.

Preparation: Kevin is headed to Granada in the middle of January to meet with ministry mentors there and finalize paperwork for the long-term residency visa. There he will be doing some leg and camera work, exploring Granada for areas to live, and understanding practical things like transportation. In that time, he is going to go schedule a prayer walk, that God would guide us, prepare us and begin preparing our ministry there.

Contemplation: Just over fourteen months ago on a day much like today, the rain came down hard, the wind blew and we missed it as we stared at our new little baby girl. The effect of seeing an infant in our arms has not worn off, and this Christmas we think again of Mary and Joseph as they held their little baby boy. God did so much with so little. We look to see how He will use us in his ministry continuing from that day and before. Even more, we look forward to seeing how God will use Eliana in ministry.

Celebrations: We thank God for Christmas, for Jesus, for family. We have been severely blessed over these last two and a half years. We celebrate those who have been around to support us with physical needs, emotional needs and spiritual needs. Each person, whether they believe it or not, has a little bit of Emmanuel, God within them. Christ walks in the hearts and actions of others, and ministers through those who do an do not know him. We've felt Emmanuel - Christ with us and we celebrate.

Merry Christmas from the Book-Satterlees. Celebrate. Contemplate. Prepare.

Still here...

2010-12-01T12:12:00.000-08:00

So it has been more than a month since we posted on our blog -- oops! In the last month we have:

-- Almost collected all of the necessary documents for our visas (yea!)

-- Shared about our journey at two churches

-- Taken Eliana for her one year check up and shots as well as her first eye exam - because her right eye turns out. (She's doing well overall though we will need to visit a pediatric opthamologist in January -- but she also has developed a strong dislike for strange men in lab coats even though both her doctors were very nice!)

-- Taken on about 10 hours/week of recruiting for LAM (Kevin)

-- Met up with several different ministry partners

-- Traveled to Santa Barbara for a wedding

-- Celebrated Thanksgiving on the farm with family (Katie, Brian, Jack and Emma joined us from FL!)

Eliana has changed a lot in the past month. At the end of October she was walking, but she would choose to crawl if she ever wanted to reach something in a hurry. Now she never chooses to crawl -- even though it only takes a small breeze to cause her to fall over when walking! Her walk reminds me of a mixture of someone who is in the late stages of pregnancy, and someone who has been riding a horse all day long! Nonetheless, she perseveres and is quite quick! We are slowly transitioning to a one nap vs. two nap day (which I have mixed feelings about!) and her vocabulary is growing. Besides "mama" her best word is probably "shoes". This is fitting because she is constantly on the go. She enjoyed the visit from her cousins, holding baby Emma and playing (and fighting with) Jack.

Time seems to be going quite quickly and slowly all at the same time. Looking at our visa process it seems as if we will have a visa in hand by the end of March (at the latest). That gives us around 4 months to complete our partnership team -- we have about 25% of our monthly need left to raise. We are encouraged and challenged by this. The next step in this journey is becoming more and more clear, yet at the same time there are a lot of little things that need to fall into place.

In November I (Leah) attended a Women of Faith event. One of the keynote speakers spoke about trust. She shared that she felt for years that our greatest call in life was to love God -- but now she feels that even beyond that is learning to trust God completely, and from trust comes unfettered love for and obedience to our father. I was really impacted by what she shared. Little by little God has been teaching us to trust him, but when we feel as if we might have "arrived" life happens and we realize what areas we have been holding back for our own control. When confusion and panic are swooping down, threatening to overwhelm us, God is beside us, holding out his hand, simply asking us to trust him yet again. In my quiet time I have been reading through Proverbs and Romans. Romans 12 is one of my favorite passages. I want my life to look like the challenge Paul is laying before the believers in this chapter, and I feel like the more I trust God, the more he can give me his strength to be the person he created me to be.

Beginning Work Today

2010-10-25T09:43:00.000-07:00

I (Kevin) have done some recruiting for LAM in the past while we have been in the fundraising process. This has allowed us to stay connected with our organization and allows us to lay the foundation for the program we will be instituting in Spain. Today I begin working for them again, having taken the summer off to work solely on fundraising.

We are blessed to be able to work for LAM, and I'm thankful to have had a skillset in recruitment and strategy that allows for me to be employed part-time. Not only does it give me added focus, but we have the opportunity to be even more proactive about our time in Spain before we even get there. This for us is an incredible advantage.

The urgency to get to Spain is still high, however. Working is not easing the way, but rather makes it all the more apparent to where we are called and our desire to get there continues to grow. We are projected to be at 70% of our support goal currently, which is fantastic. About 60% of that is coming in, but the other 10% is promised. Tomorrow we set the foundations for visa acquisition in a meeting with LAM's new Vice President of Ministries. We have already begun the FBI background check required for the visa process.

Departure is next to immanent. We do not have a departure date yet, however that is coming soon. We need to raise the additional 30% of our needed funds and obtain the appropriate paperwork.

Please be praying with us as we push forward that the funds will come in and that the paperwork process will go smoothly. If you know of anybody who might be interested in meeting us and our ministry, we are always looking for partners. Please be praying for any people in your life that might wish to partner with our ministry, and to be a part of shaping and developing university students from the US, Spain and all over the globe to recognize God's call in their lives and pursue His Kingdom.

We are very excited, very motivated, and feel the blessings of urgency in our departure. Thank you for your support, be they prayer, financial, referral or all three.

One Year!

2010-10-20T14:44:00.000-07:00

On October 12th Eliana celebrated her first birthday. I know everyone always says it, but I really truly cannot believe how time flies! Friends of ours had a little baby at the end of September, and looking at her compared to Eliana I am beyond amazed at all the changes that happen in such a short amount of time. One year ago Eliana was dependent on us for EVERYTHING! She became, more or less, an extension of myself. Now, one year later she still depends on us for many things, but she is quickly and assertively finding her independence! On her birthday Grandma Joy gave her a little baby doll. The minute she saw it she reached out her arms to hold her close and began making soft cooing sounds as she snuggled her doll close. It is crazy how she takes on that motherly role even as she herself is just a baby. In Florida we visited her new little cousin, Emma, and Eliana also enjoyed holding, hugging and kissing her, although she definitely needs to be highly supervised as the gentleness factor hasn't sunk in quite yet! She takes teetering steps on her own, is constantly exploring, and crawling even quicker when she knows she is about to get into something she shouldn't. :) I treasure the times when I can sit and snuggle with her since she hardly ever stops. She loves to laugh, play peek-a-boo and be tickled. She finally is begining to love mealtimes, and beans seem to be one food that is always a hit with her. I love being her mom and am so thankful that God chose to bless our lives with our little Eliana Anai.

There We Go A-Travelin'

2010-10-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

Christmas is gearing up for the commerce-side of things, which makes me (Kevin) think about rushing Thanksgiving to make sure it doesn't get overtaken. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, so back from our trip to Houston, here are some thanks and updates.

Thankful for:
-Some new one-time donors coming on board.
-Some new monthly donors coming on board.
-Great trip down to Cupertino and LA in September (good friends, family and contacts)
-Great trip down to Cupertino (Kevin), Florida (Leah & Eliana) and Houston (all of us - good friends, family and contacts)
-The upcoming 1st birthday of Eliana (who is a great traveler!)

We are projected to be just over 70% of our goal. We have begun the FBI background check for our resident visas in Spain. We are learning patience and staying excited for what God has for us.

Things to be praying for:
-Eliana's 1st birthday
-The remaining 30% to be projected and start coming in
-Upcoming travels
-Partnership organization in Spain
-Visa process

As we return from Houston, we sing (to the tune of "Here We Come A'Carolin') There We Go A'Travelin' and we are very Thankful for where God has us.

Traveling

2010-09-08T06:53:00.000-07:00

September is a month of traveling and support-raising.

We'll be in the Bay Area and Los Angeles starting today for over a week. Then we will spend the remainder of the month planning our trip to Texas and Leah & Eliana get to go see our new niece in Florida.

Thanks for your prayers!
Kevin

Waving My Hands in Impatience

2010-09-08T06:51:00.001-07:00

Patience, they say, is a virtue. A patient person is certainly more pleasant to be around. Since Eliana is cute, and nobody could blame her, let's take her as example of impatience.

As a wee one, when Eliana is impatient she waves both arms up and down and voices her protest. It is like she is flying, and the longer she desires something like food or a toy and doesn't get it, the more violent the flapping of her hands like wings. When carrying her to someplace she wants to go, she'll all but jump out of your arms as though you couldn't possibly be walking fast enough. Little does she realize that if you put her down she doesn't really get there at all and she becomes even more upset.

August was a rather impatient month for us. I (Kevin) felt much like Eliana feels when she is impatient. While praying I'd all but wave my hands, trying to fly into ministry and fly to Spain. I'd even protest some. Then, whenever I felt God carrying us a bit closer (as indeed he has been doing) I was flapping my arms and trying to jump even further ahead.

Sometimes when Eliana gets too impatient, we will let her have her tantrum on the ground. She has trouble regulating emotion as is her age (and apparently it is still difficult to regulate impatience as an adult), so we let her cry it out for a bit and begin again. August was that way with God. Momentum slowed considerably in our efforts to get to Spain. And it was a little frustrating. So God let me have my prayer tantrum.

I'm happy to be able to take it to God in prayer and that he'll listen. I love Eliana deeply and he loves me even more than I can love Eliana. When I can calm a bit or at least really turn back, then he picks me up again and keeps going (and I'm still flapping my wings as violently as possible.)

August was a month of retooling, of understanding and of letting God provide the work. No matter how much arm-flapping Leah or I did, (or Eliana for that matter), we had to be patient. And patience truly is a virtue. It will be a lesson that we will continue to learn, I'm sure, but one that will carry us much further in our ministry than if we just flapped our wings and got whatever we want when we want.

So August was a tougher month for us (in terms of getting to Spain). September, however, is turning out to have a great deal of momentum, and a great deal of travel. I am thankful that God has not let me had my spiritual tantrum for too long and is again carrying us forward.

Not Entitled, Gifted

2010-08-20T10:35:00.000-07:00

I (Kevin) have been learning lately that we are not entitled to be missionaries, but that this call is a gift. Sure it is in line with what we want, and God has blessed us by giving us an opportunity to serve him in this capacity. Sure we've worked hard to get here, and have more work to go before we actually make it to the field, but all that work happens because we were gifted the opportunities to work.

Sometimes I'm impatient, and want to be in Spain NOW, but remembering that I'm not entitled to being in Spain, but that it is a gift allows me to step back, release the anxiety and impatience and continue working all the more in great confidence.

Grieving

2010-08-02T21:37:00.000-07:00

As I sit in bed and listen to my sweet baby's breathing as she sleeps I long to sweep her into my arms and hold her and never let go. I feel overwhelmed with sadness and find myself fighting back irrational fears of what might happen to my family. Over the weekend missionary friends of ours lost their nearly two year old son as he died suddenly in his sleep. I feel numb and broken, unable to even begin to think of all the emotions that our friends must be facing right now. They had just come back to the States after a three year term in a very challenging country, weary and heavy laden, needing rest. Now this. Please join me in praying for their family.

Buying to Dress Spanish

2010-07-31T16:03:00.000-07:00

Today is sale day at JC Penny's and we happen to have a beloved cousin who works there with extra fun discounts. Today we also researched typical wear for life in Spain. One thing that is astronomical is the clothing cost in Spain, sometimes up to three times as much! So we decided to aprovechar (take advantage of) the local, cheaper consumerism.

