Checks we can't cash

Sometimes in life we write checks we can't cash. We promise to do things we often know we can't follow through on or things come up and we fall short. We buy a car we shouldn't and the payments get overwhelming or over use credit cards and have to dig out of a hole. The consequences of these checks can be sever or moderate but we have all been there.

I want to tell you about some friends who did this with us and the difference between faith and hope. We write the ones we can't cash out of hope when we simply want a bigger tv or to look good promising to help with some project. We hope it works out. We hope we discipline ourselves and pay things off. When God leads us and we don't know how it will work we call it faith. Sometimes this may seem foolish but our faith grows when it works out.

Some friends of ours felt like God was putting it on their heart to support us. They felt like God was challenging them to commit beyond what they could "afford". I am not sharing this to encourage anyone to give but to encourage them to obey God. They stepped out and made a commitment and mailed in their electronic funds transfer form for the amount they had in mind. About the time the first payment, amidst layoffs at his work, he gets a raise for almost the identical amount they committed to us.

It is so cool as we are in the midst of trying to do the impossible to see God faithfully meet them as they obey. The idea of moving my family to a new country, continent and language is a check I can't cash. Good thing God can.

God will come through

As much as it is a cool season as I recently shared. It is also a very draining season. Lots of meetings, dinners, packing, busyness in general. I know from past experience that when we are the most tired, exposed, and plain feeling wore out that is when God can come through the strongest. I know if I had everything come easy I would begin looking at how cool I am instead of how much I need God. It feels strange to say this but I am thankful God takes us to the end of ourselves and beyond. It really is when I don't believe things will work out, or I don't have anything left that God is proved most faithful, most real. I wonder if we could come to the point where we absolutely are reliant on God and not worried at all about life's circumstances. Would God simply meet needs daily without the slightest stress on our parts. Like the daisies or the birds would we simply daily glorify God without a thought or stress as to how things might work. I really want to be in that place but it seems every time I begin to get there I start becoming self reliant once again and the Lord is forced to stretch me one more time.

Cool season

We are really blessed as we are in this season of support raising. People are extremely gracious and many are excited to partner with us in what the Lord is doing. Sometimes we forget what a big family we have in the Lord until you begin to do something you can´t do on your own. We want everyone to know that being a sender is just as glorifying to God and just as vital as someone willing to go. Maybe more so. We appreciate the tremendous support and love we have received in this last year.

School is almost done, we have learned a lot. We am ready to go. As scary as the idea of learning a new culture and language is we are excited to get started on our next leg of this journey.

Tobasco park

One night when we were in Mexico we had the opportunity to present the gospel in the city park in Tobasco. It was an amazing night full of opposition. Our tape player for the drama broke, we began to fight, we disagreed with our host pastor. God came through, the gospel was preached, people got saved, people were fed and clothed. God is good.

Julio has come home and seems to continue to find success as an evangelist. We went to the OSU campus together with a few students from my bible school. He led 2 people to the Lord just yesterday.

Support

So many of you want to contribute prayerfully, financially, and in effort. I want to say thank you. It is encouraging as we step out in faith to receive confirmation from friends and family that this is what the Lord is doing in our life. Thank you all so much.

Slideshow of Mexico trip

Tobasco, the harvest is ready

What a cool place. Tobasco a little farming town just across the border. People here are farm workers and don’t make a lot of money but they do have a healthy joy. It was amazing to get another opportunity to go to Tobasco and share a message with my friends at Aqua Viva. Pastor Alfredo is a wonderful man that has a huge heart for the people in his church, city, and surrounding villages. People there are ready to hear the gospel, respond and his church is ready to disciple them. He is readying the men in his church to start bible studies or house churches in the small villages around where there is no church.

Personally I was humbled when he shared with Melissa and I that him and his church had been faithfully praying for us this last year. So much has happened in our life since we went there. It was the point we realized now is the time to go. It was the beginning of our preparing to go this July. Here is this little church, in a little town, with so much of their own needs and we have been blessed to be lifted in prayer by them. We don’t deserve it, we don’t deserve such a loving beautiful God.

 

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