It's Just a Dog.......

So we decided that we would use our blog to give people who cared to read a glimpse of our journey to the mission field; the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Things are pretty busy around here these days, and between home school, trying to raise support, trying to sell a house, preparing to move to another home in between the sell of our house and moving to Uganda, preparing for a baby coming in January, and trying to keep life as normal as possible for our five kids, we've been a little pre-occupied.  Exhausting is an understatement, and we haven't been able to post as much as we would like to. 


But something happened yesterday that we felt the need to share.  We gave our dog, Chance, away.  Chance has been a part of our family for the last 2 1/2 years.   We got him against my (Josh's) will (I'm not an animal person), when the girls made all A's on their last report card a couple of years ago.  But over the last couple of years, he has grown on us all (well, except maybe Kim because he tore up all of her patio cushions multiple times).  The kids loved him, and although they didn't play with him as much as they should have, he was always in the backyard waiting on them, whenever they wanted to.


Yesterday, he went to live with some friends of ours.  They have three kids, and Chance is lucky to have a new family like them.  He will be well taken care of.  As we all said our goodbyes yesterday, all of the kids were okay, except for one.  I won't say who, because she might get embarrassed, but she got very upset, and stayed that way for a while. 


We didn't really understand why at first.  I mean, she didn't really even play with the dog very much.  She griped when she had feeding duty.  And often complained about how he was "pooping" up the back yard and they couldn't play back there.  Nobody else was upset.  So why was she?  It's just a dog, right?


 Kim and I laid in bed last night talking about it, and the truth of it finally dawned on me.  Even though Chance wasn't her "best friend", it was a big deal when he left, because for this child, Chance represented security and normalcy.  She has known that everyday for the last 2 1/2 years, she could walk in the backyard and that dog would come bounding up to her wanting to play.  That was normal to her.  In a way, she could "rest" in that.  All of a sudden, he's not there anymore. 


Over the next year, nearly every ounce of normalcy that these children have ever known is going to be removed.  Things are going to be taken away.  The only pet they have ever had is now gone.  The only home they have known is going to be sold.  The only city they've ever lived in (or remember living in) will not be home anymore.  Their family and friends will soon be 9000 miles away.  No travel league soccer games, no school dances, no dance recitals, no baseball games, no spend the night parties.  These are all good things, and my kids more than likely will not experience them.  And to be quite honest with you, that sucks.  Am I excited about what we are doing?  Absolutely.  But the thought that my children will miss out on these things make me sad.  That probably doesn't sound very "missionary-y" but it's true. 


Sometimes, though, God strips away what is good to reveal what is best.  He takes things that maybe we are clinging to a little to tightly and asks us to lay them down, in order that He may best be glorified in us.  He does this with men and women all through scripture.  Abraham, Moses, the disciples, Paul, the early church, all of them gave up a great deal (many their own lives) to best be used by God.  I can say with 100% certainty, as those men and women stand in eternity, that it was worth it. 


So I ask you all to pray for us over these next months and years.  Pray for us as we begin to strip down some of the things we are clinging too tightly to.  Pray that God would give us grace in explaining this to our children.  It's hard for them to understand.  Heck, it's hard for me to understand sometimes.  Pray that we would find our rest, not in what is normal and secure, but in the One who never changes.  Pray that we will cling to Christ.


Much Love,
The Moodys

Buy a shirt, help send us to the field.

If you know the Moodys and our fundraising, two things we will do in a second is have a yard sale and sell a t shirt.  There are no yard sales planned in the near future, but we have been working on some t shirt designs and are ready to roll them out!!!!!!  Just like last time we sold shirts, we will be doing a pre-order, with money being collected before the shirts are ordered. 

One design (available in red short sleeve and gray long sleeve) reads "The Gospel Changes Everything" and references the scripture verse Ezekiel 36:26 which says "And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh."  We thought this was a very fitting because of the work God is doing at Abaana's Hope and in the surrounding communities.  I (Josh) visited back in January.  It was the second time I had visited Gulu.  My time earlier this year was night and day from the first time we visited in May 2013.  I have never witnessed such a visible change brought on by the Gospel like that in my life.  The first time we visited the men and women at Abaana's Hope would not even look you in the eye.  There was a feeling of hopelessness and despair.  When I returned in January, there was joy and laughing and community and love, all brought on by the advancement of the Gospel into areas where it was not before.  To sum it up, the Gospel changes everything.