In Spain, unless we're on the beach...
...Kevin trades flip-flops for leather shoes with rubber bottoms (so every site advises). Check (already owned).
...Kevin trades t-shirts for collared shirts - polos, short-sleeve and long-sleeve button downs. Check.
...we trade shorts for slacks (Kevin) or skirts (Leah)...not the other way around. Check.
...we keep jeans on more relaxed days. CHECK (phew).
...we trade in windbreaker jackets for something nicer...fur coat (Leah) and leather (Kevin). Sucks to the animals. No Check.
...we trade cute baby clothes for the very same cute baby clothes (sometimes 3-4 times more). Check.

Our work in Spain will put us in the position of meeting a diverse mix of people...
...university students - (probably) nerds, budding anarchists, entrepreneurs, and the who knows what I want to do folk. For this group: younger wear, but not too young.
...older folk (as in older than university students) - ministry professionals, business professionals, professors, shop owners, immigration and other government officials. For this group: nice shirt, slacks and possibly a tie (Kevin), elegant and "autumn colors" dress or skirt and top (Leah).
...multi-cultural - North African Muslims, Latin Americans, West Africans, Romanians, Russians, Western Europeans, USAmericans, and probably many others. For this group: nicer clothes rather than casuals.

And those vacations to the mountains, something active. To the beach - FLIP-FLOPS & SHORTS!!! (Boy will we miss those!)

So after today, we didn't get everything, but hopefully enough to begin fitting in. We won't have the hottest Spanish brand names, but as long as they fit well, then we should be just fine.

Water Skiing, Driving a Stick, & Getting Started in Ministry

2010-07-29T15:51:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it is hard to think that we're just getting started in our missions career. Our feet have yet to plant down in Spain as a place we are going to live and minister, yet while we have barely just begun, we are also well within our missions career.

Preparation for new ventures, practice and good training are all necessary. Currently we are with Leah's grandmother on the Sacramento Delta. At grandma's we go water skiing. Leah grew up skiing, and so it is not too difficult for her to pop up and begin skiing away. (It is a bit difficult for her to want to get in the cold water though.) Kevin, however has been water skiing one time before this. Last time he got up two times out of many, many attempts. He's no expert, though he's had good training, learned how to persevere through frustrations and keep going. If he had all summer to water ski, he'd be up in a flash.

It is kind of like driving a stick for the first time. The fluidity of the car is jerky at best and stalled out many times at worst. Kevin remembers when he saw smoke billowing from the first truck he ever attempted to learn a manual on. The most frustrating thing is from idle to movement. Lurching and lurching, a new driver looks like their listening to a bad heavy metal song in the car. And the person along side him or her has one hand on the dash and the other holding their eyes from popping out of their head. Kevin has little problem driving a manual now. The investment of learning paid off.

Such is the life of starting with missions. It is bumpy and rocky at first, especially for one's faith and motivation. But as we have learned, going through it is a normal process. Instead of being career missionaries in a year, we're approaching year two. We are encouraged by the fact, like when recounting stories of "when I first drove a stick...," missionaries tell us that their missions career was not some fluid thing right off the bat. Few people begin water skiing by popping up out of the water in the first crack, and few missionaries get to the field that way. Those however, that continue through the bumps trials and practice well tend to have a skill for life that accomplishes future bumps down the road.

World Cup Champions

2010-07-12T16:26:00.000-07:00

We are very excited and proud of the Spanish soccer team. It was very exciting to see our future homeland win the world cup, the first time they'd ever done so. They are a patient team, passing (almost incessantly) around their obstacles, setting up some good shots. When they miss a shot, they continue their game, trying not to be phased. The Netherlands phased them a few times, and for short periods Spain's game was off, but eventually they went back to the fundamentals and continued forward.

It was a blast to see the Spanish royalty standing and celebrating.

(Before proceeding, we are very sorry to have seen the US team come home early. They played hard, and they will - for Kevin at least - be the World Cup choice. In four years, let's move to the quarters boys!)

As I write this I see our Lord and King standing and celebrating.

Patience in getting to Spain, in getting into the ministry there can be quite draining. The process has been two years since we came home from our year in Mexico. Small obstacles have slowed us, sometimes ourselves being the very obstacles we have had to overcome. We've learned how to work together more, work with our organization better and work with those in our lives who care for us and want to see our cleats in Spanish soil. This is very encouraging and little by little, we move on towards the goal, confident.

Spain had to go into overtime to beat the Netherlands. We ourselves are approaching overtime minutes, but we have not let it get to us, but rather are allowing what we've learned before assist us in what we do now. Unlike the World Cup Final game, overtime is for as long as God decides. No shoot-out and no loss. We win as we are patient. The Lord is more than our monarchy cheering us on from the stands. He is our coach, directing us. He is our captain who muddies his cleats alongside of us.

We are pressing ever-forward and are looking at about being 60% of the way there. That is a big increase for us in the past months and the horizon looks bright. Where the sun dropped in South Africa for our Spanish team, the sun is rising all the more on us, and the future looks brighter in regards to our departure. We don't know yet how far off the light at the end of the tunnel is, but we're running and it is in sight.

The Spanish team returned home to a fanfare and incredibly warm welcome. We know we are being sent off in the same fashion. 40% to go, and it is getting closer to 100% every day. Then, we as a family, will arrive on Spanish soil, just a few months after the Spanish soccer team brought home with them the golden World Cup.

Summer Food

2010-07-08T15:43:00.000-07:00

My nephew Jack enjoying some delicious strawberries!

For those of you who received our latest newsletter, you might have noticed that one of my updates was about the delicious summer garden that we are privileged to partake of living here at the farm. Although my dad is a farmer, his green thumb does not seem to have been handed down to me. I have not had nearly as much luck in my attempts to grow things (though I admit those attempts are few) as I would have liked. However, one of the many things that we are blessed by living here on the farm is fresh produce provided by two amazing gardners, my aunt and my father. I am in charge of cooking meals on the week days, and during the summer my menu is mainly decided by whatever we have the most of in the garden. One of my most difficult tasks, however, is deciding what to make. I look at all the good ingredients and have a hard time deciding how they should all go together. So...if anyone has ideas about yummy summer meals that include things like eggplant, summer squash, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, cucumber, corn or lettuce pass them my way!

And on the eating track...Eliana is really not very interested in food, she's all about the nursing. Thus far the only two things she really enjoys are bananas and yogurt. I have been trying to introduce her to different foods, but she almost always rejects them by her overactive gag reflex -- should some of that food actually make its way into her mouth (I make and test the foods before I give them to her, they taste good to me) -- or by simply turning her head away. I really don't want mealtime to be a battle. If anyone has any ideas about enticing a 9 month old to eat I am also open to those ideas!

Swimming!

2010-06-29T11:40:00.000-07:00

The summer heat has finally set in, and after spending the last two summers in Mexico City where the average temperature tends to be in the 70s with rain almost every afternoon, the Book-Satterlees are in adjustment! One element of the heat that Eliana is, however, thoroughly enjoying, is pool time. Though she wasn't a huge fan of the beach, she really likes the swimming pool. Kevin, as a former swim teacher, is excited that his daughter likes to swim. Recently Grandma Joy (also a former swim teacher) has been coming to take her for after dinner dips. :)

Ministry, World Cup and Faith

2010-06-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

Leah, Eliana and I had the opportunity to spend the weekend with Leah's sister Stacy and our brother-in-law, Nick, at their YoungLife camp ministry in Eastern Oregon. It was a delightful time to just hang out with family and get to experience their ministry, but on top of that, I grew all the more excited to jump into ministry.

And this morning, as I write, I wait for one of my most awaited World Cup games to begin. Spain verses Switzerland. I was not a huge soccer fan before going to Mexico, however enculturation and ministry necessitated a growing interest in futbol or soccer. Now I'm hooked, which is good, because it is just as important in Spain, if not more, than it is in Mexico. I now root strongly for 3 teams, the US, Mexico and Spain. (If the US plays either Mexico or Spain, I'll continue rooting for the US).

Such a small thing as a World Cup game brings me all the more closer emotionally to the country in which God has called us. Little by little, nostalgia grows for a country and people I barely know. With every kick, potential goal, and (hopefully not) loss, I grow a bit closer to the culture. It will be a reference point for which I can begin conversations and build relationships with.

Now the problem is getting there. The Lord has seen it fit for us to be able to watch the entire outcome of the World Cup before we get to Spain, which means we will not be able to celebrate with Spain or grieve with them, depending on their outcome in the tournament. So we wait, patiently (and not so patiently) in action. We are preparing our hearts, growing more excited and also releasing more of our family's life to Him who guides us.

This proves to be difficult, as our own ambition and excitement sometimes elbows faith out of the way, but this growth in patience and trust will also be such an asset when we minister in Spain and especially as we mentor and guide future missionaries in the Spearhead-Spain program.

So where are we at? Our plan is to push on fundraising until the end of July, and evaluate where we are at that point. If we are at 80% we are close to going and can begin the visa application process and make some firm dates for leaving. Currently we are projecting to be at about 54% and growing with about 35% coming into LAM at this time. This very day our boss is meeting with a Spanish ministry who could be our potential sponsor. We hope the partnership can be formed. If it is, we should know soon which city we'll be headed to and can begin to dream further.

As the Spanish soccer players stand, hands folded behind their backs, singing the national anthem of Spain, I embark in preparation (fun preparation!!) to connect all the more with the people that we will be ministering with. And for this next hour and a half, ministry, the World Cup and faith all get wrapped into the life of preparation.

"Daddy, do I live anywhere?"

2010-05-28T10:45:00.000-07:00

So of course Eliana cannot actually ask this question yet, however, sometimes, as we strap her in her car seat or sit her on our laps in the plane, her eyes ask this very question. "Daddy, do I live anywhere?" "Daddy, is my life always going to be this mobile?" Poor kiddo.

We've had a voracious travel schedule the past few weeks and a busy month beginning in the end of April that will carry on mid-way through June. And Eliana has championed her car-seat throne, the laps of both mommy and daddy on the plane and braved the new beds. We've been in the Bay Area at least 4 times, she's been to D.C. to meet a future "P-girl baby friend" and she got to meet her Mexico family in Cancun and D.F. Tio Saul came out for a visit to San Francisco and the farm, and soon we head to Lodi for her Grand-Pop's funeral (he lived to almost 91). She'll meet Aunt Melanie, Uncle Mark and will adore her cousin Lexi. Currently her Aunt Katie and Cousin Jack are here visiting and we'll all be heading up to Oregon (7 hour drive or more) to see Aunt Stacy and Uncle Nick at family camp.

In this time, if she could count, Eliana will have slept, at the minimum, in 12 beds (usually she transfers from the bed she's in by herself to the one we are sleeping in).

Eliana has had spring weather that changed to winter rain instead of summer heat. Then she found incredible humidity at the coast of the Yucatan, and great heat to boot. In Mexico City, she endured an uncharacteristically warm time there, where we all tried to sleep without sweating, to return to the Bay Area and Chico where it is cold and rainy.

"Daddy, do I live anywhere?" What a question to try to answer, and in ways the poor little one can understand. She is in our arms through the change, and she rides each change out incredibly. We've been blessed with a flexible daughter. Eliana begins her life, before we even reach the field, as a missionary, but what, at least we hope, sustains her through the many changes is the incredible amount of love she receives in each place and the comfort of her mommy and daddy's arms.

"God, do I live anywhere?" I have to ask. We have a place we call home in Chico, but we know that it is only very temporary. Lately we've spent more time away from Chico than we have at it. We are very comforted by the loving reception of our friends and family and by the secure arms of our God who guides us and holds us through the changes.

