Greetings to each of you,
(PLEASE READ TO THE END FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING YOUR SUPPORT FOR OUR FAMILY)
You are receiving this email because you have been a faithful supporter of our family while we served as full time missionaries with Samaria Mission.
These scriptures are just a few that Alicia and I embrace in our everyday journey called life.
You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. -Hebrews 10:36
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. – Proverbs 3:5-6
Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. -Proverbs 119:105
Alicia and I want to say … “Thank you!” We have just completed 12 years on the mission field serving with Samaria Mission all because God called us to join Him in His work. PaulAnn Church sent us out as missionaries, and we had a team of individuals as well as a few other churches financially and prayerfully support us over the years.
The journey God sent us on for 12 years is forever part of our lives. Just so we can clarify, God called us back. Nothing more than God working within our lives brought us back off the mission field in South Africa.
Samaria Mission is a wonderful, God centered ministry that continues to flourish as God continues to present opportunities to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the peoples of Southern Africa. It is a ministry that is also able to help in the physical needs of the people, and to grow the church within South Africa, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. We truly want to see Samaria Mission grow in the opportunities where God invites them to join Him in His work.
Alicia and I have committed to continue to be a voice for Samaria Mission so that others can be involved in the ministry activities. We have also committed ourselves to help as we can with other work such as formatting the translating material as the mission continues to work on this project.
Now that we are back in the USA, God has called us to move back to where we began our lives in Amarillo, TX. Many of you know that in 2020, we only came back for the month of March to help Alicia’s parents with her grandfather’s estate sale. Our visit was like the Gilligan’s Island tragedy …. our one-month tour became 13 months.
During that time, we were able to do A LOT of work that needed to take place and spend a lot of time with our parents. As time progressed, we knew God was calling us back to Amarillo in the future. We thought the future was going to be a few years down the road, but God (in March 2021) revealed to us that the time was not years but now. In March before we went back to South Africa, we had already begun to start putting the wheels in motion to sale, give, and find new homes for our belongings.
We landed in South Africa on March 31st and in two months, God allowed us fly out of South Africa on June 2nd with a few lingering finalizations of the sale of our house and one vehicle. One of our good friends volunteered to become a Power of Attorney to sign off on documents to sale our house. I love how God uses His people to accomplish His plans.
Alicia and I want to extend a thank for your continued prayers and support through our journey in foreign missions. It came with growth within us which produced characteristics like flexibility, patience, contentment, and trust in the Lord in all things. Our move to Amarillo is God’s calling to be available to our parents (as they are all in their 70+ years) as no other family members are nearby.
God brought to us an opportunity to begin to earn an income through our health coaching business (which is something we would not have searched out on our own).
We do still have expenses while waiting for our house and one vehicle to sell (we do have sale agreements on both – and they should be finalized by the end of September, Lord willing).
Expenses for the Land Rover vehicle until sale is finalized
- insurance
-tracker service
Expenses for our home until the sale is finalized
-insurance
-Wi-Fi
-security service
-our maid, Meriam, is working to keep the house dust free and the garden/yard maintained
-pool maintenance
-electricity and municipality rates etc.
-and other maintenance issues that arise before the sale is finalized
We sold, or gave away, our furniture, pots, pans, kitchen sink, bathtubs, etc.…. you get the picture …. everything! We flew back with only 10 action packers of belongings! So, we will be like newlyweds again but in our prime age of 39 (me haha) and mid 40’s (Alicia).
For the next few months, we will be living with Alicia’s parents in Amarillo. We just recently were able to purchase our own vehicle. (God provided one at a great price to get us wheels for the time being). Luke and Kodie were married on June 19th and we praise God we were able to be here for the wedding!!!!
IMPORTANT INFORMATION:
We are unsure at this time when and where in Amarillo we will settle. With this being said, we have updated the elders at PaulAnn and we heard back from them and wanted to share this with you. They have agreed to continue to support us for an additional 6 months (June 1st – November 1st). The PaulAnn Elders have also asked that we would contact all of our other supporters and let you know that any funds received for us AFTER December 1, 2021 will not be eligible for a tax exemption (and will need to returned to donor OR sent on to Samaria Mission).
REQUEST:
We are sending you this update so that you are aware of where we are and what our plans are at this time. We ask that you prayerfully consider supporting us until the end of November 2021. We pray and hope that we are able to contact you and PaulAnn SOONER to say that we no longer need the support. We have seen God move quickly in our lives throughout the years, but we also have learned that God’s timing may not be our timing.
In order for us to plan and begin a new budget, we would appreciate if you would let us know whether you will be able to continue supporting us through the end of November 2021 or if you need to discontinue your at this time. Again, we are truly grateful for all you have done and we are trusting God as we move forward.
When the time comes for you to move your support, we would love to share with you some opportunities within Samaria Mission that could use funding going forward, if that is something you desire to do.
As always, we would love to connect with you and answer any questions you may have.
In God’s grace and goodness,
Mark and Alicia Raley
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