The Last Two Months

The last two months have been full of activity--the busiest one being a move from one mission house to another. The church who so graciously allowed us to live in their mission house now needs it for a prospective church planter who will help reach the unchurched people in the neighborhood and show them the way to Eternal Life. Another church about 10 miles away has offered us shelter for a time.

The last two months have been full of activity---the most important one being traveling back and forth to SC to spend time with Dad as he draws closer to the time he leaves here. It has been interesting to watch ourselves try to continue our responsibilities as usual with the underlying sadness of having to say goodbye to a loved one. We have tried to reframe the situation by recognizing that Dad may very well celebrate the incoming New Year in the presence of Jesus Himself but the sadness continues.

No matter how well we know that our loved one is securely in God’s hands, that He will guide them Home and that He will watch over them until we are one day reunited, the sadness continues.

There is a very simple reason for that. We weren’t designed to ever have to say goodbye. We weren’t designed to die. God created us to live forever and ever in His presence. Unfortunately things went awry in the garden of Eden and our punishment was death. How horrible it would be if that were the end of the story!

A couple of thousand years ago, a very important thing happened at a very busy time when people were travelling because of a census. Jesus was born in Bethlehem--God’s own son. He was sent to settle the account once and for all. We can now live forever if we accept the gift of Jesus’ payment on our behalf. We can now have an underlying peace that we will once again see our loved ones who know the Lord and go before us.

I told my Dad I’d see him in Heaven…but it’s still sad.

Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.” John 11:25-26

Ask

If any one of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God. James 1:5a

Sometimes we ask God to tell us what to do and then we wait. I’ve been doing that for several months about a specific issue.

As volunteer missionaries, we work on the projects at hand and beg God to tell us what to do next. When we’re faced with a decision, we ask Him to be very clear so we won’t miss His direction. We’re afraid we’ll miss Him if He uses a still, small voice. We ask Him to use a billboard or send us an email!

There is an issue that God keeps bringing to my attention – human trafficking and the commercial sexual exploitation of children. He has allowed my path to cross with several groups working in the field.

I asked God if He wants me to get involved in such a ministry.

He has allowed me to help churches get involved. With His help, I wrote a grant to fund the mental health component of Living Water for Girls, a home for girls ages 12-17 who have been rented, sold and traded right here in Atlanta.

I have gotten phone calls from people I don’t know asking how they can help minister to these girls.

I have asked God if this is what He wants me to do. I have waited and asked and waited and asked.

In the last two days, I have gotten two emails from state and national organizations asking about this type of ministry. Somehow they had gotten my name.

E-mails? Did I miss something?

Time

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die. Ecclesiastes 3:1-2a

Time passes quickly these days.

Since the death of BW, we’ve spent time trying to figure out what’s missing from the break-in that occurred the day before he died. Jack has taken the engine out of his truck and is waiting for God to provide another one. I presented a program on mental health to our Great Physician Servants Health Ministry Leaders and was reminded just how much I love the field of mental health and those who suffer with mental illnesses. Jack spent a few days working at the new home for girls who have been trafficked. I completed one major grant and helped out with another. Jack went to Toccoa, GA, with a Disaster Relief team after the floods. I went to Austell, GA, as a Disaster Relief Chaplain to help families devastated by the floods. We went to a Campers On Mission rally to learn ways to minister while on the road. We went to the Myrtle Beach Fall Motorcycle Rally where we did health screening and shared the healing Gospel of Jesus with bikers. We got to have lunch with Jack’s parents and celebrate his Mom’s birthday before they made their regular migration to Florida for the winter. We just returned from visiting my Mom & Dad and learned the results of Dad’s P.E.T. scan. The cancer is back and there is nothing that can be done.

Time stops.

Every Creature

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: "To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb, be praise and honor and glory and power, forever and ever!" Revelation 5:13

Last week our 16+ year old cat, BW, died. He had been a member of our family for nearly 15 years and had brought much joy and laughter to our lives. He was a beautiful black-and-white cat who had come as a 'free gift with purchase' when we bought our house in 1994, so we don't know his actual age. When we left Spartanburg, SC, in 2003 to go to our first assignment as missionaries in War, WV, he became an inside cat and was a constant companion to us in a strange place and a strange new lifestyle. He was the first thing we saw every morning -- sometimes from 2 inches away!

A friend emailed the verse above to confirm to us that animals indeed would be in Heaven. Throughout the last week, as we've grieved the loss of our beloved pet, God has used other friends to comfort us and remind us that God created animals first and He knows when even a sparrow falls. Certainly, a 12 pound cat does not go unnoticed by our Father.

Just this morning in church I looked up at one of the banners hanging on the wall of the sanctuary. "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord." It didn't say "everyone." It reminded me of Genesis 1:30 that refers to animals as having "the breath of life." Then the words of the Doxology rang out "Praise Him all creatures here below."