Two Big Milestones for Kevin

2010-04-29T10:53:00.000-07:00

This past week I (Kevin) have had two big milestones. I completed my Master's Degree, pending a good grade on my paper and the $4 library overdue fee I garnered. And I will be recommended for the next stage in the ordination process to happen in the first weekend of June. These two things have been very encouraging and I wanted to thank everybody who has been there supporting me through it. A number of people have been involved in my 6-year education venture and others have been involved in my ordination process. Thanks for the support!

The "Swing" of Following the Call

2010-04-13T20:07:00.000-07:00

Leah and I just watched a Bones episode where my favorite character - Hodgins - takes another character - Angela - out on a date to the park for a swing ride. How fun. Swings are fun. They get less exhilerating as I get older, but there is still some silly fun to be had. Up and down and up. Momentum is built by a push and others by sheer work of pumping your legs.

The time of support-raising is like a lengthy swing ride. We have our ups and our downs. At times we feel like we are soaring, not even having to move our legs and other times it seems that the hinges of our knees don't create enough momentum to pump. Sometimes it feels like we have an incredible cosmic push and other times like a cosmic weight teathered by a cosmic force of gravity.

Some days it feels like both!

No matter how much you are swinging, however, the view remains. Sometimes its a view from 10 feet up in the air, which you catch for a momentary gleam and others it is the view from below.

The swing is the beat of life with its starts, stops and ups and downs. Life is full of ups and downs and weights and freedom. We have the opportunity sit in the swing and see the view from whatever angle. We are called, and whether swinging at the top or sitting low at the bottom, we see the Kingdom we've been called to and we gain experiencing in trusting God in the incredible ride, and trusting God even more in patience as we sit and wait at the bottom of the swing.

So God has taken us on a date to the swing. And like in Bones, a swing for a date is just a very fine date indeed.

Our little Easter Bunny!

2010-04-05T20:45:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter from the Book-Satterlees

2010-04-04T20:20:00.000-07:00

The life, death, resurrection and God's sending of the disciples is why we go to Spain. We've been called to vocational ministry as missionaries. While we're not yet in Spain we got to enjoy Easter Sunday with family here.

I, (Kevin), was thinking that every Sunday is an Easter celebration. What a great thing to be a part of week after week. And we have been charged to go into the world and make disciples. For many that charge is within their local work environement. For us that is in Spain and we are ever mindful of that call as we hope and pray and watch God bring us closer and closer.

An increasing agnosticism in Spain means that Easter is increasingly irrelevant there. I'm reminded again today, however, that Easter is not irrelevant. And we look with great anticipation to be working alongside believers in Spain to show that what a resurrection people look like.

He is Risen...The Lord is Risen indeed!

On a related note, our friends in Spain have finally gotten their gas turned on 6 weeks after having moved into their apartment. 6 weeks! That is normal from what I've seen. Madrid winters aren't harsh, but they definitely require heat. That said, we are reminded, even from this little anecdote, it is best to move in the summer. We of course are ready to go as soon as possible.

Please join us in prayer this month to see the support come in abounding and that relationships on the other end of the pond (the Atlantic) would be formed and solidified that we could go in enough time to where if we have to wait for the gas to come on, that we wouldn't freeze and Eliana would not have to take frozen baths.

Happy Easter!

Finding Our True Natures

2010-03-25T09:54:00.000-07:00

Recently I (Kevin) gave a seminar at Biola regarding the Spirituality of Mission. In it, I used Teresa of Avila (a Spanish mystic) and her book Interior Castle also known as Mansions. The premise of the book is to go deeper into self to find God truly at the center. Therefore the true self is a God-centered and directed self.

Paul talks about wanting less of me and more of Him, which is essentially moving "self" as percieved in our own importance out of the center to make room and ultimately find God at the center. Effectively, people place their face and their self-understanding in the center like pasting a picture over God's face.

The move from self is disorienting, and often called the Dark Night of the Soul - a piece coined by John of the Cross (one of Teresa of Avila's proteges). The transition of self as the center to recognizing God as the center and really understanding the true self is like culture shock. The very image of self that was built up is altered and often not so recognizeable.

Yesterday hit a moment where Leah and I recognized our own frailty in the plans of God. It was disorienting and a bit depressing. We felt "out of control" in the whole support-raising and life thing. Our nature of our selves was pulled from the center and God exposed his true nature, but that isn't always easy.

Isaiah was petrified to enter the presence of God. The glory of God is awesome and amazing, but also a bit scary. The lack of control one really gets to see is also scary. We, like Isaiah, were brought to our knees. "God, why is this taking so long?" "Did we hear you right?"

Indeed we did. Every support-raiser knows the cycle of excitement, joy, anxiety and a testing of faith. It is a place where we can explore God at the center rather than our own image. Too often when we get comfortable we begin to put our self-importance first. It takes trials and joys to remember who truly is at the center and who God really made us to be. He has made us to be missionaries, but not ones that goes with our own success.

Mother Teresa is noted to have not truly felt the presence of God for a number of years. Her Dark Night was extensive, yet she was secure enough in who God was at the center that she continued to follow. She loved because that is who God made her to be, but she still had to adjust to that person.

I cherrish the moment of disorientation because, while it doesn't feel good, I like to be reminded of my frailty. God's call on our lives is much more important and daunting than Leah's and my call on our own lives. While they may look the same, the call to be missionaries to Spain is much deeper in God's call and he needs us to go deeper to find him and find who he has truly made us to be. And then, here's the cool part, out of our frailty God works and uses us to complete the deeper calling he has.

Without times of frailty, without disorientation, without some frustrated expectations, Leah and I would be tempted to follow the Spain call that we put on ourselves. Yesterday reminded me that we get a chance to participate in the Spain calling that God has for us.

Points of prayer:
- The 31st is the day Kevin's contract runs out for his job. We need wisdom in the type of employment for an income that will be sufficient for paying the bills.
- Time management. We need wisdom to get normal tasks done amidst the deregulating travel schedule. We are learning to be more and more flexible, but have an innate desire to rooted and order.

Points of praise & thanksgiving:
- We have been taken care of up until now and have faith God will continue it. Conventional wisdom suggests that we need to build a nest egg. This is wise, but true hope is not in the nest egg, but God's provision. We've been provided for along the way. Special praise and thanksgiving for Dan, Lillian and Lawrence who have graciously accepted us into their home for even longer than we'd all thought.
- Support is coming in, and while our projections for support looked different than the actual, we are very blessed by the generousity of so many people.
- Eliana is a champion traveler, making the disordered lifestyle much more manageable.
- God is moving within our family deepening Leah, Kevin and growing Eliana. Family will be our main ministry wherever we go and we give thanks that God loves us enough to challenge us and let us celebrate.

Lenten Reflections - Close to Home

2010-03-23T09:29:00.000-07:00

We are in the season of Lent - a time of preparation of our Lord's death, and also a time of hope because of his resurrection. We fast and do without (or at least some do, I missed it this year), in understanding the austerity of the life of God born Man and his sacrifice and redemption. We take this time to lean more on him.

Reflections of death are a little too close to home this year for comfort, but then again Jesus did not ask us to be comfortable. Today, March 23, 2010, should have been my father's 57th birthday. It was Easter of last year, Resurrection Sunday, that he passed away riding his Harley. He went doing what he loved, and nobody else was hurt, he didn't even have an accident. For that we are thankful.

In this time of Lent, and on this day, I (Kevin) reflect upon death in a new, confused yet hopeful light. In the Eucharist, we remember Christ's death and resurrection. So Lent is a time of reflection, and while death is deeply disturbing to our very souls, resurrection is hope.

I take this day as a day to remember my father. His death is deeply disturbing to my soul, but his memory and the man whom he was in his successes and failures gives me good hope. I can be sad, but still rejoice. This to me is the tension of Lent, now brought a little too close to home.

It is the tension of the Gospel - hope through death, joy in a contrite spirit, the loss of loved ones but being secure in the memory of who they are - that spells out the Kingdom of God clearly. It is for this reason that we celebrate Lent in reflection, and for us, as cross-cultural missionaries, it is our vocation to live this reflection daily to proclaim the very Kingdom of God that turns the world upside-down.

Absent but Not Absent Minded

2010-03-19T22:32:00.000-07:00

February and March have been big months for us. Hence the neglect of the blog. For those following along with our journey here, forgive us. Know that good things have come and are in the works!

We've been focusing very hard on the support-raising process, and have been speaking at some churches. We've spoken at an Episcopal Church and our home church in Oroville. This Sunday we'll be speaking at a church in Upland, CA. Good responses have been very encouraging.

Some of you might want to know where we are at in the support-raising process. We're at a place in the hand of God. (Oh...you wanted to know the percentage? We are projecting about 45-50% currently)

Support-raising, for most missionaries, is the least enjoyable part of the ministry. For us, I would say it is also the least enjoyable part of the ministry. But, if the least enjoyable is as fruitful as it is spiritually, then bring on the fun stuff. You see, in hard economic times, who knows where the money will come from, let alone for Spain (God, couldn't you have called us to a place where we could live off of a few bucks a day, not to where the Euro is dominating the dollar?), but we've been in a place to see God truly provide.

It's not like everyday is some peaceful day at rest in the palm of God, but 5 out of 7 days of the week truly are days of rest and anxiety-free. We do our part, we act and work as we are able, fervently connecting with folks and speaking at churches, but God has directed. It is amazing to walk into a church, of course hoping that some people will support you, and yet being at peace that God will have it taken care of, even if nobody is willing or able to support.

It is a time of great blessing and great stretching, and both times are generally anxiety free when we are resting on Him who has sent us.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-13T21:02:00.000-08:00

Hoping everyone has a fun day, and gets to spend it with the ones they love! :)

Home again, home again, jiggity jig...

2010-01-28T13:47:00.000-08:00

Well, we are finally back from our LA trip, thanks for all those who prayed for us. We had a fabulous time connecting with old friends and supporters. Eliana was a star, for the many, many, many hours we drove she really only had two small melt downs, and one of them was during the last fifteen minutes on our way home. Thanks to all those who took time out of their week to hang out with us, it really meant a lot to be able to connect with those who really formed our first community as a married couple. Here are a few pics from the week...

This is just a smattering of our trip, there were many more beautiful faces we got to see. To all of you we love you!

First Leg, Check!

2010-01-16T21:25:00.000-08:00

Thanks for your prayers, the first part of our journey went well, Eliana was an excellent passenger! We will be spending a lot more time in the car and with friends this week, so please continue to pray! :)

On our way to LA!

2010-01-15T07:07:00.000-08:00

This morning Kevin, Eliana and I will be embarking on a 10 day adventure to the Los Angeles where we will be visiting friends and support raising. Please pray for a happy baby since she is going to be getting a LOT of car time, and peaceful parents! Please also be praying that the other details of the trip will work out -- and that we will have safe travels. Thanks!

Pray for Haiti

2010-01-13T08:26:00.000-08:00

My heart is burdened for the nation of Haiti, a country that is already suffering physically, spiritually and emotionally. Please pray for the people of Haiti, for those that have yet to be rescued from the rubble, from the families who are separated, for the aid workers who will be helping, and more than anything that God would be especially present during this difficult time. My prayer is that his comfort will be offered and felt in a way that it never has before.

1st Benchmark Met

2010-01-04T12:56:00.000-08:00

After reviewing monies coming in and monies recently promised, we are glad to announce that just a bit after our Christmas goal we can account for 20% of our needed pledges in order to go to Spain. This is fantastic and an incredible blessing.

Our next benchmark is a biggy. We'd like to be at 70% of our needed pledges by the end of February. This is another ambitious goal, but we are pressing forward and watching God's provision and timing. We have some opportunities to share with churches over the next two months. Please be praying for these fruitful times.

