1 Peter 4:11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Wow! What a month (+) it's been!
The season has FINALLY changed here, and in the past two days we have dropped from 82 degrees to 62 degrees. Quite a change and it finally feels like fall! I had a wonderfully stretching summer, one where I feel like God was working and moving in amazing ways in my life. The summer was also an incredibly blessed summer. It is such a joy to be serving here at Global, to have the friends I have, to connect with people around the world, and to dig deeper into the heart of God. The summer was definitely one of growth and healing. God continues to push me through more issues, loving me into deeper places of intimacy with Him and I'm so grateful!
With the change of seasons, it seems like the Annual Meeting season came right along with it! We are busy planning and preparing for two of the four regional meetings we will have this year. Tefera is here helping this year and it's easier, if not in the workload, necessarily, just in the fact of knowing there's SOMEONE to help me :) And not just anyone, but someone who brings a lot to the table. I thank God for bringing him here. He brings an amazing depth of knowledge, of insight, and is fun to work with, too! So together, along with a dispersed international staff, we have begun planning for the first meeting in January which will be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We expect between 100 and 125 leaders from Africa to join us at that meeting, along with some leaders from around the world. I'm looking forward to being in Africa again, to experience worshipping with my dear brothers and sisters there. From Ethiopia, we plan to travel to Mumbai, India (formerly Bombay). This meeting will be slightly smaller, with about 75-100 people expected. India was hard on me last year, and I've been asking God to help me be really excited to be there. I loved the people I was with at the meetings, but I was really ill there and had some less than good experiences. Please pray with me that God would give me joy to be there and that my anticipation would grow. These meetings are a lot of work, undoubtedly the hardest work I've ever done in my life. It's also a lot of travel and very little sleep. Please pray for continued joy as I work. I remember from my first year here, working in Mexico at the Annual Meeting, saying it felt like joyful exhaustion. I know the exhaustion will be there, and I'm sure the joy will be, too, as I get to see and touch and be with the people I pray for and relate to all year. A little taste of heaven right here on earth.
I'm still in awe that God is allowing me to serve in this capacity, to do what I get to do. It seems like weekly, maybe even daily, I find myself wondering why He would choose to use me at all, but being so grateful that He does. I have been thinking a lot lately that I moved here 2.5 years ago and wow! What a time it's been!!! This is more than I ever could have asked for or imagined for my life. God is SO GOOD!
My group of friends continues to stretch me, to be a blessing to me. This was a summer of serving together (we volunteer a couple of places together, and the trip to LA/MS), growing in God together, going through pain together, rejoicing in God's goodness together. I am so blessed. I have been able to spend more time with Kent and Erin and the boys and also with Allison and the boys (not as much with Jeremy as he's had a busy summer), but I continue to be completely grateful for these friendships that continue to grow and challenge me. There's something beautiful in loving people for this long... They definitely feel more like family to me than just friends.
The friends I've made in the past couple of years here also continue to amaze me. I am so blessed by each one of them and continually thank God for them.
My relationship with Nate has been such a blessing, such a time of growth and learning. Each day, I am amazed. I remarked to him last week, that 'good' is really good! We continue to hold this relationship in our open hands to God, allowing Him to move and work. We also continue to pray that God is blessed by our relationship, and that we can bless others and each other. God has definitely answered so many of my prayers with him... The more I get to know him, the more I am in awe of all that God has placed in him. He's a great mix of strength and kindness. I am blessed. Please continue to pray with us as we get to know each other.
Wow! What a month (+) it's been!
