One day at a time

Greetings friends and family!

It has been over a month now since I last posted and soon I will be busy with packing to go home for the wedding! I have less than a month before I go back home and the wedding is in 41 days. I am so excited to be back in the states and not feel the worry and stress that I have living in Haiti. However, I am very thankful for the fact that God has kept us safe and healthy so far. Daniel was gone in Boston for about 10 days last month, training with Copa Airlines. Without him here, it reminded me how much of life is out of my hands and that I need to put my faith in God and trust that whatever is going to happen God will protect me.

I am a planner and I like to know what is coming up and be prepared for whatever could happen. The culture of Haiti is very much spontaneous and you just go with it. I don't know if I will ever adapt to that part of Haiti. But I do what I can and just focus on the day that God has given me. It's so hard sometimes to want to fast forward and skip to the exciting part. However, if we are always looking to what is coming next and wanting to get back in our comfort zone, we are missing what God is doing RIGHT NOW in our lives. Yes, I am so looking forward to the time when Daniel and I can move back to the states in about a year or so. But if I keep focusing on that, I might be missing out on something really big that God is trying to teach me now.

In the middle of August I was able to get a couple days off from work and visit a school (Haiti School Project) that my home church in Byron Center (Compass Church) has been sponsoring for awhile. This school is located in Villard, Haiti about a 2-3 hour drive depending on traffic. We spent 2 days there and did some crafts with the kids of all ages. The main craft was for the kids to draw a "dream star". Basically they needed to draw a star, decorate it and in the middle write out any dreams or goals they had. I don't know how to read Creole, so I didn't understand a lot of what the kids put. But a couple of the stars had said something about God. It was really great to spend some time with the kids and see them learn. Most of them didn't even know how to draw a star, so we had to help them.

The kids here in Haiti are so precious. God has created us each so differently, but yet we all have struggles and deal with them differently. It's hard to see when the kids aren't being treated or nourished the right way, but once again we need to trust in Him. The people of Haiti in general are so beautiful, not just their looks, but they work so hard and most people have very little, but they still have a smile on their face. What a special and unique gift that is that God has given them.

 

I will be finishing my first 3 month contract with MAF on October 1st. When we return from our honeymoon on October 30, I am planning on continuing at MAF for another 3 months until the person whose job I am doing now returns from furlough. I managed to get through 2 month end closing periods. July was really rough, and I felt that I had messed a lot up. But August went really well. Let's just say I learned a lot from my mistakes in July and made sure that didn't happen in August. The best part of my job is when I get feedback after helping someone, and they say how much they appreciate what MAF does here in Haiti and they love flying with us.

There is so much more I could write, but to keep it simple I will just save my other stories when I see you all in person.

Prayer Requests:
-The kitchen sink at Daniel's apartment is leaking. We are managing to get the dishes done in a tub, but we haven't been able to find a plumber anywhere.
-Health and safety as we are getting ready to go back to the states for the wedding and our travels for our honeymoon in the Maldives.
-Finalizing the wedding details and just having peace about whatever happens is just fine as long as we are married at the end of the day!
-Time management for Daniel's classes for his bachelor's degree.

Praises:
-God has keep us healthy and safe thus far!
-Daniel and I have been able to finish Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace course and learned a lot about how to save our money.
-God has provided for us when I was ready to give up and go home.

Thank you all for your continued prayers and support! May God bless you and your families in whatever you may be going through. Take one day at a time so you don't miss out on what He is teaching you today.

Love,
Amy

Update from Haiti!

Family and Friends,

I can't believe I have been in Haiti for over a month and a half! Two months from today I will be leaving to go home for our wedding! It's hard for me to know what to write in my blog. Part of the reason I like to write is for you to be able to experience what is happening. However, I also write because it helps me slow down my thoughts before I stress out about all these things I have no control over. It helps me remember to thank God in the good and hard times in the adventures that He has put me on.

I see things everyday that are hard to write about and describe. But as I look around at the people here, they are content with it all. This is what they are used to and how they grew up. They don't know anything different. So sometimes, I try to think that this isn't any different than how I have grown up and just be content in what I have and what God has provided for me.

