Prayer Request Update (part 2)

Okay, so our "other" major prayer request over the last few months has been that the Lord would help us find some resolution to our vacant house situation. For those who might not know, we weren't able to sell our house in Idaho before we came to Vienna in 2007, and recently we lost the tenant we had in place. This, of course, was not an ideal situation...

Well, as of yesterday, WE HAVE A TENANT! Woohoo! We signed a new one-year lease that will start in February, so that burden has been lifted! Again, we praise God for His provision and sustainment! We also thank all of you for continuing to lift this up in prayer. A special thanks goes out to Crossroads for helping us get the house ready for another renter, and a HUGE thanks is also in order to Beth's mom for all the work and effort she's put into helping us deal with managing a rental property from across the pond! THANK YOU!

God is good. God is great. Thus, we celebrate!

Prayer Request Update (part 1)

So, we've shared some pretty serious prayer requests over the last few months, and we want to keep you informed on how those things have progressed. By far, the biggest and most pressing came in the Fall when we heard from the Vienna Stadtschulrat that the school would not be able to open next year if we did not find a permanent solution to our staff's visa problem by the end of this school year (June). This was a tremendous burden, an obstacle with seemingly no (human) way to reach resolution within the defined time period. The school's administration and affiliates had, after all, been working consistently with the Austrian authorities for almost two years to find an answer to this riddle, but with no luck...

Well, as we recently shared with those of you on our e-mail/newsletter list, VCS WILL STAY OPEN NEXT YEAR! About a week ago we had a surprise visit from a Stadtschulrat inspector, who, after touring the school and meeting with our administration, said at this point there was no risk that the school would close next year! I'm not sure what led to this change, as everything we had heard before was crystal clear; find a solution that will get your staff visas and permits, or else the school cannot continue. What I DO know is that God is good, and His plan for this place extends at least through next school year! This really is miraculous--that at the drop of a hat, after a surprise inspection, the very serious and imminent threat on the school would just be removed! I almost couldn't believe it. I'm still astounded. We're all obviously pretty excited over here! :)

As we mentioned in the e-mail we sent, the long-term problem with the visas/residency permits still exists, so we still can very much use your prayers regarding that, but we are so thankful that the immediate threat on the school has been removed! Thank God, through whom all blessings flow! And, of course, thank YOU for your continued prayers about this. Know that your prayers and support are making a huge difference here, and that the Lord is faithful! (2 Thessalonians 3:3).

Join with us in celebrating this great news!