August Newsletter

August Newsletter View this email in your browser

Pyle Family Update

Fundraising - Mini Goal We currently stand at almost 39% of our monthly budget! We are setting a mini goal for the last week of August. We would love to be at 45% by September 1st. We need to be at 90% of our monthly budget in order to actually pack up and move down to the DR. 45% would put us at the half way mark! Wow! That is just crazy to think about! We are so thankful for all the prayers and support we have already received and ask that you prayerfully consider joining us on this journey! How to Get Involved! If you are interested in supporting us and becoming part of our team, please visit www.itisforfreedom.com, click on Donate under Invest and choose Pyle from the drop down menu. While any gift is much appreciated, signing up for monthly donations makes it easier for us to have a steady income. We are looking for monthly donations of $20, $25, $50 and $100 or more. Celebrating the last day of school this quarter!  Pyle Summer This month has flown by! August held a few important dates for us! Here's what we've been up to! Ava started Kindergarten! South Adams offers all day Kindergarten so it's taken a while to get used to her being gone all day! Blakeley and Karsyn are very happy to see her at the end of the day. :) She says her favorite thing about Kindergarten so far is computer class. Ava also celebrated her 6th birthday on August 16th. There's something about 6 that just makes her seem so much more grown up. We celebrated with a party at the Berne Pool!  Gabe and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary on August 21st! Wow! Where has the time gone?! We will be leaving Friday for a mini get-away to St. Louis! I'm so excited for a kid-free weekend :) Click here for video Click on the picture above to see a video about why we love our new school! One Quarter in the Books! It's hard to believe that we've completed the first quarter of the 2014-2015 school year! While there have been many adjustments, we have truly loved being able to teach these kids in our very own school building! Exciting things are happening at Freedom! We are living inside one big miracle - God is providing financially, students are being sponsored, the building is going up, lives are changing on the ground and so much more! Please continue to keep Freedom and everyone involved in your prayers. It's amazing to see how God is working in the DR and we can't wait to see what He has in store for the future!

You can keep up with us on Freedom's FB page or by following our family blog. We will be speaking at several churches over the next couple months and sharing what God has laid on our hearts. Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for that and that God would speak through us. Gabe, Krista, Ava, Karsyn & Blakeley   Mission:  Freedom equips people to engage culture according to their design. Vision: Freedom develops life-changing relationships with those most unlikely so                that they become catalysts for change with in the Dominican Republic.

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Waiting

Waiting. It’s definitely not one of my strengths. I’m more of an ‘instant results’ kinda girl. So as you can imagine, this whole fundraising process (it definitely involves waiting!) has been a faith builder for me. It’s really easy for me to get discouraged. We know that God is calling us to the DR so I just want to pack up and get down there asap! It’s really hard to watch all the wonderful things happening with Freedom as we sit over 3,000 miles away in Berne, IN. 

First Mennonite Church recently had 30+ people go down for a week long mission trip. Several of our friends were on this trip and as they posted pictures on Facebook, Gabe and I both looked at each other and thought “it’s no fair!” We so wanted to hop on the plane and head down with them.

But as I was lifting my discouragement and frustrations to the Lord the other night, He randomly brought a song to mind. (I love how God speaks to us!) The song is called “While I’m Waiting” by John Waller. I went to YouTube to listen to it and it really touched my heart. Here are some of the lyrics. (I've also posted the video below)

While I’m waiting, I will serve you

While I’m waiting, I will worship

While I’m waiting, I will not faint

I’ll be running the race, even while I wait

When we are waiting for something to happen, it’s easy to just be idle. We know God is calling us to the DR but that doesn’t mean we can’t be active here while we are waiting. God still has a purpose for us here, and that’s why we are waiting. So while I’m waiting to join the Freedom team in the DR, I will serve God right here where I am. While I’m waiting, I will worship the Lord Almighty! It’s easy to be discouraged during this process but I can’t forget what all He has already provided and done! He has already provided 35% of our yearly budget and 20% of our start up costs! That is just amazing in itself! So instead of being discouraged about how far we have to go, I will worship Him for everything that He has already provided!!

I’m also reminded that God’s timing is perfect. He knows when we will be in the Dominican. I can only see right in front of me but God, He’s already there. I just have to trust Him daily and take those bold steps of faith. He is using this waiting period to prepare our hearts for the ministry He has in store for us. I love these verses on waiting on the Lord!

Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD. ~Psalms 27:14

Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. ~ Psalms 33:20

I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait, And in His word do I hope. ~ Psalms 130:5

"The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "Therefore I have hope in Him." The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, To the person who seeks Him. It is good that he waits silently For the salvation of the LORD. ~ Lamentations 3:34-36

But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. ~Isaiah 40:31

So while waiting is not one of my favorite things, I will wait on the Lord and serve and worship Him right where I am!

Have a blessed day everyone!