Update & Reflections

It seems like it's been forever since I've written. So much has happened, but so much we're still waiting on.


Ted had the surgery to correct his arrhythmia (irregular heart beat), and after seeing the doctor again this week was told his heart is looking completely normal now. Praise the Lord!

We have a contract on our house, and now we're just waiting for the final appraisal so that (hopefully) we can close in a couple of weeks.

We just celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary!

We're still settling in at my parents' house, and trying to establish a routine for the kids so they don't kill each other this summer. :)

We are still plugging away at support raising, and with God's help plan to be in France in January.


Sometimes it all gets very overwhelming. Especially the fundraising aspect. Knowing God has called us to go, but waiting on His timing for the money to come in. I described it the other day as this huge mountain, unmovable. We can't go around it and we can't go back. The only way to go is forward. But without God's help, we are stuck staring up at this huge barrier.

Then yesterday I read a devotional that reminded me that we have the authority to cast the mountain into the sea. We can ask our Father for impossible things and He will help us. Just like He helped the Israelites cross the Red Sea, He can move mountains or part the waves for us, too. Our trust, our hope is in Jesus, only. Not circumstances, people, money, dreams. Only Jesus. And He promises that He will take us by the hand and lead us safely to the other side. I pray that this truth will sink into our souls and yours, and give us the courage and hope to keep believing for impossible things.

This poem from "Streams in the Desert" stood out to me this morning:

Have you come to the Red Sea place in your life,
Where in spite of all you do,
There is no way out, there is no way back,
There is no other way but through?
Then wait on the Lord with a trust serene
Till the night of your fear is gone;
He will send the wind, He will heap the floods,
When He says to your soul, "Move on."
And His hand will lead you through- clear through-
Ere the watery walls roll down,
No foe can reach you, no wave can touch,
No mightiest sea can drown;
The tossing billows may rear their crests,
Their foam at your feet may break,
But o'er the seabed you will walk dry ground
In the path that your Lord will make
In the morning watch, 'neath the lifted cloud,
You will see but the Lord alone,
When He leads you on from the place of the sea
To a land that you have not known;
And your fears will pass as your foes have passed,
You will be no more afraid;
You will sing His praise in a better place,
A place that His hand has made.

(Annie Johnson Flint)

Newsletter #3

Here is the newest update.

The Wallace Clan Update

We just posted our second newsletter. Click here to read it!

Busy but Thankful

We've already had a great response from our recent newsletter. Thank you to everyone who has contacted us, donated, or told us that they're praying for us! We truly appreciate it. If you didn't get an email from us, let us know so we can keep you updated.

This weekend we bought most of our supplies to fix up the house, but we have to store it inside until our first "workday." Some guys at church will be helping us repair our fence, replace woodwork on the house, paint, do some landscaping, etc. Today we're having a new heating unit put in. We're also selling some furniture and sorting through what things we need to keep or get rid of. So needless to say, our house is a wreck!

In the midst of it all, we have to find time to play with the kids and do normal things. 

And especially since it's Easter weekend, we remember the tremendous sacrifice of our Savior. Nothing can compare to His love. In spite of the craziness around us, we fix our eyes on Jesus and thank Him that we have eternal life, hope, & joy!

Daily Randomness

It is so weird to think about moving to France on a daily basis, and then still do the "normal" stuff of family life. Tonight was Emily's pre-UIL concert at South Garland High School (as a Lakeview alumni, I had to hold my breath the entire time...).

Of course, we had to reward her astounding performance with some Dairy Queen, and then finished up the night with schoolwork for Timothy and giving Judah a bath.

We also sent out our very first email newsletter that explains part of our story in getting back to France. There is this really cool link on our page here where you can sign up if you want.

Anyway, as we move closer and closer to our goal, I am thinking more and more about how our life will change. Because there is so much unknown for us, I'm not sure how much will change, and what we'll be able to keep the same. It is EXCITING though, and we're all looking forward to it.

