Shoes

Shoes. Shoes. And more shoes!!! All these shoes pictured will be traveling with me and a team from Living Hope to Kenya this week! We will be leaving Thursday night and arriving on Saturday to love on the sweet children at The Haven and The Fresh Start Orphanages. This will be a time of encouraging the children and local pastors and reaching out to the surrounding families that live near the orphanage. But I have a feeling that we will be the most encouraged by these children who love the Lord and have so much love to give!

Just a few months ago, I was sitting in church when I saw a short video on upcoming mission opportunities. The one that pierced my heart was the opportunity to love and serve some Kenyan orphans. I could hear God whisper, "Go." But I thought, "No way! I can't leave the girls for 10 days. How would we pay for that? Could Andrew take off work for that long? If not, who would watch the girls? How would Andrew survive that long without me? :) And how would I survive that long without him and the girls? And again, how could we ever afford that?

But God whispered again, "Now is the time." And I couldn't stop thinking about those Kenyan children. So after a lot of prayer, I sent out letters for prayer and financial support. And God took care of everything beautifully. He reminded me that He is in control. Always. And that He cares for me. And once again, I was amazed at what He did. And God provided ALL the money through very generous donations from family and dear friends. And I am amazed and so excited that He would allow me to be a part of this.

So today the team from Living Hope packed suitcases full of coloring books, crayons, pens, Bibles, first aid kits, suits for the men, bubbles, and plenty of shoes! We will lovingly distribute these things among the kids and the adult workers at the orphanage. But most of all, I can't wait to hug and love these kids and remind them that they are loved so much by all of us here and by their Father in Heaven.

If you read this, please take a moment to pray for our trip: that we would have safe travels, that we would all stay healthy, that we would truly be an encouragement to the Kenyan pastors and all the children in the orphanage, that we would honor God in our thoughts and actions, that we would proclaim the Lord's name in everything we do there, and that we would reflect the Lord's love so these children would be refreshed and renewed in their relationships with Him. And that we might have a new understanding about being adopted by the King!

I am excited to go and can't wait to see how the Lord will be working in all of our lives over this trip. I'm looking forward to worshipping the Lord with our brothers and sisters in Kenya. And I am crying out to the Lord to continue to change me, to help me rest in Him, to help me adore Him over everything else in my life, and to continue this good work that He has started in me. Can't wait to love these kids...one shoe at a time!

Jennifer

"Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 73:25-26

To go or not to go?

This has been the pressing question that has been lingering in my mind for the past several weeks. I apologize that it's been a while since I've written, but for the last month our family has dealt with fevers, pink eye, colds, and bad coughs. So, now that we are over all that, things are returning to normal around here....if there is such a thing as "normal" with a 3 year old and a 1 year old. Jennifer and I want to express our thanks once again for all your prayers and support. We are still walking down this long path that God is leading us on and getting directions along the way.

One question I have always had about missionaries is, "How did you know you were called?". We have been wrestling with this issue for quite a while now. As I posted earlier, I always felt that missionaries were the super Christians or those with special powers or something. But, the more Scripture I read, the more I see that the missionaries in the New Testament like Paul and Timothy are just normal dudes with an amazing passion and devotion to God. They have been transformed by the Gospel and it is lived out in every area of their lives. So, having come to that conclusion I often wonder, "How did they get to that point?". I think for us it's been more of a slow calling. I compare our experience to Elijah. God has not been in the fire or the earthquake. For us it's been more of a gently whisper over time. It's been almost exactly a year from when we started feeling God was going to change something. It just happens to be that something is overseas missions...which sometimes when I think about it scares me. Satan has really been attacking me lately with many ungodly and self satisfying thoughts. He is constantly in my ear asking me if I'm sure we really want to go live in another country. If I want to leave my job and the success I could possibly have in the future. That more money awaits me if we stay here in the U.S. That I'm not good enough, strong enough, or spiritual enough to represent Christ among the lost. Even something as simple as being short tempered with my family. These are all things that are happening.

Having said that, I know that God will equip us because He is calling us. I know that we have an advocate in Jesus! I know that I'm not good enough, and I never will be. I may not have all the knowledge of a scholar or the discipline of a monk, but I want to be obedient. That's what God has shown me lately. He is telling me to be obedient and He will figure out the rest. So, no matter what satan throws at us, we know that the battle has already been won and we are striving daily to be obedient to His calling for our lives.

It's funny because I find myself still wavering everyday. I will wake up one morning with a desire to leave immediately to serve. But, then I'll wake up the next morning and while I'm praying ask God if He's sure this is what He wants for us. Again, satan will not leave us alone and I'm starting to figure out why. He is threatened! The last thing satan wants is for us to leave our comfort and security here and go share the Gospel with people who have never heard. So he will do everything he can to stop us. This is one spiritual battle that I am not used to. I have found myself more often having to quote Scripture throughout the day to drive satan away. I really am beginning to understand more what Paul says about how our battle is not against the flesh but against the powers of darkness.

