Christmas Eve

I have so much to blog about since we've been without internet for about a month now. I thought a good place to start would be our Christmas Eve celebration with the kids from house 2. Tammy and I have spent at least 2 days a week with these kids and have really grown to love them all. On Christmas Eve we had the 12 children who live at Casa de Amor's house 2 over to our house for dinner and gifts. After opening their gifts the kids enjoyed homemade chicken and dumplings...What a great time!

We Made It!!!

WOW! Have we really been here a week??? What an adventure! We traveled for 30 hours, lost Madison at the airport in Santa Cruz and ended up in Bolivia without half of our luggage. Madison was found pretty quickly and the luggage showed up after vacationing in Buenos Aires ;)!

We are getting more acclimated to the city and the altitude each day. We are learning to navigate the public transportation systems and have enrolled in language classes. Our house isn´t ready yet, but hopefully will be soon. More details to come as soon as I can get on my computer...

12 days 'til Departure

We are now in the scurry and scramble of last minute preparations with only 12 days to go. On November 9th we will board a plane for Bolivia. I continue to be amazed with God. I know I shouldn't be, but He just keeps doing great and awesome things that we never thought possible. As we are only days away from our departure we humbly ask that you pray for us. Here are a few of our prayer requests:

*A home for our 2 chihuahuas
*Safe travel
*Good health now and after we go
*Pray for those family members that we are leaving behind; that they may find peace that only the Lord can provide
*Pray for Madison as she adjusts to life in a new culture
*Financial needs (we are at about 75% of our annual target of gifts/pledges)

Please remember that November 7th is Orphan Awareness Sunday. It also happens to be our send off from the church. I've attached a video for you to view...follow the link below.

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=12616432&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_por

We have TICKETS!!!!

It's official...We will be leaving Texas on November 9th and heading for Bolivia. One step closer to this awesome adventure the Lord has set before us. Please continue to pray for us as the days ahead will be busy busy busy! More details to come soon...

Counting down!!!

They say time flies when you're having fun. We must be having a blast!!! We are about 2 month away from our move to Bolivia and couldn't be more excited. While the reality of our timeline is starting to sink in, we are reaffirmed of our calling everyday. God has been so good to us and has shown up in ways we never would have imagined. Praise Him!

There are still many practical ways to get involved. Would you consider being a partner? Here's how:

 Pray- Pray daily. Pray often. Prayer is the fuel that keeps us going.

 Give- A monthly financial gift will help sustain us in this ministry.

We are facing some substantial start up costs, so even a one time gift would help greatly. For example, we will be purchasing the following items upon our arrival in Bolivia:

Beds- $150-$200 (x 2)
Bedding- $8 per set
Mattresses- $100-$150 (x2)
Clothes washer- $600
Refrigerator- $600-$700
Kitchen Table/chairs- $200
Kitchen Supplies- $150-$300
Car (within 6 months)- $7000

We are humbled to have such awesome prayer warriors standing behind us as we go! Looking forward to celebrating much with you in the days to come.

4 Months Until Departure

Dear family and friends,

Exciting news!! We are about 4 months away from relocating to Bolivia! Our family has sensed God’s call to go and serve in cross-cultural mission work. We are thrilled about the opportunity that we have been given to make a difference at Casa de Amor, an orphanage and children’s home in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Our role at Casa de Amor will be to serve as house parents for up to 8-10 children. This model is similar to the foster care system we have in the US and will allow us to give personalized attention to each child in our care. By doing this, the children will learn to function in a normal family setting, therefore preparing them for their “forever families” upon adoption.

We eagerly invite all of you to join in this adventure with us! We are stepping out in faith and trusting God to provide all of our needs. There are many practical ways that you can help:

 PRAY- We humbly ask that you cover us in prayer in these days to come. We will be making several decisions very soon regarding the future of our family. Once we are on the ground, we will also need your continued prayer support. Prayer is the fuel that will allow us to be successful as we follow God’s leading in ministry. Without prayer, nothing will happen. (1 Thes. 5:17)
 GIVE- You can make a one time, or recurring monthly donation to support the work we are doing. As missionaries we only receive financial support from family, friends and churches who believe in the ministry. We do not receive financial compensation from the orphanage. (3 John 5-8)
 SHARE- You can be instrumental in sharing our story with your friends and family. The more people we have praying for us the better. Please feel free to pass on our information to anyone you feel would be interested.
 INVOLVE- We would love to come speak at your church, small group or Sunday school class to share about the ministry.
 GO- There will be opportunities to go to Bolivia on short-term mission trips to experience God’s work first hand. More details to come. (Acts 1:8)

Please check out our blog at themitchellsinbolivia.blogspot.com for updates. If you would like to be put on our email list, please send your email information to onmission247@ymail.com. If you would like to make a tax-deductible contribution to support our ministry please send me an email for details.

We are counting down the days and humbly ask that you consider joining us on this journey.

In His Love,

T.J., Tammy and Madison Mitchell

Bolivia 2010