19Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
These have been my theme verses for some time now. Ten years ago I told God that I would go wherever it was He wanted me to go. I wanted to be a missionary and spread God's Word overseas. Now, ten years later, I'm in Louisiana! Louisiana is not overseas. You don't have to fly for two days to get there. You don't have to speak another language. But it is a mission field!
Due to the hurricane, there are many lives, hearts and homes to be rebuilt piece-by-piece. God is showing favor on this area and I am seeing it in answers to prayer, vivid dreams, and the challenges we are facing.
I have been praying for the church we have partnered with here. The ministry's goal is to equip, empower and release the body for effective ministry within their community. I was a little disappointed to find out that the past two quarterly church work days, where the church helps other church members or people in the community, had been cancelled, some say due to lack of interest. I kept thinking, this isn't what the body is supposed to look like.
Paul reminds me that in order to reach people, I need to assimilate into their culture and build relationships so I can reach them. I cannot be a person on the outside, judging their way of life, expecting them to change. We began to pray more intentionally for the church and the community.
Well, two weeks ago, the pastor of the church here preached on these verses. He challenged the congregation to be the church and reach out to their neighbors and their friends. He said that we can be in the church service and say we will do this and then go home and forget about what we heard. But, to me, this means helping a neighbor that I see in need. This means spending the five minutes on the phone to listen to a friend in need and pray for them, even when my 'schedule' doesn't have room. It's a choice that I'm going to have to make so that "by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings."
God's reminded me of our purpose in Louisiana....it's HIS! A few blogs ago we asked, "Why are we here?" I don't know if we will have a clearer answer to that question, but our purpose is clear.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
On our way home
Well, I know I said we try to update more often. We just didn't have a chance this week. We went back to Illinois this last week to pick up Rusty and some other things from home. It was good to see some good friends and my family. We had a pretty good time though Amy and I both feel under the weather. I guess we're not used to that cold weather in Chicago anymore :) We are looking to get back to N.O. late Monday. We'll probably be moving to our new place late Tuesday and Wednesday. You should have received our new address in the blog update email. If you didn't, let me know and I'll resend it. Please continue to pray for us as we transition into another new place. We look forward to hearing from you soon!
Friday, November 30, 2007
New living situation
I know it's been a while since we blogged. We've been really busy. So here we go. I'll try to keep it short... right.
This week has been pretty good. We've found a new place to live. We've decided that Amy must be allergic to something here. I've been mostly fine for the last few weeks, but Amy has been waking up with headaches everyday. We stayed the night at a friends house while we were babysitting a couple of nights ago, and Amy didn't have any problems waking up. Also, it's a little bigger then the 300 sq ft trailer we're in now. It's got a guest room for us to have company, which is really important to us. We love having people over and we both feel we have the gift of hospitality. Amy is going to do some work from home time to time, so this will allow her to have the space to do that... comfortably. We'll be able to get some of our stuff from home and make our new place a lot more "ours". We'll also be able to have a pet there as well. Rusty... welcome to Louisiana! We're really looking forward to it.
We haven't had any teams here this last week, but we have some this coming week... then it's another week without teams (that's when we're moving). As you can imagine, we are getting desperate for teams. Especially teams with "skilled" laborers (carpenters, electricians, plumbers, masons, metal workers, dry wall hangers) to help start new projects and finish some of the older ones. Please be praying for this. We could also use a few of these people on staff. Pray for this as well. If you would like to organize a team or know someone that would, please email us. We can give you the best time frame for you to come down and serve.
Lastly, we've heard a lot of people are checking the blog and disappointed that it's not updated enough. We hear you. Part of the problem is that we're pretty busy, but we're going to give it a try. You may be worried you're going to get a bunch of emails from us letting you know it's updated. That's not going to happen. I'll still send out an update, but only once a week. Continue to check back throughout the week, if you think of it. Be patient with us though. We've got a lot to do with moving and all, but we'll try to keep you up to date. Hope you all have a wonderful week. Stay safe... don't let the snow get ya down! We look forward to hearing from you soon.
