Giving Tuesday

There’s Black Friday, Cyber Monday and now an opportunity to GIVE: Giving Tuesday.   In 2nd Corinthians 8, the Macedonian church begged Paul for the favor or grace to participate in giving.  Not only did they beg, but the Bible says they gave even while experiencing extreme poverty.  Wow!  I’ll be honest.  I (Chris) don’t think I have ever begged God for the opportunity to give.  May God continue to work in my selfish heart!  The Macedonian Christians knew there was a grace to be received by participating in giving.  If you’re not participating in the grace of giving directly to a ministry or missionary, then why not start now?  And don’t think you can’t give.  The Bible sort of leaves us without an excuse when we’re given the example of the Macedonians.  And by the way, this was over and above their tithe.  As little as $10.00 can make a huge difference!  If just the Americans who are already in our Facebook group that aren’t participating financially gave $10.00 a month, it would be close to $3,000.00.  Catherine and I can speak from experience.  Giving, even as little as $10.00, changes your heart about that ministry.  Scripture says that where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Below are two ways you can partake in the grace of giving.

Year-End / One-Time Giving 

Please consider us in your year-end giving.  We have a “one-time” budget that consists of costs for our work visas, immigration attorney, flights to and from Australia, shipping to and from Australia, etc.  We still need approximately $28,000.00.  We can’t leave for the field until this is completely paid for.

Commit to Monthly Giving

We have the monthly cost to live and minister in Sydney.  We have reached 60% of our monthly budget, but we still need $4,600.00 a month.  As mentioned above, if just the Americans who are already in our Facebook group that aren’t participating financially gave $10.00 a month, it would be close to $3,000.00. That would leave us with on $1,600.00 to raise. $10.00 can and does make a huge difference!  We can’t leave for field until we have receded 100% of monthly pledges.

Giving can be done online with a checking account or credit card.  Click the link below and then choose One-Time or Monthly.  If you prefer to mail a check, send it to:

Mission to the World (MTW), PO Box 2589, Suwanee, GA 30024-0982, Please note “#18910 Zobrosky” on the memo line. Please include a brief note with your check indicating if your gift is One-Time or Monthly.

Click Here to Give Online

If you have any questions about being a financial partner, please let us know!  You can email us at thezobroskysdownunder@gmail.com or call Chris at 205-441-4287.

Missions Support Group

Missions Support Group 9/21/13

It has been a very exciting time in the life of our home church.  Lately, there have been quite a few families and individuals who have been called to the foreign mission field.  One of the many ways that our church has wanted to love and care for us has been to have a monthly missions support group.  These meetings are made up of people who are either preparing to go, have just returned or are home on HMA (furlough).  During this time, we are able to share our fears, frustrations, joys and praises.  We pray for each other and our missions committee seeks to encourage us and meet any practical needs we may have.  Catherine and I are so very grateful for our missions pastor and his wife who open up their home for these meetings and for our missions committee who love us very well.  Good on ya (as they say in Australia) OMPC!

Friends of Missionaries Who Raise Support

The following article is from one of MTW’s magazines, Invision.  It was written by Bo Lancaster who is a MTW missionary in Slovakia.  It is written for friends of missionaries that raise support.  In light of this article, Catherine and I want to take this opportunity to say a sincere thank you for your prayers, encouragement and support.

