RockTheDesert

Women of Faith - Lasting Impressions

This is my third and final post about my Women of Faith experience last weekend. I had mixed impressions of individual parts of the event, however, ultimately there are a few lasting impressions which will change the way I relate to various areas of life. Lisa Whelchel - thank you for teaching me the difference between transparent and vulnerable. Brenda Warner - you are my hero. Andy Andrews - I will never forget the Butterfly Effect. Patsy Clairmont - thank you for making your bed! To all the "porch" members: I am inspired by your love for each other, by your friendships which transcend generations, by your joy in serving and worshipping and living your life in front of others for God's glory. Made me realize that I am already blessed with a porch full of incredible women -- love this metaphor and look forward to sharing it with my friends! 

While there were take-aways from nearly every session, I was expecting more of a "ladies, grab your Bible and let's dig in to some Biblical truths" sort of teaching. Maybe not for every session. But I did expect to need my Bible at some point during the weekend. I love being able to scribble a million notes in the margins of my Bible. The speakers did a great job of creating a "need" for their books/resources by whetting our appetites with their compelling stories and I will be ordering several of their books in the next few weeks. But books won't ultimately satisfy my spiritual hunger & thirst. They will feed my need and love for knowledge. They will challenge me and inspire me. However, I found myself wishing that the speakers had emphasized the Bible as the ultimate source for life and godliness a lot more than they did. 

Women of Faith was definitely "over the top" - to the point that I was "over the top" at the end of each session -- (I tend to hit sensory overload quicker than most). I am a slow processor. I like to process things by journaling or talking them out. I wish I would have trusted more in the rhythm and build of the overall program so that my "processing" would have happened in real-time rather than after-the-fact time. 

In my quest to de-brief and process this event, I've begun to take advantage of the abundant resources available on the Women of Faith website. I encourage you to join the WOF online community, participate in a Book Club, get some sweet discounts. I'm looking forward to diving in and making the most of what the WOF team have put together as practical tools for everyday life.  

[Confession: due to a scheduling error I found myself not able to attend the afternoon session on Saturday -- I was instead driving my 17-yr-old son to the mall to shop for Homecoming attire]

[I was given 2 free admissions to the event, courtesy of BookSneeze, in exchange for a blog review.] 

Women of Faith - Second Impressions

My friend Kari and I joined a group of her friends for dinner and hang-time til WOF began again at 7pm. Lots of cool stuff going on in downtown Phoenix - Cityscape holds a lot of promise with shops and restaurants and entertainment. Somehow, we found ourselves at the corner of 2nd Street and Washington at Majerle's. So we settled in for some burgers, wings, salads and girl talk. After a quick stop at Charming Charlie's for some inexpensive bling, we headed back to US Airways for an evening of worship and inspiration like none other! 

The worship team really did a great job of leading us not just in songs but in worship. They added Mandisa to the line-up which brought an extra shot of energy and enthusiasm and soul. That girl can sing! Now, I don't want to misuse the phrase "variety show" because I don't mean it in a derogatory way, but the rest of the evening was back to back entertainment, music, videos, speakers...thus, variety show is the best way I can describe it. I especially liked all the video clips -- the "porch" line-up, all dressed up and jamming on instruments was super-fun and engaging -- and I loved the video interviews with the speakers. Well done media team!

My least favorite part of the evening was the comedian. I was disappointed in his antics, his choice of topics, his choice of words, his negativity toward his wife, kids, prayer, etc. I know he was going for "over-the-top", tongue-in-cheek, irreverent humor, but it struck me as out of place for this event, although the audience seemed to think he was hilarious. It just wasn't my style and everything about him made me cringe. So, although not a highlight for me personally, his performance was a great foil for the rest of the program which was top-notch.

I really loved Brenda Warner's time on stage. Her story, her "imperfectness", her brutal honesty were refreshing, challenging, heartbreaking, and inspiring. I kept discovering "water in my eyes" and "water running down my cheeks & dripping off my chin" while she spoke. The other speaker who took me by surprise was Lisa Whelchel...what a neat woman of faith she's turned out to be! I was totally a fan of "Facts of Life" and it was so good to see her in real life (looking EXACTLY as she did in the 80's in my mind's eye) and hear just a part of her story. Patsy Clairmont spoke - so wise, so full of life and so talented at making us laugh with one breath and tear up with the next. Andy Andrews spoke -- he brought the house down and was amazing. The evening and my heart were full. I was becoming undone in a good kind of way, needing to nail down some of the main points from the speakers and so I could put them into practice in my own life and share them with others. 

Saturday morning came a little too soon and I was on the road again to "Over the Top" and wondering how they'd top the previous evening or if they'd even try. I can totally see the value of using this event as an women's ministry outreach for a local church, with the ministry leader gathering all their women into small groups and having group leaders help de-brief and challenge and pray for the women. I didn't do much de-briefing at home with my husband and sons...and I could have used time to process the things I'd seen and heard and experienced before jumping right back in to it...

[I was given 2 free tickets to this event in exchange for this blog review...thanks BookSneeze!]

Women of Faith - First Impressions

Women of Faith. For Christian women it's a household name, right? I'd heard about it. Read about it. Assumed it was like a girly-girl, hormonally imbalanced, over-sized support group accented with "contemporary" music, light humor and perhaps some female-themed sermons. "Over The Top" but not exactly in the best way. I was more than a little worried about spending 2 days with 1000's of women who were mostly strangers to me, crammed into plastic fold-down seats with emotional turbulence abounding. 

I carpooled with a carefully chosen friend, one with a scientific, practical mind and not given to dramatic outbursts. We entered the arena along with a throng of women who were eagerly greeting each another, chattering, hugging, shrieking, laughing, taking photos, group hugging. You can imagine. I found myself smiling and calmly engaged on the outside, overwhelmed and scribbling details furiously on the inside. Hair. Jewelry. Perfume. Matching shirts. Embellished chef's hats. Pink tiaras. Women. Lots of women. 5 minute countdown.

House lights down. Stage lights up. Worship team bringing life and energy to the simply decorated stage. Creatively arranged music (produced for women's voices - thanks for lower keys!) was interspersed with speakers Patsy Clairmont and Andy Andrews. I first heard Patsy speak at Recreate 11 in Franklin, TN. This woman is a gifted and colorful communicator, a true lover of words, with a solid Biblical basis undergirding her hilarious, masterfully woven stories of her well-lived life. Andy Andrews probably deserves an entire blog post of his own. He was constantly in motion. Not like poetry. Like a whirlwind. I had read "The Noticer" when it first was published. Always imagined what the author must be like: southern; well-spoken; southern; funny; from the south; clever; southernly; intelligent. I was glad that his real-life voice matched his writing voice. His constant motion was somewhat distracting to me and at times I lost his main point because he tended to suddenly take a rabbit trail to the left or right, but his wisdom, his love and respect for life and family, and his gift of storytelling made me a fan.  

After lunch, there was a Q&A session with Patsy and Andy answering questions from the attendees. This was probably my least favorite part of the weekend. I found myself somewhat frustrated with the advice they gave. Or maybe I was frustrated with the advice they didn't give...oh please don't tell me I've become an "armchair counselor!"

As quickly as the morning session had begun, the afternoon session was over. We filed out of the arena, suddenly ravenously hungry for dinner and de-brief time. My heart was full, my mind was spinning, I wasn't sure what the evening session would be like, but I suddenly knew that I had been inexplicably drawn in to this over-the-top entity called Women of Faith and I had to see what would happen next...

[I was given 2 free tickets to this event in exchange for this blog review...thanks BookSneeze!]

Desperation Matters

Yesterday was Sunday. @daninreallife was out of town, speaking at a men's retreat in Prescott. I was supposed to play keys in the worship band at Harvest. Then I halfway planned to have lunch with friends. Then I imagined we'd hang out with Joshua and Alyssa at some point. Then I'd make dinner for everyone after @daninreallife returned home. Well, as you can probably guess, things didn't turn out the way I planned (do they ever?)

Steven, my 16 yr old son, was involved in a serious car accident Saturday night on his way home from work. He walked away from it shaken up but without a scratch or bruise. Too many details to share here, but just believe me when I say I was equally shaken up when I drove up to the scene - pouring down rain, fierce wind, flashing lights, traffic backed way up, fire truck, ambulance, 4 highway patrol cars. One of the officers said Steven was lucky to be alive. The car was towed away to an impound yard 'til our insurance company can give it a once-over. I tried to empty it out a little bit while it was still on the side of the road before it was towed, but I could only grab a few things before it went away. Last night Steven realized he left a textbook in the car. That meant I'd have the not-so-great job of finding the impound yard and having to see the damaged car up close. My oldest son, Michael, drove me there. I took one look at the car and it nearly took my breath away - Steven isn't lucky to be alive - Steven is alive for no reason except for grace, God's life-giving grace!

