Just wanted to update everyone on what
life is like in Ghana. So far everything has been amazing! We are in the outstretches of northern Ghana! There
is a great limitation of supplies here. We had to take public
transportation the other day because the car was almost out of fuel
and there was none in town that day. Can you imagine? There was no
gas at the one gas station in the town. Also, there is a limitation
on the produce here. This is partially because it is so hot here and
partially because it spoils in transport from the other cities. I
knew Africa was going to be hot! We decided that if we went to
northern Ghana it would be cooler... what a mistake! The temperature
here is absolutely brutal all day long!
God is infinitely wise and always knows
exactly what we need. We are with the most amazing
contact imaginable. God knew exactly what our team needed this month
and provided it for us. Our contact, Emanuel, is a man who lives
his life to the fullest every day! He is a man who has a heart to
serve both man and God with every fiber of his being. He rises in
the morning and says, God I am your servant use me today to bless
Your Name. God honors his prayer and uses him every day to glorify
His name. In Gods providence, He sent us to this town to meet a man
who would help us find our way. A man who was willing to take time
to make sure we were doing well with the Lord, and encourage us
daily. God never ceases to amaze me! He always knows just what we
need and is so faithful to provide for us! Our team really needed a
month where we had the chance to preach the Gospel, to be in the
harvest, and to be the hands and feet of Jesus. God has given us
that chance this month and so much more.
This month we are fortunate to have one
of our squad leaders with us. Jory is a a great man of God who has
an anointing on his life to share the word of God, the power of God,
and the Love of God with people he meets. We are more than lucky to
have him here with us this month, and I know this was God's plan.
Before the race Jory was a teacher for young children. He went to
college and learned all the the best practices for raising children
in a manner that produces great adults. God knew Jory's skill set,
his ability, and his passion to share. In God's sovereignty He sent
Jory to be with our team this month. Our contact in Northern Ghana
has a school that God called him to start almost six months ago.
Elisha School is very new and exciting. The students in the classes
range from two years old to four years old. Emanuel has been praying
for months to have a team come that could help him develop a better
curriculum for his students. There was a team from Europe that was
supposed to come next month to teach the teachers. However, they
called last month and canceled their trip. It makes me laugh how God
works. He knew that team would not be coming and put it on Jory's
heart to spend the month with us. Now Jory is here in Northern Ghana
with Emanuel. Because of God's omniscience Jory is able to share
his experience and expertise with Emmanuel. I praise God that He
loves His children and knows just what we need and when we need it.
I am so honored to be a part of God's family and to be able to watch
what God is doing. He is so kind and generous!
Please continue to pray that we can be
a blessing in Christ to Emanuel. He has been more than kind to us!
He has gone out of his way to make sure he provides us with
everything we need and desire! Please pray that our team continues
to serve this man and his family in a way that brings God the most
glory. Also, pray that our team continues to make an impact in
Ghana. The people are so happy to see Americans and white people.
Please continue to pray that our presence in this nation leaves a
lasting impact. We are preaching the Gospel every night and doing
door to door evangelism in the day time. Please pray that God
anoints our words and brings salvation to the souls that hear His
words.
Thank you for your continued support,
love and prayers!
We arrived in Ghana airport a few days
ago. Everything was going just as expected! We got of the plane,
walked through the airport, REV217 stopped to go to the bathroom and
were the last to go through the visa line. Our team, REV217 is the
oldest team on the L-Squad which is noticeable on travel days. We
are always the last ones to make it through the security lines
because we always have to stop and use the restroom. As stated in a
commercial that makes me laugh, "we do not have a going problem, we
have a growing problem." Don't ask me why I find that funny
because I can not tell you why it makes me laugh!
