"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." Galations 6:9-10.
Not becoming weary, getting down or frustrated but continuing to do good to all people, especially to the family of believers. If we do that the bible promises we will reap of harvest - IF we do not give up. Please pray for staying power for Alan and me with our work in the church - despite the discouragements and the lack of leadership we've experienced. Right now the church is in a sort'of transition time and we really need God to step in and speak as to how He wants us to proceed. Also please pray that God would have his hand on our house here in Moreton and that it would sell or rent, according to His purpose and His timing for us to move to Germany.
Last Friday Alan put in his notice at Save the Family - H A L L E L U J A H ! ! !
We've decided we're going to put the bulk of both our time into the church until we leave for Germany, orientation with Pioneers and Georgia. In actuality it's a little less than 2 months but we're hoping to get a lot of work done in that time. Dates so far are visting and volunteering in Germany for a week in the middle of October, orientation the week of October 24th -29th and Georgia from November 1st until December 29th. God willing then we'll move to Germany in January.
We appreciate each of you so much and covet your prayers...
Friday, 30 July 2010
Thursday, 22 July 2010
Mere Christianity
By far, Mere Christianity has to be one of the best books ever written. My dad read it 30 plus years ago and it in part led to his becoming a christian. I read it for the first time in a C.S. Lewis devotional study where it and about 5 of his other books were broken apart, one page at a time so you could digest this mans intellect and the power with which God spoke through him a little bit at a time.
Lately I've been re-reading the book and I can't seem to get enough. So much so that I decided the youth at our church would really benefit from reading it as well but instead of giving them all a copy and wishing them luck I decided to teach on the book during our Wednesday night Influence meetings. We've had two so far and we haven't even touched on christianity yet. The first week we talked about the Moral Law, or Law of Human Nature, Law of Decency or Fair play. We talked and came to agreement that there was such a law pressing on each of us and we talked about how it describes not the behavior that we do exhibit as humans but the behavior we "ought" to exhibit.
So point one in lesson one was there is a moral law. Point two was we break it.
Simple enough, the group seemed to enjoy the interaction and the excuse to use their brains during their summer holidays.
Lesson two started last night and I got so pumped up in preparing that my notes alone were 13 pages long. As the night approached I got more and more intimidated by the study and the power of the words of the book and its implications and really had to give it all over to the Holy Spirit to say what he wanted me to say. We started with instincts and impulses and how the Moral Law is not one of our insticts but instead is the voice you hear that helps you to judge between two competing insticts (Millo saving Josh who is currently drowning in the Mersey (instinct to help someone) versus his instict not to drown (instinct for self-preservation). The moral law says it really doesn't care how difficult or how dangerous something is to do, if it's the right thing to do then we should do it all the same.
We discussed about whether the moral law was simply something passed down to us and taught to us by our parents and our teachers and we discussed that yes it probably is but we also discussed how there are two classes of things that are taught to us, 1) the class of things which could be different depending on where you live or the time you live in (driving on the right hand side of the road in America versus the left hand side (in England)
--and--
2) pure truths (multiplication table 2x2 = 4 everywhere you go).
Our goal was to determine which one the moral law belonged to.
As the moral law is the standard by which we judge two moralities or two impulses, we concluded that it was pure truth (the real right). This moral law is something we haven't made but nevertheless seems to be pressing on us and it's something that is above and beyond the ordinary facts of mens behavior.
We asked what this tells us about the universe. We looked at science and what the goal of science must be and we discussed how science works by experiment but how science can not say if there is anything behind the things science observes or "why" that something is there or why the universe is there or why it goes on and on, etc. However we do have one thing that we know more about than we could learn from external observation and that thing is man.
Because we are men, we have inside information so to speak and we do find that men are under this moral law. We then talked about how if the moral law showed how we "ought" to behave rather than how we "do" in fact behave (unlike the stone who obeys the law of gravitation, we're showing what the stone in fact "does") then that something else is above the facts and can not itself be one of the facts. We used the illustration C.S. Lewis uses about the architect of a house can not also be one of the walls or doors in the house and just like there is one behind the design of a house there is a mind or power behind the universe. This mind or power must be a great artist (because the universe is very beautiful) but he must also be very merciless to humans (because the universe is also a very dangerous and terrifying place).
Since this mind or power could not make himself any of the facts inside the universe then the only way it could show itself to us would be inside us as an influence trying to get us to behave in a certain way and this is exactly what we do find. This bit of evidence about a "somebody" behind the universe shows he's intensely interested in right conduct, in fair play, in unselfishness, courage, good faith, honesty and truthfulness. C.S. Lewis talks about this power behind the moral law being tough as nails and there was no pointing in asking it to let you off any more than it would make sense to ask the multiplication table to let 2x2 = 7 in your case. It's also no use in saying you are not going to bother with him because at least a part of you agrees with him. You disapprove of human exploitation, greed, treachery. You may want him to make an exception in your case but in your heart of hearts you know that unless the power behind the universe really and unalterably detests that sort of behavior, he cannot be good.
BUT if there is an absolute goodness it must hate most of what we do and this is the terrible fix we are in.
