Just over a month

After more than 1900 miles (etwa 3000 km für unsere europäischen Freunde) driving through 10 states which included time just the six of us in Florida, a special visit with Clay and Cherry Hart and family in South Carolina, a stay with Kim's grandma in Ohio, a warm welcome and much loving support at Memorial Road in Edmond and a fun time visiting Kim's family and the Littleton Church in Colorado, we finally arrived in Woodward, Oklahoma on Friday, August 2nd. This friendly small town near the panhandle of Oklahoma will become our family's new home.

Click here for different highlights from our travels since we arrived in the States on July 5th.

Since that Friday, we have been quite busy trying to get settled: getting cell phone contracts, finding vehicles, scheduling dentist appointments, finding a family doctor, getting our kids enrolled in school, purchasing school supplies, receiving our container of shipped belongings from Vienna and, of course, spending time with cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents.

Here are some of the thoughts we have had and observations we have made since arriving in the U.S.:

• Everything is larger in the States (roads, vehicles, houses, people, q-tips, etc.), including the portion size, which means we often share food.
• There are so many (often it feels like too many) choices in the grocery stores.
• Processes are different: 
• paying for things - the tip gets added after the card is run 
• Paying with a card is expected, preferred and sometimes the only option (like on an airplane). 
• You can get money back when you pay with your card at the grocery store, which is quite handy. 
• The cashier bags your groceries and some stores even take them to your car for you. 
• The view of the mountains from Highlands Ranch is beautiful.
• Northwest Oklahoma actually does have trees and is significantly prettier than much of Kansas (and, apparently, southeastern Colorado).
• Family is a special gift from God.
• Oklahoma still has Josh's favorite sunsets.
• We're thankful for Skype.
• There are more bread options that I remember but nothing in comparison to Vienna.
• The coffee is weaker here and just not as good.
• God has connected us with people who speak German (even in Woodward)!
• Air conditioning is a blessing.
• Panera Bread is not as good as Ströck.
• Everyone seems to know Josh or his family in Woodward.
• There are more people that speak English in Vienna than there are who speak German in any of the places we have visited.
• God is faithful!
• We miss our friends and church family.

A Time of Transition: Part 3 - The Last Two Weeks

What is it like to leave your home after 6 years of pouring your life into a people, a city, a nation, a mission, the Message? It's hard!

Below is a link to a photo collage of pictures from some of the highlights and more significant events during the last two weeks of our time in the unequaled city of Vienna. As we've written before, this has been a prolonged period of "lasts", but the final two weeks in Vienna were a series of "daily lasts" - last visits with friends, bike rides, Schnitzel, Gelato, visits to the Gärtnerei (flower garden behind our house), ride in our car, trip into the city, day of school and even a last Austrian sunset. It was emotionally, physically, and, at times, spiritually tough. (If I were to list all of the different appointments, tasks, food, visits, etc. that were a part of our last two weeks, it could probably be bound as a small book, but I do want to thank a few people for their extra effort to help us during that time: (1) Danke Edda für deine unbeschreibliche Mühe und zahlreiche Stunden an Hilfe, die du und deine Familie für uns geopfert habt! (2) Thanks Tamika for your hours of service and watching kids! (3) Thanks Amy for hours of help both Thursday night and all day Friday! (4) Thanks Holly and Amanda for your visits and help! (4) Thanks to all the others who, in large and small ways, helped our family and especially for the many prayers during this time.)

We thank God for this part of our spiritual journey: for the many relationships that we intend to maintain despite the distance, for the countless lessons learned in a wonderful culture, for the opportunity to discover and experience God's Kingdom in a whole new light and for the privilege of sharing the Good News of Jesus with a people we dearly love as we lived life together toward Him!

Though it's not even been two weeks since we left Vienna, we already miss it and everything it encompasses, but, most of all, our spiritual family. We look forward to our first return visit.

 The Last Two Weeks (in Fotos)

Kim's grandpa - update

Thank you for the prayers. Kim's grandpa was moved to a different, newer type of acute hospital that can provide the same kind of care over a longer period of time. Over the last few days, he has not had dialysis, but the doctors told him that they would not have ordered dialysis yesterday because his kidneys were functioning as they should. We thank God for that good news. He does, however, continue to struggle and be uncomfortable and irritable at times.

