Be Refreshed!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!  If I was a real blogger I would have blogged over Christmas to share deep truths with you, but I’m not so I’ve been enjoying time with my family.

Every year I think to myself, “This is the best Bethel Christmas Eve Candlelight Service Ever!”  Considering Bethel is over 50 years old, I kinda doubt it’s true, but it sure was good.  Candles, stained glass, woodwork, tree and lights.  The beauty of the carols and hymns.  The awe of God’s love.  I could have sat there for hours.

Don’t forget our carry-in breakfast this Sunday.  We have 2 services now so we’ll put breakfast right in between at 9:30 during the SS hour.  Bring your favorite breakfast casserole, biscuits and gravy, pastries, etc or carton of juice to share.  It’s a nice way to finish the year after the Christmas season.

We’re also having a Bethel family New Year’s Eve Party.  We’re using First Baptist Sycamore’s gym from 8-10 for volleyball, basketball, finger rockets and games.  Then we’ll head up to the O’Donnells for food, games, and fun from 10-midnight.  Come ring in the new year with some good, clean fun.  You can come for some, none, or all of the evening.

Be Refreshed!

Proverb of the Day:  Proverbs 28:1  The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

Scripture of the Day:  Matthew 2:10-11  ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. ¹¹ On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.

Quote of the Day:  “God uses men who are weak and feeble enough to lean on Him.” — Hudson Taylor, missionary to China

When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.” To that, Calvert replied, “We died before we came here.”

Ahhhh…..  That’s the sound we make after the Bethel Family Christmas party.  Part fun, part satisfied, part tired.  Here’s the typical breakdown of the week before the Bethel Family Christmas.

1 week prior:  The BFC is just a week away!  I can’t wait..  This is one of our favorite parts of the year.

4 days prior:  Let’s make out the food list and shopping list.

3 days prior:  We spent how much?!!

2 days prior:  This is a lot of work.  Why do we do this?

1 day prior:  No one leaves the house.  Everyone has their orders for the day.

Day of:  Go, go, go.  How come people are always early for this event, but never for church?  🙂

After it’s over:   Ahhhhh…  This is one of our favorite parts of the year.

Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate with us.  We love you!

Be Refreshed!

Proverb of the Day:   Proverbs 18:24  A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Scripture of the Day:  Isaiah 7:14  Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Quote of the Day:  When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things – not the great occasions – give off the greatest glow of happiness.”  Bob Hope

Happy Birthday to my beautiful wife Sonya.  Words cannot even express how blessed I am.

Be Refreshed!

Proverb of the Day:  Proverbs 10:27  The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short.

Scripture of the Day:  Proverbs 18:22   He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.

Quote of the Day:   When I asked Elizabeth if we should get Sonya a button that read “Over the Hill” she said, “She’s been over the hill for like 10 years already.”

In 11 weeks, 20+ Bethel men will be landing in Nicaragua for a week of construction on a church.  I just received a few pictures today so I’m passing them along.  This first one is the current church building.  They have outgrown it and people stand out on the porch and look in the side windows.  Our youth ministered in this church 1 1/2 years ago.

This is the back of the church building.  Just to the left is the outhouse.  A couple of the girls are still traumatized by that memory I think.  haha

Here is the new piece of land where they are preparing to build.  They saved 16 years to purchase this land.  Nicaragua is the 2nd poorest county in the hemisphere so the new building was still a long way off.

Our missionary, Ken Doutt, just returned from the site and was very excited about the progress.  The news of us coming to assist them has inspired them and they have made huge sacrifice and progress.  By the time we arrive on February 23 the foundation should be done and ready for bricks.  In fact the whole community is buzzing about what God is doing in this church.

11 weeks!  If you’d like to contribute money towards supplies let me know.  We’d love to run out of week before we run out of supplies.

Be Refreshed!

Proverb of the Day:  Proverbs 8:32   Now then, my sons, listen to me [wisdom]; blessed are those who keep my ways.

