Bo

A few of you have heard at least a portion of our "Bo" story.  I encourage those who have, to still continue reading today's blog, because as Paul Harvey used to say, "And now the rest of the story...".  For those who haven't heard it, or only know part, we shall tell it from the beginning - because one of the ways we overcome is by our testimony :)

As you know, we came to Israel last year to seek opportunities to serve the people here.  But this past year was a long year of preparation and waiting for logistics to pan out.  It finally got to where the only thing keeping us from coming was the sale of our home.  In our hearts, we were ready to leave, but didn't want to get ahead of God.

As God began to speak to us about His timing, we learned a new Hebrew word - BO.  It means GO in English.   That same weekend, we were on our way to speak at a congregation when we saw a sign at Bojangles :)  We weren't looking for a "sign", but a real one was given to us.  It said "It's BO time!" - you may have seen this as well.  We knew as silly as it may seem, He was speaking to us, because if we had seen the sign only a few days prior, it would have meant nothing to us.

Just a few days later, we found out that even though Bo means go, it also means come.  Several words in Hebrew have more than one meaning, you understand by the context of the sentence or situation.

When praying about the enormity of the possible decision to go to Israel before we sold our house, we were directed to the story about walking on the water.  When the question was asked if it was Him, He said, "Come" - Bo.  When looking this up in Hebrew, it is spelled the exact same way as bo / go.  Again, if we had read this just days prior it wouldn't have meant anything different to us, but He place all this together to speak clearly to us in a way that we did not or could not manipulate.

It was then that it was settled within us that we were to leave by the end of the year whether our house sold before we left or not.  As soon as we made this declaration of faith and trust, things moved very quickly.  Before we knew it we were here in the Land!!

While at the US airport, waiting at the gate for our departure to Tel Aviv, we finally started to feel like we were on our way.  There were many Jewish and Hebrew speaking people around since it was a direct flight.  During our final minutes in the US we were making last minute phone calls and "people watching."  Knowing only limited Hebrew among fluent speakers, it is always very exciting to hear a word or phrase that we understand.  There was a mother with her small daughter running around.  The mom was wanting to head in another direction than the child was going, so she called to her daughter, "Bo!"  Here, once again, He spoke to us as this parent bid her child to come...

We'd like to be telling you that the "rest of the story" is that we have sold our house.  No, that is not it - it's something bigger, more eternal.  BUT, we will take this opportunity to request prayer from you all for it to sell quickly.  As you can imagine, it was a big step out of the boat to be obedient to His call.  We would really like to be done with our obligations back in the States so we can fully give ourselves to the work here that we've been called to.  We covet your prayers, and if you or anyone you know is looking for a home in the NC mountains to buy (for themselves or an investment) please contact us via email.

So.....onto "the rest of the story"........

This past weekend we able to attend our first congregational meeting in the Land.  We're not sure where we're going to attend, so we'll visit a few to see where we should be.  It felt good to worship with other people, and the teaching was thought provoking.  But it was near the end of the meeting, that we knew why we felt to attend this particular meeting on this particular day.  We were asked to sing a song...very simple...just 3 words, first in English, then in Hebrew.  We were asking Him to Come, asking Him to Bo...

Like a beautiful tapestry, He brought it all together for us.  First He bid us to come, and we did.  Now He is asking us to bid Him to come.  We are home, His home.  Never has such a little word spoken so much to us.

BO - May He come quickly....

Sea of Galilee

Dare to walk on the water - dare to live your dreams.
"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain."