The Hand of the Father - Trusting Him Every Step

I am happy to say that Joel is officially Associate Pastor to Children and Families at First Baptist Church Borger Texas! We were so blessed to have been asked to come! This has been an incredible journey for us and will continue to be as we take the final steps toward moving our family here permanently...

That being said, I must also confess that on more than one occassion the past week I have waivered in my trust in God to work it all out and have even found myself doubting at times if we really were making the right choice - yet God in all His wisdom and glory knew EXACTLY what it would take for this child of His to once again trust Him in ALL things!

The doubting primarily came as we closed the week at Hesperus Youth Camp - I found myself wondering why we would walk away from youth ministry when there were so many still hurting and so many that needed to know how much they were cherished and loved. However - God began to show me others whom He is raising up to be there for these wonderful youth and in order for them to do so; we must step out of the way!

The lack of trust - that came yesterday! If you remember in my first post about this move I mentioned that we had found a house? Well, yes it is true that GOD had found a house but not the one WE had in mind! Yesterday we called on the house and were told that it had been rented out a week ago... Normally this would not be a big deal; however in Borger - it's a BIG deal to find a 3 br rental!!! As soon as we found out, the people here began to ask and look for housing - it seemed like we were coming up empty and yes, I started to panic just a tad at the thought that we are scheduled to move here in 9 days and we didn't have a house to move into!

Yet - God had a plan! Through someone who knew someone we were given a phone number of a lady that had a 3 Br 2 Ba house for rent! We met with her and saw the house - although small and older; it will do for a place to live - like Joel said "A family makes a house the home!" So - this afternoon we rushed an application to her, she quickly checked references, and approved us to rent it! Yeah!!! In addition, it is $325 LESS in rent than the original house which will allow for savings toward a down payment on purchasing a house in a year or so!

As I was reflecting on everything this afternoon - God really spoke to me about having a missions mind set about this particular move. No - I am not going to the bush in Africa or the dry lands of Mexico; yet there are SO many here that are lost, broken, and in despair! Yes - I am going to have to sacrifice some in regards to a smaller, older house than what we are currently in; yes there are some other adjustments to make but God has clearly called us to this place and we are anxious to get here and begin the work He has called us to!

The lesson I have learned today - be willing to go wherever, whenever, no matter the circumstances and God will work out EVERY single detail! We truly do serve an amazing and wonderful Savior!

So what is our schedule? Tomorrow we will head back to Bayfield; we were supposed to be back today but due to the housing issue we had to stay an extra day. Thursday and Friday are packing days with breaks to have lunch/cokes with friends in the area and dinner on Friday night with family that is camping at Vallecito. Saturday is a special baptism and birthday celebration with our second family the Vaughns ( I am going to miss them SO much)! Sunday will be a time of good bye/celebration with our First Baptist Bayfield family - yep going to miss them too!!! Monday through Wednesday are packing and cleaning, Thursday is loading the moving truck day, and then Friday July 15 we are headed out! YIKES - lots happin in a short amount of time!!!

If you are in the Bayfield area and would be available to help load the moving truck Thursday July 14 at around 3:00 - we would GREATLY appreciate it! Unloading in Borger will take place on Saturday July 16 and we would appreciate any help then as well...

Thank you all so much for the continued prayers as we follow the Lord wherever He leads!

Youth Camp 2011

This year's youth camp was a bittersweet experience for Joel and I. We so loved being with the youth from both our church and the other churches! One thing that I truly do LOVE about going to a smaller youth camp is that you are able to form deep relationships with the youth that come year after year from all the churches - this is definitely the case at Hesperus!

The bittersweet part comes from the knowledge that this was our last youth camp as Joel is moving into Children's Ministry...we know that this is where the Lord is leading but it was still hard to let go of this part of ministry!

The camp it's self has changed so much for the better! They have repainted, got new equipment, built a zip line, are adding a basketball court, have a disc golf course, horse shoes, etc! What a blessing to see these things added!

Spiritually I will say that this was possibly one of the most difficult camps we have faced in that so many of the young people shared some truly deep hurt issues that they are facing! We saw everything from a young lady who had recently attempted suicide, to a young man struggling with the loss of his brother, to drug and alcohol addictions, to physical and verbal abuse. As a mom - my heart broke! I wanted to sweep them all up and bring them home to a safe, loving, and healing environment - but I was forced to rely upon the knowledge that Christ is truly their refuge and strength! I will say that for the most part - all of these young people really do have strong support systems in their home church and we are praying that they will take advantage of those!

The biggest release for the students was learning that their is true and real freedom in forgiving those that have hurt them! It was so awesome to see them grasp this concept and to take that difficult step of forgiveness!

Hesperus Baptist Camp and the staff there will always hold a special place in our hearts!!!

A Double Digit Birthday!

