Would you step off a cliff? backwards? - by Kevin

How about if I gave you a thin strong rope to hold onto - would it then change from a crazy idea into an adventure?
Moving to South Africa feels like the first time I rappelled off a cliff.  I have been asked, "are you excited"?  Yes I'm excited and terrified, I swing from one to the other.  But then I remember I have to trust in the thin strong rope that is my faith in Jesus.  Sometimes that rope does not seem like much but I've learned that I can place my complete trust in it and it will save me from falling.  I remember rappelling off a cliff for the first time when I was in college in Colorado.  You have to hold onto a rope and then walk backwards over the edge.  All my senses were screaming at me, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!"  My climbing partners kept telling me to lean back and trust the rope.  I was scared, but my ego pushed me over the edge.  As I moved down the face of the cliff (that was well over 150 feet high), the more I trusted the rope the more my terror turned into excitement. By the end I was letting go of the rope and free falling, because I trusted the rope would hold me when I grabbed it again.  When I arrived at the bottom I could not wait to do it again.  Moving our family to the complete unknown in South Africa is the biggest leap of faith God has ever asked of me, but he has always been faithful, so over the edge we go.  We just bought non-refundable one way tickets.  I'm scared and excited and holding on to that thin strong rope.

(yes, that is me, and yes I do have a mullet.  It was 1991-so cut me some slack)

WHY???

A friend asked me recently, "why are you moving to South Africa?  Good question.

WHY is it that we're leaving our safe, comfortable, home and community here in Ellensburg, including a well-paying job, selling most of our belongings, uprooting our family, and launching out into the great unknown?  We know no-one in Worcester, and as volunteers we will be relying  entirely on others' financial support to meet all of our daily needs.  On the face of it, this does not seem like a very wise move.

I could say that we are going where the need is.  There is plenty of need in the continent of Africa and also among the students - many of them from developing nations - that we will be working with on the base.

Or, perhaps we are going because of our experiences: Kevin and I have both been through the counseling school that we will be staffing, and we know first-hand how powerful of a tool it can be when used in conjunction with the Holy Spirit's leading and power.  It is life-changing and immensely freeing.  We are so looking forward to see God at work in the lives of the students.

Or maybe the reason has to do with our giftings?  God has used Kevin and me together in the past, especially while counseling and teaching people.  We make a good team, filling in for each other's weaknesses.  Working as staff with YWAM Worcester does seem a good fit for us and our specific strengths.

If not that, are we going because of our kids?  We love the idea of bringing them up in an international and missional community.  This is a step of faith for them as well as us - and I have been amazed at how the boys' relationships with God have grown through this decision-making process.  He has been so faithful in speaking to them and encouraging them. (I will share more of those stories next time!)

All of these reasons are great bonuses, but none of them  truly hold water.  There's need everywhere, and being need-driven would only lead to burnout.  God can use anyone in any situation to do what He wants to do - it doesn't have to be us in a YWAM school.
Anyway, not a single one of these reasons is enough to get us through the really tough, what-on-earth-were-we-thinking!! times - and they will surely come - when we wonder why on earth we came in the first place.

Honestly, the only valid reason we're going is that we know that we know, deep in that place where you KNOW things - that this is right. God has asked us to go, so we're going.  Because we love Him, we want to bring joy to His heart, and we want to be right in the center of His will for our family.  That's it.  That 's what we're clinging to.

Does it feel a bit like we're about to step off a cliff?  Um, yes.  It really does, on so many levels.  But you know what? I'd rather be stepping off a cliff with God than staying on the clifftop without Him.  Jesus said "Come, follow me".  That looks different for everyone at different times.

And for our family, for right now, THIS is what that looks like.

So... we have some news.  Many of you know that Kevin and I have always had hearts for international missions.  While adopting Ashani, our constant prayer was "Lord, if you do ever want us to go back into long-term missions, you'll just have to give us a child who can handle it".  And, He did.  :D We have lived in Ellensburg for nearly 8 years now (3 when we moved here, then a gap for 2 with Mercy Ships, then almost 5 more while we adopted Ashani) and we are feeling ready for new horizons.

