Layne Archive | jon and layne heller

First move

Our bags have been weighed, I would say approximately ten times a piece, and are finally narrowed down. Jon will have two 50 pound bags, and I will have two 50 pound bags… plus one 70 pound bag. While the three are technically mine, you should know that the 70 pounder is carrying many reading material and resource material for the both of us! ;) (Ah, I feel better now that you are not judging me so harshly. Hehe.)

Our time in Arizona has been sweet. I am pleased with the amount of people we were able to connect with, though some unfortunate timing led to us missing a few of you! My apologies. We love and appreciate you greatly. It is important to us for you to feel connected to us and our ministry (“our” includes YOURS!). Please feel free to comment or email us whenever.

We leave early tomorrow morning and arrive in Corpus Christi, Texas early afternoon. There we look forward to more sweet times and dread more sorrowful good-byes. We will be staying there until November 6th, and then heading to South Africa. Great news… We are so blessed to have Jon’s parents coming to Corpus to see us off there!

We are overwhelmed by love.

Today at Trinity Christian Fellowship as we were prayed over and sent out, my heart was filled. Your support is treasured.

As we spent the day with family, love, love, love.

How precious these days are! How many times will I look back to them, and find strength amidst my loneliness! Thanks.

Quick update on visas:

We are still hopeful about taking a short trip to Angola in December to meet potential partners for the future and allow them to meet us. We are still in need of a letter of invitation; however, communication is flowing and it is still possible! Continued prayers are welcome.

We love you.

Jon and Layne

October 18, 2009

Layne

Angola, Personal, Visas

6 comments

In Arizona!

a layne post

I am sorry we did not get a post up this past weekend; it is our goal to post between Friday and Saturday every week, however, that did not happen this go around.

Mainly I would like to update everyone on our upcoming schedule. We will be in Arizona until October 19th, when we will fly to Corpus Christi, Texas to visit my family . On November the 6th we will be making that long international flight again; this time to Johannesburg, South Africa.

From there we will rent a car, drive to Gaborone, Botswana to pick up our 4×4 that some good friends have been looking after and some of the things Jon had left there previously. This is where it gets a little tentative…

We will either be driving to Mozambique or Angola, and this will be determined by our visa possibilities and invitations available. We have currently have a couple of things in the works:

One international organization is praying and considering partnering with Jon and me. They are already established in Angola, which is a must. There is a possibility we will meet a staff member in Angola in the beginning of December to meet people and get a feel for the organization.
The other is a pastor, who has connections with a school in a town nearby to where we would be wanting to live. He has offered a letter of invitation, and we are currently “becoming clear” on expectation and requirements involved.

We would really appreciate prayer for wisdom and discernment as we go through this process of making a decision. If we do not have a visa ready, we will spend some time in Mozambique “waiting” and learning. Jon and I feel that it is imperative that we be in a Portuguese speaking country, in order that we maintain our language acquisition. We have been put in touch with some ministries there, and I strongly believe we can learn and grow, if the Lord decides to place us there for a period.

If you have any questions please feel free to ask. We love you all!

Just us...

October 7, 2009

Layne

Angola, Visas

1 comment

Traveling home…

A Layne Post

Jon and I have left Portugal now, and we have begun our long journey home. Thankfully, we will spend one night in London before the long flight over the ocean. We hope to rest well.

We have a huge praise report already, and our travels have just begun. Because our flight to London was booked separate from our flight to the States, the airline on our way out of Portugal said our weight limit was cut in half. According to the new limit we would owe approximately $1000 in order to get our bags back with us. Jon explained and explained, as this had not been a problem on the way here. Apparently, it should have been, but thankfully we were shown mercy. As long as she could check our bags all the way through, she would not charge us the extra. It worked! We were and are so very thankful. Now we will continue to pray our bags make it on the airplane tomorrow.

Our last few days in Portugal were wonderful. We spent much of our time with friends we’ve made along the way. Because of the internet, “Goodbyes” are not quite as horrible. Staying in touch has become more and more possible.

We have what is possibly very exciting news.
There is an organization in Europe and Africa (Angola included!) that we have been put in contact with by wonderful friends we made in Portugal, Elizabeth and Armenio. The branch in Portugal had a meeting this week and looked over our business plan, which has now been sent to the main European office. They will be making a decision about whether or not we can possibly partner together soon. It seems that their goals and ours could mesh quite nicely.

Please join with us in prayer as this process continues. We want the blessing of the Lord in every step we take. If this is our open door, we praise Him. If not, we praise Him still.

We hope to see many of you very soon in Arizona and then in Corpus Christi. I am constantly amazed by your love and support for us. Thank you.

P.S.

