June Update

View this email in your browser HOME, SWEET HOME What makes a home? For Tim, probably food and a place to sleep.  For me, it’s all the little details that transform a house into a place of comfort. While we are very thankful and have been blessed with a house to call our own, I know it will be some time before it begins to really feel like our home. However, this week, we were able to get a whole lot of cleaning (yes, this includes the dreaded cockroaches) and much needed baby-proofing done. That has helped make our adjustment (mostly, Silas & I…) a thousand times better and we are beginning to feel settled. We were also able to find a crib for silas and bed for us with little effort, so that in itself was a huge blessing. Figuring out how to hang the mosquito net over the crib so Silas wouldn’t pull it down or chew on it, was a bit of a challenge though! We are also blessed to be in a compound with five other families (four of which have children for Silas to play with) and next week we are hoping to start our herb and vegetable garden. Hopefully we will be able to grow some spinach and lettuce as they are difficult to come by. EDDIE THE EAGLE If you’ve ever flown on long international flights, you know how much it helps the time pass if you can watch a couple of movies.  On one of our two eight hour flights to Uganda we were able to watch the movie Eddie the Eagle.  It’s about a British skier who learned how to ski jump so that he could fulfill his lifelong dream of being an Olympic athlete.  He faced plenty of challenges, self-doubt and foes along the way but was able to fulfill his dream at the 1988 games in Calgary. Watching his journey, I could help but think about the journey we were literally on.  We’ve known our calling has been to come and serve pastors in Northern Uganda for a number of years, and after years of waiting on God’s perfect timing and plan, we were finally on our way.  It’s one of the numerous times these past few weeks where I’ve found myself fighting back tears, excited to be taking this step of faith.  Thanks for being with us on this amazing journey!   FEAR, FAITH & PRAYER  Returning to Uganda has definitely given us a ton of joy, but to say there’s not some worries wouldn’t be true either.  The week before we came there was an attack on the police station in Gulu (less than a mile from our apartment) by a group of self-proclaimed rebels, which can cause some worry in a place only a decade removed from a 20-year civil war.  And just before we left we heard news that a missionary who was in Gulu (we didn’t know them personally) had passed away after a four-month battle with malaria. As much as we can worry about sickness, violence, cockroaches and a dirt covered baby, we know that moving here was an act of faith.  Our faith is found in a Savior who is always faithful.  Yes, the worries here are different than they would be back in North America, but as we’re reminded in 1 Corinthians 5:7 “we walk by faith, not by sight.”  Knowing that we have your prayer support is a huge encouragement to us when we’re tempted to let fear control us instead of faith.  Thank you for being by our side as we continue to get settled here.   PRAYER POINTS For partners to connect with us through prayer and finances For the family of Myron West, the missionary who passed away from Malaria For a smooth adjustment to living in Uganda For understanding and persevering through learning Acholi We will continue to keep you updated with monthly newsletters. For more updates, check out our blog http://cyphersinuganda.blogspot.com or click the orange blog link below.   Copyright © 2016 THE CYPHERS We would love to hear from you! E-mail us at: cyphersinuganda@gmail.com CANADA: Attn: The Cyphers Heartstrings World Mission 430 Lakewood Blvd Winnipeg, MB R2J 4B6 USA: Attn: The Cyphers Harvest Alliance International 3620 Ocean Ranch Blvd Oceanside, CA 92056 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

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Home, Sweet Home

Wow! Things are happening fast! We are busy packing (well, I am busy packing) everything we plan on taking with us for the next 3.5 months. It is becoming very real and comforting to be heading back to a familiar place. Praise God! We have a BIG praise report to share from this past week. As Tim was looking up hotels to stay at in Gulu while we find our new home, he came across a posting for a 2 bedroom apartment in town. He emailed the contact listed and it turned out to be a missionary who had left Uganda in January and would not be returning due to health issues. After a delightful conversation, and seeing pictures, we felt this was the place!