We read the passage about how we have made ourselves enemies to God and are not in the least likely to do any better tomorrow. Here is the passage because I think it's one of the most powerful passages I've ever read. "If the universe is not governed by an absolute goodness, then all our efforts are in the long run hopeless. But if it is, then we are making ourselves enemies to that goodness every day, and are not in the last likely to do any better tomorrow, and so our case is hopeless again. We cannot do without it, and we cannot do with it. God is the only comfort, He is also the supreme terror: the thing we must need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves His enemies. Some people talk as if meeting the gaze of absolute goodness would be fun. They need to think again. They are still only playing with religion. Goodness is either the great safety or the great danger - according to the way you react to it. And we have reacted the wrong way."
Powerful stuff.
The last point for the evening was the fact that Christianity does not make any sense without facing the facts C.S. Lewis has described thus far. Christianity tells people to repent and promises forgiveness. It has nothing to say to those who think they've got nothing to repent of. It is only when you realise there is a moral law and a power behind the law and that you have broken the law and put yourself wrong with that power - it is only then that Christianity begins to speak. When you know you are sick, you will listen to the doctor. When you realise your position is desperate you will begin to understand what Christians are talking about.
Christianity offers an explanation of how we got into our present state and how God can be this impersonal mind at the back of the moral law and yet also a person. They say how the demands of the law that we cannot meet, have been met on our behalf. How God himself became a man to save man from the disapproval of God.
We must all face the facts and if we are honest they are, as C.S. Lewis describes them, terrifying facts.
We have set ourselves up against the God of the Universe. The one that made the sun that would pelvarize you in an instant if you came too close.
Christianity is a religion of unspeakable comfort but it does not start that way. It begins in dismay.
Thank you God for C.S. Lewis and for his brain and for his willingness to allow you to speak through Him and thank you for a youth group that is at least willing to challenge everything they think they know about Christianity...
Next week we discuss Christianity and "the invasion" :))
Lately I've been re-reading the book and I can't seem to get enough. So much so that I decided the youth at our church would really benefit from reading it as well but instead of giving them all a copy and wishing them luck I decided to teach on the book during our Wednesday night Influence meetings. We've had two so far and we haven't even touched on christianity yet. The first week we talked about the Moral Law, or Law of Human Nature, Law of Decency or Fair play. We talked and came to agreement that there was such a law pressing on each of us and we talked about how it describes not the behavior that we do exhibit as humans but the behavior we "ought" to exhibit.
So point one in lesson one was there is a moral law. Point two was we break it.
Simple enough, the group seemed to enjoy the interaction and the excuse to use their brains during their summer holidays.
Lesson two started last night and I got so pumped up in preparing that my notes alone were 13 pages long. As the night approached I got more and more intimidated by the study and the power of the words of the book and its implications and really had to give it all over to the Holy Spirit to say what he wanted me to say. We started with instincts and impulses and how the Moral Law is not one of our insticts but instead is the voice you hear that helps you to judge between two competing insticts (Millo saving Josh who is currently drowning in the Mersey (instinct to help someone) versus his instict not to drown (instinct for self-preservation). The moral law says it really doesn't care how difficult or how dangerous something is to do, if it's the right thing to do then we should do it all the same.
We discussed about whether the moral law was simply something passed down to us and taught to us by our parents and our teachers and we discussed that yes it probably is but we also discussed how there are two classes of things that are taught to us, 1) the class of things which could be different depending on where you live or the time you live in (driving on the right hand side of the road in America versus the left hand side (in England)
--and--
2) pure truths (multiplication table 2x2 = 4 everywhere you go).
Our goal was to determine which one the moral law belonged to.
As the moral law is the standard by which we judge two moralities or two impulses, we concluded that it was pure truth (the real right). This moral law is something we haven't made but nevertheless seems to be pressing on us and it's something that is above and beyond the ordinary facts of mens behavior.
We asked what this tells us about the universe. We looked at science and what the goal of science must be and we discussed how science works by experiment but how science can not say if there is anything behind the things science observes or "why" that something is there or why the universe is there or why it goes on and on, etc. However we do have one thing that we know more about than we could learn from external observation and that thing is man.
Because we are men, we have inside information so to speak and we do find that men are under this moral law. We then talked about how if the moral law showed how we "ought" to behave rather than how we "do" in fact behave (unlike the stone who obeys the law of gravitation, we're showing what the stone in fact "does") then that something else is above the facts and can not itself be one of the facts. We used the illustration C.S. Lewis uses about the architect of a house can not also be one of the walls or doors in the house and just like there is one behind the design of a house there is a mind or power behind the universe. This mind or power must be a great artist (because the universe is very beautiful) but he must also be very merciless to humans (because the universe is also a very dangerous and terrifying place).
Since this mind or power could not make himself any of the facts inside the universe then the only way it could show itself to us would be inside us as an influence trying to get us to behave in a certain way and this is exactly what we do find. This bit of evidence about a "somebody" behind the universe shows he's intensely interested in right conduct, in fair play, in unselfishness, courage, good faith, honesty and truthfulness. C.S. Lewis talks about this power behind the moral law being tough as nails and there was no pointing in asking it to let you off any more than it would make sense to ask the multiplication table to let 2x2 = 7 in your case. It's also no use in saying you are not going to bother with him because at least a part of you agrees with him. You disapprove of human exploitation, greed, treachery. You may want him to make an exception in your case but in your heart of hearts you know that unless the power behind the universe really and unalterably detests that sort of behavior, he cannot be good.
