On winning the lost...

I've been sitting on my hands the last couple of weeks at church when I've really wanted to break out in applause as we continue to hear preaching on winning the lost, eternal C.P.R., method changing, but keeping the message the same. But here, I can let my fingers fly! One thing that bothers me about the Great Commission verse i.e. Matthew 28:18-20 is that people most times refer to this as THE reference point in the Bible for winning the lost, yet throughout the Old and New Testaments there are many verses which speak on this subject, too many to list here. Since I've heard some people refer to the Old Testament as just that, old, it is worth pointing out that in all four Gospels Jesus specifically commands us on this topic in the verses mentioned above from Matthew, but also, Mark 16:15, "And then he told them, You are to go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone, everywhere". Luke 24:47, "and that this message of salvation should be taken from Jerusalem to all the nations: There is forgiveness of sins for all who turn to me". John 20:21 "He spoke to them again and said, As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you". Jesus was repetitive. When I was doing a study of Evangelism Explosion I had someone once tell me that evangelism was "not their job. That was the Pastor's" and they cited Ephesians 4:11 "Some of us have been given special ability as apostles; to others he has given the gift of being able to preach well; some have special ability in winning people to Christ, helping them to trust him as their Savior; still others have a gift for caring for God's people as a shephard does this sheep, leading and teaching them in the ways of God". Easy enough to fall back on, but I haven't found a verse yet that says evangelism is solely the Pastor's job or the missionaries or the deacons, you get the point. God came "to seek and to save that which was lost". His sole purpose in coming to earth, dying on the cross, and rising again. I believe He is able to give us all that we lack, whether it is confidence, boldness if we step out in obedience, and in faith, and share with those around us as His spirit leads us just as strongly as I believe that I am saved. Evangelism's basis is not on a gift. It is a command.

The changes begin...

"Ding Dong the green truck's gone". Danielle was never to fond of it always telling her Dad it looked like a booger. But Ken would always say, "it could be worse, Danielle. I could be driving around with a big bug on the roof" and we would always start laughing! Seems weird not to see it in the driveway after seven years. It has been turned over to another colleague at Stock while we wait to be able to leave. And so, the changes begin.

"May we show your house"? - PANIC!

I was sitting at my computer yesterday morning, typing medical reports in my own little world when the phone rang. It was Centralized Showing Service requesting to show the house. My response...dead silence. I guess it hadn't really sunk in that someone might want to see the house so soon since it was just officially on the market Friday night! I kind of stuttered my way through the short conversation and accepting the appointment time. I was afterall, still in my P.J.'s! One of the luxuries of working at home that I hadn't even considered should probably get an overhaul. With some vacuuming and wipe down of the bathroom sinks, an obvious change of clothing on my part, we (myself and the kids since they are off from school) were out the door in an hour! And about that working from home clothing overhaul...there's always tomorrow since it's 11:08 a.m. and I am still working in my P.J's! Ugh!

Travel, work, reading

We had a sloth weekend! In other words, we just hung around the house, lying on the couch, sitting in recliners and relaxing. It felt so good! Ken is leaving for Costa Rica in a few days to help with a short-term team down at the camp for two weeks. They will be finishing up the camp kitchen renovation project that was started by another team who just left Costa Rica. When he returns we will be home for a week and then travel up North for training and then to say good-bye to family. The house is officially on the market now. We are both still working our full-time jobs and I have been reading three books. I can't remember my Social Security # or the dates of birth of my four children unless I say them in order, but I can master processing three books at one time...go figure! "Cross-Cultural Conflict" by Duane Elmer is an intense book; one that you read a few chapters and have to put it down and process it for a couple of hours. It's about building relationships for effective ministry. It was recommended by another missionary friend in Teguc, Honduras working with CAM. When I cannot process much more of this book at one time and need a break, I've been reading "On Being a Missionary" by Thomas Hale. Thomas Hale is a missionary physician who has served in Nepal since 1970. This book uses the insights of over one hundred missionary writers in dealing with the problems, struggles and failures that missionaries often face. It's an eye opening book with serious implications and hiliarous ones too! And the last book is "Let the Nations Be Glad, The Supremacy of God in Missions" by John Piper. It's a deep book! Another one you can only absorb so much of at one time and then you just have to put it down! Here's a quote from the book that has really caused a headache for me this week (really stopped me in my tracks and made me think), "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't". (Passing the bottle of Tylenol).

