Family Update - December 2008

Alright, I've been prompted (thanks Luca) to finally update this blog, which reminds me that I also need to update my WordPress blog as well (www.patrickmiles.com). So, the last I wrote on here, our family was considering moving to the Dominican Republic. Well, the Lord made it quite clear to us that although we were passionately seeking Him in this venture, He wasn't ready for us to quite go. How did we know this?

Well, to be short, He made sure that our house didn't sell despite the great price tag. And to make sure we knew, He blessed us with our 3rd child - a surprise gift really. We became pregnant. Upon learning this news, we felt like God was telling us to stay put in Chattie for a little longer. After visiting the D.R. and spending some time in the public hospitals down there, Jenni bluntly said to me "I will NOT be having a baby down there." So we made the decision to back off the Dominican for now and focus on the family (pun intended).

So, now our focus is on the upcoming arrival of our son, Asher Kirkham Miles, who is due January 2, 2009, although may enter into this world around Christmas 2008. We shall see. All is good and exciting as we prepare for him. Gabe and Addie are both very excited while also a little nervous about how this new little brother is going to change their familial routine. This triggers some memories of when Gabe developed stress induced canker sores on his lips when Adalie first came home. We've seen a bit of regressed behaviour from both, but overall, they are super excited.

It's been fun to watch the baby's (and thus Jenni's) growth throughout the pregnancy. Jenni is still a tiny girl, but now has a "basketball" in front of her (according to the description offered by Gabe).

So, that's where we are at this point. Still praying for our friends in the D.R. but waiting on His timing.

There's more, and I'll offer up our annual Christmas update in the next week or so, where we'll share a little more of the ups and downs of our 2008.

Mercy League

Over the last 6-7 weeks, as we have return from the D.R. and have continued to pray about life and ministry there, we have done some research about potential areas of need that we feel our gifts could help. As we look at our gifts, both Jenni and I realize that there are certain areas where we feel we can help...

• Youth focused ministry: this is probably no surprise to anyone that we would be interested primarily with ministry that supports youth, since both Jenni and I have a rich background with working with youth of all ages.
• Orphaned & Abandoned Children: with our adoption experiences and a little praying, our hearts have been touched to continue to reach out to those kids w/o out a consistent and stable home life, especially with the absence of any parent figure.
• Engaging mission trips: this is probably my area where I feel I can be of great use. Knowing that Christians (church and youth groups, camp outreach etc.) from all over t he world are looking to help serve those in need, and many have turned their attention to the D.R. and to Haiti, we feel there is a continuing need for someone to help groups connect with possible ministry projects in the D.R., and even more importantly try to establish a relationship with Dominicans and Haitians that would cultivate into deeper relationships (hopefully) with Jesus. With my experience leading youth programs at the Y for many years I feel that I could help truly help to build a great bridge between visiting Christian groups and the residents who live in northern D.R.

So as we have been praying and meditating on these things, we have continued to do research and try to connect with others who are already doing similar things. Well, in this process we were able to connect with a ministry called Mercy League, who started doing work in Haiti and have begun reaching out to the Dominicans and Haitians living on the north coast of the D.R. And once we browsed through their website, we discovered that they shared a very similar vision that we have for the people on Hispaniola (the island shared by both Haiti and the D.R.).

We discovered that Mercy League's big desire is to help local Dominicans and Haitians discover Christ by first reaching the orphaned children. Their approach...creating a self sustaining and Dominican facilitated children's home for orphaned children, where they would receive a consistent relationship with long serving house-parents. This was definitely a vision we shared. Not only was it a program that helped abandoned children, but it did it in a way that involved local Dominicans and Haitians, so it gives the locals ownership over their own ministry. So needless to say we contacted their director, and not 12 hours went by and we got a reply from him. Two weeks later, we were able to talk on the phone, and we discovered that we not only shared the same vision for the people of Hispaniola, but we also shared similar backgrounds.

Shane Mattenley and his wife are from Oregon, and after hearing about the tough situation for children in Haiti, they decided to make a trip down together. And once there, they felt God stirring to make a difference. They ended up serving in ministry in Haiti for a few years and eventually adopting two Haitian girls. Shane has a background in Christian children's camps and served as a youth pastor (very similar to my background, minus the youth pastor part). His wife was a school teacher (Jenni is a school teacher). We have two adopted children from Haiti too. It was crazy how much we shared in both background and vision.

Well since our phone conversation we have kept in continual contact, as Shane and I truly feel that God purposefully connected us. So together we are praying about our potential role in helping him maintain and support his sustainable children's home and church planting projects on the north coast of the Dominican Republic.

My prayer, my friends, is that you join me in continuing to pray that God reveals our next steps in serving Him. And that if the Mercy League projects are what He wants us to do for Him, that we are able to clearly understand our possible role and act on it.

We shall see... we shall see.

