Plane Tickets to Seattle Purchased!!

As the days and weeks continued to go by, we wondered just how the Lord was going to provide the funds for us to purchase our plane tickets to America.  We’re talking thousands of $ that we don’t have.  For those of you that have been following along, you may recall that we only had enough funds to remain on the farm in South Africa through this month – April.  That’s no joke.  Our family also knew that in order to continue doing the Lord’s work here in South Africa, we would be required to renew our visas and the kids’ passports this year.  Unfortunately, visas must be applied for from your country of origin – hence the need to head back to America.

My trust in the Lord is very strong and I rarely waiver in that, but I’ll be honest, as the summer season in America continued to approach things weren’t looking very promising for us to return to America during the time we had hoped for…

BUT GOD!

About 2 weeks ago Josh felt a tug in his heart to get real specific with his petitions to the Lord.  He began believing for and praying that the funds needed to purchase our plane tickets would arrive in 2 weeks.  That set the deadline for God for Wednesday, April 27^th, haha!  Okay, okay, I know we don’t give God deadlines.  He operates in His own perfect timing…but I think you get my point.

Psalm 37:4-5 & 7 “Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit everything you do to the Lord.  Trust Him and He will help you…  Be still in the presence of the Lord and wait patiently for Him to act.”

Is it always easy to wait??  No!  But is it worth it??  Yes!

Josh and I both agreed that we weren’t going to try and take matters into our own hands.  Sometimes we, as humans, can try to force certain things to happen when we want them to, but when that happens it just leads to unnecessary frustrations, heartache and pain down the road.  Taking matters into our own hands is not “helping God out.”  Don’t rush into making the wrong decision.  You will only regret it in the long run.  A little advice - lack of peace is a good sign that you may be a little off track with a particular direction you are headed or a decision you’ve made.  God will help you to get back on track as you submit all of your plans to Him.  Don’t ever make a major decision without including Him in it.

On the evening of Tuesday, April 26^th I received a message from someone stating that our donation Web site www.Four18.org was not working.  I tested it out myself and found this to be true.  It had been a month since anyone had used the site to make a one-time donation, so I have no idea how long it had been broken for.  I contacted someone to have this looked into, and by the next morning (APRIL 27^TH) it was up and running again and a $350 donation came in!  Then the funds continued to pour in.  As I was in conversation with Josh’s mom about this gift, she informed me that another $200 was being deposited that day and that another friend of theirs wanted to bless us with a financial gift as well. 

At this point I’m already excited about what the Lord was doing in people’s hearts, but then He just continued to WOW me!  Later that evening, around 7pm, I had informed Josh’s mom that we’d been watching the price of tickets very closely and in the last 2 weeks they continued to DROP!!  Josh had received a message from Amazon stating they were forecasted to increase by 45% in the next week but they did the exact opposite!!  Don’t believe every report you hear, haha!  At this point, each plane ticket had decreased by roughly $200, saving us over $1,000.  The prices were the lowest we’d ever seen or heard of for this particular flight.  I told her we just needed approximately $350 more to purchase our biggest plane ticket from Johannesburg to Seattle.  Minutes later she messages me again stating that she BOLDLY called a family member and asked them to deposit the remaining amount needed to purchase these particular tickets.  This family member doesn’t really understand why we sold everything and left good jobs to move to South Africa, but they wanted us to get our tickets and agreed to make the deposit of $350 that day.  Then, as I was responding to her message I received an email notification from PayPal stating that another $500 was JUST donated online!!  At this point, I was in tears!!  The money was literally coming in ALL AT ONCE at the end of the day APRIL 27^TH, the day we had prayed for!! 

God waited until the last minute, but He is NEVER late!!

He is faithful and honored our heart’s desire.

What excites me the most is that our kids are experiencing God’s faithfulness and answer to prayers, and they get to see Him move and make impossible situations possible!!  My heart and prayer is that as they watch us step out in faith and follow God’s leading in our lives that they will have that same hunger as they grow up, no matter the obstacle in front of them!

But the surprises didn’t stop there!!

When Josh was getting ready to book tickets, the kids’ tickets ended up being a combined total of $240 LESS than ours…another sweet surprise from the Lord!!

