Aaand we're back

Alright, it is definitely time for some new updates to be posted here. We are finally back and will continue to give you guys updates (a lot more often than we have been!). As many of you know, we have been SUPER busy over these past 2 months due to wedding and after wedding preparations...thank goodness that's all over! Let's pick up where we left off:

MAY 2010
The month of May this year was a month that Steve and I will remember for a very long time because of the way the Lord directed us and the way He provided for us. Several months prior we had been praying and asking the Lord where we should live (whether to live in Canada or Washington) and we both believed the Lord was guiding us to move to Canada. We had also asked the Lord to provide for us $2300 each month (that is what we thought we would need once we got married). Steve moved up here midway through April, and prior to that the Lord had been providing all that we asked for (via support and work). Everything was going smoothly...until we started talking about finances in pre-marriage counseling. Our mentors had us make a list of what our expenses would be on half of a piece of paper, and our income on the other half. Looking at the numbers I became quite worried because our income was much much lower than our expenses (and there was no more cutting we could do!). Steve was also worried (because I was) but didn't really let me know that. I began to doubt that we heard God correctly and was very uncertain about our future and what that would look like. I kept thinking that we should move to the states, where the cost of living is much lower, but each time I thought that I felt something like the Holy Spirit's nudge, telling me that what I was thinking was wrong. So I got confused. I said "God, how do I know you want us here? I need a clearly obvious sign that will let me know we are doing your will and that you will take care of us financially." I prayed this for several weeks, and the end of the month was nearing very quickly but still we did not have the income we had prayed for that month.
On Sunday, May 30th Steve and I went to my house after church and my mom said that Steve's mom had left a message for us saying that she wanted us to call her as soon as we got home. We got a little worried so we called her right away. She told Steve that a lady who she had never met before came up to her in church that day and asked her if Steve was still planning on going to Mongolia. Rita (Steve's mom) told him "No, but he is still planning on going to Asia." Then the lady handed her an envelope and told her to give it to him. When she got home she counted the money that was inside and it all added up to $1000...that was the remainder of what we needed for the month of May! We were both quite shocked and amazed at how the Lord provided for us. I asked for an obvious sign from God and came to the conclusion that, a large sum of money from someone none of us knew, was pretty obvious. So now we know and are confident that we are in the right place, doing the right thing for the Lord.
We are so grateful for His provision and patience with us.

JUNE 2010
I had been frantically looking for a job in May and still could not find one halfway through June, so Steve and I both decided that I should help him with MA for the summer. We cooked many (large) meals that month and had a lot of fun!

JULY 2010
We took a break from MA midway through July in order to settle the last minute details of the wedding, got married and left for our honeymoon! I will put up pictures in the next blog.

AUGUST 2010
We had a great time on our 3 week honeymoon in the Dominican Republic! We got to meet one of our sponsored children and had lots of fun hanging out with him!

and now...
We got home on August 21st, stayed there for about a day and a half, and are now continuing the rest of our honeymoon by visiting Steve's parents and other family members in Washington.
We have settled into our new home (for the most part anyway) and are very excited to start living life together! :)
Steve is getting ready to get back to YWAM and help out with the DTS (Discipleship Training School) this fall. We aren't 100% sure of what he will be doing for the DTS yet, but we will know in about 1 week and will let you know once we find out!
I am getting ready to go back to school to finish up with my final prerequisite class (Biology) and we are praying very hard that I will be able to start the nursing program in January 2011 (please pray with us!!). I am also looking and praying for a good job, so please be praying that the Lord will provide one (if it is His will, of course). We will post another update in the next 2-3 weeks to keep you guys posted!