Off and Running

The semester is off and running! I have twelve kids this semester- Three five year olds, five three year olds and four two year olds. Other wise known as "the big kids" and "the medium kids" and "the little kids" Though one of my two year old insists on a daily basis that he's "a big kid too!" 

Medium, Big and Little kids- all playing together

 Such a multi-age classroom certainly has its challenges. Let's just say lesson planning was quite extensive the first week - haha. But now things are running smoother, and I and the kids, are getting the hang of things. 

I don't do it all alone of course- that would be quite impossible.  The moms  of kids in the program take turns helping out in the classroom. They're a big help during the morning- and sometimes they even bring special talents- like face painting. 

The kids LOVED it!

Guess What?!?!

So- as many of you know- I've been praying to return to the Missionary Training Center in Missouri this fall. Partnership Development continued to inch along, so it didn't look very likely, but God had given me peace about staying or going- which ever He decided to do. I asked a bunch of you to start praying with me that my support would double so I would be able to return and serve on a permanent basis. Well, now, three weeks later, I have some awesome news for you: my support didn't double (not even remotely close).... BUT I STILL GET TO GO NEXT MONTH!!!!!!!!

And how in the world, you might ask, did God pull that off? 

Well, about three weeks ago I got a call from the Personnel Department at the Missionary Training Center saying they were really, really desperate for childcare personnel this fall, and if I was willing, and my home church agreed, they would be willing to bend their normal "60% or more for two months or more" policy- In short, would I please consider returning for the fall regardless of how much support I have?

I was immediately torn between instantly wanting to go and thinking "there is no way I can live on 35%". But after a week of intense prayer and a talk with my pastor- I was sure. God wants me to return, and He will take care of me, just like He takes care of the flowers and the birds. And would you believe support has gone up 8% since then? and more is promised! If God keeps going at this rate, I'll be at the minimum by fall-hurray! 

I've been waiting till I had an official departure date to tell you all, but its taking longer than I thought and I am too excited to wait any longer to tell you all. So- actual departure date: mid-to-late  July. Specfic day TBA

Thank you all for praying! Please don't stop now- God is doing the most amazing things!

Prayer Requests from latest newsletter:

Praise God for:
·         His goodness all around
·         His perfect timing
·         New (and very surprising) support
·         For the time He blessed me with at my old job
·         More time I can use in discovering the Partners God has picked out for this ministry

 

Pray for:

 

·         A heart attentive to what God is doing
·         Continued ministry opportunities
·         Wise use of daily time
·         God to continue to press this ministry onto the hearts of the people He’s chosen to partner with
·         Support to double by the end of June. (see explanation coming soon)
·         For full support and available housing to coincide for a prompt return to the Missionary Training Center

Why Childcare? Part Two

Why does God choose small people to use? Sometimes small in age, like David or Samuel were when they started. Sometimes it’s a different kind of small, sort of like “consider  your calling brethren, how not many wise, not many noble were chosen…” I think God likes to use little people, and even little things, just so that we can see how big and awesome He is. After all, isn’t that the point of all He does? He loves us so much, and He wants us to know Him. So He picks things and people to use that will make who He is obvious. Maybe that’s one of the reasons He likes kids so much. When the tool used is so small, you can’t help but admire the Craftsman.

Kids, being so small, are in a perfect position to show off the bigness of God. He is so great that He comes through even in the simple things they do-playing with other kids in the village, listening to their parents, sitting in the teaching times… all of these things are God’s light, shining through, not only to the kids who have never heard of Jesus, but also to the parents of these children.

People get confused and think that the strength of a ministry is in the skills of this individual, or the talent of that gifted person, or the incredible effort exerted by these faithful workers. And though all those things factor in, let’s not forget that “unless the Lord builds a house, they labor in vain that build it” (Psalm 127:1). And that God choses to use things we call foolish, low and weak to prove how desperately we need Him (1 Corinthians 1:27-31). God plans to be unmistakable.

Why be involved with childcare? Because God will use little people to display His wonderful, good, bigness. And after all, isn’t that what walking with Jesus is all about?

MassHOPE Covention

Now I suspect many of you know this about me, but God is kind of on a missions theme with my family. It started with my grandparents. Then my mom and two of her brothers got involved. And now me. One of my uncles is with NTM as well. He's a recruiter (also a family tradition- Grandpa and Grandma did this for years too). Uncle Randy and Aunt Diana invited me up to enjoy them at the MassHOPE covention (MassHOPE is a homeschool organization in Massachusetts).

Many people got to hear a bit about God's heart for unreached people groups. Keep praying for God to raise up more laborers for His harvest field.

I hate that verse....

I know, I know... you shouldn't hate Bible verses (all of them being true and profitable and all that).  But over the years this particular verse has left a sour taste in mouth. It's all I can do not to  make a face whenever it's quoted. Which is a shame, because this verse is disastrously popular. I'm sure you've heard it. I've even it on TV-a Christian dating site uses it in their commercials: Psalm 37:4

"Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart."