February contains Valentines Day, a day of celebrating love. We would like to put out a challenge for pledges as a Valentine's Day gift in loving Spain and God's work there.

If you are considering giving financially, would like to learn more about or ministry and the vision God has given us and/or are willing to make a once a week commitment to fast a meal for us, please let us know.

Also, we are trying to raise up a team of intercessors for Spain. If interested, we'd like those committed to prayer to give up one meal a month in prayer for God's work in Spain.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2010-01-02T20:08:00.000-08:00

Eliana had a great first Christmas, she was able to celebrate with her Satterlee and Book families -- it was a time we will treasure because hopefully at this time next year we will be in Spain! Smiling little Santa!

The day after Christmas Kevin headed to Urbana -- a huge missions conference held every 3 years. This year it was held in Saint Louis. He helped represent LAM and had a chance to hear some amazing speakers. It was a very confirming and inspiring time. Eliana and I had a more low-key new year celebration, we played some games with my family and then went to bed early -- still it was nice, we were glad to have Kevin home safely the next day though!

20% by Christmas - Goal Marker Number 1

2009-12-18T16:10:00.000-08:00

The last two months has seen some great surprises in the support-raising endeavor. We've had some new people come on board, and some people who are making decisions to do so. This means that we are getting closer to reaching our 1st Stage goal of 20% by Christmas. With money regularly coming in and money foreseen we are just above 15%. To make our goal will by Christmas will be tight, but we've been so encouraged by the developments.

We have been very encouraged by future support from a couple of churches, and while monthly pledges may not come in by Christmas it is very encouraging nonetheless.

This is a difficult time for many of our supporters financially, and while we have this quantitative financial goal, we also are working to drum up prayer support. A number of faithful friends and family have committed to praying for us on a regular basis, and having that support is crucial.

We are very excited to be in this process, which can be faith strengthening to say the least. We've seen God's provision both for our needs now and for our mission.

We'd love to have 3 more people/families commit to praying for us weekly, and we'd love to see the remaining 5% of our support goal by Christmas come in.

Please email us and let us know how we might be able to pray for you as well.

Lastly if you are willing, please download our BenefitBar application. For every sponsored click from a search, we get 10 cents absolutely free to our supporters. All it costs is time, and is a good way to support us financially when times are tight and an excellent way to supplement support as well. The BeniBar can be downloaded here: http://www.benefitbar.com/benefitbar/subscribe/toolbar.php?toolbarId=2715

Come Join the Book-Satterlee Clicker’s Club, and click 20 times a week. $2.00 in supplemental support goes a long way!

Blessings and Merry Christmas!

Holidays, Family and Friends...

2009-12-09T14:33:00.000-08:00

Over the past month Eliana has begun to meet some of our friends and also some of her family that lives further away, here are some of the pics....

Aunt Katie

Leah's College Roommates, the "P" Girls

Hanging with Grandma JoyCousin JackYouth Group

Great Grandpa RayCousins!

Protesting being dressed in a stocking!

Being Thankful

2009-11-24T14:09:00.000-08:00

We have so much to be thankful for as we close out this year. While not everything has been joyous or easy, the blessings have outweighed the not-so-blessings.

Things We Are Thankful For:
ELIANA ANAI BOOK-SATTERLEE - our incredibly beautiful little girl. We are thankful that she is healthy and growing. Her smile brights up a room. She is evidence of God's incredible gifts and grace.

Place to Stay - thanks to Lillian, Dan and Lawrence. We are thankful for family who has taken us in and the many family and friends who would also be willing to do so if there had been a need. We're blessed to be able to pursue our calling as intensly as we are able thanks to this blessing.

Spiritual Growth - lifegroup, new friends, connections with old friends. We have been blessed this year to keep up with friends and family across the world, each of you has helped us to grow spiritually and fortify our continued running towards our call. We are blessed by our Marrieds lifegroup and those who help pour into our marriage and family on a weekly basis.

Support - we're moving on up. We have a goal to be at 20% of needed funds by Christmas. While this goal seemed a bit tough, we've been moving closer and closer and it isn't even Thanksgiving yet. We're so blessed by the generosity. Aside from committed support many churches and individuals have agreed to meet with us to consider partnering in our ministry.

Freedom - country and religion. We can only be truly freed to minister internationally because we've been given the gift of freedom. We can prepare and pray openly without fear of persecution. We are thankful for this blessings (and remember those who are not so fortunate). We are prepared well due to education in which we've been granted the economic freedoms to pursue. We do not take these liberties lightly, and want to thank all that provide for these freedoms as we strive harder and harder to become servants of the Lord's Kingdom.

Good News - Gospel and calling. We remember this Thanksgiving that we are to live in worshipful thanks. Give thanks to the Lord! must be our cry. As we live trying to be thankful for all we have, we are freed to serve the Kingdom proclaiming the Good News with our lives.

Let us know how you are thankful this year, that we might pray for these things and celebrate with you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Little miracles: learning to live in God's gracious provision....

2009-11-12T15:59:00.000-08:00

When Kevin and I made the decision to become full-time missionaries we knew that we were going to learn how to rely on God's provision in ways we never had before. The transition to raising support full-time was a bit of a challenge. We were just coming off a year of serving in Mexico City where we had seen God move and felt his guidance quite clearly. Now we had a direction, a destination (Spain), but really no idea how we were to arrive there. It really felt like living in limbo. We were unsure of where to live, how to provide for ourselves, and how to communicate the vision that we felt God had given us for our future. We had to plant some kind of roots here as we were at the same time moving towards being on the field. Little by little we felt ourselves inching forward with our exploratory trip to Spain and our acceptance as long-term missionary candidates. God graciously gave us a place to live through my aunt and uncle (huge blessing) which relieved the burden of providing for ourselves in a significant way. We made plans that we thought would make for a smooth path towards Spain, but God has given us many surprises along the way.

One of the best surprises was the birth of our daughter, Eliana, and one of the ways we have seen God's gracious provision most clearly. We thought it made the most sense to wait till we moved to Spain to start our family, but God gave Eliana to us on his timing rather than ours! With the advent of living and providing not only for ourselves but for a child as well we knew that some things would have to change, we just weren't sure how to continue going full force todwards our goal of moving to Spain, while also finding a job to support our expanding family. After a wonderful summer in Mexico City, Kevin was offered a temporary paid position with our mission, LAM, working in mobilization. We felt overwhelmingly thankful for this opportunity, it fit with our overall goal of moving to Spain perfectly, plus it was something Kevin really enjoyed doing. During our summer in Mexico we were able to save for Eliana's hospital bill, which we knew would be significant. After her birth we realized we would need to expand our health insurance to include her as well, but felt a little overwhelmed by the added monthly cost. We knew we had one month to figure it out as Eliana was covered on my (Leah's) policy for 30 days. We decided to seek aid through applying for MediCal, a state funded health insurance program. When we went they informed us that the money we had saved up for Eliana's hospital bill would probably disqualify us for any aid. We tried to explain our situation and they cautiously advised us that perhaps there might be an opportunity for Eliana to be covered even if we were not. We walked away feeling discouraged, but slightly hopeful. On Monday we realized that our 30 days were almost up, and we had no idea how long it would be till we heard from MediCal to find out if Eliana would be covered or not. We made plans to go ahead and purchase private insurance, even if we weren't sure where the money would come from, especially knowing that soon Eli would be receiving her first round of vaccinations. Then today, Eliana's one month birthday we got a letter telling us that our claims were denied, but that Eliana would be covered!!

Eliana's name means "God has answered," and her middle name, Anai, means gracious. I feel like with our precious daughter God has answered our needs in an incredibly graciously every step of the way. He first gave us the blessing of her birth, he blessed me with great health during my birth including our time in Mexico, he provided a way for us to financially provide for her, and now, in exactly the right timing he has answered our need for health insurance. How amazing is that?! As we continue on our journey towards Spain as a family I am constantly learning how great our God is.

Fun Daddy-Daughter Moment

2009-10-26T06:59:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite parts about being a father is watching Eliana take in the world. The times when she is awake without gas discomfort, alert but without needing to eat; they are an inredible time to just stare around and take in the world. The best moment is when she's looking at me. Most of the time she's not looking at me, it seems, but through me, but then for a moment her eyes will lock on mine and we have an incredible moment of Daddy-Daughter connection.

Last night we had one of those moments. At 3:45 am, while having finished eating, I was laying with Eliana, drifting in and out of sleep. She on the other hand was alert, content and quietly taking in the world. I happened to pop my eyes open and she was looking at me! She is sooo beautiful. Snuggling in close, nose-to-nose for eskimo kisses, I began to tell her what I hope to tell her every moment I get the chance, three simple words: "I lo..."

The three simple words never came out of my mouth, for at that moment, our non-spit-up baby, decided to project her first spit-up directlly into her daddy's mouth. Yummy.

"I'll just take that as an 'I love you' Eliana," I mumbled, mouth still full of baby spit-up.

She's Here!! - Welcome Eliana Anai Book-Satterlee

2009-10-16T12:17:00.000-07:00

Eliana Anai Book-Satterlee

October 12, 2009, 9:18 am
6 lbs 6 oz, 18.5 in

We are incredibly proud to welcome Eliana into our home. She is soooo adorable. Mom and baby are doing fine, having come home from the hospital on the 14th. Our little girl has a full head of hair and long little feet attached to here skinny little legs. She's got a good set of lungs and likes to show them off whenever she's being changed.

Mama can't help but laugh at the crazy tongue.

Proud Daddy (she didn't like the beard so it had to go shortly after this was taken)

Almost a month!

2009-10-05T17:07:00.000-07:00

So I am just realizing that it has almost been a month since our last blog...I am definitely falling a little behind! Life has continued to surprise us with its fast pace, but we have been enjoying it immensely. Mid-September friends and family started arriving for my sister Stacy, and her (now) husband Nick's wedding. Below is a picture of all the "Book" cousins that have kids so far. Of course mine is still in utero, but we decided she still counts!

My dad is quite excited about all of the boys he has since all of his daughters are now officially married. For the first time ever the guys actually outnumber the girls in our family. Below all of the guys (minus my brother-in-law Brian who was still in Florida at this point) are going out early in the morning to pick up bales of hay. The weather has finally transitioned to cool, comfortable fall temps, but at this point it was still in the 100s!

Here is a pic of beautiful Stacy, the last of the Book brides, on her wedding day. Katie, Stacy and I all have September anniversaries which are each three years apart accordingly. Stacy and Nick's wedding was lovely, we all had a great time.

After all of the excitement time has seemed to come to a screeching halt, well maybe not halt but at least is moving at a very slow pace, as we await the arrival of our dauther and continue to raise support for Spain. Right now we are only a week away from our due date, October 11. However, first babies are often late, so there is no telling when this little one is going to make her grand entrance.

One of the greatest blessings for us has been that Kevin has been contracted to work for our mission, LAM, as a recruiter while we are raising support. This provides us with a small income to help with the added baby expenses. He has been contracted through the end of March, so April has become our new goal leave date for Spain. It has also been amazing to watch little by little our financial support grow. God continues to encourage us almost daily with your generosity, thank you so much!

We still have a good chunk of support to raise, however, so if you are interested in supporting us and haven't done so yet, now would be a great time! Also, if you know of a church or small group who would be interested in hearing about our mission in Spain we would love to come visit you, so just drop us an e-mail: booksatterlee@gmail.com. Thanks for everything!

