2 Corinthians 9:8

I Am Third

This Blog is updated each Tuesday.

I have been feeling nostalgic of late. This is evidenced by my random smattering of old pictures contained in this week's blog. God has really been reminding me of where He brought me from. Sometimes, I wonder how I am alive. Thank God for His amazing grace. 

As I perused old photos I found myself thankful to God for each season of life and how He leads us onward. Our first step is to find out that we put God before ourselves. I become second. I think it can be a pitfall to remain there. We keep seeking who we are in Christ and wanting Him to constantly affirm who we are. I do believe, however, that He has another step for us to take. 

I Am Third is a memoir written about Gale Sayers, one of the greatest running backs in NFL history. His story is about a teammate he had on the Chicago Bears that died of cancer. His credo is, "The Lord is first, others are second, and I am third." I am third.

God is opening my eyes to others needs more and more. I don't want to play church. I want to live it. I want that wild abandon that is going further than I have ever dared let myself go. I want to minister to people I am afraid of. I believe I am about to get my chance.

Where are you in all of this? Are you planning Jesus parties or are you willing to do the things that make you uncomfortable? Will you be inconvenienced for Jesus? Are you willing to forgo your own desire for your needs to be met? Your beauty to be seen? Your worth to be known?

Isaiah 58 says that if you pour out what you have to meet your own needs on others that He will meet your needs. Are you willing to let Him? Are you willing to walk away from this event oriented tea party Jesus and step out into the Holy Wild?

Denbigh Cherry sans the hair.

Denbigh displaying his roots.

Cooking Laomai.

My Dad and Babs

Cherry Wedding Day

My "baptism." Thank you Lord, for telling us in your word that infant baptism does not save us.

Denbigh is on the right (with his brother Brice).

Denbigh's maternal grandpa.

Why do people take their own picture!? We always look goofy. Believe me, we are much better looking in real life. ;O) Christine, Me, and Tanya

Grand Babe and Laomai swinging

Perspectives

This Blog is updated each Tuesday.

About a year ago a man bought some land from my grandmother. I found myself recently very interested in something that he gave land to. He gave land to start a year round camp for children with special needs. Camp John Mark is an amazing place. As I sat and read the story, I was overwhelmed. My perspective was challenged as I read the list of their camps for March 2009. 

Week One: Families who have lost a child

Week Two: Families with a child who has cancer

Week Three: Families with a child with spina bifida

Week Four: Families with children who have had organ transplants

How can we ever complain? As we stare into the faces of our healthy children, how can we ever complain? Perspectives.

Gomer is thankful! Denbigh and I stood out in the front of the respite on Saturday evening in awe. We could have never imagined all that was accomplished could have been done in one day. There was a total of over 40 people to come with chain saws, mowers, and tools to restore Gomer. Only the LORD could make this happen. Only the LORD could cause people to work so hard with no reward. Beautiful. We had old cast iron plumbing pulled out and new installed. Heating was fixed. Demolition occurred. An abundance of dead trees were cut down. We are overwhelmed. Praise God for the work He has done before our very eyes. We are praying abundant blessings over the the people who worked and brought food. Thank you. 

February work day to be announced soon.

And if you pour out that with which you sustain your own life for the hungry and satisfy the need of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in darkness, and your obscurity and gloom become like the noonday.

Isaiah 58:10

. . . the priests repaired the wall . . .

Nehemiah 3:28

They purchased timber and dressed stone for the repair of the temple of the LORD, and met all the other expenses of restoring the temple.

2 Kings 12:12

In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the temple of the LORD and repaired them.

2 Chronicles 29:3

They are restoring the walls and repairing the foundations.

Ezra 4:12

 He has granted us new life to rebuild the house of our God and repair its ruins, and he has given us a wall of protection in Judah and Jerusalem.

Ezra 9:9

neighbors

The Biblical worldview conference was held in a Messianic church. It was amazing to see the reproduction of the wailing wall and the ten commandments in Hebrew. The conference was quite interesting. You will be glad to know that my secular humanist worldview has been blown away. ;O)

Your biblical worldview determines every other action you take.