Now before you all stone me as a heretic, let me explain why I am fighting the serious impulse to type "Yuck" after that. I don't object to the verse itself, but the way this particular verse is used. You know what I mean. Some well-intentioned person at church asks how such and such is going and when you admit that things aren't happening the way you'd like, they come back with "well just delight yourself in the Lord, and he'll give you the desires of your heart. Just make sure you're delighting in the Lord." By which the dating commercials (and a frightening ammount of church people) mean:  "If you love Jesus enough, He'll give you whatever you want." Which is both a HORRIBLE way to encourage someone, and an ABSOLUTELY WRONG view of God. It's a band-aid wrapped in barbed-wire. However helpful the original intention, it's now going to do nothing but hurt. Let's see if we can unravel some of that barbed wire, shall we?

The thinking is not so different form that of the people groups NTM works to reach. Many unreached people groups are animists- they worship spirits. If you give the kind and amount of offering the spirits will give you a good harvest, or a healthy baby. All you have to do to get what you want is give just the right stuff to get whatever you want.  Sound like anything you read a paragraph or so ago?

God is so much bigger than those spirits. He does not demand our sacrifices to earn His grace- isn't that the whole point of the Gospel? That we COULDN'T do anything to earn to God's favor? That's why Jesus came. That's why He died. That why He is our Savior. He has done it all, paid it all, provided it all. And He promises to "provide all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" and "freely give us all things" and that "they that seek the Lord will not lack any good thing". AND that those who delight in Him will have the desires of their heart.

And God knows the desires of our hearts (after all, He's God, He knows everything, and knows it better than anyone else). So far we all agree right? Here's the twist: I think we frequently don't understand the desires of our hearts. We get focused on the means (that house, that relationship, that job, that ministry)  instead of the ends (joy, security, peace). So often we, or at least I, get fixated on something I want so much, because (usually subcounsiosly) I think that ministry/person/place will give me peace. THAT however, is not the case. Peace, joy, security, love all come from God. And God, being God, may (and frequently does) have a very, very different means of giving us the end our hearts are truly craving.

And no matter who says otherwise- God can, will and does plan the very best way to give us the deepest, truest desire of our hearts.

Just don't be surprised if it doesn't look a thing like what you thought.

Something to Think about

Nearly 1/3 of the world's population will die without ANY chance of hearing the gospel.

Of every $100 given to the church one penny goes to reach these people.

While you were reading that, two of them died.

And four more were just born.

2 billion people claim the name of Christ, while 2 billion others die with no hope, no chance of anyone coming where they live, going where they are, no way to hear the gospel.

Unreached and that is unacceptable. When God is so big and so good and has done so much and saved so many.

Its an old quote but the point is still very alive and valid: "We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first." -- Oswald J. Smith

Easter Blessing:

This Easter I got a special treat: I got to see both my parents AND my grandarents for Easter, so we were all together for Easter, except my brother and his wife, who are still stationed in California (oh the suffering of them with all that warm sunshine). Times when we can be together are few and far between, and with Grandpa recovering from heart surgery, it was an extra special blessing to be able to see him again :) I am so blessed and thankful for the family God has given me.

Getting Closer....

Praise the Lord, 35% of the monthly support I need has been promised. The green rectangles are what's currently given, the "cranberry" ones are promised. Thank you all for being part of this in your many different capacities :)

Staying when I'd rather go:

"I'll stay where You've put me; 

I will, dear Lord, Though I wanted so badly to go;

I was eager to march with the 'rank and file,' 

Yes, I wanted to lead them, You know.

I planned to keep step to the music loud,

To cheer when the banner unfurled,

To stand in the midst of the fight straight and proud, 

But I'll stay where You've put me.

"I'll stay where You've put me; I'll work, dear Lord, 

Though the field be narrow and small,

And the ground be fallow, and the stones lie thick, 

And there seems to be no life at all.

The field is Thine own, only give me the seed, 

I'll sow it with never a fear;

I'll till the dry soil while I wait for the rain, 

And rejoice when the green blades appear; 

I'll work where You've put me.

"I'll stay where You've put me; I will, dear Lord;

I'll bear the day's burden and heat,

Always trusting Thee fully; when even has come 

I'll lay heavy sheaves at Thy feet.

And then, when my earth work is ended and done, 

In the light of eternity's glow,

Life's record all closed, I surely shall find 

It was better to stay than to go;

I'll stay where You've put me."
- From Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman

Happy Endings

Some days are just hard. Days when its seems like the best thing that can be said about them is, "Thank God its over." Days full of shadows. Everything seems dark, and it seems like it will always be that way.

Sometimes I wish things could be a lot more like my favorite books. Things might be dark for a while, but in the end, things work out. A happy ending.

But in this broken world, happy endings are few and far between. Crime. Pain. Disease. Separation. All ultimately culminating in death. Over and over and over. All around. From the latest breaking news to the oldest pages of history- scrawled each pages is hopeless helpless agony caused by sin. The beautiful world God made is broken. No happy endings.