Scripture of the Day:  Isaiah 7:14   Therefore the Lord himself will give youa sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Quote of the Day:   Can’t you do just a little bit more?   – J.G. Morrison (pleading with Nazarenes in the 1930′s Great Depression to support their missionaries)

God had an only Son and He made Him a missionary. – David Livingstone

Yeoman:   one that performs great and loyal service

We said goodbye to the Villager this weekend.  After 10 1/2 years of faithful and loyal service it was time to put the 1996, 172,000 mile van out to pasture.  “Little red” as we called her was always “the other van” playing 2nd fiddle to the Caravan and now the Savana.  It never got to go on family vacation and barely even ever left the state.  It was the run to the store, off to soccer practice, teach three 15 year old boys to drive, take out the seat and roll in a snow blower van.  It did take us to get our Christmas tree this year but after we cut down the tree we turned down the seats and shoved the tree inside.  It’s ok we said, it’s the red van.

But while it was always second place, it was faithful.  No major repairs, original transmission, and still didn’t burn any oil.  Now the driver’s lock didn’t work, the A/C worked 2 months of the 10 years, and some rust was creeping in, but that’s ok, it’s the red van.  All three boys learned to drive, it was never in an accident, and she never left us stranded on the side of the road.  Not flashy.  Faithful.

A few years ago at our national Assemblies of God General Council I attended the memorial communion service.  Part of the service was them scrolling the names of all the credentialed minsters who had passed away in the previous 2 years.  With 30,000 total credentialed ministers and missionaries this took about 20 minutes I believe.  I felt led to make sure I read every name on the list.  When the list finished I had counted less than 10 names that I recognized.  A couple national or district leaders.  A few from my state.  But who were the hundreds of other names?  They were the yeoman of the Kingdom.  Never pastored the mega-church or shepherded other ministers at a higher level, but they were faithful.  When they were the church on the other side of the tracks they kept plowing.  When they didn’t have money for food they prayed it in and kept going.  When people thought they were crazy or in a cult they didn’t waiver.  They pastored in small towns, outstations, pioneer works.  They were the missionaries who packed their belongings in coffins when they left for the field in case they didn’t come home alive.  They walked by faith, lifted up Jesus, and finished the race.  Yoeman.  One that performs great and loyal service.

For every Ferrari or Corvette there are a thousand Mercury Villagers and pick up trucks.  For every TV preacher and mega-church pastor there are a thousand small town preachers, foreign missionaries, and bi-vocational pastors.  Yoeman.  Praying widows, $25 mission pledges, guys who shovel the sidewalks, grandmas who bake pies for the sick, and  every other Christ follower who serves behind the scenes.

I didn’t think I was going to miss that old red van but now I’ve got myself feeling sentimental.  Maybe I should see if I can buy it back?  Oh wait, nevermind.  The new, used car has working A/C!

Be Refreshed!

Proverb of the Day:  Proverbs 3:3-4  ³ Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.   ⁴ Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.

Scripture of the Day:  Matthew 25:21 “His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’

Quote of the Day:  “When I was a small boy, I used to play with toy cars and dream about the day I could own a real one. Many people still play with their cars today. They are in their 20s, 40s, maybe even 70s, but they still behave like little children when it comes to purchasing an automobile.  There is a simple law at work in the universe: if it has a motor, it’s going down in value.”  ― Celso Cukierkorn, Secrets of Jewish Wealth Revealed!

Isaac hit the big 18 today.  This week it will be off to register to vote and then to register with Selective Service.  Membership has its privileges.  The senior year will take a few turns quickly won’t it.?  Before you know it, it’s graduation, parties, and and then all the sudden we’re loading up the van for college.  Maybe we should just slow down and enjoy the day.

This could very well be the best PK shirt ever!  (OK, so we bought this before he started dating a girl this fall.  Awkward…)