Still Here

2009-09-08T14:57:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the long absence, life has actually been surprisingly busy since being back in the States. I wanted to post a link for those who are interested to a short video that our friend/co-worker Andrew made of this summer. It is a fun glimpse into Spearhead Mexico and our summer Spearheaders, who, by the way, were great! If you are interested in seeing the video just paste or click on this link: http://vimeo.com5875731.

I am now 35 weeks along and still on target for delivering a baby girl sometime on or around October 11th. It has been fun to focus on and anticipate the fact that in a very short amount of time Kevin and I will have a daughter!

In other encouraging news...Kevin has a job! One of our biggest prayer requests/concerns was to be able to find a flexible job while we are in the States to support ourselves until our full support for Spain is pledged. Kevin will be working from home, doing something he loves, and on a 4-6 month contract, perfect! God is so faithful.

The pictures below are from our trip back from Colorado when we stopped briefly at the Arches National Park in Utah (on the bottom), and Kevin's Pop-Pop's 90th birthday. We were glad to be back for this occasion (which we celebrated at the end of August). Pop-Pop is an amazing man and we feel blessed to have him. He celebrated 60 years of being in the ministry on his birthday as well.

We're Back!

2009-08-22T14:20:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday my baby sister Amy got married.

This is a picture of all four sisters, in a month, Stacy (far right) will also be getting married.

The next day our nephew, Jack, was dedicated.

We were both excited that we could be a part of these events, we flew straight from Mexico City to Colorado. After the wedding and dedication Kevin and I drove back to California with my uncle and cousin with whom we live. We split the trip into two days, which was much more endurable rather than 20 hours straight of driving! We stopped for a quick hike in the Arches National Park, which was a welcome diversion from all of the driving!

Now we are back in Northern California and diving back into life, preparing for the baby, debriefing from Mexico, focusing more intensely on support raising, and job hunting in the mean time. I, Leah, am going to be teaching junior high Spanish two hours a week for the next 10 weeks, which I am really looking forward to. My parents are also moving back to the farm in a week from Florida. It will be fun to have them near. Please continue praying for us as we have a busy couple of months ahead and we continue to readjust to a life in constant change as we continue on the road to Spain.

Baby Shower

2009-08-03T11:09:00.001-07:00

Last night our family threw us our first baby shower. It was really fun, they put a lot of time and thought into everything and it was very special and meaningful. I am posting some of my favorite pics from the party – as you can see there was a lot of laughter!

Everything was super decorated, on the top of the cake is a picture of Kevin and I, and there was even jello in the form of a baby's bottle and a sleeping baby!

A close up of some of the decorations they made for us. :)

This was the "How fast can you dress your baby" game. All of the clothes were passed to us relay style by our teams -- you can't start passing the next item of clothing till the last one is correctly placed on the baby. I won since Kevin couldn't quite figure out the snaps!

This is the "How well can the blind-folded partner feed you baby food" game. We won, though I almost threw up. The flavor was not bad, (fruit dessert or something like that) but eating at that speed something which is all mashed up for you can definitey trigger the gag reflex!

Kevin had to practice being pregnant and complete a number of tasks like this. I have to say though, his baby looks a little like a torpedo! The game ended when the watermelon started to leak onto his stomach, yuck!

Our teams dressed us as babies, I think the girls won again, although we couldn't quite get my diaper to fit correctly!

Mirna (my Mexican sister) and I, she is 14 weeks pregnant, I am 30 weeks.

Most of the group all crowded together to take a photo. I love these guys!

Prayer

2009-07-27T16:26:00.000-07:00

Please be praying as our Mexican brother-in-law, Jose's, mother just passed away. She had been having back pain since December, but it was not until just over a month ago that they diagnosed her with breast cancer. Unfortunately, by the time they diagnosed it it had already spread to her bones. In just over a month she suffered several ribs broken, as well as a femur, and her arm. They were operating on her ribs this afternoon when she passed away. Please be praying for Jose's family as he is the only one who knows the Lord, and this has been a very difficult summer for him. Tonight we will be going to her velada, which is like a viewing, but all the family will be there and they will have a little service, it will probably be an all night affair. We are also in the midst of debriefing the summer Spearheaders, so please pray we will be able to support the family while also fulfilling all of our responsibilities.

Last Week

2009-07-22T06:34:00.000-07:00

In the last blog I asked for prayer for three things, Steve Johnson's (president of LAM) visit to Spearhead, the Mission Conference Spearhead sponsored on Saturday and for Kevin's preaching on Sunday.

I am glad to report that everything went really well. Steve Johnson's visit was good, Kevin and I had a chance to sit down with him and talk a little more about our plans for Spain, and he also was able to share with the Spearheaders during our large group time. All in all everything went smoothly.

The entire week was spent in preparations for the Mission Conference, and all in all the conference seemed to be a great success. Two fun stories from the conference: 1) On Sunday at the church where Kevin preached the Pastor and his wife shared about their renewed call to go as missionaries to Africa, and their commitment to work towards that goal.

2) In the children's program we learned about what it is to be a missionary, and then focused in on three countries that missionaries from the conference represented: Pakistan, India and Morocco. The Spearheaders prepared a little lesson about the needs of each country and the Mexican missionary serving there. Afterward we made flags of each country and put the prayer requests on the back. One little boy came home telling his parents how he needed to be praying for the missionaries and then sat down and drew the flag of India as a gift for one of his friends.

The conference focused not only on illustrating the need for missionaries, but also on equipping those who feel a call to actually go.
At the end of the conference there was a concert based on a CD that our Assistant Director Wendy Der helped to sponsor called Llevame a las Naciones, or "Bring me to the Nations." The CD is a compilation of Latin artists who sing and share about missions. Proceeds fromt the disc go toward supporting Mexican missionaries who are serving overseas. If you are interested in hearing more about the disc, or possibly buying one, check out their website: http://www.dreamakerrecords.com/.

On Sunday we headed out to Ecatepec, which is north of Mexico City in the State of Mexico. Kevin did a really great job preaching. It was especially fun for me to see how much he has grown since last time he preached in Spanish. He shared about the paralytic who was lowered through the roof to Jesus, and how critical the community of faith is in bringing others to a saving knowledge of our Lord.
After he preached the pastor shared about our call to Spain, and then had all of the young people of the church come and lay hands on us and pray for us. It was a special experience that I will treasure.

So thanks for your prayers, they were a part of everything that happened here this past week and helped carry us through all the craziness. :)

Crazy Week Ahead

2009-07-13T11:53:00.000-07:00

We had a great time while my cousin Lawrence was here, he left early this morning. Some of the days we had to work, but we also had some time to sight see around the city. Because this was Lawrence's second visit we spent some time seeing sites that he hadn't visited before, but also spent time just hanging out and eating delicious Mexican food! This is a picture of us all hanging out in one of the city's fun neighhborhoods, Coyocan.

Sorry for the intermitent blogging, not having our computer definitely is putting a cramp in our style, but we are surviving. I think the two most difficult things for us are 1) Kevin likes to write every morning and all of his stories etc. are on the computer, and 2) Skype. But, like the title of the blog says, this week, and pretty much each of the f0llowing are pretty much jam-packed till the Spearheaders pack up and head back home on July 31.

In fact, if you could be praying especially for us this week there are a few big things happening that we wanted to share with you.
1. Tuesday and Wednesday the president of Latin America Mission, the mission we are
associated with, will be here to meet with Spearhead leaders as well as speak to and meet
with the Spearheaders. We are looking forward to seeing Steve, and also continuing to look
forward to when we will be on the field in Spain.
2. On Saturday Spearhead is sponsoring a missions conference for Mexicans. The Mexican
church is growing, and one of the fields that is continuing to develop is that of sending out
Mexican missionaries to the nations. I am in charge of planning the kids program, which is fun
but also a lot to think about. Please pray for a good turn out Saturday, and that more
Mexicans will be raised up and further equipped to serve God in another country.
3. On Sunday Kevin will be preaching (in Spanish) at one of the churches where we have
Spearheaders. Please pray for his preparation, especially during this crazy week, and for his
message on Sunday that God will speak through him.

Thanks for thinking of us and keeping us in your prayers, we value each one of you!

Good News and Bad

2009-07-06T17:53:00.000-07:00

So... on the fun side, my cousin Lawrence is here for a week to visit. He arrived yesterday and will be staying through Monday morning.

On the not so fun side it seems that our computer has decided to not work at all. It looks as if it is a hardware issue so we won't have a computer the rest of the time we are here in Mexico. So it may be that blog posts come a little more infrequently for the next month. It is especially a bummer for Kevin who uses our computer every day for his writing, but for both of us in regards to e-mail and general keeping in touch.

Oh well...

In other news, this week marks the first of full-time ministry for the summer Spearheaders. They graduated from their Spanish classes last Friday, which was fun. Everyone did an excellent job.

Rules for a Personal MIssion Statement and the Kingdom of God

2009-07-01T17:31:00.000-07:00

The following is the introduction to the workshop that I (Kevin) gave on clarifying personal mission.

- Everyone is called to love God and love their neighbor as themselves. There is not an exception to this. (Matthew 22:37-38)
- Throughout scripture God shows preferential treatment for the “least of these” and the poor. Every disciple, therefore must look to Christ in this example and be living a life continually that serves the poor. (Matthew 25:31-46)
- Every disciple is part of the church, and therefore each person’s personal mission must not go against that of the Bride of Christ, but be used to help the mission of the Church grow. (Romans 12:5)
- Context determines mission. One cannot abandon the rules of context for the sake of their mission, but rather, the mission must correspond to the context in which you’ve been given. (1 Corinthians 9:20)
o For instance, a married person cannot abandon his/her family physically, spiritually or emotionally and effectively carry out mission.While there are many times that creativity is needed, one must exercise that creativity with a full and good knowledge of context.

San Judas Tadeo - Saint Judas

2009-06-28T19:14:00.000-07:00

Today is the day that many celebrate Saint Judas Tadeo.

Wikipedia says: "Hoy en día, la tradición católica reconoce a San Judas Tadeo como el santo de los casos difíciles y desesperados." (Literally: Lately, the Catholic tradition has recognized Saint Judas as the saint of difficult and desperate things.)

Today we left the house and a swarm of people were carrying their figure of San Judas Tadeo, the very apostle who betrayed Jesus. This is a very strange thing for me, and quite disheartening as well. We just came off of going to the Bascilica of Guadalupe, an astounding site of religious devotion. And today millions of people went to pay honor the the saint of difficult and desperate times.

It shows very much of the need here for spiritual longing and acceptance. There is a deep need in Mexico and people turn to Saint Judas or the Santa Muerte (Saint Death) to fill those needs. God is too holy to bother it seems. Or people are happy with being the status quo sinner who need a little cosmic riches now and then.

Here is a prayer to Saint Judas:

¡Santo Apóstol San Judas, fiel siervo y amigo de Jesús!, la Iglesia te honra e
invoca universalmente, como el patrón de los casos difíciles y desesperados.
Ruega por mi, estoy solo y sin ayuda.

(My paraphrase translation)
Holy Apostle Saint Judas, faithful servant and friend of Jesus. The Church honors and invokes you universally as the patron of difficult and desperate cases. Cry out for me; I am alone and without help.

Te imploro hagas uso del privilegio especial que se te ha concedido, de socorrer
pronto y visiblemente cuando casi se ha perdido toda esperanza. Ven en mi ayuda
en esta gran necesidad, para que pueda recibir consuelo y socorro del cielo en
todas mis necesidades, tribulaciones y sufrimientos, particularmente (haga aquí
su petición), y para que pueda alabar a Dios contigo y con todos los elegidos
por siempre.

