Educating my kids

I just got back from our first trip to the Outdoor Discovery Center in Holland, MI. My kids and my nieces had the most wonderful time and did not want to leave. On the ride home, I was telling Mercy that we would have to come back a few times for a little field trip while Elijah and Faith are at school in a couple weeks. That comment sparked a conversation between my kids and my nieces about school and field trips. As they were talking Elijah said he can't wait for me to be his teacher. He said that he is looking forward to doing some worksheets on his own and learning lots of things with me as his teacher and his sisters as his classmates.
It made me really think about God's way of doing things because Elijah has been asking me to homeschool him since he was in preschool. It did not make sense to me because he is an awesome student and is very social at school so he has plenty of friends, yet each summer he begs me to be his teacher. Bryan and I prayed about what school our kids should attend years ago and really felt God leading us to send them to public school so they could be a light to their friends and teachers. It was hard to try to explain that to Eli each year and tell him it was not because I did not want to have him around and to teach him, but I want to let him be a witness for God to all the people he meets.
For those of you who really know Eli, you will know that he has a way of praying and as Bryan describes it "pushing God" a little to get his prayers answered. This year Eli's prayer for his mommy to homeschool him will be answered as well. I hope he has also prayed for patience and grace for his mommy and him as this will be a very new and bumpy road that he, Faith, and Mercy will be traveling on with their mommy. One of many new and different and sometimes challenging things we will all do together. Today, I am excited and ready for that challenge, but other days it will be harder. God is allowing me not only to give my children an education, but also a chance to change their eyes and hearts to the things He has preplanned for us to witness. Much of their learning will have nothing to do with a text book. They will see poverty, brokenness, rejection, disease, death, but also happiness, true wealth, adoption, and love.

My Dream Job

Within the past 2 weeks, I was sharing my testimony with a friend and I came to a new realization about our upcoming mission. Back in 2002 when I was working full time at Wedgwood, I began to look around for a different job. I had been assaulted a couple times and began to wonder if working with abused and neglected teen girls was where I should stay. I started to research different job options, and found the job I considered to be my dream job. Adoption Associated was looking for a person who would do home studies and help place children with their adoptive parents. I applied for the job and was very excited about the possibility of helping connect children with their new moms and dads. I had worked with teenagers who grew up in the foster system and rarely saw them be adopted, and thought that being a part of something so beautiful as bringing families together would be amazing.

I was turned down for the job because my college degree is in criminal justice and not social work. There was nothing I could do to get my dream job because we were thinking of starting our own family and I did not have the time or money to go get my masters in social work. The dream job was put aside and I moved on. I had my 3 kids, worked on-call for Wedgwood and began to watch my nieces.

It did not occur to me right away after Bryan brought up moving to Lesotho and working at Beautiful Gate, that we would be doing exactly what I wanted to do here. We may not be the front runner who finds the families and goes to court to advocate for the children, but we will help keep Beautiful Gate running smoothly while the director is gone. We will be involved in the kid's lives and witness God's amazing hand at work as each child finds a new home. We will rejoice when we see each kid and their new parents meet and leave Beautiful Gate together. I know that a few will never get the chance to find an earthly home as some will pass on to their heavenly home due to HIV/AIDS, but we will be blessed to have been a part of their family.

We are 10% closer to our plane tickets

We got an update from Danell last week so she could update us on our fundraising. We have 10% of the funds we need committed in order to buy our plane tickets. I am so humbled and feel so blessed by the love and generosity of our family, friends, and church family. The reality of us moving to Africa is beginning to take hold in many different ways for our family. I spent most of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday selling many of our non essential clothes, toys, books, movies, etc at our second garage sale. Bryan has begun to feel the reality of this move when a neighbor asked to go through our house (not sure how serious she is about buying) and another person showed interest in buying our couches. But saying goodbye to our house and our belongings is not a very hard part for either of us. We know it is only material possessions which can be here today and gone tomorrow. The hardest part is starting to realize how much we will miss our family and friends.

