ivy and orchid

Last year, our family had the opportunity to spend a week in Cap-Haitien, Haiti as part of our "Vision Trip." The purpose of a Vision Trip is to give our family an idea of the culture we will live in, the people we will work with, the school we will teach in etc. One of the best parts of the trip was having dinner with a different missionary each night. This gave us a chance to get to know the missionaries and ask any questions we had. At this point, we had not begun raising support and were still apprehensive when it came to doing THE ASK. I remember one missionary telling us that he enjoyed meeting with people to ask for support and I thought he was crazy! I am an introvert through and through, so the idea alone of talking with people exhausted me, let alone asking for help. We have been raising support for almost a year now and let me tell you, it truly is a rewarding and fulfilling process. It is more than "begging for money" than I ever could imagine. Someti...

Last week was a hard week. If you couldn't tell by my last blog post, I was stressed out. I was overwhelmed by all I had to do. This bible verse just kept echoing in my mind: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.   For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30) I felt weary and burdened. I felt tired and mentally drained, yet I had so much to do in such a little time that I had to keep going                                                            but                ...

Recently, I was talking with my friend Cheryl about writing. You see, she is in the process of finishing a novel which is so impressive to me. The reason I do not write in this space more often is because I do not have anything interesting to say or I have too much to say and do not know how to organize my thoughts well. There has been a lot on my mind lately: 1. We are about three months away from the date we choose to leave. Do you know what that means? That means major de-cluttering, selling our house, finding our replacement at church, filling out all the paperwork that is necessary to move out of the country and saying goodbye. That is a lot so today, I decided the best way to tackle all of that was to do nothing. 2. The United Methodist Church chose the Traditional Plan. Let me tell you what the UMC means to me: People who are intelligent and funny and welcoming and accepting and compassionate no matter who walks through the doors. They have made us laugh and made us cry and...

2019 VOLLEYBALL FOR MISSIONS Saturday Feb. 23rd   Support the Teichmers' Haiti Mission Trip!  Co-Ed Volleyball Tournament   $150/team (up to 6)  $25/additional players (8 max)   Open to adults (16+) in the community All skill levels Double elimination format   Join us for a fun filled day of great competition - for a GREAT cause!!   If you are interested but don't have a full team, please let me know and we'll help put a team together.   Click below to access the form:   Click Here for Registration Form   Contact angie@newburghumc.org for details!     

The other day, Abigail asked me to rub her ankle before we went to bed. She often gets these pains after a long day, especially a long day of playing outside. As a kid, I used to get these "growing pains" as well. I remember my parents coming in my bedroom late at night because I was crying that my legs hurt. (It always helped just a little when they told me my legs hurt because I was growing. Such sweet words for a short person!). Right now, I am in the midst of my own [figurative] growing pains. The funny thing about life is we are never "there." We are always growing, always learning, always adjusting. Life is so easy when things are going well, but we don't understand the growth we need until things get a little tricky. Now I see that maybe I don't have as much faith as I thought I did. Maybe I need to toughen up because being a missionary is going to TEACH ME THINGS. I also know that while I am growing, I have a God who promises me rest when I need...

  I do not believe in coincidences. On Thanksgiving, my mother sent me a text with the following picture: Streams in the Desert           She told me she felt like she should pull this devotional out that day. It was one my dad's favorite books. What she didn't realize is the author is Lettie Cowman, wife of Charles Cowman, founder of One Mission Society and the namesake of the school Shawn and I will be serving in.  Before Shawn and I knew we would be missionaries at the Cowman School and before a time [on this earth] my dad would even know we would take this journey, he was reading this book. I am so thankful for God's reminders that this has been His plan for our lives and more so, He knows our future long before we do.  For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29: 11

You are amazing!  Through this journey, we are learning how incredible to the tenth power you all are: 1. You have supported us by sharing massive amounts of time to help us out. 2. You have donated items to help us with our fundraiser. 3. You have prayed for us. 4. You have given us opportunities to share our story. 5. You have cooked food for us. 6. You show up to events just to support us. 7. You permit us to use a public space for our needs. 8. You teach our children dance. 9. You teach our children at school. 10.You help our children develop their relationships with Christ. 11.You tell stories of experience and wisdom. 12. You make beautiful music which will always be a gift to us. 13. You help us clean up. 14. You help keep my mind straight in this hectic time of our lives. 15. You are kind and loving to our children. 16. You even think of ways to help us raise money. 17. You speak truth which reminds us why we are doing this. 18. You make us laugh. 19. Yo...