Mercy League International's Blog: http://mercyleague.blogspot.com/

Clarity - The Door Remains Open

What an amazing God we serve. It's incredible how God reveals Himself. And He did just that earlier this week. Above are the photos taken during Jenni and my trip to the Dominican Republic in March to scout out possible mission opportunities for our family. One of the biggest things that we were praying about was that God would close the door if mission in the D.R. just wasn't part of His will for us. And let's just say that His clear message to us was that we are to continue pursuing this opportunity. Clarity.

So now we look forward, praying for further direction in pursuing His perfect will as continue to be faithfully obedient to His calling.

Faithful Obedience

The countdown is on. We are headed to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic (in the northern end of the nation, see photo at right) in March to prayerfully consider a few mission opportunities there. We aren't sure what will come of this trip but we are leaving the door wide open at this point. And as we do leave the door open, we are continually meditating on (and sometime struggling with) this whole concept of FAITHFUL OBEDIENCE. What started as a simple conversation between Jenni and I about the ways to keep our kids connected to their birth country (Haiti) went from possible short term family trips to the D.R. and/or Haiti to now potential full-time living service in the D.R.

Full time missions. Are you kidding? How in the world did we get here, to be even considering full time missions? To be honest, there was definitely a time in my life when "missionary" equated to those odd, self righteous people who wore clothing that always seemed 10 years behind modern culture...you know... the people who usually homeschool their children. But within a 5 year period of intense spiritual growth (and a continual journey in seeking spiritual maturity) I have come to really appreciate the faithful and servant mentality it takes to be a missionary. And look...here we are, talking about homeschooling our own children (we can't wait for this), and now actually seriously considering living in another country away from all the things we know (culturally speaking) and love (our families especially).

In so many ways, I am scared out of my mind. It's just something that I never would have seen myself doing. Ever. I'm trying to picture myself in the D.R. I don't speak Spanish or Creole - I can barely grasp my own English vocabulary. I'm not greatly fond of tarantulas. I am a soccer and hockey fan, not baseball. I have never raised money for missionary purposes before (although I did a little fundraising for the Y) so thinking of how I'm going to make a living, feed my family and pay for a place for us to sleep is just bewildering at the moment. And then the whole aspect of simply not knowing - not knowing the culture of the D.R., not knowing how our children will be treated (being Haitian and now American, looking different from us etc.), and not knowing if anyone will even be warm to the idea of having this foreign American family come in and "do life with" them.

But the Lord has an interesting way of tugging and poking you. He has continually kept on us about just trusting Him and about doing what is right for Him. It all comes back to that FAITHFUL OBEDIENCE idea. There are times I feel the desire to tattoo that on my arm as a constant reminder of what I need to do every day...heck, every MINUTE I live. To be faithfully obedient - to simply follow the Lord. Doesn't Jesus continually just simply ask his believers to do that?

I've been really encouraged lately by 1 Peter 2. Here, take a look from the version in The Message:

"4-8Welcome to the living Stone, the source of life. The workmen took one look and threw it out; God set it in the place of honor.

Present yourselves as building stones for the construction of a sanctuary vibrant with life,

in which you'll serve as holy priests offering Christ-approved lives up to God.

The Scriptures provide precedent:

Look! I'm setting a stone in Zion,

a cornerstone in the place of honor.

Whoever trusts in this stone as a foundation will never have cause to regret it.

To you who trust him, he's a Stone to be proud of, but to those who refuse to trust him,

The stone the workmen threw out is now the chief foundation stone.

For the untrusting it's .. . a stone to trip over, a boulder blocking the way.

They trip and fall because they refuse to obey, just as predicted.

9-10But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people,

God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—

from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.

11-12Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves cozy in it.

Don't indulge your ego at the expense of your soul.

Live an exemplary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices.

Then they'll be won over to God's side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives."

How refreshing is that? This message just permeates my soul and digs deep into my personal mission to live a life for Jesus. And to do so by way of TRUSTING HIM. There was a time when I totally didn't rely on Jesus as my "chief cornerstone," and those were some pretty rocky times. Times of ego and a time of a skewed definition and drive for success - worldly success. But I now fully rely on Him to be my cornerstone, my lifeline. And what a difference it has made. I find so much more peace in life knowing I have THE God to serve as my support.

Friends, this right here is why were ARE considering this strange and crazy idea about moving to a foreign country. That's it. We want to be faithfully obedient to be His "instruments" in the place where He would have us.

And so, we move forward, doing what we feel God is at least wanting us to consider doing for Him. We may find that upon arriving and checking things out in the D.R. that it isn't the path for us. But until we hit that closed door, we push on in faithful obedience. And I know, that in doing so we bring Him glory. And that's worth every second.

What you can do? PRAY.

• Pray that we hear God's voice as we consider this opportunity
  
• Pray for our relationship with our families and friends - that it remains strong despite the possibility of us moving away for a season of life
  
• Pray for the people in the Puerto Plata area with whom we may end up doing life - pray that God begins to open up their hearts to accept a humble, blended American family


• Pray that this continues to remain a God directed mission, and not some sort of selfish plot to prove anything


• Pray that the details are revealed to us about potential mission opportunities


• Pray for guidance through His Word and the Holy Spirit

Gratiously and gratefully yours!