BUT if there is an absolute goodness it must hate most of what we do and this is the terrible fix we are in.
We read the passage about how we have made ourselves enemies to God and are not in the least likely to do any better tomorrow. Here is the passage because I think it's one of the most powerful passages I've ever read. "If the universe is not governed by an absolute goodness, then all our efforts are in the long run hopeless. But if it is, then we are making ourselves enemies to that goodness every day, and are not in the last likely to do any better tomorrow, and so our case is hopeless again. We cannot do without it, and we cannot do with it. God is the only comfort, He is also the supreme terror: the thing we must need and the thing we most want to hide from. He is our only possible ally, and we have made ourselves His enemies. Some people talk as if meeting the gaze of absolute goodness would be fun. They need to think again. They are still only playing with religion. Goodness is either the great safety or the great danger - according to the way you react to it. And we have reacted the wrong way."
Powerful stuff.
The last point for the evening was the fact that Christianity does not make any sense without facing the facts C.S. Lewis has described thus far. Christianity tells people to repent and promises forgiveness. It has nothing to say to those who think they've got nothing to repent of. It is only when you realise there is a moral law and a power behind the law and that you have broken the law and put yourself wrong with that power - it is only then that Christianity begins to speak. When you know you are sick, you will listen to the doctor. When you realise your position is desperate you will begin to understand what Christians are talking about.
Christianity offers an explanation of how we got into our present state and how God can be this impersonal mind at the back of the moral law and yet also a person. They say how the demands of the law that we cannot meet, have been met on our behalf. How God himself became a man to save man from the disapproval of God.
We must all face the facts and if we are honest they are, as C.S. Lewis describes them, terrifying facts.
We have set ourselves up against the God of the Universe. The one that made the sun that would pelvarize you in an instant if you came too close.
Christianity is a religion of unspeakable comfort but it does not start that way. It begins in dismay.
Thank you God for C.S. Lewis and for his brain and for his willingness to allow you to speak through Him and thank you for a youth group that is at least willing to challenge everything they think they know about Christianity...
Next week we discuss Christianity and "the invasion" :))
Saturday, 3 July 2010
My Georgia trip thus far...
Well, all I can say is I'M TIRED!!!
So why am I deciding to update my blog instead of go to sleep? I have no idea. Probably because I'll forget to do it if I don't do it while it's on my mind.
Let's see... today is July the 3rd (Saturday). I got here on June the 22nd (Tuesday) so I need about a week and a half update. Ok wait for it... here it is... YARD SALE>>> CRAIGSLIST>>>EBAY!! These three little words (well four if you count yard sale as two) have absolutely consumed my first week and a half here at home.
Today we held what I consider to have been an incredibly successful yard sale to support Alans and my ministry to Germany. We had it at Christine's. I was up at 5:30 after not getting to bed until midnight and there were people coming TO the yard sale at 6:30. There are actually people in this world that I believe do nothing except anticipate yard sales, wait for them, get up SUPER early for them and then run around to as many as possible BEFORE any of them officially open. These people are what I call "NUTS!!" One lady who visited me today I am now lovingly referring to as the whirlwind. She was a PRO. That's all I can say. She came, she conquered, she took a ton of stuff and she got a GREAT deal for it all. She said it was because she was a very good shopper. Either that or I was a very BAD saleswoman! Ah well, she was taking it to Africa to folks that needed it and I figured God would be happy with me giving her all sorts of bargains so I did.
It's Monday night now - I was too tired to finish the other night so I'll finish now.
I just completed a rough draft of our support letter that I need to print, address and mail before I head back to England. Mom and Dad are looking at it now and Alan still has to look at it but it would be great if I could get them off before leaving. This by far has been the busiest "vacation" I've ever had. The stuff I listed on ebay sold last night so now I have to get it all packed up and mailed tomorrow. Once I get that done, I'll get the support letters off and see about half a dozen people for coffee or lunch plus get a few more supplies to take back and pack and then and only then I'll be ready to go :). Today was a great relaxing day though. It started with swimming at Russ' and Christine's house, then a great barbeque grill out followed by pedicures and eyebrow waxes for the sisters. My eyebrows looked like a bush and my feet - well let's just not talk about my feet. When I worked at Microsoft and made a bunch of money I went to get my nails done every two weeks like clockwork. Now I go when I come home to Georgia - so about every 3-4 months :)). Ah well, it was great fun being with my sisters. Mom made spaghetti for dinner and I was able to skype Alan and other than being very tired himself, he was well.
Pastor Carlos has been preaching on the minor prophets this summer so I've been able to hear him preach on Nahum and Habakuk so far. Both good messages. Last Sunday college class was on and I enjoyed hearing Vic speak as well. We always get into some good debates. Unfortunately Vic decided to be a slacker and take a mini-vacation to Alabama last week over the 4th of July so college class was cancelled this week. Too bad.
Alan and I could use your prayers to find a renter for our home here in Athens. The girls that have been renting are moving out at the end of July and having the house sit without renters will cost us a fortune. Please pray God brings the right people and if He's willing, by August :).