The missionary was hoping to sell all of her furnishings (pots, pans, gas oven, beds, dressers, etc), so we were delighted to take them off her hands. We will still need to purchase a few items while we are in Kampala before heading up to Gulu... but this certainly helps us out! We also bought the generator from her (you have to buy every appliance and piece of furniture), which means we will have back up power when it goes out! There is a nice big yard for Silas to have a little freedom and a garden ready for us to plant in. Yay! This is the place we've been praying for. The most amazing thing is, the apartment is half of what we had budgeted for! We have finalized the plans with the landlord and are very excited to have a place to move into as soon as we enter Gulu. Please continue to cover us in prayer as we board the plane this coming Monday, June 20th.

Thank you for your love and support.
Blessings,
Janessa (Tim & Silas)

May Update

View this email in your browser 2 WEEKS UNTIL UGANDA We’re excited to share with you that we have our tickets! We’ll be leaving Pennsylvania on June 20th and arriving in Uganda the 21st. Its been a busy couple of months for us. We’ve finished Janessa’s immigration paperwork, moved out of our apartment, sold most of what filled it, traveled down to Pennsylvania, and started prep for our move to Uganda. Its been a long time coming and now it is coming FAST! Thank you to everyone for all your encouragement, support and prayers during this busy time in our lives. We’re excited to start this part of our journey with so many people joining with us! We’ll make sure we don’t miss any more monthly updates (the end of April beginning of May was pretty hectic) and we’ll start posting lots more updates on our blog once we arrive in Uganda. FINANCIAL UPDATE Last week we went to apply for social security numbers for Janessa and Silas as new residents to the US. Our goal was to continue checking things off of our to do list and move on to the next thing, but God had other plans. We were called up to the window to submit our paperwork and through the course of conversation, we began sharing our heart for Uganda with the clerk. As we were waiting for the last bit of paperwork, the gentleman at the window next to us, having overheard our conversation, turned and gave us $20. When we finished our paperwork the clerk who was helping us handed us his email address asking us to keep him posted on our ministry so that his church could be praying for us. It’s pretty amazing how God finds ways to encourage us through all the busyness and stress of this transition. We’ve been so blessed by all the encouragement we’ve received and are roughly 1/3 of the way to our monthly support goals! On top of that we’ve received numerous one time gifts that will cover this first trip and many of the things we need to purchase at the beginning such as furniture. If you’d like to join our support team please email us at cyphersinuganda@gmail.com and we can send you the forms to get things set up. BETWEEN THREE HOMES With all the packing, storing and selling, we have officially said goodbye to our home. Well, one of our homes. Saying our goodbyes has left a deep ache in our hearts. Leaving family and friends is a very difficult part of this transition for us. We have been blessed to be surrounded by those who love and support our family, and have encouraged us as we prepare to make our new home far across the ocean. But it’s hard. It’s been said “home is where the heart is” and if that is true, than we are caught between three homes. We are calling this year our “nomadic” year, a year of transition and resettling. While we do have many adjustments to be made ahead we are excited for what the Lord has been preparing us for. We ask you to continue praying for us as we take the next step in our journey home to Uganda. PRAYER POINTS For a smooth transition to Uganda, Africa For partners to connect with us through prayer and finances God's direction and divine connections PRAISE REPORT The completion of the immigration process We are almost there! We will continue to keep you updated with monthly newsletters. For more updates, check out our blog http://cyphersinuganda.blogspot.com or click the orange blog link below. Copyright © 2016 THE CYPHERS We would love to hear from you! E-mail us at: cyphersinuganda@gmail.com CANADA: Attn: The Cyphers Heartstrings World Mission 430 Lakewood Blvd Winnipeg, MB R2J 4B6 USA: Attn: The Cyphers Harvest Alliance International 3620 Ocean Ranch Blvd Oceanside, CA 92056 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list

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