Being Homeless

God is always at work, stretching, polishing, shaping us to be more like Jesus. Sometimes I embrace the changes, but mostly I close my eyes, hunch my shoulders and screw up my face with an "OK, I know you're going to do it anyway, so bring on the pain" type of attitude.  Probably not so Christ-like, eh?

Being "homeless" is one of those stretching experiences that I'd rather do without.  Fully trusting that the Lord would provide a way back to Kenya in August, and seeing confirmation of that in every scripture I read and every improbable circumstance we lived through where God pulled a rabbit out of his proverbial hat, "disappointed" does not begin to describe the emotional state I was in when God chose not to provide the support we needed by our August deadline. 

For whatever reason, though, He has chosen to keep us in the USA a while longer.  I'm not happy about that.  I'm trying to be happy..to find the "joy of the Lord," to look at the bright side of the situation, to realize that our homelessness is nothing compared to that of many of the people we serve, but being homeless and living on the generosity of others has put me in a place of insufficiency yet again.  That's a hard place for me to be in, and considering how often God has put me here, I must still have something to learn.  Hmm...so much for being a fast learner. 

So, each day, we ask the Lord to lead us to a place we can settle for a few months, unpack our bags, spread out a bit, and try to get back to the task of making new connections and sharing what God is doing in Kenya.  It's hard to do that when we have housing and schooling needs pressing in each day.  It's even harder to do that with an eyes-closed, shoulders-hunched, face-scrunched attitude.

God is good, all the time and all the time, God is good.  That is His nature.  That is what I embraced when I asked Him to use me, and that is what I need to embrace in this place of insufficiency. His provision is always abundantly more than my need; His strength, abundantly able to carry all my disappointment and insufficiency; His purpose, always and forever for the good of His Kingdom and His people...including us.

But...if you happen to know of a place we could call home for a few months...don't hesitate to call, email, write it in the sky, whatever!  I'm sure what I don't learn this time around will be repeated again down the line!

"Blind" Faith

Blind Faith

The connotation is a trust in something that has no merit - no foundation, but this morning, as I was beseeching the Lord for our next steps, it occurred to me that as believers we exercise a different type of "blind" faith. 

The "blind" part has nothing to do with the object of our faith.  Of that, we are assured that He is solid, trustworthy, and always always reliable.  But when we place our trust in Christ, we must learn to be comfortable with being "blind" to the future.  He knows our steps and he will guide them, and we truly must trust Him to lead us on every step. 

The path we walk in this world is filled with all sorts of diversions, pot holes, and steep cliffs.  (Not to mention the enemy who lies in wait for a weak moment to pounce!)  Imagine being blind and having to walk up or down a steep mountain slope.  There is a path, but you can't see it.  You must listen very carefully to your guide for each step, because one wrong step off the path could result in a very painful or deadly tumble down the mountain.

I threw my 5-year and 10-year plans out the window about 8 years ago when God directed us to take a sudden right turn.  I'm still a planner at heart though, so God is still working on me to be flexible.  I think having direction is a really good thing, but as Corrie Tenboom says, we must hold things with an open hand because if God has to pry them out of our hands, it hurts.  :)  That's a paraphrase.

Anyway, I'm really feeling blind these days.  I know God wants us back in Kenya and I know that He's said he will provide what we need to do that, but I'm truly not sure what my next step should be.  So, in faith, I go to the Guide and ask him to open my ears, take my hand and lead me as I walk blindly, but boldly, on the path He's laid out for me.

Stories from the Bush

We will share animal stories, adventures and other amazing ways of how God is working in the midst of the enemy’s territory at the following venues.  Join us!  RSVPs are nice (so we can figure how much food to have on hand) but not required.

1.       Jeff and Julie’s home, 2875 W. Bryant Place, Littleton, CO  Monday night,  April 23^rd – 6:30 pm Dessert provided! 

2.       Bob and Julie Schmitz home, 5748 W. Ken Caryl Place, Littleton, CO Saturday night, April 28^th – 6:30pm  Dessert and snacks provided!

3.     Deer Creek Church, 8131 S. Pierce St., Littleton, CO, Sunday, April 29th -- 11:30am following services, downstairs fellowship room -- Lunch provided! Membership not required! :)

RSVP if you can to julie.vigil@sim.org. 

Not in the Littleton area?  Still want to hear?  Let us know (email above) and we'll see if we can get to your area before going back to Kenya!

Seriously tardy

Really???  My last post was in June of 2011???  OK, so everyone who was following us has now grown old and died.  Pathetic!  Well, on the flip side, that leaves a whole new generation open to experience the wonders of living for God in Kenya through our sporadic, but really heart-felt, blogs!  :)  Gotta look at the positive side.

OK, so quick catch up since June 2011....

• Jeff spent much of the last 6 months of our term doing drought relief and food distribution in northern Kenya.  The drought has opened up doors to people groups that have been really resistant to the Gospel.  That's what God does, tho-- turns bad situations to His Glory!
• Julie spent most of the last 6 months at work, catching up Sudan's books after their reconciliations were cleaned up by a super-cleaner from SIM.
• We got to attend a real Kenyan wedding and a real Kenyan funeral.  Both were awesome experiences in which we saw God celebrated Kenyan-style.
• We took a short vacation in London on our way back to the USA and arrived here right before Christmas. 
• After a short time with Gammy and Papo, we got down to settling down..as much as we could with a partially furnished home.  Our awesome sisters at church and their equally awesome husbands moved our stuff out of storage and into our home.  Renters had moved out in November so it we were able to come right back where we left!
• February took us to Texas where we visited with friends and family.
• The first part of March our home church had their missions emphasis during which we did a workshop on Praying for the Front Lines and got an opportunity to share during service time.
• The end of March took us to North Carolina via Kansas and Indiana for our home assignment retreat and debrief.  Early April took us back to Colorado through Tennessee, Missouri and back to Kansas.  We loved seeing family and catching up with friends also home from the field.  We equally enjoyed meeting new friends along the route.

Great!  Now you are caught up.  You can always check out our newsletters for more detail.  Not on our newsletter list?  Click the link on the right to be added.  Stay tuned here, as I will be posting more pictures and will keep you posted on an amazing miracle God has planned!