This was evident today when I was having a conversation with my son Elijah. He had a few problems while staying with his grandparents this past weekend and I wanted to talk to him about his lack of patience when he wants to do something. During our talk, I mentioned that this was probably the last weekend that he will have stayed with them before we leave for Africa because he will be in school soon. I meant that they will not have the kids alone again (they will be stuck with Bryan and I visiting too), but Eli misunderstood my meaning. I later found him on the couch with his head buried in his lap trying his best not to cry. I came over to him and asked what was wrong and he just started to sob uncontrollably. He told me he would not get to see Oma or Papa for 5 years and he felt bad that he had not been good on their last visit. It took me awhile to explain that we will see them again before we leave, but that was the last time he would go without mom and dad coming with him.

That is the hardest part of following this call to move to Africa. We have such a great family who all love us and are wonderful to be around. We have fantastic neighbors and friends whom we have known for years and our church family is amazing and welcoming. I have a greater respect for Abraham in the bible now because he did not have the convenience of modern technology. When God said go, he went knowing that was the last time he would see some of his family and friends. We have the privilege of having email, skype, letters, facebook, mission trips, and other ways to keep touch. So, after all that rambling, please know that we do not take any of your friendships for granted and appreciate all you have done and will continue to do for us. With all our love......the Geurinks

Mustard

I had about 8 friends coming over to my house this past weekend for one of our last board game nights. Bryan and I have been hosting these game nights for about 8 years with neighbors, family, college friends, and of course Mel :) We like to have lots of snacks, pop, dinner, and desserts to offer our friends, so I headed off to Meijer to buy groceries.
There was nothing really going through my mind except crossing items off my list, and then I headed down the aisle to pick up some mustard. I grabbed the mustard and then (I have no idea where the thought came from) I thought to myself, "This is probably the last bottle of mustard I am going to buy in the US for the next 5 years." My heart started racing as that thought ran through my head. Sometimes I feel like this is going to all happen sometime way out into the future and the reality of November being only a few months away gets me all nervous because I feel like that is tomorrow when I look at all that needs to be accomplished.
It may be my last bottle of mustard but soon we will be learning to buy a lot of new and different things in a new country. Will they even have mustard? Will it taste the same if they do? I don't know. I'll be sure to let you all know when we get there!
Anita

Nervous Excitement

This week has been a nerve racking and exciting week for me (Bryan). A lot of support letters went in the mail last week and many more went into the Haven Church mailboxes last Sunday. We are eagerly awaiting to watch God and His provision for us as we step out and take on this journey. We are very anxious for the day that we reach our first goal and can actually book our plane tickets. It is very hard for me to just "let God do the work" and trust Him with every aspect of this process. Currently, He is teaching me patience, which will come in handy in Africa from what I hear. But, I am confident that He will supply our every need and hopefully overflow our funding, so that we can help others to come and be missionaries to Beautiful Gate with us!
Please pray for our funding and for our family to once again "gear up" for any battles that may come our way with the sword of scripture, the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness. Our "feet are already fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace." See Ephesians 6:10-18.
Thanks again for your support and love!
Bryan

God always answers our prayers!

I(Anita) was reading back through the journal I kept, while on my trip to Beautiful Gate, this past October. It made me smile to read my journal entry because when I wrote all my thoughts, it never once occurred to me that I would be returning to Beautiful Gate.

October 11, 2009
"After church, we spent lots of time in the baby houses holding the littlest orphans here at Beautiful Gate. I love holding them and praying that they will have families soon. It has been the saddest, happiest, most beautiful, and most heart breaking week of my life. I don't even know how to journal my thoughts and feelings. I love it here. I don't want to leave the orphans, the people, the singing, the mountains, and the closeness I feel to God. I hope I am changed for my whole life and my heart will break for all the things that break God's heart. I never want to forget the hopelessness and tears that I felt and shed on Tuesday when we visited a different orphanage (no where near as bright, beautiful, or caring as Beautiful Gate) or when we drove past the little girl who was sitting all alone in her tin structure that was her home. God please burn them in my mind so I can be a better person, mom, wife, friend, and neighbor."