Being home is always wonderful because I love seeing family and friends but I have really missed Alan. It'll be great getting back to him and back to our church. I was sorry I missed Julian speak and I always hate missing our housegroup and youth but I've needed to be here and so far we've made close to $1500 from the yard sale and ebay/craigslist stuff selling and I've cleared out everything in the attic so we're pleased.
God is good.
So why am I deciding to update my blog instead of go to sleep? I have no idea. Probably because I'll forget to do it if I don't do it while it's on my mind.
Let's see... today is July the 3rd (Saturday). I got here on June the 22nd (Tuesday) so I need about a week and a half update. Ok wait for it... here it is... YARD SALE>>> CRAIGSLIST>>>EBAY!! These three little words (well four if you count yard sale as two) have absolutely consumed my first week and a half here at home.
Today we held what I consider to have been an incredibly successful yard sale to support Alans and my ministry to Germany. We had it at Christine's. I was up at 5:30 after not getting to bed until midnight and there were people coming TO the yard sale at 6:30. There are actually people in this world that I believe do nothing except anticipate yard sales, wait for them, get up SUPER early for them and then run around to as many as possible BEFORE any of them officially open. These people are what I call "NUTS!!" One lady who visited me today I am now lovingly referring to as the whirlwind. She was a PRO. That's all I can say. She came, she conquered, she took a ton of stuff and she got a GREAT deal for it all. She said it was because she was a very good shopper. Either that or I was a very BAD saleswoman! Ah well, she was taking it to Africa to folks that needed it and I figured God would be happy with me giving her all sorts of bargains so I did.
It's Monday night now - I was too tired to finish the other night so I'll finish now.
I just completed a rough draft of our support letter that I need to print, address and mail before I head back to England. Mom and Dad are looking at it now and Alan still has to look at it but it would be great if I could get them off before leaving. This by far has been the busiest "vacation" I've ever had. The stuff I listed on ebay sold last night so now I have to get it all packed up and mailed tomorrow. Once I get that done, I'll get the support letters off and see about half a dozen people for coffee or lunch plus get a few more supplies to take back and pack and then and only then I'll be ready to go :). Today was a great relaxing day though. It started with swimming at Russ' and Christine's house, then a great barbeque grill out followed by pedicures and eyebrow waxes for the sisters. My eyebrows looked like a bush and my feet - well let's just not talk about my feet. When I worked at Microsoft and made a bunch of money I went to get my nails done every two weeks like clockwork. Now I go when I come home to Georgia - so about every 3-4 months :)). Ah well, it was great fun being with my sisters. Mom made spaghetti for dinner and I was able to skype Alan and other than being very tired himself, he was well.
Pastor Carlos has been preaching on the minor prophets this summer so I've been able to hear him preach on Nahum and Habakuk so far. Both good messages. Last Sunday college class was on and I enjoyed hearing Vic speak as well. We always get into some good debates. Unfortunately Vic decided to be a slacker and take a mini-vacation to Alabama last week over the 4th of July so college class was cancelled this week. Too bad.
Alan and I could use your prayers to find a renter for our home here in Athens. The girls that have been renting are moving out at the end of July and having the house sit without renters will cost us a fortune. Please pray God brings the right people and if He's willing, by August :).
Being home is always wonderful because I love seeing family and friends but I have really missed Alan. It'll be great getting back to him and back to our church. I was sorry I missed Julian speak and I always hate missing our housegroup and youth but I've needed to be here and so far we've made close to $1500 from the yard sale and ebay/craigslist stuff selling and I've cleared out everything in the attic so we're pleased.
God is good.
Monday, 21 June 2010
Keeping track of the days...
Have you ever noticed how busy you are and how you wish you kept up with everything you do on a daily basis so that when you are really tired and you wonder why you could look back at the list and say - oh yeah!! that's why!!
Since I last wrote, Alan and I have had our days absolutely chopped full. Last Tuesday and Wednesday we had a series of tests at the hospital to try to figure out why we can't seem to have children - FUN :Z. Thursday we drove with our pastor to Bawtry in Yorkshire for a final interview with Pioneers. The meeting went well and we were happy to be asked to come on board with Pioneers full-time serving in Germany starting in January of 2011. Now the fun part begins with fund raising and support gathering. Alan and I are both learning to trust God fully to meet all our needs. I guess in some ways I'm a bit further along in the trust department because I remember how God miraculously provided for me while I was with Teen Missions but Alans never been dependent on anyone other than his parents and so he is understandably a bit more apprehensive.
In any case, we are prepared to go and we're excited to go. We know there is a ton of work God is calling us to do and hopefully others will want to be a part of our team as we reach out to German nationals, University of Heidelberg students and US Army Base soldiers and their families. In addition to this we hope to work very closely with the local church God led us to on our Easter trip to Germany, with their youth group, deaf and homeless ministries as well as eventually lead a small group out of our home. Other thoughts we've had are to open a missions training house where christians can come to be encouraged, discipled and eventually trained for outreach and evangelism locally and also around the globe. We've also talked about a charity, cake & coffee shop to use for outreach into the community. Growing our team in Germany will be a focus too as we hope to host Pioneers Edge Summer teams and other individuals looking to serve God in Germany like us.
