NTM

Our first month back in Indonesia has been a whirlwind of activity, but I guess that’s to be expected. We went interior for about 3 weeks while Hannah and Julie were here visiting. Having them with us was such a blessing. They pitched in and helped with everything from dishes and laundry to unpacking and setting up house in the tribe to keeping track of 3 kids. We hope they still managed to enjoy their trip in spite of all the work, because we sure did enjoy having them with us.

We came back out to town on Sept. 2, and Hannah and Julie left to return to the States on the 4th. We miss them a lot.

Right now we’re still out in town, waiting to sign our new visas (they have to be renewed every year.) We’re not sure how long we’ll have to wait—the government gives no certain dates, so we never know exactly when the process will be completed. Lord willing, we would like to go back interior sometime this month and stay for a couple months before we have to come back out again. Sometime in November or December we will need to take Tyndale out of the country (probably to Malaysia) and then back in to get his one-year visa.

In the mean time, we’re working on supply buying for when we go back interior, and DJ has been looking for a washing machine for us, a vehicle for his parents, etc. I (Jennifer) have been working on planning language lessons for when we go back interior too. Please pray that there will be people available to help me with language study when we get back, and that I’ll somehow be able to plan my daily schedule so that I have some time for language study. Between taking care of kids and the house and making meals, my days are already very full, but I really want to make some progress in learning Hobongan.

Thank you for praying! We arrived in Indonesia safely yesterday evening (the 5th) Indonesia time. We’re spending a few days at the mission home in Jakarta before flying on to Kalimantan. We’re enjoying the chance to rest up. Areli and Galilee are excited to get to play with their friend Puji again. Puji’s family live here and help out with the running of the mission home, so Areli and Galilee played with her all the time back when we lived here and ran the mission home.

DJ is gone to the airport right now to meet Julie (my sister) and Hannah (a good friend from Ohio). We’re so thankful they get to come and spend almost a month in Indonesia with us. Please pray that the time will be a good firsthand look at missions for them—that they’ll grow in their faith and be challenged, but also not be too overwhelmed by culture shock, etc. Also pray for their health, and for all of us as we recover from jet lag.

We are down to our last week here in the good old USA. It seems like we have been packing since we arrived in February. We have a few bags to finish up and then we’ll have to count up how much extra we will be charged for extra bags. It is hard to pack four years of supplies into the luggage that airlines allow these days.

We are very thankful that Tyndale is healthy and growing like a weed. He is already over 11 pounds. Areli and Galilee caught a bit of a flu bug this last week but seem to be getting over it fast. They love their little backpacks for our trip back to Indonesia. Missionary kids have to learn early how to pack and carry their own bags.

Areli and Galilee turned 4 on the 26th. We had a little birthday party for them and invited some of their cousins. They had a great time swimming, eating cake and ice cream, and opening presents. We treasure our time with family, trying to store up enough memories to last us for the next 4 years.

Please pray for us as we say our goodbyes this week. It doesn’t get any easier. In fact, it seems harder this time because now we know what it feels like to be gone for so long.

Our first flight leaves from San Antonio at 9am on Sunday August 3. From there we fly to Detroit and on to Tokyo. After Tokyo we stop in Singapore for half a day and will try to get some rest before flying on to Jakarta. We arrive in Jakarta on August 5. Jennifer’s sister Julie and our friend Hannah will be leaving a day later than we do and arriving in Jakarta on August 6. We are planning on spending a few days in Jakarta before flying to West  Kalimantan on August 8. Then on August 12 we take one more flight interior. That is where we finish our trip by boat. Hannah and Julie will be spending a month in Indonesia with us.

I was able to test our new Satellite email system and everything is working well. We will now be able to send emails from the tribe once again.

Hi,

This is Jennifer. I wanted to personally thank everyone who responded to our last e-mail. Thanks for sending your congratulations on the birth of our baby boy, Tyndale. Thanks too for all your prayers throughout my pregnancy. We appreciate your continued prayers as we adjust to having a newborn again. One newborn is definitely a lot easier than two! Tyndale’s sisters love him. They enjoy singing to him and talking to him.

We have applied for Tyndale’s passport and should be getting it in about a week. Once we get it, we have to start the process for a visa (permission to live in Indonesia) for him. There are several steps in this process, and it all needs to be done by August 3 (our departure date to return to Indonesia.) Please pray that every step will go quickly so the process will be finished in time.

Thanks again,

DJ, Jennifer, Areli, Galilee, & Tyndale

We are proud to announce that Tyndale Barrett Searcy was born on June 11, 2008 at 8:24pm.

He weighed 8 pounds and 0.1 ounces.

He is 20 inches long.

Both mother and baby are doing well.

Thanks for all your prayers,

DJ, Jennifer, & the kids

Thanks for praying for health for the baby and I. The ultrasound showed that the baby is the right size, not too small. Praise the Lord! However, he is in the breech position. Unless he turns before I go into labor, I’ll probably have to have a c-section. So we’d really appreciate prayers that he will turn in time. My due date is still a few weeks away, so we’re hopeful that he will turn. Thanks again for all your prayers!

