Last, but Not Least

Well, here it is. No pictures or stories. This will be our last blog from Batam, Indonesia. Where do we start?

First and foremost, thank you to God for giving us a shot. Thank you to Pastor Jim for giving us shot too! And thank you to you, our family and friends, for helping us feel a little closer to home with your comments and prayers.

We haven't accomplished anything here; God has.

We'll be sharing ALL He's done here in Batam at The Fifth Service on March 29.

Our Last Few Days

We're almost finished with the last few days of our time here in Batam. Part of us feels so relieved and the other part feels so saddened. It's like having a best friend move away to another state--they're still your best friend, but at the present time you don't know how you're going to function without them. It's going to be hard to leave.

This past week has been FULL of services--we've done 10 in the past 7 days. One of the most impacting experiences we've had happened after a women's cell group Missy was speaking at. They had Missy and I sit on two chairs next to each other and then they wrapped us together in a large hand-made blanket. It symbolized their acceptance of us into their family and heritage. To put it simply, they made us honorary Indonesians :) We felt so humbled that God would bless our hearts in such an unexpected way.

Really that experience sums up one of the greatest things I've learned here: The only thing that makes me different from these precious people is my "financial status." Jeremiah 29:11 still applies to them despite the number of zeros on their paycheck. Of course they are faced with daily challenges I could never imagine, but they're people with wants, needs, hopes and desires just like me.

We've had a lot of people ask us our feelings about the way American's spend their money now that we've seen the opposite side of the spectrum. I will respond this way...

Instead of protesting against what we don't believe in, let's invest in what we do believe in. A few weeks, a few minutes, 

a few dollars, whatever. Turning our attention to the voice of God will surely lead us to His plans for our lives. And His plans can/will influence people in ways our lives alone never could.

God is real and He is moving in hearts across the world through simple acts of love--because God is love. I wish this revelation sounded more poetic or theological. It's simple, like the lives lead by our newfound friends in Batam. Maybe that's why even though there's a lack of resources here, there's a beautiful abundance of love in every church we enter.

Chains Being Broken...

WHEW! 3 more weeks until we come home and we are definitely in the press to finish strong. Though as we press, God has been incredibly faithful to give us all we need to fulfill His will for our time here. Although Panera has not been dropped at my door yet :) 

This last week has definitely been a busy one. Brandon had his usual workshops, multiple cell groups and 2 weekend services. The man is seriously a preaching machine and he has had to totally rely on God for a new word and new revelation everyday to share. It's harder for me to make it to some of the services because they often overlap with Brooklyn's bed/nap times. Glory to God for just taking the driver's seat and ministering to our hearts everyday what HE wants to talk about. He is so faithful!

I had 2 women's meetings last week. Approaching them I would have to admit I was in so much fear about what to say. What could I possibly say to bring these women hope while they are so oppressed, abused, hopeless, and sad. And seriously, I would be too if I were in their shoes... Home all day with 6 kids, pain and infection from delivering them with no doctor, hardly any food, a husband that could care less of my existence, and a culture who sees only a man as important.  I would not have a smile on my face either. I cried out to God, "What can I say? What can I do? HELP!"

Well the answer was quite simple in the end. The reality was there WAS NOT anything I could say or do. Only God's love and the power that comes from it could bring hope to these beautiful faces. God told me that they were also His masterpieces and He chose them and loved them for the good plans He had for them too. (Eph. 2:10) 

God led me to teach them that they are important to Him and His plan for them at home is extremely significant. He has called them to this honorable role of being a strong woman of God by honoring their husbands with God's love, raising their children in the Word and blessing their families with grace and joy. You should have seen their shoulders start to sit high as they began to understand how important their jobs were to God. Their role is so important that God is their boss; no one else. And who better to have as your boss than your heavenly father--the most loving and understanding person on the planet. 

I had the time to give them practical ways the Word says to be a woman of God, a loving wife and a mom. I, of course, shared many of my own funny stories of attempting to be "Superwomen" and failing miserably without God's help. So we ended the meeting knowing that ONLY God's love could make us the women of God He has called us to be. The pastor and I prayed for every woman at the end--that God's love would be POURED OUT in their lives. I know it did that afternoon. I could feel the chains of hopelessness being broken and I could tangibly feel His love refreshing them and empowering them to be who He created them to be. 

So many smiles surrounded me as I left that day. I had a smile myself knowing that every day I had a fairy tale love waiting to wrap His arms around me and give me all I needed. Glory to God! 