We made it through security and we were
pushing everything we own out of the airport. I think the reality of
how little I own just sunk in. Everything I possess fits in an 80
liter pack. Talk about being a minimalist. As we were pushing out
belongings out of the airport there was a mob of people that started
to hug us and welcome us to Ghana. There were at least twenty
pastors hugging us, shaking our hands and greeting us. In Ghana
people say, "akwaaba" that means welcome! I felt so akwaaba in
Ghana! I have never had such a warm welcome in my life! The people
here are amazing and so full of love and kindness. After meeting all
of the pastors and their families we were ready to head toward out
place of lodging. We took an hour drive toward out hotel. Yes we
drove on the wrong side of the road, yes we had mostly dirt roads,
and yes we were crammed like sardines in the van. However, I think
that we may have been saltier than sardines do to the copious amounts
of perspiration dripping from our orifices. We finally arrived at
our hotel which was much nicer than expected... it had air
conditioning that worked 50% of the time we were there. We stayed
there for two nights then we were off on our journey to the north of
Ghana.
We left our hotel at 6:40 in the
morning on the 10th. We were told we had a 17 hour bus
ride! I was expecting to be crammed into a school bus with four
people per seat! However, I was very surprised with our
accommodations. Our bus was air conditioned and the seats reclined!
This was such a blessing from God! God is very kind to allow us to
have air conditioning for such a long ride. Yet comical enough to
have vinyl seats in the bus. Yes there were a lot of dirt roads but
they were much better than expected. There were crying babies, but I
have noise canceling headphones that save my life on almost every
trip. The bus stopped every two hours and we were allowed a short
break to walk around, get food, and use the wash room. We reached
our bus stop around one in the morning then took a short ride to the
pastors house. Once at the pastors house we passed out for the
night! I must say it was the hottest night of sleep in my life, but
I slept hard! I woke up in wet sheets from extreme amount of sweat
that I produced in my sleep.
This morning I woke up at 9am. I came
out of my room into the communal space. I had plans to read the
bible for a while then talk to God about my thoughts. However, there
were different plans in the work. The pastors wanted to have a
prayer meeting and just ask the Holy Spirit to guide us along our
journey. I have to be honest with you, the pastor we are staying
with may be the nicest man I have ever met! He lives in a place of
humility that is so admirable! Every time we thank him for something
he says, "no thank God." He has chosen to let us stay in his
house rather than in a hotel. He said that we left our house in
America so now we have a house in Africa. This man has learned the
art of being invisible. We told him we wanted to blog about him and
what God was doing through him. He told us do not blog about me but
blog about God. He is a very humble man who loves the Lord. I
think I will learn a lot from Pastor Immanuel this month. I am very
hopeful that this will be the best month of ministry yet! I am so
excited for what God will do this month!
The most interesting Lunch and Breakfast I ever had!
The most interesting lunch ever:
So we were driving to a hilltribe village when.....
We stop for lunch on the side of the road. What would you expect at a road side restaurant in Northern Thailand? (Time alloted for thought)
Here is what we found:
1. A small kitchen with a few tables under a bamboo roof.
2. A python that was approximately 20' long. I bet it weighed more than me!
3. Elephants walking down the street.
4. And baby chicks in a cardboard box.
5. Oh and pretty good fried rice.
Check out the photos below!
The most interesting breakfast:
When we arrived in the hilltribe in the afternoon and had dinner. The next morning we had breakfast at one of the villagers houses. The breakfast was very normal; rice and pork, just what you would expect. The next day I expected a similar breakfast and boy was I wrong. Will and I went down for breakfast and I was amazed with what I saw for breakfast. The menu contained:
1. Rice
2. Pig Intestine
3. RAW PORK
I am sure you are wondering what I ate.... I did eat intestine but could not stomach the raw pork. I hope you find that play on words comical because I do!
Hi family and friends! It's hard to believe that our time on the World
Race is already halfway over! It seems like just yesterday we were
hugging all of you goodbye. I can't put into words how encouraging it
is to read all of your comments and emails. You have all been such an
amazing support system. Thank you for all of your prayers and
encouragement! We miss you all so much!
Thanks to all of you, Brad and I have raised over $20,000 to go on
the Wold Race. THAT IS AMAZING! God is so faithful to provide when He
calls you to something! I mean, if I knew how to raise $20,000 on my
own...
In order to stay out on the mission field, Brad and I still have
to raise another $6,000. While that seems like nothing compared to the
$20,000 God has already provided, it is still a handsome chunk of
money. Since we are headed to Africa next, we're not sure how often we
will have internet access in order to raise support. So we are calling
on all of you, our cherished loved ones, to get the word out for us.
