A season’s end

Our pile of boxes grew quickly and then disappeared all at once.

Just this morning a crew from Yamato shipping came and took away all of our things, minus a few bags of clothes and other essentials.

It’s a bit surreal to have the majority of our possessions officially en route to a foreign country for which we do not even have our visas yet!

Boxes weren’t the only thing to have left recently.

This past week we had the whole gang here!

A big “thanks” to all the friends and family who came out to celebrate Danielle’s graduation from The University of Washington with us (Danielle will share more on that later!). We had a ton of fun with everyone and felt extremely loved by your support.

And finally, we bid farewell to one of our cats just yesterday. With the restrictions we’re facing to have pets in Japan, our pets have unexpectedly become one of the biggest sacrifices we’re giving to the Lord to be able to follow the call to Japan. It will be a miracle to find somewhere that will allow for one cat, let alone two.

Fortunately though, we’re blessed with some amazing friends who graciously offered to adopt Tonari and Mythe, if needed. Shes already settling in!

Our last week in Seattle

We’ve officially reached our last week in Seattle. As the boxes went out the door, said goodbye to one of our pets, and are scheduling utilities to be shut off, this reality has set in hard.

Our time in the Pacific Northwest has been extremely formative. Danielle and I both have grown in many ways and amidst that we developed a love for the region. We are extremely thankful for the time we were able to live here.

Though we’re certain that now is the time to go, we will miss the mountains that line every horizon, numerous lakes and rivers, hikes through mossy forests, the bustling emerald city, and so much more. I’m even going to miss my commute, which has relentlessly consumed approximately 500 hours over just this last year.

A brief stay back in Redding, CA

Almost a year ago, when Danielle was praying about when exactly we would move to Japan, she started feeling that we would move somewhere else first. To be honest, I was not on board with the logistic nightmare of coordinating a string of moves instead of just one. So, we shelved the thought, probably more-so me than her, that is, until just recently.

While in Redding for Danielle’s grandmother’s memorial service last month, the thought occurred to us for the first time since leaving Redding 11 years prior: we need to stay here for a while.

We had visited Redding a handful of times since leaving in 2008, and each time we left saying to each other, “Redding is nice. We really like it here. But now is just not the season to be here, that is clear.” Bethelites often refer to Redding/Bethel as “the bubble,” as it is such a safe, easy, and wonderful environment for those in our stream of ministry. For that reason, we’ve been thankful for the clear “no” the Lord has given us each time we’ve visited. This helped us stay the course of our callings, preventing the trap of falling into the comfortable good, instead of the ordained best.

But now that “no” has lifted!

At the perfect time, to boot. We’re thrilled to be blessed with the opportunity to go back for a quick season (3 months) of intentional re-filling and extra time with family before being sent out once again. Our plan is to soak up as much as we can, as quickly as we can!

On top of that, our good friends and future ministry partners in Osaka will be staying with us for a sabbatical of their own. It all really has come together in a miraculous way for us four to make this happen.

We’ve also heard from a number of people who want to connect specifically on the topic of missions to Japan, which is super exciting for us! We are absolutely certain that God has His eyes on the nation of Japan.

Other quick updates

• We finished our first Japanese language school here in Seattle! We have so much more to learn though!
• Thank you to the Sutcliffes for allowing us to sublease your place in Redding!
• I (Cody) will be continuing to work for RightCrowd both in Redding and in Osaka and have some exciting opportunities in the pipeline.

Prayer requests

• That our student visas will be approved, and quickly, so we can purchase tickets to Japan!
• That we continue to have grace on our language learning.
• To find a place in Osaka that will allow our cats to come with us.
• More connections with people who are called, or are feeling they may be called to Japan!
• Comfort for my Aunt and her family, who lost her husband, Dee, this week.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read and stay connected with us. If you’re not on our mailing list, we’d love for you to join as we’re making an effort to build that out before we set off to Japan.

Until next time!

Blessings and love,
Cody and Danielle