It is amazing to me that God has a word for us in every circumstance. Here within the last week, the enemey has really been attacking our family. Although I find no point in rehashing all the details I will just say that he has come at us at every angle possible. HOWEVER, God is good! After talking with our pastor, mentor and dear friend Rev Felicia Hopkin's she sent me to a powerful passage in scripture that really is what I am hanging on to in this time of trial.
Ephesians 6:10-16 says:
Finally my bretheren, be strong in the Lord and in the power if HIS might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand, therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of rightousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.

So, I will stand! I will stand with faith and peace--that although our family is under attack the Lord gives us the weapons of truth and rightousness. I will stand firm in his word and his promises of redemption... because as for me and my house--WE WILL SERVE THE LORD!

1 Thessalonians 2:8 “We loved you so much that we shared with you not only the gospel of God, but our lives as well…”



This past week was a “mountaintop” experience for me. I traveled to Panama to do a missions trip with the youth of our church. We did tons of ministry in the streets of Panama. We led people to Christ as we shared the gospel through a variety of means. One of the highlights of the trip was spending 3 days deep in the jungle with an indigenous tribe, the Embara. We slept in their huts, ate together, and did worship services and bible studies 3-5 times each day.



When we pulled up to the village by boat, which was 3 hours away from civilization, we were greeted by the villagers. Everyone was warm and welcoming. Half of the tribe was Christian and the other half went to the local witchdoctor. We shared the gospel through our testimonies, bible lessons, and gospel bracelets. We showed them how to share the gospel with others and went deeper into the jungle and shared the gospel with the next village.



Our mantra was, “We are going as missionaries and not as tourists”. We definitely got a feel for what being a missionary is like! Three of the kids felt a call to missions and one is going back to Panama this summer to serve at the YWAM base.



The most important thing is that people came to Christ and the youth at the church learned what is was like to be the hands and feet of Christ in what seemed like another world. God is moving so greatly and is gracious enough to invite us to participate with Him!


Buck

We went to Grandbubby's house for Shabbat Dinner last night. We have started a new tradition with the kids to go visit my grandmother and have dinner with her on Friday nights. Buck and I think it is so important for them to understand my Jewish roots. As many of you are well aware, both my grandparents lived though the nightmare of Hitler first hand. Both are survivors of the Holocust and Dachau(one of the concentration camps.) Although we are rasing our children as Christians--me being Jewish never goes away. I am now a completed Jew. I think it is so special that my children are getting to know grandbubby--they will look back on this time and realize just how special this time was with such a couragous woman.

Ok... I know I have slacked on the posts here lately--so I am going to try and catch up. We took the girls skiing 2 weeks ago, and although I have no actual action shots here is one with Corey. He and his family invited us to their time share and we had a great time.

Bring the Rain:





The last couple of weeks have been very dificult. We have found out that my mother has a serious heart condition. My father is being tested for a possible reoccurance of cancer--and the night before last, Buck went to the hospital with chest pains... I was feeling pretty overwhelmed. As I watched the ambulance drive away with Buck I turned to walk back into the house and I cryed out to God! "WHERE ARE YOU??" I got someone to come watch the kids--and at 3:00 A.M. I got into Buck's truck and drove to the hospital. I was praying out loud as I drove, and finally I turned up the radio--Buck had a Mercy Me CD in, and appropriatly enough the song "Bring the Rain" was playing. As the lyrics played it hit me. What I am going through is hard--but not harder than what Jesus went through on the cross... and no matter what happens we have salvation, but biggger than that we have God--He is our shelter from the storm. Here I am faced with a chance to either hang on to my faith or turn my back on God. Of Course I choose to rest in his arms--that's part of Jesus's gift---PEACE, peace through the storm. Buck is home now and it looks like we just had a little scare. He is going to be ok. Praise God. I will continue to pray for healing for my parents--but through it all--I will draw closer to him.




I am Yours regardless of
The clouds that may loom above
Because You are much greater than my pain
You who made a way for me
By suffering Your destiny
So tell me what's a little rain
MERCY ME

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow... The weather around here has been a little off the wall. We were expected to get a major snow storm this last Friday. The city practically shut down to brace for the storm. Schools were cancelled, city offices were closed, and all social, civic, and sporting events were posponed--and guess what... All that happened was rain (a light rain all day). Isn't that always the case? I think that is how most of us tend to live our everyday lives. Someone once told me that FEAR stood for: False Evindence Appearing Real. We tend to worry so much about things we think are going to happen that we make it much worse in our minds than what the outcome usually is. Now don't get me wrong preparation is not a bad thing, I think the city made a statement that they were using "an overabundance of caution" to make sure their citizens stayed safe--caution is good, but faith is much greater. So as someone who comes from a long line of stressed out souls~I am working on it, or I should say God is working on me. After all the hype--two days later without much notice we did finally get some snow. The girls were so excited that we had to let them run outside in their pj's and jackets to at least say they made a snow ball. We decided to take a day and go skiing. It was wonderful up at the ski resort! Buck and I made a "date" of it.

