Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I hope your day was filled with many blessings and of course lots of good food. Our Thanksgiving was spent as usual--eating food, playing games, planning our attack for the Black Friday shopping trip, eating more food and lots of laughter with our family. Our day was also spent in unusual ways--skyping Erin from India and hearing of her Thanksgiving Dinner from KFC, taking pictures with cardboard Erin and hearing many times throughout the day--"you have to do this, because this will be your last family Thanksgiving in who knows how long." It got to be a joke as the day wore on but in thinking about it, the truth is that our holidays, as we know them, will never be the same. Or at least not for a time, to be determined by God's calling and timing in our life.
Confession time--I love watching made-for-TV Christmas movies. You know the ones--the story line is always the same to include someone falling in love with someone unexpected, realizing the true meaning of Christmas or a reconciliation before someone moves or passes away. Why would you spend several hours watching something you can predict from the beginning? I find peace and comfort in watching these feel good movies--even if the rest of my family makes fun of me! Last night's movie was no different. But the take away message from this one was important to where I am right now. I need to live each day, enjoying that day, not worrying about what happened yesterday or what tomorrow may bring. I am not saying we should not plan for the future and remember the fun of yesterday. I am guilty sometimes of missing the today with my family and friends because of the yesterdays and tomorrows. I am saying we should live each day always appreciating what God has given us for that day.
We leave in less than 5 months. We have started sorting through things and deciding what we are taking, storing, selling or giving away. There are so many of you that we want to see and spend time with before we move. I pray that we will live each day, excited to experience all that God has blessed us with and to be faithful to our task for that day. While it is true that this will be "the last time" for many things and there will be many goodbyes, it is also true that we are about to experience "the first time" for many things too! How exciting is that! God has many great things planned for you and me, and I am looking forward to hearing about where God is working in your life.
We would love to be praying for all of you as you pray for us. Let us know of any prayer concerns you may have because we are going to have a prayer journal for the requests as well as the answers to prayers. It will be our blessing to pray for all of you and your needs and to see how God is working. Have an amazing Christmas season and remember to always live and appreciate this day. Be mindful of the things that may be "the last time" as well as "the first time". All can be exciting and will make life blessed beyond our imagination!
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Jessica: Lessons From a Breakfast Sandwich
As we have been speaking to different churches and groups about our upcoming ministry in the Dominican, a common (and legitimate) question usually surfaces from the crowd: so, what exactly are you going to be doing there?
Of course we won't know exactly what God has in store for us when we move there, but we do have the vision and calling He has given each of us: to demonstrate God's love to the Dominican people and help them create sustainable, self-sufficient solutions to the problems in their communities. But as I think about my plans more and more, I think of the main goals I want to accomplish while I'm there, and one of the main messages I want to share with these people is the message of God's unconditional grace. This has been a lesson I have had to learn throughout my life, even in the past few years, and it's a powerful lesson that I want to share. God's grace is the most beautiful thing we humans can experience, and it is the job of every Christian to try to share that grace with those who don't know what they're missing.
Every Friday at work, I get a Sausage McMuffin (bear with me, this relates I promise). A lady I work with buys a bunch of them and hands them out to some of the employees. The first time I received one she had asked me if I had helped set up the store for her, and upon confirmation she proudly handed me my first Sausage McMuffin. It was a glorious day, and I thought I had learned the system: help Bonnie set up the store, receive food. But the next week I didn't get the chance to help her, and she still handed me my very own McMuffin. Then I was confused; how could I thank her for this breakfast treat? Should I help her keep the store stocked throughout the day? Should I be extra nice to her, compliment her outfit, comment on her new haircut? But no, she didn't want anything in return. She just wanted to show me love because she cared about me. There was nothing I could do to deserve that Sausage McMuffin, but she still thought I was worth the effort of giving me one. God's grace is the same; we can't do anything to deserve it, and yet He delights in showing us His grace, because He cares about us.
