We're Leaving!

Erin and I are going to the MTC! Our last day in Oregon will be the 29th of December. We'll be spending about a week and a half in Indiana with Erin's family before actually going to training. We're looking forward to it!

It's so exciting because this is the next step for us to become missionaries! It's always a bummer having to leave the place where you have been having such great times and building relationships. We're ready though! Except for the packing, shipping, driving, unpacking.... That's the real bummer :-/

Here is the really exciting part. Awhile ago while thinking about the MTC I was roughly calculating the cost for Erin and I to be there. I tried to take everything into account - School costs, food, insurance, travel etc. I figured we would be 100% funded at around $1,500 a month. I hadn't really talked to anybody about the amount but kept it in the back of my mind as a rough goal. We didn't even expect to reach that goal because we have been saving quite a bit while here in Oregon. Well God provided in a way we didn't expect! Between Keizer Community Church (Alex's home church) and Bethel Memorial Church (Erin's home church) we have exactly $1,500 dollars of support a month! We Praise God because we know He is the One in control.

If you want to learn more about where we are headed please take a look at the previous post.


Please Pray for our Trip!

We will be driving all the way to Indiana!

MTC - The Next Phase of Training

    Our next stop in training with New Tribes Mission (NTM) will be at the Missions Training Center (MTC). This post, as previously promised, is to inform you about what it is exactly and why we are going. As most of you know Erin and I have a desire to see those who are unreached with the gospel of Christ to finally have a chance to hear and accept the good news. We are in training with NTM and have completed two years of Bible training at New Tribes Bible Institute and are now planning to attend the MTC.

Here is how NTM briefly describes the MTC.

     "The Missionary Training Center prepares you for career ministry with New Tribes Mission. Think about it: If you were given the opportunity today to plant a church in an unreached tribe, would you know where to start? Missionary training teaches you about the complex concepts involved in tribal church planting, such as understanding culture and learning language, so you can effectively communicate cross-culturally. We’re also vitally concerned about your walk with God, so that in an isolated, high-pressure environment, your relationship with God can survive and even thrive."

Here are some links if you would like more details about the MTC.

MTC General Page
Here you can read and navigate yourself through all the information NTM has to offer.

MTC Curriculum
Here you can find all the classes offered at the MTC.

MTC Cost
While at the MTC they would like the students to be able to focus fully on the training. For this reason full time jobs are not allowed and only occasionally are part time jobs allowed. This means that while at the MTC we will be relying on financial support from others and our savings from our year in Oregon.

One Year!

Erin and I have been married for one year now!

For our one year anniversary we decided (kind of last minute) to spend the weekend in a cabin in the woods, the same way we celebrated our honeymoon! It was a great trip of relaxation and enjoyment of God's creation.

Here's a picture of the cabin we stayed in on the Mckenzie river at Cedarwood Lodge.

Here is our view :-)

I managed to pull a nice 14'' native rainbow out of there Saturday afternoon :) Like I said, we got to enjoy God's creation.

We also spent a few hours on Clear Lake just up the road in a row boat. It was an amazing sight as well and I got a work out as Erin basked in the sun... or baked.

We are extremely thankful for all the different ways God has provided for us in the past year through friends, family, and jobs. We consider ourselves extremely blessed and we really are of course! Check out Eph. 1:3!

For a nearly last minute plan it was the perfect getaway for two.

    Erin and I are both looking forward to living in Oregon. We will be living in or near Keizer, OR while we spend time as a married couple outside of full time training with New Tribes Mission. We plan to be very involved with my home church, Keizer Community Church, and find full time jobs to start saving for the next part of our training to become missionaries. The next phase of training is referred to as the MTC (Missions Training Center). This training center is in Missouri. You will be hearing more about that as it gets closer.
    Erin and I have decided that we are going to ship all of our stuff out to Oregon rather than rent a u-haul or sell everything then buy it again in Oregon. It doesn't look like it's going to cost much to ship, especially compared to the $2,000 a u-haul would be.
    As our time here gets shorter and shorter it is hard to think of all our relationships we have made here with some awesome people. In December we're going to be saying goodbye to people from school, from our church here, and from our college group. Some of these people we truly may never see again until we are with Christ. It's going to be hard, but I guess there really is no better meeting place, huh? On a positive side I will again be back home with my family. Getting to see all of the exciting changes with my nieces and nephew. I'll get to spend time with my dad and brothers in the great wilderness of Oregon.I'll get to take Erin backpacking. These are just a few of the highlights...