We were able to give presents away to the various groups of kids that we work with, thanks to our church families in CC Plano, TX and CC Spacecoast, FL.  But of course, the One that gives all good things is our God and Lord Jesus Christ.  We always explain to the kids that the best gift of all is Jesus that gave Himself to us.  It is amazing how children receive the truth of the gospel so much more readily than adults, so much so, that the 85% of all Christians received Jesus as Savior between the ages of 4 and 14.

With that in mind, we hosted a Children’s Outreach at the parking lot next door to our church in Tegucigalpa.  We were able to have several different activity centers that the children moved from one to the other in small groups.  In each center they had an aspect of the gospel explained to them with activities and teaching.  It was a huge success!

Please pray for our ministry.  We only have one chance to serve Jesus with all our hearts, with all our strength and we are going for it!  But we cannot do it without His guiding, His strength, and His grace.

Love - Jason & Patty

The next time you hear from us, we will be in Costa Rica!!!!!!

Order for 1 Bible: 

"i love god i am christian i love jesus i have no bible"

Order for 3 Bibles: 

"please i will humbly request these for my church"

Bulk Order: 

"i am ebenezer oware from Ghana nad many people in our area thus ashaiman are not with Christ and some of the people in our church ar also not having Bible so i would like you to send me a bulk of Bible.me email is (REMOVED) and please i need English Bibles.please send them through this address"

Your help is desperately needed.  PLEASE join this ministry.   You can help by placing a surplus Bible collection box in your building and announcing the effort to collect surplus Bibles.   So many Christians have extra Bibles that are not being used -- perhaps sitting on a bookshelf collecting dust.   It's okay if it's written in.  It's okay if it's been highlighted or underlined.  It doesn't matter what version.   We just need more Bibles to ship to those that do not have a Bible.

"Spreading the light of Jesus across the globe, one Bible at a time." 

WWW.BIBLEDONATE.ORG

1. Its the adults who support you financially and spiritually.

2. The adults can grasp the "big picture" of what your ministry is trying to accomplish.

3. Its just what you do.

....but sometimes we need to put practical aside and reach out beyond "practical".

Sooooo, being that my aunt is the children's pastor for her church, she also asked me to come back and give a presentation to the kids.  I have to say, I was more excited about the prospect of speaking with children than adults (thats probably my teaching background coming out).  I put together a slide show, I brought fun show-n-tell items for them to see, and we put together a "what they eat" segment where I actually cooked fried cabbage in front of them and they could taste it.  (Most of them weren't too thrilled about the fried cabbage, but they LOVED the fat cakes we made.)  I also shared the differences between being a kid in the US verses being a kid in Botswana.

Overall, it was awesome!  They loved the pictures, the food, the stories, and all the animals they saw.  As I was leaving I realized how important it is to bring awareness to children about other cultures and areas of the world and how we can help them.  If we are going to try to make an impact on our world, we need to start not only reaching out to those who can help us now, but also to those who will be out there doing the work in the next generation. Adults are important to reach, but lets not forget the children! As Whitney says, "I believe the children are our future."  hehehe

!!!

We are now trying to prepare to move, sell a house, prepare a small country church for pastoral transition, excite a 12 year old to move, keep a 22 month toddler in check and Mandi is 6 months pregnant. If it were not for Jesus this would never happen.

I am trying to drag Chris with me after a few months (not so much dragging as telling him to wait). There are some incrediable guys that have been invited this year.

I will update with more information when I have a computer in front of me and not doing this on the iPhone.

I can't wait to get back to Austin on this side of the cross.

The university has refused to recognize the fraternity because it violates university policy against religious discrimination. One must be a Christian to be a member of the fraternity.

Mr. Bradley, though, wonders if "Christian only" fraternities are good:

In a free society, Christians and other groups should be free to associate and be recognized on college campuses. The central issue, of course, is that with recognition comes access to state government funding. It’s an odd case given the fact that every fraternity discriminates against women. Is that not in violation of the school’s discrimination standards?

