Storms

My Princess has been battling a fever this week. Though sheis better, the last two nights we decided to stay home from the seminar. The weather had other plans though. On Monday night as the Princess and I were enjoying our meal together alone, I got a phone call. My husband decided that based on the weather report of possible tornadoes he wanted us at the seminar hall with him. The seminar location has a basement that serves as a tornado shelter. As we rushed to get ready and leave, I grabbed some snacks in water, (*just in case).

With a little excitement and a prayer in my heart we left our "home" and watched as the sky darkened and the wind picked up. Boy, was it humid! That is one thing I don't think I will ever get used to - humidity.

That night as we stayed in the foyer of the hall, not wanting to spread germs to other kids, we watched out the big side windows. The wind picked up and some rain fell. But soon, the clouds passed and the sun started to peak through. The wind died down and it appeared the storm had passed us. Unfortunately, others in this great state of Oklahoma were not so lucky. Tornadoes did touch down and I heard that 5 people have now died because of the severe weather. We think of those who not only died but those who lost their homes and business as well. Join me in praying for the good people of Oklahoma who were affected by this series of storms.

Tulsa Zoo

Week one in Oklahoma is coming to an end and we have been enjoying our stay so much. The church we are working with is so kind. Yesterday we received a basket full of fruit (even pineapple and mangoes!) and a fresh homemade loaf of bread. Today I received some flowers left at our "home". Aren't people in the South known for the hospitality? I know now why. We feel blessed. The Princess and I are here one more week, and though it will be nice to be at our own home, we will miss this small town.

The people in the community are really supporting the seminar as well. The attendance has still stayed above the opening night attendance. That is always a blessing from the Lord. I have been grading the Bible school lessons again here, and one couple accepted Christ for the first time last week. What a blessing to be doing this kind of work!

If any of you get a chance to come to Tulsa, the zoo is GREAT! We had a chance to go yesterday with the pastor's wife and kids. We had fun - camel ride, train ride, elephants, monkeys, fish, birds, and more! Then after the zoo we ate at a vegetarian restaurant. Be Le Vegetarian to be exact! I ordered "chicken" chow mein and my husband got Mongolian "beef". What a great place to eat!

Traveling is a lot of fun when you love the work you are doing and love the people you are with!

This post has been linked to Women Taking a Stand - Thankful Thursday meme.

Oklahoma!

We arrived safely yesterday to Oklahoma Thursday evening. After a long day of traveling, (which our Princess did great!) we were happy to arrive at the church. It was 82 degrees but the wind made it feel so much cooler. We just are not used to that heat yet since we live in Washington. So praise the Lord for 20 mph winds!

The church here outside of Tulsa has a school on the property they no longer use. So they renovated the office in to a bedroom and the library in to a living room. We have everything we need including a kitchen, dining area, shower, washer/dryer, and access to the internet. The Princess is happily playing with all the toys here. New toys! What fun.

When we looked at the weather before we left, it showed sun and mid 70s for the next 10 days. We were very surprised to get a massive thunder and rain storm on Friday. While driving to the health food store in Tulsa we could barely see the road. (We don't get rain like that in Washington!) I hope these lightning/thunder/rain storms don't last. (I packed for 75 degree weather.)

Our seminar began last night. The pastor opened with an archeology lecture and Tyler will continue with a Bible lecture tonight. We had a great crowd of over 100 people. The hall was packed! Many said they would return tonight. For that we are thankful.

I helped in the children's room again this seminar. Boy, is that difficult. I knew there was a reason that I am not a teacher or a mother of 5+ children. Let's just say I slept pretty good last night. (And my feet hurt. Note to self: don't wear heels in the childcare room!)

Please pray for us as we are spending the next couple weeks here. And also pray for the community that those who need to connect with Jesus for the first time or again in their life will.

London's Calling

Talking back and forth since December, we were not sure if we would be going to London for a training seminar. But this last week we found out that yes, they want my husband in June for 10 days. Whew! We are glad that it came through.

Unfortunately, they will only cover my husbands airfare this time. For one brief moment we envisioned leaving the Princess with my parents and having a nice time alone together in the beautiful city of London, England. But then reality set it. She is not sleeping alone yet, not even with daddy right now. Plus, $1300 for a ticket is steep. We could do a lot with that kind of money. (New house = yard upkeep, raised garden, Costco swing set, sewing machine, Wii Fit... The list can go on and on.) So no, hubby is going to go to this seminar alone. Though, I am sure, he will have a fabulous time.

We are getting ready now for a 2 week seminar in Oklahoma. We have already worked with this great church before so we are excited. Plus, the pastor there is also doing an archeology seminar in conjuction with the Bible seminar. How fun! Oklahoma, here we come!

