The time has come!
After 2 1/2 years of waiting and praying for God to open doors and send us back into missions...we have the green light to go!
We praise God for this time of waiting though, because He has been teaching us and binding us closer together as a family. Waiting is never easy, especially when your heart is burning to fulfill the call of God on your life!
Maybe that is why we identify strongly with the apostle Peter. He was enthusiastic for Christ, always ready to jump out of the boat and follow Jesus on stormy seas...then drawing his sword to defend Jesus when He was arrested. But Jesus' message was the same to Peter as it is to us.
Take some time to allow our Savior to wash our feet and teach us. Wait in the upper room for a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit —then, only then can we be released to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Actually, its so perfect because Jesus told Peter “Do you love me?...feed my sheep.” And that is exactly what our family is being called to do. 
We were recently invited to return to the YWAM Tonga mission as staff in their Discipleship Training School. Here we will be loving Jesus, and feeding the students who have come to study the Bible, and be trained as missionaries. This is a ministry that is so dear to our hearts because we want to see Tongans rooted and established in the Truth.


Tonga is considered a “Christian country” however many people never progress beyond religion to a personal relationship with Christ.
This makes Tongans especially vulnerable to cults who claim a belief in God and the Bible, but have a special revelation (false prophecy).
In the Discipleship Training School students learn more about the nature and character of God, His great love for people, and the benefits we enjoy in relationship with Him. Upon graduating from this school students follow God's call to bring the gospel back to their village, or to the nations. Isn't that fantastic?   Wouldn't you love to see the tide turned back in the Lords favor?   Tongans returning wholeheartedly to their first Love....

The Lord has promised "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land." - 2 Chronicles 7:14
Please join our family in praying for revival in Tonga, His people who are precious and dearly loved.

Family fun

One of the lessons God has been teaching us since we came off the missions field, and are living in the U.S. is the importance of family time.  In the past, we had a really hard time balancing ministry and family.  We were kind of workaholics, and our primary ministry was to youth who tend to hang around alot.  It was kind of funny actually because we would go to bed, after talking with them late into the night, and then wake up in the morning and they were still there on our porch!
We probably should have just ran away as a family sometimes, and made fun memories together.
So we are doing alot of that now in Texas- and its addicting!
We really have fun together, and need to keep this habit when we return to Tonga =)

Preschool Sunday School

We LOVE our church here in Houston.  But when I invite friends to come to church with us I start to blush "Umm, its called Old River Terrace United Methodist Church." Its a complicated name, but we're simple people =)  we just really love God and love each other."

 I started teaching Sunday school for the preschool age children about a year ago, and 'Osi usually helps me too (he is SO great with kids).  And our little students are just as precious as they come.  Even at this young age they can understand the Bible lessons - and sing songs to Jesus...
How it must bless His heart to watch them.  In Matthew 21:16 Jesus said
“‘From the lips of children and infants
    you, Lord, have called forth your praise'".

Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?” - See more at: http://ministry-to-children.com/bible-verses-about-children/#sthash.CvNAXDdc.dpuf

Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?” - See more at: http://ministry-to-children.com/bible-verses-about-children/#sthash.CvNAXDdc.dpuf

Welcome Baby Kesomi Allan!

On October 1, 2011 we were blessed with another sweet baby boy, Kesomi Allan.  He was a perfect and plump 8lb's 8 oz. and has a sweet, quiet temperament. Praise the Lord Kesomi is really healthy, and Isaac absolutely adores his new brother.  What a joy it is to have another precious child in the family!

VBS

Vacation Bible School!
Yay!  I am so excited that Isaac was old enough to participate with me in VBS this year.  I have loved this Summer program since I was a kid, and I'm so thankful that our church really gets into it. (Nearly half the congregation volunteers in some capacity for VBS week!)    Our toddlers looks pretty distracted in this picture, so you'll just have to take my word for it - they had a blast =)

Take your toddler to work day

Isaac had a blast exploring the inside of the tower. Its always fun visiting Daddy at the job site.
But where is your hard-hat young man?

Our new Tongan families

There is a large community of Tongan immigrants living in Dallas and Houston. They have been so loving, welcoming us into the family. It feels like we're back home in the village again!
We eat Tongan food together, sing, joke, and speak Tongan obviously. Then on weekends the men get together for their traditional kava ceremony. Isaac was invited to this one. As you can see he is wearing his lavalava while drinking from a coconut shell.
'Osi is thankful to be able to play his guitar with the guys and sing Tongan songs again. He's even learning how to play the eukelele!

Darth Vader?

That is one scary looking workin' man!

'Osi loves his new job sandblasting and painting water towers. It is a whole new set of skills to learn and challenges to take on. It is also extremely hazardous so please pray for him!!

On any given day you'll see him swinging around like a jungle monkey from one of these 300 ft. water towers.

Houston here we come!

'Osi was offered a great job working for his new friend Pulete's company in Houston, Texas. So now that the mobile home is stable and our parents found permanent replacements to take over our job, we are free to take this new opportunity!

Isaac's new friends

All our sweet little neighbor girls keep coming over to play with Isaac, and they all take turns giving each other rides in the pink car.
Little ladies man =)

Daily duties

The boys are doing a fantastic job fixing the door jam and installing a new door!

Jen wrestles with the icy brush, as we clear the land for more mobile homes!

Mom and Dad come to visit

We are so thankful Mom and Dad come up to visit every month and we have a fun work weekend. They have taught us so much.
Plus it gives Isaac time to bond with Grandpa and Grandma =)

Grandma's Christmas star

My Grandparents live in Georgia, just 2 hours south of our trailer park. So we packed up the truck and drove down here to spend Christmas with them. Grandma an amazing cook and we enjoyed a beautiful candle light service at their church last night.