To make the announcement official, WE PURCHASED OUR TICKETS!!!!

We are scheduled to fly out of Johannesburg, South Africa on Tuesday, May 17^th (my dad’s bday) and arrive in Seattle, Washington on May 18^th.  We are waiting on funds for our tickets into Boise, so we do not have our exact arrival time for that yet.  Our departure date back home to South Africa is July 19^th. We are still short funds to make everything come together, but we know that the Lord is going to provide a way.

If you feel led to contribute, you can do so securely at www.Four18.org.  All donations are tax-deductible.  A huge THANK YOU to those that have generously poured into our family financially to make this all possible!  Also, for those that have been faithfully praying, we THANK YOU for your hearts of gold.

1 John 2:15-17 says, “Do not love the world or anything in the world.  If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them.  For everything in the world comes not from the Father but from the world.  The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”

We will never be deeply fulfilled or “happy” with the things this world has to offer.  If we place our joy and hope in God first, He will meet all of our needs.  He will even grant our wants, as our hearts’ desires begin to match up with His will.  If we truly place priority on the Lord, chances are our heart’s greatest desire will not be in “stuff” like having the coolest iPhone or nicest car on the block, but eternal treasures in Christ.  This world can never satisfy our deepest longings, but if we choose to delight in God’s way, He will always provide above and beyond our expectations.

Why settle for anything less than that?!

A Few Steps Closer

For a few months now we have known that several things would need to line up in order for us to return to America to renew our visas.  Finances is the obvious factor, but we’ll fill you in a little more on things that have been happening here and how the Lord has answered our prayers in getting us a few steps closer to take off…..

Help on the Farm – Since moving to the farm last September, Josh has been fervently praying for God to send more people to help with the workload so that we could be present more frequently in Sonskyn Valley.  Josh has worked very hard in fulfilling his responsibilities of maintaining the farm, homeschooling the children, raising a family and loving on me (his wife).  I am proud of him and how well he has balanced his time with the Lord, work, ministry, family and having fun!

Several months ago I, too, had prayed that God would send people to help.  Naturally my thoughts wandered to what people He would send from America, but then it was impressed upon my heart that He would be sending locals from South Africa to help.  I tucked that thought away but had never forgotten about it.  About 1 month ago someone in Sonskyn Valley introduced Josh to a potential worker that would be able to help on the farm.  Josh was excited but told the guy, “You’ll have to meet my wife and pass the test with her.  She has to trust you.”

The time of meeting this guy came and went.  Something did not sit right with me about him, so after talking about it with Josh, we both agreed to not pursue him any further.  Before we gave him our decision, the Lord had already planned something better!!  In the meantime, our pastor friend, Duncan, was having some work done on his home.  Then the lightbulb went off!!  He said he didn’t know why he hadn’t thought of it before, but one of the workers there would be the perfect fit to work on our farm.  In fact, this worker is like a son to him and Amanda, his wife.  They’ve known him for 13+ years.  Josh happened to be at Duncan’s house that day so Duncan introduced Josh to him.  Josh came home that day very excited and told me all about his conversation with Duncan and this man.  He told me Duncan was going to bring the man to the farm soon so I could meet him.

Introducing Spokes – I met Spokes for the first time on March 17^th.  He spent most of his time with Josh touring the farm, but in the time that I spent with him I had 100% peace.  He passed the test!!  Many months ago our neighbors’ farm workers had told Josh that he should find a guy to work on the farm that is from the Eastern Cape because they are reliable and hardworking, unlike the guys from the Western Cape whom are lazy.  Well, it turns out that Spokes is from the Eastern Cape.  Only God!  We spent a few days talking about it, and then Josh called Spokes to offer him “the job” and a place to live on the farm rent free.  We do pay him a small wage in exchange for the work he does.  Spokes was very excited and wanted to begin work right away, but we held off on him moving to the farm until March 31^st.  He brought his 9-year old daughter, Liyema, with him that first day.  Gracie loved having another girl around.  His first night here we shared a meal together and then he asked if we would pray with him….absolutely!  We are so blessed and honored to have Spokes be a part of our lives!

