• Silly Cows Blocking The Way, Part 1
• Silly Cows Blocking The Way, Part 2

For those who don’t use Facebook here is a link to the two videos! Enjoy.

The Introduction

The Cows

Tomorrow Is the Day, the First Day of School

Woah. Can you believe it? We’ve been waiting for over a year to meet the students of Black Forest Academy, and now we get to. It will be extremely exciting, I’m sure.

We’ll start the day off with BFA’s Opening Ceremony, which includes a flag processional for all of the different countries represented this year. For those of you who’ve been to JBU, it’s like International Chapel, which pretty much guarantees that Dani will cry.  The Opening Ceremony is meant to be inspiring and fun for all involved, especially the students.  Right now, that’s all I know specifically about the first day of school. I’m sure Dani knows way more specifics, but my main job will be taking pictures and capturing what goes on.

The First Time For Many Students

After the Opening Ceremony tomorrow, parents will say goodbye to their kids. We’re told that it’s a very difficult time, with lots of tears. Tomorrow will be the first time for about 70 students to be at BFA. Most of them probably haven’t ever stayed at a boarding school. They will be leaving their parents and having many experiences that college students have back in the states: homesickness, a new environment, a new country, nothing familiar, no parents, dorm life. As you can imagine, it can be difficult.

There will be around 350 students total this year. I think there are around 47 students in the elementary school, which includes a bilingual school. The elementary school is in another town about 10-15 minutes away. The building is very tiny for the amount of students they have this year. They are growing each year, so everyone here is excited about the potential for that school.

Every year there are many changes, both for staff and students. New staff arrives, current staff change positions, and old staff leave. This year there is even a new director. Every year, students must say goodbye to their teachers, dorm staff and friends. BFA is a place that is always changing. Tomorrow is the beginning of another year, which will inevitably look different from the next one. Yet in all of these changes, God is present and at work. As you can imagine, the first day can be pretty overwhelming for everyone, but it holds so much hope and potential too.

God’s Timing Is Perfect

Over the past month, we’ve had moments when we couldn’t believe that we were finally here. Our hearts have been at BFA since July of last year, so it’s nice that our bodies have finally joined them. As we prepare for tomorrow, it feels like the fulfillment of the path God set us on over a year ago. He’s been building and shaping us for this, for what begins tomorrow. It’s become abundantly clear that this was his perfect timing for us to be at BFA. We are honored to have the opportunity to serve these kids. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers as we begin this new year.

Some Things To Be Praying About For The School

• That families will know how to say goodbye well. That parents will be able to have peace about their decisions to send their children to BFA.
• That the new students will not get overwhelmed by the enemy, but will have peace and excitement in their transitions.
• That all the students will have a good first day and first week, and will figure out all their class schedules.
• That the new director will have peace and know how to lead.
• That the staff at BFA will be rested and ready for anything that might get thrown their way tomorrow.

Some Things You Can Pray About For Us

• That we feel like we fit in well at BFA. Dani especially always has a difficult time with the initial adjustment period of new situations.
• That we adjust to how long everything takes to done. Washing a load of laundry takes at least 90 minutes, no drying included.
• That we are able to be a part of the German community here, by getting to know our landlords, for example.
• For our new routine, neither of us have had regular work routines for about a year now. For Dani it’s been two years.
• That we continue to pursue God, especially now that our ministry is officially starting up.

Hello there folks. Well, according to my little desktop widget, we’ve been in Germany for 17 days. I can’t believe that. It doesn’t seem possible.

Thus far, our time in Kandern has been wonderful. We arrived two weeks before anything started, so we’ve had plenty of time to get over jetlag and settle in. We are incredibly blessed to be living in the home of a woman who’s in The States for a year. This means that from the moment we stepped into our little apartment, we had internet, phone, furniture and food. Many staff members arrive to completely empty apartments. I’m so, so, so glad that wasn’t our experience.

This is our building. The top two windows are ours. Our windows open all the way and there are no screens; it’s fabulous. Also, that’s our car in the driveway. We have purchased and registered the car, but have yet to drive it. All in good time, my friends.