However, could this lawsuit have been avoided? It may be better for Christian fraternities to remain Christian but not require a profession of faith in order to join.

If a non-Christian wants to join a Christian fraternity that is a good thing, right? What better way to share the gospel with people than have them join your Christian fraternity? I say, let the non-Christians join, room with Christians, attend Bible studies, worship services, missions trips, accountability groups, prayer times, road trips to hear John Piper, and so on. Why not? It’s not a church but a campus organization where the fraternity men are all missionaries. (my emphasis added)

Bradley asks a great couple of questions. He says to let the non-Christians join. Is Bradley right?

We miss him, but we don't mind "sharing" him with such precious little people. (pictured at right)  :-)

It may have been free admission (six student matadors) and there may have been some pomp and circumstance left out, but our first ever bullfight was a wonderful experience. Six young aspiring student matadors pitted their skill against six bulls. The young matadors were bested on a few occasions but they all made their kill.

I think we'll probably do this again sometime.

The La Malagueta bullring opened in 1876.

To summarize the story, Adoniram was the first foreign missionary from the US. He was instrumental in inspiring the formation of two mission boards, and an entire generation of missionaries.

His life is marked by hardship and suffering. The author is faithful to present Judson's internal struggles as he wrestles with theology, pride & humility, the loss of loved ones, and a seeming lack of results in his ministry. If his life could be summarized in one word, it would be "obedience."

Reading this book brought tears to my eyes at his loss and suffering, but made my heart yearn for such commitment in my own life. It made me recognize the need for faithfulness in whatever situation the Lord has called me to. It also made me reevaluate my life and earnestly seek to understand the calling God has placed on me in regards to missions and the task of spreading the Gospel to all peoples.

If you have a heart for missions, you'll love this book. If you want to have a heart for missions, read this book.

My favorite story presented in the book is when Judson returns to America for the only time during his life. He had been in Burma for 33 years, and this was his first trip home. He is asked to speak at a prominent church in Boston. When he gets up to speak, his message is the Gospel. He learns that the the congregation had been disappointed that he did not share some exciting story from the mission frontier and he responds by saying.

I presented the most interesting subject in the world, to the best of my ability...I am sure I gave them a story - the most thrilling one that can be conceived of...I am glad they have it to say, that a man coming from the antipodes had nothing better to tell than the wondrous story of Jesus' dying love. ¹

That's the story of his life, spreading the gospel. His life is inspirational, tragic and triumphant. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, as did my three month old daughter who had large sections of it read aloud to her since she likes to sit in my lap as I read.

1. Courtney Adnerson, The Life of Adoniram Judson - To the Golden Shore (Judson Press, 1987) p462

In my childhood years, I was told the story of “The Tortoise and the Hare”. The Hare started off so well, he sprinted, and then thought to himself, “I will take a little nap”, while the Tortoise kept going on steadily, reliably and never gave up, he was never found sleeping. The Tortoise won the race, he just kept on believing, he just kept on going, he ran the race as best he could, he ran to win the prize. 

It's not how you start the race, but how you finish! I have seen many people start their race, only later to be found sleeping on the roadside. Then there are others who run the race, who keep believing, who are not found sleeping, but are found to be alert, to be steady and reliable in their walk with the Lord. Some people fall by the way side, and the question is asked of them from Galatians 5:7 (NIV), “You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? What caused you to stop believing, to stop wanting to follow Jesus, to give up in the middle of your race?” 

There is a race that is worth running that is worth all that you can muster. There is a prize that is worth it all. The Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:24 (NIV), “Run in such a way as to get the prize”. Take time to train yourself in the word of God, to learn more about Jesus, so you will not be found sleeping by the roadside, but you will always be going forward in the things of God. The Bible says in 1 Timothy 4:7 (NIV), “Train yourself to be godly”. 

My friend, it is not how you start, but how you finish the race that matters the most. Keep going for God! Keep being reliable and being steady in your faith, never wavering, never giving up, as one day you will cross that finish line, where you will receive the prize, the goal of your faith. You will run in such a way as to win the prize, and after you have received it, your will say, “It was worth it all to run the race as best I could have, to live for Jesus and serve Him with all I had”. 