Seminar Wrap Up

We arrived safely home Sunday, just in time to celebrate Easter with our family. Praise the Lord, Jesus is risen!

What a great experience we had in Northern California. Though my Princess was sick the last week of the seminar, it was still exciting to hear from my husband how God was blessing and working in the lives of our seminar guests. The church itself was so excited at the success of the meeting, they did not want to see us go. That is always a great way to leave a church. We have made life long friends and cannot wait to see all those people again, if not in this life, then in Heaven to come.

Friday night about 12 people graduated from the Amazing Facts Bible School. Three people were baptized that night as well. Then the next morning, during the church service 6 people were baptized, including one couple who was celebrating their 23 anniversary. Praise God! There are about 6 more people scheduled to be baptized including one couple, who are biologist, who want to get baptized in the nearby river. (Brrr! Cold.)

Our Princess was sad to leave her new best friend - the pastor's four year old daughter. We hope to one day see them again. It is nice to make new friends and always difficult to leave. That is our life though - on the road.

We now have a couple weeks off before heading to Oklahoma! Contine to pray for us, our ministry, and the good people of Oklahoma who will be coming out to hear the Gospel being presented in a real and life changing way.

Divine Appointments

I really wanted to share a couple of stories with you from our seminar here in Northern California. It is so exciting to see God working in people's lives.

We have one lovely Alaskan Native woman coming to our seminar. She has come faithfully and is so kind. It has been a blessing getting to know her. She was praying for something - anything - for God to intervene in her life and show Himself to her in a real way. As she was praying and walking she stepped on a piece of paper. It was the mailing postcard that was sent out - the words across the top jumped out to her - Hope For Today. When she continued to read she realized it was starting that night! As she has been attending, she realized this was exactly what she needed to reconnect with her Savior. Praise God. She is graduating from the Amazing Facts Bible School on Friday and joining the local church on Saturday.

Another man, a retired welder, received our invitation postcard in the mail. He told me that a struggle was going on inside of him. He wanted to go but didn't feel ready to turn to God yet. Being raised in a Christian home, he had wandered from the Lord. But he could feel God pulling on his heart strings. He came out with his wife and as they listened to the Bible being preached each night, and the themes of Jesus, they realized this was exactly what they needed. Now, he has connected with a retired dentist who needs help with welding. He feels whole now. He has found God again, his wife has found God, and he is doing welding, which he loves. God is so good. He will never stop chasing you when you turn from Him.

These are just two stories from our seminar. God is constantly working in the lives of our visitors. It always amazes me that He chooses us to work with Him. Who are we compared to the God of the universe? Thank you Lord for your love and for using me.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise! Give thanks to Him; bless His name! Psalm 100: 4 (ESV)

This post has been linked to the meme, Thankful Thursday. This meme is hosted by Spiritually Unequal Marriage for the month of April.

The Winning Team

This is what the devil often does: Just when a person is making great decisions to follow Jesus, to make Him Lord of their life - he throws in the obstacles. It is though he realizes that you are making a stand; you are standing strong on the winning team. And he is mad. Of course, since you are a threat to him and his purposes. (This reminds me of the song, "Victory in Jesus..." I love that old hymn.)

Here are just two examples from our seminar here in Northern California this week:

One older lady who has been faithfully coming out, completing her lessons (we run a Bible School with 27 lessons and have a graduation at the end of the seminar), and making great decision for Jesus, is now sick. Luckily my wonderful husband is able to drop off the lessons and CDs of the seminars she missed.

Another lady who has not missed a single night of the seminar, also doing the lessons, also making great decisions to follow Jesus, just learned that her mother died. She must leave until Monday. (Please pray for her as she now must bury her mother.) She also is having financial difficulties. (Like so many people we meet. This really is such a difficult financial time for many.)

I know that God is in control. Of course, I know that, but I still hate that these things happen. And actually both ladies are coming back. So I am pleased that ultimately Satan will not win. I just hate seeing people suffer. I am tired of sickness, death, and sin in general. Does it ever just feel so tiring for you?

I learned today that one of our friend's son is having a huge medical crisis. He began having seizures at the beginning of this month, one even lasted 45 minutes! He is just a young boy. They took him in and found multiple masses through out his body, including his brain - thus causing seizures. We are now waiting for results from the brain biopsy. A. SMALL. INNOCENT. BOY.
What is his mother going through right now? I can't imagine. Please won't you pray for Samuel as well?

So I am brought back to the same conclusion as Tuesday's conclusion: Trust God! This world is not our final home. Praise God we are just pilgrims passing through to a much better place. A place without sickness, death, or disease. Choose the Winning Team today, don't put it off!

