Jacksons in Turkey

I just want to write a quick post about our upcoming adventure. (really, it will be quick this time!)

Eli, Sarah and I have the opportunity to travel to Turkey for a month and work alongside a family in their work on the field. Eli and I feel that our family is called to serve, but as of right now, we don't know what all that includes. We don't have any specifics for our future, but we can feel God working in our family to prepare us.

We actually leave this afternoon to begin our 23 hour journey to get to Turkey. Before we go, I wanted to ask you to pray. For our family, for the ones we will visit and build relationships with, and for the "Smiths" who have so much to teach us. I will leave you with a few specific points to lift up to our Father.

• Travel: like I mentioned, this is not a short trip. Between car travel, plane flights, layovers, and a bus ride, this trip will total 23-25 hours. Add in an almost-two year old... I think you understand :)  We pray for patience and understanding from the other travelers (and ourselves) and for smooth flights and transitions between countries.
• Safety: the area we will be working in is very safe, away from the conflicts that are so prevalent on the news. Still we ask for safety in traveling, and in living daily life while we are there.
• Sarah: she has traveled before, but never anything like this. I know that she won't understand everything. And we will do our best to explain and comfort her when she is confused. Our prayer is that she would be impacted by this as well. Even though she is young, God knows her and has begun working in her. We want our family to be one as we share with others and learn how to live life abroad, including Sarah. We pray for a calm spirit for her (and us!) and that she would begin to see God's love displayed.
• The Smith family: they have been so gracious to allow us to come work with them. We ask that God prepare them for us and us for them. Opening up their lives to a new family is not an easy task, especially since they just returned to Turkey after being away for a year. We pray for strength and wisdom for them.
• An attitude of learning: one of our main focuses while we are there is to learn what it is like to live as a family in a new culture. We also want to learn how to best serve those around us, as a family. We pray for our hearts and minds to be open and receptive.
• The families we come in contact with: We pray that our brothers and sisters would share God's love through their lives. We also pray for the ones who haven't taken that step in their faith yet, that their eyes would be open to all that he is doing and how much he loves them. 

Thank you for joining us on this adventure! Even though we expect to see God working in mighty ways, I know that we will be amazed by how big he is and all that he accomplishes.

I will hopefully be adding updates while we are there, using the internet cafe down the street from our apartment. I look forward to sharing with you.