One month and one day!

It's hard to believe that we are leaving so soon! January 11 is speeding toward us and we are SO excited!

A few things that have been happening recently:

• Through a friend at church, we found a lady who speaks Spanish, and she agreed to meet with Natalie and me. I have two semesters of Spanish under my belt, but Natalie knows only a few words, and we were quite unsure what we were getting into... It ended up being a delightful visit! The young lady we met with is from Mexico, and she was not only very helpful with the language (it was absolutely delightful to visit with a native speaker!), but she was welcoming and very kind as well! She assured me that the people in Ecuador will understand what I'm saying. :)

• Yesterday I talked with a girl from Minnesota who will be joining us in Quito on January 11. We will all travel together to Riobamba the following day. I am excited to meet Amy and to see the work that God does in and through all of us as we work together!

• Ashley's grandmother helped us get in contact with some folks in Quito who have a guesthouse. We have finalized plans with them for our stay the night of the 11th, because our flight doesn't get in until 11:30 pm!
  

Please pray for the Allan family (the directors of The Ark), the current staff at The Ark, and the orphans and abandoned children who now call The Ark "home." This has been a very difficult year financially for The Ark's ministries and personnel, but they are trusting the Lord to provide, and they are faithfully doing what God has put before them.

Please pray for us! We are thrilled with the opportunity that God has put before us, yet we understand that ministering to children who have been orphaned, rejected, abandoned, or tossed aside will not be easy. We cannot do it in our own strength. 2 Corinthians 12:9 says, "...My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness..." We believe that God will equip us to complete the work He has given us.

We are anticipating the greatness of God's work, because we all (as believers in Jesus Christ) are His chosen representatives of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:19-21 talks about this, and about the incredible work that God did through Jesus to bring us into a relationship with Him. That's why we are here! To tell a dying world about our great God, and about Jesus Christ, the mediator between God and man.