Mari Isaacson

How many of you enjoy living out of a suitcase? I don’t particularly. Still I am glad that I am on the road again. It is one step closer to my goal of getting to Alberta, Canada.

Christmas time with my family was really special. I had to keep pinching myself to check to see if it was real! Yep! It has been more years than I can count since the last time I was able to be with family for Christmas. Christmas with family. It is a time to really treasure. The laughter. The sharing. The giving. The food. The listening. I am very grateful to have the opportunity to be with family.

Still, this Christmas left me with lots of time to ponder. Though I was very glad to be with family, I really missed Christmas time in Austria. Being gone all those years, I had started my own traditions… Christmas Eve was always spent with the people in the house. My landlady, her son and his live-in girlfriend. Though they celebrated Christmas for totally different reasons other than the birth of Christ, it was still a fun time. I tried to be a witness thru example and would also share when I got the chance. Unfortunately, most of the time they didn’t want to hear what I had to say in regards to “religion”. Well, what they didn’t realize was that I didn’t want to talk about RELIGION at all. I wanted to share with them what it meant to have a personal RELATIONSHIP with the Creator of the Universe! The One who loves them so dearly. The One who wants a relationship with them. The One who demonstrated His love so drastically in that He died for them. No, they really didn’t want to hear any of that. Jesus is just not “that” which they believe they are looking for. They just don’t get it… they will keep searching for “that” and never find it till they find “that” in the person of Jesus Christ.

Christmas day was always special as well. My two “daughters” would come over before breakfast to open Christmas stockings. No, that is NOT an Austrian tradition. They learned it when they lived with me for a few years. My landlady would also come and we had a stocking for her. She never added anything to the stockings, but that didn’t matter. We were just trying to use anything possible to love her to Christ. The last few years the group was even bigger because Aure had gotten married. Last year she even had a second child with her. After opening the stockings, we would then have breakfast together. After breakfast came the fun part. We would sing Christmas songs accompanied by Peter on the Violin. That was a real treat! The Christmas presents came last. It was great. Frau Krainer would usually leave right after that. Tabea, Aure and her family would follow slowly after more fellowship. By lunch time, I would be at my dear friends, also missionaries, the Bryans, where I would spend the rest of the day. They lived in the next big city over a half hour away.

There were other traditions during the month of December in Austria. There were the Christmas Party clubs with the usual Good News Clubs and then also “one-time” opportunities to share with Children in other party clubs the true meaning of Christmas: CHRIST! Then there was the Christmas celebration at our church where we tried to invite people who normally don’t come to church. The message was always really clear: CHRIST! I enjoyed singing a solo each year and Willie always made an appearance as well. Then I can’t forget the special tradition Tabea and I started a few years back. We would take the very early train to Salzburg arriving around 9am. We wanted to be early enough to enjoy the Christmas Open Market before the crowds. Believe me, even in the freezing cold, there was always such large crowds by 11am that one could hardly move around. After that, it was off to the Getreidegasse to the fish restaurant for lunch. Oh yah, our favorite place. Great food. We then went to other shops and caught the bus to a friends house for coffee in the afternoon. Then we would hit the evening train home. We loved it.  The Austrians were getting more and more into Christmas lighting as well. Each year there were more and more lights on private homes. The cities themselves really knew how to decorate which added to the spirit of the season. Then the SNOW!!! sigh. No show here this last Christmas!

My landlady would always say to me in January… guess what, we will be celebrating Christmas again this year! You know what, she’s right!

Well Christmas is passed, though you wouldn’t know it with all the decorations still up. Still, it’s time to get back to work. So, it’s on the road again!

Today I surprised my home church by stopping by. It was great! Many wanted to know what my future plans are, especially when I plan on moving to Alberta. Perhaps that is your question as well. Well, I leave here (Everett) and go to Idaho for a few days. Then it is off to Eugene, Oregon. My first stop of many the next 2 months in Oregon. If all goes well, I will then fly up to Canada the end of March to see if I can find an apartment. Hopefully then the middle of April I will be able to move up there.

What has to happen first:

1. I need to raise another $500.00 per month in support

2. I need to raise 14000.00 for a vehicle for Alberta

3. I need probably $2000.00 in start-up fees

4. I need my VISA (which I have been working on and am still waiting to receive)

Sometimes it is totally overwhelming especially now that there are so many people hurting financially. Still, Pastor said at the end of his sermon a phrase that really makes one ponder: YOU TRUST GOD, YOU’LL SEE HIM! I really need to trust Him in this whole adventure. The Alberta workers need me… there are only 4 workers for the whole provence! The Alberta workers really want me… I have talents and abilities to do aspects of the work that the others aren’t qualified to do! I need to TRUST God.

Still. God needs hands and feet to do His work down here on earth. Would you be willing to be use by Him in reaching the children of Alberta with the Gospel of Christ? Most of you can’t go, but you can give. You can become a vital part of my ministry by becoming a prayer and financial partner. Perhaps you say you can’t give much… remember: LITTLE IS MUCH WHEN GOD IS IN IT! Especially now during this financial crisis, YOUR help is needed.

Please send Donations to:

USA donors: CEF PO Box 348 Warrenton, MO 63383 for Mari Isaacson Acct# E3AT 4541

Canadian donors: CEF of Canada PO Box 165 Winnipeg, MB R3C 2G9 for Mari Isaacson ISM1

PLEASE PRAYERFULLY CONSIDER THIS. The saying goes for you too: YOU TRUST GOD, YOU’LL SEE HIM!

Please pray for my time on the road now to raise more funds. Please pray that my visa will arrive soon.

Thank you so much. God bless you richly,

mari