So God came. He had a dark and gloomy and disreputable beginning. A difficult beginning and homeless middle- followed by being chased out of town, threatened, rejected and ultimately, murdered. He came, and got to know all about sorrow and suffering- so that He could change the endings. He came and died to bring back happy endings. He suffered, He "bore our sins and carried our sorrows" so that the great big Final Ending could be a happy one. Even the little endings were changed. So that the days when my heart just screams "God- why in the world?!" the answer comes through "because I love you."
It's not necessarily a different ending- but it makes it happy, to know that God has picked this particular ending of this situation, this day,  because He loves me.

Looking Back....

Well, after more tapings than I can remember and gluing the cover cover back on more than once.... I have faced the inevitable- it is time to get a new Bible.  There's something sort of bittersweet about getting a new Bible. You know what I mean?

On the one hand, its not that big of a deal- after all, the book is merely a means to get know the Author better- He is the One we love. His Words- His amazing way of expressing Himself, speaking to us, to me, through paper and ink- letting us feel the breath of His Words from thousands of years ago. It's wonderful. Amazing. Miraculous. The Word, spoken, written, and preserved for me to read whenever I want.  And that is just as true of a new Bible as an old one. So from that perspective, its just a matter of getting used to where things are in the new Bible.

But on the other hand, its a bit like saying good-bye to a friend. I don't mean the truth in the book- that of course is staying, but I mean the book itself. The pink peeling fake leather cover and and all the bent, smudged, ink stained, pages of that particular book. Is that weird?  But I've had that old Bible seven years. Seven years. God's led through quite a long space of journey with that little pink compass.

I bought it at college because I'd had an accident at camp the previous summer and my Thomson Chain was simply too heavy to haul around to classes at BBC in addition to all my text books. So I reluctantly purchased a new one- slightly cheered by the pretty cover. What a journey God has brought me on since that day- and so often that little pink book has been His way of holding my hand.
College- happy hours in the sun by the pond or under a tree in the woods. Dark hours begging God for wisdom how to help, or for the strength to finish one more day.
Moving to Philly- beside a grave, in a lonely little room, at a new place, and with new friends as God opened my heart.
Off to Training- guiding, steadying, comforting.

Four countries, Three states, and having lived more places than it would possibly do any good to count- that little pink book was one of the primary ways God's been speaking on the crazy journey. And I'm a little sad to see it replaced.  And yet... its a little exciting too. Because seven years ago I would never have believed that God would have me where I am today- looking for people to partner with me to go to Missouri- train missionary kids for overseas and work in a prayer office. And I just can't help but wonder where I'll be the next time I buy a new Bible.

The Gift of Waiting

I hate waiting. Oh I hate it so much. Patience has never been (and many days I fear never will be) my virtue. I have seriously contemplated whether God got me involved in teaching preschoolers just to bring my patience level up to the minimum standard required for daily life. Since life involves a lot of waiting, God has been very persistent with this patience theme. Patiently waiting. Bah humbug.

Apparently the Israelites felt that way too in Exodus 32. You remember the story: God brings the people of Israel out of Egypt, through the Red Sea on dry land, and leads them to Mt. Sinai, where the whole mountain explodes with fire and He speaks to them out of a cloud and they end up with the ten commandments. Seems fairly memorable. But then God calls Moses up the mountain to meet with Him. And the people wait. And wait. And wait. For over a month. So they get sick of waiting. They come to Aaron and he ( for some incomprehensible reason) makes them a golden calf and they worship it.

What really struck me as I read this other day though, was the way people worded their request to Aaron in verses 1-2 of that chapter. They ask Aaron to make them gods because "as for this fellow Moses we don't know what  has become of him." Isn't that interesting?  They're tired of waiting (we are SO bad at it- we humans. It's a wonder God puts  up with any of us). But notice this- they're not tired of waiting for God. God is not even mentioned- they've forgotten completely about God. They're tired of waiting for Moses. A couple of weeks of waiting and God is now completely off their radar screen. What does that say about who they've really been trusting through this whole thing? They haven't been trusting God. They've been trusting Moses.

Sadly, I can relate to the Israelites here quite a bit. When I started looking for ministry partners at the beginning of the summer, I was sure God would finish it all up in one summer and get me back to ministry there ASAP. I was even fairly sure how he was going to do it- churches and individuals that I thoroughly expected to jump on board. But instead, there's been waiting. Months and months of never ending, tear-filled, gut wrenching waiting. Once an entire month went by without a single person showing a speck of interest. And I was crushed. Absolutely devastated. Because my trust was in the wrong thing. It was in churches and people, and not in God. Only God can get this crazy thing done. Now, after all these months, I think I have at last figured out why waiting is so hard.

Waiting forces me to see that I am not in charge. If I was in charge, I wouldn't be waiting. Waiting shows me how I am trying to control things. Like a stubborn kids pushing rickety, rotten furniture up against a door to try to reach a handle, rather than waiting for his dad to open the door. Waiting is an opportunity to get off my rickety rotten pile of pride and kneel before the Good King who will open the door in His perfect time. Waiting is an opportunity, an invitation, to be with  Him.