Pictures of Belize - Part 1

Friends and photo bombing!!

Here the kids are separating flour into bags to hand out to families in the community later.  They  had a lot of fun with this part and were COVERED in flour!!!

 The kids made many friends during the VBS time.  This is little girl from the community.

 Maurice was the pastors grandson and so fun!  Bennett really fell in love with him.

 It's hard to imagine that as hot as we were, there would be smiles this big but it just was a joyful experience for us!

 Several of the boys really bonded with a boy named Duane.  He was the son of the pastor and really made an impression on these 9 and 10 year old boys.  Here Luke is with him on the last night.  Later he would tell us that he was one of the best friends he ever made and could not believe he would probably never see him again.

 We got a day to see some Mayan ruins  - this is us at the top of one of them.  

 The kids ate termites!  

 I loved how all the kids interacted with the kids from the community during VBS.  

This was a spot we got our BBQ lunch from on the first day - it was sooo good!!!   Our bus driver, Eustace was such an inspirational part of our trip.  He was also the one who made our BBQ.  

The Impact - a Letter of Gratitude

It is hard to believe it was a month ago today that the Bunten Family was embarking on its first family mission trip.

While a few weeks have passed, the impact of this trip will continue to penetrate our hearts for years to come.  Believe it or not we are still trying to get back to reality.  Like a vacation you understand we have to get caught up on the day to say stuff.  But unlike a vacation, processing all that we experienced takes time.

First of all we want to say thank you!  Without your support it would have been very difficult for us to make this trip a reality.

Whether you have been on a mission trip or not, the impact of the trip is just as much for those going as it is for those who we mission to.  And all for the greater glory of God.

We visited an orphanage, conducted a church service (including a Sunday school, Sunday service, and evening service) and all participated in a VBS.  We also delivered food to families in need and each family visited another family (called breaking bread) where we brought homemade lasagna to the family and shared it with them in their homes.

The church we visited (and community itself) was in dire need of accepting God's grace.  So that was the theme we carried out throughout the week.

As far as our family goes, we were certainly taken beyond our comfort zones. Each day we endured the heat (drinking 3 plus gallons of water per day) lathering ourselves with sunscreen and bug spray through out the day and kept antibacterial rub on our hands at all times.  Which in the heat kept an annoying film on your hands that never seemed to go away! Only then to go to sleep in on an air mattress in an old elementary school, where we where piled in like sardines with no air conditioning. At night we would sweat ourselves to sleep!

Throughout all of this we got to witness Bennett and Luke being exposed to living conditions I am sure were unimaginable previously.  However they were troopers and did not complain (for the most part:)) but adapted to each situation and embraced the people of Belize with love that made us proud as parents.

Seeing people that have so little is disheartening.  However they struggled with the same worries we have in the absolute comfort of our lives.  Like us, they worry about money, their children's education, relationships and their faith.  Like us there were many who had tremendous faith and happiness despite their dire external circumstances, While others were lost and resigned to a dismal existence.  Making us wonder do all the things around us make us happy?  And one big take away is NO!  While it is so easy to get caught up in thinking the next thing we acquire will make us happy, the reality is the people we met who were most happy seemed to have a faith that God will provide for their needs and not plaque themselves with worry about subsistence. Could we be happy if nothing else in our lives changed? If our external circumstances stayed the same could we not just be content but truly happy?

Lastly we were most impacted by the relationships we built, both with the people there and the people we went with.  We were with a group of Christians, great people, great families yet each morning when we would pray or those chance moments (which were many) when we could talk, we all face the same challenges of life.  We weren't alone in the struggles we face.  And in getting away to another country, as a family we were reinforced with the idea that we must keep our faith paramount in our family.

Thank you again for your support.  Whether it was financially or in prayers or hopefully both we appreciate you supporting us. Below is a blog put together of our trip which we hope you enjoy. 

http://blog.gethope.net/globalhope/belize-family-trip-2-their-story-in-pictures

Yes we are home!

