Arizona Wrap Up

We had a great 10 days in Arizona, and we arrived home on Tuesday afternoon. We really loved the sunshine and the family time. But the primary reason for being there, of course, wasn’t just for the fun (though we certainly had lots of it!), but we were there to attend a class UIM calls OTUS (Orientation to UIM Seminar), as well as to be formally interviewed to join the UIM Team. We got a crash course in understanding UIM, which was helpful. We are also grateful for the opportunity we had to build some relationships with several UIM Missionaries, and as I shared in our last letter, to be invited to serve as Associate Missionaries.

One of the most encouraging things from the week was how the Lord answered each of the prayer requests we had shared with you all. So I thought I’d give a little recap on the answered prayer.

Prayer Needs Answered!

• Plan for our puppy – We had an awesome house sitter who took great care of Murdock and great care of our house!
• Great time for our girls – They had an amazing week. They LOVED the babysitter who was taking care of them. All three of them consider that new friendship a major highlight of their trip, and they are missing her already.
• For us to be a blessing to the others at the training – We think we were:).
• Internal Calm – By the time we arrived, we felt calm and ready for the week ahead.
• Humble hearts – I’m sure we didn’t get this one perfect, but we never stopped aiming for it.
• Rosie’s fever – It ran it’s course quickly and she really only had to miss most of one day in bed. And no one else caught it.
• Classroom endurance – We survived the many seated hours:). Maybe even learned a thing or two.
• Interview – We felt comfortable and confident in answering the questions we were asked.
• Great family time at the end – Yes, we had so much fun. We found ourselves swimming in pools on hot, sunny days. And wandering through art galleries filled with things we could never afford, but we could enjoy looking at:).

Of course, the prayer needs don’t stop. Here are some needs that are specific to this coming summer. As always, we would love to have you praying with us for these needs as the Lord brings us to mind.

Prayer Needs

• I (Ryan) have already begun meeting with other leaders to plan and strategize for camps this summer. Below are some of the specific staffing needs for this summer.
  • Head Cook for some or all weeks of camp.
  • Sufficient staff, particularly for filling the Cabin Leader roles.
  • A speaker for Teen Camp (July 5-11).
• Vance Christopherson is UIM Missionary Appointee who is hoping to be given immigration permission by the Canadian government, so that he can stay and work at Rock Nest all year. He will be staying with us in Vancouver Apr 11-13, with plans to arrive at the border with paperwork in hand on Apr 14.
• Please pray, also, that it would be a smooth transition as we work with Daniel and Geneva Koster and Vance Christopherson as the official RNR Camp Staff Team.

As always, thank you praying for us and with us!

Ryan and Leanne Donovan

PS – You may have noticed this came from a different email address! It’s my new, fancy, UIM email address. Feel free to try it out:). And Leanne has one, too, and it’s listed below under our little picture.