Being parents is a joy!  We just love it…and we love our boys!  (I’m sure you feel the same about your kids if you have some!!)  We like to play with them, we like to watch them play, we like to watch them sleep, we like to teach them new things, we like to see them smile and hear them laugh!  

One great thing about being a missionary is that we’ll get to be with our boys!  Sure, we’ll be plenty busy, but Renee has the privilege of homeschooling them and they’ll be able to accompany Travis as he builds, visits, or teaches!  We’re excited about this because this is how discipleship happens!

BIG NEWS:

In June we found that Canaan understands and believes the Gospel!  Now that brings joy to a parent’s heart!

Canaan was able to be on a T-ball team this summer and loved every minute of it – even the practices!

Isaiah learned to ride a 2-wheeler this summer and he’s not even 4 yet!

The Lord is faithfully increasing our support – we are at 56%!!!

The Lord has guided us!!  He has answered our prayers about when to leave for Mexico for Spanish study!  We will not be leaving in July, but are waiting until our support is a bit higher.  We are aiming to leave around the end of September.  We feel like we can breathe now!

We’re having a great summer in Ohio!  We’ve been able to get together with friends and are making fun memories with our families before we leave!

Prayer Requests:

Using our time wisely; we are so inclined to live for ourselves, however, we desire to be a blessing and
expose people to the great need for missions!!  We also have much to do to prepare for Mexico and Paraguay. Speaking opportunities in our area 

Support level would continue to increase

Watched God grow the corn in our garden really tall!

Got to speak at Community Brethren Homes, where Renee’s Grandma lives!

Made a camping memory with Renee’s family!

Our increasing support level blows us away!   Thank you!!   It encourages us to give thanks to the Lord and praise Him for “His wondrous works”!!   It also encourages us to be accountable for how we use our time, even here in the states!

        New Information!!

We were recently informed of a U.S. Policy that states that after we return from Mexico next summer we must be on our way to Paraguay within 30 days. This was a surprise to us!

What’s the Big Deal?

What’s the Big Deal?
Our original plans have been thwarted! We had originally planned to raise 60% of our monthly support before going to Mexico in July. This was a minimum requirement of Mexico and we felt that this was great for our short-term trip. We then planned to return to the states next summer to raise at least 10% more before going to our long-term ministry in Paraguay. We will not be able to do this now! But this is not a “big deal” to the Lord who knows all!

Now what?
Now we have a decision to make! When do we leave for Mexico? And we beseech you to pray to the Lord with us and for us.

If we leave in July…
-Canaan will be able to start school in Mexico with the other missionary kids.
-We risk being under-supported financially for our future ministry.
-We have a house that is almost secured for us.

If we wait a couple months to raise more support…
-Canaan will begin school in the middle of the year (probably not the best option for him).
-We could have more financial support which would make life and ministry a bit easier.
-Mexico usually allows only 1 family a month to begin studying Spanish – so even when we are ready to go, we may have to wait 1-2 months or more.

So….
We know that God is more than capable of raising the support we need!
We know that He sees the big picture much more clearly than we do!
We are trusting Him!
This morning both of us feel that we are to proceed with our plans to leave in July while waiting for an answer from the Lord. “Make thy way straight before my face.” Psalm 5:8b
Mexico would like an answer in the next 2-3 weeks.
We would appreciate your prayers and welcome any advice/comments that you, our teammates, have to offer!

Seeking Him,
The Whitman’s

P.S. The Lord is rolling in more support as we are up to 48%! We praise Him for all the responses we have received through our letter last month! He is building up this team to reach Paraguay! We are excited to be a part of it with you!

P.S.S. Ron Lindsey – the book you gave us, The Spiritual Secret of Hudson Taylor, has encouraged us immensely during this time. Thank you!

As most of you know, New Tribes Missionaries are not salaried. We depend on God’s provision through the faithful monthly support of local churches and individuals.   Presently we are at 55% of our recommended monthly support level!

Thanks so much for your support and prayers.  It is a privilege to serve together with you to reach those in Paraguay that haven’t heard!!

We’ve been enjoying this verse recently. There are so many reasons to praise the Lord… and the spring season is definitely one of those reasons! 

Another reason for us (personally) to praise Him is our past trip to Virginia, Washington DC and Pennsylvania!

We were also invited to take part in an 8-day Missions Conference at a church we had never been to!   We were able to speak to adults, teens and children in many different settings!  From the moment we arrived we were royally spoiled!   An adult Sunday School class “sponsored” us and purchased a new laptop for us.  Wow!!  

Prayer Request Prior to Conference: “We have so many speaking engagements, Lord, how are the boys going to handle this?”
Prayer Answered: Well, the boys did great!   They sat quietly when needed, they made new friends, and the church had a gym!!   God is good!!

In DC and Pennsylvania we had awesome visits with a few friends.  So good to catch up! 

Thanks for reading! Enjoy the spring weather!!

“Oh, magnify the Lord with me. And let us exalt His name together.”   Psalm 34:3

God protected us from a potential accident on I-75!

Ministry: Our monthly support continues to rise – 35%!!!    Great trip to Tennessee!

Speaking opportunities we did not plan for and the Lord helping Travis through those!

Prayer Requests
Family: That we would be able to spend daily time with the Lord, even when we are not at home. Canaan and Isaiah as we continue to travel to “strange” places and visit people they do not know – and that we would be sensitive to their needs.

Ministry: We need to go to Mexico for a year to study Spanish and they would like us to begin in July instead of August. In order to do this, our support needs to be at 60% by June!

Paraguay: They need rain…bad.
3 couples in Paraguay have been hearing the Bible taught to them, beginning with Creation. They will soon be hearing about Christ’s death and resurrection – pray that they will understand and believe the Truth!

  Our goal is to have at least one person talking to the Father on our family’s behalf and the unsaved Paraguayans behalf each day of the month!      

 Sound like something you’d like to do?  Pick a day of the month that is open (below) and e-mail us!! 

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Praise: The Lord has provided an awesome basement apartment for us to stay in while we are in WI!

Praise: Our current monthly support is at 20%!

Happy Winter!!!
(That is how most of you feel about winter, right?!!)

Family Update
We are well settled into the same Ohio farmhouse that we stayed in this past summer!  That was a huge blessing!  Travis has been helping out by feeding the cows that live in the barn here! 

We recently received 13 inches of snow!!  It went up to the boys’ knees!  Below, Isaiah is measuring it and Canaan is climbing through his snow tunnell!
How much snow do you have? 

Ministry Update

Thanks for your ongoing prayer and support!
We are excited to get to Paraguay!!  However, we first need to study Spanish in Mexico for about 1 year.  We are required to raise 60% of our monthly support before we arrive in Mexico.  We are currently at 20%!  Our plan is to be in Mexico by August!    

We are planning on traveling before we leave for Mexico. We are excited to spend time with family and friends!  We are also excited to share about what God is doing in TRIBAL MISSIONS!!! 

Are you, your friends, your Sunday School class, or your church interested in or curious about tribal missions? We would love to discuss, explain, show pictures/dvd’s, etc!  

Our tentative schedule is:

Wisconsin – February 14th – 25th

Michigan – March

Tennessee – March 30-April 14

Virginia/Washington DC – April 16-26                                 

We hope to see many of you in the next few months before we leave!