Psalm 60:4-12
But for those who fear you, you have raised a banner to be unfurled against the bow. Save us and help us with your right hand, that those you love may be delivered. God has spoken from his sanctuary: 'In triumph I will parcel out Shechem and measure off the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is mine, and Manasseh is mine: Ephraim is my helmet, Judah my scepter. Moab is my washbasin, upon Edom I toss my sandal: over Philistia I shout in triumph." Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom Is it not you, O God, you who have rejected us and no longer go out with our armies? Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless. With God we will gain the victory, and he will tramply down our enemies.
Proverbs 11:14
For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.
I Corinthians 15: 50-58
I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed--in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Psalm 20
May the Lord answer you when you are in distress; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May he send you help from the sanctuary and grant you support from Zion. May he remember all your sacrifices and accept your burnt offerings. May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed. We will shout for joy when you are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests. Now I know that the Lord saves his anointed; he answers him from his holy heaven with the saving power of his right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm. O Lord, save the king! Answer us when we call!
Well, so I guess I was needing some encouragement from the Word about the topic of Victory. It has been an amazing and difficult roller coaster to live in a different country and try to accomplish tasks we feel God asking us to do. The cultural differences has been such a challenge. Living as a family has been a difficult challenge. Simply finding foods to eat that we are familiar with has been a challenge. I know without a doubt that Gods' Word promises us Victory but as I have been studying the different passages in the Bible regarding this topic I am beginning to understand that the Victory God talks about is not earthly. Our Victory is heavenly. We will receive our reward at the end when Jesus returns. I am grateful and thankful to God for allowing me to be forgiven and very thankful I know I will spent eternity in heaven. However, that victory which I am to look forward to is so far away. I have Victory and I know I will receive my Victory in Christ but just like the Jews 2000 years ago, I was hoping for a more concrete and visual Victory I could feel and understand now. The Jews were so ready for a Messiah. They had been waiting for Him for a long time. The Roman Empire was at peace and the stars in the sky were "lined up." Even the magi from the east could see the signs that He was coming. The problem was no one was expecting a "still small voice." Jesus was not what they had hoped for and in fact he was so different from what they were hoping for that they didn't even see Him as the Messiah. They accused Him of being a heretic and more. As I continue through my own life and struggles, I wonder if I am even looking in the right place for help? I turn to God, that much is true, but am I really looking for God to answer me or am I looking for an answer from God. The answer I think I am looking for is my answer, not Gods'. I turn to Him during difficult times, I trust Him to order my life, I even have faith that He is in control and is leading me but when I look to Him for needs in my life, I don't believe I am looking at the same God. I believe I am looking at a God I have created and not the one of the Bible. It is such a struggle to keep the God I worship true to the God of the Bible. Many times I assume God will answer my prayers, my way when in fact, He answers with what is best for me. It is a difficult process and one that I will probably spend my life learning. As I study Him more and continue to get to know the God of the Bible I will perhaps begin to see and hear the God I truly worship, the God of the Bible. How about you? Do you pray to the God of the Bible or the one you think you know in your head?
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Encouragement!
Encouragement is one of those illusive things. We can be encouraged by others or by God but somedays it just seems like everything is against us and no amount of encouragement helps. I was looking my Bible the other day for verses that would help me to feel encouraged. I think the one I liked best was
Hebrews 3:13. The reason I like it so much is because is says to encourage one another so long as it is called TODAY. I don't know of any day that is not called today. It is good to know that encouragement is something even God thinks we need to have everyday. It certainly isn't always easy to give or to receive but it is something that is very necessary for our lives. So with that being said, I would like to encourage others today. My prayer time today will be for all those who are hurting, struggling and having a difficult time in life, that they will truly feel God's presence lifting them up today. God is the best encourager and I will have to rely on Him to encourage those close to my life since I am so far away from them. May God be with you in a very real way today.
