We started September in Nebraska, spent the middle part of it in Montana, and finished it in California. Another month, another whirlwind of travel and opportunity. It was great to spend a few more weeks on the farm after returning from Mexico. We have been able to create a home base for ourselves there, and it’s a place we can return to any time we are in the States. We are thankful for the stability that it provides us, and look forward to many future furloughs there. ...

“But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” John 15:26-27 NKJV Let me start by once again thanking each of you for your prayers and support over the last six weeks in Mexico. We have made it back into the United States and are now in Nebraska for the next couple of weeks. In September, we are planning a two week visit to our church in Montana, and then will return to California for more training. If you’d like to see us before we leave Nebraska, or while we’re in Montana, please let us know and we will make it happen. ...

He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place. Luke 23:5b What more can I say about our time in Mexico that I haven’t written to you already? As our time down here is wrapping up, and I’m able to reflect on the last five weeks some things stick out as poignant. Other lessons learned are harder to recognize, but will no doubt resurface when needed. We are being prepared for ministry like an outfitter prepares for a backcountry trek. How can you know what you’ll need for a journey you haven’t taken before? The Lord knows, and has added supplies to our pack that we won’t be able to identify until we need them. While I can’t tell you about those things, because they are beyond me, I can tell you about some things that we will definitely use in the future. ...

What a month we’ve had. Week four has concluded here in Mexico, and it was just as challenging and amazing as the previous three. Thank you for your continued prayers, the Lord has used them to minister to us in some really cool ways. Our hearts are ablaze for the people of Japan, and we can’t wait until the day that they worship Jesus as King. May it be on this side of His return! ...

Arise and go, for this is no place to rest…. Micah 2:10 Another week has wrapped up here in Rosarito, and it’s an honor to get to share with you again. Thank you so much for taking the time to read these updates, and I hope that they bless you as much as we feel blessed to be here. In the classroom this week, we had the pleasure of learning from Phil and Joy Metzger. They spent 20 years in Hungary, church planting and running a bible college. Alishia connected with them right away, as they have a mutual friend with us in Japan, and are familiar with church planters in the city where our friend Tamera lives in Serbia. Phil taught on the importance of learning language and Joy joined him to teach about raising a family on the field. They shared their testimony for two hours on Tuesday night, and they easily could have gone two more. It was amazing to have a living, speaking missionary biography right in front of us. We know that we won’t follow their specific steps to get to Japan, but it was such an encouragement to hear the ways that God showed Himself in their journey. ...

…Be utterly astounded! For I will work a work in your days Which you would not believe, though it were told you. Habakkuk 1:5b Praise the Lord as we continue our training here in Mexico! This week we have so much to be thankful about. Alishia had the opportunity to pray with women twice this week as they accepted Jesus as their savior! The first was during a street evangelism outreach and the second was during an outreach event that we were part of in one of the neighborhoods in Rosarito. This second outreach also gave us perspective. The neighborhood we were in was easily the most impoverished place I’ve ever seen. The people are often harassed and extorted by corrupt police, and hope is a dangerous thing there. Yet, the children run and play and smile, and the gospel does reach out there as evidenced by the woman who chose Jesus. We rejoice in the knowledge that our needs are met in abundance, but even if not, our joy is not dependent on that. ...

We have made it to Mexico! Thank you for your prayers. The trip here went smoothly and we have hit the ground running since we arrived. Our daily routine is filled with times of devotion, classroom learning, outreach, and prayer, with lots of amazing food in between. The opportunity to learn from active missionaries and missions-minded pastors has our brains filled to capacity. Getting to serve, love and pray with people who have so little has filled our hearts to capacity. And fellowshipping with the other like-minded students and staff has our stomachs filled to capacity. ...

June has been a sweet time of leaning in the Lord, being with family, and visiting our church in Montana. It’s been great having Daphne with us on the farm, and she’s been enjoying it as well. The chances to get to Montana are always special and this one was no different. The fellowship with our church family, the encouragement and direction from wizened saints, the tens of hours of driving where the Lord ministers to us, all of it makes these trips so valuable. And we’ve done seven trips in 2020 eighteen hours or longer, and each one has been a blessing. It would be easy to think of the numbers (140 hours at the wheel) and think what a waste of time its been, but honestly, it’s been some of the most profitable time I’ve spent this year. And the great thing is we get to do another one this weekend. ...

This update will be short and a little different, as we are still on the farm in Nebraska and things haven’t changed much. We have been blessed with the ability to see much of my (Jeff’s) family over the last several weeks, and will be seeing more in the next few. We don’t know when the Lord will send us to Japan so making these connections has been so important. ...

I hope this update finds you heathy and safe during a time seemingly defined by disease. We made the decision in late March to take advantage of the lockdown in California, to visit family in Nebraska. There are few places that are more suitable for isolation and quarantine than the farm where I (Jeff) was raised. There are also few places more suitable to us for a time of recharge and seeking the Lord. The older I get the more I miss the lifestyle and pace of this place and Alishia loves coming here in the spring when new life is springing forth from animal and plant alike. It seems that someone failed to tell the cows and rye that this new world we live in is no place to start a new generation. And so, it is with the Christian, that even though they may find themselves in a place that seems more dangerous than before, a new generation of believers will be birthed and come to maturity in this reality. With this on the foremost of our minds, we make sure that this time isn’t wasted. What better time is there to be in the word and spend time in prayer. I can practice my homiletics with cows as with my fellow interns. We can learn skills that can be helpful on the mission field. And so, the preparation continues and the call draws nearer. ...