ARCHIVE GALLERY
March 2010
March 4, 2010
We have parked our RV at Arlington First Church of The Nazarene for the past couple of weeks. They have been so kind to offer the use of two Sunday school classrooms to us. They have sewage hook up for an RV which has been fantastic. We can run the shower as long as we want! In between concerts we have been working hard on home schooling the kids, booking, writing pages for my book, Randy’s new Jazz piano CD and myriads of dinners with Pastors and their wives. We laugh when people ask us what we do with the other 6 days of the week…
We ministered at Flatwood Worship Center in Decatur, Texas on Sunday. It is a small country church that we have grown to adore. Pastor Doug Acklie and his wife, Kathy are some of the sweetest Texans…along with their three daughters. This little church has supported us monthly for the past year and we are so grateful. It is a sacrifice for them and we pray the Lord blesses them abundantly for giving to our ministry. The service went well and the Lord’s presence was very real as they joined us in worship. Dinner with the Acklies after church was the icing on the cake and then we drove back to the Fort Worth area.
Sunday night we participated in a “Pie in the Eye” fundraiser for Crosspoint Nazarene Church where we will be ministering in two weeks. As a way of raising funds for the youth ministry, they auction off many homemade pies. A few of the pies come with the opportunity to throw a pie in the face of one of various staff members. Paul Garcia, a good friend of ours, bought the pie that gave him the chance to put a pie in the Pastor’s face. Pastor Danny and Drenna Dyer have become very dear friends to us and we love spending time with them while in the area. Paul gave his opportunity to Kennedie! She got to throw the pie in the pastor’s face! I could not believe it. All of these people. I think he paid around $500.00 for the pie…that is one expensive pie! Everyone participated and pies were sold anywhere from $20.00 to over $600.00. We contributed (on the lower end ;) ) and got a sopapilla cheesecake. Unbelievable! We were also given a pecan pie (made by Drenna) that was the best I have ever tasted. No joke. These Texans know how to bake pie. We didn’t need any of it…but this week has tasted better with the yummy desserts! The evening brought in over $2700.00 for the youth…praise the Lord!
As I sat there laughing with everyone else at the auctioneer, I was reminded of how wonderful it is to belong to the family of God. Wherever we go, we seem to find the Holy Spirit connecting us to our brothers and sisters in Christ. Really quite incredible.
Have a good week – blessings to you!
March 17, 2010
We are on our way to Pensacola, Florida for a Sunday morning concert. After spending about a month in the Dallas/ Fort Worth, Texas area, we are ready to proceed with the next leg of our tour. We have had a fabulous time of ministry in Texas as the Lord continues to open doors for our concert ministry. Two Sunday’s ago we ministered at Living Hope Nazarene Church with Pastor Dave Carlson in Waxahachie, Texas. We have been to this church a few times now and they are as welcoming as ever. The service went great and we had wonderful conversations with many of the congregants after the service and we heard a lot of great feedback about what the Lord had done during the worship service. I continue to be amazed at how God uses something as simple as a testimony about a family of four living in an RV for His glory. Astounding really. Anyway, we were able to enjoy dinner with the pastor and his wife and several others from the church. We take every opportunity to encourage a pastor when we can. What a difficult job to shepherd a flock!
Last Sunday was an awesome day with Crosspoint Nazarene Church in Fort Worth, Texas. Pastor Danny and Drenna Dyer are good friends and they counted this as the fifth consecutive year in a row to host our ministry! That is amazing and we are so thankful! This church meets in an elementary school and they are looking for another meeting place. They have property but are not yet ready to build…they have looked at over 40 buildings and cannot find anything that fits both their needs and their budget! So, it was a great opportunity for us to encourage them and pray with them about God’s provision and plan for them as a congregation. They are also awaiting the arrival of a part time worship leader who starts in two weeks. A lot of change for this church and they are excited. The Lord’s Spirit was very obvious in that service and we are so glad because that is what we are constantly praying about. After the service ended, a man about Randy’s age came to me and said, “What you spoke about this morning was exactly what I needed. I am so encouraged. Thank you. After my week and what I have been through, I was really low. I really needed this.” He had tears in his eyes and I could tell there was a lot going on beneath the surface. We take joy in encouraging our brothers and sisters in Christ to press on. A woman gave her life to the Lord as well! It is very exciting to watch as God draws someone to Himself. Randy and I always ask the Lord to help us stay out of the way…and let Him accomplish His agenda during the service. We have much to celebrate!
