The Simple Life - Week 4

7 Days of Smiles

Our translator arrived back in town this week and we had a very productive meeting with her this weekend. We discussed our training plan for Sister 3 as well as some great opportunities to work with a translation company to begin the translation of the gospel into a specific dialect of a people group we work with.

It has been amazing to see Father handpick her to be a part of our team to expand the chch planting movement we have been called to lead. We will be meeting this week to resume our training with Sister 3.

We have an awesome friendship with a young married couple in town whom we’ve known the wife for 10 years. She was a student on our campus in 2005 and was led to the Father by a team from LABC that summer. Becky also met her in 2005 and has been friends with her since then. Right before we came back to the states in December, we had dinner with them and they told us they had just found out they were expecting their first child earlier that day.

We had lunch with them this weekend and she is now 4 months pregnant! R is a family member, but her husband A is not. However, our time together this weekend really showed significant movement forward for him. We pry together over meals all of the time, and he always watches us. This time, he actually pryed. Also, he asked us to give their child an English name that means courage, love, and faith. We are excited to dig into scripture and pour out the words of the Father that speaks on the miracle of having a baby. Chris will be meeting with him this week for a bike ride and plans to continue to share the message with him. Becky is going with R to her sonogram apt on Saturday. We place this couple in the Father’s hands and we are thankful for the chance to love them and live life together.

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To end the week we took advantage of the beautiful weather and headed out to local villages with our friends. Two days of village trips brought everyone closer, and brought some new friendships. To end the final day, we came across an outdoor post being built for local camp spots and laser tag. The owner invited us in for a meal and took us to a secret cave...then asked us to all test out his laser tag set-up. We plan on taking many students there as well as our teams this summer!

We are thankful for everyone who continues to Pr for us and His work. Here is what we are thankful for and some answered Pr's:

  • We are praising Father for reuniting us with our translator and that she is able to stay in our town to work with us as a team!
  • We are both taking medicine for infections and we are starting to feel a little better!
  • We celebrate Chris' birthday this week and we are thankful to Father for giving him life! 

As for this coming week, here is our agenda and Pr Requests:

Becky will be sharing the story of Easter with nearly 200 students this week. They will dye Easter eggs together and talk about the celebration of New Life. Many of them will hear this story for the first time. We also have a student holiday next weekend called, “Tomb Sweeping Day” where people from all over this country return to the graves and tombs of their passed loved ones and worship them. 

They burn paper money, pictures of houses, celebrities, and food because they believe that the smoke will rise up and reach the souls of their passed family members in the next life. It is really cool that Easter falls on the same day as this holiday. We are ready to use this opportunity as much as we can to reveal to them the true meaning of the Tomb and what it has to offer! 

  • Our village cell trainings will resume. We are excited to see S3 and our translator after a long holiday!
  • We will be hosting an Easter gathering in our home this weekend. We ask Father to prepare the way for our guests to know more about Him. 
  • We will be delivering supplies to the orphanage/nursing home as well as treating our driver to a dinner and a day of fishing. 
  • Sunday is becoming a time for a weekly bike ride and time to share with those in town
  • Chris will be heading to Spider Crag with students for some cleaning and building
  • Pr Request: Please pry for protection and security for the location of our meetings.
  • Pr Request: We ask for students to be thirsty for the truth that they will hear in the classroom, and be open to accepting it.
  • Pr Request: For our translator's company to send her a team of people to assist her in scripture translation;
  • Pr Request: For our translator to completely reach her fundraising goal. Currently she is at 75% and must reach 95% before June for her upcoming year’s budget. Father has placed it on our heart to pry diligently about how we can help support her.


Village Cell Training

We have been given the opportunity to meet with S3, who is a local family member, and her husband twice a week to train them in the Word and assist them in body planting in 14 surrounding villages. Father has provided a safe meeting place for us to gather together as well as a translator. The purpose of these meetings is to encourage these local workers, teach them what Father teaches us, and then pursue the goal of making everything we teach them become reproducible so that they may deliver it all to each of the 14 villages every week. We are emphasizing a multiplying dship method and we have already seen amazing results of this incredible open door! This training group continued to meet while we were stateside. We worked with them via email to provide as much as we could to help them in their meetings.

Praises:

- Our translator told us that 2 new families have become family members from one of the villages! PTL! We ask for continued rest and perseverance for our translator, our location host, and S3 and her husband as they continue to gather together in training.

Requests:

- As of now, all 14-village cells lack a single leader. 3 of the village cells have potential leaders, but they are fearful of this responsibility and lack confidence in their faith. Please join us in asking Father to draw out leaders in each cell and give them wisdom in leading fellow family members.

- S3’s husband has encountered heavy nightmares regarding the sptual warfare attacks happening against several of the villages. We ask that Father comfort him as he leads his family as a husband and father.

- Currently, several villages are experiencing encounters of oppression from 2 powerful cults that are making every effort in taking away members of the Kingdom. Please pr for the enemy to be defeated, and for the followers in the villages to be strengthened in Truth to battle this warfare. 

The Simple Life - Week 2

Out & About

To start off, we finally found time to rest and get our breath back. What an answered Pr. We tested out the hammocks (during a cool breeze day) that we are going to be giving to the villagers, and they worked...maybe a little too well to the point where Chris did not sleep that night.