The season has FINALLY changed here, and in the past two days we have dropped from 82 degrees to 62 degrees. Quite a change and it finally feels like fall! I had a wonderfully stretching summer, one where I feel like God was working and moving in amazing ways in my life. The summer was also an incredibly blessed summer. It is such a joy to be serving here at Global, to have the friends I have, to connect with people around the world, and to dig deeper into the heart of God. The summer was definitely one of growth and healing. God continues to push me through more issues, loving me into deeper places of intimacy with Him and I'm so grateful!With the change of seasons, it seems like the Annual Meeting season came right along with it! We are busy planning and preparing for two of the four regional meetings we will have this year. Tefera is here helping this year and it's easier, if not in the workload, necessarily, just in the fact of knowing there's SOMEONE to help me :) And not just anyone, but someone who brings a lot to the table. I thank God for bringing him here. He brings an amazing depth of knowledge, of insight, and is fun to work with, too! So together, along with a dispersed international staff, we have begun planning for the first meeting in January which will be held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We expect between 100 and 125 leaders from Africa to join us at that meeting, along with some leaders from around the world. I'm looking forward to being in Africa again, to experience worshipping with my dear brothers and sisters there. From Ethiopia, we plan to travel to Mumbai, India (formerly Bombay). This meeting will be slightly smaller, with about 75-100 people expected. India was hard on me last year, and I've been asking God to help me be really excited to be there. I loved the people I was with at the meetings, but I was really ill there and had some less than good experiences. Please pray with me that God would give me joy to be there and that my anticipation would grow. These meetings are a lot of work, undoubtedly the hardest work I've ever done in my life. It's also a lot of travel and very little sleep. Please pray for continued joy as I work. I remember from my first year here, working in Mexico at the Annual Meeting, saying it felt like joyful exhaustion. I know the exhaustion will be there, and I'm sure the joy will be, too, as I get to see and touch and be with the people I pray for and relate to all year. A little taste of heaven right here on earth.
I'm still in awe that God is allowing me to serve in this capacity, to do what I get to do. It seems like weekly, maybe even daily, I find myself wondering why He would choose to use me at all, but being so grateful that He does. I have been thinking a lot lately that I moved here 2.5 years ago and wow! What a time it's been!!! This is more than I ever could have asked for or imagined for my life. God is SO GOOD!
My group of friends continues to stretch me, to be a blessing to me. This was a summer of serving together (we volunteer a couple of places together, and the trip to LA/MS), growing in God together, going through pain together, rejoicing in God's goodness together. I am so blessed. I have been able to spend more time with Kent and Erin and the boys and also with Allison and the boys (not as much with Jeremy as he's had a busy summer), but I continue to be completely grateful for these friendships that continue to grow and challenge me. There's something beautiful in loving people for this long... They definitely feel more like family to me than just friends.
The friends I've made in the past couple of years here also continue to amaze me. I am so blessed by each one of them and continually thank God for them.
My relationship with Nate has been such a blessing, such a time of growth and learning. Each day, I am amazed. I remarked to him last week, that 'good' is really good! We continue to hold this relationship in our open hands to God, allowing Him to move and work. We also continue to pray that God is blessed by our relationship, and that we can bless others and each other. God has definitely answered so many of my prayers with him... The more I get to know him, the more I am in awe of all that God has placed in him. He's a great mix of strength and kindness. I am blessed. Please continue to pray with us as we get to know each other. 
We were able to go canoeing two weeks ago with a lady named Doreen who works at a discipleship training program we work with and her fiance Loren. It was a peaceful and fun day relating with them. Doreen and I thought Loren and Nate might be similar, and they were a bit similar, and she and I are a bit similar, so that was fun!
The guys worked HARD to help us paddle. ha ha. Seriously, this was a rare time of relaxing for them...
I got to see a lot of egrets and blue herons on the river that day. Those birds always make me think of God, I don't know why... They just get me all excited, thinking of how majestic God is...
I am so excited to be doing what God has called me to, in the place He called me to, with wonderful people, and to be able to be in full-time ministry. I love it! THANK YOU to all of you who make it possible with your prayers and support. I don't take you for granted and I definitely feel each one of you with me as I work and live.
Galatians 5 says: the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (NIV)
Oh, Lord, help us to have that faith...
Imparting Wisdom
So, I just came to a profound realization or maybe not so profound... I was reading a blog written by a "kid" who used to come to the youth group I was a leader/pastor in... Somehow, in a matter of years, this "kid" has become a man who challenges me in so many ways. So all those years I was "TRYING" to impart wisdom on him, it probably wasn't really working. And now, he's living his life fully surrendered and is as such, imparting so much wisdom into mine. If you want to be challenged, check out his blog: http://www.stumblingafterthelight.com/ I have been looking at that verse in Galatians 5 a lot lately and I think he just explained it pretty well in his latest blog entry... "the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love"... I thank God that none of us have arrived, that we're all on this journey of learning, growing, changing, being broken, all for the sake of knowing Him and being known by Him, so He can be known in the nations. May His love go before us in all that we do...
2 comments:
God Is awesome, Glad to read how are you doing my friend!! God Bless you!! hugs for you
Hey Jenny! Hmmm. You are such a good writer. Want to help me with mine? I should really work on that. You bless me so much! God is so Good!
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