Hebrews 3:13. The reason I like it so much is because is says to encourage one another so long as it is called TODAY. I don't know of any day that is not called today. It is good to know that encouragement is something even God thinks we need to have everyday. It certainly isn't always easy to give or to receive but it is something that is very necessary for our lives. So with that being said, I would like to encourage others today. My prayer time today will be for all those who are hurting, struggling and having a difficult time in life, that they will truly feel God's presence lifting them up today. God is the best encourager and I will have to rely on Him to encourage those close to my life since I am so far away from them. May God be with you in a very real way today.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
rejuvinated!!
Wow, what a summer it has been. The last time I posted was in June and now it is already September. We have been quite busy with teams and activities and I thought maybe today would be a good day to catch up on things and start blogging again. It seems our schedule is more manageable again. So here goes.......
Let's start back in July. We worked with three teams in July. The first one was a Vacation Bible school group and we were able to have two sessions per day for four days with 60 children in each session. It went so smoothly. The kids had three stations to go to and we were able to keep them in their stations and get all the activities done. On the second day Lenin decided it was necessary to feed the children after each session so we began feeding them as well. It is always so rewarding to feed children who are in need. We were very thankful to God for keeping away the rain and providing for what these kids needed. At the end of the week we passed out little stuffed turtles and the kids loved them.
The second week was a group of young people who wanted to put on a sports camp. We reserved the center area of La Paz Centro and with the help of the police we blocked off the roads. We then used the area to play soccer, volleyball and even some young children's circle games. We worked with children as young as maybe 4 all the way up to 18 year olds. There were tournaments for soccer and each team had a turn playing against another. In addition to playing sports with the kids we took some time to share the gospel with them. It was a very hot week but we were able to touch many lives. We also did a feeding distribution of 50 bags of food. Each member of the team took several bags of food and with the help of a translator passed out bags of food and shared the Gospel. It was a very rewarding time.
The third week was a medical group that came to treat the people of La Paz Centro. We saw over 1000 patients that week. It was a busy time and many people were treated and had medicine provided for them. Again God kept the rain away when needed and He also provided all the medicine we needed. We didn't run out at any time!!!! I am always thankful to God for what He does when teams come. There are so many different things that need to happen for a medical team to come to Nicaragua and God always seems to open the right doors at the right time.
As we worked our way into August, the teams left and we began schooling the children here at the house. One of the biggest struggles for me is to know when God wants us to serve Him outside the house and when it is time to serve Him inside the house. We homeschool our children and have been doing so for 5 years now. It is a very rewarding and difficult job. Here in Nicaragua, we have to learn to balance serving people outside the house and doing what we need to do inside. We have really focused on school these last few weeks. It is so important for the kids to have a routine and know what to expect from one day to the next. We school monday through thursday and then on friday we do ministry outside the house. We continue to feed families and teach classes on that day. On Saturday we also do one more day of school at home but it is a shortened version of the week.
Our feeding has grown this week to 22 families. We continue to pray the prayer of Jabez and anticipate God continuing to provide the extra money for us to pass out bags of food. The bags of food include rice, beans, onions, tomatoes, peppers, plantains and potatoes. Sometimes we substitute yuka and carrots for the plantains and potatoes depending on the price of each in the market. It costs about 5-7 dollars per bag of food. The bag of food lasts the family depending on how many about 2-4 days. It certainly doesn't provide for all their needs but we are here only to help and this is a very practical way to help. We really don't want them to become completely dependant on us because they also need to do their part to provide for their families but it is good to help out a little bit each week.
The second week in September we needed to return to Costa Rica for our visa requirements. That trip is always enjoyable and a nice break from the day to day. We continue to pray God will open doors for us to obtain a residency here in Nicaragua so we no longer have to leave every 180 days.
Our spanish is slow in coming. We just celebrated our first year here in Nicaragua and I really thought we would know more spanish. The kids really don't communicate in spanish but they are learning words. We know many words in spanish but speaking the language is much more difficult than I thought it would be. I suppose it is a good thing and a bad thing. We are able to continue to pay someone to translate for us which gives him a job but communication is very slow.