As you can imagine, I didn't get much sleep on Saturday night. I slept fully clothed with all the lights in the house on. I spent every waking minute praying through the horror and praising God for His grace and goodness and kindness and mercy. By daybreak, I was completely spent, but also completely at peace. I found myself wanting and actually desperately needing to express my thankfulness to God in a tangible way. I decided to attend an evening church service at a church I don't normally attend. I couldn't wait to lift my hands and voice with complete abandon and joy and gratefulness and love and, well, I've gotta say the band delivered on some powerful praise and worship [... **Our God Is Greater (if you haven't heard this song, buy it now, put it on "repeat" and sing it at top volume until you are hoarse or until you really believe it and can't forget it), How Great Thou Art, I'll Stand...]. My heart was right and open and vulnerable and teachable and praising and giving and receiving. And the Holy Spirit, my Comforter and companion all night long, had softened my heart, convicted me, renewed my hope. He drew me in closely, intimately and I lifted up my humble offering of worship freely so that God would be glorified and magnified and exalted.

Hmmmm, isn't that the way it could always be? You know, if I lived my everyday life in the raw tension of desperation and expectation? Desperation matters. It really does. It sends me to my knees. It forces my eyes upward instead of inward. It keeps me broken, diffuses my haughtiness, reminds me to be kind and gentle. Desperation leads to utter dependence on God. It leads to a relationship worth living for. It leads to a relationship worth dying to self for.

Desperation matters to me. Does it matter to you?

**Our God Is Greater lyrics click HERE

45

45 is a new number for me to think about - I never thought much about 44, but 45 has great significance in that I'm now only 5 years from 50! At 45, I'm quite possibly halfway through living the one and only life I've been given, assuming I live to be 90! Over the last 5 years I've had lots of time to think and reflect and somewhat obsess over my mistakes of the past (no small feat) and I'm feeling more ready than ever to move forward, not looking back, pressing on faithfully, fearlessly, and with great joy! I can't really explain it, but it's like I've suddenly emerged from this deep, dark, long, cobwebby, tunnel, the kind bad dreams are made of. And the world around me is brimming with life and light and beauty and fun and yet-to-be-discovered creative expressions of music and art and culinary delights and, well, I could go on and on because it's like I've been set free. Literally. I can't put my finger on any one catalyst for this out-of-prison experience, but I do know that prayer, intense Bible reading, believing and acting on the Word, faithfully serving in spite of exhaustion, and times of incredible fellowship, unconditional love and worshipping with family and friends have all contributed to this overwhelming. I sense that I've been given a second chance to walk by the Spirit, walk in the light, walk by faith, walk in the truth, walk humbly, walk worthy of the calling of Christ, walk wisely, walk joyfully, walk in righteousness, simply walk with God. I find myself doing crazy things like baking pies and cookies, making breakfast for the fam, shopping with Alyssa, writing children's songs and stories, researching marathons, looking at bicycles longingly, reading recipes for Christmas cut-out cookies while listening to music on iTunes. 45 is feeling like the dawning of a strange, new, wonderful era. I'm ready. I'm walking, though not too fast because I think I can see 46 on the not-too-distant horizon and I want 45 to last as long as possible!

Psalm 145

Patrick Henry Hughes - a Video

I found this video on Michael Hyatt's blog (my fav) this morning. I'm not in the habit of weeping before breakfast, but this video really moved me to tears (in a good way). Have any of you seen this video before? Do you see God in this situation?

Fearless

Today's the day that Max Lucado's latest book, Fearless, will hit bookshelves in stores and online. To be totally honest, I've never read an entire Max Lucado title from cover to cover. In spite of my best intentions, I usually find myself skimming and trolling through most of his books looking for quotable quotes, insights worded just right, and great testimonies to weave into Sunday worship sets. After reading Fearless from first word to last, I discovered a powerful message, masterfully interwoven with scripture, personal anecdotes, prayers and stories. Yes, it would be possible to glean out the choice tidbits and separate them from the whole work. However, the power of Fearless is in the way the details join together, creating a compelling, convicting and captivating case for living fearlessly.

One of my favorite chapters was "Caffeinated Life." In it, Mr. Lucado leads us down the road of "Fear of What's Next." He compares the transitions, unexpected surprises, unwelcome twists and turns in life to caffeine. We long for a safe, problem-free decaffeinated state of being. When caffeine is added, our lives go from self-reliant and "season-free" to panic and we frantically try to exchange the caff for de-caff. Mr. Lucado gives us the words of Jesus where He promises to send the Holy Spirit to go before, behind and within us. He also includes a simple metaphor of this earth quite possibly being the womb from which we are birthed into eternal glory.

In the conclusion, Mr. Lucado leaves us with a simple, beautiful psalm written by a 7-yr old young man named William. It is a psalm from which I plan to draw inspiration to write my own personal psalm of Faith & Trust & Courage.

I didn't laugh. I didn't cry. But the words in this book spoke deeply and personally to me. Fearless has been added to my current top 10 list of books to re-read and dissect and pray through. If I were to write out favorite quotes on individual sticky notes, they'd probably fill and create a beautiful mosaic on my dining room wall. Hmmm...

For more on Fearless, check out this great resource The Fearless Times from Thomas Nelson.

www. Simplify. Decrease. Restore.

You know, some days my house seems way too small. Although we only have need of warm outerwear for about two weeks per year, we have a coat closet filled with coats that we've accumulated for 23 years along with blankets and extra sweatshirts. Hard to even look at this photo when it's 110 degrees outside. And then there's the stuff. Stuff threatens to spill out of every cupboard and closet. Paperwork for 4 busy adult lives seems to multiple overnight in random piles strewn on every cleared off surface. Backpacks, sports duffels, tote bags, all just about ready to put away (except for that one last rogue item) lurk in corners, behind doors, in the trunk of the car. It's like my entire life is precariously perched in the middle of "nearly organized, peaceful, uncluttered" and "tornado-just-hit-someone-call-for-help." While I fret about finding balance and "a place for everything and everything in its place," what I know I don't need to do is build bigger closets, cupboards and storage sheds (i.e., Luke 12:16-21). Continually seeking God's kingdom needs to be my everyday focus. Seeking His righteousness needs to rule over my thoughts and worries. And the stuff. The things that moths and rust will destroy. The stuff, if it takes my focus off of God and robs me of joy, well, it just has to go.

word: Simplify.

way: I must decrease so that Jesus can increase.

wisdom: "Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit." (Psalm 51:12)

Rwanda Stories - In The Red

It seems that from every e3 mission trip I go on, a memorable theme emerges. This time, for me, it was all about God's provision. He is, after all, Jehovah-Jireh, God our Provider. He definitely intended for us to really know that about Him by the end of the week.

Before we left for Rwanda, we knew that our trip was over-budget by over $4000. This was mostly due to out-of-control airline costs which seemed to go up every day before we finally had funds from everyone to purchase them. Also, a few months after setting the final price for the trip, we found out that part of our budget needed to include leaving behind $600 per church site to assist with the cost of putting a roof on a new building. Great. Another $4800 in the red. Dan and I decided that we'd pull that amount out of his support account when we returned home. We were prepared for the trip to be even more in the red due to fluctuating prices and a lot of unknown expenses that we might incur. We knew that God would provide for our needs. He had already provided an incredible team of North Americans and Rwandan ministry partners. We'd had safe travel. All of our luggage arrived with us. These were all small miracles. Then God started to get really creative. He made Toyota Land Cruiser available for Dan to drive which meant that we could cram 6 team members in that vehicle with him and save over $2000 by not having to rent another van. He ended up spending $110 on fuel. That's quite a savings! Somehow, with God's provision, the budget ended up in the black AND we left that additional $4800 for roofs. That was a huge miracle!!  When God provides, He provides generously, abundantly, without holding back, and all for His glory!!

  More on God's provision in my next post...

Philippians 4:19 "You can be sure that God will take care of everything you need, his generosity exceeding even yours in the glory that pours from Jesus. Our God and Father abounds in glory that just pours out into eternity. Yes." THE MESSAGE BIBLE

Hungry For God!

I'm going to fast again this week. My plan is to expand from 24 hours to 36 hours. Last week's fast was a great test of my heart and intentions. Now that I know that going without food for 24 hours won't kill me, I'm actually looking forward to the experience. I've got a prayer calendar for the month of June that I plan to pray through. I've got to memorize a couple of stories for Rwanda. I'm going to spend some time writing a new worship song. I plan on visiting Canaan In The Desert Prayer Garden.

I'm not writing this to brag or get pats on the back - In fact, last week I posted about my fast after the fact because, honestly, I thought I might flake out and I definitely didn't want to broadcast my fast to the world just in case I really blew it. I seriously considered writing today's post after the fast was over because I don't want to call attention to myself - I want this fast to be a concentrated, spiritual experience, focused strictly on God with no expectations or limitations imposed on Him.