The other design is simply the continent of Africa with the Ezekiel passage on it.

So without further ado, here you go!!!!

       
                                                                            

Design #2
Adult S-XL Long Sleeve $25
Youth Long Sleeve $20
2XL & 3XL for $3 more

Design #1
Adult S-XL Short Sleeve $20
Youth Short Sleeve $15
2XL & 3XL for $3 more

Design #3
Adult S-XL short sleeves $20
Youth S-L short sleeve $15
2XL & 3XL $3 more

Just an FYI, with this style shirt, soft shirts are a tad less generous of a fit than a normal t-shirt.  They're a nicer, softer t-shirt, but if you are between two sizes, we would suggest choosing the larger!


If you would like to pre-order a shirt, payments can be made online through Paypal with the payment button on the top right, or online through PayPal to moodyfam7@yahoo.com   Please include in the message box your size, style (long or short sleeve), and if you want it shipped with address. Or you can email your info to moodyfam7@yahoo.com  and send me a check in the mail.  If you would like it shipped please add an additional $4 for shipping plus $1 for each additional shirt you order.  If the shirt is not paid for by the pre-order date (which will be determined), we won't be able to order one for you.  (Sorry, unfortunately we can't pay for 300 shirts in advance!)


So share this blog!  Spread the word! Order a shirt, and help us get to Gulu!!!! God bless!!!!
The Moodys

Update from the Moody Tribe

Hey guys!  It has been a crazy couple of months since our last update.  Since then, we have started homeschool with our three girls (the boys are still going to preschool at our church) in preparation for going overseas next year.  My incredible wife is doing an amazing job teaching, and the kids love it (on most days).  Some days are tough, because they do miss their friends at school, but it's awesome  to see how much they are already learning though in a few weeks.  They are doing a great job. 

In the last month, we also found out we are having a baby boy in January.  His name is still to be determined, although Ironman has been thrown in there by Mark, and is a frontrunner if you ask me.  (I'm kidding....sort of.  Because really, how many kids do you know named Ironman?)  This evens the kid count 3-3 (boys and girls).  To those who say we need one more just for a tie breaker.......don't go there.......just don't.  Kidding aside, we are ecstatic about this little guy coming into the world.

Last month, we attended the standing room only Four Corners fundraising banquet, Experiencing Africa.  I was blown away by the amount of supporters that attended.  We had a great time, and people got to see a little piece of what God is doing through Abaana's Hope in Gulu.

Four Corners board members praying over our family and the Mobbs family at the banquet.

Sandra Watkins and her husband, Four Corners president, Royce, speaking on their experience living in Gulu, serving at Abaana's Hope.

We are also excited to say that the support train is officially moving.  In just the first couple of months of fund raising for Uganda, God has already brought us in contact with some amazing people and we have gained some incredible partners.  We are literally praise Him daily for those of you who have prayed for us, supported us with your encouraging words, and blessed us with financial support (to learn more about supporting financially click here).  We are still 12 months out from the field and we are already finding out how vital the support team is to the missionary.   

Over these next several months, we also want to get in front of as many people as possible to tell them about what God is doing through Abaana's Hope and how the Gospel is advancing among the Acholi people of northern Uganda.  You can help us with this.  We would love to speak to your church, small group, youth group, or even have coffee or a meal with you or your family.  When you're passionate about something you talk about it.  This is our passion.  This is what God has set us apart to do.  This is our "for such a time as this".  And we just want to tell people about it.  If you would like for us to come and share (doesn't matter if it is one person or 1000 people), let me know.  You can reach me (Josh) on Facebook, or email me at josh@themortgagecenterinc.com. 

So that's where we are!  T minus 12 months and counting.  We are so excited about watching God work over the next year even before we go overseas, that we can hardly stand it.  Thank you for your continued prayers and support.  They are appreciated more than you will ever know.

In Christ,
The Moody Family

Partnering With God.......

Well, here it is......our first "support raising" blog post.  For a long time I (Josh) dreaded this.  This was going to be tough for me.  I didn't want to go around asking people for money.  I have never wanted to do that.  I (Josh) have pride issues. (I'm working on it daily.) So I guess it's the pride coming up maybe, but I don't like asking for handouts.  Last year, when our family was raising money to go to Uganda, we always tried to provide something of value (t shirt, Crossfit competition, free family tailgate party, etc) in return for the money people were so generously giving.  I mean, I apologize to you or your kid if this applies to you, but I purposely go through the side door when people are standing in front of Walmart because it seems more like panhandling than "fundraising," but I digress.  (And don't any of you judge me, because you all do it too.......unless you do the fake cell phone call....that's a good one too.)  Anyway, my point being, I don't like flat out asking for money.  So I knew raising support for our moving expenses and monthly expenses for our work in Gulu, Uganda was going to be awkward at best.  I didn't want people to see me coming and run the other way because they thought I was just going to ask them to support us.




