December 2007

Sometimes we get busy… who am I kidding? We’re busy people, it’s the state we live in. Sometimes in the busyness, life goes by us and we realize we’ve allowed ourselves to become consumed by the meaningless and the potential of moments has been wasted with nothing of eternal value taking place. I do it… more often than I’d like to think. That’s not okay. Being a follower of Jesus, I am called to a higher standard… a life of value in which I deny myself and live for Him, seizing the potential of every moment, making choices and taking actions that make an eternal impact. But I’m human and my tendencies are quite opposite of this, so I’ve learned to pray… O Lord, make me to know my end and what is the extent of my days; let me know how transient I am. (Ps. 39:4)

As God teaches me that my days are few, I begin to understand the value of moments and the importance of seizing them for all they are worth. Paul put it well when he told us: Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God; just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of many, so that they may be saved. (I Cor. 10:31-33)

Wherever I am, I walk with purpose… so that they may be saved. My prayer is that it will become more and more natural, that my selfishness will continue to die off as I learn to not seek my own profit but the profit of many. It’s a constant struggle with my flesh… but if and when I’m truly living it out, no moment is mine. I must always be available, alert, willing, prepared and able to be used by my Redeemer, that others may be redeemed.

So it begins on the airplane. I had an agenda of what I wanted to fill those hours with, but I was also reminded that it wasn’t my moment and I chose to be available. As a result God used me touch a life of someone on the plane…

I met Juan on the flight from Miami to Manaus, Brazil. He’s Cuban, lives in San Diego, and is married to a Spaniard whose family owns a home in Brazil… random! We bonded through our common love of
San Diego! I spoke with him for the first hour or two of the flight. He shared much of his life with me and we were able to get into spiritual matters. He was raised in a Catholic environment. He believes in the Bible but not to the extent that it influences the way he lives… other than being “a good person”… and possibly going to mass once or twice in a year. I talked to him about Jesus and the way that knowing him personally has transformed my life. Through my testimony, I shared the truth of the gospel in a relevant and relatable way. He heard it. I know he heard it because he apologized over and over for not being “at that place right now” and said that he was “not ready” to make the decision to walk with Jesus. I told him there was no reason to apologize to me but that I simply wanted him to know that Jesus is very real and desires a very real relationship with him.

I am encouraged by his response. It shows me that the message was heard and pondered over… and that a seed has been planted. Paul once said, I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. (I Cor. 3:6) I pray that the seed God allowed me to plant in Juan will be watered and that God will cause it to grow over time, drawing Juan to himself. It isn’t our job to save people, but it is our job to live so that they may be saved and to trust God to use our efforts to cause growth.

I promised stories from the Amazon. They will begin to come in the next few days, at least that’s my current goal. I’ve had a severe case of writer’s block for various reasons.

1. I’m in CA with my family and friends for two weeks. I’m grateful for the opportunity to stay for two weeks (because of working at Starbucks part of the time I’m here) but though it’s more than just a few days… two weeks is still very limited. I’m trying to cram everything/everyone in - in a quality time sort of fashion!

2. I have so much to say (about the Amazon and other parts or life) that I just don’t know where to begin.

3. God is teaching me a lot. Upon self-assessment, I’m in the middle of a growth spurt and we all know that those can take a lot of energy out of you. There is so much going on in my mind that I’ve found it easier and possibly more beneficial for the time being to spend a lot of time reading, which just adds to my growth and number of thoughts floating around in my head and makes it more difficult to sit down and write it all out. I know I need to though. I’ll start in the next couple days. That’s a promise. :o)

For now, it’s movie time with the fam.

Turning 25 is really not that big of a deal to me but it’s a good time for a little evaluation of where my life is at and where it is or isn’t headed.

My bigger younger brother is kind to me. He’s really spoiled me over the last few years… by loaning me his brand new car - not just for a day or for a week but for almost 2 years, giving me a computer, giving me a significant amount of support money for my Amazon mission trip and he even helped me out one month when I wasn’t sure how I’d pay rent… Since our dad passed away, he’s the man in my life. He loves me very much and I know that, whether he says so or not… because otherwise he would have hired someone to murder me when I had an accident in his car.

My bigger younger brother is mean to me. He picks on me and makes fun of me pretty much all the time. If you heard some of the things he says to me you’d think, “You’re such a jerk face!” I say that to him a lot actually… but, I know he thinks highly of me and values me as the wonderful sister that he knows I am (hehe) and that making rude comments is his weird way of showing me how much he cares… And we both have twisted sense of humors (his much more than mine) so we think it’s funny.

I say all of this because for my 25th birthday my brother gave me a speech… It wasn’t a very nice speech. It was a “Why do you want to celebrate being 25? It just means you’re that much closer to being 30 and not married. Maybe you should go sit in the corner and contemplate what you have done to get yourself here… 25 and still, you’ve never had a boyfriend! You should probably figure out what the problem is so that by the time you are 30 someone will at least ask you on a date.”

I told him he was a jerk and I laughed and went on with my life. It’s really okay with me that I am where I am… but, I’m not gonna lie - I really do want to get married someday (and before 30 is not a bad idea). I don’t put a lot of weight on what my brother said but it did make me think a little bit. I had a few realizations about myself… I’m not going to publish them all on a blog for everyone to read, but I will admit that I would love for my older younger brother to not have to be THE man in my life for the rest of my life (although if I stay single long enough my little brother Josh will be bigger than me too and then they could split the duties).