But this week, I'd like to invite anyone and everyone to join me in a fast. If you have a medical condition that prevents you from fasting, please don't fast from food. Consider fasting from something that you love and depend on, such as electronics or sugar or? You can be as creative as you want to be, just remember that we're fasting for God's glory. We're fasting in order to spend more time praying and seeking God's will. We're fasting because it's a spiritual discipline not an adrenaline rush or an "in" thing to do. We're fasting because we want to take God seriously and elevate Him above all other things in our lives. We're fasting to remind ourselves to never be more hunger for any earthly thing than we are for God and our relationship with Him. (read Psalm 63:1-8 for more inspiration)

I'm starting Friday morning at 6am, going 'til Saturday evening at 6pm. Are you in? Would you be willing to try it for 8 hrs? 12 hrs? 18 hrs? 24 hrs? 36 hrs?

Fitness Friday

It's Fitness Friday - 2 weeks in a row, how's that for disciplined? I spent quite a bit of undisciplined time last week searching for great pictures of women working out. Here's one of my favorites...

Today, Pam and I worked out with Alex at Fitness Together. I nearly died at least 3 times. Alex is a 22 yr old superstar trainer, very nice, but extremely tough and disciplined. Hmmm. Seems to be a theme developing here. Discipline, or lack thereof, is something that I struggle with and have struggled with for about 42 years, maybe longer. I have an artistic, self-willed nature and I allow myself to get caught up in everything except what I'm supposed to be doing. And this transfers to all areas of life, not just fitness. I have the best of intentions, but it seems that life goes buy in a blurry, undefined, organic whirlwind of activity. At the end of the day, most things on my "list" are nearly accomplished, yet I and others closest to me most likely paid a high price, i.e., stress, anxiety, running late, running in circles, short tempers, etc.

I've realized that my lack of discipline has shaped me into a "skip the journey" kind of person. A person who lives life at a frantic pace, can't be bothered with the day to day details and is ready to skip to the happy ending. Quickly. And that's not the kind of person I want to be. It's not the kind of person God created me to be. I've bought into the instant gratification lie. And the take shortcuts lie. And the "you can always go back and do it tomorrow" lie. There is so much life to be lived in the day to day part of my journey. Like making a meal for the family and actually enjoying the creative, multi-sensory side of cooking. Like truly listening while my sons talk to me, watching their gestures and listening to the inflections in their now grown-up voices, instead of waiting for the bottom line summary sentence. Like waiting patiently in line at the grocery store or Starbucks and soaking in the sights and sounds and smells. A disciplined life will allow me to live a more well-rounded, enjoyable, "dig your toes into the sand, close your eyes and breathe in the smell of the ocean" kind of life. That's what I want. More than anything.

Hungry For God?

 We fasted for 24 hours, ending yesterday at 5pm. This was part of our preparation for Africa. I hadn't fasted in a really long time. This cartoon from Cartoon Stock describes our (Dan and I) state of mind going into the fast...

When Dan and I sat down to eat dinner and end the fast, I was a little bit sad that it was over. I spent the day praying a lot more than usual. My day had a different pace, a different focus, a different way about it. Now that I've got one fast over with, I'm going to plan ahead for the next time, probably early next week. I'd like to spend some of the time memorizing scripture. And I'm going to have a specific prayer list to work through. If I'm totally honest and "without wax", I've got to say that I was more hungry for food than for God during this fast. It makes me sad to realize this, yet at the same time, it's like an intense hunger for God was stirred up in me overall and now I'm looking forward to the next fast and wondering if I could possibly go 48 hrs instead of 24 and I'm planning to go to the Prayer Garden between now and then to re-focus on God and I have an acute awareness of how easily I let my life run on auto-pilot and stored up frequent flier miles from past spiritual experiences. 

 Our teenage sons participated in the fast, but we decided to substitute something they really love and depend on rather than food due to nutritional concerns - Michael has started taking his malaria meds and they have to be taken with food; Steven is in football training and I didn't think it was smart to cut out food with the amount of calories he's currently burning every day.

 Michael dearly loves his ipod and was looking forward to listening to tunes and even loaded the Message Remix New Testament on his ipod to listen to all the way to Africa. Well, we decided that Michael would fast from his ipod until they reached London. He started his fast on Tuesday night and he probably reached London at about 6am this morning. He took his Bible, some Narnia books, and a journal to help occupy his time.

Steven started his fast yesterday at 3pm. His sacrifice is electronics. Cell phone (texting), ipod, xbox, rock band, guitar hero, computer, tv, all the fun distractions that are interwoven into his daily life. He has already cleaned his room this morning, taken a shower, put away the dishes, taken out the trash. I haven't heard "I'll do that in just a minute, I'll get to it right after this song, I'll help you as soon as there's a commercial" or heard the text ring from his phone this morning. Nice.

In case you were wondering, I didn't make a massively large meal to celebrate the end of the fast (as was my first instinct). I made a really simple dinner - homemade beans and cornbread, topped with sour cream, grated cheddar, chopped jalapenos, cilantro, onions, and fresh salsa. It tasted magnificent!!

Life Without Limbs

This is Nick Vujicic...he's Australian...watch this entire video, it's incredible! I searched the internet and found tons of interviews/videos/articles about him. ABC News recently featured his story as well. 

Holy Week

I've been doing a little bit of research on the "Christian" calendar. Although I've attended church since birth, I've never been a part of a church which followed the Christian calendar. December 2007 was the first time I remember really observing Advent. I absolutely loved it. I think our church did a fantastic job of making it relevant and beautiful and meaningful and personal.

I'm going to focus this whole week on observing Holy Week. I'll begin with a post on Palm Sunday tomorrow. Stay tuned!

I found this summary of the Christian calendar on Origins Church (NYC) website.

For those of you who may come from a tradition that doesn’t practice the Christian Year, it is listed simply as follows.

ADVENT is a time to wait.                

CHRISTMAS is a time to rejoice.

EPIPHANY is a time to witness.                

LENT is a time for repentance and renewal.

THE GREAT TRIDUUM is a time to enter death.                

EASTER is a time to express the resurrected life.

PENTECOST is a time for power and life.                

KINGDOMTIDE is a time for study and evangelism.

•Holy Week, the week before Easter, is a week of meditation on the Passion of Christ.  The major days are Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter.  “The various traditional rites of the week...probably began to develop at Jerusalem in the 4th century, when pilgrimages became possible, and Christians could indulge a natural desire to re-enact that last scenes of the life of Christ in liturgical drama.”

•Palm Sunday initiates Holy Week and usually involves a procession representing Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem; this procession is “attested...as early as the 4th century” in Jerusalem.  “According to the current rite there is a general blessing of the palms held by the people, if possible in a different building from that in which the Mass is to be celebrated.  After the reading of the account of the triumphal entry, and a short homily, the clergy and the people process into the church, singing Psalms or the traditional ‘Glory, Laus’ or some other chant.”                

•Maundy Thursday - The word “Maundy” is “derived from the first antiphon of the ceremony of the washing of the feet, ‘mandatum novum’ (John 13:34).  The day is for the recognition of the institution of the Eucharist and was attested to as early as the fth century by the Council of Hippo (393).

•Good Friday is a “day of fast, abstinence, and penance, and in the RC Church, Good Friday, together with Holy Saturday, are the only two days in the year on which no Celebration of the Mass takes place.”  The day’s liturgical color is red.  The observation of this day originates in the very early part of the church.                 

•Holy Saturday is also known as “Easter Even” (in Book of Common Prayer), and “it commemorates the resting of Christ’s body in the tomb.”

•Easter is “the Feast of the Resurrection of Christ, being the greatest and oldest feast of the Christian Church.”  “Eastertide” refers to the period from Easter to Whitsunday.

The Swing Of Things

My friend and fellow blogger, Dan Perkins, wrote this great article called The Swing of Things. I encourage all to read and digest this article. The following is an excerpt. Click HERE to read the rest of the article.

I've spent a good part of my morning and afternoon with my jet-lagged butt parked on the couch catching up on reading blogs about our time in Europe and our friends who traveled with Compassion International over to Uganda. Both groups, the Uganda team and Tom, Mario and I, arrived back in the US yesterday. The votes are in and consensus is we have way too much in light of real need and poverty seen in much of the world. Ironically, the spiritual and social uniquenesses of the two regions we visited are vastly contrasted but our reports created the same sense of embarrassment or humility when imagined in the abundance and comfort of our homeland. Don't get me wrong... I'm grateful, as is everyone I read this morning about their return home, to have a life in this great country. What I am saying is we are having a difficult time digesting what we experienced and returning to a life "that is" differently than a life "that was."  In other words, going about business as usual without compromising our experience's desire to change us will not be easy. But then again, it just might be too easy.   

