Missions

My friend Kate posted this morning about her daughter's family leaving for Chad on a long-term mission assignment very soon from where they are currently in France. I don't even know how a mother does that unless her heart is submitted to the Lord. She ended her post very poignantly with this from I Corinthians 7:29-31 (from my "candy" Bible as Kate's husband James calls it - a/k/a The Message):

I do not want to point out, friends, that time is of the essence. There is not time to waste, so don't complicate your lives unnecessarily. Keep it simple - in marriage, grief, joy, whatever. Even in ordinary things - your daily routines of shopping, and so on. Deal as sparingly as possible with the things the world thrusts on you. This world as you see it is on its way out.

On that note, an opportunity has come up for the kids and me to take a mission trip with the geography class from the co-op that we are attending. The group is going to Arizona to work on a Hopi Indian Reservation with an organization called YWAM (Youth With a Mission) which just so happens is where Kirsten & Steve - the couple I mentioned above that are going to Chad started out. Kendra had planned with all her heart to take a foreign missions trip this summer that didn't work out for quite a number of reasons. I want so badly for us to be able to go on this trip because

1. we love missions trips and being with people serving and loving them for Jesus
   
2. it is an excellent opportunity to bond with some of the families at this new co-op
   
3. lately I have felt like we are floundering a bit while we learn how to live outside of a specific congregation and I know how missions trips can be a faith lift (I know a missions trip is not for us or about us - but it is definitely a benefit!)

So, if you are interested in supporting us on this trip, I have set up a donate button in the sidebar on the right where you can donate money to support us as we plan this trip. We are leaving on November 2nd and have to quickly get our support together. Most importantly please pray for us. I am trying not to do the math - and just keeping my focus on the Lord.
Thanks so much. Blessings to you ~ Julie

Whom Shall I Send

We have some friends whom the Lord has called to serve Him on the mission field in Chad (that's Africa for those of you who may not already know). They are currently immersed in language studies, but recently took their first survey trip with their team to the town where they will live and serve. Steven has started an incredible photo journal at SmugMug. It has been so fascinating. I put the feed on my Google Reader and have been delighted that he has posted something every single day, and have been so moved to pray for their ministry, their family including five small children, their team and the country God has etched on their hearts. If you have a heart for missions at all, please do not miss this awesome opportunity to peek into what God is doing. There are pictures of the difficult lives they will be living when they make it to Chad permanently, mixed with humor, and sentiments that will move you to tears. Please pray for my friends, the McKenzies, that God would use them in a might way.

T13 Edition #4 - Thirteen Things I Would Do With a Million Dollars

This T13 list is actually inspired by the movie The Ultimate Gift. My kids and I saw it yesterday. I didn’t know it was put out by “Fox Faith”. It was a great feel good, family kind of movie.

13 Things I Would Do With a Million Dollars

1. Send a large check to some of my favorite missions organizations, including personally to any missionaries that I know.

2. Release my husband from the 9-5 daily grind, to free up his creative energies to do things he’s always wanted but never had the time or resources to do.

3. Plan a family mission trip to an impoverished country.

4. Pay for my mother-in-law and both of her sisters to have their homes and property maintained, or help them in any way needed.

5. Get my hair done by a hairdresser with ears. (Refer to previous post!)

6. Set up savings accounts for my children to use for college, a down-payment for their first house, have full body tattoos, or whatever they would choose to do with it that would make them happiest.

7. Buy an RV and make it homey to use on semi-annual visits to see friends in WV, and family in NC.

8. Take a cross-country trip with my family to see places like Yellowstone, Laura Ingalls Wilder exhibits in several locations, the Grand Canyon, DEFINITELY the Badlands, the Rocky Mountains, etc. including every beach, mountain range, plain and forest.

9. Go to Walt Disney World in Florida.

10. Use it lavishly for random acts of kindness.

11. Enroll in Bible college and immerse myself fully in word study, theology, etc.

12. Build a library in Baborigame, Mexico and stock it with good books written in Spanish.

13. Move my house to a more secluded piece of land, and buy our whole family 4-wheelers.

The truth of the matter is, regardless of how hard I stretched my brain to think, none of the things I could do with a million dollars would really make the world a better place. I would not be a better wife or mother, a more loving friend, a more faithful follower of Christ. I could not buy my dad a new back, or heal my mom's mind and heart. I know I wouldn't be any happier.
In the end, the only thing that truly touches the world in an attempt to make it a better place is an abandoned giving of self. The message I got from the movie, one I’ve always known, is that the best things in life aren’t things, and that what you gain when you give of yourself is far more valuable than what you can obtain with money.
It was fun to think about anyway!