The day that I knew would come and secretly was sort of dreading has come! Our "baby" boy Tyler turned 10 this past Monday...we now officially have all four kiddos in double digits! YIKES!

We celebrated Tyler's birthday a day early since we left for camp on Monday (did NOT like being away from my boy on his day for the record!). Due to our crazy back to back schedule - the two Grandmothers stepped up to the plate to plan his birthday lunch and make a cake - THANKS NANA and MIMI!!!

Tyler's party was at my parent's house - one of his favorite places to hang out. We had a lunch of fish, potato casserole, rolls and of course birthday cake!

I must say that Tyler has the SWEETEST heart and truly beamed from ear to ear the whole day! He is such a joy to watch...he soaks everything in!

I can't wait to see how the Lord works in Tyler's life - he will do great things for the Kingdom!!!

Mission Trip 2011

For the youth/church Mission Trip we decided to go with World Changers which is a ministry through the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. The mission of World Changers is to engage teens in providing labor to those here in the US - it ranges from home repair, painting, roofing, working in parks, cleaning up cemetaries, etc. Each church group is divided onto crews of with other churches from all over the country and they have a project to complete during the week...

Our church went to Gallup NM which is only about 4 hours away. It was a different experience for all of us and not one we are soon to forget! The picture above is my crew - The Cinderblockheads! Our project was to build a wheel chair ramp for the home owner that had a stroke this past August. We also repaired a roof over their patio.

I must say that this was WAY out of my comfort zone for missions! I not only do not know anything about construction, I don't enjoy it, and would MUCH rather be engaging and interacting with the people. However - this past week God had plans for me!!!

I started the week very frustrated and irritated with the organization and leadership of some of the youth sponsors, I felt very useless, and quite honestly was thinking that I should have stayed home as I had PLENTY to do here in terms of getting to move. Yet - as the week went on God began to show me that HIS agenda wasn't about me ministering to others this time around but simply to sit and be willing to be his servant when and how He willed.

Yesterday, was the real blessing for me! I was able to share basic Bible stories with a young boy at one of the work sites and then I was able to meet others in the neighborhood; I noticed that these opportunities didn't arise until I had an attitude check however and became willing to let GOD determine the purpose, organization, and leadership of the trip! Isn't that the case a lot? We try to do it our way, with our motives and plans and God says "step out of the way so that MY plan can be accomplished!"

I don't regret going and at the same time I don't know that I would go again to a World Changers trip - however I DO know that no matter where God sends me, I hope to step aside and let HIM determine what and how I am to minister!!!

This next week we are headed to youth camp at Hesperus Baptist Camp followed by a weekend trip to Borger Tx as Joel is going in view of a call as Associate Pastor to Children and Families. We are excited about it but also very tired and weary...please pray for sustained energy and strength for all 6 of us as we navigate this BUSY schedule...Love you all!

His ways are not our ways....

I am so thankful and excited that I can now type this particular post - it has been something that I have SO longed to blog about but for necessary reasons - I really had to keep quiet until now - however God is SO perfect in His timing because I truly am overflowing with joy over this new journey that has begun in our lives!

In order to fully grasp where we are at now - I need to share with you all where we have been! As most of you know, Joel and I came to First Baptist Bayfield in Sept. 2007 when Joel accepted the position of Youth and Children's Pastor. We were SO excited to be back in Colorado, the mountains, near family, near my home town, etc. It was our full intention to stay here for the majority if not all of our kids schooling. We LOVE this community and area.

Yet, as is often the case at the point that people become "content" where they are at - God often calls us in a new direction...For us, this process began approximately a year ago when Joel and I seperately began to consider that perhaps God was calling us to move; however neither of us said much to the other and both chalked it up to the fact that we had actually been some where more than 2 years and were just restless....As time went on we would talk about long term ministry and Joel shared that his heart was turning more and more to ministry to children and families; for me my heart was turning more and more to mentoring young moms and encouraging them as they parent their preschoolers. So, we knew that this was the direction God was getting us to and figured it was 2 to 4 years down the road.

Fast forward to the end of March, first of April to a conversation Joel had with our current Pastor about our church here. Randy and Joel were talking about the financial state of the church and the effect of the economy on it. Randy asked Joel to just pray about going part-time and doing only children's ministry since that was his heart. So - we did pray and God answered!

The answer was clear to both of us - Joel was to pursue Children and Family ministry but it was not to be part time and it was not to be with FBC Bayfield. We shared this with a few friends as well as Pastor Randy and asked them to pray with us about this new direction. We had concerns as to moving the kids after they were settled, leaving the first church we had ever had true friends at, leaving a community we love dearly, etc.

