Expectations vs. Reality

Psalm 103:10-12
        He does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
(I read this verse today, and it kind of rocked my world! I wanted to share it with you all. How good is our God!)

Have you ever been rocked by a sermon? Gotten the feeling that God is using your pastor as a megaphone to get his point across to you, because you obviously aren't getting it? That's what happened to us this last Sunday. Russ, our pastor, was finishing up a series on Jonah. He chose the focus of expectations versus reality. These are some of the questions he posed:
          Are my expectations of God in line with reality? Do I have unfair expectations of God? Do I expect certain circumstances to occur, and get upset when they don't?

Talk about convicting!! God challenged me on my expectations with the support raising process we are going through currently. Expectation: response cards will flood our mail box. Reality: we haven't received one in a week. Expectation: people will be falling over themselves to support us and support raising will be a piece of cake. Reality: this has been one of the most challenging experiences I have ever gone through.

I expected God to follow my directions, agree to my plans, and say "Yes, Jenna, it will happen exactly as you planned." HA! Sadly, God doesn't work like that. A friend of mine reminded me of a saying, "The best way to make God laugh is to make our own plans." How true that is. I think I am trusting in God, believing that the support will come in (which is God's nature in providing for the needs his followers), but who said it was supposed to be by July 18th? Once again, our departure date has been moved back, in order for our pastor to be at church for our commissioning July 24th. But who's to say that wasn't God's plan all along? I self-imposed a leave date and promptly worried and stressed about it. Maybe God is telling me to take a chill pill and let him be in control. Which sounds fantastic, but is hard to put into practice when you are a fan of being in control.

So, update: We are currently looking at leaving around the end of July. We have $650/mo. raised, praise Jesus!! We have a three-bedroom duplex to live in, a plan on how to move across country, and the prayers of alot of people. Thank the Lord! If you want to sit down and talk with us about what we are doing in Indiana, please let us know!! We want to make sure we see as many people as we can :)
Love you all!
Jenna Stanton

Learning to Trust

Psalm 94:18-19

“When I said ‘My foot is slipping,’ your love, O Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.”

It’s a very good thing God has A LOT of patience with us. Somehow He has enough patience to put up with my constant doubt and worry. Raising support, trying to figure out how to move across the country, realizing we actually are moving across the country – I think God should be getting sick of my anxiety and doubt about now. Thank goodness He loves me without fail.

This blog may be very random, as I am fitting a lot in :)

Raising support has been an ongoing process. Most of our support letters have been sent out last week!! (If you would like a support letter and didn’t receive one yet, PLEASE let me know and I will happily send you one!) It has been a huge faith trial, putting my faith in how the Lord provides every time, even though my fear says ‘What if this time is different??’ We are currently at $175/mo. and still have about $825/mo. before we can leave. Be praying that the support comes in!! And pray about how you can help!

Our leave date has continually fluctuated, moving further back as we realize the process will take a while. It is currently sent for July 18^th, provided we receive all the support we need in order to leave!

GOOD NEWS! We have somewhere to live when we get to Indiana! Darrell’s son owns a duplex, and as of now we are clear to live there. Huge prayer request answered!  

So, my friends, what’s next for the Stantons? Well, I am walking across the stage for Graduation on Saturday and turn 22 next Friday. Nothing too big ;) Caleb will be done with work the 24^th and we are off to Seattle to visit family and friends. Thank you everyone who has supported us in any aspect, especially those who have shared some love as we newly-weds try and figure out how to follow God’s will.

Love you all! Jenna