Evidences of God's grace

Okay, everyone...what is one evidence of God's grace in your life that you've seen THIS week. Let's hear them! :o)

Desiring God!

Hey everyone!

Just a quick note that TODAY and TOMORROW Desiring God Ministries is discounting all their books to $5! This is an amazing savings, so I just thought I'd letcha know about it. :o)

Happy reading!

Countdown...26 Days!

Here we go! We're down to 26 days - that's less than a month, folks! Now the Ladies Retreat is over, I will be working to prepare for my Mission:X trip July 22-30! As has recently been described to me, here are my specific responsibilities before and during the trip. (And, as promised in an earlier post, I wanted to provide you with specific ways to pray for me.)

1. Serve. There will be plenty of opportunities to serve in a variety of ways during this trip – setting up and tearing down for the workshops, helping in the kitchen – an amazing experience since it is so different from what we are used to.
2. Administration. It's amazing how many admin details there are - what a joy to be called upon to do what I love! I will also be putting together gifts for each of the individuals who attend the conference (more on this later).
3. Assist. Eric will be teaching a class on playing a solo instrument. I will also be serving Ody as she teaches a women’s “taller” (or workshop). I will get to sit on a panel and try to answer questions about worship as it pertains to our lives.
4. Drama. Not many details yet, but this is always fun! :o)
5. Play. I will be playing violin at times during worhsip.
6. Pray. There will be many, many opportunities to minister and pray for individuals.
7. Small group. Each small group will have questions to participate in and a journal to keep of our time there. These groups will be for accountability and spiritual growth.

So you can see I have a lot to get ready for! :o) I appreciate your prayers!

Joy Inexpressible!, 3

So, we did a photo contest and had tons of pictures submitted by lots of people all over the region...here are some of my favorites.

Joy Inexpressible!, 2

Okay, so I'm not exactly live blogging our retreat, but today WAS pretty awesome! We ended with an incredible time of worship and ministry!! It's always amazing to me how the Holy Spirit ministers to so many of us through specific words of encouragement...I love it!


And...tomorrow is the end. It's hard to believe!

Joy Inexpressible!

So, this is what I'm doing this week - Joy Inexpressible. Danny spoke tonight (I missed it, but I know that it was powerful!!!!!) and Jenny Detwiler will be speaking tomorrow morning. Tomorrow night is worship and ministry and then Jenny speaks again on Saturday...of course you HAVE to check back for pictures of 'Finding Joy Faire', the original musical. :o)
P.S. Yes, Steph, Chris designed this one, too. :o)
P.S.S. Have I mentioned I love my church?
P.S.S.S. Have I mentioned I need to get to bed?

God is good!!

I love my church. I love them.