Sometimes Blessings don’t look like blessings to us! Back in December I had been praying about our finances, our future and the kids. We have been pretty tight on money for a while. I had tossed the idea around about getting a job, but a flood of emotions and doubts kept creeping into my mind. So after praying one night about our financial situation—I got a call from my previous employer… asking if I knew anyone looking for a job—Now this could NOT be God’s way of answering prayer… I mean this was a “real” job back in the corporate world… So, I told them no and that I would call if I heard of anyone. Long story short, I took a long shot and called back and asked if they would work with someone looking part time. To my amazement they said yes… I interviewed, set up my guidelines and they offered me the job. The nagging doubt crept in again, and I said no. God wouldn’t want me to put Isaiah in day care would he? He wouldn’t want me not in full time ministry, would he? I dismissed the offer as me manipulating the situation. Several weeks past and the financial crunch was taking a toll. Again, I got on my knee’s one night and prayed: “God if you can hear me why aren’t you fixing our financial situation??” The VERY next day I got another call from my old employer. They asked why I didn’t take the job. They reoffered the position again (a little more salary this time) and it hit me—ARE YOU GOING TO IGNORE THE BLESSING THAT GOD IS TRYING TO GIVE YOU??? It didn’t look like the blessing I expected, it wasn’t packaged the way I thought God’s blessings would be packaged, but sometimes things that don’t look right in the natural are God’s way of asking “Do you trust me?” So needless to say I started work this week. I will only be working part time, but it will be an adjustment for the family. Pray that we stay in the GOD ZONE at all times. Also, think about a prayer that you have been waiting for God to answer… Look around he may be trying to answer it

Whew! The holidays flew by so fast! The day after Christmas we drove to San Antonio to visit Buck's family. We had a wonderful time. We visited the family homestead in Cuero, Texas. This is where Buck's parents are relocating. The land has been in the family for over 140 years! Although I am a city girl, there is something about living on land that your ancestors once lived that is kinda cool. We spent New Years with some friends on the River Walk. We had a wonderful (but small -- no wonder the French are not fat!) French dinner, and then rode through downtown San Antonio on a horse and carriage and watched fireworks...

A Christmas Eve I will soon not forget. Today Buck and I, along with our dear friends Brian and Claudia Mosher were able to participate in the Christmas Eve service at the church in Mexico. Now I have been to numerous Christmas Eve services that were extraordinary--Healing Place has had beautiful music along with a dynamic Pastor; St Mark's has always been filled with many warm and friendly people whom we consider family; we have spend Christmas in San Antonio in a small somewhat country church near Buck's parents home; we have spent Christmas Eve in numerous churches with all different styles of worship--however, today I felt the presence of the Lord so great --that as I sit here and recall the days events my eyes are welling up with tears. We spent Christmas Eve in the back of an eighteen-wheeler, with a portable heater and small wooden chairs. We gathered into the Lord's House with about 30-40 other believers and worshiped HIM with one old guitar and children playing on the floor. BUT the presence of the Lord was there. They didn't speak English and my Spanish was a little rusty, but when I closed my eyes during the music the sounds of their voices sounded angelic. The four of us went person to person and prayed over their needs and as the tears streamed down their faces I saw Jesus in their expressions. Buck spoke a word of Hope to them of what is to come in their community and I translated. They stood up and shared testimonies of what God has done in their lives and they were truly grateful. We ended the service by sharing communion together. Like I said it was a simple service, but God took the time to swing by and share Christmas Eve in this small community neslted in the back of some mountains in Mexico. God is working a great miracle--right there in the middle of poverty, in an area where the people have been taken advantage of by evil drug cartels--Jesus is shining his light. Psalms 92:15 They will declare, "The Lord is just! He is my Rock! There is no evil in him!" Merry Christmas.

We (as a family) all went back out to Mexico today. Elise and Avery were little missionaries again. Both of them helped to pass out the presents to the children from the colonia. I think they are getting the BIGGEST gifts this Christmas season. They are being taught the gift of giving. They are starting to realize that we are so blessed and that we must be the example of Christ to those less fortunate than ourselves. For those who are not familiar with this area or what a colonia is, basically, it’s about the poorest of the poor in Mexico. The area is filled with little dilapidated houses that are constructed of cider block, cardboard and wood. Many of the families have no electricity, and most have no form of transportation. I, myself, was taken aback with their living conditions. Now don’t get me wrong, they are VERY clean and tidy people. They were also very gracious and thankful of everything they are given. I just felt as though I was being taught a lesson on being grateful for the blessings that are in my life. They were all very happy and many know and love the Lord with all their heart. I spoke with one woman who told me that she has to walk (which seemed like a pretty far journey from her home) to church—which is held outside on the dirt, each Sunday morning to hear the word of God. By the way, Elise wanted to know why Santa Claus was looking a little different today. I had to tell her that actually—the jolly ol’ hombre that was out serving with us today was “Santos Claus Chavez” --who, of course everyone knows is Santa Claus’s cousin from Mexico!!! Anyway, we will be back out there Christmas Eve, and I know God has many blessings in store that day. Buck will be preaching that morning and I will be translating… We ask you to be in prayer for us that day. Not only are we their to restore and bring personal necessities we are there for something far more important than any material possession we could bring them—and that is a relationship with Christ—Our Savior.

