Just over a week ago, Yolanda and I drove 9 hours from Boise to Eugene, OR, which is where we have been since then. We spent much of our time with people from Santa Clara Church. This is the first church to ever support JM2Z, and we had the opportunity to provide an update, as well as make some new friends there. Yolanda was given 15 minutes to speak last Sunday in each of the two services. As usual, she spoke extremely well, and shared things that we have been doing and our plans for the next year.

Just after she was done, we went to the elementary Sunday school classes. We shared about Zimbabwe and differences between living there and here. The children also had a chance to see our display table, which was filled with items, such as wooden bowls, carved animals, jewelry, and instruments that were all handmade by Zimbabweans. They had some great questions and were very interested in another culture.

That evening, we attended an adult small group. We enjoyed a potluck feast, followed by sharing more in depth about JM2Z. The group members asked us questions, in an attempt to get to know more about our passion, plans, and the Zimbabweans we will be working with. The evening ended with the entire group surrounding Yolanda and me, and praying for us. It was an incredibly meaningful time for us, and we are very appreciative of each and every one of their prayers.

On Tuesday evening, we got to have dinner with Santa Clara's pastor and his family, along with one of the elders and his wife. We were thankful for being able to get to share a meal and conversation with them on a more personal level. On Wednesday evening, we attended the high school youth group. We shared about what JM2Z does and a little about the people in Zimbabwe. The kids asked questions, and it was a good time for them to learn more about what is being done in missions around the world.

The church we were planning to be at yesterday cancelled on us. Instead, we decided to attend a small church near where we are staying. The people there were very friendly, many introducing themselves to us, including the pastor. He asked about us, so we said that we were missionaries with an open Sunday, so we decided to visit this church. He was interested in our story, and asked for a brochure about JM2Z. He seemed very glad to have met us, and said that he would like to contact us later. Something may come from that interaction, or it might not. Either way, we were glad to worship in this church.

We are hoping to be in the Salem area this coming Sunday, but are still waiting to hear back from leadership whether or not we have the green light. Much of friend-raising (we prefer it to the term fund-raising) is having patience and working with everyone else's schedules. Depending on what unfolds this coming weekend, we will be heading down to California. Our destination is Pine Valley, about 20mins from San Diego, but we will obviously break up the trip because of the long drive. We plan to drive along the coastline and enjoy the view until we reach San Francisco for a stop-over.

We have been quite busy lately writing letters, emails, making phone calls, attending meetings, visiting with friends and keeping y'all updated with our happenings.

Thank you for your continued prayers and emails of encouragement!

Sunday, we spent the morning at Eagle Christian Church.  I was invited to speak in an adult Sunday School class.  The regular teacher is one of my former professors from Boise Bible College, and is 96 years old.  He is looking great, and still going strong, even at his age!  I had spoken to this class about a year ago, so JM2Z was not new to most of them.  I spoke for nearly an hour, which was followed by questions from the people.  At the end of my presentation, I challenged the class to donate enough money for a screen, projector, and a small generator to run the projector.  This would make showing things, such as the "Jesus Film" much easier.  At the end of the hour, a lady told us that she had a screen at home that she did not need anymore, and wondered if we would want it.  What are the chances of that?  How great is God, that He continues to give surprises and provisions as we go along!

Several people took contact information and we are praying for some monthly supporters and partners out of the class. 

We haven't been the best photographers on our journey. I've always been the one busy speaking or interacting with people, so beng behind a camera was just never possible. However, now that Andrew joins me everywhere, it is possible, but neither of us seem to think of it at the time. We've missed several great photo opportunities to share with you. We will try to be better :-)

Yesterday, we missed a meeting with a local minister, due to some miscommunication on my part. Andrew and I were sitting in a coffee shop for over an hour. Then after a few phone calls, we realized that the minister was sitting, waiting in another coffe shop, by the same name, in a different location. Needless to say, we had to reschedule for tomorrow.

This coming Sunday (Oct 20th), I'll be speaking in Eugene, OR, at Santa Clara Church of Christ. The minister has given me 15mins in each of the 3 services, which is very generous for a medium size church. I'll also be sharing with the youth and maybe also the children, during a Q and A time.

Next week, we hope to be fully booked with small group gatherings, one-on-one meetings and visits with JM2Z partners. SCOC has been an amazing blessing to JM2Z and has supported me from the beginning. Their passion is to partner with a starting mission and see it through to fruition. It is a blessing to have such an encouraging church on board with the mission.

Needless to say, our time in Boise is coming to an end. We've been here several weeks and we feel that it has been a productive visit. I am sad to leave behind so many friends that I made during my time at BBC (college). I know at least now the option of furlough is a possibility (since I gained green card status), and know that even if I don't see them this side of heaven, I will see them the other side of eternity.

As for all our Boise friends, we love you, we appreciate you and thank you for all your hospitality during the past few weeks!!

Please be praying for:
- safe travels on Friday to Eugene
- open hearts and open ears on Sunday
- a full schedule for next week while we visit people in Eugene
- a church to invite us on Oct 27th, since an opening just arose
- our marriage as we continue to spend our first year of marriage in a different house every few days or weeks, on the road, and in transition
- continued good health as the seasons change and we are on the road

Praise:
- new JM2Z friends in the last month
- hospitality from several couples
- good food and good company as we travel
- good health, even though Andrew had a slight cold for 24hrs and I've struggled with sleep

Thank you for your prayers in advance!

So, we've been in the Boise, ID area for several weeks now. During this time, we have been able to take care of many of the administrative side of things, much of which includes sitting in front of a computer for much of the day. However, we have also had the opportunity to meet with new churches and individuals, and are still waitng on some responses. Over the last few weeks, we have pretty much filled up every Sunday until we plan to return to Zimbabwe, but are still very flexible and open during the week. 

Today, we got a surprise email from a church (for now we will keep the church anonymous, as we are still waiting to see how this will play out). A company who is working for or with the church is prepared to give a percentage its profits (for a paticular project) to the church to allocate to a non-profit organization. The missions committee of this church has chosen JM2Z to be the recipient of this gift. The gift, we are told, can be anywhere between $2000 to $5000. We are excited that this is a larger donation, as this will make a substantial difference in the start-up budget. 

We are presently at 13% of our start-up budget, and yes, we know that still means a lot of money left to raise. However, we have raised 32% of a our monthly support so far, so this is good news. Of course we only have a few months left before we plan to head to Zimbabwe, but we are confident that God will provide, and in our case, it will need to be in a miraculous way, considering how much is still needed.

Please pray for us, for peace and encouragement. If you are able to be our contact with a church, please let us know. If you are not presently partnered with us and would like to be, check out our donate link above. Also, emails of encouragement is always appreciated :-)

Thank you for your continued love and support! We are excited to be the hands and feet of Jesus in Zimbabwe, Africa!