After kicking off the week with a quick breather, we hit the ground and rock wall running. Chris was able to take some students out for some great adventures. He was able to speak on principles of faith while teaching students how to rappel from 40 meters. At the end of the day many were thankful to learn how to trust in Him and many gave thanks in Pr.

Towards the end of the week we jumped in a van with Becky's students and headed off to view the pear trees of our area. What a beautiful site it was to see white tipped trees in spring. We shared with the students how the Father shows Himself in creation. After an hour we headed to the local strawberry fields and began picking as many as we could hold in our basket. Every once in awhile we would just eat them right of the vine, or toss them to each other for some laughter.

We finished the week with Becky's new birthday present, a new bike, with gears. After it's tuning, Becky rode out on an 18 miler with her close friend...who happens to own the bike shop. It's amazing to think that you can have such deep conversations riding side by side. Most relationships take place over meals, so this will be a great challenge. This bike will be used as a ministry tool as relationships continue to develop.

We are thankful for everyone who continues to Pr for us and His work. Here are some answered Pr's:

  • Chris has found a language teacher.  He will have to take a few steps back because he is joining a new class; however, this is still great news.
  • Becky has been feeling much better.  Her stomach is getting back to normal.

As for this coming week, here is our agenda and Pr Requests:

  • Chris is heading to our capital with our new partner to spend some time with some local friends.
  • We were blessed to be given new phones while stateside so we are really exciting to give mama li and her husband our old iPhones.  In our country these phones are still new and too expensive to afford.
  • We are preparing material for our Sisters - training starts back next month. We have some good material that has come our way that we are excited to study.
  • Chris is still assessing the impact of translation for one of our minority groups.
  • Pr Request: Continuing to have a weekly time of rest


Follow The Yellow Brick Road

We arrived in our country late at night on Feb. 23 still with no word about our housing. It was wonderful arriving home only 22 hours after leaving the DFW airport. Many of you were prying for us about our housing situation that came about before we came to America. We were asked 48 hours before heading home for our first stateside visit to pack up our entire house and move it to an empty hotel room with the uncertain plans to remodel our home by removing our kitchen sink and shower. We submitted this very stressful matter to the Throne because after all, we know our home is with Him. Over the weeks, many people gathered around us joining us in pryer as we lifted this up to Father.

The end of Luke 9 talks about the “Cost of following Him”. While stateside, Chris was asked to speak to a gathering of people. In his preparation, Father specifically gave him the words from Luke 9:57-58 to speak on. “As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” And the Son said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”  This scripture gave us a strange sense of peace about our housing situation the entire time we were in America. It forced us to drop our expectations and submit to His truth. 

After a few days in our capital, we headed back to our campus without an idea of where we would lay our head down at night. We arrived to our house to find people living in it. 3 beds in our bedroom and 2 beds in our living room. We were beyond shocked; however, it was something Chris joked about while in the states. After a few hours of calling and talking with the school and the hotel, we finally got a key to another room for a night's rest.  We spent the next few days cleaning, fumigating, and clearing out all the cigarette smoke and trash so we could unpack. After a few weeks, we finally got everything unpacked and felt like we were back home.

Thank you all who kept us in your thoughts throughout this entire process.

The Simple Life - Introduction

Introduction

As the next two years begin for us in Asia, we are going to do our best to send a weekly update recapping what has happened in a week’s time as well as what we see for the week to come. With this, we hope to get even more pr requests out and more pr's answered for His kingdom. Don't worry, we will still be doing a big monthly update on our website.
 
We've titled the weekly updates, "The Simple Life," because His story began with the simple statement that in the beginning of time and space, He was already there. Then the Son came and His love ran red, and He sent us a beautiful gift that helps make it all possible for us to do what He said… to GO.  "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Father, "who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty." Rev. 1:8
 
The Son Himself described the C-tian way as hard, "Take up your Cross". He also described it as easy, "My yoke is easy and My burden light." He means both. While being stateside, we were able to rest in Him and look back on the past two years. The one word that kept coming out when we shared what He has done and how this life looks was the word SIMPLE; because simply, He is always with us.
 
In Him,
C & B
 
P.S. This weekly update includes our "Thanks" and "Week 1", so we apologize for the length.

Thank You All So Much
 
There is so much we would like to say to all those that played a part in our lives while in Texas, Oklahoma, and Colorado; and that is a BIG THANKS!!!
 
Thank you to everyone who made us laugh, gave us a ring, filled our stomachs, let us borrow a car, gave us shots and medicine, encouraged us, held our hands, pr'd for and with us, stayed up late with us, squeezed our bodies way too tight, gave us a roof to stay dry, wrote us letters, taught us, texted us, became new friends, and most importantly listened to HIS stories.
 
To those who did not get to see us or hear all the amazing things the Father is doing in Asia, we are saddened that we did not get to see you and share with you HIS stories. We love you all, and are placing you at the top of our list for the next return; and yes, we are already making that list.

We've Made It Back to Asia!!! - Week 1

After spending a few days in our capital to get adjusted, have meetings, and do a little grocery shopping, we finally made it to our home. For those who have yet heard what we came home to, it was just shy of a nightmare at first glance; however, after a night’s rest, we began to see how it was not really all that bad. Seeing our friends the next day really made it all go away.

