Yes, it’s that time again. We are finishing up 3 years on the field this term and will be returning for a 10 month furlough beginning July 5th. We will first land in Denver and spend 2 weeks visiting in Colorado before heading to TN. Before the boys start school, we will be heading to Indianapolis for a furlough retreat and also to PA for some visiting.

We already have some events scheduled… let us know when you want us to come and visit you!

Furlough is somewhat of an odd concept for people to understand these days. Many mission agencies call furlough “home assignment.” It is a required amount of time that we are to spend in our home country every few years (I guess so we don’t get too weird—too late!).

CMF calculates furlough each term as 25% of the time spent on the field. During furlough our duties include reporting to churches and supporters, representing CMF at conventions and in recruitment situations, continuing education and retooling for the next assignment. We are also supposed to get some rest (for us this means living in a place where we can blend in for awhile), take time for spiritual renewal, and visit with family members we haven’t seen for years.

This furlough (just as in 2003-4) we have been invited to be the “Visiting Missionaries” at Milligan College for the spring semester. Hopefully we will be able to encourage others to consider serving as missionaries and to think seriously about the cross-cultural mission task. It will also give us an opportunity to evaluate the work we have been doing in Turkana alongside others who are devoted to missions.

We will be living in a little house on the Milligan campus. Stop by and visit us!

Pray for us as we pack, travel, and make more furlough plans. Also pray for all of the goodbyes—they are difficult.