After returning from Bawtry, Friday's focus went to selling my car and listing our house for sale. In fact I spent the majority of the day cleaning the house so that estate agents could come to evaluate it and the rest of my day cleaning out the car to sell it. I didn't want to sell my car but with us moving to Germany and with the cost of running it being so expensive both Alan and I decided one car would suffice for us both. My driving of manual cars has improved although I've not yet psyched myself up for the driving test. Maybe after Georgia :). In the end I did sell my car for the asking price so I was happy.
On Saturday Alan and I worked at the church for several hours clearing out the back garden to make way for new landscaping and a barbeque area for the church. I love gardening :) I think I got it from my dad. After that Alan really wanted to go sailing so I went with him and took webster and we took pictures from the shore and then walked the about 4 miles back home while Alan sailed.
Sunday was a good prayer meeting at church followed by the church service. Iain spoke on the Walls of Jerusalem and on Nehemiah getting the whole town to chip in to make it happen. He likened it to our work at Hillside and how if each person just did a little bit we could make it happen which was exactly what Alan and I were saying to eachother the day before. After church we tidied up a bit before going sailing together. It was the first time the Mary Belle had been out to sea (rather just staying in the bay) and we just had a blast sailing her. She handled really well and Alan is a great sailor. He'll be sad when he sells the boat to help raise funds for Germany but it's good he's gettin this time now to sail her after the amount of work he put into the boat to make her sea-worthy.
Today I had to run around like a crazy woman to get the house cleaned so the estate agent could come and take pictures for our brochure and board. I also had to check-in for my flight, pack, mail the stuff sold on ebay and run errands (literally as I have no car now! :)). Tonight we have a leadership meeting at the church and then I'll finish packing and we'll try to get to bed early as we need to leave for the airport no later than 7am for Alan to make it to work on time.
If you're reading this and you're in prayer this week... please pray for us. Pray specifically that we won't miss each other too much while I'm in Georgia and while Alan stays here in England. Pray that we'll begin to raise funds for our mission to Germany and that I'll be able to sort out and sell lots of my stuff stored in the attic at home. Pray that God will watch over us as we spend the last few months here in England and that we'll keep focused on our end goal. Pray that if God is willing for us to have children that He'll give the doctors wisdom as to what could be wrong and that we'll be blessed with a child (or two!). Finally pray that the love between us will continue to grow and that we'll cling closer and closer to Jesus and to eachother as we step out in faith to serve Him. We're so thankful for each of you and for all the prayers you've prayed for us already. :)
Since I last wrote, Alan and I have had our days absolutely chopped full. Last Tuesday and Wednesday we had a series of tests at the hospital to try to figure out why we can't seem to have children - FUN :Z. Thursday we drove with our pastor to Bawtry in Yorkshire for a final interview with Pioneers. The meeting went well and we were happy to be asked to come on board with Pioneers full-time serving in Germany starting in January of 2011. Now the fun part begins with fund raising and support gathering. Alan and I are both learning to trust God fully to meet all our needs. I guess in some ways I'm a bit further along in the trust department because I remember how God miraculously provided for me while I was with Teen Missions but Alans never been dependent on anyone other than his parents and so he is understandably a bit more apprehensive.
In any case, we are prepared to go and we're excited to go. We know there is a ton of work God is calling us to do and hopefully others will want to be a part of our team as we reach out to German nationals, University of Heidelberg students and US Army Base soldiers and their families. In addition to this we hope to work very closely with the local church God led us to on our Easter trip to Germany, with their youth group, deaf and homeless ministries as well as eventually lead a small group out of our home. Other thoughts we've had are to open a missions training house where christians can come to be encouraged, discipled and eventually trained for outreach and evangelism locally and also around the globe. We've also talked about a charity, cake & coffee shop to use for outreach into the community. Growing our team in Germany will be a focus too as we hope to host Pioneers Edge Summer teams and other individuals looking to serve God in Germany like us.
After returning from Bawtry, Friday's focus went to selling my car and listing our house for sale. In fact I spent the majority of the day cleaning the house so that estate agents could come to evaluate it and the rest of my day cleaning out the car to sell it. I didn't want to sell my car but with us moving to Germany and with the cost of running it being so expensive both Alan and I decided one car would suffice for us both. My driving of manual cars has improved although I've not yet psyched myself up for the driving test. Maybe after Georgia :). In the end I did sell my car for the asking price so I was happy.
On Saturday Alan and I worked at the church for several hours clearing out the back garden to make way for new landscaping and a barbeque area for the church. I love gardening :) I think I got it from my dad. After that Alan really wanted to go sailing so I went with him and took webster and we took pictures from the shore and then walked the about 4 miles back home while Alan sailed.
Sunday was a good prayer meeting at church followed by the church service. Iain spoke on the Walls of Jerusalem and on Nehemiah getting the whole town to chip in to make it happen. He likened it to our work at Hillside and how if each person just did a little bit we could make it happen which was exactly what Alan and I were saying to eachother the day before. After church we tidied up a bit before going sailing together. It was the first time the Mary Belle had been out to sea (rather just staying in the bay) and we just had a blast sailing her. She handled really well and Alan is a great sailor. He'll be sad when he sells the boat to help raise funds for Germany but it's good he's gettin this time now to sail her after the amount of work he put into the boat to make her sea-worthy.