I impolore the use of your special priveledge that you conceded - the priveledge of helping (helping to pay what is due) rapidly and visibly when you had almost lost hope. Come to my aid and my great need that I might receive consolation and help from heaven in all my needs, trials and sufferings particularly (insert specific need), and that I might worship God with you and all the elect forever.

Te doy las gracias glorioso San Judas, y prometo nunca olvidarme de este gran
favor, honrarte siempre como mi patrono especial y poderoso y, con
agradecimiento hacer todo lo que pueda para fomentar tu devoción. Amén.

I give you thanks glorious Saint Judas and promise never to forget this great favor or honor you forever as my special and powerful patron and with thanksgiving will do everything I am able to foster your devotion. Amen

Forgive my poor translation skills as I'm still learning this, but that is the gist of the prayer. This is a good example of the sorrow and lonliness that people feel here, and yet believe in a God unattainable.

This prayer is also used more as a sway to get many things that people want, and it brings the heavens down to their level for their direct needs.

Yet we had a Savior who was incarnated to our level who gives us peace and good news. He helps the poor, was betrayed (by somebody mentioned above) and died, and was resurrected that we might have life and have life abundantly.

We pray for those who feel the need to pray to somebody other than God. As the fireworks of celebration occur during the night we hope that God will be recognized for the good news he brings.

Baby News

2009-06-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

So far pregnancy stuff has gone pretty smoothly here in Mexico. Everyone told me that my second trimester would be the time I felt the best, and so far that has held true. Sometimes one of the mildly frustrating parts about pregnancy here is that everyone seems to consider me to be an invalid on some level. However, there are times when that condition has its perks, on public transportation for example. People, in general, offer to give their seats to me, and I gladly accept! I find it interesting to note, however, that often it is the women who first offer me their seats, rather than men. Perhaps it is because they too have been pregnant and know it is nice to sit down rather than be jostled by the crowds -- who knows?

Because this is my first pregnancy, most of what is happening as my "panza" (belly) and my baby grow is unexpected and new. One thing that surprised me was how fun it was to feel the baby moving. I first started feeling movement a few weeks ago, but now it is much more often, and a lot stronger. It was really neat when Kevin first felt the baby move. I am sure as the baby gets bigger and has less room the movements might be more on the painful side, but for now I am enjoying it.

On Monday morning we went in for our ultrasound. Both Kevin and I were a little bit nervous, so it was good to hear the doctor say that everything is developing well and that "todo está completo." Watching the ultrasound made me think of a little fish because the baby kept going in circles. We also found out that we are expecting a little girl! I honestly had no idea what sex the baby might be, nor, to my surprise, did I really have a strong desire for either a little boy or girl. Still, when we found out it was a little girl I found my excitement mounting, not necessarily because it is a little girl, but more because this revelation made the little person growing inside of me feel even more real. Next week we will have our doctor's appointment for the month and she will look over our ultrasound and other tests I have had, so you can be praying that goes well. God has truy been answering our prayers for health for all three of us and continued development for our daughter.

Prayer For Street Youth

2009-06-13T07:40:00.000-07:00

Arriving this year in the center of town where we hold our weekly meetings and daily Spanish classes, we found also a large encampment of street children on the block right outside the doors where we meet. This is obviously something we need to be careful about, not that there has been any trouble.

One thing my friend and co-worker Andrew were talking about is an in to talking with thes guys. Yesterday we had our chance and we talked to Mario, one of the group.

It is said that if youth don't get off the street within the first week, it is likely that they won't ever get off the street. Mario has been on the street for four years. He was a curious guy, curious about the United States and for the most part pretty respectful. Residual effects from drugs, glue-sniffing and alcohol were prevalent, but he wasn't high or drunk when we talked to him.

Mario also worships the Sante Muerte otherwise knows as Saint Death. Sante Muerte is a growing trend here in Mexico. She is the patron saint of death, and since death is inescapable in the minds of many, she blesses them in the present. In effect worshipers of Sante Muerte are selling their souls.

Some people worship Sante Muerte because it is a new trend and cool to be evil. In Mario's case, it is likely that he doesn't feel he is worthy to have any other celestial being be his patron saint, let alone God or Jesus. So he settles for the best he thinks he can get.

We asked Mario how the Sante Muerte has "blessed" him as he put it. He said with drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. When pressed, he admited that she only blessed him, "mas o menos" (more or less). Andrew suggested that God loves him, whereas the Sante Muerte wants only to consume him. He nodded a very non-commital nod.

I am very grateful for the blessings that I have been given in life, but they have not really prepared me to empathize or to understand Mario. That doesn't mean I'm counted out of the ministry of reconciliation that Paul writes in II Corinthians 5. What it does mean is that I need to turn more then towards God.

I'm studying a spirituality of mission - i.e. how spirituality effects the action of Christian mission. In this case, I'm totally dependent upon God to become at the very least empathetic. Spirituality is a connection with God, but also as he has commanded his followers, is to love others as well. Relationships, in effect then are spiritual, not in a pantheistic, relativistic way, but rather driven by the original loving God. Mario and I shook hands upon saying goodbye. That was a spiritual act as I am overcoming my own insecurities by taking the dirty hands. I'm overcoming my own fear by having at the very least somebody I pray for and am beginning to care about.

Birthday in Mexico

2009-06-08T09:20:00.000-07:00

Feliz Cumpleaños a mí.

Yesterday was a fun and relaxing day of celebration. Woke up to one of my favorite Mexican breakfasts, chilequiles and a cup of coffee. I chatted with Mom and Jen, which was good. Leah and I went to the Zocalo where we walked around for a while and then she beat me (ON MY BIRTHDAY) at a game of cards at one of my favorite coffee shops here in D.F. After that the family shared some great food and we went off to our church from last year. It was a blessing to be able to connect with people then. We came home to find our family still all at the house and the boys played some video games, until I finally went to bed.

All in all it was a great birthday. And in good Spanish grammar, I now have 28 years.

Spearhead Orientation

2009-06-06T15:37:00.000-07:00

This week has been a busy week, full of excitement, and a lot of work. Wednesday (almost) all of our summer Spearheaders arrived, one girl's flight ended up being cancelled then rescheduled -- she finally arrived around 5:30 am on Thursday morning. But by Thursday breakfast we had everyone together, 14 in total. Thursday and Friday are spent giving the students a whirlwind introduction to Mexican culture and life as well as giving them seminars which will hopefully be helpful for their summer ministries. In the picture below Kevin is giving a talk on "What to do if you don't speak Spanish". The Spearheaders come with varying language abilities from none to quite a lot...and since Kevin remembers what it was to come with none, he has given this talk for the past couple summers.

I am really excited about the families and churches the students will be working with this summer, as well as the group of Spearheaders who have come. Below you can see us (almost all, a couple people are being blocked) taking our "funny" picture before the Mexican families came to pickup their students. Paul, the director, is the one hanging upside down. :)

Before the families came each team prayed for the roommate pairs. Two people, one a boy and one a girl will be living on their own with their Mexican family.

So the summer has "officially" begun. It is hard for me to believe that Kevin and I are already approaching the one month mark back here in Mexico City. I have a feeling the next couple of months will just whiz by. I hope to treasure each moment and live it to the fullest, but I am also excited to come to the end of the summer and to be able to look back on what God has done. Please be praying for each of the Spearheaders in their first weekend with their Mexican families. We will keep you posted on further events.

Tomorrow the Students Come

2009-06-02T21:02:00.000-07:00

It is 11:02 the night before the students come. We've had a long day of preparations and the culmination of our prep work these past few weeks begins tomorrow as the first flights arrive at 12:30. We're very excited to have the students here this summer and we know how much they will learn.

Please be praying for safe travels tomorrow and for a packed orientation time that will afford us little sleep, but hopefully a lot of fun.

The summer just begins.

Compelled

2009-05-30T08:04:00.000-07:00

Our summer theme is based on 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 this year, and it is "Compelled". We're compelled by the love of God.

What is it that we are to be compelled to? Living out the Kingdom of God. Sharing the good news, relieving suffering by being willing to take on suffering, and by making human those who are discarded.

We get to be ambassadors, who then are charged to act in the interest of the Kingdom that the master would model. (See Jesus for President for some ideas).

We are very excited to be, while growing in our position as international ambassadors for the Kingdom of God, to be able to help train up and grow others.

Already this time in Mexico City has been a confirmation on our career calling to begin this program Spearhead in Spain.

Less than a week!

2009-05-29T08:04:00.000-07:00

Next Wednesday the summer Spearheaders arrive! There is a lot to get done before everyone gets here, but we are very excited for them to come. On Wednesday when they arrive we will be with everyone for three days at the Casa de los Amigos, a hostel where we have had our orientation the last few years. After the students are oriented on Saturday we will send them off with their families for their first venture into Mexico City, fun!

On a side note it has been quite hot here, which is actually unusual for this time of year, because this is the rainy season. Plus Mexico City is located at about 7000 ft. above sea level, so the weather is usually quite temperate year round. Still, I have to admit I am thankful to be enduring this heat rather than the heat in Chico, (where there is no rain and it is a lot hotter!). One of the things I really like about the heat here is that it helps our clothes to dry out faster and since we usually only have about one day a week for laundry, this is critical. :)

Please be praying for us as we continue our last push of preparing everything before the Spearheaders arrive, and for the Spearheaders as they prepare for the summer. Thanks!

Compassion

2009-05-25T10:12:00.000-07:00

On Sunday morning we went to hear our friend Michelle (pictured below -- she's the face in the middle) preach.
We first met Michelle in 2007 when we came to Mexico for the first time, she was part of our year team. During a retreat we had over the course of the year when we had to describe ourselves through a picture, Michelle drew herself as a bleeding heart. She is someone who truly has a heart for those who are lost, for the forgotten and ignored. While in Mexico, Michelle, who is a teacher, worked at a Compassion International project on the outside of Mexico city. When our first year drew to a close, Michelle decided that God was calling her to a second year in Mexico instead of going home. As a friend it is so amazing to see how much God has worked in and through Michelle the past couple of years. I feel like one of the greatest lessons he has taught her was expressed through her sermon on Sunday, and that is compassion. It was so good in fact, that I wanted to share some of the highlights here on our blog. I feel like the lesson God has been teaching her is one we all need to hear.

Michelle reminded us that as children of God we are to reflect our father, just like when people look at us here they are often reminded of how we look like our earthly parents. One of our Father God's most astounding attributes is his compassion. Michelle reminded us that to truly be compassionate as our Father is compassionate we must first SEE, then FEEL, and last but certainly not least, ACT. We cannot be compassionate if we do not incorporate each of these elements, we must see the world as God sees it, allow our hearts to be moved by the things that move the heart of our Father, and then act as our Lord did when he was here on earth.

I want to leave you with the verses from Isaiah which intially brought Michelle to Mexico, and which were the theme for last year's Spearhead program: Isaiah 58:6-12. I encourage you to read and reflect on the whole chapter, it offers quite a challenge.

6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords
of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break
every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your food with the
hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with
shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe him,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and
your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness
will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be
your rear guard. 9 Then you will call, and the LORD
will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say:
Here am I. "If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk, 10 and if
you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy
the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in
the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
11 The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your
needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen
your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a
spring whose waters never fail. 12 Your people will
rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old
foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.

Visita a la Doctora and Earthquakes

2009-05-22T08:04:00.000-07:00

So, as an update to my previous post, everything went well at the doctor's office. There is a small system to learn, you go in, hand one of the receptionist people your insurance card, then sit down to wait. Later a nurse calls you in to a little stall where they weigh you and take your pressure. My nurse asked me how tall I was, but I realized I had no idea how tall I was in centimeters, so she had to measure me, which was a bit challenging because she was at least a foot shorter than me! When all the vitals are done you go back into the waiting room and wait for the doctor to call. Nydia came with Kevin and I in case we had any problems understanding her.

