This weekend my husband and I are celebrating our 11^th Wedding Anniversary. While we enjoy a weekend away (with many thanks to my mom and dad for watching our girls), I’d like to share with you a letter I recently received from my brother-in-law and his family.

After serving in Mozambique for four years, Dan, along with his wife Valeria and their two girls, Becky and Rachel, came home to the states to raise support in the summer of 2012. For a full year they worked incredibly hard to raise their support levels but, in the end, they were not able to return to Mozambique.

Seeing my family go through this disappointment hasn’t been easy. I know it broke their hearts to not return to their ministry and the friends, the life, they made in Mozambique, and I know it must have felt daunting to start a new life here in the states.

In this letter, Dan shares a bit of their story and explains what God has done to direct and provide for them as they begin their new life in Florida.

In the midst of disappointment and heartache my brother-in-law and his family have remained faithful to the plans God has for them. I hope their story will encourage you, as it has encouraged me.

Dear Friends,

We have been in the Tampa, Florida area since July, and it has been amazing to see God’s continued provision.

First, we were able to keep the van from Righteous Rides for one month longer than we initially thought. This enabled us to drive down to Tampa, with most of our belongings, and God provided for a safe trip with no flat tires or other car trouble. Then, we were able to find an apartment that we liked the day after our arrival, and it turned out to be ideally located for us.

We are within five minutes of a Brazilian church. We have been attending since our first Sunday in Tampa, and the church has readily accepted us into their close knit community. We have already presented our ministry in Mozambique to these Brazilians, as the Pastor hopes to broaden their vision for ministry.

Our apartment is also located just a few minutes from one local hospital, where I recently began working as a full-time ICU nurse. During my interview, one of the managers was excited about my years of experience and commented, “You just never know how God is going to work.” I replied, “That’s really true, and He is in control of it all.” I am truly excited for this opportunity as it allows me to expand into new areas of experience.

We want to thank everyone for the support they have given us. Many people have continued to send us support even though we are not going back to Mozambique. At this time, however, we feel that it is important that your sacrifices in giving be directed to other ministry opportunities. We feel so grateful and overwhelmed at God’s provision for us, and all of you have certainly been a part of that.

No matter where we are the old adage continues to be true, “Every heart with Christ is a missionary, and every heart without Him is a mission field.” Know that for our part, we have simply entered a new mission field, and we can see that God has already been at work expanding His kingdom.

Blessings to you all, in service of the King,

Dan, Valeria, Becky, and Rachel

Thanks for reading, friends! I’ll be back on Wednesday with a fresh post to kick-off my brand new mid-week series titled, Today Was A Fairy Tale. I’m so excited; I can’t wait to share these posts with you. Stop by on Wednesday to find out more!