For Sale!

We've put down the paintbrushes, put away the toolbox and picked up the phone and called the realtor! This weekend we will be taking a much needed rest!

Words...

Sometimes it's hard to the find the words to say. Blessed would be a good one, but I never want to use that word flippantly on this blog. When I say it, I mean it in a BIG way. Blessed...it is then, but it was even so much more than that! Filled, encouraged, thankful are just a few. Thank you for ministering to us this weekend at Hickory Grove Greg, Kelly and Gordon. You all blessed us in ways words cannot even express!

And....a new kitchen floor!

We put down a brand spanking new kitchen floor yesterday afternoon and evening. I missed another Kodak moment (ugh!) of everyone sitting on the old kitchen floor eating dinner since our kitchen table was outside on the patio. Come to think of it, the stove was out there too...hahahahaha! We had the refrigerator in the livingroom, of all places, on plywood! Well, today we will put back the molding around the base of the cabinets. Yesterday, we also secured a real estate lawyer that we will use since our other lawyer has left his practice since we bought this house. I see light at the end of tunnel!!!

Still.....painting

I have really dreaded having to paint the kitchen, but thankfully tonight I am almost done. It has been a long day of tedious taping around kitchen cabinets and countertops to start the painting. There does not seem to be a full wall anywhere in this kitchen, so it seems to be taking so much longer than any other room with the added excessive taping in the broken up lay-out of windows, cabinets, etc. The other day I found out that my brother, Dick, who is a missionary Pastor is coming home from Scotland for a short visit. This is great news since we were talking on the phone wondering how and if our furloughs would ever coincide with each other's. He will be at home in Syracuse, NY just a few days before we need to travel there in February and then on to Global's offices in Buffalo and St. Catherine's for some last minute meetings. I think it has been two years now since I have seen him and so I am really thankful and excited, but that is so understated, that God has uniquely orchestrated his return and our travel to collide and I will get to see him and his wife, Sue. This family visit will be difficult as it will be our last before departing for Costa Rica. So, it is to visit, but also to say good-bye to my parents, two sisters, three brothers, Ken's sister and his brother too. We have someone interested in looking at our house when we have it ready and before we sign a contract with a realtor to list it. If you could add that to your prayer list for us that would be wonderful! Thank you so much!

Scary scaffolding

I shoulda' took a picture! We got the stairway leading up to the second floor of our home painted last night without injury. Ken did that is, and Heather and I stood guard over the "make-shift scaffolding". (There is no way we were gettin' up there)! The only way to do it was to stand up the ladder and run boards from the stair steps to the ladder step. Then Ken placed a piece of plywood over those and he painted fast, really, really fast first cutting in the trim and then with the roller; Heather holding and watching the ladder to make sure it was not moving and me at the top of the stairwell...praying and helping him reload the brush and roller! I believe there will probably be more "make-shift" contraptions to make ahead in Costa Rica as we begin to work there. The downstairs hallway is done and the upstairs hallway. Today, we shampooed all of the carpeting in the house and began to put furniture back in it's place. Ken also replaced a door yesterday and cut his fingers up a bit. The pantry in the kitchen got a new coat of paint. We really NEED to finish our house by this weekend so that we can list it! It will require us to continue in a pattern of working our jobs and working at night until late trying to get things done. Please continue to pray for us as this is really getting exhausting, but things are truly shaping up around here. Okay, off to have a simple supper...hot dogs!

Busy in preparations

I've decided that the one thing I have always really enjoyed doing, I may now actually hate! We've been painting the last two days. Perhaps it is because I am doing it under "pressure". Yesterday, we began and finished the boy's bedroom. On Wednesday we began and finished the livingroom. This afternoon and evening I hope to finish the hallway and bathroom upstairs, tape up the hallway and kitchen downstairs and hopefully (fingers crossed until they are white) be done with all the painting tomorrow! I love the color, "Moroccan Moonlight", neutral, but very warm and inviting. Our house was still in the standard "builder's white" color. I wish we had done this for ourselves a couple of years ago. (scream!). Ah well, :) We're alive here. Just busy!