Our first week back was really packed and brought so much joy. Here are a few things that happened:

  • We cleaned our entire house - no more roaches, extra beds, wet towels, or mosquitoes
  • Unpacked our items from storage - thanks to the help of a great student, our new teammate, and a moped
  • Made a new drink with Mama Li - pineapple & coconut milk
  • Celebrated Becky's birthday
  • Becky started teaching
  • Visited the orphanage - we heard one of our friends, who always had on a smile and was decked out in camo passed away while we were stateside
  • Took some students spelunking (caving) and climbing
  • Had many wonderful meals, meetings, and laughs with students
  • Been given so many loving hugs from Auntie

We are thankful for everyone who continues to pr for us and His work. Here are some answered pr's:

  • We made it back safely with all of our luggage
  • We unpacked successfully and are back in our ORIGINAL HOUSE.

As for this coming week, here is our agenda and PR Requests:

  • We are starting our English corner again
  • We are preparing material for our Sisters - training starts back next month
  • Chris is starting to assess the impact of translation for one of our minority groups
  • Finding a day to rest for both of us - Date Night
  • Pr Request: Chris is looking for a new language teacher because his old teacher moved
  • Pr Request: Becky got real sick this past weekend and needs strength

Stateside Visit

We were positively encouraged by our time in the states. It was such a sweet treat to spend time with family and friends during the holidays. Chris’ first meal was Taco Bell and Becky’s was Chick-fil-a! Some of our dearest friends decorated the house we were staying at with some pretty funny welcome home decor. Some highlights included the enjoyment of family all around us, running water (and hot water!), feeling warmth from a heater, drinking from the tap water, eating some real beef, driving a car, and feeling the simple freedom of publicly wshiping the name of the Son! 

February was a full month of family and fun. Becky was given the opportunity to attend the IF:Gathering at our home community. Father used this time to grow her in ways that were incredibly enriching in her walk with Him. Some dear friends of ours took us to the Fort Worth Stock show and Rodeo where we felt right at home in our Texan roots.

They also took us to see David Crowder, Matt Maher, and Mercy Me at the Rock and Worship Road Show. It was such a great experience to lift our hands and wship the name of the Son in an open place! We got to meet a lot of the artist and Tedashi gave us one of his cd’s to take back to SE Asia to give away to a student!

We were so lucky to meet several new Sunday school classes that month. It was really great for us to share stories about the work Father has given us and to make new friendships to take back with us as we serve a third year overseas. We spent our second to last day fishing with some old friends. It was such a joyful day of laughter and relaxation.

Praises: 

- We survived the traveling endeavors from our town to Texas in about 35 hours without any major complications!

- We had unique opportunities to share with people in the states about our work, our lives, and most importantly the amazing stories Father has made happen over the last 2 years while living overseas. It was so much fun telling people about the lost world around us and letting them hear about the minority groups/villagers/students we work with on a daily basis! While seeking rest and refreshment during our time home, it was also vital for us to be intentional in raising awareness of the work Father has given us, spreading the news about the lost, and seeking pryer support/financial support. We know that He supplies for each and every need and we are fueled by the compassion He has placed in our hearts for His people. We love because He first loved us!


Our Pryer for 2015 - Year 3

As we embark on our third year on the field, we have some specific pryers Father has heavily laid on our hearts to keep in the forefront of our souls when we embrace the battlefield.

Boldness and Undeniable Faith:

In Acts chapter 4, Peter and John perform an amazing miracle and pronounce that they did it in the powerful name of J. They were preaching, teaching, and testifying that salvation comes from no other name than J. They were arrested and put in jail for the night and met with the council the next day. The council members asked Peter and John to tell them what power or whose name have they performed this miracle. Peter was filled with the HS, the same we all have, and said that the man was healed by the powerful name of J, the one who was crucified and raised from the dead by Father as a fulfillment of scriptural prophesy.

It says that the members “were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with J.”

{As we can identify with Peter and John in being ordinary men with no special training, we cry out for boldness in our testifying, and guidance given by the HS.}

The council members decide to let the two of them go as long as they stop speaking and teaching in the name of J. Peter and John simply told the council, “We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

PR Request:

- We pry for perseverance and undeniable faith so that we commit, just like Peter and John, to never stop sharing with the world what we have seen and heard. We have tasted the goodness of His grace and it is our responsibility to share what we have learned with others.}

Opportunity is a Gift

Father has gifted us the opportunity to meet with a local sister and her husband to train them in leadership and community planting. They are beyond gifted in outreach, but they have expressed their desire for further training in the Word to strengthen others. This couple travels through the mountains by bus, motorcycle, and horseback each week to 3 surrounding villages to proclaim the message to the lost, and to encourage brothers and sisters to meet as a group. Currently there are no leaders to lead a weekly community gathering in each of the 3 villages. Our urgent request is in asking Father to provide a leader for each village cell.  They come back each week with stories about how villagers have seen the Son in their dreams and they want to know more about Him. They tell us about miracles of healing up in the mountains and people coming to faith from them. We are amazed and comforted to hear that the HS is moving in the mountains and working in the lives of these villagers, and it is an honor to be able to serve them however the Father may use us. 

