Between Times

It is hard to make day to day life sound exciting.  The chores of a regular work day are necessary, regular, build faithfulness & perseverence, but are rarely exciting.  Morning quiet times are the foundation of our days here, and allways a precious time spent with a loved one.  The telephone (er, cell phone) and computer are the tools of the trade here.  A co-worker/friend from Japan is looking for a referal for a student coming to Vermont; a retiring missionary is looking for a connection to students in Pennsylvania; a new volunteer wants to know what/how to share in his church; are examples of some of the daily work that comes into our office.  We write notes, newsletters, prayer letters, and blog.  We talk to pastors, volunteers, students and sometimes professors and college administrators.  We have a team of awesome co-laborers in the staff of ISI, who give admin support, prayer and encouragement.  The payoff is when we hear the testimonies of the student who comes to the USA, makes a friend with a lover of Jesus and meets Jesus Himself!  We are so blessed to be a part of God's plan to reach the world through international students.

This is why we do what we do!

From a student who recently returned home after graduation:

The time has come to pen down my appreciation and gratitude for the kindness, support and love that was shown to me throughout the past four years!

  Upon setting off to the US four years back it was not in the slightest corner of my imagination that I would ever find friends / family who would genuinely care to truly make me feel like home in this land so far away from home. However for some previous luck of mine, from the start of my journey to the present moment I was blessed with amazingly kind and sincere people that made me who I am today; and it is thanks to all of you that I can take pride for having gotten through college without a huge commotion.
All of you took me into your lives without any hesitation at all. I made up my own little world, found myself a home (homes) away from HOME. These little gestures seemed so minor but they truly made me feel special and important that life has truly been GOOD and my days in the US will be treasured evermore and every lesson and experience will be cherished while the failures and mishaps will be added to my personal learning curve for future reference.

 From a student that attended an ISI Conference:

Thank you so much that I had an unforgettable weekend with you. Not only that I had a good time with you, but also I learned more about Jesus during the past weekend. I am very grateful to you, the organizers of the conf, the host family and all the international students and staffs. I feel that this experience has changed my view of life for the better and I am now more eager to learn more about Jesus and the Bible.

These are the jewels in the crown of our Lord!  Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

Man makes his plan, but God directs his steps.

This spring we were about to embark on a trip to VA to encourage the ministries there, deliver some intl'l Bibles, do some support raising and visit Abby and Nick.  God had other plans. Richard had noticed a dramatic change for the worse in his ability to walk around the block, we have good hills here.  Testing and subsequent meetings with a cardiologist confirmed that he needed some attention. So instead of traveling, Richard checked into St. Francis Hospital. It was an interesting 2 days but we felt that God has kept us safe in His hand as circumstances swirled around us.  The initial outcome of the angiogram was uncertainty.  The Dr.'s consulted and decided that they could, after all, put stents in 2 arteries (blockages of 95% and 87%) and avoid by-pass surgery.  This was a great relief. They did the stents successfully the next day. So far recovery seems to be going well. This abrupt change in plans required undoing a schedule and walking in uncertainty, except for we know who is walking with us and He is FAITHFUL!

 One of the interesting stories is that a couple from our church was in the same area of the hospital for a different procedure at the same time.  It was a blessing for all 4 of us to have the mutual encouragement of "family" as we all had to deal with unexpected difficulties and changes in plans (ours, not God's).  Also, Richard had the opportunity to share several times with the "technician"  who provided the muscle power transportation to and from the OR. The extra day gave extra opportunities.  It was interesting too because this fellow was sure he recognized Richard.  Interesting.  ***So please keep Luis in prayer.***

Time is blurring for me.  We are making adjustments, Richard is healing well and gradually adding to his physical activity.  We definitely have work to do on stress and diet issues.  The Dr's have limited our travel abilities which has already helped with some of the stress issues.  However, we had hoped to be in CO for our staff conference the end of June.  Since we cannot travel by air, and tickets had been purchased in April for this purpose, we have some prayer needs

 *We are praising God for all that He has done in and through us during this adventure!***  Please pray for the healing to continue and for the adjustments we have to make as Richard recuperates. 

April Showers bring May Flowers

There is  a song we sing that says " to everything that YOU are doing that we cannot see, we say AMEN!"  In the time before a trip Richard puts in many hours connecting with people by email and phone.  He is looking and listening to find where God is working and what is ready for harvesting or bringing to light.  It is a time of perseverence, focus and listening.

In the meantime we are blessed with feedback from the "new plantings."

"I am greatly enjoying my relationship with my international student. ... I think everyone else is enjoying theirs, too.  What a blessing this has been to CMF." ( AM)

"I have been challenged recently by a few things.  The first is to make prayer more of a priority and necessity, and to encourage others to pray for international students. " (HH)

"We really appreciate you keeping us in your prayers." (AS)

Northeast Regional Conference in Valley Forge, PA

Like the Revolutionary Army, we gathered from all over the northeast region to meet in Valley Forge, PA. Unlike George Washington's army we had delightful weather, plenty of food and we all had shoes.

Our small army worshipped and prayed together. We learned about M28 and Mail Chimp. We prayerwalked the colleges in Philadelphia.

We were encouraged with messages from ISI President Doug Shaw and our Regional Field Director Natasha Hope.

Fritz Kling, author of The Meeting of the Waters, was our keynote speaker. He brought into focus 7 trends that are impacting today's global church, many of which we are experiencing in our various ministries.

Student testimonies are always a highlight as we gather together.

Our youngest attendee!

Finding Treasures Along the Way: CT to OK to TX

Every journey starts with a plan, an agenda; meeting times,places and travel arrangements. Then there are the treasures that God puts along the way for us to discover.
A travel companion (window seat) returning to HongKong & leaving her 15 yr old son in a private school was an opportunity to share & encourage on the way in hopes of keeeping in touch & being friends.



An engine light coming on & a car rental switch becomes a blessing for better gas mileage.

A campus lunch becomes a reunion for Connectiwegiens.

Time with friends and family leads to meeting key people interested in extending ministry to international students in new schools.

It is good to remember that the jewels and treasures are often people put in our path.

Happy New Year!

We thoroughly enjoyed student night at ICF as the Chinese students shared about their culture and their New Year traditions. Many also shared yummy & REAL chinese food! Like our national Thanksgiving holiday, all hearts turn toward home for the New Year celebration and people go to extraordinary lengths to get home. The 2 week long festival allows you to catch up with family and childhood friends.

For the students here, even though there are student celebrations, you could see how they all missed being with family. Even so, they were willing to share the various family traditions, some quite funny! And we learned that red is a very important color, symbol of strength and courage and victory!

The evening was capped off with a celebration of a special birthday and yummy dessert!