An answered prayer.

In our December newsletter that went out about a week and a half ago or so, I had mentioned a prayer request for our passports (Ken & I have ours, but we applied for Heather, Kyle and Jordan's). We were just asking for prayer that they would be processed in a timely fashion and that we would receive the kids original birth certificates back without a problem since if there was one, two of the kids birth certificates are out of New York State! On Christmas Eve we received their passports in the mail and their birth certificates were enclosed. We did not pay extra to have the "expedited" service, but we received them exactly three weeks from when we applied for them! We were told they would return in six weeks, about the middle of January, which would have been absolutely fine, we just hoped that we wouldn't have any long, extended delays in processing. Thank you to all of you who did pray for that need! We greatly appreciate it and we are so thankful to have the passports earlier than expected!

The day after...

We had a simple Christmas, but we always do. We celebrate our children's birthdays in a big way. We even bring out a special "Birthday Flag" which is hung late at night the night before their birthday after they have gone to bed. On Christmas, it is not their birthday, and we celebrate with only a few presents and spend the day reflecting on Jesus' birth. We spoke with family on the telephone; my brother, a missionary Pastor in Scotland, my parents in New York State, Ken's sister in New York State and his sister in Georgia. We went to his parents home for a quiet Christmas dinner and took pictures in the afternoon outside with them since this will be our last Christmas together for a while and then of our four kids together, since we do not know when Danielle will be with us in Costa Rica at Christmas. We came home at a reasonable hour and relaxed. Today, we were up bright and early helping the kids make decisions in their bedrooms about clothes, keepsakes, etc. We have accomplished a lot today!

The Phone Call!

We got a phone call on Thursday, 12/20 and the voice on the other line said, "get your house sold we'd like you there on February 1st". The exact numbers have not been crunched, but we believe that we are at about 95% of our monthly support now since people have been communicating to us that they have sent in pledge cards. Global believes, and we do too, that the rest will come. Please continue to pray for our family as we prepare to go. I will do my best to keep this better updated on exact dates and travel as the time gets closer.

He is faithful!

Rain

Taking a break from sorting, to sit here at my desk and "hear" the rain as it taps the window pane. It seems like it has been so very long since we have had a good rain like the one we are experiencing now. I have not posted recently because I didn't want to bore you to death! Not a lot has changed since the last post. Oh! By the way, to the five or six people who regularly read this blog and to the two that actually ever post comments, "your checks are in the mail". Well, back to going through some things, throwing things, but I had to pause for just a few short minutes and enjoy the sound of the rain, and to thank God for allowing us to have some!
Edited to say: I am not throwing things...I am throwing things out, though. Just thought I might clarify that :)

$400, that's all folks

$400 of pledged monthly support is all we have left to raise. That breaks down to 13 people committing to $30 a month or 8 people committing to $50 a month. We continue to step out in faith trusting that God is going to provide for our needs by getting our house ready to be placed on the market. Two days ago we were at 88%. Today, we are at 90%. An amazing God!

Garage Sale! Preparing to Go.

Hmph...I'm tired. Today was our big garage sale. What didn't get sold we hauled off to Good Will and the dump. We brought nothing back into the house. It was a bittersweet day. Things were sold that we have had since we were married 22 years ago, though seeing someone else buy things and knowing they will probably be put to good use makes it easier. A reminder of how much we have here in the States and how much we "hold" on too sometimes without even meaning too. We still have stuff to go through, mainly clothes, and the dishes we kept to be able to eat and cook with until we can go, but rooms are begining to echo around here. We won't have another garage sale. What is left will be donated to With Love, From Jesus which holds a special place in our hearts. Well, a few more steps closer to being ready to paint and put the house on the market.