God bless you my friend, Matthew.

Today was an amazing day for God.  The heavens started singing today when 7 students from an English school gave their lives to Christ and they didn't stop until tonight when our bus driver decided that he also wanted to give his life to Christ!!!!  

We had an amazing opportunity today to go into a school, into the classrooms to speak to students.  Robbie and I paired up and spoke with 7 students.  It is still so amazing to me to see how God works through our testimonies.  Robbie and I tag teamed our testimonies and poured out our hearts to these kids.  God knew exactly what they needed to hear and He used us to tell them.  It was one of the most amazing and miraculous experiences of my life.  After almost two hours, Robbie and I prayed the sinner's prayer with these 7 students!  They all accepted Christ as their Lord and Saviour!  

God worked through all of us at that school.  Another amazing story came from Elizabeth and Laurie.  Laurie was sharing the Gospel with a student and one of the English teachers was staying close by to translate if needed.  She could tell he was interested in what she was saying but she didn't have time to talk to him because he was called away by another group. He soon found his way to Elizabeth and a student she was talking to.   After a while, the teacher spoke up and started sharing with Elizabeth.  He completely opened up to her as if he was longing to be heard.  She asked him if he wanted to receive Jesus Christ into his heart, and he said yes!  The amazing part is that everyone on the team has stories equal to those!  (Side note: Please pray for a boy named Sammy.  Chris, Eric and Pastor Lindon told this boy that God would make himself real to him in 3 days.  You can get the full story from Chris when he gets back.  Just pray!!!)  

This morning was so amazing for me, personally, because I have never shared my testimony and the gospel with someone and actually led them in the sinners prayer.  I was so afraid to mess up the prayer or say something wrong. God showed me that even with a language barrier, even with fear, even with the emotion that comes with sharing your testimony, His promise is perfect, and when you are sharing that with another person, you can't make a mistake.  God makes it perfect.  My fear has held me back for a long time and today God completely took that fear from me. 

After a day of evangelizing at the English school and another university, we came back for much needed showers and another wonderful meal.  

After dinner we went to support Josh as he spoke at a meeting for a new mentor foundation that has started here in DR.  It's a great organization and Josh had the opportunity to share his testimony with them.  He spoke about being a model and then being a Christian and bringing the two together.  He was very well received.  We were very proud!!  

Cielo, the wonderful church we've come to love, had Una Fiesta para Dios tonight! (For those of you who don't speak Spanish, that means: A Party for God! :)   We worshipped and danced and then Stephanie and Brittany performed a piece.  It was such an amazing night.  I can't get over the spirit that is in these people.  The night was almost over when one of the other pastors came up and announced that our bus driver, Ricardo, had just told him that he wanted to pray and accept Jesus into his heart.  He came up and Josh and Lindsay led him in prayer.  It was the perfect end to an unbelievable celebration.  Pastor Ron blessed the night and the whole trip, adding that he sees miraculous things happening in DR's future.  

I am truly blessed to be here.  I wish words could explain what we've experienced here.  Thank you all for your love and support.  We can't wait to share all our stories with each of you.  God Bless you all and good night!!!  

PS: Steph will be on tomorrow night to tell you all about her, Robbie and Brittany's experiences so far.

We will have a better quality video in a few days... We just wanted to post something asap...

God bless

In telling the story of Adam and Eve in the garden, he realized he needed to adjust the story to their world view.  Apparently, for this group, man and woman were created without sex organs and the pictures used in the stories perpetuated this thinkng--fig leaves covering up the private parts or just using generic bodies.  So, he began to describe in the story of creation how God created man and woman with a complete set of parts.  This led into an opportunity to discuss God's view of the beauty and intimacy of sex--contra to the painful, sinful worldview of sex associated with pre-marital sex, rape and arranged marriages for young girls.