High Calling Blogs

I joined High Calling Blogs about 1 month ago. HighCallingBlogs.com is "a network of personal websites focused specifically on the intersection of faith and work." I'm very excited about being a part of this network. I hope to interact with a lot of like-minded bloggers and increase the number of RockTheDesert readers at the same time! In my initial signing up, I somehow missed step #1 - this step involves placing a High Calling Banner on my blog. So, today, after talking to a fellow blogger about HCB, I realized that I had never followed through on this. I immediately added a HCB banner in the sidebar. Check it out. Click on it if you want to. You'll be directed to High Calling Blogs. Feel free to browse around and sign up if you feel compelled to. A related site you might want to check out is http://TheHighCalling.org. This is a great website devoted to spiritual formation, encouragement,  and helping Christians connect with God. They have nearly 3000 different resources—including audio messages, interviews, bible reflections, personal reflections, daily reflections, and more.

Baptism in the Lake

Today is Friday. We were all invited to attend a baptism service for those who prayed to receive Christ this week who are a part of Bishop Independance's new church plant. It was an amazing, unforgettable experience. It is difficult to describe the sights and sounds and smells. Having baptism at the lake is definitely multi-sensory, let alone multi-cultural! We all lined up at the water's edge. Those being baptized put on white robes. There were several from our team who were assisting Independance with the baptizing - Auzelio, Jim, Troy, Mike. After a time of worship, a short message by Independance, and prayer, the baptizers waded out about 50 yds from shore. Then those being baptized joined them in groups of five. As each one was dunked then brought up out of the water, there was a lot of cheering and celebration from the crowd. The baptizees (?) would be greeted with hugs and cheering and big bouquets of wild flowers. All during the baptism time, the crowd was singing songs over and over again, accompanied only by a non-stop drum beat. These Burundi drummers are tireless! When the last Burundi had been baptized, much to our surprise, Joan, one of our team members from Orlando, waded out into the water and asked Auzelio to baptize her. Evidently, she was baptized as a child and had never been re-baptized to symbolize her own personal faith in Christ. And as it turns out, after sharing the Gospel daily, multiple times, she realized that she had never personally prayed to receive Christ as her Savior. So Auzelio prayed with her to receive Christ, then he baptized her - talk about a powerful moment! It was definitely an over-the-top experience. I promise I'll have video uploaded as soon as I get back to the U.S. - you'll want to see the celebration!

Burundi

Burundi is a little known African country - directly in the center of the continent. It's referred to as "the heart of Africa" and to my surprise, when I looked it up on a world map, it's actually sort of shaped like a heart. Sort of. Or maybe a goat's head. But probably mostly like a heart. You can see from the picture that it's located directly south of Rwanda.

Dan's final training trip will take place in Burundi in January 2008. The first ever E3 trip to Burundi is currently scheduled for January 17-27. According to the promotional flyer, they will be working with 11 or 12 churches to establish new mission churches/cell groups through door-to-door evangelism and evangelistic services in the capital city of Bujumbura. Statistics tell us that less than 5% of the people are born again Christians. Government representatives, including the President, have extended an invitation for E3 to come and evangelize their country.

We all are very excited about this incredible opportunity to share the Gospel in an unreached land. I hope to be able to go with Dan on this very first trip. While in Rwanda in September, we actually met and worked with some wonderful Christian leaders from Burundi. They love & worship God passionately. The pastors/bishops we met will be key leaders on the Burundi campaign. This picture is of Steven with Bishop Independence and Bishop Bosco.

Dan is currently assisting in mobilizing Christians to be a part of this adventure. If you think that this might be the missions trip you've been waiting for, or you know someone who would love to be a part of this, please have them check out the E3 website for more trip details and registration info.

Believing God

Today, a group of 8 women met together for the first time in Dr. Steve Phinney's conference room to begin "Believing God" which is a video-driven Beth Moore Bible Study. I've been through this one once before. I actually had to miss 4 or 5 of the sessions, so it will seem practically brand new to me. We've got quite an eclectic group of women assembled - we've all got a common goal of digging in deep to God's Word to glean spiritual insights and truths in order to live and walk more fully in God's light, plan & purposes for our lives. Today, our chief organizer (Lisa) swung by Pita Jungle and picked up a fantastic feast for us to share on our first day together. Everything at PJ is super-healthy and totally delish. We had cilantro-jalapeno hummus among other tasty treats, including a fruit and cheese platter and cheesy pita crisps! Next week I believe we're brown-bagging it.

We all tied blue bands on our arms as a reminder that we're "believing God" for the next 10 weeks together. This should be quite an adventure...I wonder what God has in store for us????????

Baptism

"Buried in likeness of His death, raised to walk in a new kind of life." Those are the words Randy says as he baptizes people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. FNC had a baptism celebration on Sunday night at the Gladstone's home. Twelve people were baptized: 3 adults, 5 teens and 4 kids. I love being a part of the audience. It is so cool to see people from every walk make a public declaration of their faith in Christ by being baptized. I remembered to bring my camera. Started to take a few pics inside the house. Then tried to take some pics of the baptism. My camera let me down. It was too dark outside to get any good images. So I'll have to settle for word pictures...the Gladstone's home is as lovely inside as it is outside. As I approached the massive front door, I was greeted by festive scarecrows and pumpkins adorning the front porch. The inside of the house was filled with the essence of fall. Pumpkins, fall colors, candy corn. I headed straight for the heart of the home - the kitchen - which was filled to overflowing with food and friends. Sandwiches, white bean chicken chili, cheese fondue, chocolate fondue, chips and dip, veggies and dip, chips and salsa, luscious desserts. Wow. What a spread. Then out to the patio where a lot more people mingled, sipping sodas and water, watching the kids play in the yard. Lots of people I didn't recognize - most likely family members of those being baptized. Then the actual event. We all gathered around the pool. Randy read out of the Bible. Then proceeded to baptize all 12 people. Then all the kids who had been waiting patiently to swim, jumped in the pool for some more fun! Such a great night!!

Karen (far right) was baptized. She's a member of the worship team - great singer with a great heart!

So nice to relax and get to know each other away from church!

Leaving Sudan

I'm looking forward to seeing Dan and hearing all the details of the trip - I did receive a text message from him - 259 1st time professions of faith in Christ. He said it was the most difficult trip he's been on to date! Thank you to all who have been praying faithfully for him and the team!

This is another forwarded email - this time from Patricia - we met Patricia on our Rwanda trip - she is a CPC with e3partners.

_______________________

Flying home towards Nairobi in our 12 passenger plane. No weight problem on this leg. We have left all of our ministry materials in Sudan. We are all well and have seen the infathomable love of God at work in Sudan.

Yesterday God have me the desire of my heart. When I visited Kormachi in July I met a woman named Maria. She was in the compound of the chief and had more beads on than any of the other women. She had the look of being the Queen Bee. She had the appearance of being in another world very far away and unreachable. It was the face of Maria that motivated me to research, pray and prepare to take the gospel to the most primitive area I had ever traveled to. The Toposa. In Nairobi on our way to Sudan we spent the day with missionaries who had lived 6 years with a similar tribe. They opened their hearts to us and shared all the materials their 6 years of work produced. God supplied all we needed to begin to work with the Toposa of southern Sudan. Did you read about our 5 hours stuck in the mud on the way to Kormachi? Our 1st day we had to turn around. Courageous man of Faith David Kaya was willing to try yet again the following day. The road was such that I had to close my eyes and pray. If you are big on off road driving and mud slides. Sudan will be your cup of tea! Kormachi at last!

After picking up a translator at the school we went immediately to the hut of the chief (his compound of huts). The chief was not there but several women and children, Maria and her close friend were there smoking pipes. Such a hardness on her face. That same expression I had seen before that made me wonder if we would ever be able to bridge the gap. Not all the faces had this hard look. Mostly we found warm welcoming faces.

The afternoon and following trip allowed us the opportunity to visit other compounds but the door did not open again for üs to visit the chief's compound until our final day in Kormachi. We had the awesome opportunity to spend an ünrushed 1 hour with Maria and 5 other women, 2 men and a gaggle of kids. I had an EXCELLENT Toposa translator (huge answered prayer) and was able to tell the stories of God's creation that had been taught to me by the missionaries. FAR from perfect but I soooooo believe God used it for His Glory. I hope you too can take great Joy in this divine opportunity. Most of the adults in that circle prayed a prayer to receive Christ as their Savior. I trust in the Lord with all my heart that He heard those prayers and will continue to draw the people of Kormachi and Kapoeta to Himself with cords of human kindness (Hosea 11:4).

Thank you so much for your prayers. God's Grace has been abundant and overflowing!

God bless you

patricia

Another Sudan Update

Sounds like they wil be leaving for Sudan for Kenya in just a few hours. Received the following update just about an hour ago (4pm Phoenix).

