Looking Forward

Our house was on the market for 13 days and then we had a buyer. We held our breath for the 10 day option period and her list of repairs was simple enough. So…on Monday, March 26th at 9:30am, we will sign the papers to close on our house. On that same day, we’ll finish loading up our 26′ U-Haul and make our move to Little Rock, AR.

We’ve found a rental house there in a great neighborhood…right behind the school…and in the same neighborhood as my in-laws. We are very excited. God’s provision is always amazing, but to see things work so quickly and easily…is a real blessing.

We were concerned about proving our income when Allen is raising his own support to work at Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas. Well, when we first talked to the landlords of this house we are renting, Allen began showing her our pledge charts and paystubs. When she found out that we were working for Mosaic Church, she told us she’d done inner city work with them before. When we told her we were raising our own support like missionaries, she said that they raised their own support to work for Family Life and she was not worried about that part of things at all. It turns out that they felt God wanted them to rent this house to a family in the ministry…and God had saved this house for us.

So yes…things are moving right along. The non-essentials in every room (except the master bedroom) have been packed up. The u-haul’s been rented…the mail forwarded…and we even have our new phone # and address ready to go.

I think all of us (the Arnn five) are ready to get on with what God wants us to learn in this next chapter of our lives.

Visit www.thearnnfive.com for info on our support-raising efforts and to watch our video!

Debbie

Our house is on the market FINALLY.

We’ve raised all of our relocation money and are now working on monthly support…which is about a quarter of the way there.

I’m thinking about getting back into teaching…which could take care of the rest of that. I go to a job fair this weekend with the Pulaski County Special School District. We’ll see what happens.

We just got back from a FREE Disney Cruise. Allen was asked to make a highlight video from Cici’s Pizza’s annual meeting on a Disney Cruise ship. His payment was that we all got to go with him. It was so much fun. You can see pictures from our cruise at our flickr site

Feel free to visit our family website for more info on multi-ethnic ministry and how God has lead us to this.

Debbie

Yes. At times, it’s good to look back. I’m looking back at this blog…that I briefly used…and decided against so that I could keep my xanga…and I just can’t see posting the same thing two different blogs and how would I keep up with each one if I did different stuff on them anyway?

(breathe)

OK. It’s interesting that I named this blog “Looking Forward” because when I started it, I certainly was looking forward to something…something amazing.

Let me tell you what’s happened so far. (You…who still reads this? I dunno.)

A few months ago, Allen and I looked back over our lives and realized how God has been preparing us both…for a long time…for what is to come.

Preparing us with good times and difficult times…preparing us with many different experiences with many different kinds of people…preparing us with stirrings in our hearts for various people groups…

And now, we’ve heard His call. We’ve been invited to join the staff of a multi-ethnic church in Central Arkansas. The church, although it is not affiliated with the Mosaic Alliance, is named Mosaic Church of Central Arkansas and what they are doing fits us in so many different ways.

This almost five year old church has 600 people representing 31 different nations. They are a united body working together for the cause of Christ. It’s a beautiful thing, and we know this is where we are headed. God has called our family of five to join them so that we can be trained in multi-ethnic ministry. What they are doing is working…and we have the opportunity to learn from them. We are THRILLED!

The church is young and is located in a poor part of town. For these reasons, most of the staff of Mosaic has been asked to raise their own support for their first year of working. The church has big ideas…so they need people to bring those ideas to life. Then the church will grow into the position to officially hire staff members. At this time, I think there are five or six paid staff members. We’d be the only ones there on support.

So…that’s where we’re headed. God called us to missions several years ago. We thought we were headed out of the country. Now, He’s brought the whole world to us…in Little Rock, Arkansas. Who’d have thought it?

Please pray
1. that we can get our house ready for the market and sell it quickly…
2. that we can raise the necessary funds to begin our work in Little Rock by Feburary 1st (or sooner!)

Debbie

I’m considering this purpose-driven life of mine…and seeking ways to worship, reach, connect, grow and serve in the blogosphere. Challenging myself to attempt a purpose-driven blog-life. What are your thoughts on a purpose-driven blogosphere? Is that possible?

Blessings to all…
Debbie

Last night, I slept ok, but I think that’s because the two nights before, I was awake for 3 hours at a time….thinking about my mom…and whether she’d like the nursing home I picked…and what one piece of furniture she’s going to take with her…and what WILL we do with the rest of it…and do you think Medicaid will allow us money for a storage facility for her stuff? and …

 

I’m looking forward to a good night’s sleep.

 

We went for a walk today. You can see it at www.xanga.com/debbiearnn.

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I’m looking forward to the day that I can post pictures on this site. Is it today? Let’s try and see!!! (Not to offend, Vox support…just keeping with my theme! ;-))

Aslan (actually, it’s my dog, Lenny, before his haircut.)

Aslan’s been SHAVED!!!

Is that scary or WHAT?

 

I am looking forward to the weekend when I’ll hopefully have enough information to decide on where my mom will go when she gets out of rehab.

I look forward to the day that Mom says “thanks for taking care of me like you are.”

what happens next. At this point in time, our family is juggling many things at once…and it doesn’t seem like any of it can be put down. Important things…job issues, raising the kids, keeping the house, my mom’s health…I can’t wait for when I can put some of this down…(well, I can never put any of THAT down, but at least maybe it could not be so much in the front of my mind!) I KNOW there is a light at the end of this long and difficult tunnel. I’m just not sure where it is yet, but I know it’s there.

Now I know in part, then I shall know fully. I can’t wait til this lesson’s learned…til this all makes sense…

I can’t wait until the day I’ll be able to say that it was all worth it.

I know it will come…and I can’t wait.

To the future of course! What lies ahead in 2006? You’ll be the first to know…

Debbie

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