Avanti Italia
This may come as a bit of a shock to some of you all, but Alan and I
are in the process of raising funds to move to Italy in order to do
mission work for two years. Maybe I should start at the beginning since
it's usually the best place to start...
This past fall Alan was in his last semester of undergraduate school at Harding. During that semester we were busy cooking up plans for our future. Alan applied to graduate schools for both Occupational and Physical therapy programs. However, we have both been feeling this desire to do something else with our lives right now. We both have been feeling that lately all we've been doing is getting caught up in worldly desires - having a nicer place to live, buying a nice car, getting the latest gadgets and gizmos, etc. It's hard not to in our consumeristic (yeah, I'm pretty sure I just made that word up) American culture. However, Alan and I have found that we are both becoming tired of this "getting ahead" prospective in life. We felt like we weren't focusing on the right things anymore - loving God, loving others, and spreading the Word. Sure, they were still a part of our lives, but we didn't feel like they were the forefront of who we were anymore. Well, we prayed a lot that semester for guidance and direction. Then, the Sunday after Alan graduated, a couple spoke after church to update us on their mission efforts in Italy. On a whim, Alan went and talked to them after church and continued talking straight through class. I for some reason (maybe the quarter Italian in me) have always had this passion for Italy and anything Italian. However, I was hesitant to tell Alan of my interest in this program, because I wasn't sure how he felt about all of this. I knew that I was excited at the prospect, ready for the challenge, and ready to grow and learn more spiritually. Imagine my shock when Alan came up to me a few days later and said, "Hey, that Avanti Italia program.....I think we should go." After I managed to stop sputtering and close my gaping mouth, we talked about the program and prayed often for direction. We soon felt that this was something we should and wanted to do if God willed.
The program is called Avanti Italia, which is Italian for "Onward Italy." Avanti Italia is a program based in Florence, Italy. It is sponsored by a committee at College church of Christ in Searcy, AR. As stated on their website, the programs goals are as follows:
1. to use our individual talents in sharing the Good News of Jesus the Christ with those who are seeking to have a more perfect relationship with Him,
2. to learn to share Christ with others more effectively, and
3. to participate in mutual encouragement and edification with the Italian churches of Christ.
Recent college graduates commit to two years of teaching English in Italy. The workers in Italy use the Bible to teach English. They also work with the churches across Italy, help with church camps, volunteer in the local community, among many other things.
Their website has much more information if you are interested in reading more. www.avantiitalia.org
While Alan and I were going through the application process for this program, he was invited to an interview for graduate school at LSU. Then, it was a waiting game for both of us. Waiting to hear if we were accepted to join the program and waiting to see if Alan was accepted to graduate school.
A month later, our waiting game ended. We found out on February 6th, that Alan had been accepted into LSU's OT program. Just a few short hours later, we received confirmation that we were accepted to go to Avanti Italia and are considered a part of the next team leaving for Italy. Well, the decision was easy for us. Italy here we come.
As of right now, we are not sure when we are leaving. We have the choice to leave in either this September or January of 2013. Currently, we are still trying to decide that. For now, we are working on raising support for our future work in Italy. We'll keep you updated.
This past fall Alan was in his last semester of undergraduate school at Harding. During that semester we were busy cooking up plans for our future. Alan applied to graduate schools for both Occupational and Physical therapy programs. However, we have both been feeling this desire to do something else with our lives right now. We both have been feeling that lately all we've been doing is getting caught up in worldly desires - having a nicer place to live, buying a nice car, getting the latest gadgets and gizmos, etc. It's hard not to in our consumeristic (yeah, I'm pretty sure I just made that word up) American culture. However, Alan and I have found that we are both becoming tired of this "getting ahead" prospective in life. We felt like we weren't focusing on the right things anymore - loving God, loving others, and spreading the Word. Sure, they were still a part of our lives, but we didn't feel like they were the forefront of who we were anymore. Well, we prayed a lot that semester for guidance and direction. Then, the Sunday after Alan graduated, a couple spoke after church to update us on their mission efforts in Italy. On a whim, Alan went and talked to them after church and continued talking straight through class. I for some reason (maybe the quarter Italian in me) have always had this passion for Italy and anything Italian. However, I was hesitant to tell Alan of my interest in this program, because I wasn't sure how he felt about all of this. I knew that I was excited at the prospect, ready for the challenge, and ready to grow and learn more spiritually. Imagine my shock when Alan came up to me a few days later and said, "Hey, that Avanti Italia program.....I think we should go." After I managed to stop sputtering and close my gaping mouth, we talked about the program and prayed often for direction. We soon felt that this was something we should and wanted to do if God willed.
The program is called Avanti Italia, which is Italian for "Onward Italy." Avanti Italia is a program based in Florence, Italy. It is sponsored by a committee at College church of Christ in Searcy, AR. As stated on their website, the programs goals are as follows:
1. to use our individual talents in sharing the Good News of Jesus the Christ with those who are seeking to have a more perfect relationship with Him,
2. to learn to share Christ with others more effectively, and
3. to participate in mutual encouragement and edification with the Italian churches of Christ.
Recent college graduates commit to two years of teaching English in Italy. The workers in Italy use the Bible to teach English. They also work with the churches across Italy, help with church camps, volunteer in the local community, among many other things.
Their website has much more information if you are interested in reading more. www.avantiitalia.org
While Alan and I were going through the application process for this program, he was invited to an interview for graduate school at LSU. Then, it was a waiting game for both of us. Waiting to hear if we were accepted to join the program and waiting to see if Alan was accepted to graduate school.
A month later, our waiting game ended. We found out on February 6th, that Alan had been accepted into LSU's OT program. Just a few short hours later, we received confirmation that we were accepted to go to Avanti Italia and are considered a part of the next team leaving for Italy. Well, the decision was easy for us. Italy here we come.
As of right now, we are not sure when we are leaving. We have the choice to leave in either this September or January of 2013. Currently, we are still trying to decide that. For now, we are working on raising support for our future work in Italy. We'll keep you updated.
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