Tomorrow, Kim is scheduled to leave Ohio and head back home to Vienna. It's been a great blessing for her, her grandparents and mother that she was able to spend this special time with them, and her presence, love and smile will be greatly missed there, but those of us in Vienna are sure looking forward to having her back. Though some of you are probably immediately thinking that the kids are most excited to have their mother back because they will finally get some fresh, home-cooked meals, that would be wrong on two accounts: (1) they have had many fresh, home-cooked meals (made by several of our friends in the church here as well as the few times I grilled and (2) I am far more excited to have her back.

Please pray for Kim's safe return, for her grandpa and grandma and the challenging road ahead.

Kim's family - update

First of all, let me say thank you to the many of you who are praying for Kim, her grandparents, the other side of her family, which is grieving right now because of the death of her great aunt Rose and for those of you praying for me and our kids in Vienna.
I'll get to an update on Kim's grandfather in just a moment, but I would like to first make an observation about these last few days and the blessing of being a part of a Christian family. Several have asked how I am  doing or how the kids and I are handling everything being here in Vienna alone. Because of the kindness and love of our church family, I can quickly answer that we are good. Several have offered to watch the kids for me, others have had us over for a meal or are preparing food for us and still others have even had some of the kids stay the night with them. In moments like these, I am reminded of God's wisdom and the many blessings of Christian community. If we were just any other foreigner living in the city of Vienna, we'd probably have some friends that might offer to have us over for a meal, but I'd be surprised if people would fix food for us and come to our house to watch our kids or have them over to their house to stay the night during the week just to lighten my load for a few days. Praise be to God for His infinite wisdom and the many blessings of walking this life together with other Christians and thanks be to the many families here in Vienna who have reflected His love to us!
Now, to update on Kim's grandpa, he was actually doing better on Monday and Tuesday than he had been over the weekend. He'd had two rounds of dialysis, which seemed to help flush out the many medications and other things from his body. He had even set up in a chair and was able to eat and drink for the first time in over a week. Then, yesterday, he had his third round of dialysis, which he did not like at all, even though he did have a good night. His kidneys are still not functioning well and he is struggling to hold out any optimism.
The funeral for Kim's great aunt is scheduled for tomorrow and Kim had originally planned to fly from Ohio to New Mexico to be there for the funeral, but because of her grandpa's ongoing critical condition, she has decided to stay in Ohio and support her grandma and mom. We would appreciate your continued prayers.

A Time of Transition: Part 2 - Die Schweiz

These last few months of our time here in Vienna are flying by - it's crazy to think, as Kim said yesterday, that we have fewer than 3 months. So much has happened since our last post in February.

During the kids' semester break - the first week in February - we took the second of our Hensal Family Values trips and headed to Switzerland. Like our first trip, this one was a combination of seeing special people, visiting a country Kim and the kids had never seen and spending special family time together. Our time in Switzerland confirmed Josh's experience when he first visited this country as a student - that Switzerland is the most beautiful place he'd ever seen. With its snow-covered hills, beautiful mountains, Europe's largest waterfall (Rheinfall) and great chocolate, it's not hard to understand why so many people love Switzerland. (Everything is quite expensive though.)

However, it was neither the beauty of God's creation nor the chocolate that we'll remember most from our visit there; no, it was the hospitality and fellowship of our Christian family that we will never forget! At the beginning of our trip, we had the privilege of staying with the Jakob and Zingg families in Beringen, Switzerland. Josh had met both Michael Jakob and Michael Zingg only months before at the German-speaking men's retreat, which made their willingness to host our family that much more special. The hospitality we experienced with the great meals, sledding together, sightseeing and a place for all six of us to sleep was, perhaps, the best example of the kind of hospitality and generosity of the early church (Acts 2:46 and 4:32) we've ever known.