Hey for those of you following our blog  - we are home!  Have been for a week.  I'm processing and in the midst of writing a blog post of our experience.   Just wanted to thank you and let you know we are ok!  :)

Prayer Requests and How to Follow Our Actual Trip

Hey Everyone!

Thank you so much for following us on this journey.  I can hardly believe that we leave in less than 24 hours.  Wow!  My tummy is a bundle of excitement and nerves.  I also still have some final packing to do.

Right now we are preparing to take Tyler to his Uncle and Aunt's house.  I know he will be very well taken care of!  I am just so sad about leaving him.     Please pray the transition is easy for all of us.

We will not be able to have any contact via Facebook, Twitter, our phones or blogs while we are in Belize.  But the team will post updates on the Global Hope blog.

You can follow them HERE:  http://www.gethope.net/global-hope

Thank you to those who have committed to pray for us in the following ways:

• For Tyler - him not to miss us.  Us not to miss him.  It's his birthday on Monday and we will miss it.  They are having a big party for him so I'm sure he will be fine.  He'll be 3!  
• For Bennett and Luke - that their hearts would be open to what God wants them to experience and to show love to each other and to those they meet.
• For our team - that we would have unity, fun and build lasting friendships.
• For the people of Ladyville, Belize - that they would have hearts open and we would be able to serve their community.
• For the teens and pre-teens of this church - that they would build foundations that would help them to become future leaders in their country.
• For our VBS, Sunday School lessons, helping to build an addition on a building, sharing in meals, giving groceries and most importantly spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ in the most loving way - through our service.
• For Keith and I - we are leading an adult Sunday school class on the topic of grace.    We don't feel like we are ready.  But we do know that God just wants us to share our story of HIS grace in our life and our marriage.  
• For safe travels.
• For no sickness.
• For rest when we need it and energy to do the things we need to do.
• For God to use us in the most amazing ways!!!! 

Luke is nervous about the food, Keith about the sleeping on an air mattress, Bennett about the water and I'm just nervous about my family being in a foreign land for the first time.  Nervous and excited!  We are all ready to go and thrilled to have this opportunity.  But leaving what is normal is always hard.  We know that God does not intend for us to stay in the same place all the time and that this is just one of the beautiful blessings he has given us right now - to travel to Belize.

We are thankful.

Thank you for praying and we hope you follow our trip.  I will post when we get back!

The Desires of Our Heart

Every year, over the 4th of July, our little family goes to the beach.   Well, at least for about the last 6 years. As a family, it has been very special, very peaceful and very anticipated.    I can almost feel my mind start to wander come May just thinking of the week we'll spend in a house we rent to call home.

Spending downtime with my sweet family is precious and something I really would not negotiate each Summer.  For Keith, this time was much needed to take a break from work.  It was pretty much a trip that we would NOT not take.

So, like every Summer, we prepared our trip last year - we booked our condo, we packed, we took off work and we headed to the beach.

And it was disappointing.

Not the time with our kids - that is always precious.  Not the downtime - although it seemed like we could never relax.   And, of course, the beach was divine.

For the first time in a long time  ever, I could not wait to leave.  I honestly, just wanted to pack my things about day 4 and go to my real home.  Nothing could make it better.    While I was packing us up at the end of the week, I got this feeling that we would not be coming back the following July.  It had lost it's allure, it's zest, it's restfulness.  It had become the complete opposite of rest actually.  It became a little too normal.  (spoiled much?)

I just had no idea what our next Summer vacation would look like. What would we do if we didn't come to the beach?

We explored some things:  Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, back home to Missouri, the mountains, a lake, Disney.   Nothing came to be.


Now I LOVE the beach.  As I type this, I can almost smell the ocean.  I feel closer to God at the beach than anywhere physically.   I'd be driving there with my kids every weekend if I could.    But that annual beach trip?   It was not happening in 2013.