Since it was raining in Sudan, the team had trouble getting through to my phone, but thankfully they were able to reach my friend, Cindy Sherman, when there was a break in the rain.  Thanks to Cindy for the report below. 

Michael Norris reported the following....

Prayer Requests for today:

Major Prayer Request - David Kaya (their leader in Sudan) is now leaving to go home to his family.  His wife, mother-in-law, and 2 of his 4 kids have pneumonia.  He is driving to Kanpala, Uganda and will be traveling with 7 other men (he will be dropping them off in Kajokeij).  The rainy season starts tonight and he will have to cross 58 water crossings to get home.  They expect the journey to take a couple days 

Answered prayers -
They have had no rain until tonight.
They had 6 translators today in Kormachi, which was the exact number they needed!

Prayer request - Moses and Meshach are the new leaders for Kormachi.  Pray for God to lead and direct them as to what their role will be.

The team will begin traveling home tomorrow, but will call from Kenya.

FYI:  Their devotional reading for today is from Acts 20:17-38.

Thanks for keeping these prayer requests and the team in your prayers!

This Week At FNC

This week's set list:

1. 1000 Hallelujahs - Mark Roach
2. I'll Stand - Michael W. Smith
3. I Stand In Awe of You
4. Amazing Love
5. Mighty To Save - Hillsong
6. Love The Lord - Lincoln Brewster

Message series is called "Without A Doubt" and today's message was on Biblical Authenticity. After church, we had a food and family activities on the patio. David Mitchell made 4 deep-fried turkeys - let me just say - it's all about the skin!!! We also munched on corn on the cob and homemade chili - it was fantastic!

The kids had a giant inflatable water slide - looked like a lot of fun...the weather was perfect in the shade and in the sun - nice breeze. We sat around eating and hanging out with friends and family for an hour or so. We hated to leave because the patio is just a wonderful place to be on a lazy Sunday afternoon.

New Cubes

Guess what we got in the mail last week...

These are pocket-size Evangecubes! Dan ordered 100 of them. So many that they actually came with their own retail display case which we proudly have showcased on the sideboard in the dining room! You can see from the picture that Dan spent some serious time designing his merchandise display.

From left to right you can see the entire story of salvation just by glancing at the display. Jesus on the cross. Soldiers guarding the tomb where Jesus was buried. The miracle of the resurrection. Jesus is the bridge - the way, the truth, the life. Choose God's free gift of salvation. He's waiting to take you by the hand, offer you forgiveness & reconciliation with Him as well as an abundant & eternal life. There's even a basic discipleship lesson on the far right. And of course, you can clip these cubes on your belt right next to your phone and/or pager, you can clamp it on a backpack or purse, and if you're just the simple, no-frills type, you can just carry it in your hand.

These are part of our "arsenal" that we take with us to Rwanda. They are an invaluable evangelism tool. Over the course of the week, we will tell the story of salvation multiple times. And each time we do, it becomes even more ingrained in our hearts and impressed in our minds. It is amazing how God is using this simple tool to make His name known in the most remote places in the world. We are anxiously waiting to board that plane on Wednesday. We are so blessed to be able to share this experience with our sons. They are excited about seeing the place that captured our hearts and for which we are giving up life as we've known it for 21 years in order to be "all in" on this e3 journey.

Encounter

OK, something totally cool happened to us on Saturday. We took Michael to work at Chickfila. Decided to swing into Sports Chalet to look for last minute travel items. When we went to start up the car to head toward home, we had a sluggish, "the battery is dying" start. Since my knight-in-shining-armor was with me, disaster was avoided and we were able to head straight over to WalMart to get a new battery. The wait was about an hour. We decided to do some more last minute travel shopping. Travel alarm clocks. Batteries. Vitamins. Etc.

Now, in the past, we had noticed that WalMart had hired some African refugees. We even had spoken to one of them before and he said he was from Sudan. So, today we decided that we should look for someone from Sudan and, if possible, strike up a conversation. We chose Checkstand #15. I just had a feeling that the cashier was from Sudan. There was only one couple ahead of us. They were chatting with the cashier and telling him that they were from South Africa. He mumbled something about Sudan. I was ecstatic. I knew he was from Sudan! When it was our turn, Dan started asking him if he was from Sudan. Dan mentioned that we were traveling to Africa and that he would be in Sudan soon. Well, the cashier not only was from Sudan, he was from the very region, in fact, the very village that Dan will be working in, Kapoeta. We decided that we absolutely had to be-friend him. He has agreed to have dinner with us before we leave so that he can tell us all about Sudan and Kapoeta. We are very excited about this "chance" encounter and I'm sure I'll have much more to post after we have dinner. Pray that we would have a chance to share the Gospel with him and that we would establish a friendship with him and possibly others who've been recently relocated to Phoenix from Africa.

Worship As A Lifestyle

Found this at a blog called The Cartoon Church. I'm not sure how I feel about this picture. It sort of reminds me of an experience I had several years ago. I was attending a local worship serminar. One of the speakers was the leader of a fairly well-known worship band. He spent an hour talking about worship to us. He simultaneously carried on a conversation with God. He really did. Every other sentence he spoke was to us. The remainder of his thoughts he spoke directly to God. Out loud. Once I got the rhythm of this down, I was able to figure when he was speaking to us. I'm still not sure how I feel about that experience. I'd like to think that I have a real relationship with God through Jesus Christ. And that I'm a worshipper who worships in spirit and in truth, 24/7. Yet I've never carried on a conversation with God out loud while conversing with others. And I've never raised my hands to the heavens at a bus stop or any other public place unless I was stretching and yawning. On the one hand, I secretly admire this utter abandon and apparent devotion to God. But my logical, judgmental, rational, conservative, non-demonstrative instincts tell me that this guy is quite possibly crazy. So if I were to look for middle ground where would I find myself? Or is middle ground too lukewarm? Just imagine this guy with his favorite football team's jersey on. The bus pulls up to the stop. There's a lifesize ad for his team on the side of the bus. And maybe a few other fans on the bus, headed for the big game together. Would they be raising their arms up, doing high fives, head-butting each other, cheering and yelling "score!" and being lost in "worship" and adoration of their team? I'm thinking that the same bystander would probably still have the word "idiot" in her thought bubble. My thought bubble might just say "smiling on the inside."

2 Calendars and a Video

Download prayer_calendar_rw07c.pdf

Click on the link above to download and print our Rwanda prayer calendar.
We would love to have you partner with us in prayer during our upcoming trip to Rwanda. Dan, Mike, Steve & I will travel to Rwanda on September 5 for an e3 partners church planting campaign.

Dan will then continue on to Sudan for another e3 partners church planting campaign which also happens to be his first training trip. I know that Dan and the entire team would really appreciate your prayers as well. Click on the link below to download and print the Sudan prayer calendar. It's actually a combined calendar - our Rwanda trip back to back with the Sudan trip - since there are 3 people on our Rwanda campaign who will continue on to the Sudan campaign.

Download prayercalendarPatriciaSeptember.doc

And finally, check out this video. It was recorded recently in the area where Dan will be in Sudan.

Random Day

Just downloading thoughts tonight - not too many main points to be found in the following paragraphs. I had a hard time concentrating on anything for too long today - I was distracted by the thought of my dear friend Pam and the breast cancer surgery she was going through today. I and many others spent the day praying for her. I have a friend who set her computer to remind her to pray every 30 minutes. I took dinner to the family tonight. Pam had just gotten home from the hospital and was sleeping on the couch. Evidently they were able to remove it all and so far no sign of it in one of the lymph nodes they removed. They will have final pathology results on Friday. I'm sure Pam & Jeff & Pat (Pam's sis) and the fam are absolutely exhausted. But I know they are greatly encouraged by the doctor's prognosis and have been lifted up on the wings of many prayers today.

I made a Cobb Salad tonight for dinner. Romaine lettuce. Diced chicken breast (pre-bought whole roasted chicken). Sliced Roma tomatoes. Crumbled bacon. Blue cheese crumbles. Chopped hard-boiled eggs. Avocado slices. A handful of chopped black olives. Croutons. Drizzled ranch dressing on top. Could've made a classic Cobb Salad Dressing but ran out of time.

Went to Costco with Em Shoulders today to buy food for youth camp tomorrow. Oh, and did I mention that I'm the cook? We bought food to feed 25 teens for 3 days. Hotdogs. Hamburgers. Spaghetti. Tacos. Chocolate donuts.

It rained really hard in the valley tonight from about 7-8:30pm. The water was running over the sidewalks on Indian School Road. I had to slosh through mid-calf deep water to get to my driveway (I park on the street). We've watched it rain everywhere but our house for the past week - - well, now we can't complain. And we can turn off our auto sprinklers at least for 1 day.