Brad and I have put together a video of some of the things God has
allowed us to be a part of since we left in October. We can only pray
for the second half of the race to be just as amazing! Please feel
free to share our video with as many people as possible. Even if
someone is not able to give financially, this video shows just a
glimpse of how God is moving all over the world! He is so good!
The other night Nicole was praying for me and she saw a vision. In the vision I was riding on a bell and I was banging from side to side. As I crashed against the sides of the bell freedom was being declared to the people. So I got inspired.... Here is me ringing freedom!
Just in case you do not understand the photo here is one more of me ringing away!
I can not say that I am starving on the
World Race, but at times I am hungry. I have eaten a ton of western
food... but nothing tastes like home. I often ask myself what I will eat when I get home. So I sat down and made a very detailed list! No Mom it is not home cooking
I want. I want what I want..... like a small child. So with six months
left I ask myself, "what six meals do I long for the most?"
Last night Erika and I were walking
though a night market when we stumbled upon this family.
As
we began to walk toward them I began to look away. I am certain that
being a beggar is a great source of shame for this lady. Therefore,
I did not desire to be like everyone else that just peers down their
nose at her for cluttering the streets. My heart breaks for these
people, they have so little that begging is their best chance for
survival. As we walked closer Erika asked me, "Is it ok if we stop
and give the lady some money and pray for her?" I was torn to say
the least. I could hardly look at this child or her family because I
could feel the shame. In addition, my heart just flat out breaks for
people stuck in conditions like this. So it is easier for me to just
look away rather than to press into the situation.
Honestly, I avoid these people because
it hurts me to much to
stop and look at them. If you factor in that
we do not share a
language there is no point in stopping. This was
the logical thought pattern that allowed me to feel comfortable with
just walking by. However, my beautiful wife has a heart the size of
Alaska that was beckoning her to make a difference. As you can
imagine, we stopped. We stopped in the middle of the night market
and prayed for this family in English. This family did not
understand a word that we said, but I hope that the fact that we
stopped demonstrated something to her and her child. So we prayed.
We prayed that God would take the spirit of poverty and the orphan
spirit from this family and reveal to them His love.
After we prayed we said goodbye and
walked away. As we were walking I kept thinking about this lady ,
her child, and the millions of people like them around the world. I
was just thinking to myself, I had the resounding thought, "this is
not fair." As I was thinking I could not help but recall a
conversation I had earlier that day with a friend.
My friend had
been asked the question why did God chose you. As He began
pondering he became filled with an indignation that he was chosen.
He realized how unfair the process of God's choosing was. At this
point the Holy Spirit wacked him upside the head and said that is it!
It is not fair, you did not do anything to earn it! It is by MY
GRACE ALONE that you are chosen. Intellectual property from Weston
Belkot.
I realized in this moment the power of
God's grace. There is a deep reality that everything I have now or
will ever have is simply because of Him and not myself. I am a
middle class white man by God's grace and God's grace alone. My
mother and father were both white. By default I am white. I am
middle class and that is by His grace also! I did not create myself
in the womb with strong hands and a sharp brain God did. Yes I work
hard to make money but I would not have the skill set unless God had
given it to me. Yes I went to college, but the money that allowed me
to go was from the skills that God gave me in the womb. I can trace
everything in my life back to the grace of God.
I have realized that everyone in the
world is where they are because of the measure of Grace that they
have been given. Some people work really hard and improve
themselves. I am one of those people! Yet I have realized that even
our ability to dig deep and press in is a measure of grace that was
given from God. God has given me an immense amount of giftings
therefore, there is much that is expected from me. God said, to whom
much is given, much is required. He also says to him who has more
will be given. He says he who is faithful with a little will be
entrusted with much.
I am asking everyone to answer this
question:
Who pleased God
more in this story? The lady taking care of her family or Erika for
giving her money and praying for her?
There is no right or wrong answer!
I am just curious what peoples thoughts are.