Sunday Update on Haiti

• So...only one more day and they'll be home!!!!! I talked to Kathy again tonight - woohoo!
• Apparently their computer is working again after a bad storm. All you parents out there - assume this is why they couldn't contact you and not because they were having too much fun. :o) However, Janelle, your father made it quite clear today - from the pulpit no less! - that you are in trouble for not contacting them regardless. He might have meant you should have sent up flares to signal your safe arrival at the hotel each day, but I'm not sure. :o)
• So...apparently the 24 hour thing is going through the team...and hopefully will stay in the Miami airport - yuck! Kathy's doing better, though.
• She got to go with seven others this morning to a church about 30 minutes away. They drove through 'a market, a creek, an actual river and much more'. Not sure what the 'much more' was...I shall leave that to your imaginations.
• Oh, I think they took the kids to the beach today, but we didn't get to talk about that (she chose to use her last precious minutes on her phone card talking to...me! :o).
• They leave tomorrow morning at 6:30 am for the loooooooooooong drive back to Port-au-Prince. Then they fly into Miami at 3:30 pm and should arrive in Orlando at 7:30 pm...see you all soon! I can't wait to hear all the stories!!!!!!! :o)
• Oh, and I have a non-Haiti item to post. I found this quote by Spurgeon from the Morning and Evening and absolutely love it. I read it all the time. Don't we serve an amazing God? He stands ready to help us in our hour of need. Whether that's an exhausting trip leaving a country you've grown to love...or preparing for 700 women at a regional ladies retreat...or disciplining your child for the 50th time today on the same issue...or looking for a job after weeks of not being able to find one... Whatever the circumstance - He is will help us.
• "I will help thee, saith the Lord" Isaiah 41:14
  "This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of us: 'I will help thee'. It is but a small thing for Me, thy God, to help thee. Consider what I have done already. What! not help thee? Why, I bought thee with My blood. What! not help thee? I have died for thee; and if I have done the greater, will I not do the less? Help thee! It is the least thing I will ever do for thee; I have done more, and will do more.....If thou hadst need of a thousand times as much help, I would give it thee; thou requirest little compared with what I am ready to give.....O my soul, is not this enough? Dost thou need more strength than the omnipotence of the United Trinity? Dost thou want more wisdom than exists in the Father, more love than displays itself in the Son, or more power than is manifest in the influences of the Spirit? Bring hither thine empty pitcher! Surely this well will fill it. Haste, gather up thy wants, and bring them there--thine emptiness, thy woes, thy needs. Behold, this river of God is full for thy supply; what canst thou desire beside? Go forth, my soul, in this thy might. The Eternal God is thine helper!" Morning and Evening, January 16
• Goodnight, my friends!
• P.S. Is anyone else having trouble figuring out why all of a sudden you can't have a space between paragraphs? What am I doing wrong?!?!?! So I use bullets tonight...

Saturday Update on Haiti

DISCLAIMER: I am going off of what has been told to me. :o) Some details may not be accurate - you know, phone connection and all. :o)

Well, I just got a call from Kathy! I heard that she wasn't feeling well yesterday and today. She seems to be doing better now. My dad wasn't feeling well, Leah has strep throat and Derek and a few others weren't feeling good.

She said they had a bad storm last night which must have made for some fun hikes this morning! :o)

Today they're doing arts and crafts and the construction team is almost finished with what they were working on. Apparently they've gotten so much done and surprised the overseer with being able to clear the ground for the girls orphanage!

Tomorrow they're going to church and are planning to take the kids to the beach! I'm sure that will be a blast!!!!

Let's see...what else?

1. Daniel took a picture of the ceiling with the precious Polaroid film. Apparently the orphanage team beat him up. :o)
2. The best thing has been worshipping with the children.
3. The most difficult thing has been the language barrier even though some speak a little English.
4. It appears it is very easy to get a husband in Haiti...:o)
5. The medical team were able to visit a village(?) yesterday and (with meds from the pharmacies there and what they brought in their personal luggage) were able to see 450 people. Hello! That is amazing! I am sure that is a miracle - what kindness from our God!
6. The medical team slept on concrete floors Thursday night...and met up with some very large spiders (I heard they were the equivalent of the size of your hand. Yeah, I think I'd freak!)

Alright, well, until the next update comes through...

P.S. I think we should still pray that the meds are able to be claimed by the church there. The Lord softened Pharoah's heart, let's pray He will do the same with this government!

Friday Update on Haiti

Hey everyone!!

I heard from Kathy again (still no contact from my parents but I'm not bitter :o)! She said she's doing well and is learning so much every day. Her favorite part is worshiping at the end of the day, hearing them sing in their language and sometimes ours. She said she is loving being with the children!!! She said she's loving those sweaty hugs... ;o) j/k!

Please pray for my mom whose back is hurting pretty badly. She pushed through to go on the trip but is in a lot of pain. :o(

Medana...she got her first hug last night after she read your comment on her blog! :o)

***************

Now I'm going to just copy and paste parts of Colleen Barbato's email from yesterday afternoon:

Hi all!

Haiti is amazing...Yesterday morning I was proposed to by a Haitian pastor...seriously...but I declined. (Yes, the American pastors are aware of the situation.)