I sat quietly thanking God for being the Comforter that He is. When I get to heaven and am reunited with my Grandmother and other relatives and friends, I believe that among the "creatures" there, I will see those, like BW, who shared my life here on earth.

Living Water

He will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Revelation 7:17

Recently, I was blessed with the opportunity to visit a very special place. It is a new home for girls that is almost ready to open. The words beautiful, peaceful, restful, restoring, comforting, tranquil and safe immediately came to mind as I entered the door. In a few weeks, in a setting that most of us would expect on a church retreat, God's chosen servants will minister 24/7 to those who surely fit into the categories of "forgotten," "invisible," "the least of these."

In few weeks, this home will become the place of transformation for young girls ages 12 - 17. They will come there, often in the middle of the night, escaping the horrors of human trafficking. They have endured the unimaginable atrocities of the commercial sex trade and have somehow survived. Most are shells of what they were or could be. They have pulled as far from the pain as they can and it will literally take an act of God to reach them. They have no more tears to wipe. They have survived by building walls.

Please pray for the girls who will be brought to Living Water for Girls. Pray for the therapists, nurses, teachers, counselors and other staff who will help them rebuild their lives. Pray for the Board of Directors and for the Founder who has tirelessly followed God's direction in establishing this place. Pray that each girl will hear the healing Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Pray that God will show you how you can become involved. Then do what He says.

Desires of Our Hearts

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4

On my flight to Alaska to spend a week with Jack, I was looking out the window of the very crowded plane, trying to focus on something other than how uncomfortable I had been the last five-and-a-half hours of my third segment of my flight. As we got closer to the ground, there were spaces in the clouds and I could see some tiny shapes on the ground dotted among the green (trees and grass) and the blue (water) patches.

I asked God, "Is this what You see? Tiny houses and roads far far below when the clouds part enough? Or do You see our faces?"

A few days later the answer was confirmed. Through circumstances that could only be described as "God was in it," Jack and I found ourselves in the heated cabin of a 30 ft chartered yacht cruising through the Port of Valdez to Prince William Sound with Captain Jerry giving us a private tour. As we passed the incredible snow-capped mountains that rose directly out of the water, the stunning waterfalls cascading into the sea, the sea lions and sea otters and the Columbia Glacier icebergs floating around our boat, our hearts were filled with gratitude for God's incredible creation and for allowing us to serve at a church in Alaska. We were laughing and smiling as we enjoyed one of the desires of our heart.

I know He saw our faces.

A Hundred Times As Much

And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for My sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. Matthew 19:29

Recently someone asked how we could be away from family (ours are in other states) and how we could be apart (Jack is in Alaska/I'm in Atlanta) and I shared this verse with them. We have already experienced God's provision for us the past 5 1/2 years since we left our careers. We have not gone without the necessities and have rarely even gone without our wants.

Perfect example: God laid it on the hearts of the deacons at Moose Creek Baptist Church in North Pole, AK, to fly me up to Alaska to spend a week with Jack. He has been overseeing the construction of their child development center and will be gone another month. God provided someone to take care of our two cats while I'm gone. He has provided someone to take me to the MARTA train which will take me right in the airport. God has provided people that will cover my responsibilities.

As if eternal life weren't enough.

Everything You Need

God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others. 2 Corinthians 9:8

Not long after I set an appointment with a mechanic because the "Check Engine" light came on in the jeep as I left church Sunday night, I received a phone call. The voice of an older man informed me that my name had been drawn last week at the annual convention of a charity that we have supported for years. I had won 2nd prize in the drawing. The amount was $1908.00! I shared with him about the pending auto repair and how we were volunteer missionaries living off contributions and that this was clearly God's provision! We talked about how God provides in some interesting ways. To God be the Glory!

I called Jack, who is in Alaska working on the child development center of Moose Creek Baptist Church, and told him about the call. He had been worried about the repair costs. He decided God could handle it.

Now, won't it be interesting if the auto repair bill is $1908?

Be Still

Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10

Seems like with so much going on in the world, it's easy to worry about how we are going to solve all the problems, how we're going to get everything done in the amount of time we have, how we're going to make it another day, week, month, year.

When you have a relationship with the Lord, just pausing and reminding yourself that He is God brings an incredible peace. When you know Him, really know Him, you can be still.

The Ends of the Earth

"...and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1:8b

Last year we had the opportunity to serve at Moose Creek Baptist Church in North Pole, Alaska, helping with the construction of their child development center. Once again, God has allowed us to minister at what we call "the end of the earth." Jack will coordinate mission teams at Moose Creek which come from First Baptist Atlanta and Morningside Baptist, Spartanburg, SC. Please pray for volunteers, safety and supernatural progress on the building this year. Pray for the children who will learn about Jesus at the center when it is completed.

Whatever Gift

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. 1 Peter 4:10

That's why we're in missions. God has given us gifts that we can use in His service. We are just being obedient. What gifts has He given you?