Today I had to run around like a crazy woman to get the house cleaned so the estate agent could come and take pictures for our brochure and board. I also had to check-in for my flight, pack, mail the stuff sold on ebay and run errands (literally as I have no car now! :)). Tonight we have a leadership meeting at the church and then I'll finish packing and we'll try to get to bed early as we need to leave for the airport no later than 7am for Alan to make it to work on time.
If you're reading this and you're in prayer this week... please pray for us. Pray specifically that we won't miss each other too much while I'm in Georgia and while Alan stays here in England. Pray that we'll begin to raise funds for our mission to Germany and that I'll be able to sort out and sell lots of my stuff stored in the attic at home. Pray that God will watch over us as we spend the last few months here in England and that we'll keep focused on our end goal. Pray that if God is willing for us to have children that He'll give the doctors wisdom as to what could be wrong and that we'll be blessed with a child (or two!). Finally pray that the love between us will continue to grow and that we'll cling closer and closer to Jesus and to eachother as we step out in faith to serve Him. We're so thankful for each of you and for all the prayers you've prayed for us already. :)
Monday, 14 June 2010
Last minute trip to Georgia planned
Well last week Alan and I decided it would be a good idea for me to try to get to Georgia to see my family and to begin generating prayer and financial support for our mission to Germany. Also I'll be going through my attic and doing another major clear-out to raise funds to pay for our plane tickets home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. My plan was to go in July or August but the plane tickets jumped several hundred quid between June and July so I made a last minute decision to go this month.
Given that this week has suddenly turned nuts - sooooo much to do! First priority is our interview with Pioneers on Thursday in Bawtry. Then we're listing our house for sale and are also selling my Clio and about a dozen things on ebay to raise some funds. Doctors appointments to try and figure out why we haven't been able to have children yet and driving lessos. In addition to that we have the regular youth on Wednesday and Friday and Housegroup on Thursday.
Next week it's Georgia, time with the family, my precious nieces and sell, sell, sell! Looking forward to seeing great friends and enjoying the time away but I will miss my husband and sweet dog Webster to bits. God is starting to carve our path to Germany and we couldn't be more excited!
Given that this week has suddenly turned nuts - sooooo much to do! First priority is our interview with Pioneers on Thursday in Bawtry. Then we're listing our house for sale and are also selling my Clio and about a dozen things on ebay to raise some funds. Doctors appointments to try and figure out why we haven't been able to have children yet and driving lessos. In addition to that we have the regular youth on Wednesday and Friday and Housegroup on Thursday.
Next week it's Georgia, time with the family, my precious nieces and sell, sell, sell! Looking forward to seeing great friends and enjoying the time away but I will miss my husband and sweet dog Webster to bits. God is starting to carve our path to Germany and we couldn't be more excited!
Monday, 7 June 2010
Watching God move in the lives of Teenagers
Sorry it's been a while again since I've posted but I've found being out of work has left me more consumed with things to do than ever before. Currently what consumes my time the most is work with my church which is fantastic because it's what I want to do for the rest of my life. Working for God has got to be the coolest job ever because it really doesn't feel like work and it brings so much joy and such a feeling of purpose and accomplishment. Nothing I ever received at Microsoft or Expedia or any other job even came close to what I feel as a full-time missionary.
Even though we haven't had our final interviews with Pioneers and received our appointment letter for Germany both Alan and I feel like I'm already in full-time christian service. I have been blessed to join up as a leader in our youth group and am also serving one day a week for a charity out of our church called the Ministry of Food. What I've enjoyed doing the most for them is building a database of manufacturers who could provide excess or unwanted food and charities who would want to come and get it. It's been nearly ten years since I was a database developer at LaserDirect and I just love working with data. Strange I know but I do love it! Probably because of the organization it creates and you all know how I love to be organized! lol
The other day I was cleaning out my house, throwing stuff away, finding stuff to sell on ebay to supplement our finances and I thought - wow I really love doing this kind of thing lol. I'm sure God thought it was funny to stick someone who absolutely loves being organized with a husband who really couldn't be bothered to organize anything if his life depended on it! I reference his car, boat and wardrobe as evidence to this claim lol. Alan is a fix-it man and fortunately for him today I made a list of fix-it tasks around the house that need to be done before we move to Germany. It's two pages, single-spaced. Haha he laughed when he saw it. I'm not sure how to take that exactly!! :)
Tonight we had a leadership meeting at the church where we talked primarily about the youth group and everything Hannah and I have been working on and planning for the next few months ahead. I absolutely love watching God move in the lives of teenagers. Just in the last few days I've had half a dozen of the teens we're working with ask me to get them bibles. One girl that I like a lot who is very shy asked Jesus into her heart on Sunday and I look forward to taking her through an aalpha course so she can fully understand the implications of her decision and also help disciple her for a few months before we go. God has been so faithful to continue to put people in my path that I can work with, minister to and challenge. About a month ago I started a scripture memory challenge with our Wednesday night Influence group and the teens have really taken to it. They moan and groan a bit when I stop them on the street and make them quote the verses but as long as scripture gets engrained in their heads I can put up with the moaning :)).
Whether here in the UK or in Germany I know Alans and my missions focus will be on teenagers - evangelizing to them, discipling them, training them up in all areas of their lives and getting them onto the missions field. There's nothing better in all the world than seeing young people on fire for God and spreading that fire to their friends, their families and their schools. The great thing about the 15-23 age is most haven't become callous,hard or hurt yet, they all love a good challenge and they are dreamers. They believe they can do anything and with someone believing in them and loving them I honestly believe they can too.
