the matthews family

team australia / church planters

9.27

Clarification on computers & shipping

During our time in churches on Sunday, we had a question and I think we need to clarify on the the computers and shipping.

In previous correspondence, we requested computers for the city ministry. We had a generous individual donate 2-3 rebuilt computers to the city ministry and we are currently looking for someone to assist with the shipping of two more computers. We are thankful for the donation from one of our supporters for the shipping of one of the computers.

For the other needed desk top and laptop computers (personal & ministry related), we would prefer to purchase the computers in Australia. We are grateful for purchases made in the US, but the shipping costs can be costly. If you would like to donate funds for those specific needs, please contact us through our website.

Thank you for the question on the computer requests and I hope this helps people to understand the process.

Cheers,
Russ & Cathy

9.24

One more computer

One day after we posted our needs for the ministry, we had someone donate a laptop to the city ministry! Thank you for the computer and for the prayers.

We are praying for someone to assist with the shipping costs for the desktop computers that were donated. Could it be you?

The adventure continues in the US, help us to get home to OZ…
Russ & Cathy

9.21

Our hero… (and a bit more)

While we are on furlough, our friend Andrew is visiting from Australia. During the visit, we have taken the opportunity to do some tourist things in Iowa. One thing that we decided to do was to go on a tour of the State Capital Building in Des Moines. I will be honest, it was great. We encourage anyone to take the tour, it is an amazing building with fascinating history. The person who made the tour enjoyable and educational was our tour guide, Peg.

Peg was passionate, excited and knowledgeable of all areas of the building. Also, she gave credit to the architects, financiers and builders by name. One gentleman she referred to throughout the tour was, Robert Finkbine. She would even state his name with the title of ‘Our Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ His name was memorable, because she acknowledged him at least ten times with the same title, ‘Our Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ The realisation that hit me was I grew up in Iowa, I had been to the Capital Building many times, but I had never heard his name before that day. Yet, Peg shared his name as a noted historical figure that should never be forgotten. To my shame, by the next day, I had forgotten his name and  had to call the tour company to get the information. ‘A Hero of Iowa, but one who was easily forgotten.’

Even with all of the new education of Iowa history, the challenge Peg gave me was in her communication style. She said she gives the tour numerous times a day, month & year. Yet, I would assume that she would be just as passionate about the building and her ‘Hero, Robert Finkbine.’ Peg challenged me to communicate with the same level of passion about  ’Our Hero, Jesus Christ.’ We have the privilege of talking with many people every day, month and year about Jesus, but do I share with the same enthusiasm & passion as Peg did about Mr. Finkbine? Do any of us? It was a good challenge during a time like furlough. I would pray we would communicate with this message passionately, even on our most exhausting days.

Robert Finkbine died in 1901 and he did leave leave a legacy. Interesting, as I study history and the Bible, the Finkbine legacy will eventually fade and will be a blip on your local Wikipedia page. A vapour that will eventually be forgotten.

Yet, our ‘Hero, Jesus’ lives on. His legacy will never die. We do live to share about ‘Our Hero, Jesus, Our Saviour, Our Lord, & Our King.’ He is the one who we serve and desire to share with anyone who will listen, His saving message. I hope I can be as passionate, excited and knowledgeable about all he has done, is dong and will do for us all. Praise His name.

Thanks for the challenge Peg.

A bit more…

Praises:

1) We have had supporters increase their support and new support come in during our time here.

2) The visit from Andrew has been a blessing for us from ‘home.’ We needed the Australian infusion into our lives to spur us on for the coming month.

3) An offer for computers to be sent to Australia. We are still waiting on assistance with the shipping.

We have had for some specifics on our prayer requests:

-$200 monthly increase for support – This is due to a change in our schooling situation for 2011 and some adjustments in support from specific churches.

- Shipping of 2-3 computers to Australia

- We still are praying for 4 new laptops for city ministry (Mac or PC)

-1 new laptop & 1 new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011 – Our goal is to raise $5000 for this fund.

-Funds for furlough – This has been a bit more expensive than we realised, but the Lord has provided in his mighty way

-We would like to purchase a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla)

That is it for now, but there will be more to come. Thank you for your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…

The Matthews family

9.14

Answered prayer but need some shipping assistance needed

One of our prayer requests was for the provision of computers in the city ministry.

We had an exciting offer from one of our supporting churches. One of their members is willing to donate  rebuilt computers to the city ministry. The only thing that we need assistance with is shipping costs. We just wanted to ask if anyone would be willing to help with the shipping of the computers or knows of shipping opportunities at a low cost.

We hope you are encouraged by answered prayers! Glory to God and we are so thankful for your continued prayers and support.

Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope, Joshua & Caroline

9.01

First Furlough… what an experience

Our First Furlough… What an experience… Thanks for you prayers for our first furlough. It has been quite an exciting, busy, and exhausting blessing to serve. We are at a different church each weekend and then meeting with friends, supporters & pastors during the week. It is a great time of sharing about four of our favourite things: Jesus, the Bible, Australia and our family. It is fun, but quite tiring. Our health has been up and down, but I think we are adjusting our schedule to get rest in this process.