Sometime in the Fall of last year, I started to feel like I wanted to go on a mission trip.   But it was a little hard for me to make a decision to spend so much of my vacation time away from my family when we had not even planned time away as a family for the Summer.  Even though I knew the beach trip was out, I knew that family time was still in!

Then Hope (our church) decided to start taking Family Mission trips!

It was at that point that I knew what we would be doing in July of 2013.

It was so right, so scary, so not normal, so not restful and so full of allure and zest!!!

I just could not take Tyler.  :(  Also we had to raise the money for the trip.

I had some doubts.  Actually, the part about leaving Tyler...well, you can still be praying about that.  I hate to leave our little guy behind.  He'll be in GREAT hands with Uncle Jeff and Aunt Sherry - I know that.  He's just my baby and I know we will miss each other.

So, that's it.

A trip that I would insist on taking each year to the beach -  that non-negotiable one.  A trip that we would save for, plan for and make happen every year suddenly became undesirable.

Because God had a new desire he wanted to plant there.  Go to Central America and spend our vacation serving others.  

Had I any doubt that God would work it out?  Raise the money?  Get my passport?  Our shots covered 100% by insurance? Provide an awesome family to take care of our Tyler and another to take care of our dog.

To give us the opportunity and honor to go and love on his people.  And I'm sure in turn - love on us.

As a family - we need this.  We need to serve others, together.  We need a world view outside our little street in our little town.  We need to put our faith in action in ways that we don't even know, yet.

Thank you for your prayers and your support. We can't wait for you to share in this adventure God has in store for us!

I will send out a prayer request in my next post.  We would love it if you would join us by committing to pray with us.

Thank you for being a part of this opportunity!

Passport Arrived!

Whew!  That was close!
Today my passport came!

So, the story goes that when I went to get my passport with my kids in April, the woman working at the post office would not accept my birth certificate because it was torn.

She told me I would need to apply for a new one.  Easy enough if you are born in the US.  I was not and had to apply for a birth certificate from the UK.

Which by the way has still not arrived.

About 3 weeks ago, I called the Department of State and told them my situation.  They told me to go back to the post office and tell the clerk to accept my birth certificate or even try another post office.

So, I did.

And they took it.

And it came in 1 1/2 weeks.

Kinda wish I had saved myself all that worry in waiting for my birth certificate and just tried another post office from the beginning.  But who knows, maybe the process of my birth certificate helped speed up the process.

Whatever happened - it's here now!  And I'm going to Belize with the rest of my family - yay!!!

Keith and I also got our shots today - ouch!  :)

So, that's it - final preparations with our team and away we go in less than 3 weeks.  I almost cannot believe it's here.

THANK YOU!

We have amazing news!!! We are fully funded!  

Thank  you Thank you Thank you for praying and for donating toward our trip.  We believe that God is going to do great things through us in Belize and we are beyond excited for this trip.    It absolutely will be the highlight of our Summer and one of those moments in our family that just marks time.

We are blown away by the generosity of friends and family - some that just felt God saying they should give toward our trip.  Thank you each of you for being a part of this trip!

Let Us Break Bread Together

Thank you for some recent very generous donations!  We are over halfway there!  Here is a great video of what you are partnering with.   Look at those faces!  :)  Thanks so much for your prayers - it means the world to us!!!

Passports, Birth Certificates and Planning!

Well, the kids have completed their birth passport applications and hopefully we will see their shiny faces inside some new passports soon.  Keith already has his from his last mission trip which is great!

And I have sent away for my new birth certificate so I can hopefully get a passport soon!  Just a little glitch in my process because I was born out of the country on an USAF base and my birth certificate is as old as I am but looks much worse!  :)  

Prayers for a speedy process there would be appreciated.