It made me think of how important it is to have an answer to those questions. And what would you say if you were asked these questions as well?

 Here are the questions you can answer:

1. Tell me about a religious experience you have had that made you who you are today.

Most spiritual journeys do not contain some flash of light or "Paul on the Damascus Road" moments. Most are built on a foundation of time or the very simple yet profound message of Jesus Christ and Salvation. My story is just that kind of story. I was raised in a home in which our life in the church was very important. It was a foundation for activity. Still my spiritual growth did not take off until much later. Though my attendance in church was impeccable I did not understand the true gospel message until much later when I was told the true meaning of Jesus Christ and His Saving Grace. It is then that I found out this real understanding. That God created man as an extension of His Glory and for His good pleasure, but man being created to freely choose to love or not love chose to not love by going outside the standard that God set. The true definition of love is seen by God's creation when they choose to obey the God who created them. Having chosen to go their own way creation was subject then to sin and death b/c the Holy God of the Universe could not endure disobedience. Thus, he proceeds to carry out His plan to save that which through out history would continue to rebel. God seeing that man with every movement of the heart was bent toward sin had to provide restoration that would absolve man from the feeble attempt at reaching God's Standard on their own power. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "we saved by grace through faith its not by works but by God so that no one can boast." Having come to an understanding of my own sin and unfortunate destiny b/c of all the things I had done wrong be they large or small I came to an understanding that I needed the shed blood of Jesus Christ to cover my sins and redeem me before a mighty God. By going to the Cross and dying Jesus paid a penalty that I could not pay. Then he rose again the third day to defeat death. This is my story. No "experience" is complete unless a person comes to the realization that they have broken God's commands just as the first people did and having been proven over and over again through out history that redemption on man's efforts is futile God has provided a way to be saved, by falling at the feet of the cross seeing that only the gracious substitution in my place for what I have done wrong will save. That is the biggest and most important experience in my life.

2. Could you tell me a story or two that might attempt to describe your understanding of an Ultimate Reality or a higher power?

1. The first factor that brings me to a conclusion of an ultimate reality is the Bible. God's Word proven time and time again both spiritually and logically to be inspired of God and from God in everyway. Its words speak practical and spiritual truths that have proved time and again to be the proper bases for a foundation of faith. No other manuscript can boast of its preservation and accuracy as this book. It is only by the maintaining hand of God that such a preservation is possible. The words found in it today are the same found at the very beginning. it is this Word that tells me God is real and the higher power that I rely on for truth.

2. The Bible tells us that creation itself testifies that there is a creator. When I see all that is created, despite the reality of the imperfection of sin, we see something that simply cannot be created out of circumstance or accidental occurrences. There is a intelligent hand in the creation we see around us. There must be more to it than happenstance. If we look around and even the simplest of cells or the dna of any animal we soon see there is a code and complexity that makes the smartest of scientist stand in awe of its design. So my mind logically cannot get around anything that is less than a Holy and intelligent God who created with His own power a universe that works in order and pattern. I simply don't have enough faith to believe in an accidental explosion or nothing at all.

3. What might you tell other people about your religious or spiritual experience that is most important to know?

Question one is the best place to go back and answer this question from. There is no other beginning point than for them to begin by knowing there is a loving and caring Creator God who created us, but there is a need for redemption b/c this creation has turned from God. Only through the shed blood of Jesus Christ can one find Salvation from Sin and Death. Our own merit cannot do it, hope that another god might be the answer cannot save us, and we simply cannot rely on the hope that whether we make a decision to be saved or not God will just up and save us. We cannot be fooled into thinking we can just squeak in. If a person learns anything from what I say that is the first thing they should know.

ARE YOU INTERESTED IN FOREIGN MISSIONS?

Christ the King Church and Church of the Holy Cross

will hold a coffee reception for CEC

Bishop Samuel Lubogo

from Uganda in East Africa

at the

 Christ The King Parish House,

4881 Highway 34 east

Sharpsburg, GA 30277 

at 7 pm this coming Sunday, August 10th.