Desperate for love, desperate for attention and desperate for Jesus - what better mission field could there be?!?
Even though we haven't had our final interviews with Pioneers and received our appointment letter for Germany both Alan and I feel like I'm already in full-time christian service. I have been blessed to join up as a leader in our youth group and am also serving one day a week for a charity out of our church called the Ministry of Food. What I've enjoyed doing the most for them is building a database of manufacturers who could provide excess or unwanted food and charities who would want to come and get it. It's been nearly ten years since I was a database developer at LaserDirect and I just love working with data. Strange I know but I do love it! Probably because of the organization it creates and you all know how I love to be organized! lol
The other day I was cleaning out my house, throwing stuff away, finding stuff to sell on ebay to supplement our finances and I thought - wow I really love doing this kind of thing lol. I'm sure God thought it was funny to stick someone who absolutely loves being organized with a husband who really couldn't be bothered to organize anything if his life depended on it! I reference his car, boat and wardrobe as evidence to this claim lol. Alan is a fix-it man and fortunately for him today I made a list of fix-it tasks around the house that need to be done before we move to Germany. It's two pages, single-spaced. Haha he laughed when he saw it. I'm not sure how to take that exactly!! :)
Tonight we had a leadership meeting at the church where we talked primarily about the youth group and everything Hannah and I have been working on and planning for the next few months ahead. I absolutely love watching God move in the lives of teenagers. Just in the last few days I've had half a dozen of the teens we're working with ask me to get them bibles. One girl that I like a lot who is very shy asked Jesus into her heart on Sunday and I look forward to taking her through an aalpha course so she can fully understand the implications of her decision and also help disciple her for a few months before we go. God has been so faithful to continue to put people in my path that I can work with, minister to and challenge. About a month ago I started a scripture memory challenge with our Wednesday night Influence group and the teens have really taken to it. They moan and groan a bit when I stop them on the street and make them quote the verses but as long as scripture gets engrained in their heads I can put up with the moaning :)).
Whether here in the UK or in Germany I know Alans and my missions focus will be on teenagers - evangelizing to them, discipling them, training them up in all areas of their lives and getting them onto the missions field. There's nothing better in all the world than seeing young people on fire for God and spreading that fire to their friends, their families and their schools. The great thing about the 15-23 age is most haven't become callous,hard or hurt yet, they all love a good challenge and they are dreamers. They believe they can do anything and with someone believing in them and loving them I honestly believe they can too.
Desperate for love, desperate for attention and desperate for Jesus - what better mission field could there be?!?
Friday, 21 May 2010
Not so great surprises
The Lord is teaching me to be on my guard for the little things which if not handled well can easily develop into something big and ugly.
Little things like this...
Alan is addicted to boats. I tried to choose my wording there carefully but addicted was the only thing close enough to describe this mans passion about sailing. He had his first sailboat when I met him but because he was very poor, no - not just regular poor but VERY poor, he decided to sell his boat to buy my engagement ring so we could be married. From the moment he told me what he'd done I've been trying to find a way to get him a replacement. Last Christmas I scraped together our pennies and bought a very run-down, needs a LOT of work but has potential sailing boat that he could fix up and use.
Fast forward to yesterday...
Alan has been rushing to get the boat finished these last few weeks so he could put it in the water this weekend. Functionally the boat was pretty sound and sea worthy but asthetically it was in need of a huge makeover. Alan had talked extensively about needing to paint it and had said to me several times, "want to paint my boat?" to which I always replied, "no thanks - that's your baby to do with as you'd like". When he took my inside for the first time he commented, don't worry I'm going to paint this white and you'll love it. He even surprised me by telling me he was going to name it "Mary Belle" for Beautiful Mary.
awwwwwww :)
Well, seeing that I had done nothing to help him and that he only had a couple of days remaining before his planned launch I decided to surprise him by cleaning his boat up really well. I'm pretty terrified of heights and so getting on the boat was a challenge but once I did I set to work and scrubbed and scrubbed to try to get it clean. Unfortunately there was no denying it needed a paint job so I decided to go to the boat paint store to buy what I needed to touch up the red sides and then paint the inside white like he had asked.
£46 pounds later I left the boat store and headed home. By 4:00pm I had finished the red and painted about 1/2 of the white and was running out of both paint and time. I so desperately wanted the whole boat painted before Alan got home but in the end decided he'd be happy with what I'd done so far and I'd tell him I'd finish it on Friday in time for him to take it out on the weekend.
I went inside and showered and waited for him to get home. In fact I waited upstairs by the window to see the expression on his face when he saw his new, clean painted boat. Unfortunately when he arrived he didn't notice anything and came straight inside, then there was a pause and I heard, "Mary - what have you done to my boat?" But it wasn't in a good way. It was in horror. I waited and watched him go back outside and when I saw the look on his face knew I had done something terribly, terribly wrong. It was as if I'd murdered his first born.
I told him I wanted to surprise him and that I had painted it just as he said he wanted it - white inside and out and touching up the red but he just looked at me like I'd stabbed him through the heart and then he said "oh I'm surprised but it's not in a good way... it's a terrible surpise!"