Life
on the 'World Race' is incredible and God is doing amazing things in
me! I truly believe that He needed/needs to do a lot in me before He
can do a lot through me.... I think that is a good word that maybe
some people need to chew on. It is meaty but chew on it. Ask God to
search your heart and to know your ways. If you are willing ask Him
if there is anything inside of you that needs to be removed then
trust Him with the scalpel. I did not intend to say any of that, but
my team is encouraging me to share my thoughts more freely when they
start coming. So thanks Erika, Jessica, Nicole, and Will for
encouraging me to be a better man!
Here
is what I intended to say in this blog:
God
has been faithful to remind me that I am a city on a hill and a
candle on a table.
Matthew 5 14-15
"You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill
cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a
basket, but on a lamp stand, and it gives light to all who are in the
house.
The
point is no matter where I am or what I am doing I need to be shining
for Jesus. There are no off days and there are no breaks. Don't
misunderstand me and hear that God is a mean boss that forces you to
work at all times. That is not what I am saying at all! Rather, I
think that God wants us to be honest and transparent with Him at all
times. We need a continual washing of the mind to keep Jesus as our
focus! There are a million cool things to be distracted by! At the
end of the day and at the end of life none of those things really
matter.
I
just finished reading The
Final Quest by Rick
Joyner.
The author discusses the possibility of people making the bible a God
rather than looking for God to speak to them through it. By all
means the bible is the word of God! I am serious about the bible
because I like to meet God in the pages and hear His story and His
heart as He tells me the story. I believe that the Bible is Holy and
every word in the book is true! I believe God wrote the bible for
His people. God did not have to give us those stories! Yet in His
providence He chose to allow us to learn from others success and
failure! He created a map that pointed toward Him and His glory. He
chose to carve His heart into a book that tells of His love for
humanity.
The
Final Quest also offers the idea that people preach Paul and his
epistles over the Gospel. Paul only built on the foundation of what
Jesus did. Paul's writings are not the foundation of our church...
rather they are the first few floors of the gospel and Jesus is the
foundation! What is said of Jesus in the first four Gospels is the
foundation! I am not bad mouthing Paul in any way! I admire that
man and his ability to father the church! I spire to be a man with
Paul's convictions and love for Jesus' Bride. However, I do not
strive to be Paul or anyone else. Nor can I boast in Paul or any
other man. I must make my boast and my claim in Jesus who is the
author and perfecter of my faith. I think I am discovering the
simple truth of Christianity that Satan has hidden from the Church
for centuries. God desires a heart that is devoted to Him. If we are
faithful to keep Jesus as our primary focus life will be easier.
There are no bullet points, no schedules, no books. There is a
simplicity that we can not handle. Hear me out, God is all knowing
and we could spend our whole life attempting to figure God out and
fail. He is infinitely bigger, smarter, more handsome, and stronger
than we could ever know. Yet Jesus wants two things He wants to be
loved and for us to love people. God just wants to know His creation
more!
This
is the simple truth of Christianity. God desires a people that trust
Him and His ways. If we as the Church began to trust in God and not
ourselves or our pastor or our best friend God would begin to shake
the nations as we have asked.
Here
is my primary point... what are you focusing on? What is the main
thing in your life? What do you think about the most? Who do you
trust more God or your pastor? God or your wife? The questions
could go on... but I will spare you! At all costs find a way to make
Jesus your focus! I have begun to do that in the past month in a new
way and it has brought more happiness, joy, peace and love than I
knew were possible. I know God is my guide and my sustainer!
I
struggle to make my thoughts clear because I am an awful writer...
That being said, I hope this is clear, but if it is not please email
me!
Have
you ever had a day that just gets under your skin? Have you ever had
a piece of technology annoy you to the point you wanted to throw it?
Do not worry my friends you are not alone! Last month while we were
in Cambodia I nearly reached my breaking point with a printer. In
Cambodia people are very economical/cheap. During our stay we were
privileged enough to use an external ink cartridge printer. For
those of you that have never used one I will explain what it looks
like. It is you normal every day printer... with a hose that runs
out of it to ink jars sitting on the table. The hose is connected to
the ink feed inside the printer itself. Therefore, as the cartridges
go left and right so does the attached hose.