Sometimes when we have been given an opportunity like this one, we think, “Really Father? You’re choosing us to do this?!” But we are deeply reminded by the truth that He chooses all of us as “ordinary people”. He calls all of us to share, no matter the language barrier. “It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from the Father.” 2 Cor. 3:

We have been meeting 1-2 times per week and Chris has been teaching them about the first community in Acts, the foundation of His body of believers, the roles inside the body, and the gift of the HS to explore each person’s sprtual gifts. The goal is for this couple to be trained to understand these messages and then transform them into messages to share with each village cell. 

In our last meeting, we gave them several books written by Francis Chan, CS Lewis, and Josh McDowell that have been translated into their language. We also gave them several bilingual good books. We’ve never seen someone so thrilled to receive a good book. You would think we were passing out golden treasure that’s how excited they were. And they want more! Our goal is to gather more books to give them so that they can distribute plenty to each village cell. It reminded us of a utube video out there that shows people’s reaction while opening a suitcase full of good books. 

Thanksgiving and Minority Day

This Thanksgiving was by far our favorite Thanksgiving to celebrate overseas. It happened to fall on a school holiday when students were having University Winter Olympics, as well as Minority Day, a day to celebrate the 26 national minorities represented amongst our student population. Minority students were dressed in their traditional clothing and hosted a lunch on the volleyball courts with a long banquet table made of pine needles and leaves while serving special minority foods. They danced, played music, and toasted each group with a special minority greeting. It was a special time to see the students we have relationships with express their identity and culture with others.

When we see the diverse beauty of various people groups come together in one place, our hearts are lifted in pryer, specifically putting our hope in Psalm 72:11 “All kings will bow down to Him and all nations will serve Him.” 

We spent the rest of the day cooking and preparing for Thanksgiving dinner with students. We had 11 students in our home gathered together to celebrate. We are so thankful for care packages and special trips to the international supermarket north of us over the past year to collect special ingredients in order to prepare this meal. We were able to serve them a taste of our traditions along with our local tradition of roasted duck instead of turkey!

It was exciting to have a few new students join our gathering this year. We held hands in a circle and pryed together. Each student expressed what he or she was thankful for. We also watched last year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade while enjoying our feast. Our sweet friend shared a birthday on the same day as our holiday, so we also celebrated with cupcakes. The night ended in laughter as we all played games. 

Halloween Party

Decorating for holidays can be a bit tricky when living overseas, especially Halloween. Large, orange pumpkins are nowhere to be seen in our area. The closest thing we can find is a butternut squash or a gourd. So this year, we settled with decorating oranges with jack-o-lantern faces and had a great time! 

There is a group of Thai students studying English this semester at our university. They put together a Halloween party for the College of Foreign Languages and it was very interesting! The students at our university rarely do anything for Halloween, so this was unique for them.  We had the opportunity to tell some of our students about the story of the Son raising Lazarus from the dead. 

August Thanksgiving

We came home from the most memorable village visit of a lifetime to turn around and re-wash/re-pack for our next village adventure. We brought one of the boys with us to visit our student’s home. This was such a treat for all of us to spend time together like family. This boy calls us his brother and his sister-in-law, and we are blessed to have that bond with him. We traveled by bus about 9 hours north of where we live to visit our student and his family. We had no idea what to expect, so we brought our tent and camping gear in preparation to sleep outside. It turned out that our student’s sister was out of town, so we were able to stay in her room. This was such a blessing because it rained the majority of the time we were there. Our student lives with his parents and his grandfather in an antique farmhouse his father constructed by hand. They have a stall for their pigs that recently gave birth to the most adorable baby piglets. They also raise chickens and pigeons, and they have a garden of a variety of vegetables. This village was much closer to a nearby town than the last village we visited. We were able to walk to town in about 45 minutes. We were shocked to see an actual dairy plant located in his village with dairy cows for milk production and homemade cheese! This particular village was engulfed in extreme idolatry. They had their own temple, and each house was covered with superstitious items meant for protection and hope for prosperity. Dried garlic flowers were nailed to each doorframe to protect them from evil spirits.

This family and the complete emptiness they emitted deeply burdened us. They were not joyful people. Instead, you could feel how much they trudge through the mundane tasks of their daily life with very little emotion. They had little hope. Their interactions together as family were very minimal and silent. Dark oppression is blanketed over this entire village, and this family exhibits its effects. We ask in the name of the Son to shed His light on this village and wake the sleepers of darkness. Our desire is for this family and their neighbors to experience true life and joy in their daily tasks. This village is nested in the midst of grand mountains crafted by our Creator. We deeply desire for these villagers to open their eyes and see all of the beauty Father has surrounded them with. Our cry is for them to place their hope in the lightness of Him and turn away from the darkness of idolatry.

Perched on top of the pig stalls was a real live turkey! Our student knew how much we loved and missed eating turkey after he experienced his first Thanksgiving in our home last year. Turkeys are extremely rare in this country, and nonexistent in the town we live in. He bought one of 3 turkeys in his town to give us as a gift. This was by far the best love offering we have ever received! This particular student is one of the most kind, sweet, and mindful boys we have ever spent time with. We absolutely love doing life with him as well as the others back on campus.