I am re-designing the FNC website. By hand. On scrap paper. Such a tedious process. I hope it turns out great. Functional. Informative. Interactive. Colorful.

Randy starts a "What If?" series Aug. 5. Week 1 = What if we really cared about America? Week 2 = What if we descended into hell? Week 3 = What if we experienced heaven? Week 4 = What if God was not? We met last night to discuss the creative possibilities. I'm thinking we should do "What if" by Nichole Nordeman.

Rain

My iTunes Rain Playlist:

1. Bring The Rain - MercyMe
2. Praise You In This Storm - Casting Crowns
3. Stand In The Rain - Superchick
4. Raging Sea - Michael W. Smith
5. Deliver Me - David Crowder
6. In Christ Alone - Keith & Kristen Getty
7. It Is Well - Mark Roach
8. Rains Pour Down - Something Like Silas
9. Healing Rain - Michael W. Smith
10. Let It Rain - Michael W. Smith
11. Rain Down - Delirious
12. Come Thou Fount - David Crowder

Worship this weekend will be focused on the concept of rain in our lives. Personal storms, crises of faith, troubled times, trials, etc. We will show a Rob Bell video (Nooma) called Rain. We will share testimonies and poems and scripture. We will worship and we will lament and we will pray. And the rain may subside for some and may be just beginning for others. But we will recognize that God is sovereign. And He's there in the storms with us. And when the rains fall and our world is shaken up beyond recognition, He is still there. Still strong. Still loving. Still holy. Still longing for us to cry out to Him. And when we surrender and ride out the storm with Him, He will open the floodgates of heaven and pour out his mercy and kindness and grace and peace upon us. And though the storm rages around us, we will be delivered and when we are able to worship Him in spite of the storm, we will experience God unlike we ever have before. Freedom. Trust. New eyes. A different kind of faith. Shift from belief to believing.

Things That Make Me Happy

I thought that I could cheer myself up by making this list. The end result is worth the effort!!

1. My husband, Daniel. He makes me laugh every day. He sings silly songs to me. He likes to drive me crazy and I guess I must be happy when I'm crazy.
2. My kids. They are so fun to hang out with. They love my spaghetti and baked ziti and steak sandwiches. They still say funny things.
3. My Dymo label maker. I remember my dad had one on his workbench that he used for labeling electrical supplies, lunchboxes, etc. It is a truly magical device with letters, a lever to squeeze, and lovely tape with words and letters embossed on it which you can use in many creative ways.
4. Road cases. I'm talking about the kind that are custom made of wood and metal, painted black with industrial size casters, filled with event supplies such as sound equipment, lights, cables, screens, pipe and drape, etc. All the stuff that becomes a magnificent backdrop for an event.
5. Text messages. So simple and concise. Easier and faster than a phone call. My kids think I'm cool because I text them and they text me and we all keep track of each other this way.
6. Blogging. What a great form of self-expression. It's sort of like show and tell every single day. Which is sometimes not that great because, well, my life is pretty boring sometimes, but it forces me to think creatively.
7. When the desert sky turns turquoise blue. That would be just after sunset and just before sunrise. When the desert sky turns midnight blue. That would be at just about midnight. The stars are ultra white and prevalent. The midnight blue sky - - well, it just makes me supremely happy and content.
8. The sound of the ocean. The smell of the ocean. The sand. The waves. Even the seaweed. I'm closest to God when it is dark outside and all I can hear is the sound of the waves breaking and crashing against the shore. It's the best.
9. The Urban Tribe. They rock.
10. Seeking God.
11. Talking to my parents and sisters on the phone. It is so satisifying and comforting to have a family that is close and there for you.
12. Anything from the '70's. Especially things that are harvest gold, orange, and avocado.
13. Our built-in wall clock in the dining room. It's still ticking away after 51 years. Unbelievable.
14. Technology that works for me instead of against me.
15. Church planting in Rwanda. Amazingly gratifying, satisfying, challenging, what else can I say?
16. Writing music. On paper or on the computer, it is a task that I love.
17. Worshipping God.
18. Hanging out with Alyssa & Joshua. They are really fun and a pleasure to spend time with.
19. Pedicures.
20. Fruit that reminds me of California. Oranges. Avocados. Plums. Peaches. Persimmons. Lemons. Grapefruits. Watermelon. Mango. Pineapple.

I actually didn't realize the list would be this long...and it could go on for a while. So, goodnight for now. Although one other thing that makes me happy is staying up late then sleeping in, tomorrow I've got to be up early.

More from Sudan

First of all, check out this blog: http://lettersfrompaphos.blogspot.com

Sounds like much prayer is needed in this region. Also evident that God is at work, preparing leaders, raising up His followers to make an impact in Southern Sudan. I am really glad that they are working hand in hand with strategically selected relief organizations to share the Gospel thru acts of compassion/service. Kapoeta is where Dan will be joining an e3 campaign (1st training trip) in September. Anyone interested in being a part of this?????

The following is an excerpt from this blog.

Kapoeta – 238 heard the gospel, 65 made professions of faith 4/4/07

4/17/04

Built for speed reading

Here’s a quarterly report, essentially, on what the Lord has done and is doing with e3 and

Sudan

. First is a list of His work. Second, we have a medical team going to David Kaya’s (Kie-yugh) hometown next week for a clinic/church-planting trip. I’ve attached their prayer calendar as well.

· We have assessed and opened for ministry three main towns in

Eastern Equatoria

: Kapoeta, Chukudum, and Torit. These towns are centers for the Toposa, Didinga, and Latuka tribes. All of which are classified as unreached. Kaya trained over 130 leaders in these towns in church planting and the EvangeCube, and close to 200 people made professions of faith just last month at those trainings.

· We secured a partnership with the International Mission Board’s missionaries in Rumbek, where e3 trained 35 leaders, and led a campaign that resulted in three (possibly 4) new churches.

· We’ve secured a partnership with ALARM ministries in Lietnom to train pastors in church planting and the EvangeCube.

· Started the bible/leadership training school in Kajo Keji with the first 12 students; they are doing great!

· Lead four LDCs near the Sudan/Congo border that resulted in

o 73 leaders trained

o 157 gospel presentations

o 45 professions of faith

· Lead four LDCs in

Juba

(the capital of the south) that resulted in:

o 168 leaders trained

o 157 gospel presentations

o 45 professions of faith

· Lead one LDC in Yei that resulted in:

o 27 leaders trained

o 98 gospel presentations

o 41 professions of faith

The above comes to a total of 433 trained in church-planting and the EvangeCube, and 571 professions of faith in Christ this year.

Upcoming Items that we’d covet your prayer over:

· April 26 – Medical church-planting team leaves for

Sudan

.

· April/May – Working with three donors to purchase a Landcruiser for Kaya

· May 7-8 – Meet with a non-profit partner to nail down details on humanitarian aid projects.

· May 18^th – Meet with another large non-profit that focuses on community development. ($1M+ projects)

· April/May – Meet with a ministry who dug 500 wells around the world in 2006 – hoping to partner with them in

Sudan

.

· May 28-30 – e3 is sponsoring first ever Baptist Conference/Convention in Rumbek.

· May 31 –

US

team departs for church-planting campaign in Torit.

· June 1 – We begin a new session in our bible school in Kajo Keji.

· June/July – Kaya will travel west into a few new towns to assess them for future ministry.

· July – A medical team from

Birmingham

,

AL

will strengthen and encourage the church in Kapoeta.

· Ongoing –

Destiny

Right now I'm reading a really great book by Erwin McManus called Soul Cravings. (Check out the link on the LH side of the page.) The book is written like a journal with main topics containing a lot of journal entries under each one. In "Destiny" entry 7, Erwin writes, "We all hear voices in our heads and have visions erupting out of our brains that disrupt our daily routine and beg us to tear ourselves away from the mundane of life. Something stirs deeply within us, calling us out, inviting us to pursue and discover that which we do not know. All of us are called to a place we have not been. Our lives were always intended to be journeys into the unknown. The invitation is both personal and mystical. No one else may fully understand what you are being called to. You may not even fully understand. The path you must walk may appear to others as strange or unreasonable, but you know there's more going on than meets the eye....God calls us out of the life we have known and calls us to a life we have never imagined...The signs are all around you, but even more the signs are all within you. Your soul is being pulled forward. You are being called to a God whose voice your ears have never heard. You are having visions of a life you could not possibly create alone. You are no longer satisfied with where you are, and now you are on a quest for where you do not know. You were created not to live in the past, but to create the future. Your soul craves to become, and you will never be satisfied with less."