Finishing Strong

The days are flying by now--a whirlwind of services and taxi rides. We love every minute of it. We can tell things are getting harder for Brooklyn, though. He's running out of things to do in our room and gets a little frustrated trying to entertain himself. We've officially exited what's known as the "honeymoon stage" of our trip and have entered the press. Our goal is to finish this trip strong!

We're averaging almost two services per day which vary from women's groups, youth services, worship workshops, school chapels, factory services, and cell groups. We were surprised when asked to minister at a Christian Junior High school on Saturday. That's right--school on Saturday. There were over 200 kids and about 7 teachers to manage them all. It was a great way to spend Valentine's Day morning!

That night both Missy and I spoke at a youth group in one of our favorite villages. This particular youth group started with 18 kids just 3 weeks ago and has now reached a total of 70 youth attending each week! Praise God! It opened our eyes to the importance of ministry for the youth of Batam. The Pastor of this particular church told us that since they started youth ministry, the entire face of their church has changed. She said that the church property looks like a youth center on Sunday mornings after the main service--youth everywhere hanging out, playing games, and eating food. Hallelujah!

Missy and I hope you all had an incredible Valentine's Day. We spent most of our day at services, but took time that night to talk about all God has done in our lives as a couple and as a family. (Over Pop-Tarts and grape juice!) Before this trip, we often found ourselves looking and waiting for God to show us His love. Whether it was through a healing, financial blessing, or whatever, we were always searching for more evidence of God's love. Little did we realize that His love had already been poured out on us in so many ways. First through the broken body of Jesus, and then by the provision of a house, family, and church that are true blessings and examples of God's love for us.

Time's running out... bitter-sweet. We'll be home in about a month. Please pray with us as we strive (by the grace of God) to finish our course strong!

What a week!!

Hey Everyone!!

I know it has been awhile but WOW our schedule has been so busy with all of the recent visitors! 

I have to start out and send out a HUGE thank you to all of you that sent over goodies with Kristin and the Construction team! WOW, I was completely overwhelmed by the generosity and all of the wonderful surprises that will make the last month of our trip so special. You guys are truly the best!

We had quite a weekend! Our week was filled with so many blessings that we wondered how God wanted to top it at the weekend services. Well he did more then top it, his presence did miracles in hearts this weekend. We can only continue to thank him and give him glory for all that is happening on this island in our hearts and in the hearts of these churches!

Saturday evening Brandon did a youth service. He said that the presence of God was incredibly strong at the service. He was able to pray for everyone at the end of the service and we know that God is continuing to work in those young people's lives, healing there bodies, restoring there hearts, and giving them hope and vision for there future!! 

On Sunday morning Brandon and I tag teamed for the service. There was a Baby Dedication scheduled at the end so we tied our message around dedicating your life, your marriage, and your children to God. The women and children on this island are of little value and are not treated very well so we knew this message was timely. However we also knew the sensitivity of the matter so we had to rely on Gods wisdom to say the right words. GOD did a miracle that morning in the service. Brandon had all of the men laughing (not normal) as he shared stories and talked to them about the importance of loving there wives with the love of God. Many of the women in the room were in near tears of joy. It was incredible!

I was able to share with them the importance of raising your children in a godly, loving, and peaceful environment. The lord led me to give them practical ways to teach there children how to love god and respect others. It was like a whole new concept to them not to just spank them in anger all of the time and let them run free! I hoped they understood the value of loving there children with the love of God and hanging on to the hope of what God has called there children to do in the times where it's hard not to lose patience! We know so many awesome seeds were planted at that service and we have total trust in God to water and grow those seeds into an incredible harvest of his love. 

Sunday evening Brandon was able to do a service at one of the churches factory outreaches. He shared with them the story of Daniel and encouraged them to hold fast to there faith even in tough times. They loved hearing that if they did that God would ALWAYS be faithful to them. This was timely considering the tough times a lot of the factory workers are facing with the economy. Brandon prayed for everyone at the end, a 2 year old who cannot breathe out of her nose, an entire family who had suffered from fever for a month, a worker who needed favor in some upcoming decisions etc. Please continue to agree with us for all of these precious people. We know and trust in the name above all names!!

Well. We will post again soon. Tonight Brandon is out doing some research for the orphanage, I can't disclose details at this time but please continue to lift him and James up as they "plow" and prepare for the big vision of rescuing underage prostitutes! God is Faithful!

 We think and pray for you EVERYDAY! Lots of Love and Hugs to all of you!!