Well I was crushed. Apparently when he said he wanted the boat white he didn't really mean white - he meant he wanted to touch up the ugly cream that was already there and when he said he wanted me to paint the boat, he was only joking. I was so sorry I had spent my entire day going up and down the ladder, to the boat store twice, to the hardware store for paint thinner and more brushes and in the end only made a complete mess of it. Ha - I even took things to spruce up the inside like a little survival kit, family pictures, books on sailing, etc. He hated it - everything - hated.
Why is it the little things in life have such a big impact whereas the big stuff we seem to handle in stride? I promise you that the boat situation was far worse then most of the things we've had to face as a couple together. In reality though - it's nothing~! I tried to surpise my husband because I loved him doing what I thought he wanted and he hated it. So what!? It wasn't as if I intentionally tried to hurt or harm him.
He got upset because something I did wasn't perfect. So what!? Isn't he allowed to dislike some of the things I do? At least he was honest - brutally is probably not saying it strongly enough but hey, he didn't just tell me he didn't love me any more, was leaving and was having an affair with a married woman!
Why is it so hard for us to put things into perspective? Why do the little things rattle us so much? Please God sort out the little things so that we don't blow them up to be big things.
In the end our housegroup made us laugh as we retold the story last night. Mercifully we also got to hear stories of other funny husband/wife disagreements and differences. We're so grateful for our church and the love of the people there. God is good - though the big things yes but even more so through the little.
Little things like this...
Alan is addicted to boats. I tried to choose my wording there carefully but addicted was the only thing close enough to describe this mans passion about sailing. He had his first sailboat when I met him but because he was very poor, no - not just regular poor but VERY poor, he decided to sell his boat to buy my engagement ring so we could be married. From the moment he told me what he'd done I've been trying to find a way to get him a replacement. Last Christmas I scraped together our pennies and bought a very run-down, needs a LOT of work but has potential sailing boat that he could fix up and use.
Fast forward to yesterday...
Alan has been rushing to get the boat finished these last few weeks so he could put it in the water this weekend. Functionally the boat was pretty sound and sea worthy but asthetically it was in need of a huge makeover. Alan had talked extensively about needing to paint it and had said to me several times, "want to paint my boat?" to which I always replied, "no thanks - that's your baby to do with as you'd like". When he took my inside for the first time he commented, don't worry I'm going to paint this white and you'll love it. He even surprised me by telling me he was going to name it "Mary Belle" for Beautiful Mary.
awwwwwww :)
Well, seeing that I had done nothing to help him and that he only had a couple of days remaining before his planned launch I decided to surprise him by cleaning his boat up really well. I'm pretty terrified of heights and so getting on the boat was a challenge but once I did I set to work and scrubbed and scrubbed to try to get it clean. Unfortunately there was no denying it needed a paint job so I decided to go to the boat paint store to buy what I needed to touch up the red sides and then paint the inside white like he had asked.
£46 pounds later I left the boat store and headed home. By 4:00pm I had finished the red and painted about 1/2 of the white and was running out of both paint and time. I so desperately wanted the whole boat painted before Alan got home but in the end decided he'd be happy with what I'd done so far and I'd tell him I'd finish it on Friday in time for him to take it out on the weekend.
I went inside and showered and waited for him to get home. In fact I waited upstairs by the window to see the expression on his face when he saw his new, clean painted boat. Unfortunately when he arrived he didn't notice anything and came straight inside, then there was a pause and I heard, "Mary - what have you done to my boat?" But it wasn't in a good way. It was in horror. I waited and watched him go back outside and when I saw the look on his face knew I had done something terribly, terribly wrong. It was as if I'd murdered his first born.
I told him I wanted to surprise him and that I had painted it just as he said he wanted it - white inside and out and touching up the red but he just looked at me like I'd stabbed him through the heart and then he said "oh I'm surprised but it's not in a good way... it's a terrible surpise!"
Well I was crushed. Apparently when he said he wanted the boat white he didn't really mean white - he meant he wanted to touch up the ugly cream that was already there and when he said he wanted me to paint the boat, he was only joking. I was so sorry I had spent my entire day going up and down the ladder, to the boat store twice, to the hardware store for paint thinner and more brushes and in the end only made a complete mess of it. Ha - I even took things to spruce up the inside like a little survival kit, family pictures, books on sailing, etc. He hated it - everything - hated.
Why is it the little things in life have such a big impact whereas the big stuff we seem to handle in stride? I promise you that the boat situation was far worse then most of the things we've had to face as a couple together. In reality though - it's nothing~! I tried to surpise my husband because I loved him doing what I thought he wanted and he hated it. So what!? It wasn't as if I intentionally tried to hurt or harm him.
He got upset because something I did wasn't perfect. So what!? Isn't he allowed to dislike some of the things I do? At least he was honest - brutally is probably not saying it strongly enough but hey, he didn't just tell me he didn't love me any more, was leaving and was having an affair with a married woman!
Why is it so hard for us to put things into perspective? Why do the little things rattle us so much? Please God sort out the little things so that we don't blow them up to be big things.
In the end our housegroup made us laugh as we retold the story last night. Mercifully we also got to hear stories of other funny husband/wife disagreements and differences. We're so grateful for our church and the love of the people there. God is good - though the big things yes but even more so through the little.
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