-ted

March Madness (France) Update

The clock is running out. It is going to be close. All the time and preparation of this team comes down to this moment...

Ok, for those of you that know me, you know that the term March Madness is probably the extent of my basketball knowledge. So even though this post has nothing at all to do with basketball, it does feel like this month has the same sense of excitement. We have had a lot going on already - a discipleship conference, realtors visiting the house, fundraising meetings, preaching at our church, etc... It feels like most of our spare time is spent thinking about France, or deciding which items to take with us, or talking to the administrators of the language school, or "who is our next meeting with?"

In the midst of all of this chaos, we feel a lot of peace. It was so great to sit around the living room with our kids tonight and talk to them about the upcoming changes. We have been in contact with the language school, and they have told us that there are several families from the US with kids that will be enrolled in the school this fall. One of the families even has a 13 year-old daughter that may be in Emily's class!

I love the faith of our kids. I asked them tonight if it was difficult for God to provide all the money that we still need for our budget, and Emily, Daniel, and Timothy (Judah was singing in his crib at the time) at the same time said, "No." And to be honest it kind of had a "Dad, get with the program," tone as if I was the one who didn't believe.

I want to have the same kind of faith. I want to believe God without hesitation. I do believe that He still works miracles in our lives today.

In case you don't know the backstory, and for those of you who may be keeping tabs, here are the highlights:

We are headed to France as full-time missionaries with OM (Operation Mobilization). We have applied for language school, and made our initial deposit. Our target date to leave is this August. We have to have 100% of our budget raised by July 15th. Did I mention that we also have to sell our house???

Our current numbers show us at 28% of committed monthly support and 23% of our startup raised so far.

Although this was a quick-glance at what is going on in the lives of Team Wallace, we would really love to talk to more and more people face-to-face. If we have already met with you - great! Please keep us in prayer. If you could think of 2 or 3 more people that you know who may be interested, please let us know. If we haven't been able to meet with you yet, and you're interested in what we'll be doing while in France, feel free to contact us.

I cannot thank God enough for the tremendous outpouring of love and support from our friends. We could not be where we are today without you.

-Ted
ted.wallace@om.org

Plans

OK, so I recognize that we haven't updated this site since our return from GA last September. Part of that is because we have been so busy since then, but part of it is because we didn't know how best to explain what has been going on.

Here is the "short" version:

On Thanksgiving Day, we got the word that we were officially invited to work with OM France. That was certainly one of the best Thanksgiving celebrations we've ever had. We are beginning to see the end of a 15-year season of preparation for going to work with the church on a foreign field, and a lot is happening quickly.

We have been given a budget that consists of both monthly support and a start-up fund. The amount at times seems unreachable and impossible to raise, but God has already been tremendously faithful. Since mid-December, when we began fundraising, we have raised almost 25% of our monthly support and 20% of our start-up costs.

How are we doing this? Great question! Michelle and I are contacting friends and family and setting up appointments to share our burden for France. This is a unique culture that has a past full of both a powerful work of the Holy Spirit as well as much darkness. Michelle and I still have a lot to learn, but we feel that working in partnership with the church in France, we can share the message of redemption that God has so evidently shown in our lives. We want to see God speak to the 90% of villages and towns in France that have NO EVANGELICAL church at all. We want His Word to speak to the 74% of French people who have never even opened a Bible.

I hope that this short update can begin to capture the burden and love that we feel towards the French people. We would love to meet with everyone one-on-one and speak more specifically about how God is leading us and how you can be a part of the change that He is beginning. If you're reading this now, please pray for us and our fundraising efforts. Pray for our family as we begin the transition process of selling our house, learning French, and making some significant adjustments. And please pray for the Church in France. Pray for the pastors and the people of God that they will be able to share their faith and see God work in a new way there.

Also, I hope that you can expect a phone call from one of us to set up a time to meet! Will you help us be a part of seeing the Spirit of God work in France in a new way?

Thank you all so much!
-ted