The Miracle of His Perfect Will

WOW! The last 2 months have flown by so fast. I can't believe we will be home in 6 more weeks. It will surely be bittersweet for me--I have fallen in love with my time with God here and these precious people. The bump is getting PRETTY desperate for some american food and a soft bed, however!

This week has been incredible! Brandon has been moving along steadily with the worship workshops. I am pretty sure they are his favorite...although he says that about many things here! He has been training these worship teams to love and serve each other and to become more united as a team in times of worship. This is a very foreign concept to them but it is working. We are already seeing fruit in the services which has been so awesome! 

I was able to share my heart at a cell group last night. We do about 3-4 cell groups a week. Normally I am able to go to 2 due to the late schedule and Brooklyn's bed time. The cell groups are small and VERY intimate. They are held at a church member's house in the village. It's always humbling to walk into the small living room filled with people. Their smiles and their love for God is powerful and nearly leaves me speechless every time! (Posted a vid on my facebook)

I talked to them about the importance of a prayer Life--a time to connect with God, a time to look towards Him in every circumstance, a time to focus on His ability and what He wants you to do with your life. During my time with them, I shared my testimony of what God has done for me on this trip as I gave more time to my prayer life. It seemed fit to share with all of you...

You see coming on this trip was incredibly hard for me. In fact, I was miserable the first 3 weeks. Life here is radically different and seemingly hard. BUT a miracle happened in my life in early January that changed me forever. I was at the end of my rope and knew that I would not make it if I did not snap out of it and start to focus on God's ability in me and not my own. Out of desperation I devoted much more of my time to prayer. This prayer time looked differant each day. Sometimes I would just thank God for all He HAS given me, sometimes I would pray and speak God's Word, sometimes I would pray for friends and family, and sometimes I would pray for this island and these pastors. Either way, I committed myself to have more of 'me and God-time.' I was counting on the promise of Matthew 7:7 to WORK!!

The scripture that says  "He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him" came to life in me. Within days I noticed that I was starting to love my life here. I was finding unspeakable joy, constant peace, compassion and love was filling my heart. I can only explain it as a miracle because it was. The more focus I put on God and His strength the less focused I was on the natural hurdles here. I noticed more and more each day how amazing my life here is and that I should not take a single moment for granted. 

During my time of connecting with God He showed me that our family being here was His PERFECT WILL. He told me that He had called us here and that we were in the right place at the right time. He reminded me of all of the favor that had surrounded this trip: Every bill paid here, every bill paid at home, above and beyond finances, a great hotel room, safety, protection, favor with the hotel staff, favor on the plane, packed services, etc. As soon as I got my eyes off of myself and my eyes on Him, I could finally see clearly that the truth was that everything about this trip was PERFECT. I simply needed to embrace what God was trying to do here!!

There truly is no better place to be than in God's perfect will for your life. Its where joy, peace, and love bubble out and you can't seem to have anything but a smile on your face--no matter what things look like around you! A miracle happened for me in His perfect will. I am so glad I had friends and family who encouraged me in those times to keep my eyes on Him...because it worked, will continue to work, and can do the same for you! 

 I  am humbled and thank God everyday that Brandon braved pursuing his desire to come here. That desire was from God and it has drawn our family into His perfect will where miracles are happening. I am eager to see what more God possibly wants to do here in the 6 weeks remaining and I cant wait to tell all of you, our faithful and supportive friends and family, ALL about it!

The Bump

Here it is...

the long-awaited, much-request bump for your viewing pleasure.

Not only is Missy having our baby this May, but she was just informed that a baby from one of the churches here in Batam was named after her. The parents are believing their baby girl will be as anointed as Missy. Glory to God! What an honor!

Making Disciples

We're in the thick of our schedule now--about one service per day--and we're loving it! We had our first youth service of the year and were totally blown away by the similarities of Indonesian youth to American. It made me realize how strong these young people in Batam really are. They face the same challenges as American youth but with many many more hardships. Still they pursue God each day and worship Him for His goodness.

The two of us split the message at this past Sunday's service. Our focus was being a light by simply extending the love of God to those around in simple ways--the most important being unconditional forgiveness and love towards others. We prayed for 10 people who had requests that ranged from post-pregnancy pain to women who were believing for their husbands to receive Christ and start coming to church. One woman thought God was punishing her daughter with sickness because of her past mistakes. What an awesome opportunity that was to share God's grace and love for that woman. She simply cried, almost as if she couldn't believe it.

