The sweetness of Answered Prayers!Many of you have been praying for us as we work to acquire at least a basic understanding of the German language. This is necessary for us to pass the A-1 Test that the Austrian Government requires for those desiring a residency permit/VISA to live in (and do ministry in) Austria. As the first semester of our German 1 class came to a close, we started to think about what taking this test might look like. Where would we take it? Is there any way that we were prepared for such a test? What in the world did this test look like anyway?
Tim started making some phone calls, which led to some initial discouragement. We were told at first that you should have at least two semesters of German to have a decent shot at passing the exam. At that point we even considered doing a stint in Austria in the Fall…..which could still be a possibility. However….we feel that God opened the door and led us straight to The German Language Center of Houston and Renate Saggau. She became our teacher and encourager for the day one Saturday in April. What a delight it was to work with her! I can honestly say she is one of the best teachers I have ever encountered. She immediately put us at ease……she offered me a cup of tea, and if you know anything about me, you know that she was speaking my love language! She has a passion for teaching, love for people, and such a great way about her that encourages those she is teaching. We left there believing that God would enable us to do this! Renata gave us materials specifically geared to the test that we are now working through with Adam Spencer……how blessed we are to have a partner in ministry who is a German speaker and who is willing to help us in this process! We will return to Houston in early July to attempt the A-1 test.
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MAY, 2012Here we are with Lori's sister, Tracey, and her husband Chris. They have been so encouraging and hospitable.
This is the German Language Center in Houston
Our Teacher, Renate Sagau, is the warm woman with the big smile in the left of the picture.
This is the sign in the window we first saw when we arrived at the German Language Center. Renate definitely made us feel Willkommen.
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Prayer RequestsPlease pray for us to be diligent in our studies, for God to open our minds to this new language, and for us to pass this test!
Please pray as Tim’s time at the Serve office comes to a close. Pray for the right man to take this position quickly, and for our financial support base to be at a place where we can make that transition smoothly. We would like to be fully focused on building the team of prayer and financial supporters that God has for Austria. Please pray that God would keep our hearts fully devoted to Him during this preparation period, and continue to burden our hearts for the people of Austria, Central Europe and beyond. Sweet Times with FriendsThrough the early stages of this journey we have already had some sweet times of fellowship.
While in the Houston area, we stayed with my (Lori) sister Tracey and her husband Chris and had a great time with them. We were also able to connect with two couples that we were friends with when our children were small. God was so gracious to give us sweet times with these couples, visiting, re-connecting, and ending each evening lifting our requests before Him. Ahhh….God is so good! We have had some great times with many of our Denton friends as well. We hope continually meeting with friends will become a habit that defines us throughout the rest of our lives. Proverbs 15:22
Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” (NIV) |