In obedience to the Lord, Joel began the process of sending out resumes but unlike before when we looked for a church that Joel could deal with working with - we decided that he would share his passion and vision for ministry and pray that a church with that shared vision would open up. This past May as we prepared to go on vacation we decided to table the whole job search and just enjoy our vacation - we laid it at the feet of the Father....amazing how when we let go, He is then able to work!

While on vacation on May 20 Joel had coffee with a good friend from college who is also in ministry. Joel shared his heart and where God was leading us. Through this conversation, our friend mentioned that he knew of a church that he thought might be what we were looking for. The next day Joel had an hour long interview with the Pastor of Spiritual Development of the church, which led to a dinner interview a week later with the Sr Pastor, Pastor of Spiritual Dev and their wives and Joel and I. This went great and led to Joel and I going this past weekend to a formal interview with church leadership....the position title is Associate Pastor to Children and Families! Isn't God so amazing?

This brings me to where we are at now. Based on the interview this past weekend, a shared vision between Joel and the church, a peace about it on both sides - we will be going in view of a call to First Baptist Borger Tx July 3. For those of you not familiar with "view of a call" it is a time for us to be introduced to the whole church, a meet and greet, question and answer time, and will conclude with the church voting on Joel as a whole.

If that goes favorably, which is our prayer, we will then return to Bayfield and be moving July 15. This is a very fast time frame especially considering the next two weeks are booked with youth trips for First Baptist Bayfield. Yet - God has given us both a peace that this is the direction we are to go and we are following Him step by step....

To share more about how we have seen the Lord in all of this: ALL 4 kids were not only ok but genuinely excited about moving, the church in Borger goes to Zimbabwe once a year (a place dear to my heart), we have a house there already, we are 40 miles from Joel's sister and only 6 hours from mine, we have MANY college friends in and around the area, and some friends of ours from Bayfield are also potentially moving to that area! God is SOOOO amazing!!!

We will miss our friends and church family here in Bayfield but we know that in the family of God there are no goodbyes only see you laters! Also, both of our parents are still here which means we will be here on vacations and plan on visiting FBC Bayfield regularly!

Please join us in prayer for the upcoming vote and potential transition for our family. I look forward to sharing with you more about this adventure and God's work in it all!

My Dad....

With Father's Day coming this Sunday, I wanted to take time to recognize the AMAZING father that I have! This picture really does capture the essence of who my Dad is - he's fun, a cowboy, wise, discerning, caring, loving, and just an all around good guy.

The one thing that I remember and cherish most about my Dad is that for me, he was the primary discipler in my life in regards to my walk with Jesus. It was my Dad that taught me how to use the Bible, how to pray, how to seek Him for the answers I need most in my life. My Dad taught me what it means to love others unconditionally and to serve others for the sake of Jesus.

As for today, my Dad is not only my boss for work, he is a friend, a mentor, someone in whom I place a lot of trust and who has set a GREAT example for marriage for my husband and I. He has also led by example in terms of being a godly parent and role model for my kids!

Of course, he isn't perfect but in my opinion he's pretty darn close! I am so thankful to my Heavenly Father for placing in the arms of a wonderful earthly father with whom I am privileged to share my birthday!!! Love you Dad!!!

A shift in mindset..

Parents - I want to share with you not something new, but rather something that has been lost, forgotten and placed on the back burner...here it is, are you ready?

YOU are CALLED to be the chief discipler of your children. Yes - YOU! Unfortunately through the passage of time and a shift in our society many churches have not only assumed this role but in some cases they have TAKEN this role from the parents and I believe that the time is NOW for parents to step up and say "We care enough about our children that we will do as Deutoronomy commands and we will train, disciple and show our children to be the Christians that Christ has called them to be."

This idea is something that Joel and I have known for awhile but really weren't sure what we were to do with it until recently. However, the past year or so God has revealed in many ways that he asking us to come alongside parents and to encourage, train, and equip them to be the primary spritual influence in their children's lives.

It is not enough to take your kids to church on Sunday morning or Wednesday night and expect the children's workers to train them - they need to see it lived out, practiced daily, and most of all they need to see you as parents taking this role.

So here are a few practical steps that we have taken with our own children that I pray will help you - however know this: YOUR children are different and may respond different; however YOU know your child better than anyone else and you know how to relate to them...

1. Set aside a time at least weekly if not daily to sit around the dinner table AS AN ENTIRE FAMILY...while at dinner, talk about what God is doing in each of your lives. Start by letting your kids know what God is doing in YOUR life...

2. Pray with your children and for your children.

3. Read the Bible together and then talk about what you have read and how God wants us to apply that to our lives.

4. Use scripture in your discipline of your children - show them that these aren't your rules but God's.

5. Be involved in your kids' lives - their activities, friends, schools, etc.

6. PRAY PRAY PRAY

So - this has been my topic of conversation the majority of the day and I thought I would blog about it since it was on my mind. Once again, not an indepth post by any means but simple and to the point....