One thing God has really been teaching us is about discipleship. We've always focused on numbers and size regarding our level of impact at church. Numbers aren't a bad thing. We're beginning to learn now that its not just how many people you preach to that changes a place. It's also how many people you disciple... and discipleship takes time. A synonym of the word "disciple" is "pupil" defined, "someone who studies or learns to do something." It's a process. You can't learn how to perform open-heart surgery over night. There is a place for all sorts of ministry in the body of Christ. Each one is important. But at this point in our lives we're really seeing the long-term benefits of truly making disciples here in Batam.

We're so grateful for those who've gone before us on this island and opened doors of opportunity for our family to make a difference in this world. Now, more than ever, we're seeing how our experiences here can be applied to our lives back in America. We were so consumed with life as we knew it, but now we're realizing we've only taken the first step on a long and exciting journey.

The Results Are In...

43 people including myself met on Monday to talk, learn, and worship together at our first worship workshop. It was amazing to be in a room full of other people whose heart was to lead worship--something I could totally relate to. We were very different yet so much the same. This sort of workshop has never happened before with these churches--the goal being to develop music ministries that will attract a younger generation of people. It was comforting to see that musicians all the way across the world were just like those in America. It gave me a chance to speak a little more casually. I thank God for all the people in my life who planted seeds in my heart regarding worship. It was like everything I'd learned was meant to give to these people who simply loved the heart of God.

This past week we also took a short trip to Singapore. Besides the much needed break and good food, Missy got to have her ultrasound and the results are in... it's a boy! "Healthy with a beautiful spine and long American legs" said the doctor. The picture on the left is his profile and he's giving us a wave! We're so excited for this new addition to our family and a little friend for Brooklyn to play with. We appreciate your prayers for the ongoing growth of our son.

On a more serious note, as many of you know things are heating up in the Gaza strip which is fueling the fire of anti-war protestors in Indonesia. You may have seen some of this on the news. We are on a safe Island so please don't be concerned for us. Prayer, however, is necessary now more than ever. Because of the obvious dangers, we will not be posting any more pictures of the Indonesian pastors we're working with unless they are in large group pictures. We will also not be mentioning any specific names. We will, however, continue to blog and update you on our family's experiences. Please be reminded that there are over 28,000 islands that make up Indonesia so when you see something on the news regarding this country we are most likely unaffected.

We are very excited about a special meeting we're having tomorrow with our contact and local pastors. We'll be taking communion together and hearing more of the vision and goals for this island's ministry. We will make sure to let them know of all your prayer and support for them.

Adjusting To Life

It's been 1 month since we arrived in Batam, Indonesia and we finally feel like we've fully adjusted to life here. We by no means feel like we've got things "figured out" but know that God has already prepared a way where there seems to be no way. He has ordered our steps thus far and we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He'll continue to do so. I think Brooklyn has adapted the quickest. As you can see, he loves the food! He's also pretty quick to make new friends. In fact, he never has a problem belting out the song "Majesty" anytime anyplace! Missy is doing much better also. She came down with some flu-like symptoms a week ago but is now feeling 100% better. Thank you all for your continued prayer for our health as our bodies adjust to this new environment.

Our ministry schedule for January has been set in stone--at least we'd like to think so. We're learning very quickly that if service starts at 7pm that can mean 8pm. We're glad that our December schedule was light because it gave us a chance to establish a good foundation with each church. Our messages were centered around God's love, acceptance, and grace for all. Now in January we'll really be able to move into deeper realms of ministry to these incredible people at the churches.

We believe that each of you is a part of what we're doing here in Batam. The following is our weekly schedule so you'll know what you can pray for each day and join us in reaching this nation: Mondays are worship workshops in which I have the privilege of training worship leaders and bands from 6 different churches. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays are cell groups in which Missy and I get to go to the people's homes and minister to them on a more personal level. One Friday a month we work with the youth leaders of these 6 churches on ways to minister to teenagers as well as developing ways for them to reach out to the larger teen community on the island. Saturdays are youth services which we're really excited about! Finally, Sunday mornings we get to speak at a different church's main service each week. What an honor!

We really need a lot of wisdom and direction from God regarding the youth leader training we'll be doing once a month. 4 of these churches don't even have youth leaders. We'll be working with the pastors to help choose leaders from their churches to take on the task. We believe the Holy Spirit will guide us in making wise decisions that will grow the youth ministry going forth from these churches. Your prayers are greatly needed in this area!

Thank you so much for your comments. They're like little presents throughout our week that get us excited and remind us that we're not alone out here. We rejoice every day in what God is doing in our family's life and what He's doing on this island. For us this trip has been all about Jesus and He truly has shown himself strong every day.