The Mid-South Diocese has sponsored several missions to Kenya and Uganda over the past few years and we are prayerfully considering future trips to this area.  If you have a heart for foreign missions, even if is impossible for you to go yourself, come meet this wonderful man of God and learn what the Lord is doing through the Charismatic Episcopal Church in Africa.  You will be blessed.

The Rev'd Canon Paul Massey, Canon to the Ordinary, Mid-South Diocese

Although some of us arrived in Nicaragua with apprehension, we left full of awe and appreciation.  This leg of our journey has been absolutely wonderful-full of renewed hope.  

We flew to Mexico without any major incidents.  As we traveled from the airport to our hotel my first thoughts and impressions are of people--lots of people, the cars, the smog, and the many, many colors.

Mexco City is home to 29 million people.  This conference, we are told by our taxi driver, has the city at its maximum capacity.  There are about 25, 000 attendees at this conference.  As we walk, take the Metro, and ride the buses to and from the conference I see so many people.  Those we have spoken with are very friendly and helpful.  I see smiling, beautiful faces all around. But then there is the smog!  It is not so surprising in a city of this size.  The surprise is in the many, many bright colors shining out of the dull air all around. 

Reds, corals, blues, yellows, and greens shine brightly from houses, stores, and windows.  It makes me happy! 

I close my eyes on Sunday night very tired but thinking of those smiling faces and the beautiful colors and I think I too will strive to overcome the bone-weariness I feel, to learn, and to enjoy this new place and to lean into the joy and sorrow of these last days with this truly wonderful, love-filled group of fellow travelers.

Blessings,

Karen Taylor

CANAGUÁ, Venezuela (BP)--For the past 27 years, Reinaldo Meza has driven the same yellow Land Cruiser over the dirt roads of the Venezuelan Andes.

Before heading to his farm, Meza stops at a roadside market in Canaguá to buy a few loaves of bread for himself and International Mission Board missionaries Forrest and Becky Bohlen.

After a 45-minute drive from the market into the surrounding mountains, Meza pulls the truck off the road. He and the Bohlens will hike 30 minutes on narrow trails before they reach Meza’s farm, but he’s used to the hike.

After six years of working in rural areas of the Venezuelan Andes, the Bohlens also have grown accustomed to the landscape. Although the Bohlens live in Mérida, they spend about two weeks each month in Canaguá, a mountain town in the region of Pueblos del Sur (Towns of the South). They travel mountain roads and hike beaten paths to build relationships with Andean agriculturists like Meza.

“The Gospel is not being preached up here. It’s not even being heard,” Forrest says. The Iowa native previously was a pastor in Texas. “Our goal is to take that Gospel to wherever it’s not being preached.”

Many of the people there have heard the name of Jesus but few of them know who He is or have a personal relationship with Him, says Becky, whose home state is Arizona.

While the agriculturists around them plant seeds in the mountainside, the Bohlens are planting seeds of the Gospel.

“Here in this country, there’s a phrase they use — ‘Palanca.’ It’s who you know,” Becky says. “If you know them, you’re in, but if you don’t know them in a relationship, you’re out.

“Relationships are the bottom line,” she says. “It’s the bridge to be able to share Christ with them.”

From me:

Things in Venezuela are not that much different from Mooresville.  Relationships are the key to winning people to Christ.  Let them know you care about them, love them as people and they will listen to the gospel.

In 2003, I had the privilige to serve on mission trip in Guatemala two times, once in July and once in October. Shortly after our return in July, I learned of the opportunity to return later that same year. Two other girlfriends decided to join me and together we spent the fall months preparing for our return.