In
Cambodia they use sticky tape to keep the hose mounted to the
cartridge. This is a great idea except temperatures are in the 90's
and tape does not stick in that kind of heat. The result is the hose
getting pinched and the print job getting ruined. I forgot to tell
you that the hose never keeps ink inside. There are ALWAYS air
pockets the cause the printer to stop because it is out of ink. I
sat at the printer almost every day... fighting and fighting the
stupid thing. One day I actually got a knife and started cutting the
printer. No worries, I received permission from our contact first.
I cut the printer in the areas where the hose was getting pinched.
Thanks to my idea the printer was working again.... for about three
minutes.
One
day Jessica walked into the room and would not even walk near the
printer, she just stood in the doorway. She told me that her anxiety
level became overwhelming if she stepped to close to the printer. I
laughed at her because I could relate to her anxiety. I was stuck at
the printer all day long for two weeks. It got so bad that one day
Nicole was assigned to be my support. Nicole, God bless her, just
sat there telling me jokes and playing music for me. I am very
fortunate to have her as my team mate!
Fast forward to later that
night. We were sitting around the dinner table and I was venting my
frustrations about the situation. I decided that I had had enough
and I was going to anoint the printer with oil and prophecy
functionality over it! So that is exactly what I did. The next day
I went to work early with a zip-loc bag full of plam oil. As I
walked into the office I could hear western face off music playing.
At this point it was just me and the printer. I told the printer
this town is not big enough for the both of us! (Ok I made that part
up! It never happened) So back to reality. I walk in the office
and give the printer a good stare. I slowly walked over to the
printer and opened up my bag of oil. I stuck my index finger in the
bag and pulled it out and rubbed that oil all over the printer. I
began to tell the printer that it was no longer allowed to
malfunction. I reminded the printer that Jesus was the name above
every name. (Visual Illustration)
I
proceeded to inform the printer that it was required to print when it
was told to print and errors were no longer acceptable.
Might
I tell you that it worked! The printer did not malfunction for the
rest of the day. The next morning Nicole went into work before I did
because she had to print some brochures for her project. She told me
that when she sat down at the computer she was pretty confident that
an Angelic hand was upon the printer!
Hebrews
1:14
Are
not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will
inherit salvation?
Here
is the point. God loves us! God cares about everything we are going
through and it is His desire that we have good stuff! If you don't
believe me read this.
Luke
12:32
"Do
not fear, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to
give you the kingdom.
Try
to remember no matter what you are doing... it can be for God. I am
not trying to be super spiritual and say everything is for God. I am
simply saying that you can chose to point your focus on Him in
everything you do.
As
we began to walk toward them I began to look away. I am certain that
being a beggar is a great source of shame for this lady. Therefore,
I did not desire to be like everyone else that just peers down their
nose at her for cluttering the streets. My heart breaks for these
people, they have so little that begging is their best chance for
survival. As we walked closer Erika asked me, "Is it ok if we stop
and give the lady some money and pray for her?" I was torn to say
the least. I could hardly look at this child or her family because I
could feel the shame. In addition, my heart just flat out breaks for
people stuck in conditions like this. So it is easier for me to just
look away rather than to press into the situation.
The
point is no matter where I am or what I am doing I need to be shining
for Jesus. There are no off days and there are no breaks. Don't
misunderstand me and hear that God is a mean boss that forces you to
work at all times. That is not what I am saying at all! Rather, I
think that God wants us to be honest and transparent with Him at all
times. We need a continual washing of the mind to keep Jesus as our
focus! There are a million cool things to be distracted by! At the
end of the day and at the end of life none of those things really
matter. 
Here
is my primary point... what are you focusing on? What is the main
thing in your life? What do you think about the most? Who do you
trust more God or your pastor? God or your wife? The questions
could go on... but I will spare you! At all costs find a way to make
Jesus your focus! I have begun to do that in the past month in a new
way and it has brought more happiness, joy, peace and love than I
knew were possible. I know God is my guide and my sustainer!
told me that her anxiety
level became overwhelming if she stepped to close to the printer. I
laughed at her because I could relate to her anxiety. I was stuck at
the printer all day long for two weeks. It got so bad that one day
Nicole was assigned to be my support. Nicole, God bless her, just
sat there telling me jokes and playing music for me. I am very
fortunate to have her as my team mate!