Beginning preparations

I seem to be having trouble logging on to our blog from our computer. This post is being done on our lap top. Our livingroom is piled high with empty boxes in one corner, two boxes in another corner packed. There are side jobs that Ken had committed to weeks ago and those doors, windows, etc. are now coming in and he is working on Saturdays to finish those jobs for people. We have other commitments that should be wrapped up soon, R.O.C.K. Rally and Marching Band season will soon begin winding down. It's been busy and we just haven't found a lot of free time to get to the house. We spoke with the person that we will probably list our house with and talked about how the housing market is "really" going. You see and hear things on the local news. He said that in Johnston County housing was going at 110% this past summer, but it's still at about 90% right now and keeping him very busy. We trust that the Lord already has a plan for our home! It seems that Global Outreach has found a home for us to rent in Costa Rica when we get there so that is really nice and makes our transition so much easier. We couldn't be more thankful for that! I haven't had time to get a newsletter done, but I hope to get to that this weekend. If you would, just continue to keep our family in your prayers as we begin to go through things in our home and prepare it to be placed on the market. We feel a little overwhelmed with all that needs to be done. We continue to take it one day at a time and pray that God would allow us to use any available free time wisely!

Costa Rica...in the home stretch!

We have 75% of commited monthly support and another 12% in pending status (waiting for the verbally comitted support to reach Global Outreach offices so that it can added in). That's a total of 87%. I want to make it perfectly clear that God has moved in a miraculous way on our behalf! None of the support that has been commited to our family comes through something that Ken or I have done. Yes, we are the ones who physically stood up and did presentations, made phone calls, sent letters, met with individuals, prayed (but I know we had lots of others praying along with us); God is the One who moved people's hearts toward committing to Missions and the ministry at El Jardin! The last year and a half has at times been hard because we are hard-headed (moreso me than Ken). There are so many people that God, in His love and grace, sent to encourage us and kept us from giving up! He even sent some to help us "get a grip" and "refocus", like Bob & Robin. Then there were times when we did just rest and wait and He showered us with tremendous blessing. I wouldn't exchange the things that I have learned for an easier path! I realize that I have so much more to be taught and that this time has been a time of preparation for things that I will continue to learn through serving on the field. What does the 87% mean? It's time to apply for the kids passports. We need to begin preparing the house to go up for sale. We are coming to a time of "lasts", last Thanksgiving/Christmas with family for four years and the anticipation of "firsts", like all the new things you experience living in a different country and culture. We cannot yet board a plane because there are still funds that need to come in before we can go and while we trust God for those needs, we would be making a terrible mistake to not take this opportunity and allow you to see what God has already done! Please join us in thanking Him for the recent provisions that He has made for our family and continue to keep us in your prayers as we endeavor to be obedient to His plans for us! To God be the Glory!

Support Raising, waiting and praying to get to Costa Rica!

We've been busy. That's not even accurate, really. Feels like we've been crazy! We got our last support letter typed and sent to the Mission. You should be receiving that now asking for your help in getting us to Costa Rica by January '08, our deadline. It's almost time for another newsletter to go out. We have received word that we have received additional support, but we do not know exactly what percentage we are at as Global just finished a big conference and everyone's desk is piled high with requests at the office. We should have a better picture next week and be able to report that here to you. In the meantime, thank you to all of you who have been praying for us during this time. We cannot even express to you how much it means to us knowing that you are specifically bringing our family before the Throne. Thank you to our Support Team for your love, prayers and especially the encouragement. It's hard to imagine where we would be without you in our lives. You all mean so much to us! May the Lord continue to move in a way that will bring Him the glory!

"God of Wonders"

Ever find yourself in a state of wonder over God? I find myself like that a lot. The other night it was the stars suspended in the sky. They are there every clear night, bright and just hanging in space. How does He keep them there? What about service? That He even asks me to do anything, now that's just crazy! The fact that He would even entrust us by His prompting to do something for Him, are you kidding me? He doesn't need us! Yet, He allows us to join Him in carrying out His purposes! That blows my mind! I'm thankful that I can't even attempt to figure Him out. If I could, I wouldn't need to depend on Him! I so desperately NEEED GOD. Daily, lately hourly! I'm thankful He's always available, never busy on a cell phone, in a meeting and I'm never put on hold. I fall so short of His glory. Yet, He continues to "hang in there" with me. He's so patient. He absolutely amazes me!