Nobody in town knew how to cook a turkey, so Chris was able to teach the boys and some visitors how to cook it on an open fire. They spent an entire day killing it, cleaning it, and roasting it all on their own! We enjoyed the most unique meal of thanksgiving with our student and his family we might ever have. Turkey has never tasted so delicious! This was such a great opportunity for the boys to work together, serve each other, and for us to pry Father’s blessings over this boy and his family. We are beyond grateful for this moment of the visit and we know it spiritually impacted his family. His parents had never seen anybody pry before you could tell that they were feeling the unity of the HS at the table.

Cooking a turkey on an open fire!

Picking Garlic

Picking Corn

Picking Green Beans

Each night, we sat on the porch and played cards while it rained. We had great intentional conversations with the boys. They talked about how much they have changed over the last couple of years and how they have matured. Chris shared stories about his personal experiences in high school and college, and showed them how much he has changed because of his relationship with the Father. Our continuous pryer for these boys is for them to intimately know the Father and trust in Him with their life. They have acknowledged the work of the Father in their life and they see that he is real, but they have yet to make a commitment to follow Him. We lift our hands and openly submit to the timing of the Father. As much as we want for these boys’ lives to be transformed, He is the ultimate Transformer. Our job is to continue to love and support them while living life by their side.

{One of the last moments we spent with this family was fishing out of a handmade boat. Soon after our visit, our student’s grandfather passed away. Our hearts sunk when we heard the news. It was a privilege to meet this man before his passing and to pry over him. Ultimately we surrender to the Father in times like this because we know that His will surpasses any of our own understanding. Now, we are focusing on how we can comfort our student and continue to pry for his family back home.}

Our time with our student and his family came to an end and we spent a few extra days traveling with the boy who joined us. This was a unique opportunity in itself because he had never experienced a vacation. It was his first time to stay in a hostel, and he had never encountered so many foreigners who were backpacking before in his life. It was interesting to watch his interactions with them. We befriended a young man from Israel and had great conversations together. We enjoyed rock climbing, eating Western food, and playing games.

On our way home, we had dinner with our Hani Sweet Spot friend. This was a powerful moment of our trip because this boy was able to meet a believer who is not a foreigner. Most people here assume that all foreigners are believers, so for them to encounter local family members is an incredible impact to their perception of life with the Son. Our Hani Sweet Spot man asked this boy why he hasn’t decided to follow the Son. His response was that he wants to follow Him someday, and He wants to keep learning more. His response was such a gift of hope for us to hear. We were subtly reminded to keep going and not to give up… that Father is drawing this boy to Him.

Shrinking Walls

Things on campus have been tighter than usual. Students and foreign teachers (including us) have been questioned. We know that when good things are happening for the kingdom, we must not be surprised by events of persecution. “The power of the Lrd comes from our fellowship with the Son’s suffering.” This piece of truth in its complexity is our current focus. We are marinating in what it means to fellowship with His suffering. We hear many stories of drastic and extreme persecution, and the persecution we are currently experiencing feels incomparable to what others are forced to deal with. The HS also reminds us that there is freedom in His suffering. We know that the Father is on our side. In 1 Samuel 12, Samuel is talking to the people of Israel and telling them that the Father will not forsake his people because of His name’s sake. Tied up with us, the way we live our lives, and our walk with the Father is His reputation. His name’s sake. So ultimately, whatever we experience and endure, His name will be sure to be made known. Please join us in prying for safety and security for ourselves, other workers, and those being shared with. 

Even in the most difficult of times, He always shows us a sign of His promise. 

Campus Opportunities

Chris has been meeting with many students on campus this semester, and in particular he has been meeting with young man we would consider to be a campus apostle. He has spent time encouraging him in times of persecution as well as teaching him about key heroes in the good book. The local body on campus has been severely under the scope this year and during this semester. We pry they continue to gather in small groups and break bread with one another in times of difficulty. We pry they will not give up.

Becky has been meeting with one student she connected with because of the North Carolina/Texas team earlier this summer. This student has been incredibly curious about the Son, Creation, evolution, and how to have a relationship with the Father. They read together on a weekly basis and spend time in pryer. She wants to become a family member, but she feels that this is a huge decision that deserves time to make a commitment.  She has voiced that she sees Father working in her life and she feels Him moving in her heart. Please join us in prying for her slvation. 

Local Opportunities

We’ve continued to do English corners at the family-owned coffee shop in town each week. One topic was “You Raise Me Up”. The people in this particular country LOVE this song! We sang the song together and then went around in a circle sharing about who raises us up in our life. We were excited to be given a topic that had potential opportunity for open doors. Many people talked about their personal relationship with the Father and how He raises them up in times of difficulty. This was great for our unbelieving friends to hear firsthand that local people have a relationship with Father. We both were able to share some of our testimony with the group as well. The other half of the group talked about family members and friends in their life who help them.

We were invited to help some local friends with a photo scavenger hunt and gathering. We ended the party by passing out 80 copies of Purpose Driven Life written in their language. We are encouraged that 80 school kids now have a copy of this book and we are hoping they will share it with their families. Please join us in lifting up these kids and their families as they delve into this book and learn about Father’s purpose for their life.

Currently, we are preparing to form a group for nonbelievers to join with our local friends in town at the coffee shop. We are planning a few activities for them to come to and get to know each other first, and then we will begin a study group. Please join us in prying for this undertaking. We pry for Father to handpick students He desires to be in this group. We also pry for the facilitators of the group to be prepared, faithful, and bold. We also pry for protection and security over this entire operation from beginning to end. 