What I Want For Every Support Raising Missionary

By Bo Lancaster

Two years is a long time to ask for money. That’s how long my wife and I have been raising support.As we prepare to leave for the field, and I survey the past two years, I believe that I have some insight into how to best care for your friends, family members, and fellow believers as they embark on the support-raising voyage. We feel very blessed that our friends, family, and church family have been very supportive and understanding of what it is we’ve been called to do.These are what I consider to be the most practical things you can do to do help your friends as they raise support.1. Pray! This isn’t just a throwaway option, or a secondary way to support missionaries. It is the primary way you can support your missionaries, and in turn, work to expand God’s kingdom wherever they go. Ask your missionary friends how you can pray for them regularly; their prayer requests will change frequently.2. Point them to the gospel. Raising support can be very trying emotionally and spiritually. Like anyone else, we missionaries can lean too much on our own abilities and efforts. When we see our support-raising efforts not working, it’s easy for us to become depressed and to forget that the gospel is a message not of “do,” but of “done.”3. Ask them how their support raising is going. Most support-raising missionaries would love to have someone to talk to about the challenges that support raising entails. Trust me, they won’t use this as an opportunity to ask for your money, and it’s comforting to know that someone wants to know how they’re doing. You can also encourage your friend by reminding them that this time of support raising is part of their ministry. God has called them to build His Church overseas, but a part of their call is to strengthen and encourage the Church here in America as they build relationships.

4. Don’t be afraid of not knowing what to ask. Asking anything at all, rather than nothing, is encouraging to your missionary friend. Frankly, we’re so rarely asked about what is a huge part of our lives and we will be happy to talk about what God is teaching us and calling us to do, so don’t hesitate to ask what may seem to you to be dumb questions. Simply asking is a way of demonstrating that you care.

5. Continue to invest in your relationship with them, even though you know they will be gone for a long time. Raising financial support can be an alienating and lonely process in many ways. Please don’t pull back: it only makes the prospect of leaving that much more difficult. Missionaries will continue to need you, especially when they are on the field (even if they don’t say as much), and it’s hard to see the separation begin even before they get on a plane.

6. Support your missionary friend financially. Nothing has been more encouraging to us over the past two years than to hear from close friends and family that they have decided to support us, in whatever amount they can. If all you have is an extra five dollars a month, don’t be afraid to send it!  Time and time again in Scripture we see that the smaller gift, given with a glad heart, is the gift looked upon with favor. That said, if you aren’t able to support your friend or family member, let them know up front. They won’t be crushed, and you will have actually done everyone a favor by clearing the air.

7. Know your friend’s ministry inside and out. It’s very encouraging for us to have friends and family intimately know the ins and outs of what we’ll be doing in Slovakia. Take the time to read their newsletters, learn the names of people they’re ministering to, give them feedback, and ask them specific questions about what they hope God will do through them on the mission field. Knowing your friend’s ministry well also allows you to be an advocate for them as they are in the support-raising stage.

I’m certain there are other ways that you can think of to help your friends as they endeavor in their efforts. The best way to find out is to ask them. Be intentional in how you develop your relationship with your missionary friends: you have no idea how important this is to us.

Our two years of support raising has been fraught with difficulty, setbacks, disappointments, and hurts. Raising support is not easy by any stretch of the imagination. Though the other side of this difficulty is that we’ve also experienced unexpected joys, continuous confirmation of our call, and affirmation after affirmation to keep working towards our goal of leaving for Slovakia to pursue God’s calling for us there.

Most importantly, we’ve been given a deeper understanding of the gospel and its far-reaching effects in our day-to-day lives as we parent, develop friendships, and preach the same message of gospel grace to ourselves every day.

Missions Conference

Our church’s  missions conference wrapped up last night! Exhausted from a busy week, but so very encouraged by the support from our church members. Thank you to our missions committee who worked so hard to make this happen & for giving us so many opportunities to share about the work in Sydney! We love our church!!!

Video

<p><a href=”http://vimeo.com/111889911″>Zobroskys Down Under Promo</a> from <a href=”http://vimeo.com/user13250943″>Chris and Catherine Zobrosky</a> on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a&gt;.</p>

Dresses Down Under

So the trial run for Dresses Down Under was a huge success!  And the best part is that I actually remembered to take a before picture for at least one dress 🙂  In classic form, Melany & I would look at each other upon completion of a new creation & say “we didn’t take a before pic!”  Details.