Let's rewind a year or so. I made a mistake and hurt a dear friend in a way I never thought I could. It broke my heart, and I couldn't do anything to fix it. I did the only thing I was capable of doing: I asked him to forgive me. It was hard, but the thought of him remaining hurt was even harder to face. I'm not sure what I expected, but the answer I received truly surprised me-complete forgiveness, no strings attached, no lecture about how badly I screwed up, no list of penalties or things I had to do to make up for my mistake. He showed me complete grace even when he saw me at my worst. It's not that I didn't expect him to forgive me, because I knew his character enough to know that he would. But something deep inside of me still felt like I had to earn his forgiveness, that I wasn't worth his forgiveness unless I did something for him in return. But the thing about grace is, it really has nothing to do with who you are and what you do. It has everything to do with the character and actions of the person bestowing it. And that's why God's grace is so powerful: because it comes from such a good and powerful God.
Let's go back to the Sausage McMuffin for a bit. I never deserved it, but every Friday I began to expect it. I knew that every Friday I could walk into the store and Bonnie would faithfully hand me my breakfast with a smile. God's grace is the same: He is just waiting for us to come into His presence and receive the gift He has for us.
So what am I going to do in the DR? Well, the thing I am most looking forward to is the day when I can sit down with my Dominican friends, hand them a Sausage McMuffin (or the Dominican equivalent), and tell them about God's grace and how it can transform their lives, just like it did mine. And that when they enter into the presence of God, they can come expectant.
And leave forgiven.
Of course we won't know exactly what God has in store for us when we move there, but we do have the vision and calling He has given each of us: to demonstrate God's love to the Dominican people and help them create sustainable, self-sufficient solutions to the problems in their communities. But as I think about my plans more and more, I think of the main goals I want to accomplish while I'm there, and one of the main messages I want to share with these people is the message of God's unconditional grace. This has been a lesson I have had to learn throughout my life, even in the past few years, and it's a powerful lesson that I want to share. God's grace is the most beautiful thing we humans can experience, and it is the job of every Christian to try to share that grace with those who don't know what they're missing.
Every Friday at work, I get a Sausage McMuffin (bear with me, this relates I promise). A lady I work with buys a bunch of them and hands them out to some of the employees. The first time I received one she had asked me if I had helped set up the store for her, and upon confirmation she proudly handed me my first Sausage McMuffin. It was a glorious day, and I thought I had learned the system: help Bonnie set up the store, receive food. But the next week I didn't get the chance to help her, and she still handed me my very own McMuffin. Then I was confused; how could I thank her for this breakfast treat? Should I help her keep the store stocked throughout the day? Should I be extra nice to her, compliment her outfit, comment on her new haircut? But no, she didn't want anything in return. She just wanted to show me love because she cared about me. There was nothing I could do to deserve that Sausage McMuffin, but she still thought I was worth the effort of giving me one. God's grace is the same; we can't do anything to deserve it, and yet He delights in showing us His grace, because He cares about us.
Let's rewind a year or so. I made a mistake and hurt a dear friend in a way I never thought I could. It broke my heart, and I couldn't do anything to fix it. I did the only thing I was capable of doing: I asked him to forgive me. It was hard, but the thought of him remaining hurt was even harder to face. I'm not sure what I expected, but the answer I received truly surprised me-complete forgiveness, no strings attached, no lecture about how badly I screwed up, no list of penalties or things I had to do to make up for my mistake. He showed me complete grace even when he saw me at my worst. It's not that I didn't expect him to forgive me, because I knew his character enough to know that he would. But something deep inside of me still felt like I had to earn his forgiveness, that I wasn't worth his forgiveness unless I did something for him in return. But the thing about grace is, it really has nothing to do with who you are and what you do. It has everything to do with the character and actions of the person bestowing it. And that's why God's grace is so powerful: because it comes from such a good and powerful God.
Let's go back to the Sausage McMuffin for a bit. I never deserved it, but every Friday I began to expect it. I knew that every Friday I could walk into the store and Bonnie would faithfully hand me my breakfast with a smile. God's grace is the same: He is just waiting for us to come into His presence and receive the gift He has for us.
So what am I going to do in the DR? Well, the thing I am most looking forward to is the day when I can sit down with my Dominican friends, hand them a Sausage McMuffin (or the Dominican equivalent), and tell them about God's grace and how it can transform their lives, just like it did mine. And that when they enter into the presence of God, they can come expectant.
And leave forgiven.
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