Grandma says there is a special star that she notices every Christmas, it only comes out once a year. She says people call her crazy, but still she believes it is Gods special gift for her every Christmas.
I agree.
Thank you for that star Jesus. We love you.

Hi ya'all from South Carolina

Hi ya'all and Merry Christmas from South Carolina!

Everythin's peachy keen down here in the south land, our neighbors is fine folk. Momma's been keepin' us real busy workin' round the trailer park. We been rustlin' up the garbage, cuttin' down them trees, and makin' a might purty road down both sides of the trailer park.

Our neighbors is really gonna 'preciate the beautification
Momma and Daddy been started round these parts. N'fact we best make our way over to Miss MaryAnne's trailer for some sweet tea and biscuits. Bring these cookies to the neighbors fore Isaac eats them all!

But we'll keep in touch ya'all! If'n yer fixin' to come out here for a visit let us know and we'll kill the hog and have us some supper.
And ya'all have yerself a right good Christmas, ya hear?

Alaska!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28
For example, while waiting for 'Osi's greencard his Dad flew us up to Alaska, so we can finish building his mountain cabin. In exchange he promised to help us build our own cabin in Tonga possibly next year. This sounded like a freezing, but great opportunity, so we flew up here this week.
Alaska is breathtaking! We’re livin’ in this ramshackle shack in the middle of the woods, with no plumbing, and its great! We’re on a rather large, yet scarcely populated island called Prince of Whales. Our neighbors are all old hunters, fishermen, loggers, and gypsies like us.
So everyday after working on the cabin we go visiting, and they teach us how to skin mountain goats and pick wild mushrooms. It looks like this winter we’ll be wearing homemade beaver shoes and canning everything. Sure didn’t see that coming last month. I guess this is just a reminder that God works in mysterious ways and its best to look for the blessings and adventure He has in all of it!

Returning to America to work

This is the beautiful one acre piece of land God has blessed us with in our village. We have been clearing the trees and brush for awhile, to make room for a little house. But we can't seem to save enough money to start building. God is so good in providing our daily bread, and has given 'Osi part-time work to buy more food for the youth coming over for our daily programs. But as our ministry/family grows, we feel we need to have our own house.

So we had been praying for awhile about what to do, when my parents offered to fly us home for our Uncle's funeral.
Our dear Uncle Adrian passed away, and Jen's parents adopted his son Alex. After much prayer, consulting family and ministry partners we decided to apply for 'Osi's greencard to work temporarily.

We were a little ashamed to be leaving the ministry when it had been so fruitful, but 'Osi is a good man and his priority is taking care of his family, making sure we are living in a healthy sane environment. Then we can be free to show hospitality to others.

Praise Dance!

'Osi sometimes teaches praise dances to youth groups in local churches.
They love performing these praise dances for their congregation and usually we join in too. It is a great way to engage the cultural while encouraging kids to join in church activities.
Ecclesiastes 3:4 There is "a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance".

Those pesky mosquitoes!

Does anyone know of a natural mosquito repellent that is safe for babies? Because Isaac gets eaten up all day, and we've tried all kinds of things: Listerine, garlic, lemon mixtures....those pesky bugs love to get him as soon as we turn our back!
Our little cutie's skin looks like a solar system right now. So any advice you have is most welcome. (Yes, we always sleep under mosquito nets at night, but we don't yet have him in a mosquito net bubble during the day =)

Farming!

Most of the families in our village are subsistence farmers. Meaning most of the food we eat are root vegetables we grow ourselves. So here we are planting kasava for our family. Usually our cousins, friends, and Mom Kelela is with us too. She has biceps and endurance that can put any other farmer to shame, plus a cheerful spirit to keep us all laughing. 'Osi is pretty amazing too, but I'm biased =)
Isaac and I are just the "water boys" right now. On account of Isaac being too young to tote a hoe, and me being too busy holding an umbrella so he doesn't get sunstroke. It gets up in the 90's some days, and those are the days 'Osi asks if we can bring him coffee!? Whatever keeps you plowing through the fields honey!
The wonderful thing is during their breaks one of the guys will climb up a nearby coconut and cut down "Nui mata" (green coconuts) for us all. We chop the tops of with a machete and drink the sweet, sparkling coconut water inside. It is so amazing how God made the coconut water as a perfect electrolyte balancer. Everything God makes is perfect though, and its great to be on the farm together.

Family life

For now we are still living with 'Osi's family while we prepare to build our own little house. They keep passing new laws for land surveying and building in Tonga so we are still jumping through some hoops while saving some pa'anga's =)

So for now we live with'Osi's lovely Mom, pictured here with Isaac and his cousin Vena. As well as 'Osi's older married sister and her 2 babies, his younger sister, a cousin, occasionally our 82 year old Aunt and her only son, along with any number of random family members or village youth who sleep over and eat with us too everyday.

So we have a very full house.
We are all learning alot about sharing. Sharing space, food, clothes, one toilet. Its funny people always told 'Osi and I we would realize how selfish we were after we were married. And we did. Then they said we would REALLY realize how selfish we are once we have a baby. And...we did. But no one warned us how we would REALLY REALLY realize how selfish we are when living together as newlyweds with the baby and the whole extended family in a little house. Wow, God has a great sense of humor. It has been an exponential growth year for all of us. We appreciate your prayers for our house to be filled with peace, harmony, and unselfishness =)