It wasn't something that I was excited about.  That is, until I sat down with a dear friend of mine (and fellow missionary) who explained to me that I wasn't "begging" for money or asking for a handout at all.  Far from it.  In actuality, I was extending a privilege to other brothers and sisters in Christ.   You see, when a missionary is raising support, what they are really doing is offering the opportunity for another believer to partner with God in what He is already doing in a particular area.  When the missionary goes, he or she is privileged to get to partner with God wherever He sends them.  When a supporter gives, that supporter also becomes a direct partner with what God is doing in that area by financially sending a missionary.  That's the beauty of mission work.  GOD IS ALREADY AT WORK.  He is doing what He is going to do.  BUT He, in His grace and love, allows us to be a part of that work.  He doesn't need us to do it.  It's not like His plans won't get accomplished if my family doesn't move to Gulu, but He is letting us be a small part of what He is already at work doing!!!!  Grasp THAT for a second.  By supporting us, He is also allowing others who can't go to get in on His work there as well.  We all get the joy and blessing, God gets the glory!  It's an ingenious plan!




The apostle Paul understood this concept when he commended the Philippian church for their support of him (Philippians 4:14-19).  No other churches were partnering with him except the Philippians.  THEY got be part of what God was doing through Paul!!!




So, ALL that being said, I unashamedly ask you, dear reader, would YOU pray about partnering with us financially in Gulu?  I say pray about it, because we want you to be 100% sure that God wants you to partner with us financially before you do.  We don't want you to give because we've been friends for a long time and you feel like "you should."  We want God to be all over this.  So, first pray.  If He says "no", not financially, we are totally cool with that. 




So, what if the answer is "yes"?  What next?  How can you partner with us financially for the advancement of the Gospel among the Acholi of northern Uganda?  There are really two ways.  You can donate "one time" for one time expenses (travel expenses, automobile, housing set up, etc.).  Our one time expenses are the costs to get us in country and set up in our home (including all plane tickets, visas, a vehicle, appliances, furniture, etc).  Or you can donate monthly (think child sponsorship, only missionary sponsorship.)  The monthly giving goes to cover our monthly or recurring costs (rent, food, utilities, language training, home school budgets, etc.)  We have a detailed line item budget that we will gladly send to any potential supporters upon request.


If this is something you are interested in, it's as simple as clicking here.  You can select recurring or one time donation.  Click Abaana's Hope Missionaries and our name should appear in a dropdown box.  Just follow the directions from there.  Monthly donations can be automatically deducted from your account. 


Another question people have asked is when should they start giving.  Our answer is simply as soon as God gives them the go ahead.  The sooner we start gaining support, the closer we get to our support raising goals.  If supporters give a recurring donation, the money will go directly to our one time fund until we need it to live on monthly.  So the sooner the better! :) 


So that's that.  We are now officially support raising.  And now officially ask you to pray about joining us.  Would God have you partner with us in taking the Gospel to the Acholi people who have been without hope for so long?  We thank you in advance from the bottom of our hearts.


In Christ,
The Moodys

Changes In Latitude........

Roughly five months ago, we wrote a blog post about the calling God had placed on our family to move overseas to minister to and serve the incredible people of Uganda.  You can read that post here.  At that time, we didn't know a whole lot of details, just that God was telling us to go.  He didn't reveal the when, where, and how immediately, but we were okay with that.  We just committed to taking small steps of obedience one at a time. 

Since then, God has been faithful to open doors and to close doors, and we have praised Him for both.  So after much prayer and fasting, and seeking God's Face, it is our incredible privilege to announce that we have gone on staff as full time missionaries with Four Corners Ministries.

Four Corners is based out of Opelika, AL. Our mission is this:  “Four Corners Ministries is focused on sharing the Gospel of Christ and demonstrating His love through mission efforts in Uganda and South Sudan.  We seek to bring hope through evangelism, discipleship, orphan care, and community health projects.  Our passion is for God to be glorified as we serve others, so that they may know Christ and be comforted in their suffering.”