We are all excited to see where God will lead us. Our long journey is still just beginning but we are enjoying the ride because we have never truly had to depend on God like we are now. Previously, God had been someone I could turn to when I needed help, wanted something, or was asking Him to heal someone. I have never experienced God before in the way I am experiencing Him now. When faced with the situation of quitting my job and leaning on Him to provide the needs of my family, for me, that's where the rubber meets the road. I'll be honest...I'm a little nervous sometimes about what the future holds. But, what trumps that fear is the faithfulness of a Savior who gave up EVERYTHING for me! If I truly believe what Jesus says about not worrying about tomorrow and how He will provide for his children, then what do I have to worry about? If God is for us who can be against us? I must take Jesus at His word!

For those that take the time to read my random meanderings, I hope that through our experience God will reveal something crazy He might want you to do as well. If you told me two years ago that we would feel the call to overseas missions I would have said you are crazy. But, God has led us to where we are now for His glory. My hope is that more will feel the call to go. Thank you for your prayers, they are needed so much. And as uncomfortable as I feel typing this, we are asking you and others to continue to partner with us in prayer and in the future financially. God is our true provider and we seek Him for our needs, but we also feel that God will use the community of faith to help provide. We could not do this without your faithful support and we ask that God will bless you as He leads you down a path you may not expect.

Accepted!

A couple of things have happened just in the last week that we wanted to share with you. As I stated in my previous post, I will be enrolling as a full time student to obtain my aircraft mechanic certification. The school that we had been looking at was Northwest Mississippi Community college, literally up the road from us. However, God has opened up a door to another school that we are pursuing.

As I was browsing the internet the other night I came across another mechanic school called Tennessee Tech. I had heard about it before but figured it would be too expensive being out of state and all, but it turns out that it's actually cheaper and shorter! The NW Community College is a two year program whereas Tenn. Tech is 18 months! Jennifer and I were intrigued by this and so we looked into it. I called them up and got some information on applying and was told the next open class was September 28th of this year and filling up fast. So, I went yesterday and filled out an application and scheduled an aptitude test that they require for entry into the program. Well, I took that test this morning and with a perfect score I have been accepted into the Tennessee Tech mechanic school! It's amazing how God has worked this out because just two days ago I had no thoughts about attending this school.

All of this happened so fast that as I sit here typing I still can't believe how quickly God made this happen. There are several advantages of this school as opposed to NW Community College. One, it's 18 months instead of two years, which gets us going a little bit quicker and I will be able to focus on school more consistently, instead of having a summer break with the other program. Two, it allows me to work at Pinnacle for one more month, and that's one more month we have to raise financial support. The only minus is that it's a 20 minute drive instead of a 5-10 minute drive. (I have to have something to complain about!) This is just such an answered prayer because it definitely gives us more of a plan moving forward, knowing when I'm starting class, the cost, and the total time I'll be in school.

I was given a short tour of the school facility this morning and was very excited about the classes and what I'll be learning. It was a little odd seeing this side of the operation since I'm so used to calling up maintenance personal to fix our airplane so we can fly. From the missionary pilots I have talked to they all say getting mechanic training will make you a better pilot, especially on the mission field.

Jennifer and I are very excited about my acceptance into the school and see it as another God ordained step towards our long journey. We want to thank everyone who has been praying for us! We seriously could not do all of this if it weren't for faithful intercessory prayers of our family, friends, and church community. We treasure each and every one of you and pray for you as well. We will keep everyone updated on events that take place and where God continues to lead us.

One area of prayer need right now is for a direction of where God wants us to serve. We have certainly felt the call to go, but where to go is still undetermined. We are willing to go anywhere, but if you could specifically pray that God would place a certain people group and country on our hearts. Again, we treasure the prayers and encouragement and are humbled by your interest in what God is doing in our lives.

Trying to Listen

I thought I would have posted this by now, but we have been pretty busy this week, and we've all been sick too. But, I wanted to share with everyone what we think God is trying to show us.

You've probably noticed by now that the title of this blog is "Taylors on Mission". It probably sounds a little odd without some background, so let me give it to you. Around April of 2009 I began reading Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper. I bought the book a while back but never really got into it for whatever reason. So, I decided I would see if I was wasting my life, from the perspective of Piper. (Who I am a huge fan of, by the way.) As I was reading this book I could feel the Lord tugging on my heart in many different ways. (Another amazing book is Let the Nations be Glad) Piper tells many stories of missionaries, clergy, and other believers who took enormous leaps of faith in obedience to God. This led me to examine my own life and the allegiances I held and to whom I live for on a daily basis. I could honestly say as a believer in Christ that I didn't know. I received Christ when I was 7, and was raised in a Christian home. I don't feel like I ever departed from the faith, but I also never had asked myself the difficult questions like, "Is God calling me to leave my home, family, and comfort to share the Gospel with the unreached?" I had always assumed that God used extra strong, holy, and super Christians for the mission field.

