"Amazing Grace..."

It's Sunday and it truly has been a day of rest. We went to a wonderful worship service at a church near the Mercy Ships Campus. What a blessed way to close off one week and prepare for the next. Yesterday we capped off a soul searching couple of days in the Word by doing a silent retreat. We went to a local park, and we (the Gateway class) all went in our own direction for an extended period of quiet time in the Word, Prayer and listening for God's Voice. It is exciting spending 3 1/2 hours alone with God, no cell phone, no ipod, no nothing but you and God, what an invigorating experience.

The family just got back from a swim and I (Mike) started thinking back over the last two months. It is truly amazing what God can do. Ten short weeks ago (in Washington) we had a thought of possibly going to Mercy Ships in a year to two. Today as we look forward (from Texas) it is only 5 weeks and we will be on board Africa Mercy. Most of the hard things are done, personal belongings in storage, the house leased out, the Explorer sold, personal business tied up, addresses changed, good-byes to family and friends, and 3,000+ miles safely traveled. God pulled many people together to accomplish this what we feel is an amazing feat. There is some things yet to be done, the drive back to Washington, the sale of the Freestyle, and the flight to Benin, Africa (24 hours). Oh, there is still support to raise, both monthly and for the tickets to Benin, but Deb and I have a peace about what God can and we know will do by touching the hearts of others to help us in His service.

"All Creatures Great and Small..."

The latest catch phrase that we have been hearing is: "the weather is giving you training for Benin..." The last few days the temperature at the IOC has been 106F and 105F (40C/41C). We are "in training" in every sense! Apparently the temperature is not normally this high this time of year...But have the Jacobsens' ever done anything "normal". To quote Deb's best friend..."normal is a setting on the dryer." Joshua and Alisia have been having a great time in the pool everyday. While Deb and Mike have been in class becoming more "educated". One of the interesting topics we have been discussing is how we see things from our cultural point of view. We are continually being challenged to think beyond our culture in ever area of life. Today the kids went to the local zoo and had a great time. (Notice the giraffe looking over the fence at them.) Prayer Items: We still need funding for our tickets over to Benin. Please pray that the letters we sent out will be revisited. Pray also for Deb, she is struggling with headaches and had a migraine today.

"Let's Start From the Very Beginning..."

We are officially started what Mercy Ships calls "Gateway". This is the most intense part of our training that we have now for the next four weeks. We started Saturday afternoon with some "ice breakers"-those games everyone loves to dislike where you are forced out of you comfort zone in a group of strangers to bond with one another..." Sunday was more calm...thankfully...where we shared and listened to people tell their stories about how God has been leading on the journey to Mercy Ships-where our lives have all converged. Today, we discussed different personality traits and how God has made each of us as unique individuals to play a particular role in His plan. We each have a purpose and it is our choice if we are to follow Him or not...pretty heavy thinking for 93F outside... One of the fun things we did was take one of the foreign students to Wal-Mart for the first time...talk about sensory over load!

"We Are One in The Bond of Love..."

This week was like a buffet...you take a little of this, a little of that, a bit more of this, a bit more of that and oh wait dessert...we had a very filling week of information. We have been incredibly encouraged by the speakers we heard from and discovered we are joining an amazing organization with such a deep passion to bring hope and healing to the forgotten poor in West Africa by following the example of Jesus. As I said before we feel humbled and privileged to be part of the team. Both Mike and I feel such a sense of awe when we think that God has invited us to be part of this journey. It just took us to be obedient to His call. (Sometimes easier said than done!) We met some wonderful people and have had many laughs and great conversations. It will be neat to see many of these people aboard the Ship in the upcoming months. We have a half a day rest and then tomorrow we hit the more intense part of our training.

"My God Shall Supply All My Needs..."

We had the greatest phone call last night...."I have just sold your Explorer!!!!" For Deb this was bitter sweet...She loved her Explorer...but at the same time it is such and incredible answer to prayer. God is so great! We used the money to pay off some debt and we will put the rest toward plane tickets. YEAH!!

On another note-we are having an incredible time at the Introduction to Mercy Ships "school". We have learned so much about the Mercy Ships organization. Mike is thoroughly impressed with the organization and the vision for the future. Every aspect of Mercy Ships focuses on bringing hope and healing to the forgotten poor. We feel honored and privileged to be part of this organization and can hardly wait till we fly out to meet the ship.

We still have needs for monthly support and for the remainder of our plane tickets. Please continue to keep us in prayer...especially for next week which is supposed to be very intense.

"Welcome Home You, I know You By Name..."

We arrived today in Lindale, TX at the International Operations Centre for Mercy Ships. What a beautiful campus of 450 acres. We were given a heartfelt warm welcome by the staff and it was great to be able to put a face to many of the voices that we have been communicating with via phone and email over the past 6 weeks. We have also had the opportunity to meet many new people from many different states and countries who will probably join us on the ship at a later date. Tomorrow we will start our classes. We have settled in and feel very at home.

"On the Road Again...part 6"

Day 11-Tyler, TX-June 14, 2009-3003 miles
Well, after two countries (Canada and the US), 3 provinces (BC, Alberta, Sask.), and 9 states (WA, MT, ND, SD, IA, NE, KS,OK, TX) we are where we need to be for the next 5 weeks. (It is also 93F/31C here at 6:00pm). Tomorrow we will start our "Introduction to Mercy Ships" course in the afternoon. We are excited and ready to go. Please keep us in prayer for the next 5 weeks so we can learn, we are still awaiting the sale of our car, and the $ for plane tickets and monthly support.