One thing to note is that Spokes was considering moving back to his hometown, Queenstown, because work was difficult to find here.  However, he didn’t want to move away from his daughter whom currently lives with her mom in Mossel Bay.  When we offered him the job, he knew it was a godsend.  Now he has income and can be close to his daughter.  Restoring brokenness – just like the Lord spoke to us!

A Little About Spokes – He is a very kind, respectful, grateful, hardworking and humble man!  From the beginning, we told Spokes that he is part of our family.  Josh said to him that their relationship together is far more important than the work he does for us on the farm.  That surprised Spokes but put a smile on his face.  A few days after living here Spokes told Josh:

“My heart is happy.  I don’t know how to put it into words in English.  I know God put me here.”

Spokes is Xhosa (pronounced Kosa) and speaks 4 languages.  Afrikaans is challenging to learn, but xhosa, oh my goodness – Lord help us!  It’s a beautiful language with these “clicking” sounds, but I haven’t quite gotten the hang of it yet.  Someday…..

We’ve already introduced him to “tacos”, which he thought were delicious!  We’re going to teach him how to make the refried beans, and he’s going to teach us how to make his yummy, steamed bread.  We spent a family day at the beach and invited Spokes and Liyema to join us.  It was a wonderful day.  Spokes said he hadn’t spent time like that with people in over 10 years.  Makes my heart sad for him and happy at the same time.

Spokes and Josh have worked hard to prepare the larger garden for planting.  Someone also lent us their chainsaw so they’ve been working on gathering trees and cutting them down for firewood.  There is no heating system inside homes in South Africa and it does get as cold as 30 degrees here during the winter, but we do have a little “fireplace” in our home that we’re going to try using to burn the wood in.  It’s not enclosed so we still need to work on that, and it won’t warm up the entire house, so we’re still going to have to bundle up on clothing while inside.  The colder winter weather runs from June to early September.

Our open fireplace.

God’s Timing is Perfect – The Lord knew we’d been praying for someone to help maintain the farm, and He has answered our prayers with the perfect fit!  Not only that, but His timing is perfect and I’m thankful we did not settle for less than God’s best.  One of the things that needed to be in place before leaving for America was having someone to take care of the farm and dogs while we’re away.  Who better than Spokes!

We received another $1,500 and have been told to use it however needed – to build a fence around our garden, buy plane tickets, etc.  God is good!  So, you see, God has been at work with all the little details, and we know He is in the process of working out the finances as well!

One. Step. At. A. Time.

What's Happening

Some of you have been asking for updates on where we are at financially and how close we are to purchasing tickets for our return to America to renew visas this summer.  We will provide an update in this post but would also like to take a moment to share a few things that are beginning to emerge that we’re excited about.

The common struggles with many children born into poverty is that they are malnourished and often times drop out of school before graduating.  During our “extended time of rest” here on the farm, Josh and I have had a lot of opportunities to dream, brainstorm and seek the Lord’s heart for the children of Sonskyn and how we can become more involved in loving on and serving them.  We have been able to hone in on the vision He has given us in creating a place where “love looks like something.”  This vision is two-fold in the sense that God has placed us on this farm so that it can be a blessing to others but that He also wants to create an atmosphere of love in Sonskyn Valley.

Josh and the newest member of our family, Spokes, have been working hard this week to prepare the garden for more planting.  Spokes is an answer to prayer, and I will share more about him at a later time.  In addition to blessing those in the township with healthy, organic fruit and veggies from the garden, we’re pursuing the startup of an after-school program for the children.

After School Program in Sonskyn: Once a meeting place is determined and the planning phase is complete, we will be involved with feeding, tutoring, counseling and mentoring children on the weekdays after school.  For many children, the food they receive will be THE ONLY nutritious meal they have the pleasure and privilege of enjoying for the day.  In addition to asking for food donations and support from local markets, we will use the produce from our garden to make these meals.  This feeding and mentoring program will be geared more towards primary school-aged children (grades 1-7).  We will also implement Bible studies and relationship building activities throughout the month.

Facility – right now it looks like we may have two options: utilizing a church building in Sonskyn that is currently under construction OR negotiating with the owner of a tavern that was recently shut down.