After a few days in Beringen, we headed to Zürich, Switzerland to visit one of Josh's heroes in the faith Wolfram Schrader and to meet his wife Berty for the first time. Little did we know that Wolfram had studied cooking and had worked as a chef for most of his life. Needless to say, we enjoyed a great meal with them and then spent the afternoon in a nearby beautiful city park as the kids (including Wolfram and Josh) played in the snow. On Sunday, we had the opportunity to meet the church in Zürich where Josh had been asked to preach. This part of the visit was quite special because we were able to meet many people that still have fond memories of Clyde and Gwen Antwine and treasure their years of service in the Kingdom there. We also were able to pass along greetings from the Antwines to the church there. This church is a bright light in German-speaking Europe; it even has its own leadership, evangelist and has planted several other churches throughout Switzerland.

During our stay in Zürich we spent time talking about our second family value: salt and light, where we focused on the importance of being salt and light in this world by preserving the good and shining the light of Jesus into the lives of other people regardless of where we are. It has been amazing to see how God has used our children in the nearly six years we've been here in Vienna as salt and light in the lives of many families; we pray He will continue to use us for His glory.

We thank God for the Jakob, Zingg and Schrader families and those of the churches in Schaffhausen and Zürich that blessed us so richly. It truly is one of the most unique and meaningful experiences to receive the hospitality and love of others just because you serve the same God and are part of the same spiritual family.

Jakobs and Hensals at Rheinfall

Amazing view of Schaffhausen

Sledding in Beringen

Beautiful Zürich

Wolfram playing the guitar for the kids

Cotter, Carli and Caleb enjoying the snow in Irchelpark

A Time of Transition: Part 1 - Family Values

Well, it's been a long time since we posted something here; in fact, June 30, 2011 was the last time to be exact, which probably means there are very few of you left who even remember that we have a blog. However, we thought this may be the best way to keep people updated on the transition of our family and the church here in Vienna (as it relates to us). Over the next six months, we hope to post periodic updates of what and how we're doing; who knows, maybe we'll even post other family-related things or updates on our adjustment once we're back in the States. For those who may still be clueless at this point, our family has lived the last five and a half years in Vienna, Austria but is planning to move back to the States in early July 2013. Below is an article from our last newsletter, in case you didn't already receive it. Thanks for the prayers for our family and the church here.

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Much of what we do in life is the result of encounters we have had with others and the wisdom we have had the privilege of gleaning from their experiences - victories, failures and life lessons. One such lesson that our family has learned is the significance of a time of transition. The month of July meant not only the beginning of summer break and a vacation with the Hensal side of our family, but also the beginning of our family’s last year in Vienna. As you can imagine, this reality comes with a range of emotions: sadness knowing that our time with our spiritual family, dear friends and teammates is limited; a bit of nervousness perhaps about the unknown - where we will live, what Josh will do and how our children will adjust (or, really, all of us for that matter) to life in the States; excitement about the opportunity for the church here in Vienna to grow and mature in this next stage of its walk with God as well excitement about a new phase in our family’s life and walk with God; strangeness about our changing role with the mission and church here and the accompanying changes in our friendships with people here.
From people much wiser than we are and who themselves have gone through and even studied families going through transitions - like an international move, we have received much advice. One of the suggestions is to spend some time as a family establishing the values of your family - those aspects that remain constant while much of the rest of life changes around us. One family that we’ve heard about chose 12 values and spent one weekend travelling each month of their last year on the field to discuss each of their family values. The goal of this time is to discuss and collectively identify what it means to be a part of one’s family (i.e., who are Hensals?). Our family took our first family values trip over the first weekend in November and traveled to Prague, Czech Republic. We are trying to combine these times away with visits to European cities we have not yet had the opportunity to see or to cities where people dear to us live. Our time in Prague was a combination of sight-seeing, Bible study, meaningful discussions where the kids (at least the older three) really contributed and a painting that reflected some of what we saw and experienced. As our first value or description of who we are, we chose the word “Himmländer” (i.e., citizen of heaven), which is a word that one of the Christians in Germany created to communicate Paul’s idea from Philippians 3:20 that our citizenship is in heaven. Our passports are American, our home is in Vienna, but our allegiance is to God! This reality as a follower of Jesus was not only important for the Christians in Philippi to grasp, but is also important for God’s people today. For this reason, we wanted our children to understand that they are Americans and, in many ways, Austrians, but most importantly they are citizens of God’s kingdom.
Other lessons/values will follow and a handful of trips are planned, so we would appreciate your prayers for our family and the church during this time of transition. May God be glorified and the church be strengthened. - Josh and Kim