BEAUTIFUL MOUNTAINS IN THE BACKGROUND 

I have had quite a few people back home ask me "How's Haiti?", well I am not going to lie...it has been a difficult adjustment. The heat, mosquitoes and the driving rule of "its always your turn" can be hard. I am learning to be more confident in driving here, but it is still very stressful. Thankfully, Daniel drives too, but I am learning in case of an emergency or something. A more positive side of Haiti is being here with Daniel! I am so thankful that we have this opportunity to be together before we get married. That in itself has been the most important thing to me. It's so much better being in a third world country together, than being in a first world country apart. Haiti is stressful on both of us, and we were able to take a day off together last week and go to the beach! 

WAHOO BAY BEACH

I am still adjusting into my volunteer position as the Assistant to the Program Manager at MAF. I have also been learning a little bit about flight following. In our office we have a computer with the radios next to it and we follow where our planes are going and record down what the pilots tell us. Every morning I enjoy my walk next to all the airplanes on my way to our office/hanger and during lunch we watch all the commercial airplanes take off right next to us. It is a pretty cool opportunity to be here and help out.

MY WALK TO THE HANGER EVERYDAY

MAF HANGER

AIRPLANES  BY THE MAF HANGER

Praises:

-My main one is that I have found a place in the same neighborhood as Daniel and can live there until I go back to the states in October!

-Daniel and I have been healthy and avoided the Chikungunga virus.

-I am getting used to driving in Haiti.

Prayers:

-That I would continue to understand more about my job at MAF and have good team work with my

 co-workers.

-Stay healthy

-Daniel's college classes: that he can manage his time to get his homework done, on top of having a full-time job and us going through our pre-marriage classes.

-Even though I have moved to a less expensive place for rent, I am still looking for supporters to come along and be apart of the adventure with me. Almost everything here can be twice as expensive as it is in the states because they have to import it all. Please see the information on the right side of my blog if you are interested in joining me!

ONE OF THE MAF AIRPLANES

May God bless each of you in your own journey in life and give you the wisdom and understanding to follow what God's plans are for you.

~Amy

Life in Haiti

Wow! Did I really just move to Haiti??? Just kidding! It didn't really hit me that I moved here until a few days ago. After all the craziness of the rush of getting here, finding a place to stay, and starting a new job, I let myself think about what I just did. Part of me is shocked, and the other part doesn't feel any different. I have my doubts about why I am here and the unknowns ahead, but who am I to judge that...so far God has been the one to follow through on it all. I am fortunate to have such a great community of people I work with at MAF and other missionaries here to build each other up with encouragement of why we are here.

It has also been really great to see Daniel on a more regular basis! It has been so great to be able to communicate in person without having a bad internet connection on Skype and trying to figure out what the other person was saying. We eat lunch together when we work on the same days and sometimes like today, on Daniel's day off he came to MAF and ate with me.

On my first day of work, I got to go out on a flight to La Gonave which was about 20 minutes both ways. I had heard about some of the MAF landing strips but I needed to see it for myself. We did a fly over the landing strip first because often there will be cows, goats, other animals and people on them. This time there were 2 ladies walking on the runway :). It was a pretty cool experience being able to see what MAF does for the people here in Haiti!

This is the landing strip at La Gonave.
Dirt & Rocks make for a really
 smooth landing and takeoff! 

I moved out of Daniel's co-worker's house on Monday and now I am living with one of our MAF missionary families until I can find a place closer to Daniel. I am actually living in the "servants" room of the house, but it works out pretty great! So thankful they opened up their house for me to stay in. Unfortunately it is about a 30 minute commute on a good day for Daniel to drive up to see me or for me to go down and see him. But when the Lord provides, you go with it!

Praises:
-That I have a place to live until Daniel & I get married in October or if I can find a place closer to him that isn't too expensive I will move out sooner.
-Made it through two weeks of work doing a lot of accounting stuff
-Haven't gotten sick from the virus that is going around from the mosquitoes

Prayers:
-Adjusting to the culture, language barriers and the ways of how things get done here.
-Health (There is a really bad virus going around that is being carried by mosquitoes that a lot of people I know have had it or have it right now. It is similar to Dengue fever and the only way to prevent it is to keep putting on the bug spray.)
-That I can be a witness to others through my words and actions. God has given me so much and I want to spread it to others around me. GOD IS GOOD...ALL THE TIME!