So far, we’ve learned our way around Kandern, learned how to shop, officially registered in the town, registered for a trash can (which we have yet to receive), and figured out the basics of life.

Our new friend Anne, who we met at Orientation, came a few days earlier than she needed to and stayed with us. It was fabulous having her here. We had many a long talk on many a long walk. I think we went for a three hour walk each of the three days she was here. On our first walk, we were caught in a ridiculous thunderstorm. It was a complete downpour for about half an hour. We had no umbrellas or raincoats. It was marvelous, if a bit chilly.

Today we started the first of our three weeks of Orientation—Survival German. Every morning from 9:00 – 12:00, we meet at Black Forest Academy in order to learn a few German language basics, you know, so we can buy food at the grocery store and such.

All of these photos were taken on the walk to school this morning. It’s wonderful to finally begin the “real” BFA stuff. Next week, all of the new staff will learn about the school. The final week of Orientation is for all of the staff.

Israel has been able to do some preliminary work for his job. He’s had several meetings about the media needs of the school and has a better idea of what his job will entail. He even made a trip to Ikea to purchase some new office furniture for the office, which he’ll share with the school’s graphic designer. Israel, Anne and I spent Saturday putting together all of his new office furniture. He’s pretty excited.

Here’s a funny story. We had a few over-ripe bananas. So I thought I’d make banana bread. Fortunately, the home we’re living in is stocked with all of the baking supplies I needed. All went quite well, I thought. I’d even said, “I think my first German baking experience was a success.” And then Israel tried the bread. “Dani,” he said. “What did you put on top of this?”

“Brown sugar, and cinnamon and sugar.” What else would you put on banana bread?

“Are you sure it wasn’t brown sugar, and cinnamon and salt?”

“………….”

Yep. It was salt. All over the banana bread. So here’s a tip, if you ever move to a foreign country, or just into someone else’s home, always taste any unlabeled containers that you assume are sugar.

We are absolutely thrilled to finally be here. Over the past six months, it’s become more and more clear why this is God’s perfect timing for our arrival at BFA. More on that later. Here are a few photos of the school where we’ll spend at least the next two years (hopefully more) loving missionary kids. Yay!!

On the way home, we took a little video of Kandern, the town where we’re living. It’s absolutely beautiful here. Seriously, gorgeous. I think you’ll have to visit to really understand though.

Here are a few initial thoughts. This place is beautiful. We’re very excited. We’re very sleepy.

More to come soon!

Well, unless God has some seriously different plans, today is the day we move to Germany. Can you believe it?! We can’t. God has been so very faithful to us through this process. Praise him for making this dream a reality!

Here’s our itinerary for the day. All times are local.

• Depart from NW Arkansas at 13:15. Arrive at O’Hare (Chicago) Terminal 3 at 14:53.
• Depart from O’Hare (Chicago) Terminal 5  at 17:20. Arrive at Heathrow (London) Terminal 5 at 07:00.
• Depart from Heathrow (London) Terminal 5 at 08:30. Arrive at Basel (Basel), Switzerland at 11:05, July 17th.

Pray that all of our flights would be on time and easy. Pray that all of our bags arrive undamaged. Pray that God provides peace and excitement during this journey.

We have been so blessed over the past year. God has proven his provision, goodness and power so many times. Just think what the next year will hold!

We’ll try to update again once we arrive.

Since we began this journey 12 months ago, I’ve run the gamut of emotions. I’ve recounted my emotional journey many times since August, so feel free look back if you’ve forgotten. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of documenting our lives (and especially my emotional life), but I haven’t done a very good job of sharing what’s been the driving force behind this drastic life-change, and what has been on my mind every day of these last 12 months.

On July 24th of last year, I received an email from my friend Pam, inviting us to join her at Black Forest Academy for a week. I had never heard of Black Forest Academy and, being the researcher that I am, found the website. I spent the next four or five hours sitting on my bed, devouring every piece of information I could find about BFA. I’m pretty sure that by the time Israel got home later that evening, I’d even blog-stalked several staff people. Basically, I fell in love with BFA from the moment I visited their website. What kept me arrested and what captured my heart wasn’t the excitement, or the opportunity to travel back to Germany, or the even the possibility of doing something fulfilling (though those were all appealing), what made my heart leap was the students. Black Forest Academy is a boarding school for missionary kids. 90% of the 350 students are the children of missionaries.