We've met with our team to discuss plans and start getting some organization to our trip.  I love the team we are going with - so many of them are already great friends that we attend church with and I'm looking forward to getting know a couple new families.   As we plan what we want to do for the community in Belize, it is such a blessing to watch the kids.  Every time there is a question of what we should do, all of their hands shoot up to volunteer suggestions.  I love to see their enthusiasm and excitement for loving on these people they have not even met, yet!

Anyway, we seem to be moving along nicely and appreciate your prayers so much!  We actually feel much peace about everything coming together for this trip.  We are gaining ground on being halfway to our funding which is awesome - THANK YOU!!!

Thank you!

Thank you to those who have already pledged to support us for our mission trip to Belize - both financially and more importantly by praying.

We feel your prayers already as some obstacles have moved out of the way.   For instance we need passports.  It takes 4-6 weeks to process and three weeks ago we could not get a local appointment until May.  So, I made the only appointment I could about 45 minutes away from home for the end of April.  Which is fine but it just requires us to be away from work longer and is inconvenient.  A couple days ago, I decided to take a chance and call our local post office and to my pleasant surprise 3 spots had just opened up this coming week!

I know that may seem silly, "Sure Janel, someone just canceled and your timing was good."  No, God's timing is always good.

The pledge of funds from you confirms that this trip is about involving more than just our family.  In fact, it's all about involving YOU in what God will be doing through us in Belize.

So, thank you.  :)

Will You Partner With Us?

Dear Family and Friends,

Our family (Keith, Janel, Bennett and Luke) is about to embark on our first mission trip to Sand Hill, Belize on JULY 27-August 1.  Tyler will be staying behind to house -sit. J  We are going with a team of other families (8-10 families) - all of whom will provide services and ministries to the Sand Hills area.

Every ministry is designed to be a discipleship-making opportunity. Some of the ministries include:

·        Breaking bread ministry (providing meals for local families)

·        Vacation Bible school for Orphans

·        Bunk bed ministry (building bunk beds for the local orphanage)

·        Family fun night and crafts

·        Projects (building, painting, etc.)

·        Kids Camps

When we heard about this family mission trip, we immediately felt God calling us to be a part of His adventure in Belize - to reach out as a family to help, to witness (both to and from actually) those who are less fortunate, and to be living breathing examples of God’s love.  We are excited for our children to be able to serve communities that are vastly different from their own.   And they are excited to meet kids their own age from different cultures and be a part of introducing them to Jesus.   Bennett is most excited to do crafts and teach kids to dance.  Luke just can’t wait to play soccer with the boys!   As parents, we are thrilled to be a part of this experience with our kids but also cannot wait to break bread with the people of Belize.  You know how we feel about food!  

We are excited and anxious to dive head first into all of these ministries and we hope you will pray and reflect on this opportunity to partner with us to impact God’s Kingdom!

Part of our responsibility, as team members, is to raise the necessary funds for the trip. The cost of the trip for our family is $5494.  We have been able to contribute some of our own funds to the trip and our kids are planning a couple of their own fundraisers.   At first we were reluctant to ask our friends and family to partner with us financially.  Then we realized that this is a really awesome opportunity for you to share in what God will be doing through us in Belize!  We want to take each of you of this mission trip with us! 

We’d like to ask for you to prayerfully consider partnering with us in the following ways:

·        Financially – we still need to raise about $3800 in funds for our trip.   We have a large deadline to meet by April 17 and our final deadline is June 1.  

·        Encouragement – follow our updates on Facebook and our blog.

·        Prayer – we need prayer!  This is our first mission trip together as a family.  We are excited and anxious to see all that God is going to do.

To partner with us Financially, please click the tab at the top of this blog or here for

INSTRUCTIONS FOR TRIP DONATIONS

For more information about the trip and Hope for Belize visit www.hopeforbelize.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jbunten   Blog: http://BuntensinBelize.blogspot.com

Thank you for your love and support! We absolutely could not even dream about doing this without you!

Keith, Janel, Bennett, Luke and Tyler Bunten