This week has been pretty good. We've found a new place to live. We've decided that Amy must be allergic to something here. I've been mostly fine for the last few weeks, but Amy has been waking up with headaches everyday. We stayed the night at a friends house while we were babysitting a couple of nights ago, and Amy didn't have any problems waking up. Also, it's a little bigger then the 300 sq ft trailer we're in now. It's got a guest room for us to have company, which is really important to us. We love having people over and we both feel we have the gift of hospitality. Amy is going to do some work from home time to time, so this will allow her to have the space to do that... comfortably. We'll be able to get some of our stuff from home and make our new place a lot more "ours". We'll also be able to have a pet there as well. Rusty... welcome to Louisiana! We're really looking forward to it.
We haven't had any teams here this last week, but we have some this coming week... then it's another week without teams (that's when we're moving). As you can imagine, we are getting desperate for teams. Especially teams with "skilled" laborers (carpenters, electricians, plumbers, masons, metal workers, dry wall hangers) to help start new projects and finish some of the older ones. Please be praying for this. We could also use a few of these people on staff. Pray for this as well. If you would like to organize a team or know someone that would, please email us. We can give you the best time frame for you to come down and serve.
Lastly, we've heard a lot of people are checking the blog and disappointed that it's not updated enough. We hear you. Part of the problem is that we're pretty busy, but we're going to give it a try. You may be worried you're going to get a bunch of emails from us letting you know it's updated. That's not going to happen. I'll still send out an update, but only once a week. Continue to check back throughout the week, if you think of it. Be patient with us though. We've got a lot to do with moving and all, but we'll try to keep you up to date. Hope you all have a wonderful week. Stay safe... don't let the snow get ya down! We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
"What are we doin' here?"
This has been our question since we arrived in late October. "Why are we here?" It is evident that God cleared the path for us to come here, but why did He want us here? There's been a lot going on the last couple of weeks. Between getting acclimated to the area, and a new job, we weren't really sure which way was up. Praise God that we finally feel like we're getting our bearings and that we have some answers to the questions above.
Amy had really been struggling with what to do here. She very badly wanted to use her skills and giftedness to help organize the communication aspect of the ministry. While met with some frustration early on, she's had some good conversations to help encourage her in what she can be doing to get started with that. She gets to coordinate the communication area which includes: press kits/church kits, website maintenance, and various other things. She's got two wonderful and very capable people on her team, and I will also be helping with some communication items now and then. She also found a new passion she wants to explore.
Early this last week, Amy came out to a job site with me. She took some pictures and talked with the team that was here serving from Hershey, PA. She had a wonderful time. She decided to make a DVD using pictures of all the teams here this week and give each team a copy. Someone does this for teams that stay in the inner-city and she wanted to give it a try for teams up here as well. It's great for teams to have something they can bring home and show their churches what they did while they were here. Here's the first video.
Currently, we are organizing an inventory of all the tools that have been donated and purchased. Between that and running supplies to teams all over the North Shore (Covington, Slidell, Lacombe, and Mandeville), I've been really busy. I'm really learning a lot. Whether it's how we do things, or how to measure a drywall job, or what tools we need, there's something new everyday. Like I mentioned above, I've also been helping out with some of the communications here. We just uploaded the latest Katrina Project video on YouTube. You can view the video from this page. Go to the top of the page and play the video on the right. I've also included a link to the video in the "links" section. Check it out.
Please continue to pray for us. We're still adjusting. Please pray for the people here in the New Orleans area. Also check out the EFCA Katrina Project website (Link Section) for supplies we need. One more note. If you would like to send a team, we are in need of skilled labor (carpenters, drywall hangers, electricians, plumbers, HVAC, general construction, etc). If you or someone you know would like to come and serve for a week, let us know.
If you are interested in supporting us, prayerfully or financially, please let us know. Thanks to all who have prayed for us and the ministry here in New Orleans. We've raised about 15% of our monthly support needed, so thanks to all who have donated and made a monthly commitment as well. We really appreciate your support.
We appreciate your feed back. Please drop us a line. weheartno@gmail.com
Amy had really been struggling with what to do here. She very badly wanted to use her skills and giftedness to help organize the communication aspect of the ministry. While met with some frustration early on, she's had some good conversations to help encourage her in what she can be doing to get started with that. She gets to coordinate the communication area which includes: press kits/church kits, website maintenance, and various other things. She's got two wonderful and very capable people on her team, and I will also be helping with some communication items now and then. She also found a new passion she wants to explore.