Now that I had asked myself that question, and others, I could feel a small tug from the Lord that He was going to change something in the future. I'm still not 100% sure what that may be, but I do know that He has put a burden on my and Jennifer's heart for the lost throughout the world that was not there before. I began to realize how many unreached people groups there were in the world. (One great resource to find unreached people groups is www.joshuaproject.net) One thing I have learned is that God has a mission or plan for the nations. And that mission is that His Gospel will be proclaimed throughout the world. I started to take the Great Commission from Matt. 28 seriously for the first time in my life. I asked myself, "am I making disciples?". Also, please don't think I am under some impression that one must go overseas to make disciples. Acts 1:8 dispels that thought when Jesus says you will be my witnesses in Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. That means we do that here in our city, across the region, and throughout the nations.

Jennifer and I feel that God is telling us to go to the nations!

Now, how in the world is this going to happen? That was our first question too. How can we just pick up and go? Well, through much prayer and counsel, we have decided, for now at least, that we are going to pursue overseas opportunities with Mission Aviation Fellowship, or MAF. (www.maf.org) MAF has been a leader on the missionary front reaching unreached people groups since World War Two. We feel that with the skills God has given me as a pilot could be used to reach the lost for Christ. So, obviously this would require me to quit my current job at Pinnacle Airlines. Not only that, but to better equip me on the field, I will also be returning to school for 2 years to obtain my aircraft mechanic certification. What this will enable me to do is keep the airplanes flying once I'm over there. Almost all MAF pilots perform routine maintenance on the airplanes, which helps airplanes stay in service to continue ministry. The school we are looking into now is only 10 minutes from our home here in Olive Branch, MS. The plan for now would be to start sometime in August which would have me graduating in May of 2012.

The scariest aspect of all of this right now is raising support. Having said that, we know God is faithful and will equip us with what we need to move forward. (Matt. 6:33) Since I will have to quit my job, naturally this means we will not have any source of steady income. We are asking family, friends, church community, and you to partner with us. Most importantly, we need your prayers. We would also like to ask you to pray about supporting us financially. We have not crunched the numbers yet, but will have an idea of what our needs will be several months from now after I apply to the school and have been accepted. This is definitely a leap of faith for us and is not natural for us either. We are used to being self sufficient, earning a paycheck, paying for food, clothing, and housing. All this goes away in a couple of months! But, I am reminded of what Paul says in Phil 3. "For whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed I count everything as loss for the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as RUBBISH, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him." WOW!! This verse has meant so much to me over the last 6 months because I know that whatever could be considered gain, (money, security, health, comfort, etc.) is dung! - that's what the literal translation says anyway.

It can sound glamourous at times of being a missionary, living abroad, etc. But, when the rubber meets the road and we land wherever God is calling us, it's going to be HARD! We are excited about what God will do and where He will lead us, but we are also aware that we will face trials and possible persecution. We will be ready to face them as God prepares and equips us during the next few years. Sorry for such a long post, but Jennifer and I want everyone we know to be a part of this with us! We definitely can't do it alone. While we continue to fast, pray, and labor over this decision, will you pray with us? We look forward to sharing more with you in the near future. To God be the glory!

First Post and Hannah's Birthday Party

Well, this is the inaugural post for our blog so here it i goes...As you can see on the front page of our blog, God is doing some crazy and amazing things in our family right now. We are in the midst of raising two girls, Hannah, 3, and Caitlyn, 1, so our lives are filled with laughter, frustration, tears, and joy! We feel so blessed that God has given us each other and we are always looking forward to what God is calling us to do. Namely, for now at least, the leading to pursue overseas missions with Mission Aviation Fellowship, or MAF. (www.maf.org) I will post much more on that in the coming days and weeks.

For this post I wanted to concentrate on our oldest daughter, Hannah, and her birthday party we had today. It is so hard to imagine my little girl already being 3 years old! It seems like just yesterday I was rushing back to Memphis from Cincinnati trying to make it back for her birth. She continues to amaze me everyday at how much she is growing up and the multiple times each day she makes me laugh. The theme of her party was none other than princesses. If Hannah is obsessed with anything these days, it's princesses, especially Sleeping Beauty. Almost daily she watches it and prances around the room dancing to the music. Jennifer's family was able to make the trip from Alabama and most of my family was there as well. We also had some friends from church and small group there with their kids, who Hannah loves! Jennifer made an amazing castle cake and plenty of cupcakes and cookies for the kids. Thanks to everyone that came and we are truly blessed to have each of you in our lives.