Saturday, November 5, 2011

Waiting and Willing!


As a follow up to Erics last post I thought I would share with you my heart and feelings since our trip to Haiti. 

As far back as I can remember when someone at church has prayed for me, or my parents have shared with me, what Gods will on my life would be I have often always heard this from them : "God has a very special plan for your life." Having heard that it was something I knew was true because in fact God has a special plan for each one of us. And satan wants to do everything he can to keep us from achieving our purpose and plan. But looking back on my life and the events of all the times I have failed, and the hurt I had gone through or even put someone else through, I have realized that they have prepared me for such a time as this. Just in the last couple months I am seeing how much satan does not want us to move to Haiti, or do the will of God, and it makes you second guess everything and breaks you down to the point where you feel discouraged and confused. But yet it also makes you realize we, on our own can not do anything. And that we must totally and completely put all of our trust in God. We must totally let go of ourselves and our plans and completely put our life in the hands of God. I am constantly reminded that he is the potter and we are the clay. 

So to take you back to June when we were in Haiti I will be completely honest with you it was a very hard time for me. Having been to Haiti many times willingly and anxiously awaiting each trip, this time it was different. I was very anxious and excited to go and to spend the time with Jared and Jalayne and meet the girls at the orphanage and spend the time in prayer with Eric and seeking God for the plans he had for us in Haiti.  I was also very excited to be taking Cohen with us and thought the people we knew there would be so happy to meet our son. I did have a great time and so much enjoyed the time we could spend with Jared and Jalayne. My dad also had come down for a week to spend time praying about this with us. We sought out locations and even spoke to a couple who had been there for over twenty years. It was all very exciting and encouraging and the reality of being there with my family was becoming so real, exciting and scary at the same time. The one Sunday when we went to church with Jared and Jalayne Eric and I had went up for prayer and it was so neat that just as they ended praying for us and we were still at the alter the next worship song was "I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back..." It is the little signs like that, that can be so powerful and helpful at times in our lives. 

After much prayer in Haiti we found ourselves still not knowing exactly where God wanted us. We still knew very well that he wanted us to continue to pray and seek him on the calling he has for our family. 

In the last couple months I have been reminded how much satan is here to steal, kill, and destroy..To steal our joy, kill our dreams, and destroy any plans God has for us. In seeing ways he has tried to attack our family it has only made us stronger and made us rely more on God and to continue to PRAY even more and made it even more clear to me that God does have big plans for us and the fact that the enemy is trying to discourage us in those plans it has only made it more evident to me that we are on the right track and have to continue to persevere.

We have come to one conclusion at this time and that is only God knows where we will be a year from now and we have decided that the best place for us to be right now is where we are. To continue to serve God at our jobs, school, on the basketball court, in our church, in our community, in our bible study and in our home.
Be still and know that he is God. Be still and know that he is God. Be still and know that he is God. We are ready for whatever he has in store for us and we are waiting patiently for his leading.  
PLEASE WATCH THIS VIDEO IT SHOWS EXACTLY WHAT IS GOING ON IN OUR HEARTS.  GOD IS FAITHFUL, HE CALLED US NOW  WE MUST BE FAITHFUL ON WHEN WHERE AND HOW.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbTFa9px9Lc


We thank you so much for how supportive you have been already just from us deciding this is the direction we want to go and we ask that you continue to pray for our family and for the new addition to our family coming in March 2012 :)


Thursday, June 23, 2011

Obedience the Key!

Our family,
For all who do not know, Briana and I are going to moving next summer to serve the Lord and his people in the island of Haiti. As we continue to take steps of faith forward towards His calling we ask that you pray for us. We are open to what the Lord wants us to do and where he wants us to do it. We definitely know that we feel the Lord asking us to disciple people and plant churches but the question is where, how, and who? Therefore we ask that you all will be praying for us as we continue to step out. Disciple, disciple, and more discipling is the heart that God has given us yet we know that we must be obedient to the Lords calling on our life right now. As I am writing this out I am reminded of Lot and his wife in Genesis 19. The angel of the Lord comes to Lot and tells him to take his family out of Sodom for the anger of the Lord is going to sweep over them with fire. He tells Lot to run to the mountains and to not look back. Yet Lot tells the angel that it would be much better to go to the town rather then the mountains because it would be a better lifestyle for them. The compassion of the Lord was over Lot so the angel allowed his request. Yet as Lot's family is fleeing from sodom to escape the wrath of God his wife looks back to the city and immediately was turned into a pillar of salt. For Lot's wife this was the consequence of being disobedient to what the Lord has asked them to do. As I pray that this is not my consequence (thank you Jesus for your grace upon me lol.) I know that as a family, not just me but my wife and son as well, need to be obedient to what God is asking of us. With all that was said the point is that whatever God asks us to do I want to do even if he changes plans on us, we want to just take one step at a time and not look back.

We are in Florida right now with some family and next week heading out to Haiti for a couple weeks. The first week we are leading a group to help with my brother and sister with their orphanage and to do whatever else the Lord is asking. We always are praying that the Lord brings freedom as 2 Chorinthians says "where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty." so we continue to pray this over Haiti because we know that my brother and sister bring the spirit of God with them which then brings freedom to the people of Haiti. The following week and a half or so we are going to spend some time praying and seeking the Lord for guidance in what he wants for us and how we can be little tiny instruments in Gods plan. We know that as we seek the face of God with prayer and fasting he will reveal himself to us, as His Word promises. So we ask that as a body of Christ and brothers and sisters you will join with us and praying for not only what God is asking us to do but also the people of Haiti these next couple of weeks and we believe he will show up. Someone told me a quote this past week from a man named Austin from the city challenge in Columbus Ohio " we are not worried whether or not God will speak but rather we all must listen to hear that voice that prmises to speak"

I also just want to say thank you to all my family from Hartville Mennonite and Middleburry Chapel and brothers and sisters in Christ who have continued to poor into our lives as individuals and as a couple. Honestly from the bottom of my heart I want all of you to know that we can not follow the calling that God has placed in our hearts unless we have the support of our family which is you all We do not want this to be a calling that is only on Briana and Eric's life but on everyone that is reading this. We love you all and ask for your prayers as we start out this new journey with Christ who is always faithful even when we are not His mercies are new everyday thank you Jesus. We will also be praying for all of you and that the Spirit of the sovereign Lord fills in order to give all Glory to our Father.