While at Orientation a few weeks ago, I heard the story of my new friend Anne, and have been reflecting on it ever since. Anne attended BFA as a boarding student for three years during high school. Here’s the short version of her story. One night, she asked her RA why God had taken her away from her home and family to come live with a bunch of MKs. Her RA said, “Because He loves you Anne,” and that statement changed Anne’s life. This story gave voice to the burning passion and hope of my heart—that Jesus would use my life to say to BFA’s students, I love you.

I haven’t shared this in the blog, but in September, I was assigned a small group of seven sophomore girls. Their small group leader was leaving, and, since we thought we would be arriving soon, I was to take over. Since September, I’ve been able to get to know these young women through Facebook, and I love them. Even though I’ve never met them, and have no idea if I’ll understand their stories, or even if I’ll ever lead their small group, they’ve taken up residence in my heart. God placed these girls in my life so that he could increase my love for the students of BFA. These students have sacrificed security, stability, a sense of home, and often aspects of their family, for a calling that wasn’t even theirs.

Israel and I are being sent to be Jesus to these kids, who, though they know many facts about Jesus, might not believe that he delights in them. We’ve been given a great opportunity. We have the privilege of loving the children of people who have taken up a mighty calling. We have the joy of loving students who Jesus deeply cares for, students who have spent their lives telling others about the love of Jesus, but perhaps have never believed it themselves.

I’m doing a poor job of expressing the deep conviction that has grown in my heart, but I think what I want you to know is that these kids are worth it. Just as much as any people group across the globe, they deserve to have someone go on their behalf, that they might know their Creator. Thank you for allowing us to go. Thank you for funding us and sending us out. Thank you for taking up this quest with us, for saying that these kids are important too. I am deeply honored.

As you know, we’re leaving, the country, for a while. As of July 16th, we’ll no longer be US residents, let alone Arkansas residents. We want to say goodbye to you, so we’re having a going away party, also known as the Jernigan Jubilee. I think The Jernigan Jubilee is a rather horrible name, but it’s all I could think of at the time, so we’re stuck with it.

The awesomeness that will be the Jernigan Jubilee is from 6:00 to 10:00 pm on Saturday, July 10th. The shin-dig will take place at The Farm of Hale at 16045 Trapp Hill Rd., West Fork, AR. If you put this address into your GPS, you might get lost. Directions are at the end of this post.

Here are some of the amazing things you can look forward to at the Jernigan Jubilee.

• Hotdogs and Hamburgers
• Farm Animals – Goats, chickens, sheep, dogs, cats, ducks. We will not be eating any of the farm animals.
• Fishing from the pond. Bring poles if you have them!
• Yard games – Corn Hole, Ladder Ball, Bocci Ball
• Beautiful Arkansas countryside
• Fireworks…If you happen to have some extra lying around.
• Us!

We would love to see you at the Jubilee. If you’re going to come, please bring a drink, a side dish, or a dessert. We will provide hot dogs and hamburgers with all the fixings, tea, lemonade, and plates and such. Please let me know if you plan to attend and what food you will bring. You can now RSVP on Facebook! But, if you don’t RSVP, come anyway!

Directions, Dani Style

From Fayetteville, AR to 16045 Trapp Hill Rd., West Fork, AR

• Head South on 540 for about ten miles (depending on where in Fayetteville you start).
• Take Exit 53 to AR-170 toward West Fork.
• Turn right onto AR-170. Continue to follow AR-170 for 6.6 miles. Enjoy the view.
• Turn right onto CR 2073. There is a blue sign on the left side of the road, but you will turn right.
• Continue down this road for about a mile. Stay to the left. The house is a log cabin home on the left. It set back from the road a bit. Look for the small Farm of Hale sign.
• Call if you get lost! 918-287-8014

See you soon!

Right now, I’m sitting in an armchair at my Mom’s home in Telephone, Texas. In a few days, we’ll say goodbye to them for the last time before we move to Germany. I want to treasure these last few days with them, but I find my mind wandering back to Minnesota.