Our family will be serving with two other missionary families in Gulu, Uganda.  Gulu is in northern Uganda approximately 75 miles from the South Sudan border.  We will be working among the Acholi people group. 

For the last 25 years, Gulu has been at the heart of a brutal civil war between Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government forces.  An old African proverb says "When two elephants fight, the grass beneath is trampled."  In no other place has this proverb been more evident.  Over two decades of brutal war between these two "elephants" has decimated innocent Acholi lives in northern Uganda.  In addition to thousands and thousands slaughtered by both the LRA and Ugandan forces, northern Uganda's infrastructure was also crushed.  Companies and entire industries pulled out of northern Uganda due to fear of the rebel army.  (At one time, in the not so distant past, northern Uganda was among the most dangerous places on earth.)  This, in turn, left the economy devastated and made basic needs such as sanitation, police protection, and medical help vastly lacking, and in most cases, non-existent. 

Heavy fighting died down in 2008, and since then most of the of LRA has disbanded and defected, but the Acholi people will feel the effects of this war for decades to come.  To say there is a feeling of hopelessness is an understatement.  Poverty is rampant and unemployment is around 80%.  That, however, is not the most desperate part of their situation. 

Northern Uganda is a very spiritually dark place.  Most Acholi claim to be Christian, but by saying they are "Christian" simply means they are NOT Muslim.  The primary religion among the Acholi is Roman Catholicism.   Most of the "Christians" still practice some form of tribal, animistic, or ancestral worship, and witchcraft is VERY rampant.  Less than 2% of Acholi are Evangelical Christian.  There is a vast lostness in northern Uganda and a need to make Christ known.

Downtown Gulu

The market in Gulu

Heavy rains downtown

This is where our family is going.  And we are going with the only lasting hope that we have to offer:  Jesus Christ.  Nothing else can remedy the situation among the Acholi.  Nothing.  Period. 


What will we be doing?  Well, our primary focus will be ministering at a community development project and comprehensive children's village called Abaana's Hope.  Abaana's Hope is a 100 acre piece of property about 25 kilometers outside of Gulu.  It is truly "in the bush.”  Nothing anywhere around.  Our jobs at Abaana's Hope will range from evangelism and discipleship to orphan care to basic medical care, and a little of everything in between.  One of our team members, currently serving in Gulu, said the best answer to give when asked what we would be doing is "God stuff.”  Above all, we will seek to glorify God in everything that we undertake.



Newly constructed medical clinic at Abaana's Hope

Constructing the Church at Abaana's Hope

We are looking at a departure date of sometime next summer.  We would like for it to be June or July of 2015, but we know that God is sovereign and we won't get there one second before or after He has ordained us to.  We still have a house to sell and things to pay off.  We nearly have the details of our budget worked out and will begin to raise support very soon.  We will release details on that in the next few weeks. 

That's about it for now.  God has revealed the "where" and "who" to serve, but we still have a lot of unknowns.  We are taking the same approach as always: taking the small steps and letting God open doors and provide as He sees fit.  HE'S ALWAYS FAITHFUL. 

So, if you have stayed with me long enough in this post, what do we need you to do?  That is a very easy answer: Pray.  We ask that you go before the sovereign God of the universe on our behalf.  We ask that you pray as our family begins the long road to Gulu.  We ask that you pray all logistical details to fall into place.  We ask that you pray for our spiritual growth and maturity.  We ask that you pray and see if God would lead you to partner with us financially.  Again, we will have more details soon on how you can do that.  But above all, partner with us in prayer. 

We would be humbled if you would commit to praying for our family daily as we begin this new journey.  I will say this a million times, I'm sure, but we would rather have someone partner with us that is committed to getting on his or her face daily before God on behalf of our family than someone who gives us $200/month but never thinks about us in prayer.  Now, if you would like to get on your face daily before God AND give $200/month, that would be fantastic......but I digress!  (Kidding.......well, not really.)

Prayerfully, we will be posting much more often so those that want to can walk through this journey with us.  We know that it will definitely not be easy.  But Jesus never said following Him to the ends of the earth would be (as a matter of fact, He said quite the opposite).  However, there are two things we know beyond a shadow of a doubt.  One, He will ALWAYS be with us and will not abandon us for a split second.  And two, it will be totally worth it.  We love you all.


In Him,

The Moody Family