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an old tank mixed with a bright color skirt & ruffle detail belt

There was an initial ‘hump’ to get over of client expectations & pressure… all self inflicted, mind you.  Seems that God is using this mission of redeeming dresses to redeem my heart, too.

Many thanks to our friends & models, Kara, Laura & CA!  Thank you for being our guinea pigs & for supporting missions to Australia!  Also, to our friends who have generously donated old, tossed away clothing, scarves, belts & supplies for the making of these garments – thank you!

I couldn’t be happier with how these turned out – and how much fun was had in the making of these dresses!  All proceeds are going towards missions in Australia, thus the name “Dresses Down Under”.

a gift of beauty

This morning I had the rare opportunity to sit on my porch & be still.  As I sat drinking my smoothie & listening to the chorus of birds – the dog darting back and forth in the yard – a sadness struck deep down.   I’m going to miss this house.  My rose vine growing over the front door.  The shaded privacy of our back yard.  The thought that we may never have a home like this again… 

How is it that I can take a moment, a gift, and turn it into an idol that I’m in bondage to so quickly?  Why is it that when I experience deep soul rest and beauty, I want to grab it tight, lock it down & secure it for future times when I may need it.  I felt the Holy Spirit saying, just be here now, in this moment – I gave this gift to you.  I will take care of you.

I am constantly humbled by how quickly I revert to being an orphan, needing to fend for myself.  My father is good.  He has gone before me & is with me every step of the way.  He knows the desires of my heart – He made them!  Why am I so quick to fear?

All this clamoring – wasted worry.  I fret over what I cannot see & forget the one who made it all holds me in His hands.  So I’m thankful for the gift of quiet beauty this morning, but treasure that my Father loves me too much to leave me content with just this.  He wants my heart.

play date

I had a really fun play date with a dear friend today repurposing old clothes… lots of talking, laughing & dreaming… and a little sewing too!

Supplies:  a J Crew tee I never wear & an unflattering $10 dress from Walmart.  Here’s the finished dress

The belt is the hem cut off from an old cardigan sweater vest that was a bit dated.  I loved the color & fabric, so it made a lovely belt on this dress.  I think it will look great with a black tank & jeggings with my grey boots.

So, the idea behind this is to raise money for missions.  We hope to take old clothes & repurpose them in a surprising way.  Thinking of calling this collaboration “unraveled”.

I can’t think of a better word to describe God’s work in my life… all my efforts & works unraveled and woven with God’s grace to make something beautiful.  He has taken the old ugly & repurposed it.

I think a ruffled skirt out of t-shirts may be next… feeling the urge to spin around until dizzy.

Change is coming…

We have had a lively start to the year here at the Zobrosky house! There are many changes on the horizons for us & we wanted to share the journey with you.
Chris & I have loosely talked about foreign missions for years, and over the past year in particular the subject hasn’t let us go. After much prayer & consideration, we decided to take a step of faith & fill out an application with MTW (mission to the world). That was the beginning of October & since then things have been moving pretty fast.
After a slew of testing, applications & a week long ‘readiness evaluation’, we have been approved as missionaries with MTW. We are excited to tell you that we have received an invitation to join a church planting team in Sydney, Australia! We were able to spend time with the family we will be working with while they were in the states & couldn’t be happier to be joining their team.
So… what’s next? We will be attending another training week in March & then begin the process of raising support. We do not know a solid time frame for this process, but expect 1 to 2 years to reach our goal before moving to Sydney. Our initial commitment is for 2 to 3 years of work in Sydney after which we will be back in the states for a year.
What we would love from you are your prayers…prayer for our marriage, clear direction & provision from God, and protection for our family.
This has been a time of revelation for us both personally & as a family. There are many stories of God’s kindness & confirmation through this process. Please subscribe to our blog to follow along this journey with us. We are excited to see what this year will bring & covet your prayers!

With much joy & love,
Chris, Catherine & Kell

“Blessed be…. the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God…” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4