Sharon's Visa is Granted

On the 10^th we received word from the Spanish consulate in Washington, DC that Sharon’s visa had been granted and was ready to pick up. We are glad that Sharon was able to travel to Spain originally on a tourist visa. This allowed us to find an apartment, pick out and buy all the furniture, house hold appliances and set up our home while we waited on her visa to be granted. We have also had time to build relations with our church planting team as well as get to know those who are now part of our church plant. Sharon left for the USA on 16^th and returned on the 24^th. She was able to send time with family and meet with the work team that will be arriving on March 5^th. While she was in the states most of the furniture that we had order arrived. The last of it arriving on the 26^th. Sharon now joins Peter in the ordeal of more paper work and waiting to secure our national identity cards.(NIE) We need these cards so the we can: buy a car, get car insurance in our name, have a cell phone in our name, facilitate the banking process, etc. Peter is currently waiting on an appointment to have his finger prints documented. Once that is completed he should have his NIE in 45 days.

On March 5^th a team will arrive from Alethiea Church in Harrisonburg, Virginia. They will be working with us to help establish ties here in our target area as well as helping with a cultural center in downtown Madrid. Another focus will be college students. We have meet with Susana and Raquel who are the leaders in Madrid for evangelistic outreach to college students. We want to serve them in their ministries on campus. We were encouraged with their focus on working with a local churches.

This past Saturday we had our first couples dinner at a local restaurant in Las Tablas. One of the local restaurants that is closed on the weekends did a super job in hosting the event. Those who came had a great time. It was a small group this time but a positive and encouraging evening for all who attended.

We have checked into a numbers of ways that we can get involved and meet people in our community. The community association has their next meeting on the 10^th of March. There is also a community choir and opportunities to assist the elderly people. It is still pretty cold so there are not many out and about. We have looked at a number of locals that we could rent as a site to teach English and to facilitate church activities. So far we have not found one in our price range. Pray with us that if this is the right time we will find a place at a price we can afford.

We continue to work on our team building activities. We are grateful to our Supervisor Jay Sensenig and his wife Carol for hosting us this past weekend. Karen Ginter with World TEAM, assited us with the Myers Briggs Type Indicator test.

New Year's Greeting from Madrid

What has happened to the McMillans? Did they ever arrive in Spain? Did they ever find an apartment??? The answer is “yes!” We stayed with the Muhas for 11 days while we registered with the court house, opened up an account at a bank, hunted for apartments, arranged to rent/borrow a car, bought a GPS (very important)and adjusted to the 6 hour time difference. We had our first team building retreat on the first weekend after our arrival. After that, we moved to a guest house/office combination outside of the city so that there would be room for Melissa and Jonathan. They arrived on Dec. 20 and 21. By then we had a contract on an apartment, and we needed to find something to sleep on, eat on, eat with, cook with.....


On Christmas day we moved in, threw a chicken in the oven, and went to pick up Heather at the airport. Later that afternoon we went over to celebrate together with Micah and Kimberly Yaun, a young couple from our home church who are doing an internship in a township east of Madrid. While our 3 visitors were here, 2 of them became engaged! Heather is now engaged to Jonathan, who is finishing his masters in Civil Engineering in Delft, Netherlands.

We made an overnight trip to Cordoba to see the famous Mesquita and other historic sites in the city. After Melissa left on January 5^th we set about in earnest to look for furniture. We went with prefab furniture that you put together for the office and extra kitchen counter and cabinet space. Since all of the buildings where we live are less than 10 years old, the apartment is really nice, 4^th floor, 3 bedrooms plus a storage room and one parking space in the basement. Once our shipment arrives, the office, spare bedroom, and storage room will fill up quickly with mostly books and resource materials! Now that the big sales have started we have ordered our bedroom furniture which should arrive in a month. The last major item is the living/dining room combo. We bought a 2001 Ford Focus.

As far as our visas go, Peter has gone to the immigration office 4 times. They had asked for 2 new documents that were not previously required. After each appointment the agent sent him back for another adjustment. Finally everything cleared. Then he asked the other agent about Sharon's visa. There it was, on the top of the agent's desk! She said that we should hear from the embassy in about 2 weeks. This means that Sharon will go back to Washington, D.C. sometime in February to pick up her visa.

We have been able during the holidays to get together with some of the members of the church. Peter has already preached 2 times, Sharon has helped some with the children and gave a workshop this past Sunday for those interested in working with children. Also, she filled in on piano during the worship service. We have begun weekly team meetings on Thursdays, as well as the regular men's and women's Bible studies. The three leaders and wives will begin intentional discipleship with the people who regularly attend. For 4 days we will be at a camp location near Toledo for the TEAM Spain annual conference starting Jan. 20.

In less than a week we will be in Spain!!!

WE ARE ON OUR WAY! Our financial support now meets the requirements of TEAM and we have 750 prayer partners! After waiting much longer than we wanted to, the speed has now zoomed to high velocity:

Last Tuesday: the embassy notified us that the marriage certificate was not the up-dated version. We immediately make the necessary phone calls to figure that out and obtain the correct document. We found out that the county had used the old format on the first one. Sharon’s brother’s family arrived for the big Thanksgiving hurrah.

Last Wednesday: The remaining relatives arrived to make 12 in all. We went ahead and bought 2 tickets for Madrid, leaving December 8 and returning January 5 in case the visas are not granted before we leave.

Last Friday: we received word that Peter’s visa has been approved!

This Past Sunday: Yaszbet Zannis from Faith Presbyterian Church sent us a lightening quick Spanish translation of the new document. We also said “Goodbye” to our son Ben and wife Hannah.

This Past Monday: Peter Ellis, pastor of Emmanuel Baptist Church, ran around to 3 different agencies, drove to Albany to obtain the new documents, and mailed them to the Spain embassy.

This Week: packing boxes and suitcases, arranging shipment, phone calls.

Next Week: move out of the lake house, go to DC to pick up passports and at least Peter’s visa.

Wednesday: Leave 5:30 pm Richmond, VA. Arrive Madrid 7:50 am Thurs.

Dec. 12-13^th: First retreat with new team coworkers.

After That: Find and move in to an apartment if possible before we receive 3 visitors for Christmas.

January 5^th. Sharon will probably have to return to D.C. to pick up her visa.

We give thanks to God for your partnership as we head for Madrid, Spain