We spent much of our time with people from churches all over the DFW and Arlington areas…I cannot even count the number of times we met people at restaurants and listened as they poured out their hearts over dinner. The kids were great…very loved on by many people and the appreciation we were shown was overwhelming.
Now, we are traveling towards Florida to spend a few weeks ministering in the Tampa area after a quick stop in Pensacola. Yes…a couple of days at the beach will be spent rewarding our kids for their patience and endurance for all of the meetings! Thank you for praying for us…please continue as we need the power of the Holy Spirit to anoint us for His work. If you only ask Him for that…we will be blessed!
Have a great week.
March 26, 2010
On our way to Florida last week, we parked for the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Wal-Mart wants RV’s to park in their lots overnight because they know it is a good way to gain regular customers. We sleep in their parking lot and in the morning we buy a gallon of milk or whatever else we need. We have done this for the past six years as we have traveled the country and it has been a blessing and it’s free! But on March 17th it was a different story.
Everything seemed fine when we turned out the light and went to sleep, but we woke up at 2:00 AM to the sound of the loudest bass speakers we have ever heard blasting the most obscene music. A car had circled our RV twice, backed up and parked directly at our bedroom window. As we peered through the mini blinds, we were shocked to see that we were pinned in by a gang of youth partying hard. There were hundreds of kids everywhere and we didn’t realize until later that one of the Sweet 16 college basketball games was won that night in New Orleans. We immediately called 911 and when we told them of our situation we were asked if any gunshots had been fired. “NOT YET!” Police were there almost immediately and we discreetly opened the curtains, started the engine and waited for an argument to end so that we could pull out of the lot.
As alarming as it was, there was this incredible peace that fell on us…we knew the Lord had us surrounded by angels. As we drove the 45 foot rig through the people, no one looked at us! We went virtually unnoticed and left the parking lot safely. We drove another 30 miles to a quieter area and nestled down for the night.
We have never had an experience like that and never want to again! But, every time I picture Kennedie and Kadison sleeping soundly through the entire incident, I am so thankful for God’s blanket of protection. That is because people like you are praying for us daily and asking the Lord to guide us! Thank you! He is truly our peace in the midst of a storm.
We are thankful our 19 year old niece, Amber, who is traveling with us for a few months, experienced the peace of God as well. She put it well when she said, “You can just feel the evil here.”
I have no great story of witnessing in the midst of darkness - that was not the time or the place!
It did remind me of the darkness that so many people live in and consider normal. How sad. Our desire is to encourage the body of Christ to remain faithful to God who loves them so very much and fuels them to be a light in a dark world. We treasure the relationships we have made with people across the country that we are able to pray with and listen to as unbiased friends. It amazes us how much one simple honest conversation can lift a spirit and change an outlook.
Sunday morning we sang at Ensley Nazarene Church in Pensacola, Florida. We love Pastor Brian and his wife, Missy. We have really enjoyed getting to know them and plan on spending more time in their area in the future. Their church family is very loving and we heard quite a few testimonies about the Lord’s moving. We spent Sunday night in their parking lot and left for Panama City on Monday morning.
Cheryl Wilson, a friend of ours from our home church in Michigan, invited us to stay with her in Panama City for a few days of R & R. Her condo was right on the gulf so the view was incredible. She gave Randy and me the front bedroom which had a door wall to the balcony. We slept with that open all three nights! The sound of the waves and the smell of the ocean were awesome! It is my favorite place on earth…I am so thankful for a few days at the beach even though it was quite cold. Randy spent most of his time booking and preparing for speaking engagements while I finished tax preparations. We did squeeze in some good family fun and the kids had a blast.
With clean laundry and sun-kissed kids, yesterday we made the trip to Parrish, near Tampa. A 7:00 PM concert at Harvest Field Community Church had a great turnout last night. We were able to meet several new people and they welcomed us with open arms. We will stay parked here for the next week and will minister again at Harvest Field on Easter. It has become like a second home to us. They have a perfect fellowship room for us to use…they are so generous and take care of us well. We love Pastor Terry & Bonnie!
A busy weekend awaits us…we need the Lord to anoint us in His power!
Please continue to pray for us. Thank you!