In Difficult Times, Be Joyful

It is pretty common for our water to shut off every couple of weeks. It usually shuts off for several hours or up to 2 days. We have become very used to this by now and it is no big deal. However, this month we experienced the longest period without water so far. Our bathroom water was out for 9 days! Thankfully our kitchen sink (cold water hookup only) was working as well as the toilet was able to flush.

These were certainly tiny pieces of blessing we could rejoice in! When events happen like this particular one, we are challenged by Father’s word in 1 Thess. 5:16-18 “Be joyful always; pr continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is Father’s will for you in the Son.” It is very easy for us to drown in our complaints of cultural differences and annoyances, but this is not His will for us. His will is for us to not only find joy but remain in a constant state of joy while we pr and give thanks for all we endure. What a challenge to accept! We ended up washing our hair in our kitchen sink around day 7 and had quite the good laugh about it. We aren’t too sure why we waited so long. Really we kept thinking each day, “Oh it will come back on soon.” Nope! We were beyond grateful that our toilet runs on a separate line! And overall, we really feel a great appreciation for things once they are gone. We take small but valuable things for granted so often. We thank Father for giving us this piece of truth to rely on for all circumstances, and we know it will especially come in handy when we face another challenge! 

Orphanage Update

We have continued to visit the local orphanage/nursing home this semester and we praise Father that each time we go, more trust is built. This was the first time we’ve visited where the workers felt comfortable enough for us to see some babies. We were not able to hold them, but the workers brought one out for us to see. We also saw about 8 toddlers waving to us from the upstairs window. This was a big step! We continue to pry that they will feel more comfortable with us each time we make a visit. Ultimately, we ask Father to reveal His light to all of the children, elderly, and workers. They have asked for items such as liquid laundry detergent, body wash, diapers, and formula. We will be gathering these items and making a delivery before Christmas. We also visited our friends in the local village after our trip to the orphanage. We had another fabulous minority-cooked meal and Becky spent the entire afternoon playing with her little friend.

It is so cool to look back at the beginning of our relationship with this family beginning a little over a year ago and see where it is now. Everyone feels much closer to one another and it really feels like family. Becky’s little friend is no longer shy but instead immediately runs to Becky and gives her a big hug. Becky brings her stickers, puzzles, and games to play with each time they visit together. We had the opportunity to pry over her grandmother for healing. She has been struggling with fever and pain for several months with no proper diagnosis. Please join us in prying for healing and comfort for this friend. 

Into The Fire

When our student first described his hometown to us and explained what all we would be doing, he had to use his phone for translation… the words he was trying to get across to us were “mentally prepare yourself!” While this was funny to us that this expression is translatable, we really took this “advice” to heart and entered this opportunity with minimal expectations. We knew we needed to be as flexible as we could be, and brace ourselves to simply be willing. More than anything, we trusted in Father and His gift of the HS to be the strength within us that would be necessary not only to endure this adventure, but to also thrive.

We were fortunate to stay in a hotel when we arrived in the nearest city to his village and also when we exited, to ease the transition up and down the mountains to his home. One night at dinner, his parents shared with the other family members about their experience in the elevator of our hotel. It was their first time in an elevator, and they were describing what the elevator was like. We also had conversations about where America is located, because many of these people have never seen a map or a globe. Most of our student’s family didn’t make it past primary school, and only a few attended/completed high school.

Where we have just traveled to, there's a good chance you have never heard of this people group or region they live in.  They live in hidden valleys and are hard to find.  Sometimes they are referred to as the "monkey people" because they live perched up on cliffs and mountains.  What they believe is sad, but what they told us is the saddest of all.  They have never heard the Truth, nor seen someone who knows the Truth. They would be classified as an unreached people group.

Our student’s home is located in this village about 10 hours north of where we live. It is about 18 km up and through the mountains from the nearest city with available drinking water. Pryers were answered as we had plenty of bottled water to last us the whole trip! We camped in our tent on the grounds of the primary school that sits across from his home. He told us that 250 children from the surrounding villages in the mountains pack into this school and sleep there 5 nights a week.

All of these E people live off the land as much as they possibly can on a day-to-day basis. They spend their time farming, walking goats, feeding water buffalo, tending to various village needs, and helping others. We helped them with food preparation as they killed and cleaned their pigs and chickens for each meal. They pick wild mushrooms from the mountainside, vegetables from their crops, and green leafy plants anywhere they can find them along dirt paths.

A good friend of ours asked us, “What do you think their purpose in life is?” It was evident to us based on living their lifestyle with them for the time we were given, that their purpose in life is to simply survive and take care of their family.

We absolutely fell in love with our student’s family and in particular, his sister. His sister is 17. After she finished middle school, she felt like high school wasn’t the best option for her so she joined a 5-year nursing program. She has 2 years left until she becomes a nurse, and then she will be the nurse for her village. This sweet girl is one of the most hardworking, selfless people we have EVER met. She spends all of her days at home helping with whatever needs exist. She and Becky shared an instant heart connection.