All of that said, I’ll say one more thing… I know why I’m 25 and single… I had a good dad who told me when I was a little girl that the purpose of dating was to figure out who you were going to marry and that marriage is forever. He told me that I deserved an amazing man and that I should never date anyone who wasn’t an amazing man in hopes that he would someday become one, because he might not… and I listened. So when my friends were dating idiots because they thought it was fun, I decided to just be friends and wait until someday there was an amazing man who wanted me forever. I’m still waiting… But my brother did have a point. There are some things that maybe I should do differently.

And that’s all I have to say about that.

Earlier tonight I was looking for a book on my shelf and for some reason I picked up an old journal from 2003. I opened it up to a page that I had written a Life “To Do” List. On it are things like “Publish a book,” “Go skydiving,” “Take a pottery class,” “Learn another language,” and … “Go on a mission trip to Brazil!” I love how God does things! I’m so thankful that He saw fit to take me there. It is now another place I call home as it is in my heart forever!

I so appreciate the prayers that all of you offered up on our behalf and I assure you that your prayers were heard!

This will be a synopsis of the journey… After I finish finals on Monday I will start sharing specific stories and reflections on what God taught me!

God began working in and through us even on the plane ride. One woman accepted Christ through the witness of one of our team! I was able to spend over an hour talking to the man next to me… Sharing with each other about our lives. I was able to share my testimony with him and explain the difference that Jesus makes in my life. He believes but he doesn’t have faith… I pray that our conversation was a step in the process of him coming to Jesus.

We arrived in Manaus on Friday night and were greeted at the airport by the Amazon Outreach Crew. We hopped on a bus that took us to our boat (The Linda Esperanca). We slept that night in our hammocks (amazingly comfortable) as we traveled up the Amazon River. I woke up super early the next morning - very excited and ready to soak up every moment! We had 20+ hours of traveling to get to Parintins. That was awesome time to spend with the Lord and with each other. (More on that later!)

Sunday we went to a church in the Invasion Zone of Parintins (the poorest area of the city, where people go hoping to transition from the villages to the city). We did a program with the children and they captured our hearts and prayer-walked through the area. That afternoon we had an opportunity to prayer walk through the main part of the city. We split up into groups of 3 or 4, each group with a translator. We prayed over the stadium where they hold the largest Pagan Festival in all of South America. We spoke with people on the streets asking them about their lives and how we could pray for them. There were many sweet moments that I will never forget. We shared the gospel and encouraged believers. We prayed over the local Catholic Church that is full of untruths and corruption. That night we went to Pastor Elmer’s church and Josh Rolf (our team leader/Minister at Prestonwood/a good friend of mine from CBU) preached the sermon on Acts 2:42-47. It was a great time to encourage and love on the local church!

Monday we journeyed to a village a few hours away. We spent a couple of days here doing VBS, medical and dental ministry, door to door evangelism, men’s ministry, and women’s ministry! It was amazing to see how each person on our team was able to use their various gifts in such significant ways. It was awesome to have such a large group (34 of us plus all of our translators)… We were really able to permeate the entire village, touching everyone in some way. There was no one in the village who didn’t know we were there or why we were there! We held a worship service both nights, the second night showing part of the Jesus Film (until we lost power).

Wednesday we went to a very small village (El Shaddai). Seven years ago another team from our church visited a village across the river from El Shaddai and several families accepted Christ. Soon after they were kicked out of their village and cut off from all government benefits. This missionary village was established for them with the help of Pastor Elmer’s church in Parintins. This village is the home base of all those that were kicked out. We were able to serve them by helping to tear down their wooden church that was falling apart so that they can begin to rebuild a brick church.

Thursday half of us went back to the Invasion Zone and the other half went to a place called Samaritan’s Village. I was in the second group. This is a place for children who have been abused or abandoned. Both groups led VBS and spent the afternoon loving on kids. I fell in love with a little girl who reminded me a lot of myself. Her story will be one that I’ll expound on later.

Friday we began the long journey back to Manaus (30 hours going against the current).

Saturday I met a woman on the plane who is Brazilian but lives near us in Plano, TX. She is Catholic but does not know Jesus personally and has never studied the Bible on her own. Her, Stacy (a teammate), and I talked for the entire 3 hour plane ride. She’s going to help us learn to speak Portuguese and we’re going to take her to church and help her learn more about the Bible. (More on that later!)

I’ve just given you a brief description of what took place… It does no justice to the power of God that was demonstrated, to the lives that were forever changed (including my own), or to the beauty that was seen! Many people came to know Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord… Others came one step closer… God was glorified!

Our team came back changed… challenged… refreshed… renewed… and with a heart for the people of the Amazon.

God spoke to me and changed me… some of it was hard… all of it was beautiful!

Thank you so very much for being such an integral part of this ministry! Your prayers were such a blessing. Don’t stop praying for the people of the Amazon!!!

Pictures to come… Blogs to come… Emails to come…
I have a lot to say… God is doing a lot in my life! Stay tuned!