Truth is not relative.

Truth is absolute in the person of Jesus Christ.

Down Home Blogging

This Blog is updated each Tuesday.

I was reminded of something very simple today. As we strive to make "Jesus" happen and draw attention to ourselves, God is truly at work in the minute [mahy-noot, -nyoot, mi-] unseen details of life. When is the last time you loved on someone who couldn't do anything for you? When is the last time you served and didn't end up getting some glory for it? Are you doing ministry for your glory or for His? These are questions I ask myself at the beginning of every endeavor I take on. If God doesn't tell you to do it, sit down. Let the one He called rise up. Otherwise, you will waste years of your life in the endless pit of worshipping yourself. Reach out in the quiet. Pray in the quiet. Love in the quiet. Expect your reward from Jesus.

 "But you, when you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you."

Matthew 6:6 

God gave me a beautiful vision for something I am writing. I am truly excited about this project. Mostly, my excitement begins to come when He starts giving me details. Then I know He is writing and I am just His pencil pusher. This vision has truly made me want to guard my time with Him. This led me to want to put a word into file 13 this year. Eighty-six it. I am tossing out 'busy.' I think we all throw it around to make us feel important. The truth is that is just makes us feel busy. I am getting rid of it. This is the year to clean up the schedule, organize, and leave plenty of room for God to do whatever He wants. I am not going to wipe the slate clean of activity. We truly do have our hands full. I am just planning on glorifying God by not focusing on all I have to do. This is my year to 

enjoy the ride. 

There ain't no party like a Holy Ghost party 'cuz a Holy Ghost party don't stop.

Rest.

(I like that part of a soldier's armour is called a rest. It holds the lance or spear.)

Laugh.

Love.

Pray.

Hope.

Give.

Don't forget about workday on Saturday January 17th. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Go Green: Support a Local Mission

This week we set up a "command center" for the downstairs. It includes lists of all the things we need done in the Respite. Writing that all out truly makes you realize the gravity of the project at hand.

The picture above was taken of the 40 plus feet palm trees in front of our house as we were eating dinner outside last night.

We set up a make shift kitchen with a 'snazzy' red microwave. Our new refrigerator arrived last week as well. 

Anne, Steve, Syd, and Ben (and Scout)came to help us around the house. We now have a working toilet upstairs (hooray!). Now, all we need is the drain fixed to the bath tub.

My pet project is Laomai's room. I have been sanding ALL of the wood down to re-stain it the original mahogany color. This is quite a task. Moulding in our house is about 5 times the width of the moulding of a normal house. I will be excited to get this little girl a room to call her own after sleeping in makeshift spaces the past nine months! If you like to strip, scrape, or sand wood, come on over and help me. 

We have a work day this coming Saturday, January 17th from 10 to 4 p.m. 

Please continue to pray for this project. We need a steady flow of volunteers, provision, and the power of the Holy Spirit to bring this to completion. We are planning to present this opportunity to local churches to be blessed in volunteering alongside us.

Thank you for your support. We are truly blessed by you.

YOVEL

This Blog is updated each Tuesday.

Yovel is the Hebrew word for Jubilee. Jubilee was pronounced every seven years in Israel as a time when debts were forgiven and slaves were set free. The name comes from the horn, or shofar, used to announce Jubilee. Every fifty years there was a super Jubilee. All land went back to the original owner to prevent one man from amassing all the wealth. 

I have been thinking quite a bit about Jubilee. I keep seeing the word everywhere I go and in everything I read. I would love to experience a year of biblical Jubilee. Can you imagine all of your friends' debts being forgiven? What a party! It really hit me as I thought about it. Jubilee wasn't designed by God to teach us how to receive, but how to forgive. It's a year of repentance and returning. It's a year that you get to forgive those who owe you spiritually, emotionally, financially, and so on. For you to declare Jubilee, you must be willing to forgive. You must be willing to repent. What a beautiful picture of God's love for us.

In repentance I am choosing to declare Jubilee this year. Praise God for His forgiveness.

"You shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants; it shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his family” (Lev. 25:10).