Joshua

I'd like to share something that has been on my heart for the past few months. There is a link, over to the right, that will take you to my friend Jill's blog. It's been up for awhile, because Jill is always posting amusing stories about her kids (Caleb and Hannah), reflections on being a wife and mother, and is generally incredibly profound.

For the past few months, though, Jill has been posting updates about her son Joshua. A few months into her pregnancy, Jill and her husband Shane were told that their baby had a severe heart defect called HLHS. Jill shared this information on her blog and kept her growing audience up to date with doctor's visits, milestones reached and valleys conquered. She detailed the procedures Joshua would have to endure following his birth, fully embracing her new role as a Heart Mom.

Jill and I met in college. We worked at the library together, established one of those crazy inside jokes, and just had a good time hanging out. After college, though, I lost track of Jill. We were busy - she was a new mom, I was finishing school and trying to figure out what to do with my life. We're on the peripheral of each other's lives. I follow her on facebook and through her blog. Jill became one of my prayer supporters as I began raising support to work at OMS.

Slightly more than a month ago, Joshua was born. He is an adorable little boy. Jill posts pictures of him on facebook and twitter, and underneath the tubes and wires, you can see his sweet spirit.

He had his first surgery a week after he was born. It's been an uphill battle since then. I read about everything they have gone through, and I wonder when the mountain will stop growing. Joshua's second surgery was scheduled for February. It will now likely take place tomorrow - today, by the time I post this.

Through all of this, Jill has continued to blog. She doesn't have to. No one would blame her if she stopped. Every day, I read about her fear, pain, frustration and despair at what is happening to her little boy. But I also read about her faith - her abiding, constant faith that God will see her family through this. I read about her joy that people have been able to seek God because of Joshua. I read about her love for her husband and kids who she hasn't seen in days.

Jill is the strongest person I know. I wish I knew what was going to happen. I wish I had her faith. I wish I could be a better friend. I pray that Joshua will grow up to be a strong man, sure in the foundation of faith his mother has given him.

Pray for the doctors and nurses who care for Joshua. Pray for Jill, that she will continue to draw strength from the Father. Pray for Shane, as he is unable to be with Jill at the hospital. Pray for Caleb and Hannah, separated from their mother and brother. Pray for the lives that Joshua's story has touched already.

Pray for Joshua.

"Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exaulted in the earth." The LORD Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Psalm 46:9-11

A (Brief) Guide to One Mission Society Lingo

In the two months I've been here, I've heard so many new acronyms that sometimes I think I work for the military (minus the drill sergeants, weapons, uniforms, bad food and anything remotely resembling boot camp, of course.) In the future, I will likely use the following acronyms with frequency, so I shall endeavor to explain them now.

Radio 4VEH - This is the OMS radio station in Haiti. They have a very unique and powerful ministry.
CPM - Church Planting Movement; this is the goal of church multiplication.
ECC - Every Community for Christ, the church planting catalyst for OMS; I have been acting as an advocate for ECC in communication needs, so I've seen first-hand just how much they have been able to accomplish.
EMS - Extended Missionary Service; believe it or not, a lot of our retirees continue to serve in their golden years. Now that is dedication.
GOMB - God Owns My Business Seminar; I've not had personal experience with these, yet, but MFM (see below!) is very active in urging business owners to consider using their businesses for the kingdom.
HMA - Homeland Missionary Assignment; I could call it a vacation, but honestly, our field missionaries do a ton when they are back in their home countries.
MFM - Men for Missions; These guys mean business. Every member has work outside of his missionary service, and each takes an oath to do what God asks them to do, go where God asks them to go, and give what God asks them to give.
MSR - Missionary Support Requirement; We spend a lot of time on these, making sure missionaries have what they need to continue serving.
SEMBEC - Evangelical Biblical Seminary of Cuenca; This is an awesome school in Ecuador.
SEMBIMEX - Biblical Seminary of Mexico; Another awesome school in Mexico.
SYIS - Sharpening Your Interpersonal Skills; A workshop given occasionally to help people communicate more effectively. Also known as the bane of my existence. (It's slightly invasive.)
TCK - Third Culture Kid; Chances are, you know one or two. They were the weird kids in college who weren't interested in the latest video game or phone.

There are at least a million more, but this should give you a general idea of who and what I work with everyday.

I hope you all had a fantastic Labor Day weekend! I myself took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep and hang out with some pretty awesome people. I am discovering more and more things to do in and around Indy, which is nice because it gets me out of my apartment. Don't get me wrong, I really like my apartment - but as the only person around to talk to is myself, and as I tend to be a rather boring conversationalist, the joie de vivre factor can be a bit lacking.

Anyway.

I'm still liking my job, and the people I work with. (I have to say that, see, because they have a nasty habit of actually reading this thing.) I've had the chance to interview some pretty amazing people, so go read the website articles.

Olusegun is a pastor in Tver, Russia, who is starting a missionary school for university students. He has high hopes that when the students return to their countries, they will begin planting churches using what they learned in Tver.

Allar and Piret are from Estonia. They accidentally planted a church, and are now learning ways to be more intentional.

Did I mention just how awesome this job is?