God will not let me forget, so He is sending my whole family to Beautiful Gate so we can all grow, learn, experience Him, bless others, and be blessed. I am still amazed at the way God chose to answer my prayer because I never would have guessed His plan for us. It is with excitement that I look forward to His calling on our lives and above all else, I am learning that God always answers our prayers, just be prepared to be shocked and amazed at times by His answer. I know that this journey will be very hard too as I am already struggling a lot with the idea of leaving my family and friends for 5 years, but God has made His will clear and I know He will comfort me and my loved ones while we are apart

A brief history of our family and our decision

Shortly after Anita & I married, I was happy helping clients complete tax returns and helping businesses, but still had a feeling that I needed to do something more to further God’s Kingdom here on earth. Anita was already helping troubled teens at a residential treatment facility in Grand Rapids. But, we felt something “tugging” at us to do something to help in the lives of other less fortunate people. Some of those ideas were, infant foster care, living at a troubled teens home as mentors, or even helping pregnant teen mothers that did not receive support from their family. But, in no way did we see ourselves leaving West Michigan.

We were living in Hudsonville at this time, but we wanted to move closer to our church home of Madison Square CRC to be a “light into the inner city”. So, we packed up and moved to the inner city of Grand Rapids. This presented us with many challenges, as we lived as the “minority” in our neighborhood. But, little did we know, that God was already starting to prepare our lives for living in Lesotho. Anita and I were happy there, but after a couple years, God had other plans for our lives. During that time, we were robbed three times. After a “three strikes and we are out policy”, I made the decision that we needed to get out of Grand Rapids. But, I can remember looking Anita in the eyes one night and feeling helpless as to how to get out. We could not afford two mortgages, or rent while we tried to sell. Also, at this time, our small group was having some conflict with our church. I felt “at the end of my rope”. And as we all know, that is when God can step in and do His best work. Just when I felt trapped in Grand Rapids and our church life was having difficulties, I could ACTUALLY feel that God was moving in my life. He was telling me to “Trust Him”. So I did! And, God provided a miraculous way for my family to move to Zeeland. While leaving our “home church” of about 8 years hurt us emotionally, I knew that God was “closing this door” and opening a new opportunity for us.

That is what led us to looking for a church home in Zeeland, and we found Haven CRC. We actually visited once and decided it wasn’t for us, but God led me back there for one more try on a Good Friday service. Anita and I fell in love with Haven and have been here ever since. Little did we know that God was already setting us up to know Beautiful Gate through Haven. Shortly after that time, Ray Haakonsen came and talked to Haven about some of the kid’s stories at Beautiful Gate. During that service, Anita leaned over to me and said, “I am going there someday!” Then came the announcement in the News and Notes 1 year later, that Haven was organizing a mission trip to Beautiful Gate. Immediately after reading the announcement, I leaned over to Anita and said, “I guess you are going, huh?” She just looked at me with that sparkle in her eye and said “Yup!”

So, Anita prepared for the next year to go to Beautiful Gate on the mission trip. Little did we know that God had started the process of changing our hearts. During that year, Anita and I had become disgusted with all our materialism and pride. We had even made a family motto of “More family, less stuff!” But, it did not seem to stop us enough, or even change us enough, for more than one or two days.

Then Anita left on her journey to Beautiful Gate in October 2009. It was then that the passage of James 1:27 became more real to us. It says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” It is very easy to understand the first part of that verse, but many people stop reading the second part. That part also “touched” Anita and myself about “not being polluted by the world”. After many time of trying to change our lives, we kept feeling that we were pulled back “into the world.” Our small group was also studying the book “Crazy Love” by Francis Chan at the time. That book was very challenging to us, as he talked about the “Radical Christians”, but that we should not call them radical, but “on fire.” (Note: this book is not for the faint of heart, but can be life changing). It was for me!