Thank you for your continued prayers and if you are interested in supporting me financially there is information on the right side of the blog.

God Bless,
Amy

Greetings from Haiti

Hello friends and family,

I just wanted to let you know I made it to Haiti Thursday afternoon! My flights went as well as they could and only had about 15 mins of wondering if someone stole one of my suitcases in Port-au-Prince.

I am currently living with Daniel's co-worker in her house for the next week or so, which has been a huge answer to prayer because it only takes me a couple mins to walk to Daniel's and it is in a gated community so it is pretty safe. Unfortunately I can't stay living there because there are other guests coming that need a place to live.

I don't have much else to update you on because I have been here for less than 48 hours. But I have some prayer requests if you could keep us in your prayers.

Praise:
-I have a place to live that is safe and close to Daniel for the next week or so.
-I am able to RELAX today after the transition of moving out of my friend's condo and moving my non-Haiti items to my parents attic, finishing up some big wedding plans, and packing for Haiti.
-We found a place to store our car in Michigan and the rest of the items can be stored in my parent's attic.
-My checked suitcases all made it under 50lbs and one of them showed up at 53lbs but then changed to 49.5lbs when the American Airlines agent looked at it!

Prayers:
-That I can find the right housing situation until Daniel & I get married. I have options but none of them stick out to me as being the right option. Please pray that I will be able to listen to what God's plan is and we can feel at peace about it.
-Getting around can be difficult here and we do have a vehicle to use. But I am not comfortable with the area yet to drive myself and if I need to get somewhere then Daniel has to drive me.
-I start my job at MAF on Monday. Pray that I have a smooth transition into work that I will be doing and have unity with my co-workers.

Thank you for your continued prayers and support!

God Bless,
Amy

3 WEEKS LEFT IN THE STATES!!!

Hi Friends & Family,

I am excited to share with you what I have been up to and my future plans. I am looking forward to what is coming up and how God is going to provide. Please join me in my adventure!

To start off my adventure I am getting married October 18, 2014 to Daniel Tredway in Michigan. Daniel works at the Port-au-Prince International Airport, he is an airplane mechanic and works for a contract maintenance company there. He started in October of 2013 and has a 2 year contract. Since we are getting married, I thought I would see what opportunities for missions would be there for me, both while we are engaged and after we are married. When I was visiting Daniel in Haiti last February I was introduced to MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship). They have a volunteer position open to assist the program manager in the office while the office manager is on furlough for a few months.

I am excited to volunteer with MAF and be an example to others in Haiti. MAF's mission is: Sharing the love of Jesus Christ through aviation and technology so that isolated people may be physically and spiritually transformed. I recently spent 3 days at the MAF headquarters in Nampa, Idaho for training and interview process. I really enjoyed meeting all the amazing people there, hearing their stories & how helpful they were. MAF is a great organization and I am proud to be a volunteer with them.

I will be going down to Haiti June 12 and I will be returning to Michigan at the beginning of October to finalize the wedding details and then we will return to Haiti after the wedding for the remainder of Daniel's contract. Right now my contract with MAF is from June 15-October 1. Unless our plans change I will still be volunteering through January of 2015. What I will be doing after that is in God's hands.

As a volunteer I am looking for Ministry Partners to join me in this adventure. I would like you to pray about partnering with me whether it is prayerfully or financially. My estimated expenses will be approximately $1,000 a month for transportation and room/board. I have an account set up within MAF that you can send checks directly to. Send checks to Mission Aviation Fellowship: PO Box 47, Nampa, ID 83653. Please put VLTRBRON in the memo line. You can also go online to www.maf.org/bronsink to donate.

I am very thankful for this opportunity to be able to serve God in Haiti and those who MAF serves. Please continue to keep us in your prayers, as we are making wedding plans long distance, finding housing once we get married, traveling and safety & health concerns.

If you would like to stay updated, enter your email into the "follow by email" option and you will get an update anytime I write a new post!

Blessings,
Amy

Race to 2025 Results!

Greetings friends and family!!!

I thought I would update you on what happened last weekend on my adventure race at Cran-Hill Ranch! If you read my previous post you have a little idea of what I was getting myself into. I didn't know anybody going there. I was put in a team of 4 (me and 3 other guys). One of the guys ended up being from New Zealand. Which I have to say is pretty cool! We were to compete as a team to complete challenges on Saturday and Sunday. There were 4 teams besides mine. 

