So, today we find ourselves in Costa Mesa. We’ve spent the last few days between here and San Diego spending time with some of our close friends and saying goodbyes before we return to Moshi. It has been a bit tough saying those goodbyes, but we thank God for His grace and His beautiful plan for our lives. As we get ready to head back, we just wanted to write a blog to keep all of our friends up to date on how things are looking for us...

1. 1.Date - We have landed on a date for our return to Tanzania. We will be meeting with Rita later this afternoon, but she has already told us that we leave on Wednesday, July 13th. That’s 8 days away! We had been waiting on Melissa’s passport to process before the travel agent could book the tickets, but our seats are secured and Melissa’s passport has arrived. We are organizing our things, packing and saying our goodbyes.
   

2. 2.House - We are so blessed to have a house already lined up for us. Our good friends (who are also missionaries) Ryan and Stacy have scouted out and arranged a place for us  back in Moshi. It is a three bedroom house, furnished with a big yard in the neighborhood we were hoping for. We truly feel blessed. One of the great things is that the rent is only $350 a month! One of the not as great things is that, as is customary, we have to pay for that rent six months in advance, hence cutting into our wedding money. At any rate, its a really great deal and we (especially Melissa) are really looking forward to settling in and making the house our home. We’ll share photos once we’ve arrived and once she’s decorated. Think before and after status!
   

3. 3.Car - Our biggest thing that we wanted to do with the money from our wedding was to purchase a car. While we are so grateful for the generous gifts from our wedding guests, we are afraid that we are coming up short in that regard. The car situation at TOA isn’t the best and adding a missionary (Melissa) only makes things a little tighter. We will continue to share the scooters and truck with Lydia and Jodie, but would really love a car of our own; not just for here and now, but also for down the road when we start having more kids (besides Awadhi and the Treasures). Besides the six months rent, we are having to pay for other things to prepare our home there and the numbers aren’t adding up for a car. Ryan has spotted a really good SUV that we’d love, but the money’s not there right now. We continue to trust God though and His plan while remembering to be faithful with the little that we do have.
   

4. 4.Ministry Detail - One of the big questions going into this six months was what would Melissa’s role be as a missionary at Treasures of Africa. While that is still somewhat in the formative stages, we have been blessed with a godly board at Hidden With Christ who are giving both of us grace as we transition into our new married life together. After a month of settling into our home, Brandon will resume his position as Education Director/Business Manager and Melissa will begin to work as a teacher at TOA (keep checking this blog and our personal blogs on how all that plays out once we’re over there).
   

5. 5.Fundraising - Over the last six months (especially January and February) we spent a lot of time on the road, going around and speaking at churches. It was such a blessing to connect with brothers and sisters throughout central and southern California (even got to connect with believers at Brandon’s parents’ church in Wisconsin). We received some generous donations and were blessed by those we met with and really blessed by those who have given and continue to support us. We were informed by our director Rita that Brandon did lose some of his monthly supporters which has been a decrease in support, when what we needed most was an increase. We are responsible to fundraise more since we now have more expenses as two missionaries instead of one. We made some connections with churches that Melissa was involved with and she has sent out support letters, but we could still use more (check out our “Contact Us” page if you would like to donate). Again, we trust God and know that He will never forget us in our ministry and our personal needs. He feeds the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field, He’ll take care of us too!
   

We are so excited to get back to Tanzania next week. We can hardly wait to see the kids and our friends there. At the same time, it saddens us to leave (whether for the first time or second time) so many loved ones here in the states. You all mean so much to us and we love you dearly. Please be praying for us, we truly need it. We know that the adversary wants to cause us pain and discourage us from this calling the Lord has put on our life, but we remain in the promises of our merciful Lord. Your support, your prayers and your love mean the world to us. Please keep in contact with us as we transition back to Moshi. Hit us up on Facebook, email us, Skype us, read the blogs and keep posted here on our website. We bless you in the name of the Lord.

Posted by Melissa and Brandon