March 2012
HOME
Preparing for home is at the best of times difficult. I always feel that there are so many opportunities and doors unopened. With so many relationships…with so many Pastors in the area….I never feel like there is any closure. The need is so great here and I always leave with an anxious soul. What a blessing to have good friends in the ministries that are making solid ground in Mexico. I always leave missing so much.
Of the many things I learned this March was how the Lord has a plan. We make decisions, but the Lord will always bring to fruition His will.
…tonight, a church is blessed because the Lord had favor at the borders. Truly a miracle!
I have served my whole adult life in Christian ministry, but I am humbled by what many sacrifice to bring whole communities to a relationship with Jesus Christ. I have been swept up in the care of whole villages and the integral part of working through the local Pastor. The battlefield is truly in the emerging nations and I am broken by the work of those etching out a living by day and preaching by night.
Continue to pray for the Pastors of our region. They reach out to the addicted, broken families, and needy of Baja. They have genuine hearts and sacrifice everything to help the poor and desolate; often giving up their own lives.
More and more I am convinced that empowering the indigenous church at home or abroad is a responsibility. The mission field is changing and we might be surprised by who is evangelizing us! Joel 2:25
May we “rend” our heart as Joel 2:12-13 says. So much promise in verse 14!
MARCH UPDATE
POSTED ON Mar 25, 2012
Once again I ride out another spring storm in San Diego. I had secretly hoped that the weather report was wrong and I would enjoy a few more days of flip-flops and shorts. However, the rain pounds down on the One Life bus as i write this tonight from a campground next to the Mexican border.
…It’s all good and reminds me of home…rain on the roof, stillness of the night, and something familiar. Sad as it seems, I have missed the rain.
This past month has seen so many amazing things:
1) Tonight, two single moms are sleeping in a new home…with concrete under their feet, a warm bed, and a full stomach. Their children have separate beds. For the first time in their lives these families have hope and a hand-up.
2) As multiple groups travelled south this March, many lives have been forever changed. I personally heard the testimonies of widened world views and an appreciation for the lost. Many speak into how that will change back home.
3) Work started on the Prayer room and offices of Los Olivos. With the land now paid off, it was quite emotional to witness the start of what, Lord Willing, will become the first of many projects to support the indigenous churches. May these first foundations pave the way for many years of prayer, healing, and change. Like both families that received a home this week, “I have no words.” May the Lord be glorified and many come to know Him.
Two scriptures that stood out this month were:
Psalm 27:13-14
“I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD.”
…This was the prayer of Maria Cruz as she waited 21 years
Ephesians 3: 14-21
“14 For this reason I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom every family[a] in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.”
…This was a word to the church at Santa Fe at their opening service after many years of drought. With new beginnings, may the Lord prosper and bless their heart as they lean on Christ to reach the community surrounding the church.
Continue to keep One Life in your prayers as the need is great and workers are few. Please pray for those who serve and facilitate relief for those who have less.
Thank-you to the Lord and all those who have given. The surrounding churches, local Pastors, prayer partners, foreign teams, OL staff, Selle family, and the board of One Life as they are His hands and feet…it goes without words.
MATTHEW CHAPTER 6
POSTED ON Mar 10, 2012
In January, my Pastor spoke on Matthew chapter 6…and it was a good reminder.
Probably my OCD, but I worry about a lot of things even though the Lord is moving in this ministry. It often revolves around people and missed opportunities in service. It ranges from the care of those who serve with OL to how we discern who is blessed with a new home or a hand up? Without the guiding hand of Jesus this would be a mess. I really wrestle with this…
1) A mother of four is widowed by a farm accident and has limited means. She lives in a cardboard house.
2) A faithful mom who prayerfully raised several children, after her husband left 21 years ago needs shelter at the end of her life.
How do you pick…PTL, both families will be looked after this month. Still many others will have to wait. With a long list, my heart breaks for those who suffer a little while longer.
2012 is an interesting year on many levels. With projected increase at the OL base, we are anxious to build infrastructure as usage continues to push our resources. With increased demand to support outside ministry the work seems, often, unattainable. On Monday, we hope break ground for what is the start of our building program. Funds continue to be the vise towards further planning, and ongoing ministry is dependant on it. With a School, Orphanage, and Worship center to compliment the community, we have a long way to go.
Continue to pray for those serving this March:
1) Pastor Gorgonio and Pastor Gonzales; who we will be working with in Mexico this March.
2) The families: Maria Patricia Amaya Cruz & Maria Isabel Gomez Ramirez who will be given a “hand up.”
3) The teams from Gary Cropley, MEI Abbotsford, and Chilliwack Baptist
4) The staff at One Life
5) Funds to complete the first phase of our prayer room & offices.
Thank-you for your prayers! We have so much to be thankful for as the Lord continues to provide for our needs. Many are being reached through the local church and your support extends their reach.
Dios te Bendiga