We Have Our Heading!

"It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”  Deuteronomy 31:8

It was about this time last year that we had prayerfully decided to step away from our jobs in full-time ministry and dive into a season of intentional rest and healing.  It was a difficult decision.  Stepping away from our dreams, income, and community, in many ways.  We had no idea what would lie ahead but God did.  That season was so refreshing to our hearts and faith building for the journey ahead.  Don't get us wrong, it was still difficult.  We were not only walking ourselves through healing from our time overseas and dreams lost but also walking our children through their own struggles and life changes.  We were needing extended periods of uninterrupted time to think, pray and reflect. That's not easy with life, kids, a job and responsibilities still in play. But over time, we were able to discover what a healthy rhythm of rest looked like for our family.  We moved in with Andrew's parents (who have been super generous to take in a family of six!), talked A LOT together, went fishing a lot, spent time with friends, talked consistently with pastoral care coaches, went to counseling, prayed together more and eventually began to dream again!

So now we come to the point where we can confidently say that all the hard decisions and waiting were worth it!  This specific verse in Isaiah has been huge for us in this process!

Behold, I am doing a new thing;  now it springs forth,
do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the
wilderness and rivers in the desert.  
Isaiah 43:19

This has been on our hearts ever since we started dreaming again.  It started out as a declaration of faith to dream again and grew into a reality.  We knew that God wasn't finished with us in ministry but we didn't know when, how, where or what.  Over the last 15 months, He has made that clear to us and we couldn't be more excited for what he initiated!!  Recently a friend shared a word with us, not knowing the direction we were heading.   It  not only confirmed our decision but amazingly she referenced Isaiah 43 too!  We feel the kindness of God in his clarity and confirmation!

Here's the news!  Next summer, June 2018, we plan to join Team Sicily in ministry!  We will partner with the Ballard Family (another family of six) and the local Italian church to reach Italians and minister to North African refugees seeking asylum from war-torn African countries.

We are so excited about the ministry already happening there and we see a place for ourselves to jump in!  Part of our work is to help organize and lead short term teams and internships.  We are excited to use our gifts of hospitality and service.

There are many unknowns (we feel like broken records), but as Johnny Depp shouts in one of our favorite movies, Pirates of the Caribbean, "We have our heading!" That feels great!

Thank you, thank you, thank you, to every one of you who have checked in on us, prayed for us, sent encouraging words or gifts and continually stood with us as brothers and sisters in Christ.  We couldn't be more thankful and grateful for how God used you all to minister to our hearts.

With this position we will again be living on 100% financial support.  We need your help!  We humbly ask if you would consider supporting us and the work in Sicily.  Whether you've been a supporter in the past or would like to jump in now, we are excited to partner with you again!  We are needing both financial and prayer supporters-both are needed to go! If you'd like to give click here and choose BISSON FUND.  June will come fast!

We are excited to partner again with each one of you and share more in-depth about the work before us in Sicily!

Andrew, Susan and kids