The traveling part of our home assignment is over now. We got back to my dad’s place in southwest Texas on April 21, almost 2 weeks ago now. Since then we’ve been enjoying the chance to rest and be in one place. The girls are sleeping better here than they have since we left here over 2 months ago to travel. DJ is in his element taking care of a garden that my dad planted for us before we got back.

I’ve had one check-up since we got back. The doctor has scheduled an ultrasound on Tuesday to see how the baby is doing because I’m measuring small. Also, I had a couple hours of strong contractions the day after the check-up. I have no idea what might have caused them this early (at 7 ½ months along.) The baby is active and everything seems fine other than that, but we’d appreciate prayers that he and I will be healthy and that the pregnancy will go full term.

Other prayer requests:

–DJ’s parents and Rachel are unable to send e-mail from the tribe right now because the system with the satellite phone is no longer working. We’ve known for a while that we would eventually need to find another option for e-mail, but this has made that need urgent. DJ is researching options and trying to make a decision right now, so please pray for wisdom for him. Also, pray for Mom, Dad, and Rachel to stay encouraged. It can be pretty lonely living interior with no way to stay in touch with the outside world.

–Pray that we’ll have opportunities to be a good witness to unsaved friends and family members while we’re here. I’m really looking forward to the Wimberley family reunion (my dad’s family) this summer, since I haven’t seen a lot of my cousins and their families in quite a few years. Most of them don’t know the Lord. Pray for opportunities and the courage and wisdom to take them.

We’re on the road again. We had a great month in Ohio (except for the weather .) Thanks so much to our family, friends, and church family who blessed us in more ways than we can count. It’s hard to believe the time there went by so fast.

We left on Wednesday (the 2nd) and drove to Columbia, Missouri. There we spent two nights with DJ’s aunt, uncle, and cousins. Paul, Carolyn, Brian, Ben, Joel, Grace, Beth, and Michaela, thanks so much for your hospitality. We had a wonderful time! Areli and Galilee were entertained by their cousins the whole time.

Now we’re in Camdenton, Missouri, spending a few days on the campus of the New Tribes missionary training school. We have fond memories of our year and a half spent here as students before we went to Indonesia. On Sunday we’ll get to share and fellowship with our church family at Prosperine Baptist Church, where we attended while we were living here.

Monday we’ll be hitting the road again, headed for Arkansas and then on further south. We must say the weather is getting better and better the further south we go . We’re enjoying spring in fast forward!

Thanks for your prayers.

Love,

DJ, Jennifer, Areli, Galilee, and baby Searcy

PS Thanks to those of you who wrote specifically to say you were praying for Areli and Galilee. They settled in by the end of our time in Ohio. Now that we’re traveling again, they’ve been asking to go home sometimes, but they aren’t sure where home is. Overall, though, they’re doing very well. Pray that we’ll be sensitive to their needs and take the time to explain each change to them.

Once again, the Lord has granted us safe travels and good times of fellowship with friends, family, and supporting churches in Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri, and now in Ohio too. The day we traveled from Missouri to Ohio, a winter storm turned what should have been a 10-hour trip into 17 hours of slow going on slippery roads. We arrived at about 2:30 in the morning, tired but safe. Areli and Galilee were real troopers during all the long hours of sitting in their car seats.

We had about a week and a half to spend with DJ’s parents before they left to return to Indonesia on March 4. We miss them. We’ll be staying here in their house in Ohio all this month. Today we’re very thankful for the warm house because another snow storm is blowing outside.

Here’s a look at our schedule for the next few months:

March 22-24—Trip to Indiana to share in a church

April 2-21—Travel back down to south Texas from Ohio, with stops to visit friends and share in churches in Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and north Texas

June 14—baby boy Searcy’s due date

August 3—return to Indonesia

Please pray for:

–Areli & Galilee to feel secure in our love, and to start understanding God’s love for them too. They’ve been taking all the traveling pretty well, but sometimes their insecurity does manifest itself. They often ask, “Where do we live?” Some days they get very clingy too. If I just get up to go in the next room, they’ll run after me crying and saying, “Wait for me! Don’t leave me!”
–The baby to be born on time or a little early, so we have time to get his passport and visa before we have to return to Indonesia.
–Our sharing times with churches and individuals to glorify the Lord.
We’ve experienced so much in the last 2 ½ years—sometimes it’s hard to figure out how to condense it all down to what’s important for each audience to hear.

Thank you all for praying for us during the long trip from Indonesia to the USA. We made all of our connections on time, and we even got a few hours’
sleep in a transit hotel room in Singapore. DJ was still feeling very tired and weak, but his fever never came back and he held up well during all the traveling. Praise the Lord for answering the prayers that were offered for us!

We have been in Texas for 5 days now, and we feel like we’re finally getting over jet lag. A week here doesn’t feel like enough time to see family and friends, schedule a doctor’s appointment, and get ready to travel again starting Saturday (the 16th.) Even though it has been busy, this time with our family has been very special. Areli and Galilee have been keeping their Grandpa entertained, and vice versa.

Please be praying for us during our next trip. We’ll be making our way to Ohio, stopping to see friends and family in Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri along the way, and sharing in two churches as well. We plan to arrive in Ohio on the 21st and be there for about a month. Pray that Areli and Galilee will handle all the changes well, and that we’ll be able to share a little bit of God’s heart for Indonesia with everyone we see.