Restoration

So a very crazy thing happened to my husband this weekend. As he was out on visitation, a woman flashed him. That is a first in his ministry. She wanted to assure him that yes, she was a woman. And her husband was standing next to her. It was my husband who was embarrassed but he continued with his visit, encouraged them to keep following God, and prayed with them.

When he told me, my first reaction was to laugh. But then as I thought about it, I just felt sad. Tears formed in the corner of my eyes. This couple was raised in the church, left God, got into drugs, and now they NEED Him more than ever. (I mean, how far have you gone when you flash your breasts to a minister?)

The husband has been coming to our seminar here in Northern California faithfully. As he is making decisions to recommit his life to God, I just ask that you keep him in your prayers. Not just him, but his wife as well. God is truly in the business of healing people and restoring all the years that have been wasted on drugs. I'd love to see this couple one day working for Him, and bringing light to others.

I will repay for the years the locusts have eaten... you will have plenty to eat, until you are full. And you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you. Never again will my people be shamed. Joel 2: 25, 26

Humboldt County is Finding Christ

Last night my husband presented a seminar on Salvation. It was the fourth night of our seminar and after some catchy presentations with great Power Point slides, he choose to present the gospel message in its simplicity. And the visitors and church members responded.

When I entered in their cards (we hand out decision cards on important nights), I was in awe at our amazing God. To tell you the truth, we are having a smaller meeting than we are used to. We actually were expecting it. This is a small town, and it is a very secular, new age, "hippie" area. But the visitors have been coming out. Our numbers have not dipped. So when many people decided to follow Jesus last night or recommit their life to Him after drifting away, I just get excited. Excited to be a part of this great ministry. Excited to see God working in lives, with my own two eyes. Excited to see a glimpse in their life as prayers are answered. Living for God is exciting!

So please, keep us in your prayers as well as the people who are hearing the gospel message. In this day, when life is difficult, Jesus makes it easy to be saved. Just choose Him! Pick His side.

...choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. Joshua 24: 15

A New Creation

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.
2 Corinthians 5: 17

God is so good! As we pack to leave our first seminar of the year, it is amazing to look back and see how God has worked. We celebrated baptisms this weekend at church and it was such a blessed day. We rejoiced with all of Heaven today. Truly.

I wanted to share one more story of how God works in such awesome ways. One young man coming to the seminar had a planned move halfway through the seminar. He loved coming out and hearing God's word, and he was making great decisions to follow Christ. Then, it was time to leave which we are sad about. As he drove away from Central California though a "funny" thing happened - his car broke down. Not able to fix a large problem, he had to turn around and postpone his trip. As a result, he continued coming out to our seminar, and decided to baptized with his parents this weekend. Isn't God amazing?

Though we were sad that he is out of a car for awhile, we were so pleased to know that he'd be coming back. We know that many times God allows things to happen for a reason and no matter the issue, we should always trust in Him. We may not know why He allows trials, but as long as we cling to Him, He will always get us through.

Lives Changed

The reason we do this - this traveling - is not because we especially love being away from our home, family, church family and friends. It is because of the lives that are changed when they come face to face with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Everlasting Gospel. Every night, for 19 nights total, my husband faithfully preaches Jesus Christ and the Gospel message. Many people come out and learn more than they have about the Bible and Jesus and their lives are changed.

One lady coming to the seminar was raised in a Catholic home. When she was a child in Mexico, the local Catholic school was full so her mother sent her to a protestant Seventh-day Adventist school. As she attended that boarding school she learned about the Bible and Jesus. As a young teenage girl she made the decision to be baptized into that protestant Adventist faith. When her mother found out, she was angry and removed her from the school. Fast forward almost 20 years later - she started coming out to my husband's seminar and has once again fallen in love with Jesus. For years she had left Him, and lived a life of sin. Now she is ready to return. And praise God, He will take her back with open arms. What an awesome God we serve!

This is why we do this. We are not content to go to heaven alone.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28: 19, 20

Born Again

Well, we are really half way through this seminar. I can't write about the Central Valley and not also talk about the great weather. How blessed are we to have 66 degrees and sunny today? We are going to get a new bathing suit for the Princess tomorrow so she can swim with daddy in the heated outdoor pool this week. Is it really winter? Wow!

Last night my husband's seminar topic was on the Biblical topic of baptism. He not only taught the audience about baptism in the Bible but also celebrated his ten year anniversary of being baptized. What a great night. 18 people made the decision to also be baptized or prepare for baptism. People here in Central California want to know God in a real way, and it is exciting to be a part of it.