This passage is very timely. It has been simmering inside of me all day. I've read tons of inspirational books and quotes over the years, heard plenty of life-changing, charge up the hill messages, been stirred to action by powerful lyrics and prayers from saints, but today, I am deeply moved and profoundly inspired to become...that's it...to become...you know, that process by which we abandon our pride, raise our hands to the sky and surrender to the One who became in order for us to be able to become. I'm ready to not just say it but to do it. It's bigger than I can control or manage. So it won't be me calling the shots. I'm done with that. It's time to live and breathe and move and trust and love and be loved and, well, become...

Easter 2007

Melancholy mood right now. Pondering the Evangecube and the message hidden inside of it. So simple to tell. So impactful for eternity. I wonder if we'll ever understand the price that was paid for our redemption. There were so many key players in this "drama." Beginning with God. Then Adam & Eve. The deception. The weakness of their flesh. The "God-followers" in the Old Testament whose lives we examine line by line and who failed at living perfect lives. Their ups and downs and blunders and successes are inspirational yet sobering. Their elusive pursuit of holiness. What if it had been me living in the day of animal sacrifices and the law. I would have failed repeatedly. The prophets and judges and priests would have known me by name. Then there was God and His great love for the world. And Mary. And Joseph. And the shepherds & wise men. Such wonder and amazement. Yet every day there had to have been doubt. Then John the Baptist. And the disciples. And the people who followed Christ. And the children. And then the betrayal by a friend. And then the Last Supper. Serving his disciples to the very end. And then the diabolical plot went into hyper-drive. The calloused soldiers. The Pharisees. The people Jesus did life with. His family & friends. His neighbors. The two thieves on crosses next to him. One unrepentant. One with the faith of a mustard seed. But it was enough. And then the physical agony that overcame them all. The final words. The pain and passion that rocked heaven and earth to their deepest core. The shadow that passed over everything. The earthquake. God, watching the humanity that He created reveal their insidious and hateful nature as they scorned, mocked, humiliated, and brutally killed His Son. His only Son. The Son that was a part of Him. The deathly silence broken only by heartbreaking weeping. The sword in His side. Blood and water flowing out. A prophecy fulfilled. A promise made and kept. And then burial in a borrowed grave. A giant stone rolled in front of the opening. Sealed tight. No entry. No exit. Disinterested soldiers keeping guard. Three long days and nights. The cloud of sadness and despair must have been overwhelming to those who had believed in and followed Him. Then the third day. A miracle...God's grace...Jesus rose from the dead. Impossible. Yet with God all things are possible. So, how can we tell the story? We must live the story. We must never allow ourselves to forget the story. We must live our lives in response to this story. To His Story.

Rwanda - Part 14

Time to do the final wrap...Saturday we shopped. Bought some beautiful fabric to make pillows. Ask me in 1 year if they're made yet. Fancy dinner at a beautiful lodge near the gorilla volcano. Jack Hanna has a home on the golf course. Rumor has it that heads of state and celebrities have all stayed at his place.

Early morning on Sunday we began our long trek back home. At this point, memories were fading fast and it's like time was standing still yet moving forward more rapidly than we could fathom. Weird. We spent some time at the Genocide Museum. Sobering. And Sad. And Maddening. Why didn't the world help these people. Where was I when 1 million innocent people were slaughtered with machetes in cold blood?

Then off to the Kigali Airport. Waiting. Boarded a plane to Nairobi, Kenya. 6-hour layover in Kenya. Not a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon. The airport had a power outage that lasted for a couple of hours while we were there. We shopped. We ate. We walked. We were too tired to talk. I sent an email to Joshua & Alyssa from an internet cafe. We watched an ER re-run and another show full of violence. Not so nice. Then we finally left at about 11pm. Flew all night to London. Large group of Africans on the plane in the rows in front of us. I thought they were on an organized tourist trip to America. One person appeared to be in charge and kept reassuring them and making sure they were all seated properly. Turns out they were refugees from the Congo all seeking asylum in the U.S.A. They were headed to New York. Parted ways with our group in London. Dan and I ate breakfast at TGI Fridays. A proper English breakfast (I assume) complete with baked beans, sausage, bacon, egg, toast. $4 for an 8 oz bottle of water. On our way to our gate, stopped in at Starbucks for a white chocolate mocha and a frappuccino. Boarded our plane for Washington D.C. Back row. Right next to the only bathroom on the plane. Really long flight. Boring in-flight movie. Went thru customs when we landed. Then we waited for our flight to Phoenix. Made a couple of cell phone calls (finally!) Tried (unsuccessfully) to change our seats (very last row, both middle seats). And then we met Eric. I noticed two Africans sitting in the seats across from us. A young woman and man. I wasn't totally sure if they were together or not. Trying to be friendly, I asked the woman what language her Bible was printed in. I was pretty sure it was a Bible - gold edging on the pages, she had a tiny cross on a chain around her neck. The woman appeared to not understand me at all. Then the young man next to her tried to answer my question. It turns out that he had met her in Ethiopia a few hours earlier when she needed assistance understanding where and when to board the plane headed for Phoenix. Since he was headed for Phoenix, he was appointed to be her unofficial "guardian." I asked him where he was from. I was elated to learn he was from Rwanda. His name was Eric. We managed to exchange contact information before we boarded the plane. We saw each other at the baggage claim carousel in Phoenix. Told him we would call and have him over for dinner.

OK, so tonight, we had Eric over for dinner. I am so happy that God put Eric in our path. I look forward to getting to know him. I'm hoping that I'll pick up some helpful phrases in Kinyarwandan. I hope that we can be a blessing to him as he gets acclimated to life in Phoenix. He is here on a student visa, studying mechanical engineering at ASU. Dan showed him the wonders of our computer, including Google Earth and digital photos. We actually pinpointed his home in Rwanda. Amazing. I hope to post a photo of him in a future post. Forgot to take the photo. For sure next time. Eric speaks Kinyarwandan, French and English and Swahili. He lost many family members in the genocide, including a younger brother. Life is not fair.

So, the journey is told and will probably be re-told many times. And Rwanda will be a part of us forever. I feel like our lives are permanently entwined with this beautiful part of Africa. There are so many more people who need to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. So many dreams were birthed in this place. We will follow the calling with all our hearts and hopefully mobilize many others to do the same. For Him. Because of Him. It's all about Him.

Soli Deo Gloria.

Rwanda - Part 12

Friday afternoon we had a celebration service at the New Church Site. It was so much fun. Tons of singing and praising. A challenge from Dan. Final sermon from me! We also received some gifts...the mother church, the new church, each of the pastors & their wives, beautiful tokens of their appreciation. I especially was touched by the carved wooden picture of a shepherd with sheep gathered around him - that was in direct reference to the message I gave one day. Then John Peter (a super cool guy from the mother church who worked with us all week) said he had a gift for us. So we stood up to receive a Rwandan flag on a little stand. Very nice. Then finally, a woman who prayed to receive Christ on Sunday at the mother church, said she had a gift for us. She was standing there holding her young baby in her arms - so we stood up to receive whatever gift she had to give us - I assumed she had something in her hand just underneath the baby - to my amazement and shock, when I reached for her hand, she handed me her baby. I had no idea what to say or do. Then she hugged me and her picture taken with me. Then she took the baby and handed it to Dan and hugged him and had her picture taken with him. Then she took the baby back and sat down. You know, that could have been very awkward. I guess she wanted to give us something of value and maybe her child is the most valuable item she has. Not quite sure what she was thinking but I'd like to think of it as a sweet gesture. Then it was all over. We got in the van for the ride back to the Guest House. The kids, as usual, followed the van, running & racing as far as they could. We saw so many people lining the road that we recognized. I saw Jacqueline, the young woman who asked me to be her spiritual mother. I saw the teenage girl who was an orphan who had many promises broken to her in her young life, yet through Christ she now had new hope and renewed sense of purpose and was determined to share the message of Christ with as many children as she could. There was the man dressed in white who was in charge of disbursing water to villagers at his little water station...now he had received the gift of living water and would no longer thirst. There was the young man dressed in his work clothes - he's a guide at the Gorilla excursion - now he's a follower of Christ and so hungry to learn more about the Bible. He completed all of the discipleship lessons and wanted more. We saw groups of teens and pre-teens and young adults, all with a new-found faith -- this faith and the boldness to now share Christ will hopefully change the course of this entire village for eternity's sake.

We had Pastor Japhet and Pastor John D'Amour in the van with us. We were all pretty quiet on the ride back. So much had transpired. So many miracles. We started the week with a big, green, grassy field. We ended the week with a church - not a building but a living, breathing organism. People who were lost but now were found. People who were blind but now could see. Amazing.

Back at the guest house, we hung out in the gazebo next to our room. Finished up some paperwork. Then went to the celebration wrap-up for the campaign. All the teams along with the pastors and the YWAM kids were there to praise God for His mighty work that week. Each team also was able to present a lot of discipleship materials to the pastors, along with a Proclaimer (suitable for large gatherings) and a smaller, similar device, can't remember its name, (suitable for small gatherings) that had "The Story of God" on it. We also gave them all the contact information we had gathered over the week for all the people who had prayed to receive Christ. Then Robert Mutijima announced that we were also able to give 5-6 impregnated goats to each site as part of the Unity Goat Project.

