Walking by Faith

As you may know, Alishia and I have felt called to serve the Lord in Japan for two years now. That calling has led us to change churches, move to California for training, and ultimately intern here with Saving Grace World Missions in Yorba Linda, California. You may also know that we spent last semester at the Calvary Bible Institute in Yucca Valley, California getting general bible and ministry training. While there, we had a missions class the first and last Friday of each month, which is where we met Rob Douglass, a veteran missionary in Africa and Asia, and Pastor Trent Douglass, the head pastor of a sending church in Orange County. We were two of only a few students in our class that felt called to overseas missions at that time, so we instantly connected with the Douglass brothers and looked forward to our twice a month class with them most of all. They were experienced in not only being and sending missionaries, but in training others in how to be and send missionaries as well. They taught us foundational elements of what it takes to be a cross-cultural missionary; how to not offend your host nation, what to do in awkward cultural misunderstandings, and how to preach the gospel in non-western cultures for example. While we were thankful for the general training we were getting, we longed for more of this specific training and wished we could be part of a school that focused on missions first and foremost. We started praying for an opportunity to be mentored by these men, and another of our teachers as well. In our hearts, these three seemed the reason God had brought us down to California.

Summer came and we went home to Montana to reassess how the Lord was leading us. We stayed in contact with everyone down in orange county. Pastor Trent and Rob were doing a school of missions in Mexico for the summer and we wanted to be a part of it. However, due to a lack of funds and prior commitments we felt like that door was closed to us. We continued to pray about being a part of their church however, and we talked with the pastor and elders at our church in Whitefish (Calvary Chapel Whitefish). We felt the Lord telling us to move onto Saving Grace from CBI, but I wasn’t faithful enough to commit one way or the other. I needed a sign or a door to close, but none came. Finally, at the end of August we decided just to commit to Saving Grace and let CBI know we wouldn’t be returning, it was then that the Lord moved on the situation.  We let Pastor Trent know of our decision, and he let us know that we could be a part of a brand-new internship that stemmed out of the school down in Mexico. Praise God, HE is faithful!! What a blessing, we didn’t even know it was an option and now we had the opportunity to continue our training in a missions focused church. The internship is designed specifically to equip and prepare the saints to have the knowledge, spiritual maturity, the know how to church plant, and to build a team around us (that’s you) to be able to run the race the Lord has for us.

So here we are, in awe of all our prayers and desires being fulfilled. So thankful to be a part of this internship for the next year, and more certain then ever that the Lord will continue to move in our midst. We feel more and more called to Japan as each new chapter unfolds revealing the path the Lord has for us to walk. The Lord is so faithful to fulfill His promises and for us it seems still apparent to us that Japan is His promise and call on our Life.