Letter to TLO

I forgot to post this earlier. This is the letter that we gave to TLO to announce our leaving:

Dear TLO Families and Friends,

"I thank my God in all my remembrance of you all, always, in every prayer of mine for you all, making my prayer with joy..." The way Paul felt for the Philippians is much the same as we feel towards you at Trinity Lone Oak.

As many of you may know, God has placed on both of our hearts the call and the desire to teach overseas. We have been faithfully praying for God's perfect timing and we are thankful that these past years at TLO were a part of God's plan for us. It is with great anticipation and sadness that we announce that we will not be returning to TLO next year. By God's grace, we accepted positions at International Community School, an international Christian school in Bangkok, Thailand. Mike will serve as the elementary physical education teacher and Karly will serve as the high school Spanish teacher.

In the book of Matthew, Jesus calls his first disciples saying, "Follow me, and i will make you fishers of men." That call is weighing on our hearts as God is saying, "Mike and Karly, follow me to Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country, and I will make you fishers of men." We know that God is sovereign over all things, and as he guides and directs us, we desire to follow his calling wherever that leads us. It is such a comforting thing, knowing that his hand is intimately involved in our lives and that he is masterfully guiding our next steps!

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it" (Isaiah 55:8-11).

God has richly bless us in many ways with families and friends at TLO. It has been such a wonderful opportunity for both of us to learn and grow alongside your children. Thank you for allowing us to love and serve them, and be a part of their lives. IT will be difficult to say goodbye to a place that we love and call home, but we know that the door at TLO will always be open.

Please pray fr us as we finish our school year here and have to say our goodbyes. Also, please pray that God would continue to sanctify us and bring to completion the good work within us that He has started, as we prepare our hearts and our minds for the new ministry that awaits us.

In Christ,
Mike and Karly Aust