As I look back at the last ten years since my husband was baptized, I am in awe of how far our Lord has brought us. When I say that I am living a blessed life, I mean it. It is not perfect, and we will always have trials, but now we have a Savior to rely on. And that is a good feeling.

So as people here are desiring to be born again, a new birth, I too want that each day. A renewal. I have so much to be thankful for and I want to live for Jesus. I also want my daughter and husband to truly see Jesus in me.

My prayer today is: Lord, help my anger, impatience, and selfishness to be washed away each morning. Amen.

Thankful Spirit

A couple nights per week, my husband gives out a card where people check mark the decisions they are making for Christ. He offers them to also write their prayer requests on the back of this card. It is part of my job to log in those decisions and prayer requests. (Did I mention that I also get paid to do this work? I get paid as a secretary for my husband!) It is during times like these that I truly realize how blessed my life is, and how my problems are small. It is easy for me to take advantage of how well my life is going, forget Who is the one that is blessing me, and to forget to just be thankful. I don't want a complaining and critical spirit. When I read about people suffering from cancer, broken marriages, broken homes, addiction, and so much more, I am committed more than ever to being thankful to the Lord and singing His praises. So today, I ask that you continue to pray for me and that I always have a thankful spirit.

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Colossians 2: 6, 7

Children's Ministry? Oh my!

Yes, I am a slow learner. Trust God, remember? Well, opening night was a little stressful. I really need to improve my relaxation skills. Things never go how they "should" and I need to roll with the punches.

The 0-4 year old children's program coordinator is sick. So guess who had to step up? Yes, me. Normally, I am not very good at children's ministry. I am usually too lenient. I don't like telling other children to behave. Luckily I was not alone, there were three children (including my own) and one other adult - the pastor's wife. Together we were able to keep the kids occupied.

And yes, I learned that telling other kids to behave is not so hard. It just gets old (and my own Princess is NOT good at sharing so she gets corrected very often). We did play Daniel and the lions den with a stuffed lion and playhouse. That was fun. Secretly, I am glad the Princess and I only attend the meetings on the weekends. Mainly because those children can sure wear a person out! (I am feeling old before I am old.)

So my lesson today: be open to whatever God places before you. Once we get a breather, I will need to find something for the kids to do, at least until the "teacher" is not sick. Plus, I am thankful that even though these other ladies have regular jobs, they still come out in the evening, tired, and willing to work for God. That brings conviction to this old complainer any day. Thank you, Lord, for helping me grow.

Oh, and if any of you know of some great children's ministry resources, drop me a comment or an email!

I linked this post to the Friday Frustrations meme.

Evicted!

We have arrived at our first seminar here in Central California. Yesterday, the Princess and I flew in and met my wonderful husband, who drove down from Washington. Isn't he great?

Unexpectedly, our housing situation changed. An older couple from church had a trailer here, and they were wintering in Palm Springs. Free housing enables to the local church to save money on the budget. While the thought of free housing instantly stresses me out. "A trailer?", I thought to myself. It is always difficult for me when plans change once I was looking forward to something. Our other housing was a furnished apartment with a gym on site. (I really have been wanting to work out daily!)

Once we arrived here at the trailer, we realized that it was a nice home, but the couple was not prepared to have a family stay here for 4 weeks - especially one with a toddler. (Sorry about that fake plant by the television!) Their pantry, fridge, closets, dressers - everything was full. We talked with their son, who lives here locally, and were given permission to move anything we needed to. Feeling strange about touching other people's things, we unpacked quite gingerly. Well, I did at least. I can't speak for other members of my family, who don't let things bother them so much. (My Princess, thought everything was hers, as she walked through the home saying, "Mine".

After we unpacked, all our things (you know we fit everything in our Honda Civic with us in it!) we decided to go for a walk. The first house we walk by, we met the neighbor who is taking care of the plants and watching the house. Within five minutes of talking with her she tells us we are not supposed to be staying here. It is a 55 an older community and no children are allowed here. The kind neighbor also told us to go speak with the on site manager and find out if they will make an exception. Before 5pm, we found out that yes, we do have to move. We were granted one night here since we had a baby (whew!) and we called the furnished apartment complex and we can move in at 2pm!

So after this day, I realized something. It is something I need to learn, and it is something I have realized many times before. (Why can't I just "get" it?) It is a simple two words:

Trust God!

Instead of worrying, getting frustrated, relying on self - I just need to rely on God. He is so good to us. Even if this housing worked out, it is nice. And the desire of my heart - a gym on site and empty cupboards and drawers - well that is possible, if it is God's will. In this case, I feel that God was testing my heart, and I failed yesterday for a couple hours. This is our first seminar back on the road again, in the future I must remember this lesson.

Oh, and thanks for keeping me in your prayers. I know I need it!