That Lump in My Throat is Gratitude

We didn't go "home" this summer, since our daughter lacks a valid VISA allowing her to come & go. I've missed the opportunities to see family & friends, but I've also been thankful for the opportunity to remain in Prague because it's meant we could stay in one place and not have to travel so much.

A major drawback to staying overseas for a summer means that we don't get to connect with our supporting churches & sponsors. It means that there are no large one-time donations, no "love offerings" taken after we speak. It means that our support can start to dwindle.

Sometimes I wonder if some of our sponsors have forgotten about us. I know it's not intentional - I really think it's more of an "out of sight, out of mind" type of thing. Goodness knows we all have tremendous demands on our attention. Some of it is perhaps our fault too, because we've had a terrible time keeping up with this blog, and with our newsletters. (Speaking of demands on attention, have you ever tried to blog with an 8-month-old on your lap?)

When I logged in to our mission account register last month, my heart sank, because we were $1000 short of our monthly goal. I found myself thinking that if we'd been stateside, if we'd made the appearances, if I'd been more faithful with newsletters, we wouldn't have fallen short. I told myself I'd get a newsletter out the very next week, but then we started Czech class...and had friends come to visit...and I had four applications to process...

Another few weeks went by, and I'd failed to let anyone hear from us. I hadn't communicated our financial needs. I logged in mid-month, and I was crushed. We were now over $2500 behind. Again, I vowed to get a newsletter out immediately. And then we needed to say farewell to some very dear colleagues...and we had a meeting with the school director...and we had three doctors' appointments...and we had another meeting with our VISA agent...

I really didn't want to check in at the end of the month, knowing that my lack of communication was going to be reflected in our account balance. However, when I opened our ledger this month, I was astounded to see that we were only $483 short of our month's goal. There were some large, one-time gifts that had been sent in.

Once again, God has shown me that His care for us is not dependent on my striving, my shortcoming, or even my best intentions. I'm so very, very thankful. 

Denied AGAIN

Phil met our agent yesterday afternoon, for another trip to the foreign police in the ongoing quest for Susanna Jane's VISA. It was a short trip - her paperwork was denied, AGAIN.

We've been giving several possible explanations as to why her application didn't go through this time, the biggest one being that her name isn't on our lease. Yes, you did read that correctly.

I hardly have the words to describe how I'm feeling at this point. We've spent nearly 7 months in this process, we've produced countless documents (at significant cost!) for new applications, and we're back at square one.

Prayers are appreciated.

Nerozumím česky

We're in the middle of an intensive Czech class - a *very* intensive Czech class. We've had four classes so far, and I'm told we've covered at least half a semester's worth of material. I don't doubt it. I feel as though we're moving at the speed of light.

This has been a frustrating week for me, I think primarily because I'm the only person in the class who hasn't studied some Czech prior to enrolling. (Phil attended classes at CISP last fall; two of the other girls in the class have already done most of the workbook pages we've been assigned.) I'm also discouraged because I don't have the time to give it my undivided attention like I did when I studied Russian. I'd love to spend three solid hours on my homework, but I have a very busy 8-month-old (who's still nursing,) and a job with RCE.

Some have assumed I'd have an easier time with Czech because I already spoke Russian. I've been told that Czech & Russian have a 60% crossover, but I'm seriously starting to doubt this. For every word that I recognize that actually means the same thing in Czech as it did in Russian, there have to be at least 5 more that sound the same, but mean exactly the opposite. While the grammar structure is fairly similar, the verb endings are throwing me for a loop.

I'm not wanting to sound disgruntled - I'm thankful to finally have the opportunity to study! I do want to give everyone fair warning that I'm not going to come home speaking in full paragraphs. Grace is appreciated. 

The Summer Conundrum

It seems to be rare for missionary teachers to spend the summers in their countries of service. Why? Because they are usually "home" for the summers, visiting family and trying to raise support. That's certainly been our experience in the past.

The pros of going stateside for six weeks or so are fairly obvious: 

• Getting to see precious family members and dear friends
• Opportunities to reconnect with sending churches & sponsors
• Chances to buy affordable clothing, books & coffee
• Air conditioning, iced drinks & free refills

However, if we're in the US, then we're not here in the Czech Republic, which means that we miss out on the following:

• Chances to build relationships with our neighbors, co-workers & students
• Ability to assist with ongoing school improvement projects
• Engaging in summer outreach such as English camp
• Opportunities to study Czech

The decision to remain in Prague this summer was really out of our hands, since we cannot leave the EU until Susanna Jane has a long-term visa. We'd love to introduce our daughter to family members and dear friends; we'd love to visit our supporting churches and let everyone know how very thankful we are. On the other hand, it's a tremendous blessing to remain in the Czech Republic this summer, and we're looking forward to what God has in store for us here. 

Christian International School of Prague Celebrates TEN Years!

This video was shown at the CISP 10th Anniversary Celebration this past weekend. Although we've only been a part of this community for one year, we rejoice with our friends, students & co-workers in all God has provided!

A Normal Life

A dear friend of ours posted this Facebook status:

"What would it take for me to have a 'normal' life? Just curious."

and the answers she received were everything from the ubiquitous "normal is a dryer setting" to "we can't have normal lives."

The funny thing is, as a fellow missionary, her life seems perfectly normal to me. I get where she's coming from - it would be great to feel like you actually had a home in your "home country." It would be nice to be back home and not feel as though you need to constantly explain/describe/defend why you do what you do. The idea of a dependable salary seems oh-so-appealing when you've spent the majority of your home time on the road raising support, and you're still only at 42% of your goal.

My speculation is that her quest for a normal life really isn't about her wanting to trade in her calling for a desk job and a mortgage so much as it's a desire to be understood, to belong. Really, I think that's what every one of us longs for.

This is something I've been pondering a great deal as I've struggled to keep up with correspondence. "How can I compose a letter that accurately describes what we're dealing with here? How can I keep it under 5,000 words? How can I make people understand?" But I haven't really come up with an answer.

When God called us to serve overseas, it meant leaving behind what the majority of our friends & family considered to be a "normal" life, and embracing the uniqueness and the uncertainties of life in missions. While there *are* days I wish I could trade it in for a home in the suburbs and a 9-5 job which really ended at 5, most of the time I'm grateful for this tremendous opportunity to serve Him, wherever that may take us.

Round 3 (or 4? or 7?) for Susanna Jane's Visa

We really do have the best intentions to blog on a more regular basis. There are at least 10 blog posts we've started over the last 6 months which have never been published. There's nothing like a good VISA crisis to get us writing again. If you're tired of reading about our VISA woes, imagine how tired we are of dealing with them!

Christiana received a call this morning from our VISA agent, informing her that the office has once again denied Susanna Jane a long-term residency permit. Considering that we submitted the exact same documents for Susanna Jane which we used for our applications, and given the fact that we now have our long-term permits in hand, there is absolutely no reason that our daughter shouldn't also be granted a permit, but here we go again.

We've been given a 30 day extension to provide them with proof of service with RCE (again), proof of comprehensive medical insurance (again) and a copy of Susanna Jane's insurance card (again).

If, at the end of this next round of documents, they still refuse to grant our daughter her residency permit, then we'll have to hire a lawyer and begin a lengthy & costly appeal process. We have already spent more than double what we had budgeted for this process, and we really cannot afford to have this drag out any longer.

WE NEED YOUR CONTINUED PRAYERS, for many aspects of our service in Prague, and especially now as we continue to do battle at the VISA office. Thanks for standing with us.