More on that later.

Rwanda - Part 11

I feel like I'm finally winding down. Maybe. Friday was a wonderful day. It was a full circle day for me. Definitely. We started up the road today. Headed to a part of the banana grove I hadn't seen yet. God kept sending us groups of people to share with. A group of women. A group of men. A new group of kids. A group of field workers heading to work. A woman at her home who invited 2 passersby to join us. A group of women in the middle of the field they were planting. A group of men who were just passing by. Another group of women heading to work. And of course more and more kids. Today was particularly meaningful because of where we were for most of the early afternoon. From about 11am - 1:30pm we were in the middle of several large fields that were being plowed and planted. The first two women we shared with were in the middle of a field. So we joined them there. One woman was completely stooped over. Even when she stood up to greet us she was still bent over at the waist. She was probably in her early 70s. We asked if we could share the story of God using some pictures. They said yes. As I began to share the Evangecube, another woman joined the group. To my amazement, it was the 1st woman I led to Christ on Day 1. She was smiling and encouraging the women to listen to the message. She stayed to listen and was so happy when both of her co-workers prayed to receive Christ. Jane sat down in a pile of dirt to write down their names. I moved to the road. I noticed that John D'Amour was sharing with a group of people. They all prayed to receive Christ. By then another group had gathered around me. Jane and I shared the Cube. They all prayed to receive Christ. Three older men walked by. They stopped to hear the message. They were unbelievably happy to hear it. When I showed them the picture of God's hand reaching down from heaven, they all reached out and shook our hands. They were completely into the message. They all three prayed to receive Christ. And on and on. Finally John D'Amour said it was time to head back to the Church Plant site. I couldn't believe how quickly time had passed. I felt like I had shared the message 'til I was practically hoarse. Yet I wasn't hungry or thirsty and had no sense of what time it might be. I had a surreal moment when I realized that we were living out, in real time, the passage in John 4:34-38. 34" My food," said Jesus, "is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Do you not say, 'Four months more and then the harvest'? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 36 Even now the reaper draws his wages, even now he harvests the crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. 37 Thus the saying 'One sows and another reaps' is true. 38 I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor." Thank God for the "sowers" who went before me, planting seeds that they maybe thought would never be reaped. I'm talking about missionaries and pastors and evangelists and passionate people who came to this area before me, maybe even martyrs who gave up everything for the cause and now I was having the privilege of reaping the harvest. Unbelievable. It made me realize that every single "no" we had experienced was just another seed that would hopefully be reaped by someone else someday, in God's timing.

We headed back to the church for our celebration service. And it was quite a celebration! Come back tomorrow for the conclusion!!

Rwanda - Part 10

Backtrack to Thursday. Thursday morning we headed down the road instead of up the road. This is the first day that I went into someone's home. We were in a little housing compound - lots of houses fairly close together separated by some common courtyard areas. We crowded into a small, dark "front room." The floor was dirt with rocks everywhere...just like the ground outside. Three women came in to hear the gospel -- all three of them were nursing their babies. As I went through the Evangecube, I started to smell a different kind of smell behind me. I took a quick peek and noticed a large straw nest with several chickens roosting in it. That was different. All three women prayed to receive Christ. That was awesome. Then we moved on. I shared the gospel with an 85 yr old woman who was missing both legs. She had an old, rusting pair of crutches on the mat next to her. She agreed to pray with me for salvation. But then she sort of chickened out and said she couldn't understand my translator's Kinyaranda pronounciation. First time all week we had that excuse. But then her hearing miraculously improved and she again agreed to pray out loud - this time she really did it. Our Church Plant pastor, John D'Amour said that he wanted to use some of the compassion money we gave his church to help this woman.

Early in the afternoon there was a real downpour. It rained for quite a while. We had to take shelter on the porch of the courthouse. Of course, the kids thought this was great fun. We decided to go through the discipleship lessons with everyone who was there. We had probably 20 people going through the various lessons we had. Very cool. Jane kept the kids occupied with the gospel glove. I sort of wished that the kids would have stood in the rain just to rinse them off a little bit. But they either stood with us on the porch or found a banana leaf to cover their head, or a scarf around their waist to drape over their head. Oh well. A lost opportunity to wash off some of the accumulated dirt and dust and grime.

When it finally stopped raining, we gathered for our afternoon meeting. The sermon was from Ephesians 6. Putting on the full armor of God. The kids especially liked this one. But the adults really got it too. I have to thank my good friend Pam for the inspiration to expound on this particular passage. When we left the church site that afternoon, my heart sort of sank to the ground. Only one more day in this beautiful place with these beautiful people. I was overwhelmed with sadness. I don't know if I'll ever see that place again. I hope that I can. But life goes on. The church will hopefully grow deep roots and be able to plant another church someday. They hopefully caught the vision for what could be. They hopefully understand the eternal significance of their decision to follow Christ. They hopefully caught the vision for continuing to share Christ with the people in their village. It's up to God to draw them close to Himself. It's up to God to give them the desire to grow in His knowledge. It's up to God to reveal to them their spiritual gifts with which to serve the body of Christ. It's up to God to convict them and guide their steps. I pray His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Rwanda - Part 8

I should write a book. Or a booklet. There is so much more of the story to tell. Stay with me. We had the privilege of working with 3 different young adults from Youth With A Mission (YWAM). All three of them represented their organization very well. They were very humble servants of God and were willing to serve in any capacity that was needed at any given moment. They were equally able to share the gospel, entertain 100's of kids, lead worship, and translate what we had to say to the people. They were invaluable to us because of all the kids at our site.

Thursday was a fantastic day. What I wrote in my devotional journal on Wednesday night may have had a lot to do with my outlook. I wrote "Be simple. Be real. Don't sell. Just tell. Lift up the name and message of Jesus. He is the way, the truth and the life. He speaks quite well for Himself. He draws people to Himself. We get in the way sometimes. Spinning. Persuading. Begging. Guilting. I am not. He Is. If the children are from Satan, God, please deliver us from them. If not, then please fill us up with an uncommonly deep well of love, patience, strength and endurance. Reveal Yourself to these kids. Draw them to You not to us."

The feeling today was totally different. Dan started really leading the team. I think he felt a lot more confident as a team leader today. Our entire team really came together today. All day long we stood in the gap for each other at various times. It was a wonderful, synergistic experience. The kids responded. The adults responded. We had a lot of people go through the discipleship materials. Not even the rain could keep us from accomplishing what we set out to do. In fact, the heavy rains in the afternoon reminded me of God. Pouring out His favor and blessing and Spirit upon that place. And it was refreshing and necessary and wonderful.

24

I've only seen the 24 show once. I really liked it. But I don't watch TV enough to be a regular viewer of any show. I know, I know, I could buy each season and do a weekend marathon and be comatose by Sunday. Maybe someday I'll do that. For now, I feel like I'm living out the next 24 hours with a similar amount of detail packed into each hour. Still packing for Rwanda. Still printing lyric sheets for both Sundays I'm gone. Still burning CDs for the band to refer to. Still doing laundry. Making a list of schedules and routes and routines in order to set up my mother-in-law, Judy, for success. Picking up prescriptions. Verifying Sunday scheduling. Praying through devotionals, memorizing the Evangecube script. Small group at 7. Teach at Ventana all day. Pick up Alyssa & Joshua at the airport. Spend quality time with Mike & Steve. Pick out paint colors for their bedrooms. Scrub the showers. Change the sheets. Gather addresses for postcards and email addresses for updates. Assemble all my airplane reading/entertainment. Blogging one last time. This actually may be the last time for a while. 24 hours seems like a small amount of time but if I work it out just right, I might be able to eat dinner with the family tonight and actually get some sleep. Maybe.

Urban Tribe

Dan and I are in this small group called Urban Tribe. It rocks. No really, it does. We're a group of worshippers, worship leaders, musicians, and friends. We've been together for quite some time now. There is a certain amount of comfort in our Wednesday night routine. We pull up to Jeff & Pam's house (usually late), scan the street for who's car is there, walk up to the door, knock on the door then walk in. We are greeted enthusiastically by the dogs, then warmly by the Tribe. We head straight to the snacks & coffee. Our conversations are usually pretty fast-paced and fun. If you close your eyes and let the voices and sounds swirl around you, it's like a big family, teasing, loving, urging, encouraging, loving, comforting, outrageous, and real. The Tribe is unlike any group I've ever been a part of. We've worked hard to develop and maintain a sense of identity and purpose. I'm really thankful for this community of believers, this family that we can spend holidays with and do life deeply together with.