Our student’s mother spent 2 hours a day, everyday, for 3 months making Becky authentic E people clothing for the Fire Torch Festival. She completed the entire outfit and hat solely by hand. It was incredibly touching that she spent so much time working on such a beautiful masterpiece and Becky wore it with honor. The clothing represents the cohesiveness of this particular E village, but more than that, it represents a personal initiation into our student’s family. Becky became one of the women and fit right in.

The first Torch Festival we experienced was held in the larger city at the bottom of the mountain of our student’s village. We spent the day trekking through mud as it poured down rain. In between showers, we sat with our student’s extended family members and enjoyed each other’s company. We watched goat fights, chicken fights, and bull fights while eating carnival-type snacks together.

Father really stretched our relationship with our student and deepened our bond. He asked us to pry at each meal, and we used that time to lift up his family and their needs. We spent several hours each day with him and had some pretty powerful discussions. Father opened doors to talk about stewardship, b--lical financial responsibilities and freedoms, the meaning of faith, how to grow your faith, and how Father provides for our every need. Our student voiced to us his desire to read the good book with Chris and learn more about what the Son has to say. We ask that Father may continue to expand that desire in this boy’s heart and give him an undeniable craving to know Him more and to fill his thirst. 

The Fire Torch Festival for his specific village lasted 4 days. Beginning on the second day Chris awoke at 6am to shots being fired in the village.  This is customary to do when someone passes away in the village.  When Chris finally got out to see what was going on he found out that our student's great aunt on his father's side had passed away, which really affected the village celebrations. We are in awe of how the Father moved during this time of sadness for our student and his family. In E people customs, if a person dies outside of the home, the body is not allowed to re-enter the home. So, his great aunt passed away in a hospital in the town 18 km away, and our student’s parents along with many other relatives carried her body 18 km up the mountain and built a place for her body to lay outside of her house for everyone to visit/mourn.  Once everyone has been given a couple of days to say their goodbyes, they burn the body outside of the home.

On the second day of the festival, we hiked up the mountain to be with our student’s family and participate in what felt like a neighborhood bbq. Back in March, the Texas team gave us an Instax camera to use for our ministry. We brought the camera to the village and took/handed out as many pictures as we could to the villagers. They were thrilled to receive such a wonderful, tangible memory of their cultural festival. Most of them do not have a camera aside from their phone, and they certainly don’t have many ways to print pictures. This was such a blessing to our student and his family! Below is a picture of our student’s grandmother and her best friend. They were in love with the photos they were given and the smiles on their face touched our hearts deeply!

The villagers at the festival wrapped everything up and began hiking down the mountain towards the great aunt’s home. We walked with them in what felt like a massive funeral procession. Several village men played somber tunes of grieving with handcrafted instruments. It was pouring down rain, and everyone carefully made their way to the house. Several men set off loads of firecrackers to notify dead spirits. We walked through a tunnel of firecrackers and smoke as we approached the makeshift room built for our student’s great aunt. About 50 E women gathered around the body and began wailing and moaning cries of agony. It is tradition for the men to gather outside of the tent while the women are with the body. Becky was inside the tent holding the hand of our student’s mother the entire time. Becky began prying over his mother and asking Father for peace and comfort during a time of loss and that He would reveal Himself to her and her family in a mighty and powerful way. The sounds of wailing and moaning were overtaken by a large clap of thunder and a bright bolt of lightning. Becky immediately felt tears coming as she was reminded by the power of the Father. He overcame death for everyone, even these people. They may not know it, but His presence was definitely there.

The family of the great aunt prepared enough food for about 100 people. We all gathered for this meal and wore strips of burlap tied around our heads. It really reminded us of times in the OT when people were mourning the loss of a loved one or experienced a time of distress. People of the OT would strip away their clothes in anguish and replace them with burlap.

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We think about the funeral process in America and how we have grieved our passed loved ones. More times than not, we have spent time rejoicing in the enrichment of our memories, praising Father for saving and rescuing them from suffering, and rejoicing in the truth that they are with the King. This was definitely a different process for the people of this village and our hearts break for them.

Father sptually protected us the entire time during this visit. From the funeral gathering to our time in our student’s home, we felt the overwhelming presence of the HS as he covered us with armor. Thank you to those of you who remembered us in pryer during this critical time of serving. Ancestral worship is huge in this village. They believe that when a person dies, their spirit will look after the remaining family members. They also worship the sun and fire. Our student’s mother called out each family member’s name (including ours) to the g*d of fire to ask for protection over us as she sacrificed a chicken. We were not present during this ritual, and we know without a doubt this was because of Father’s protection.

When calling out one’s name the mother was chanting for the second spirit of the identity she called to come back and enter the body.  They said that where there is two you are stronger than one.  It was never told to us when this second spirit leaves the body or why it ever would leave and that is because they believe your body has a twin that is already present in the spirit world. So the slaughtering and sacrificing of the chicken, rice, and wine feeds the body in the spirit to replace the sadness that it will feel when the spirit leaves to come into the real world and make you stronger.  After this we all went to the top of the mountain and had a BBQ.

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What we saw in 10 days at one village was the darkest of dark.  Extreme idolatry... a large mass of people traveling all day to worship fire or forcefully moan over a dead women... calls of prayer to a g*d that does not give life... chants shouted requesting their twin spirit and the twin spirit of their family members to come back and enter their body to make them stronger... people not sleeping for days so that the dead they are sitting next to could be protected and remembered... the slaughtering of animals as sacrifices... and many more.  We saw the OT come alive today in 2014.  The darkness that is here is evident.