Ladies, there is a neat opportunity to support Jon and I and get a really nice lip-gloss. Pretty cool, huh? My best friend, who lives in Ohio, sells a product by the name of Arbonne, which many of you probably already know. (Great quality!) She has teamed up with a few of my family members and they are doing a fundraiser called “Lip Gloss for a Cause”. There are 6 colors of gloss (https://www.arbonne.com/shop_online/showCatalog.asp?category=183) each selling for $11. Jon and I will receive 52% of the profit. If they are able to sell 500 glosses, Jon and I will receive approximately $2850! This is a great time to think about Christmas and upcoming birthdays. If you are interested, let me know and I can put you in touch with one of the sellers. =)

Here’s some pictures of our last week in Portugal. Click on them to see the full sizes.

: Layne’s last night in Porto

: Jon’s last night in Porto

: Us in Class

September 26, 2009

Layne

Angola, Personal, Portugal

4 comments

Afternoon classes

a layne post

This week had a bit of a different feel, as our classes did not begin until 3 in the afternoon, as opposed to our usual 10am. Originally I did not know which I would like better, but looking back the morning classes are definitely better. I would say this for a couple of reasons. First, because our mornings seemed to go by entirely too slow, leaving me munchy and drowsy. And secondly, the buses we usually catch are terribly inconsistent in the afternoons! One day we waited for an entire hour, while some six buses did not come at their scheduled times. When a bus finally did come, it was so packed the doors barely squeezed shut behind us… talk about hot and uncomfortable, and this is afternoon standing irritably for an hour in the scorching sun!

Anyways, on a more positive note, our classes went well and we learned quite a bit. As we quickly approach the end of our time here, we are encouraged about our Portuguese and feel confident in all that we have learned.

We continue to make contacts for Angola, and we feel that we are being diligent with what we have. I am extremely thankful to all those who have made effort on our behalf; it is humbling. I do not feel like we are at a standstill with things, which is encouraging, yet no definite progress is being made. We only trust the Lord and His perfect time.

The evenings here for the next week and a half or so are going to be in the upper 50’s. That is right, the 50’s! One word: glorious! I love needing a little sweater; it makes me feel “Fall-ish”. The only thing missing now is my pumpkin spice latte, a pumpkin cupcake from Sprinkles, a piece of pumpkin cheesecake (yes, 2 desserts!), and my pumpkin colored toe-nail polish. Mhmmmm. What cozy thoughts!

Jon and I will be returning to the states now in a mere 2 weeks. Wow! We will only have 3 weeks in Arizona and about the same in Corpus Christi before we head back to Southern Africa. We hope to be able to connect with as many people as possible during those times, while also allowing ourselves time to pack, prepare, and process prior to our “one-way” trip to Africa.

We love you guys. Thanks for helping us feel encouraged and supported. Many blessings.

Portugal 010.2

September 11, 2009

Layne

Personal, Portugal

1 comment

2/3 along the way…

a layne post

We are at the two-thirds point now, as we only have four weeks left. That Mexican food keeps calling to me, keeping my loyalties to America strong. Pathetic! ;)

Classes have continued to be productive, and Jon and I feel very good about our progress. Over the past couple of weeks one particular thing that has improved is our writing. I believe this is because we have learned a handful of new verbs, which allow us to speak more specifically about the past. Also, our comprehension is gradually improving. We are still not where we would like to be, but we are on our way! By October, we should be set. One of our goals when we arrived was to be able understand our host, Maria. Now, we can! There are a few times when she gets going fast, and it all becomes blurred, but for the most part we can understand. Hooray!

Even still, every now and then I will reach busy counter of people ordering and asking questions, and for some reason my mind goes entirely blank. I say really silly things and use big hand motions. Then I walk away knowing exactly the beautiful sentence I should of said, full of adjectives and adverbs… it is sad!

I had a new surge of inspiration this week to scour the internet for Angolan contacts. I thought I had found everything, but this time I found some new working emails and sent some inquiries. I have had a couple responses, and now we wait. One good contact I will not be able to chat with until the end of September. Honestly, we have so many wonderful people working hard to assist us in this process; people who believe in what we want to do, and are being so very helpful. We are blessed.

This weekend I am missing the birthday party of one of my nieces… these are the times when I remember the sacrifice of leaving. I can overwhelm myself with emotions when I think of these sweet little ones and the fact that they may never know their Aunt Layne and Uncle Jon the way I would want them to. We have counted the cost, and we know it is worth it, but it can be a little tough sometimes. Thank the Lord for internet and Skype. It is more possible than ever before for missionaries to remain connected to their families.

Thank you for your continued prayer and support. We hope in the Lord and trust in His perfect plans for us.

(Click photos to see larger version)