Today one of our pastors informed me that the little boy that has been attached to my side is adoptable. And, another mature, godly friend has encouraged me to speak to Pastor Daniel's wife, who is in charge of the home, about what needs to be done to become his mother. Don't worry, I at least will not be bringing him home this trip. You'll see him in almost every picture anyone has taken of me to date. Simply gorgeous, vibrant, loveable, loving little boy. His name is Josaffa Potte, but his nickname is Ti Potte (pronounced teapot) which means "little potte". He was born on 09/11/01...the same day as the attacks. He has a big sister Jinnette who will be 8 next month and a baby brother Jesse who is 10 months old. They have not been at the home long, but they are there simply because their parents do not want them. WAIT until you see the pictures! The thought of anyone not wanting these precious ones is so bizarre to me!

Things are going well here for the team except for the confiscated meds. BUT, God must have other plans! SO, we continue to pray, we continue to serve, we continue to smile, we continue to laugh, and we continue to love in what ever way we can figure out to.

Just to let you know how abundant God's grace is...my roommate and I are sharing a room with no a/c, a sink and shower with no hot water at all, and pillows that look like soggy sacks of packing popcorn, and we're doing great! We fall right to sleep, we wake up without a problem, and we've gotten used to the constant perspiration. We eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at the hotel, and in between we don't even get hungry or need to use the bathroom. (YES, we are drinking plenty of water!)

I miss my girl, so please continue to pray for us as we are apart. I know she would love it here, and love getting to know the kids. I think her being here would be the only thing that could make it better. That, and me being able to bring home a certain little boy, and possibly his big sister.

The home looked like an ancient ruin when we got here, but it is coming together nicely. I didn't realize the masonry was NEW. Now that they have sanded it, and the painting has begun, it is really starting to look nice.

Our construction team is supporting the hired Haitian construction team, and the foreman was blown away last night when he got an update from our team leader (Bernie). Our guys moved a huge pile of rocks, by wheel barrow, down a hill to the location where the girls new home is being built...and were adament that they were not leaving last night until every rock was moved. And they did it! When Bernie told the foreman it was done the foreman did not believe him, and reiterated that ALL the rocks had to be moved. Bernie pressed in, YES, ALL the rocks were moved. Apparently the foreman was speechless. Pastor Daniel's wife (Marlain) jokingly told us they were going to take our passports so we cannot leave on Monday because they are so enjoying us being here, and the work getting done is amazing.

We had our first time of worship and teaching last night at all, and it was with the Haitians - some from the boys/girls homes, some from the community. The first song they sang was "Give Thanks" in English and we all got to sing together. Then they went on to sing some other songs in creole, which most of us did not know the words to. BUT, the presence of God was tangible and it was such a moving time of worship. No sooner than I realized just how powerful the Holy Spirit was moving we recognized one of the songs they were singing had the line that ends with "in the presence of a holy God". YES! We were in the presence of THE holy God! So cool!!!!

Today I was helping refill water bottles for everyone on the back porch of the boys' home, which - incidentally - is where my friend Ti Potte and his little buddies play. He ended up in a little squabble with a boy named Roodly, who lives up to his name. lol (Not the most obedient little boy I've ever met. lol) Ti Potte was crying so I picked him up to console him, next thing I knew, he was asleep in my lap. One of our pastors came by and asked me if I was having fun (rhetorical question) and I told him "This is what I came for!" I KNEW I was supposed to sit and hold the kids! God is SO good!

This afternoon we are going to do some skits and crafts, a dance one of our girls has taught to some of the teenagers, and another time of worship and Bible teaching. How amazing God is that He has this planned for our day!

I really do miss you all, and I have been praying for you...but you'll see the pictures and you'll understand God in a new way...He is good all the time! I will try to write again, but there has been a VERY long line at the community computer.

Love you guys!

Colleen

"What am I? Well, here is what I am. I am the worst sinner I know. And by the grace of God I am doing better than I deserve. For I deserve the righteous wrath of God because of my sin. I deserve to be punished eternally. But in the mystery of His mercy, God sacrificed and crushed His Son on the Cross--as my substitute--so that I might be forgiven of my sin and know God as my Father rather than my Judge. What am I? I am truly amazed by the grace of God. Thats what I am." ~ C.J. Mahaney Together for the Gospel Blog

It really is a mission's trip!!!!!!