Everything went smoothly, the doctor basically asked me a lot of questions, and then she listened to the baby's heartbeat. For some reason every time we have gone to the midwife it takes her a couple tries to find the heartbeat, and it was no different with this doctor. It always makes me feel a little nervous till they find it, but it is always strong once we can hear it. I won't go again until a month from now, and so our ultrasound will have to wait for another few weeks since she wants us to have it closer to our next visit. I think we both were hoping for sooner, but I think it is especially hard for Kevin to wait to find out what we are having. Overall the doctor said everything looks well and that I seem to be having a normal, healthy pregnancy.

In other news, there was an earthquake today. They say it was around 5.9. We definitely felt it, although it only lasted a short time. Nothing fell off the walls or anything, and pretty much life continued on as normal, some people didn't even know there was an earthquake. However, when we read the news reports it was a good lesson in how the media tends to sensationalize everything, it was as if some major disaster had happened and everyone was extremely shaken up, which really wasn't the case at all. Oh well....

First Doctor's Appointment in Mexico

2009-05-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, Thursday, I have my first doctor's appointment. Please pray that all will go well. Hopefully sometime soon we will be having our midterm ultra sound where we will be able to find out whether we are expecting a little boy or a little girl. We appreciate your prayers so much!

Back in Mexico

2009-05-19T17:42:00.000-07:00

Nereyda, Maki and Mama

(Our Mexican & part Japanese family!)

Enjoying Mexican treats...

Kevin and Mimi

Mexican brother Saul on his motorcycle

Kevin making Agua de Jamaica
(In Mexico if you ask for water, they

ask you what kind you want -- you

have to specify if you want plain water.)

Ending Week 1 in Mexico

2009-05-16T14:31:00.000-07:00

One of the most striking things about coming back to Mexico City is that I (Kevin) feel that very little time has passed, perhaps maybe a week. The smells, sights, tastes and sounds have been so happily burned into my memory that they were not soon forgotten. The life in the city is much different than life in country, but it is a blessed life nonetheless.

We just returned from leadership training, where we learned how to be facilitators for the comming students. I am going to be a facilitator while Leah is going to assist the directors. We will be in positions encompassing the entirety of the program that we might be able to plant this program in Spain.

It has been very good so far, though it hasn't even been a week yet. Time up at a camp where we did the training was beautiful. My Spanish was not lost, and in some ways I think it actually improved. Though some vocabulary has diminished, I finally have some grammatical rules stuck in my head, that somehow between leaving and coming back, just seemed to lock into place.

I will be visiting a church where we will be placing students and as with almost any church visitation there is the possibility that I will be asked to give a sermon. In only two days! And in Spanish! Well, fortunately I had the priveledge to preach on Deuteronomy 6 when we were here last, and I've been looking that sermon over in preparation. Needless to say, I hope that I'm not put on the spot to preach come Sunday.

The food has been wonderful and I've pretty much had everything that I've missed. Chorrizo has come back to my senses for which I'm very grateful. My favorite torta (like a sandwhich) restaurant is as good as I remember it, and one of my favorite things - liquado de mamey - has blessed my lips and tastebuds as of this afternoon.

It is good to be preparing in ministry, watching the ways I might grow and stretch and be again in an intercultural context.

Ya llegamos! We made it!

2009-05-11T06:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday morning we woke up around 3:45 to begin our trek to Mexico City. We had spent the night at Leah's grandparents because we flew our of the San Francisco airport. I have to say, this was one of the easiest flying experiences I've ever had. When we arrived there was no line to check in (and we got to check two bags each for free -- something to celebrate these days!). Both of our planes were on time leaving, and both even arrived a smidge early.

Paul (the Spearhead Director here in Mexico City) picked us up from the airport and brought us to our family's house where we will be staying until August. It was so fun to see everyone again, it felt in some ways like we had never left. I think one of the hallmarks of a good friend is someone who you can pick up with easily, even if time has elapsed.

Today we will be unpacking and preparing for the Spearhead leader's training retreat which begins tomorrow at a camp outside of the city. It will be a bit of a whirlwind start, but we look forward to it.

Thanks for all of your prayers that have helped to carry us this far!

Going to Mexico

2009-05-06T22:32:00.000-07:00

Quick Update:

Today it was decided that the Spearhead Mexico program would be a go this summer, so Sunday morning Kevin and I are heading down there.

We are excited, please keep us in your prayers.

Thanks!

Leah

"I wonder if..."

2009-05-05T09:13:00.000-07:00

The song lyric by one of my favorite groups, the Five O'clock People, goes like this, "I wonder if doubt is the way to faith somehow."

"I wonder if..." is a phrase that connotes doubt without a complete lack of faith. I (Kevin) have had a lot of "I wonder if..." moments in the past month, which while not easy, seems to be a healthy place to be. Very few people enter their journey of being faithful people without this "doubt". I wonder if doubt is the way of faith somehow.

In the midst of now having to have postponed our leave-date for Mexico twice, I wonder if... seems to come up a lot in my mind. But we've seen nothing but God's provision, and it is my wondering if... that allows me to reflect on God's bounty that we've been given.

It is not fun to be in a holding pattern. It is not fun to be in the grieving process. But God has provided. It is VERY fun to be expecting a child. It is VERY fun to study with my classmates and learn all the more who God is. It is VERY fun to know that Leah and I have been called to faithfulness, and while sometimes that might be fraught with "I wonder if..." thoughts and the necessity for flexibility, doubt has almost always been my way of faith, and somehow I have seen growth.

Tomorrow is a decision day for LAM and our program Spearhead whether or not to have the program in Mexico City in light of the swine flu. After a few I wonder if... questions, we've seen God curb the problem and begin to quell the fears of people and governments around the world. Hopefully this means that the program can continue this summer in Mexico City. We await in expectation with only a little I wonder if... and we await in faith to see how God will continue to grow us in faith somehow.

Thank you for joining us in prayer for Mexico and this summer's Spearhead program.

Living in Limbo

2009-04-29T17:51:00.001-07:00

Life is continually unpredictable, however these last few weeks have been especially so. On Easter Sunday Kevin's father passed away suddenly, only a week before we were to leave for Mexico City for the summer. We were very thankful that it happened before we left so that we were able to quickly join Kevin's mother and sister. We postponed our flight, but still went forward with our plans for the summer when we saw how well Kevin's mom's community was coming around and supporting her. However, now with the swine flu epidemic going around, with Mexico City as its epicenter, life once again is up in the air. We returned to Chico for four short days last week, and are back in Cupertino. Our plan is/was (?) to fly to Mexico this next week, but we are now in limbo again trying to figure out what our next step should be. Please pray for us as all of life's events, combined with these big decisions, and the fact that Kevin has finals for his MA progarm this week, is leading to a lot of weight on our shoulders. Thanks for thinking about us.

Rich's Memorial

2009-04-20T15:26:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a difficult and special time for our family as Rich's memorial was held. The church was packed out, with many people we did not know. Many people reminded us of the legacy of generosity Rich left especially with his Harley crew and AA crew. It was great to be with friends and family and see the continued support all around. Candy's sorority and church friends have been an amazing help, providing great meals. People traveled from all over to come and celebrate Rich's life. His ashes were buried in the memorial garden at St. Jude's Episcopal Church in Cupertino, Kevin's church growing up and where Candy still attends. It is a special, simple place, fit for the quiet, non-ostentacious legacy that Rich left. We will miss him very much.

Thanks to everyone for their condolences. The supportive community around the globe is very encouraging in these times.

We could use prayer for wisdom as we make plans for Mexico and when we should go.

People as Sacrament

2009-04-16T08:49:00.000-07:00

I've (Kevin) been thinking of researching the concept of People as Sacrament for some time. After passing into this time of incredible grief alongside my family, I have seen how people really manifest Jesus. Sacrament is the celebration of a real presence of the grace of Jesus Christ. As a Methodist, I typically only see the sacraments in Baptism and the Eucharist. Having been heavily influenced by the Anabaptist tradition, I also would like to include in my own sacramentology, the foot-washing as the grace of service.

But I've seen the sacrament of people - real examples of the presence of Jesus Christ - all around us since we've been here. Some people would not call themselves Christian, but they too have been means of grace for us in these difficult times.

Grief is not over, nor should it be. But the pains of grief are tempered by the great support system of people stopping by or sending flowers, or what not. We are truly blessed, and it is this communal sacrament that will sustain our family through the trials, that we can move from the pain of grief to remembering my father and processing through grief.

Thanks to everyone who has come alongside with condolences and prayers. We appreciate it greatly.

Prayer Request

2009-04-12T18:34:00.000-07:00

Please pray for us b/c we just found out this afternoon Kevin's father passed away from a sudden heart attack. We are going to Cupertino tonight, and we would really appreciate your prayers for the next few days, for Kevin's mom and his sister, as well as for us. This is really hard and unexpected. Thank you.

Reconciliation At-one-ment - Reason why we go

2009-04-12T08:16:00.000-07:00

There is no other reason for missions or ministry than for reconcliation. Practitioners of the Gospel are agents of reconciliation, be they spiritual, emotional or physical. Likely practitioners address not one of these pieces individually, but at least two if not all three.

Today is the day we celebrate Easter, the day where reconciliation is made known. The Kingdom of God came at the Incarnation. Christ walked among people bringing physical, spiritual and emotional reconciliation, and he even called others to do the same during his lifetime. Good Friday we celebrate a portion of the atonement of God in his suffering servant sacrifice - the character of God's son highlighted in so many prophetic books.

Death would not be a reconciling even without the previous life and model of Jesus. Death is uneffective without the Resurrection, which we celebrate today. Atonement (at-one-ment) is then a composite of the person of Christ in His entirety.

Resurrection is not the culmination of who Jesus is either, and this is why we go to Spain or do ministry wherever we are. On this day, we celebrate the power over sin and even death, but we celebrate knowing that we've been sent out to be fishers of men and women. We are charged to be like Christ in the restoration and reconciliation process, carrying the Good News of spiritual, emotional and physical reconcliation.

We are very excited to be ministers to Spain where the spiritual needs for reconciliation are great. We look forward to working with immigrants and Spaniards of the failing economy there to live out a reconciled physical and emotional state thanks to Christ who says, do not worry about tomorrow, for the Lord clothes the fields and feeds the birds and loves us all the more. He so loved us that he became incarnate, lived a human life as a reconciler, died a death as a sacrificial lamb, rose to a bodily state and sent us out. We minister because of this reconciliation and we minister because of the hope of the final reconciliation at the eschaton.

As we celebrate Easter today, please celebrate that reconcilation - at-one-ment - as we prepare to be at-one-ment agents in Spain.

Expecting

2009-04-09T10:07:00.000-07:00

For those of you who read our blog, but might not have yet heard, Kevin and I are expecting our first child in October. Last week we received a bit of a jolt when we went to our first midwife's appointment and she told me that I felt a little larger than normal for 12 weeks, so I either A) had an earlier due date than we thought, or B) might have twins. I think that both options took me by surprise, but the second one kind of blew me out of the water. She ordered an ultrasound, which we went to yesterday. The ultrasound doctor right away said, "nope, only one!" I have to admit, that was a bit of a relief. While we would have gladly welcomed two, one seems a little more manageable with all of the change we have going on in our lives right now!