Saturday's challenges consisted of team skiing, snowshoeing/hiking to find different checkpoints, cross-country skiing, making a fire in the woods, traversing across a road, eating foreign foods (ate some kind of animal heart, not sure what kind though), and translating part of the Bible. 

On Sunday which happened to be my 25th Birthday, we started the day off with leading a horse in the woods and then I ended up riding it the rest of the way because one person on the team had become "ill" and couldn't walk anymore. Then we continued the miles of hiking/snowshoeing to find checkpoints. We ended up getting lost for like 3 hours because the map we were given was wrong, but we found 3 other teams that were lost too, so we stuck together to try and find the other clues. Eventually we ended up at our next destination which was using codes for each letter to figure out what the sentence said. Then we walked to the ice climbing wall and 2 people had to complete that. All three guys on my teams made it to the top! I tried it but I had such bad blisters on my heals that I couldn't go any farther. We made it to the finish line and got the survivor award for coming in last. 

I learned a lot this weekend. Probably more than I realize but the one thing that really stood out to me was how God provided just when I wanted to give up from the pain in my heals, and bring the warmth back into my fingers. But I knew God wanted me there for a reason. I was blessed by my teammates, other team members, and the staff. It was such a great community of people and I was sad to leave Sunday night to go home. Don't get me wrong, I was excited to see my own bed after 16 hours of physical activity. 

So you might wonder if I would do this again??? Well, during the time that I was doing it, I was wondering why I even signed up and how I got myself into this situation. But now that I look back on my weekend, it was a crazy adventure and I made some pretty sweet friendships. So sure, why not! :) 

Thank you to those of you who sponsored me to help Cameroon translate the Bible into their language. And also for the prayers and support during this time. It really means a lot to me, and I look forward to see what challenge God is going to put next in my path!

God Bless,

Amy

Race to 2025

Hi family and friends!

I am excited to tell you about my next adventure! However, this one is in Michigan! This next adventure coming up is from February 22-24. I am doing an event with Wycliffe Bible Translators. Basically the race is 2 days at Cranhill Ranch and we (coed teams of 4) have different physical and linguistic challenges to complete during the day.

In order to participate in this exciting adventure, my team must raise a minimum of $2,000 ($500 per racer). This is where your involvement in the global Bible translation movement comes into play! Funds raised through Race to 2025: Cameroon go toward:  Development of the several language training programs in Cameroon, including:

• Linguistic analysis       • Bible translation and Scripture use     

• Community, church-based and school literacy

·   The aim is each language will have: appropriate documentation; a translated New Testament available in printed and oral form; self-supporting literacy and Scripture use programs; and trained, experienced and motivated translators, literacy teachers and scripture use promoters.

·     Emphasis is on capacity building and partnership with local committees and churches. 

Even though I am not physically going overseas, I am glad that I have this amazing opportunity to
make a difference in Cameroon. For more information go to the website below,
http://www.wycliffenextgen.com/page/race-to-2025-1. 

If you would like to sponsor me in this race and support the global Bible translation the information is below. 

If you see me in person, I have a sponsor sheet where you can give me cash or checks (made out to Wycliffe Bible Translators). If you don't see me, then feel free to do the following options below. 

A tax deductible receipt will be issued for gifts of $25 or more. 

Please make checks payable to:

     Wycliffe Bible Translators • PO Box 628200 • Orlando, FL 32862-8200 Designate for the Race to 2025 (Project #0-996687-00)
plus (Amy Bronsink/Sharwa team) on a separate sheet of paper

Want to give by credit card via phone call?
     Wycliffe's Online Giving Services toll free at 866-736-4387. Our office hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (EST). Designate for the Race to 2025 (Project #0-996687-00) plus (Amy Bronsink/ Sharwa team)

Want to give online by credit card?
Go to http://www.wycliffe.org/Give/CurrentProjects/--Raceto2025.aspx Or go to http://www.wycliffe.org select Give, select Current Projects, select Race to 2025 (Project #0-996687-00).
Click on Donate to this project ->In Special Instructions (Optional): state for Race to 2025 plus (Amy Bronsink/ Sharwa team) Complete checkout process.