The Fourth Watch: our journey to Fiji

In June of last year Vito was driving one of his friends that was visiting from fiji back to where he was staying after they had finished playing rugby. His friend mentioned to him that there was a facilities management job open for our church in fiji and they had yet to find a qualified candidate. That night Vito came home and told me about it. We had actually been looking for jobs in fiji because one of our goals had been to live in fiji for a few years. When this job came up we thought it would be perfect. Vito was dying to get out of the hotel industry and this job seemed like a perfect fit. We obtained an application and not long after submitting it, Vito had two interviews, took two assessments, and was promised a decision within the week. 

Well, after 6 long months of back and forth, and even writing the job off completely Vito got the call that he had been offered the position. We prayed and fasted about whether it was the right thing for our family at this time. We decided that it was something we felt we really needed to do and had faith that our Heavenly Father would pave the way for us, as we had a lot of things that could have been potential obstacles. In our eyes from the moment we said yes, hundreds of little miracles ensued. Here are the most notable: 

Miracle #1: one of our biggest concerns was if we could get Liam the help he needs with his speech and other issues. I prayed about it and got the impression that how he did in his playgroup therapy the next day would be my answer as to if going would be a good idea. Liam did the best he had ever done at playgroup and later that day I spoke with his therapist and voiced my concerns, she was 100% for us going to fiji. She believes it will be so good for Liam to be around family and other kids all the time (which he will be) and we can do skype sessions if we feel he is needing it. Also I just found someone in Fiji that does home visits for the things Liam needs! Miracle! 

Miracle #2: to be honest we were really bugged that they were taking so long to get back to us about the outcome of the position but looking back it was a blessing. Vito was able to get his U.S, citizenship in December which will make it so we can live outside the country without him having to redo all his paperwork when we came back. Miracle. 

Miracle #3: Obviously we owned a home, and did not want to be landlords from across the world so we knew we had to sell. We put our house on the market in October when we thought we would be getting the job soon. We were getting some showings but not as many as we expected. Around Christmas time, I had mentioned to my parents that of someone qualifies for the same loan we have through the usda, they could assume our loan(the gvt subsidizes the loan if you aren't making very much, and it is basically just a great loan). Long story short, some family friends of ours qualified for the loan and were able to buy our home, they closed yesterday (another miracle because it was suppose to close on the 20th and we were going to be in fiji which would have been a nightmare). It worked out great for both of us as they were really wanting to be in a house and we really needed to sell! Miracles, miracles, miracles! 

Miracle #4: We needed to sell our car that we still had a loan on. We had been trying for a few weeks with no luck. We had 2 days until we were leaving for California, when one of our friends happened to get in an accident where she totaled her car. She was able to buy our car from us which was such a blessing. Miracle! 

Miracle #5: As we were leaving our home for the last time we had our blazer all packed up to drive up to Sammy's house to stay the night. We had to stop at our neighbors house to drop something off and when Vito got back in the car, it would not start, it wouldn't do anything! We said a prayer that we could get the car to start and just seconds later our other neighbor pulled up. He is always fixing cars so he came over to help. After just a couple of minutes they were able to get the car started. (Just a loose battery cable). Another miracle.

Miracle #6: We rented a van to drive out to California. We left kind of later on in the day because we had to sign our closing documents that morning. We were concerned how well our kids would do in the car for that long of a drive. We fully expected multiple freak outs. On the drive from salt lake to Reno, the kids slept the first 3 hours, and were completely content the next 4. We stopped in Reno to have dinner with my cousins and uncle. It was pretty late when we got done and were headed towards the summit when we were notified that we would have to get chains to get across. We drove back to Reno and bought chains. When we got up to truckee we pulled off to install the chains ( which neither of us have ever done). I was able to get the first chain on fine. However, for whatever reason the second chain would just not go on! My hands were numb, neither of us had gloves or very warm clothes on. We were about to give up when a guy pulled up in his car and offered to help put our last chain on. It was such a huge blessing, because I was at the end of my rope! So what should have been less than a 2 hr drive turned into 4+ hours ( all of which our kids slept through). Miracle, miracle, miracle! 

These are not the only things that happened, and I'm sure there may be more small miracles before we get to fiji in a week and a half but with all that has happened, we know without a doubt that we are doing the right thing. We know God has big plans for us in Fiji. We had to give up A LOT to do this but we know it will all be worth it. Even though we can't see the future, we have faith that we will be blessed for following our promptings, and how can you not enjoy living in Fiji anyways? 

In Matthew 14, it speaks of when Jesus' disciples were out in the sea when there was a big storm and it was tossing them and their little boat to and fro. Jesus was up in the mountains praying. It's says he came to them in the fourth watch, and he walked on water towards them. When the disciples saw Jesus they were afraid because they thought he was a spirit but Jesus told them to not be afraid. Peter then wanted confirmation, so he asked if he could walk on water towards Jesus. He began to do so, but then it says: 

30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. 

31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? 

Many times throughout this whole process, we have often times felt like Peter. We had faith that Heavenly Father would provide a way but when the boisterous winds came, we doubted a little bit and began to sink. Time and time again though we felt that outstretched hand there at the last minute to pull us back to safety. Our faith can be tested over and over but our loving Heavenly Father will always come in when we need it the most. He will never let us drown. 

We are so excited to be going on this new adventure as a family. I am so excited to finally be able to grow close with Vito's family, and have the chance for our kids to know them too! We have been blessed beyond belief and are so excited to see what God has in store for us!