Early this last week, Amy came out to a job site with me. She took some pictures and talked with the team that was here serving from Hershey, PA. She had a wonderful time. She decided to make a DVD using pictures of all the teams here this week and give each team a copy. Someone does this for teams that stay in the inner-city and she wanted to give it a try for teams up here as well. It's great for teams to have something they can bring home and show their churches what they did while they were here. Here's the first video.
Currently, we are organizing an inventory of all the tools that have been donated and purchased. Between that and running supplies to teams all over the North Shore (Covington, Slidell, Lacombe, and Mandeville), I've been really busy. I'm really learning a lot. Whether it's how we do things, or how to measure a drywall job, or what tools we need, there's something new everyday. Like I mentioned above, I've also been helping out with some of the communications here. We just uploaded the latest Katrina Project video on YouTube. You can view the video from this page. Go to the top of the page and play the video on the right. I've also included a link to the video in the "links" section. Check it out.
Please continue to pray for us. We're still adjusting. Please pray for the people here in the New Orleans area. Also check out the EFCA Katrina Project website (Link Section) for supplies we need. One more note. If you would like to send a team, we are in need of skilled labor (carpenters, drywall hangers, electricians, plumbers, HVAC, general construction, etc). If you or someone you know would like to come and serve for a week, let us know.
If you are interested in supporting us, prayerfully or financially, please let us know. Thanks to all who have prayed for us and the ministry here in New Orleans. We've raised about 15% of our monthly support needed, so thanks to all who have donated and made a monthly commitment as well. We really appreciate your support.
We appreciate your feed back. Please drop us a line. weheartno@gmail.com
Monday, November 5, 2007
Our First Week
Happy Monday!! We're about to start our first full week here. I will be running tools and supplies around the North Shore (Covington and surrounding areas). Amy will be working in the office.
Last week was good. We were able to get a little more settled in our house. After searching for a suitable place to sit in our living room, we found a small love seat at the thrift store for $45, which was $10 less than the other ones. It was in OK shape, but we decided to wait before buying. When we returned later in the afternoon, the workers told us there was a donation on the back of a pick-up outside, if we wanted to look. It was perfect. The right size, no stains, no springs sticking out, just perfect. The "pricing lady" recognized us from earlier and priced it lower than all the others, $35. And it would've been the best one in the store. Praise the Lord!
Please continue to pray for our transition. We're still adjusting to the new area and new people. Amy and I have not been feeling very well. We both have a cough and congestion that has been lingering for the past week. Please pray for healing.
Please pray for Amy in the office. She is used to working in an environment where she knows exactly what her responsibilities are and is able to just take initiative and go with things, but that hasn't been the situation down here just yet. She is having a difficult time transitioning. Please pray that she will feel comfortable in her new surroundings soon and will be able to use the giftings the Lord has given her.
We have enjoyed hearing from some of you and hope to hear from more of you soon. Let us know what is going on in your lives and how we can be praying for you.
Last week was good. We were able to get a little more settled in our house. After searching for a suitable place to sit in our living room, we found a small love seat at the thrift store for $45, which was $10 less than the other ones. It was in OK shape, but we decided to wait before buying. When we returned later in the afternoon, the workers told us there was a donation on the back of a pick-up outside, if we wanted to look. It was perfect. The right size, no stains, no springs sticking out, just perfect. The "pricing lady" recognized us from earlier and priced it lower than all the others, $35. And it would've been the best one in the store. Praise the Lord!
Please continue to pray for our transition. We're still adjusting to the new area and new people. Amy and I have not been feeling very well. We both have a cough and congestion that has been lingering for the past week. Please pray for healing.
Please pray for Amy in the office. She is used to working in an environment where she knows exactly what her responsibilities are and is able to just take initiative and go with things, but that hasn't been the situation down here just yet. She is having a difficult time transitioning. Please pray that she will feel comfortable in her new surroundings soon and will be able to use the giftings the Lord has given her.
We have enjoyed hearing from some of you and hope to hear from more of you soon. Let us know what is going on in your lives and how we can be praying for you.
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