Hey everyone!

This just in from Lisa:
"David Traugott just called, let me just say, your loved one(s) in Haiti, are having the time of their lives!!! The hotel they are staying at is right on the beach, the food is fantastic, they eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at the hotel, and they are able to swim in pool every day. Oh yeah, they’re on a mission’s trip…… Everyone is safe (as you can tell) and no one has gotten sick. They did not get the medical boxes from the airport even though they provided Customs with ALL the information they required and then some. They are hoping that at some point they will be able to receive them, Addam Masri is leaving instructions on how to administer the medicines to the Haitians. The medical team has gone to the mountains as scheduled they will be back tomorrow evening. They are learning a lot as far as how things work, phone cards do not work. Please continue to pray, there’s much to be done and be at peace! Talk to you soon."

Thanks for your prayers!!! Psalm 54:2, "O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth." Oh, Lord, how we need You!!!

Another Haiti Update for Wednesday...

Hey y'all!

If you're looking for more updates, Janelle Phillips, Zach Wilson and Jason VanLue may be periodically posting. I know Janelle posted today and yesterday. Feel free to check them out...

Oh, and I heard from Kathy!!!!! Pete, she said that she got a phone card this morning. So, unless she chooses to call her boyfriend, I'm guessing you'll be first in line. Just kidding...about the boyfriend, that is! :o) Although she did say the phones may not be working, so maybe no phone call just yet...

She said she's loving being with my family which is kind of funny since she's always running from the room wheezing when she comes over. I dunno, maybe that's just because she's laughing so hard? :o) They should be doing arts and crafts tomorrow - mmm! That should be fun! Melanie, she said 'Happy Birthday'!

Please pray that the team stays hydrated and that they are able to get those meds through customs!!!!

Haiti Update

Well, if you haven't heard, Jason VanLue and Addam Masri stayed at the airport because the meds for the clinics wasn't let through! They have had a difficult time doing anything with the customs officials because, due to the culture, everyone moves so slowly. Hopefully they will be able to pull some strings tomorrow and get them today. If they don't get them today, it will be Friday before they can try again: Thursday is a national holiday = nothing gets done. :o) So, please pray! Pray that God will move in the hearts of those responsible to allow the meds through!!

Everyone seems to be doing great - nobody's gotten sick! It's very, very hot but it sounds like they're having fun and working hard!

***Update***

This is just in from Kayla Arnold:

"Even though we are having a great time in serving those at the orphange through various projects, construction (trying to clear a basketball court for the kids and painting and the construction team is building a girls' orphanage) gettting the medicine is on the forefront of all our minds. God's will is in all of this - he has a plan. Please pray we do not get weary or discouraged waiting, it seems that's what we are doing. The key phrase around here is "hurry and wait". Waiting for the medicine. Also pray that we do not get discouraged trying to communicate with the Haitians (even though Cynthia's translations are awesome - there's only one of her!) :) Everyone's healthy, Caleb Lightfoot stubbed his tow in the water on one of the rocks (there's a beach by the hotel we are staying at) but other than that we are all alive and well and surviving heat and mosquitos :) The view is breathtaking, and God is good :) Please keep us in your prayers!"

Aw, Caleb, I hope you're alright!!! :o(

HAITI!!!!!

Hey everyone!

My parents and Daniel and Caleb left early this morning for Haiti! ...3:00 AM to be exact (yuck!). They may be updating their blog periodically, so check it out if you want!

P.S. I just saw that only ONE person is a subscriber to my blog - hello!!!!! There are 124 subscribers to the Solo Femininity blog...help me beat that, y'all!!!!! :o)

Redhead Day!

Did you know June 7th is national Hug-a-Redhead Day? For all those redheads out there, Happy Day for you!!! I won't be able to hug two of the redheads I know, but I'll be thinkin' of y'all! :o)

Redhead #1:

Redhead #2 (and what happens if you DO try to hug her):
Love you guys!