Beginnings

I'm going to start off this blog by saying that I always envision myself a brilliant writer, and it never translates into reality when I actually sit down to write. All the same, we wanted to create this blog as a way to share with our friends and family about this next season in our life, as we explore the possibilities of ministry in Argentina. So even if the words are a bit sloppy, full of run-on sentences and maybe even a few random ramblings, it's all done in the hopes of giving you a glimpse into life as we know it.
This is Ali writing, by the way. Martin is sitting next to me reading Game of Thrones. He's been devouring the series since he got the first novel at Christmas. Of course, considering his love of Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, it comes as no surprise that he would be so engaged in this newest fantasy fiction. Most of my reading these days has consisted of volumes of  Biblical commentaries, Greek word study encyclopedias, and exegetical articles. Thus is the life of the Bible College student, I suppose. I enjoy the occasional break in reading The Pioneer Woman's cooking blog.
Many of you reading this probably wandered over here because you received our newsletter in the mail telling you about our upcoming trip to Argentina this August. Surely you are curious to know more about how we came to the place we are at right now, so I will try to inform you a bit on how all of this unraveled.
Most of you know that I am fluent in spanish. For those of you who don't, I'll tell you right now, it is slightly awkward when someone finds out and says "You never told me you spoke spanish!". Well, that's not exactly how my mother taught me to introduce myself, I guess. Sorry. I knew God gifted me with fluency in spanish for a reason, and I have prayed for some time that He would use my abilities in this regard to spread the Gospel. This fall semester at EBC, I was in my Worldview class (one of the best, by the way!) when we had guests from Argentina come in to speak with the class. I loved hearing from them about their passion to see their country learn about Jesus, empowering the people to evangelize and share God's love. I spoke with Jorge and Pola, the guest speakers, after class for sometime and we clicked very quickly. They invited me to visit them anytime, which, in latin culture, is basically standard. So of course I said "oh, sure! We'll see", as we exchanged emails and went our separate ways.
Oddly enough, I learned in an email later that same month that they weren't just trying to be nice; they were serious. They asked me if I ever desired to join their ministry in Argentina, they would be thrilled. So, Martin and I discussed what this could mean for us. We both knew that if God called us to the mission field, we would love to go, but also didn't want to try and "force" the calling. So we decided to pray about it. After about a month, we both felt that God was calling us to trust Him and let Him lead us.
God taught me a lot during that time of waiting on Him. I tend to over analyze everything and think ten years in advance. I usually get over-excited and start thinking about how my kids will have dual citizenship if they are born overseas, and those types of silly daydreams. Yet, by God's grace, He didn't allow me to get ahead of myself this time. I didn't know what was coming next, if and when we would even be going, what that would look like for us, and yet I wasn't anxious or worried about it. Well, maybe a teensy bit, but nowhere near the amount that typically involves any minor and major life changes for me. God really showed me that trusting Him with each little step brings the greatest joy as I get to see Him work and bring things together.
We originally thought that, with timing and preparations, we wouldn't be going to Argentina until potentially December or later. Both Martin and I hoped for a summer trip, as we had things that worked out best for us time-wise to take a trip during this season, but instead of trying to hurry things up ourselves, we prayed "whatever You know is best for us, we trust in." Low and behold, God "expedited" our travel plans and we were told our trip would take place this August! I think God just loves when He gets to show up in a big way, because He gets all of the credit and I just get so giddy.
So, here we are. I'm finishing up my last semester in Bible College, reflecting on how much God has shaped me in my understanding of who He is and what it means to follow Him. So I am excited to follow His leading in whatever He has next for us. Starting with a glimpse into what He has been doing in Argentina and how we may get the privilege of joining with the rest of His faithful workers there.