Kevin and I met while working with Mercy Ships in West Africa and Europe, and served 5 years together, then we did another 2-year stint on the ship when the boys were little 2008-10.  We loved living with, and serving a multi-national community on the ship, and we have also been involved in YWAM (Youth With A Mission) and gone through their life-changing and gut-level Counseling School together.  So, here's an overview of what's next:

WHO?
We are a family team:  Kevin, Rachel, Daniel (10), Zaden (8), and Ashani (4), all having made the decision - together - to go.  We feel strongly that each one of us has unique giftings and abilities to offer, without which the team would not be complete.  We feel passionately about this:  The children are very much involved and we know that God will use them richly, just as He has spoken to the boys about His plans for our family.  We prayed with Daniel the other day as he was needing some encouragement from God to help him with the sadness of missing his friends.  The next day he got a fortune cookie that said, "You will travel South and do great things".  (God can speak to us through anything, even fortune cookies!)

WHERE?
We will be moving to the town of Worcester in South Africa, about 1.5 hrs NE of Cape Town.


The Republic of South Africa is one of 55 countries that comprise the continent of Africa.  It is approximately 1/8 the size of the USA, and has 11 official languages including English, Afrikaans and Xhosa.  South Africa proudly calls itself the Rainbow Nation, made up of 79% Blacks, 9% Whites, 9% Coloureds (black, white, Asian mix), and 2.5% Indian and other Asian.  It is really a unique country - very much "first world" in parts, with glistening malls stuffed with designer stores and expensive restaurants, and heart-breakingly "third world" in others, with poverty and despair that you would see in any other struggling African nation:



An hour and a half north-east of Cape Town, Worcester is an educational hub situated in the beautiful Breede Valley, and the home of "YWAM Worcester", one of the larger Youth With A Mission bases in the continent of Africa.
Check out www.ywamworcester.com for more information.










WHEN?
We plan to leave Ellensburg on July 2nd, and spend 3.5 weeks in the UK before flying down to South Africa on July 29th.  At this point we expect to be there for at least 2 years initially, possibly longer.

WHAT?
The YWAM base in Worcester is very involved in reaching out to the community and making a difference in the nation of South Africa.  The base also runs many different YWAM schools that we have a heart for helping to facilitate, for example the Foundations of Counseling Ministry School (which we have both done and Kevin has staffed before), and the Family Ministry School (which Kevin has taken but I haven't, yet).  We are so excited for this opportunity to help staff some of these schools, as we will not just be training people in not just intellectual concepts but bringing about change in them at heart-level, and equipping them to return to their own nations or elsewhere, spreading the light of Christ and bringing about lasting change!
Kevin will be full-time with YWAM and I will be a little less than full-time, helping while the children are in school.


WHY?
During our time with Mercy Ships, Kevin and I had the privilege of creating and delivering Marriage Courses for local pastors and their wives in Sierra Leone and Liberia in West Africa.  We found that our simple counseling tools and teachings made a profound impact and we saw marriages being transformed and strengthened. We were also amazed at the lack of resources they had available to them in their own nation.  Because of its location and costs YWAM Worcester draws students not only from all over the continent of Africa, but also from all over South America and Asia - including India (which incidentally will be great for us as Ashani grows up and wants to know more about her heritage).  We are so excited about this opportunity to make a difference in the lives of people from developing nations all over the world, strengthening the church and empowering the next generation of missionaries!

HOW? 
That's a very good question.  It's going to take a lot to pack up and rent out our house, sell our vehicles, and transplant our entire family to another continent.  It is a daunting task because there are more unknowns than knowns.  We don't know anyone in Worcester, so we will be starting from scratch.  We will need to find a house to rent, a school for the kids, a vehicle, and do everything else that comes with moving to a new country.
We would really appreciate your prayers as we enter this potentially stressful time of huge transition.  There is a lot to sort out, but we know that God goes before us.
I love this verse from Isaiah:  "He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those that have young."  We know that He will lead all of us gently and open the doors ahead of us.

We recognize that we cannot undertake this challenge without the support of family and friends.  We truly covet your prayers - both for the transition time and also especially for our ministry and the ministry of YWAM Worcester as a whole.  Without a team of people praying for our protection and our effectiveness, it would be an uphill and possibly fruitless battle.

Another big part of the "How", of course, involves money.  YWAM is a volunteer organization, we will be working as unpaid volunteers, so will need to provide our own living expenses in order to meet our day-to-day needs.  When doing missions in the past, God has provided for us through friends and family who have committed to supporting us a certain amount each month.  If you are interested in doing this, please email us at kryangas@hotmail.com and we can send you our bank details (either USA or UK).  Or, if you would rather contribute to our one-time relocation costs, you can do so by clicking on this link: 

https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=H5UZT7HL3JZA2