Anita returned from Beautiful Gate as a changed person. I had the pleasure of reading her journal and was also moved by God. We both felt that we needed to do “something more,” but still did not know how God wanted to use us.
Then, in late October, came the e-mail that sent our lives into a “spin”. We became aware of a position that Ray was looking to fill with the right person to become the operations manager at Beautiful Gate. Lori’s e-mail had said, “I think that you would be great for this position!” Wow!!! That was not something we saw coming!! But, we did not rule it out. We decided to pray about it and ask for more information from Keith and Lori about it. Then after some serious praying, Anita and I had decided that we were not ready for this in our lives. But, God was not to be deterred in His plans for us. So, on November 12, 2009, Lori once again e-mailed us asking to reconsider our decision. So, Anita and I decided once again to go to God in prayer about this more, and to ask other close friends and family for their input on this option. We decided to take more time in making this decision. In January, we decided that we were open to taking this position, but we asked God for a sign to confirm His will for us.

Then came the sign! On the first Monday in February, I woke up discouraged about not hearing from God yet, so I told Anita to “Just pray for our decision”. I went on to work and Anita continued her normal day’s activities, with prayer of course. Then I returned home for dinner. As our family was eating around the dinner table, talking about daily stuff, Elijah, out of the blue, said “Mom and Dad, God is telling me in my heart that we need to go to Africa, and take care of the orphans, because they don’t have a mom and dad.” Anita was just about in tears, and I just about fell out of my chair. After recovering from our shock, he also said, “I am serious, God is telling me right here (pointing at his chest).” At that moment, Anita and I knew that God had just spoken directly to us through Elijah! Wow!! So, that evening we decided to start to filling out the application for the position. On the following Monday, we also told our small group to pray for this. I think they were shocked as well! I can remember thinking, “God, I am an accountant, I don’t know how to run an orphanage. Are you sure this is what you want me to do?” But, I figured that God could still stop this process at any time by having Ray deny our application. So we applied!

It didn’t take long before Beautiful Gate accepted our application and was excited for us to get there! Again, wow! But, I still had one more reservation. I needed to see Beautiful Gate and Lesotho for myself before making a final commitment for 5 years. So, I applied for my passport and booked my flights for after tax season. In the meantime, Anita and I had many e-mail questions for Ray. The waiting for my trip felt like an eternity.

Then came the time for my trip to Beautiful Gate. I had long layovers at the airports. During the 7 hour layover in London, I decided to continue my reading of the book of Mark. And sitting in the terminal I read Mark 11:24, which says, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” After reading that, I put my Bible in my lap and prayed to God . I said, “God, Anita and I are willing to be your servants in Lesotho, but please give me one more sign during my trip to confirm your will.” (Romans 12:1-4) And I prayed believing that I would receive the answer. What I did not foresee was how quickly God answered that prayer. While I was boarding the 747 plane in London to go to Johannesburg, I sat down in my seat and another man came to sit in the seat right next to me. I asked, “Where are you going?” He said, “To a little country inside South Africa.” I said, “Lesotho?” He said, “yup!” I asked, “Why are you going there?” He said, “To adopt a child.” Now I knew that there were going to be a couple of kids adopted out while I was at Beautiful Gate, so I asked, “You are not, by chance, going to Beautiful Gate?” He looked at me incredulously and said, “How did you know?!” At that moment, my heart leaped with joy as I knew that God had just given me the sign!!! What were the odds that the two of us would even be on the same plane and even more staggering to think about was that we were sitting right next to each other on that huge plane!! We spent the next couple hours getting to know each other and telling our stories. I had a hard time trying to fall asleep that night on the plane, as I could not stop smiling from ear to ear at having heard from God!! Now I knew that I could spend the rest of my time at Beautiful Gate without the worry of looking for the sign. And I had a wonderful time! I was also able to meet Brent again on Friday, as he and his wife finalized their adoption that day at Beautiful Gate. It was amazing to see the “sheer joy” that each parent had with their child that morning! I could see how God smiles when one of his “lost sheep” finds their way “home”.

So, here we are, becoming missionaries to do God’s will! If you had asked us in September, we would have told you, “We are not missionaries! We are not ready for that!” But, God works in amazing ways. And we would be proud to have you partner with us in this endeavor with prayers, mission trips and financial support!

Bryan