We spent the last seven days with about 35 other new staff at our sending organization’s orientation. It was amazing. We met some amazing new people—MKs, teachers, staff folks. We learned some amazing things—about Christian Education, living in another country, Third Culture Kids. In short, it was a wonderful time.

Since I’m finding it hard to put my thoughts into words, I’m just going to hit some of the highlights of the week.

Hearing about the vision and mission of TeachBeyond

We have an amazing sending organization, TeachBeyond. We originally picked TeachBeyond because their application process was streamlined with Black Forest Academy’s. We didn’t know much more about their overarching purpose, but now we do. This organization is using education to change the world.

At our orientation, we had new staff members going to 10 different countries in Europe, Africa and Asia. A few years ago, TeachBeyond was sending staff only to BFA. We were also the largest group of new members ever. TeachBeyond is growing. They are using the need and opportunity of education to further the kingdom of God. If you’re a teacher or want to serve overseas, check out TeachBeyond. God is doing amazing things through this group.

Meeting our mission family

When we went to Orientation, I didn’t expect to find a new family, but that’s what happened. Every person there shared our passion for loving students and MKs. These are people who know what it’s like to sell all of their belongings and leave their lives of comfort for the sake of the Kingdom. People who know the humility, dependence and miracle of asking people to join you in a mission. People who have agreed to step into the unknown, for the sake of Christ. I expected to enjoy getting to know new people, but I didn’t expect to be sad to leave them. I was always excited about loving the students at BFA, but now I’m excited about loving the staff as well.

Not only did we get to meet all the other new missionaries, we were also able to meet the TeachBeyond staff who have supported us during the past year. We met Mike, the first person to contact us. We met the amazing women who handle all of our pledges and finances. We even met the President of the organization. It was a privilege to see these people. There’s no way we’d be going to Germany without them.

Being Encouraged and Affirmed in Our Purpose

More than anything else, this weekend was an encouragement. For the past year, I really didn’t plan to be at Orientation; I planned to be in Germany. Fortunately, God is much wiser than I. I’m so thankful we were at Orientation. Throughout the entire week, we were strengthened in our desire and purpose for BFA. We saw more clearly the need for our skills and passions. We were even able to talk with several MKs, two who attended BFA themselves, about their lives and experiences. We feel more prepared and purposed because of Orientation.

Meeting Anne

Anne is an MK from Central Asia. She spent 10 years living in another country and attended BFA for three years. While she was there, God used one of her RAs (Resident Assistants) to help her understand the depth of his love, which is why she’s going back to be an RA herself. I loved getting to know Anne. There have been two people in my life with whom I’ve had an instant connection. One of these people was Pam, who changed my world by introducing us to BFA. Anne makes a third. I was so encouraged by Anne. She is wise, and thoughtful and insightful. I am so excited that I’ll be able to spend the next two years loving MKs alongside her.

Hearing the Stories of our Fellow Staff

One of our favorite parts of Orientation was hearing the testimonies of other staff members. Each night, we would gather to share what Christ had done in our lives. It was amazing to see the work of God in the lives of these 40 or so people. It was wonderful to see the way that God drew each of us to himself and then gave us the opportunity to serve him overseas. I can’t wait to hear what God does over the next few years through us all.

Please pray for these people. I can promise you, they are all amazing, and God will use them each to accomplish his work. Pray for their support. One couple learned about a school opening only two days before Orientation started. They (along with many others) have got a lot of support to raise by August 1st. Pray for their transitions. Almost all of us are going to cultures that are unfamiliar to us and we will all face discouragement, confusion, and doubt. Pray that God would be glorified through our triumphs and failures, good days and bad days, certainty and confusion.

We’re Official

On Friday evening, we were commissioned by TeachBeyond. It was a short, simple service, the staff simply prayed for us, but it felt like the culmination of the last 12 months, and the beginning of a new and exciting adventure. We leave for Black Forest Academy in 18 days. I have no idea what the next few years will look like for us. I have no idea if we’ll be any good at our jobs, or like German culture, or want to stay, but I know that God has prepared us for this. We’re ready.