We really saw Father working in the heart of our student in the midst of his loss. While his parents were away for several days helping with the funeral process, we were able to spend some incredibly intentional time with our student and his sister. We were all on our own to take care of the farm animals, crops, and kill/prepare dinner. We had so much fun doing all of this together. We spent our late nights teaching his sister how to play UNO and Spoons. She caught on very fast and we had a great time bonding together. Our student expressed to us how much we became his family during this time of need and how grateful he was to have us there. He asked us to spend some time prying for his relatives, and we were able to share truth and light about death and what comes after death.

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Saying goodbye to our student’s family was very difficult. They have invited us back to this village, and we expressed to them that we would like to bring some friends from America with us when we come back in the future and they said OK. This is something Father has laid on our hearts to begin prying about for next year.

We will never forget all that the Father did in this visit to the village. In the midst of this trip, the HS affirmed us that we are right where we need to be, serving these college students, so that someday they will return to their villages and spread the truth in their local language. The love of the Father is higher than any mountain we can climb, deeper than any ocean we can dive, louder than the roar of any waterfall, and it wraps around us entirely with the security of the death and resurrection of the Son. We want to share this with as many people as we can so that they too may experience the divine culture He has prepared and designed for us.

A New Semester - The Same Pr'yer Request

We have to admit a certain fear as the new semester approaches.  Not so much about the teaching/befriending itself.  What incites fear in us is the realization that we, with all our insecurities, faults and failures, are again being given the opportunity to be apart of 13,000 student lives.  We think of the influence some of our college instructors and leaders had on us, positive and negative, and we wonder what impact we will have when these students look back some day.

This past week students have been piling back on campus for the fall semester, and we have been occasionally checking the campus stores and dorms for activity.  With that on our mind, we have been reading some scripture & writings and processing what is on our hearts:

“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” — John 7:38

“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship. . . .  It is in the light of these overwhelming possibilities, with the awe and the circumspection proper to them, that we should conduct all our dealings with one another. . . .  Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations —these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat.  But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit.” — C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

Father, once again we are awed by the responsibility you have given us, the opportunity to speak into the lives of students this coming semester.  Right now we have over 25 students that we regularly meet with and over 300 we teach from diverse backgrounds with a variety of interests, cares, concerns, expectations, and experiences.  They come with a range of attitudes toward us from enthusiasm & openness to fear & resentment.  Out of the students that we will come in contact with, some will face health problems, personal problems, and family issues we can’t even imagine.  Some will show anger or bitterness towards us because of our nationality.  Many will be scared as they start their freshman or senior year and they prepare to enter a world that feels hostile to them.  You have given them to us this semester.  We don’t know what you’ll be doing in their lives this semester, but it looks like we’ll be a part of it.

Father, may we give our classroom and home over to you.

Father, we give our rooms & house over to you.  We’ve dedicated our home to you in the past, but this semester we put the physical space of our classrooms into your hands.  We ask for your presence to be felt there, that your love would flow.  Help us to recognize that these rooms you have prepared for us is Holy Ground, and that the students in it are immortal beings.  Help us to see that you are there ahead of us, already at work in the lives of each student in the class.  This is a huge responsibility and a tremendous honor.  We pry for your guidance as we deliver lectures and guide discussions that challenge students and take them out of their comfort zone.  We pry for words to speak clearly and explain difficult concepts.  We ask you to put the words of Truth in our mouth that will nudge students toward a deeper knowledge of you and a better understanding of the world around them.  We pry that the classroom be a safe place where students can learn from their mistakes and grow into the men and women You have called them to be.

We pry for protection, Father, protection against saying things that may hurt students or offend them.  We pry for protection against comments that may be ambiguous or easily misunderstood.  We pry for wisdom as we intentionally raise difficult questions and challenge students’ worldviews, that students trust us as a teacher and a friend even when they do not understand our methods or appreciate our approach.  We pry for your grace so that even when we mess up, when we do come to class underprepared, when we don’t know the answer to students’ questions, when we unintentionally offend, that You would redeem our weakness, that these would become moments of learning and grace.

We pry also for the students who will struggle.  We know from past experience that some may cheat or plagiarize, in particular given the pressure to perform well in a foreign language.  We pry that you would help us to support them in the extra challenges they face in our class, both language and culture.  Help us to recognize what they can bring to the class, new perspectives and ideas that push us out of our comfort zone.  May Your living water flow through us as they encounter not only us, but also You in us.

We give our house to you as well, Father, and our time.  We ask that You reside there, that Your presence be felt in the conversations that take place.  Given the kinds of classes we teach and the issues students face, there will likely be conversations that go far beyond the academic.  As students “open their souls to scrutiny,” help us to treat them with the respect they deserve, that Your love and Your life would flow through us, that your living water would wash over them.  Help us to respect and love them even when they fail to meet the standards set for them by their parents, the university, or us.  Help us to pry for them; grant us wisdom about prying with them.  I pry that far beyond what they learn about the “nations, cultures, arts, and civilizations” of this world they will come to better appreciate the immortal beings around them, their friends, roommates, & teachers, and to focus on Your eternal presence in their lives.