Tudo Bem

The day we left Mozambique back in late August, a baby girl was born. They named her after me. She is so beautiful and we have been able to spend time with her family and read the Bible with them in Portuguese.

We are enjoying living life in Beira, but it has not been easy though.
It rains and pours everyday so much we can\\\'t sleep at night.
We have a world race team that is helping us serve Elias.
William and I are definitely learning more about each other.

We have been working hard on the land and it looks good!
We cleared the land and dug the foundation and have been working on the cement bricks. Tomorrow, we will start putting the bricks in the ground.
It is so exciting!!! Elias\\\' dream from 2007 is finally coming true!

We also spend a lot of time walking and talking and visiting the children.
It is all about relationships.
Relationships with the people, the World Racers, Elias, and each other.
Jesus valued relationships and He said that "They will know you are my disciples by your love for one another." John 13:35

Safe in Mozambique!

After nearly three days of travel in three different countries and three grueling flights, we made it to Beira Mozambique.  We were greeted yesterday in the airport by our good friend and the director of our orphanage, Elias, and a team of World Racers.  It felt like we were welcomed back home to Africa.  We will spend the next two months planning, preparing, digging, and building up the land that will one day be Emmanuel Orphanage.  We're excited to come alongside Elias' dream and see this building (or cluster of buildings) in just a matter of months. 

Please pray for us as the dream begins to take flesh and we spend time with these teams and Elias.  We're praying for God's provision, protection, and direction.  Thanks for supporting us and praying for the same!

The call to beLOVE

We are called to beLOVE to God.
We are called to beLOVE to each other in our marriage.
We are called to beLOVE to the African people.
We are called to beLOVE to the Filipino people.
We are called to obey God and be flexible as we follow Him.

We leave for Africa TOMORROW.
We are so excited to follow what God has told us.
God has called us to disciple Elias and help him build an orphanage.
God has sent an all girls World Race team to help us. We don't know what all these next 6 months entail, but we will listen to God.
We want to show our love for God by our actions!!

And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. (1 John 2:3-6 NLT)

Please pray that we are able to live like Jesus and do what God is telling us to do, and we will pray that you are able to do the same.

We love you guys,
William and Tara

Happy New Year!!!

We arrived in Washington DC on New Years Eve and rang in the holiday with over a dozen friends that we've traveled and done work with over the past few years.  We spent most of the night playing Apples to Apples, random card games, and even brief dance parties.  By the time midnight came around, we were worshiping and praying in the New Year and honestly, even missed the midnight countdown.  The days since then have been spent processing through future plans with each other, praying over those of us headed out of the country, and just enjoying each others company.

Today, most people are headed home, back to work, and back to the "real world".  While we could spend time dwelling on our last few days together, almost stuck in this utopian mindset, we have to go back out at some point and live the lives God has blessed us with.  Too often in life, we retreat to these mountain top experiences only to return to our lives with good stories and fond memories that never really have that long term change.  I worked at a summer camp for four years and left each year with nothing but fond memories.  I know these experiences are necessary and highly valued, but I want to leave one of these mountain top experiences, never to be the same again.

The thing I've learned with the passing of another New Year celebration is the value of community.  We need each other to get through this life.  We need each other to talk to, process with, laugh together, encourage each other, pray over, and just be together.

With that said, I have a New Years resolution.  First, I need to respond to e-mails, answer the phone, and just be more available for my friends and family.  On top of that, I need to send e-mails, make phone calls, and just pursue my friends and family.  We're here for each other, yet we're so fond of isolation in the form of back porches, "alone time", and caller id.  We need each other, and even if we're going to Africa, it's a good thing we have internet and e-mails.  We have to prefer each other...