Garden – we are still in need of funds to build a fence around the garden space in order to keep the porcupines from destroying certain crops.  We continue to plant seeds that they do not seem too interested in, but for now, potatoes are NOT an option to plant even though they are one of the most needed crops to make soups and stews for the children.

Bibles – we would like to have several children’s Bibles available for them to read during our studies.

Children’s Sunday School: In order to raise up an army of young warriors for the Kingdom, they need to be poured into with truth, love and power.  We are in conversation with our pastor friends, Duncan and Amanda, to see how we might be able to help with leading and teaching the children on Sundays.  Right now there is not much in place.  Our heart is to raise up a young generation that passionately loves and pursues the Lord with all their hearts in worship and with their daily lives.  Children that will walk in fearless love, knowing that they will always have a Father that loves them and is there for them, even if their earthly father has abandoned or left them.  We want to see the young generation in Sonskyn transformed, in turn, bringing transformation into their homes and families and community.

The Lord has given me visions of my involvement with the children in Sonskyn, and I personally am excited to see how things will unfold as our family becomes more involved.

Creche (Daycare/Preschool): A dream of ours and the pastors is to have a crèche available on the weekdays to those that cannot afford childcare.  This crèche would be Christian-based and instill godly values.  Right now it would have to be ran out of the church, unless we receive donations to build another structure on the church campus.  Many young children (ages 0-5) in Sonskyn do not receive proper love, attention, discipline and education, so offering this opportunity for that and more would be a dream come true and a huge blessing for these children.  They would also be fed a nutritious meal and snacks every day.  We want to provide a place within Sonskyn where “love looks like something”; a place of peace, joy and security, even if just for ½ the day!  We realize that it doesn’t remove these children permanently from their situations, but I am often reminded of how these children didn’t choose their circumstances and if we can give them a glimpse of hope, love, value and a bright future then it’s worth the investment!  We can’t rescue them all, but we can love them one child at a time!

As you can see, the Lord is leading us to take the next steps towards our vision that He gave us, and we’re excited to further grow in our love for these children.  Lack of a vehicle and finances has prevented us from moving forward up to this point, but on the bright side, it’s pushed us towards really seeking His heart and allowing Him to strengthen our foundation.  The Lord has been aligning us with key people that will run alongside us, encourage us, correct us, hold us accountable and simply do life with us as we continue this venture we’re on in South Africa.  We are truly grateful that He is aware and cares about every detail, every need and every desire of our heart that we have.

VEHICLE UPDATE: We have received $1,100 towards the purchase of a vehicle.  We’ve been told by knowledgeable people that a decent bakkie (truck) will cost a minimum of $4,000.  During the winter/rainy season, it is important that we have a bakkie in order to drive on the country roads….and to get off our own property for that matter, haha!

TICKETS TO AMERICA & VISA RENEWAL: We have received $1,400 out of $9,370 needed.  In faith, lots of prayers and steps of obedience, we are trusting the Lord for the remaining amount so we can leave on May 17^th.

MONTHLY SUPPORT: We now receive $530 in committed monthly support, praise God for increase!  Our minimal monthly cost to remain on the farm is $1,300.  We currently have $800 in our general funds to pay for May’s expenses.  We are so grateful for those that believe in us and are able and willing to financially support what the Lord has called us to do here.

Proverbs 16:3 – “Commit your work to the LORD, and then your plans will succeed.”  I was reading my study notes for this verse and it stated that we must maintain a delicate balance in trusting God as if everything depended on Him, while working as if everything depended on us.  The point is that some commit a task fully to the Lord but put forth no effort for themselves, and then they wonder why they did not succeed.  So……

Josh and I will continue to seek, ponder, prepare, plan, rest and wait on the Lord, trusting that He’s got this as we continue to do our part!

If you feel led to support the feeding program, children’s ministry, crèche, purchase of a vehicle, plane tickets to America to renew our visas or even provide monthly financial support, we would be truly grateful and excited in your involvement with what the Lord is doing here.  We know that without the help of others, it will not be possible.  A tax-deductible and secure donation can be made online at www.Four18.org by designating funds for Josh & Mindy Mason – Mossel Bay, South Africa.  You can also setup donations to be sent automatically every month.  Thank you for your prayerful consideration.