And just like that, four weeks have passed. Outside of MTI, Jake & I made use of our weekends and enjoyed the mountains. The cold in Colorado somehow just is not as hard as the same cold in Indiana. We were also blessed by the time we had to further relationships in the Denver and Colorado Springs areas as well.
The Compass course was good and both Jake & I agree, we would recommend it for anyone going into the mission field. We found that our approach was opposite of most. We are at the beginning of the process whereas the vast majority of the others in the course are about to leave to their respective countries. That being said, because we attended this particular course, we now get to call another family headed for Honduras, our friends; as well as a single female headed for Guatemala. (When you look at things globally, Guatemala is a very close neighbor to Honduras, so I'm counting it!)
Different things stuck out as most significant for both Jake and I. For example, Jake benefited more from the time we spent on language acquisition than I. I will share two things that I appreciated and have taken with me.
Allow the paradox. According to Webster, paradox is a statement or proposition seemingly self-contradictory or absurd, and yet expressing a truth. I have a very common subconscious tendency (shared to some extent by society at large) to not acknowledge when something is hard or difficult. Our tendency is to use a positive statement to weaken a negative statement but in actuality both statements are real and powerful as they stand alone. Compass provided me with the vocabulary to define the paradox that we find ourselves in and sometimes in a vivid way. And by possessing that vocabulary, I feel granted the freedom to not only recognize but to allow and even embrace that paradox.
Transition. Perhaps best described as an experience of a process, not just a change, but a gradual, psychological reorientation process. Multiple visuals accompanied the transition module, I particularly appreciated the bridge visual provided. (See below) A "family" is roped to each other and then loosely to the other members of their team and then expected to traverse an unsafe bridge. Very very clearly, the job could not be completed without the help of the surrounding supporters. In addition, the job could not be completed any faster than the slowest member of the team.
As for the second update promised:
WorldVenture did send us an offer of appointment, which we have accepted!
It took us about 8 months to take that step, so needless to say, it is somewhat exciting to be able to finally say we have a sending agency!
They had requested one additional interview with a member of their Paraclete Team; which, accepting the paradox, was both nerve-racking and reassuring. Nerve-racking as we were unsure the significance of a sudden last-minute additional interview, and yet reassuring that they were also taking precautionary steps and being as thorough as necessary to discern direction.
We are very thankful for God's continued direction and provision in the process. We continue to walk through the open doors provided. Our next step is to return to Colorado in March for in-person on-boarding at WorldVenture headquarters. During this time we will be meeting all those on our team (and whom we've been meeting virtually for the past few months). We will be determining further training that will be required. And, we will be working with CPA/Advisors as we put together our budget at which time we will then be able to start fundraising.
God bless you all!
Much Love.
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