Well, that brings us to now. It has been a whirlwind of a time but we are slowing down and getting back into a routine. I think now my mind is clear and I will be able to post again more often. I pray for you, our supporters, and hope that this update finds you well. Thank you to everyone for all your prayers these last few months and I pray God will richly bless your lives for you support.
Let's start back in July. We worked with three teams in July. The first one was a Vacation Bible school group and we were able to have two sessions per day for four days with 60 children in each session. It went so smoothly. The kids had three stations to go to and we were able to keep them in their stations and get all the activities done. On the second day Lenin decided it was necessary to feed the children after each session so we began feeding them as well. It is always so rewarding to feed children who are in need. We were very thankful to God for keeping away the rain and providing for what these kids needed. At the end of the week we passed out little stuffed turtles and the kids loved them.
The second week was a group of young people who wanted to put on a sports camp. We reserved the center area of La Paz Centro and with the help of the police we blocked off the roads. We then used the area to play soccer, volleyball and even some young children's circle games. We worked with children as young as maybe 4 all the way up to 18 year olds. There were tournaments for soccer and each team had a turn playing against another. In addition to playing sports with the kids we took some time to share the gospel with them. It was a very hot week but we were able to touch many lives. We also did a feeding distribution of 50 bags of food. Each member of the team took several bags of food and with the help of a translator passed out bags of food and shared the Gospel. It was a very rewarding time.
The third week was a medical group that came to treat the people of La Paz Centro. We saw over 1000 patients that week. It was a busy time and many people were treated and had medicine provided for them. Again God kept the rain away when needed and He also provided all the medicine we needed. We didn't run out at any time!!!! I am always thankful to God for what He does when teams come. There are so many different things that need to happen for a medical team to come to Nicaragua and God always seems to open the right doors at the right time.
As we worked our way into August, the teams left and we began schooling the children here at the house. One of the biggest struggles for me is to know when God wants us to serve Him outside the house and when it is time to serve Him inside the house. We homeschool our children and have been doing so for 5 years now. It is a very rewarding and difficult job. Here in Nicaragua, we have to learn to balance serving people outside the house and doing what we need to do inside. We have really focused on school these last few weeks. It is so important for the kids to have a routine and know what to expect from one day to the next. We school monday through thursday and then on friday we do ministry outside the house. We continue to feed families and teach classes on that day. On Saturday we also do one more day of school at home but it is a shortened version of the week.
Our feeding has grown this week to 22 families. We continue to pray the prayer of Jabez and anticipate God continuing to provide the extra money for us to pass out bags of food. The bags of food include rice, beans, onions, tomatoes, peppers, plantains and potatoes. Sometimes we substitute yuka and carrots for the plantains and potatoes depending on the price of each in the market. It costs about 5-7 dollars per bag of food. The bag of food lasts the family depending on how many about 2-4 days. It certainly doesn't provide for all their needs but we are here only to help and this is a very practical way to help. We really don't want them to become completely dependant on us because they also need to do their part to provide for their families but it is good to help out a little bit each week.
The second week in September we needed to return to Costa Rica for our visa requirements. That trip is always enjoyable and a nice break from the day to day. We continue to pray God will open doors for us to obtain a residency here in Nicaragua so we no longer have to leave every 180 days.
Our spanish is slow in coming. We just celebrated our first year here in Nicaragua and I really thought we would know more spanish. The kids really don't communicate in spanish but they are learning words. We know many words in spanish but speaking the language is much more difficult than I thought it would be. I suppose it is a good thing and a bad thing. We are able to continue to pay someone to translate for us which gives him a job but communication is very slow.
Well, that brings us to now. It has been a whirlwind of a time but we are slowing down and getting back into a routine. I think now my mind is clear and I will be able to post again more often. I pray for you, our supporters, and hope that this update finds you well. Thank you to everyone for all your prayers these last few months and I pray God will richly bless your lives for you support.
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