Outta here!!

I'm preparing to leave and see...

MY FAMILY!!

Woohoo! There will be a nice long post including pictures when I return. Bye for now.

The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church

Edward Knippers- John Comforted In Prison

"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."

- Matthew 5:10-16

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(In explaining his imprisonment, the Apostle) Paul subtly notifies his readers that proclaiming the mystery of Christ crucified is more likely to open the door to a prison cell for them instead of the door to financial and social success.
- David Garland

Being misrepresented, slandered, reviled, persecuted, and wrongfully accused is an inevitable part of being a Christian. We must expect to suffer unjustly. Our lives confront the culture we live in. We live as aliens in the world, and it should not surprise us when the world is hostile toward us (1 John 3:13). We were called for that purpose. In this world we will have tribulation (John 16:33). It goes with the territory.
- John MacArthur

Remember Our Brothers and Sisters...

This Sunday, November 8th, is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. Take some time to read about and to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world who suffer in the name of Christ. Their pain is our pain...

"Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body." - Hebrews 13:3

Valleys Fill First

Well I finally decided to end my blogging drought. I wish I could tell you that a lot has happened since my last substantial post but honestly there isn’t much new to relay except for the rather mundane details of life. Last week was a rough one due to the fact that my hubby came down with what we suspect was H1N1 better known as the swine flu. He was out of commission for a good 5-6 days. Bookending his touch of the swine were two Sundays when he preached at our home church from college. During that time we also had my sister Samantha in town for her fall break. It was a huge blessing to see and hang out with her!! All in all it was a busy two weeks for both of us. Thankfully Jon is back to normal except for a persistent cough. Ah well.

As far as I’m concerned I’m hanging in there. It has been a rough couple of weeks and I guess the best way to describe the way I’ve been feeling is just plain sad. Thankfully I haven’t suffered any catastrophic loss but nonetheless I feel pretty broken. Ever feel like difficulties come in droves? Maybe that just comes from the mindset we get in when things get tough but I'm telling you right now that I am overwhelmed. The only answer I have for the small valley I've been walking through lately is the painful process of refinement which I honestly would rather do without. Enduring any kind of brokenness is not something most of us do well. It's a humbling place to be. So I’ve been praying a lot lately, praying for wisdom, joy, encouragement and trying to spend a lot of time just thanking God for the many blessings I have been given. I don’t know about any of you but thankfulness does not come naturally to me. So little by little I’m learning, growing and seeking the Lord. I’m interested to see what He is preparing me for throughout all of this because it has been a taxing time. Funny enough I am preparing to read Job as part of my Bible reading plan. I’m sure that is no coincidence.

Aside from the difficulties I’ve been dealing with lately it’s still very easy to say that Jon and I are incredibly blessed. He has begun the process of sending out resumes and praying through God’s specific call on our lives in the upcoming months. It’s exciting, stressful and crazy to realize that…this is it!! Who knows what the next step will be. One other important blessing to tell you all about is that I found out I’m going to have a nephew!!! Woohoo! We’ll get to see Heather and Michael for Thanksgiving so I’ll finally have a chance to see her baby bump and congratulate them in person. God is good.

So how is that for an end to my blogging drought?!? Here is a suitable song to close out my post. This is where I am.