During this preparation time, the three of us girls decided to study "Let the Nations Be Glad" by John Piper. In a chapter on prayer, Piper has an amazing quote that has stayed with me since I first read it:

"Life is war. That's not all it is. But it is always that. Our weakness in prayer is owing largely to our neglect of this truth. Prayer is primarily a wartime walkie-talkie for the mission of the church as it advances against the powers of darkness and unbelief. It is not surprising that prayer malfunctions when we try to make it a domestic intercom to call upstairs for more comforts in the den. God has given us prayer as a wartime walkie-talkie so that we can call headquarters for everything we need as the kingdom of Christ advances in the world. Prayer give us the significance of front-line forces; and gives God the glory of a limitless provider. The one who gives the power gets the glory. Thus prayer safeguards the supremacy of God in missions while linking us with endless grace for every need."
John Piper

Wow, right??? This really puts the power of prayer into perspective. While we were still chewing on this in our study times together, I was doing a little extra research on the power of prayer that led me back to Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Prayers where I discovered a little prayer packed a big punch in my life at that time. I printed out the prayer and carried it with me in my purse. I read and re read it and each time God deepened my understanding of prayer. The return trip to Guatemala was no doubt saturated in prayers, thanks in large part to what we learned from Piper and Spurgeon in the preparation time. We saw God move in response to our prayers, and also watched as our prayer life changed, and it truly did warn us of what was to come so that we could pray and be ready to stand firm during times of trouble.

So fast forward to today. This week has been a week of decisions. Brain and I had two very important decisions to make, one is still being "slept on" but one has been decided, and that is our decision to join a missions trip to Kenya through Frontline's Global Impact ministry! We made the decision on the heels of much prayer, searching the scriptures, and talking between ourselves and with some close friends. This week has been saturated in prayer, and experiencing the presence and peace of God right now is reminiscent of our preparation time for Guatemala back in 2003.

So imagine my surprise this morning, when during the course of my own morning prayer and study time, I accidentally stumbled upon "Morning and Evening Prayers" on a website I use for my study time. I have not read these prayers in quite some time, but remembering how God has used them before, I clicked on the link to see what today's prayer would be.

You've probably already figured it out. Today's prayer is that SAME PRAYER I carried around with me in 2003 in preparation for that return to Guatemala! I think its so neat and totally God that he would lead me back to this prayer as I enter into a new time of preparation for a missions trip to a new country. I am so thankful he brought this prayer to my attention this morning. And somehow it gives me an extra spark of excitement and hope about this trip to Kenya. If its anything like Guatemala, I know it will be life changing for the Walters.

I'll obviously be posting alot more about the Kenya trip in the coming months. But today, I want to leave you with that infamous prayer from C.H. Spurgeon... "Watchmen, what of the Night?"

Morning Prayer for August 6

"Watchman, what of the night?" -Isaiah 21:11

What enemies are abroad? Errors are a numerous horde, and new ones appear every hour: against what heresy am I to be on my guard? Sins creep from their lurking places when the darkness reigns; I must myself mount the watch-tower, and watch unto prayer. Our heavenly Protector foresees all the attacks which are about to be made upon us, and when as yet the evil designed us is but in the desire of Satan, He prays for us that our faith fail not, when we are sifted as wheat. Continue O gracious Watchman, to forewarn us of our foes, and for Zion's sake hold not thy peace.

"Watchman, what of the night?" What weather is coming for the Church? Are the clouds lowering, or is it all clear and fair overhead? We must care for the Church of God with anxious love; and now that Popery and infidelity are both threatening, let us observe the signs of the times and prepare for conflict.

"Watchman, what of the night?" What stars are visible? What precious promises suit our present case? You sound the alarm, give us the consolation also. Christ, the polestar, is ever fixed in His place, and all the stars are secure in the right hand of their Lord.

But watchman, when comes the morning? The Bridegroom tarries. Are there no signs of His coming forth as the Sun of Righteousness? Has not the morning star arisen as the pledge of day? When will the day dawn, and the shadows flee away? O Jesus, if Thou come not in person to Thy waiting Church this day, yet come in Spirit to my sighing heart, and make it sing for joy.

"Now all the earth is bright and glad
With the fresh morn;
But all my heart is cold, and dark and sad:
Sun of the soul, let me behold Thy dawn!
Come, Jesus, Lord,
O quickly come, according to Thy word."