We still plan on going to Mexico this sumer to serve with Spearhead and further train for when we will be leading the Spearhead program in Spain. In fact, we leave in just a little over a week, crazy! We will be in Mexico City until the first week of August, when we will fly to Colorado for my sister Amy's wedding! Both of my youngest sisters are getting married this summer/fall, which is exciting and crazy all at once! After Colorado we will be flying back to California and preparing for the arrival of our child. We are still aiming to be able to move to Spain by January/February of 2010, providing all of our support is pledged.

I will leave you with one of the ultrasound photos, it was really amazing and fun to watch our baby moving around, kicking, and punching, although I still can't feel it considering he/she only weighs about 3 oz. right now!

Holy Week Reflection

2009-04-06T17:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the day our Lord rode the back of a donkey into Jerusalem. He allowed himself, finally, to be publically claimed as the Messiah and went straight to the face of the religious and political authorities with that open acceptance. It spelled trouble and he marched straight for it.

Yesterday we saw people out of the city waving palm branches and ushering their new king. Today we see that king turning over tables and calling out the religious opportunism going on in the temple.

The Kingdom of God is at hand - instituted upon the Incarnation, made an example in Christ's life and he prepares for himself is own sacrifice out of obedience. The stake of the Kingdom of God will gain ground as the nails pierce through the wood. The stake is planted with the vertical beam of the torturous instrument locking into place.

The stake is planted and the Kingdom of God is ushered in...not through triumph but through sacrifice; not through an incredible economic purse, but through sacrifice. Today marks day 2 of the traditional Holy Week in the West. Holy week is a time to reflect on the Kingdom of God. It is now, but not yet, and we have been asked, as disciples, to take up our own cross and plant a stake for the Kingdom of God - not through economic means, but sacrifice; not by grand-standing, but sacrifice.

Benefit Concert - A Very Fun Time

2009-04-06T16:57:00.000-07:00

It was so great to be able to share with our friends and family in Chico, what God has laid on our hearts to do. Katie Drake (www.katiedrakesongs.com), Leah's sister, played two great sets of relaxing music, one friend of ours called, a lullabye. Katie's passion has been music for her entire life and she got share that with us yesterday and through it she helped to share Leah's and my passion for missions. It was a great time. Of course, the name I heard thrown around the most in the audience was not Katie's, not Leah's...not mine either, but Jack, our nephew. He's a show-stealer, but who could complain about the show being stolen by such a cute little guy.

Big thanks to Katie for playing, Jack for being cute and for all those who showed up. Much credit to the Kellers, Bethany, Larry and Katie for creating such a special time to share hearts and music for God's mission.

Benefit Bar - Inaugural Month Results

2009-04-01T09:01:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the Book-Satterlee Clickers Club for raising $180 in 26 days! The Benefit Bar has been working swimmingly.

This has been a great tool for our supporters to support us for free as well as augment their gifts. We have been very encouraged by how it will help our support base monthly.

If you would like to sign up to be part of the Book-Satterlee Clickers Club and support us this way for free, please follow this link: http://www.benefitbar.com/benefitbar/subscribe/toolbar.php?toolbarId=2715

If you are a missionary or run a non-profit and you think this tool could be of use to you, let us know!

Thanks again!

COMING UP: Katie Drake (Leah's sister) holding a benefit concert for us at Matthew's Cafe in Chico, Sunday April 5th from 2:00-4:00pm. Hope to see you there!

Doing Church in Economic Crisis

2009-03-25T10:19:00.000-07:00

Howard Snyder suggests in his book Liberating the Church that 3 out of 4 churches should not own their own buildings. While I (Kevin) don't completely agree with this statement he bases the claim on some important aspects of being missional.

1. Inability to change with the community. Often churches that have a building, do so for a specific purpose, however the community changes and the resources that churches have tend not to change with it. A more flexible meeting place allows the church to mold itself to meet the needs of the community. To push back on this concept however, having rootedness in the community and shaping the community might damper the inability to change with the community.

2. Building plans and rennovations tend to divert funding. This is quite pertinent to churches now in the current economic crisis. Large building debts have hampered ministry effectiveness for the sake of being attractional rather than missional for some time. Now some churches are having to close down because their financial flexibility is ruined. This is the time when churches need to step in as the Acts church did and provide for those hurting around them, but instead they have to cut programs and govern with a tighter financial fist to keep afloat.

The church can see this time as a purging of the unnecessary and a refocus on really reaching out to the communities in which they reside. Families need help and hope. The church as Christ initiated is pitted to provide both and do so better than any politicking or policy might. It is a time to get our priorities more in line with the mission of God (missio dei) than with with the flexibility of doing church in our own power. While specific missions can vary from church to church, community to community, we all fall under the mission of God - to proclaim the Good News and to serve those whom the world rejectes.

The times are hard, especially for those in ministry, but it is a joyous time to be reframed and formatted for the mission of God. Trials and tribulations are opportunities says the Bible to mold our character. No doubt following God's mission requires greater reliance and trust on Jesus. As Christians, there is no greater time than now to cast off our fears, and join together as the Bride of Christ to follow after the call He has put on us.

Somewhere Inbetween

2009-03-25T09:57:00.000-07:00

Last week Kevin and I made a whirlwind trip to Southern California. A good chunk of our time was spent representing LAM at a missions fair, but we were also able to connect with some of our friends as well as visit our church. Every time I visit I am reminded of how much I love our friends and how much I miss them. But even as I am missing our friends in Southern California, I love being with my family here in Northern California, and am excited about some of the new friendships we are developing here. To complicate things even further, Kevin and I are both really ready to be able to start our life in Spain, and if the support were in, we would be willing to move tomorrow.

As I feel tugged in every which way, I begin to question where it is exactly that we belong, and if we will ever feel truly settled. I am neither here, nor there. Still, despite the confusion that sometimes seems to reign supreme in my life, I feel blessed that there are so many places I would like to be, and that we have so many wonderful friends.

In less than a month, April 17th to be exact, we will fly to Mexico City for the summer to serve with Spearhead. We are excited to spend time with our Mexican family again, and to be working with students. We will be returning back to Northern California in mid-August. Please be praying that this summer will be a time where our vision is sharpened and our call is deepened.

Thank you so much for your friendship and support, it is invaluable to us!

Saint Patty's Day Reflection

2009-03-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

Today is the day to celebrate Saint Patrick's Day. While many of us, including me will wake up tomorrow with welts for not wearing green, I am green with envy about this man's missionary life.

St. Patrick was a creative missionary and reconciler, two values to Leah and I, and we can learn a lot from him.

Patrick early on was captured and enslaved by pagans in Ireland and Scotland. He escaped and returned home (with another capture having faced him on the way). There he found God or rather God found him. And what did his escape and conversion mean? It meant God sent him on a mission to the very people that Patrick had been a slave for.

This is a reconciling act - God's mission. In The Confession of St. Patrick he about floats off the page with joy for the work he's been blessed to do among the pagans, the very pagans that captured him and their surrounding tribes. Patrick was a missional missionary. He went and learned from the local tribe. He imbedded himself in the local community and lived the Christian life around these tribes. This was not without danger, as there were many hostile to the Roman-perceived religion, but he rejoices constantly in his confession despite the dangers.

A great book recommendation, besides his confession, is The Celtic Way of Evangelism, in which the author describes the work of Patrick and others in their mission to the pagans in Ireland, Scotland, Britain and Wales. Identity and solidarity were crucial to the mission.

Leah and I prepare ourselves to move to Spain. Our ultimate goal is to be so imbedded in the culture that we can live in solidarity with the madrilenos. Patrick is a good model for us to follow as missionaries and a good model for all of us disciples.

God is a reconciling God and he will use our greatest pains to impact minisistry and mission. He causes us to be reconciled to our offender and through that reconciliation, he gives us the love that allows us to minister. God reveals himself through brokenness reconciled; through love of enemy; through going and living in solidarity.

To Not Try

2009-03-15T14:46:00.001-07:00

Today's sermon message was, "It is ok to fail, it is not ok to not try." This is an idea found all over scripture and it usually comes in the vein of trusting God. This is not an easy lifestyle. In our "Be Prepared" lifestyle often we deem preparation as the need to have all the ducks in a row before heading out.

I (Kevin) happen to like the Boy Scouts' motto "Be Prepared." I find it quite prudent.

That said, living this pre-missionary life teaches us a lot about Be Prepared AND Trust God philosophies of living. They need not be mutually exclusive ideas, but they need not be synonymous either.

How are we being prepared? I think for both of us, the opportunity to be spiritually ready is the number one. We have been able to devote so much to spiritual development and learning. We are preparing by learning the culture and language in which we are to minister to. We are preparing by building a support team around us as we go (we don't want our ministry to be an island). The majority of these things we can control.

But there are many things outside of our control that we've really learned to have to trust God for. We have had to trust God for a living situation - provided; we have had to trust God to continually confirm this calling - confirmed; we have had to trust God with incredible support and encouragement - provided; we have had to trust God to lead us to a ministering church - done.

And as we prepare and trust God we are set out to try. What happens if we fail? Thankfully we have the family, friends and church to support us. They are our safety net and our launchers into the grand sky of missions.

So often the amount of things that people have to trust God for is so difficult they don't try. We want to thank all of you for your encouragment and your safety net that allows us to both Be Prepared and Trust God.

Duty of Minister/Missionary

2009-03-09T10:47:00.000-07:00

I (Kevin) am in a class called Personal Transformation. It has been an amazing class, full of learning. We are currently reading a book about the anatomy of the brain and how its design for relationships is what spurs transformation.

This has great implications for ministers and missionaries. We have three brains that process data, and though they are interconnected, they work autonomously as well. While our culture often praises the Neo-cortex for its cognitive ability, it is the limbic brain that actually forms long-lasting transformation through emotional understanding.

What does this mean? It means for ministers that we can preach doctrine (statements) until we are blue in the face, but without the positive emotional attachment (please do not read emotionalism) to faith, doctrine has very little impact. That means the minister and missionary must share life in relationship with the people they minister to. Our limbic brains formulate emotional bonds almost telepathically, and these emotional bonds, while influenced by doctrine (statements) are formed through relationship.

The book talks about the "therapist" as one who must enter into the sphere of the patient, that it is limbic restructuring that provides emotional healing. This model works for formal therapy or for ministry. The minister/missionary must be willing to enter into life with the one being ministered to. This in evitably means that the minister/missionary will be the one ministered to as well, because there will be a mutual limbic exchange.

We learned through an anthropological exercise while I was in Portland, that positive limbic resonance cannot happen where superiority is involved. An easy example is ministering to (read "with") a homeless person, while not as a homeless person. Superiority makes it easy to minister to a homeless person, but horrible to be ministered to BY a homeless person. However eliminating this dichotomy and entering into a learning relationship allows then for actual, mutual ministry to take place.

When we take a look over our scripture we find God who makes statements (10 Commandments) but really enters into a transformative process with the people. He walks with Adam and Eve; he speaks directly to the Patriarchs; he comes as a cloud and pillar of fire to the wandering Israelites; he is encapsulated in the arc of the covenant. God makes himself known through the prophets and the angels.

In the New Testament God appeals to the limbic brains he created in us by becoming human, actually walking with us, not in a method of superiority, but in service. While we like to think of Jesus as the suffering servant, he allowed himself to be ministered to also. There was a mutual exchange limbically. He then left us the Spirit, who has relationship with us not in such an imperical knowledge (5 senses), but we can recognize the Spirit by our trust and experience.

Christ also gave us the equipped disciples to be physical representations of him. They made disciples and so forth and so on. We are part of the limbic resonance that effects transformation within our Christian community and without.

If the Church is to be an effective body effecting transformation, and a superiority complex effects limbic resonance between people, how then must the church view itself?