Answering the Consistent Questions: We thought we would answer some of the questions from the church meetings.

“Why the short furlough?” Due to planning purposes for the various ministries in November and the desire to get back to the field we chose to a shorter furlough. It is difficult to be away from the work for such a long time. We are enjoying the time in the US, but we hoping to get home to Australia soon. When we came from Australia we had full support, but while at ABWE we needed to make some adjustments in our support levels and we are praying and working hard to meet those requirements. (Details below)

Caroline-ism: We were driving back from the church last week and Caroline said, “We do a pretty good American accent, don’t we.” Hope replied,”Honey, we are American.” “Oh, I thought we were Australian.” “Well, we are both, but we have an American accent.” Pray she can get her mind around that one.

Can we ask for you prayers for safety in our travels and discernment on where we can go for new support options?

Praises:

1) The calendar is filling up quickly with small groups, youth groups, friends, family and our supporting churches. We are still available for some groups and churches during the week, but time is going quickly. Thanks to all who have asked us to come.

2) Good connections with our neighbours and new people in the churches. Please continue to pray for  opportunities to share the good news of Christ in the US.

3) Our friend Andrew will be here soon. Pray for his safe arrival.

We have had for some specifics on our prayer requests:

-$275 monthly increase for support – This is due to a change in our schooling situation for 2011 and some adjustments in support from specific churches.

-4 new laptop computers & 2 new desk top computers for city ministry – Our computers need an upgrade to keep up with the demand of the city ministry

-1 new laptop & 1 new desktop for family needs – Ours are in need of replacing at home

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney; we have the opportunity for new church plants in 2011 – Our goal is to raise $5000 for this fund.

- One family or an individual who would be willing to come and serve in ministry in Australia. We would like people to consider working in the City ministry & church planting effort. Our suggestion would be to consider a short term trip, then look towards a long term commitment.

-Funds for furlough

-We would like to purchase a small vehicle to assist in travel needs for future ministry. (ex. Toyota Corrolla)

That is it for now, but there will be more to come. Thank you for your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…
Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope , Joshua & Caroline

8.16

Internet Blackout is over – We are in our ‘home away from home’

We apologise for the length of time it has taken for us to send out an update. We have just been able to get the Internet working in our home in the US. I will send more detail soon, but for those who have been following our furlough, here are some of the details.

Praises:

1) We are living in Des Moines at a wonderful home provided by Grace Church. Thank you to the harvest team, our family and friends for all of the work in helping us to get settled.

2) Saylorville Baptist Church has provided a van for our travel. We have the church van and are currently waiting on the vote from the church to purchase a mini-van.

3) We have had three great experiences at churches. Two of them were supporting churches and it was great getting to re-connected with them. We will be on the road to Louisburg, KS this weekend.

4) Great time at ABWE Missionary Enrichment Conference. I had the opportunity to share the CBF ministry with all of the attendees at one of the events. Thanks to Kent Craig, George Collins, Amy Wheaton and Dr. Loftis for the experience.

5) The calendar is filling up quickly with small groups, youth groups, friends, family and our supporting churches. We are still available for some groups and churches during the week, but time is going quickly. Thanks to all who have asked us to come.

Key pray requests:
-Safety in travels during the furlough

-Opportunities to share the good news of Christ in the US

-$220 monthly increase for support

-4 laptop computers & 2 desk top computers for city ministry; 1 laptop & 1 desktop for family needs

-Direction and funding with church plant in Sydney

- One family or two individuals who would be willing to come and serve in Australia

-Funds for furlough and seed funds for ministry needs in Australia

-Funds for Ministry vehicle in Sydney for next term

That is it for now, but there will be more to come. Thank you for your prayers and support.

The adventure continues…
Russ, Cathy, Rebecca, Hope , Joshua & Caroline

7.13

Flying out tomorrow- hope to see you soon

We fly out tomorrow, 15 July. We could use your prayers for the long flights from Australia to the US and LA to Baltimore. Pray all of the family will do well in this wild flying experience. We are grateful for some great friends in LA who will be there to greet us on the West Coast. We will be driving to ABWE & churches on the East Coast then traveling across the US to the Heartland, Iowa. Also, three of the kids are not feeling well. Please pray for their health and comfort in flying.

Praises:

A good house-sitter and friends who are helping us out with travel to the airport.

Continued opportunities to talk with people about Jesus. Even during all of the packing and errands, we had a great time to discuss Jesus with a young lady yesterday. Pray for her and her family.

Prayer requests:

Van: A van while we are in Iowa (13 August – 5 November) We have to turn our rental in on arrival from the East Coast.

Funds for our travels across US:
Four of us will be on the road from 10-13 August. Funds can be sent to ABWE  marked ‘furlough’. Furlough has cost quite a bit more than we planned. Any help in this area would be appreciated.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support. We look forward to seeing how the Lord will provide for these requests and seeing our friends & family in the US.

The adventure continues…
Russ & Cathy Matthews

7.06

Just a week away: Quick praise and prayer request for furlough

Thanks for your patience with all of the updates, but it is easier to answer many of your questions via the website. We have received many answers to prayers and we do have a couple of requests.