Elise and I went to our Christmas outreach today in Mexico. In the semi-trailers you see in the background is where we hold our church services and school. This was Elise’s first international mission trip. (30 minutes from our house!) She did a great job serving God and being the hands and feet of Christ to our brothers and sisters across the border. We just got a deed to 6 acres where we are going to build a 12,000 sq. foot church/school/community center. The new building will be a beacon of hope for the people in the community of Acuna. God is so faithful and we are blessed to be in ministry!

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas... Wow! Having three kids during the holidays takes on a whole new meaning. We have had several Christmas performances and of course a visit with Santa! Here are a couple of pictures of some of the events from the last couple of day:

Sometimes I just marvel at how "ON TIME" God is!! The other day, as I was coming home from the grocery store, I was thinking in my head about how in the world we were going to buy Christmas Presents this year. I was actually praying that somehow money would just come in the mail from somewhere. As I walking into the house, I caught a glimpse out the back window of the view from our backyard. I felt this immediate sense of guilt when I looked at just how blessed my life is. I attached a picture of what I was looking at. How could I fathom asking God for money when he has given us so much? Well, after putting the groceries away I went to check the mail--and to make a long story short, somehow Buck managed to not cash three small checks from when he worked at West and we "fell into" $1000.00 dlrs of unclaimed money!!!! Even when I realized what God has done for us, undeservedly, he always seems to be there even when its a selfish request! It just amazes me, I am blown away... He is just so faithful. Philippians 4:6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

"Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with Thanksgiving and extol him with music and song." Psalms 95:1-2 Well, here we are on the day before Thanksgiving, and I am reflecting on the last couple of months. We have had some major changes and challanges AND we have had some wonderful blessings! So here is my list of some of the things I am thankful for: My Salvation My Family My Church My Home My Health Simple, I know, but really that is what matters the most to me! I can catch myself complaining about the most trivial things, but what I have is worth more than GOLD! We have had plenty and we have had little--going into full time ministry wasn't for the money! However the family time has been incredible. Even when I wonder how we will pay our bills the next month, God has been faithful. So here I am on my knees and I thank you Lord. Through the trials and the triumphs I thank you for mercy, grace and wisdom. Oh, and for the three best looking children in the world... Here is a picture we took today... Aren't they just precious!

Being the mother of three small children under the age of 6, I seem to always make a grand entrance into grocery stores and shopping malls. I usually get the pitiful looks from women whose comments go something like this: “Oh bless your heart! I am sure you have your hands full!” or “Do you and your husband own a T.V?” I usually laugh it off and wonder what all the fuss is about. However, this week has been a challenge. In the course of a couple of days I have been in the doctors office twice, several late night episodes of crying, whining and the like, and well not to get too graphic, enough uncontrollable stomach ailments— that I am starting to think that my choice of carpet colors was not the best! I was feeling pretty sorry for myself, not to mention a little envious of my husband’s life. Why should he get all the glamorous jobs? Preaching, retreats, luncheons, seminars – while I am changing pull-ups, cleaning up spit up, and doing the never ending pile of laundry? Where is the justice in that? I thought God was no respecter of persons?? I mean I was called into this life of ministry too, right? Well into my pity party God showed up. “Believe me, I understand, I am daily cleaning up my children from the dirtiness of this world, and they too whine and complain while I pick up the pieces of their lives!” Ouch, am I one of those children? Party over! Philippains 4:11-13 I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. So I am back to enjoying my season of life, I know that God has something big in store for our family. If all I was put on this earth to do is to see that my children become doers of the word and to help my husband be the leader that he was called to be, then so be it. I am here to serve him- not my pride. Plus, watching my kids from the rear view mirror raising their hands and singing at the top of their lungs to Jesus is pretty cool—in fact its down right awesome.

We just had our men’s retreat at Bonita Camp in the Mountains of New Mexico. God showed up big as we bonded as a group of men committed to have Christ at the center of our lives! Some of the things we did were a low ropes challenge course in the forest, many chapel events, watched part of the Passion of Christ, taught the plan of salvation, and then symbolically burned our sin in a campfire at an outdoor amphitheatre. On the last day we covered the lessons that were learned over the weekend and James 1:22. “Be doers of the word, and not merely hearers of the word who delude themselves.” Each man responded with what he was going to do when he comes off the mountain. Finally, we celebrated communion together and then headed back into the world with a renewed sense of direction and strength for our lives, knowing that we have brothers in Christ to help us along the way.

Promise Keepers I’m late on this blog entry as we did this last month. However, Promise Keepers was a great time of fellowship with the men of our church. We went to Phoenix, Arizona and worshipped with 18,000 other men. It was a great event as we were unleashed as mighty men of God!