Praises:
We had a generous gift given to the girls for their special request. Thank you!

Our passports all arrived. We are officially dual citizens. (Funny, the accent did not come in the envelope, all that money and no Aussie accent.)

Prayer requests:

Van:  A van while we are in Iowa (13 August – 5 November) We have to turn our rental in on arrival from the East Coast.

Funds for our travels across US:
Four of us will be on the road from 10-13 August. Funds can be sent to ABWE (for tax benefits) marked ‘furlough’.

Traveling mercies:
We will be flying from Sydney to LA (15+ hours), laid over for 8 hours and then flying overnight to Baltimore. Pray all of the family will do well in this wild flying experience. We are grateful for some great friends in LA who will be there to greet us on the West Coast. We will be driving to ABWE & churches on the East Coast then traveling across the US to the Heartland, Iowa.

Cultural experience: I have been spending quite a bit of time explaining US geography this month. No one knows where Iowa is, but they know where Radar O’Riley & Capt. James T Kirk grew up. You have got to love pop culture sometimes.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support. We look forward to seeing how the Lord will provide for these requests and seeing our friends & family in the US.

The adventure continues…
Russ Matthews

6.30

Why Australian Citizenship? Top five questions asked in Australia

We became citizens of Australia on Tuesday 29 June, 2010. We will be dual citizens of Australia and the US. Many have asked why we went to the effort. We were permanent residents and did not have to become citizens to do work here in Sydney. It is a valid question, but all it does is open a series of other questions that will lead to the answer of the ‘Why’ of citizenship. So I will leave it to answering some of the top questions asked by people who hear our ‘funny’ accent. We get asked these questions weekly and, yes, they do asked very bluntly.

Question 1: Are you Canadian?
Cathy & I grew up in Maryland & Iowa and we do have a ‘softer accent’ than our friends from other areas of the US, but that is not where the question is based. Most Australians experience this,when asking someone from the North America about their accent. Canadians get quite offended if asked if they are from the US and Americans do not get offended either way. Americans just tend to be louder and verbose in their clarification of their country of origin. So, the safe call for most Australians is to ask ‘Are you from Canada?’

Question 2: What are you doing here?

Ah, the beauty of the accent. We are able to get into a gospel conversation without even having to ask any questions ourselves. We do not call ourselves missionaries here (sounds too Mormon-like), but as ‘ministry workers’ we get to share the reason for living here and the work we do in Sydney. We are able to share the name of Jesus and the work He can have in the lives of the people we come in contact with in the city. What a gift this silly accent provides for us to share the Gospel. God has a plan.

Question 3: Which country do you like more?

A very wise woman gave us advice on how to steer this potentially loaded question out of dangerous waters. The standard and genuine answer to this question would be, “Which do I like more? How do you choose? It is like picking which of our children I love more. I love all of our children equally for their unique qualities and unconditionally.” The same could be said about Australia & the US. We love them both equally.

Question 4: When are you leaving?

Finally, the answer to the question of our citizenship. Depending on how people respond to the first three questions, we could take this question in different ways. Generally, it is in reference that Americans do not immigrate. Americans represent the smallest immigrant population in Australia. Most Aussies are used to their American friends moving back to the US eventually. Our answer can now be, we are citizens. We are ‘all in’ and committed to being here as long as the Lord wants us to be here. If you study James’ epistle, it is foolish to commit beyond the will of God. So, if he wants us here for the rest of our days, we are  committed to being here. Also, it does communicate commitment to our friends in Australia. We love this country and look forward to seeing how the Lord will use us here, even to the end of our days.

Question 5: How do you like our football?

Australia is a sport crazy nation and it has four codes of football. Rugby, Rugby League, Australian Rules Football & Soccer. This question is another potential challenge, depending on the state you are living. First pitfall for most Americans is to rave about NFL. There are pockets of people who like grid iron, but generally the only time people care about NFL is around Super Bowl time. Our response comes from a love for two of the codes, they are more exciting and faster than NFL. We started as Rugby League fans (Rabbitohs are my team – I will tell you that story someday) which is a NSW and Queensland code. Then Josh started playing AFL two years ago and we all have become hooked. So, we cheer for Josh’s team, the Southwest Tigers and for the professional team, the Sydney Swans. Like food, sport is a great way to reach into the hearts of people and see what they are most passionate about, then we can begin to share about the passion in our lives, Jesus Christ. Also, it is great fun to watch the various codes of footy. Go Rabbitohs, So Swans, Go God. Not necessarily in that order.

There are more things to share, but I will leave that to another day.

Hope this answers the questions about our citizenship in Australia & a fun cultural education.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Oi,Oi, Oi! (If you do not understand the cheer, ask us about it when we come to a church near you.)

The ‘Aussie’ adventure continues…

Russ, Cathy, Becca, Hope, Joshua & Caroline

6.26

further questions about furlough

We have had questions a few things for furlough.
*We will be in Iowa from 13 August to 5 November. This is the time we will need a van.
*We have a housesitter while we are away.
*If you want to send money to ABWE for our trip, mark it as ‘furlough’ money.

Thanks for the prayers and questions…
Russ

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