Yes – Page 5 – Wide Awake International

Category: Yes

The MoveYes

Guess What We Just Did?

Today. Today is a very big day.

Today we sat down at the computer and bought 6 one-way tickets to Ukraine.

After we finished our transaction Jed and I just stood there looking at each other with really stupid grins on our faces. HA!”We just did that!”

I’ve traveled a lot, but I’ve never, ever bought a one-way ticket…or SIX one-way tickets!

God is so faithful to us. We had budgeted $7,000 for airfare based on the rates we had seen and paid before. The tickets we bought this morning totaled a whoppin’ $3,600. WHAT??? That’s right! Praise God!

So, November 12th (11/12/13…yes!) we’ll be leavin’ on a jet plane, bound for our new life in Ukraine.

Giddy doesn’t even begin to describe it. Scared out of our brains doesn’t even begin to describe it either. Happy as clams and sad as can be at the same time. 82 days and we’ll be off! YEEHAW!

Do you have any questions for us? I’m preparing to do a big detail-filled post for your reading pleasure 🙂 We try to fill you all in on the details, but it’s easy to forget what we’ve told people and what we just think we’ve told people. Ask away and we’ll be more than happy to give you an answer!

kimnjed September 3, 2013 0

The MoveYes

Tangled Up Knots of Goodness

“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy.

“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”

–The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

We’ve been reading The Chronicles of Narnia aloud for the past few weeks. First, we read The Magicians Nephew, and we just finished The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe today. Wow. So timely.

This thing is really happening. How did it get to be almost the end of August? This is really happening- and it’s happening soon. I wish I could put into words the way I feel, the wild knot of emotions that run through my heart and mind all day these days.

As we’re cleaning out our two rooms here in our temporary home in preparation for our final garage sale, I find myself almost unable to wrap my brain around the fact of what needs to go. This is it. We aren’t storing anything but keepsakes. There’s no back-up-plan storage unit filled with our stuff “just in case”. It all has to go. All In.

A Bible study for moms is starting up at church in September, and I’ll only be around for a couple of the sessions…then they’ll continue to meet and I’ll be gone.

Our Home School co-op will continue, plans are being made for the year and we won’t be there.

At church camp this past weekend I was chatting with a missions friend about the massive intimidation of the Russian language and he said “Don’t worry. Take your time. Think long-term; you’ve got years to learn it!” OMG. I guess I hadn’t thought about it that way! 🙂 This isn’t a crash course in Russian, this is life.

I’m so excited for what God has. I’ve never felt more alive or more filled with faith than I do right now. I’ve never known, like I know now that we are exactly, precisely in the palm of God’s hand.

In some moments I don’t worry at all. In some moments I feel giddy about what this new life will bring, fairly bursting with optimism, peace, hope, and joy in the journey. In other moments I feel afraid, overwhelmed, and a little like I know we have absolutely no idea what we are getting ourselves into.

So, you probably get the idea that the knot of emotions and thoughts is pretty impossible to untangle right now. But that’s okay! It’s messy, but it’s okay. All God is asking of us is to say yes to Him, and to trust in His goodness.

Is this a safe move? Well, God didn’t call us to safety. He called us to yes. I have no doubt that safe or not, it will be good. Very good.

Tonight, whatever you are facing, whatever ‘yes’ God is calling you to- trust in His goodness. All He is asking for is your yes. It might not feel safe. It might feel really uncomfortable. It might feel scary. You might not be able to predict the outcome. You might not be able to wrap your brain around the sacrifice, but I guarantee you also can’t wrap your brain around the joy. I know I can’t, but I’m already getting amazing glimpses! It is our joy, it is your joy to say yes to Him. Think about that day when all has been said and done and we stand before our King, our Love, our Friend. Will it matter if we were safe and comfy? Or will we take a deep breath after a life completely spent for Him and think “Whew! Now that was a wild ride!”

Say Yes. Give it all. Step out. He is good. He is worth it.

kimnjed September 3, 2013 0

Yes

All In.

Home again! The National Vineyard Leaders Conference was basically amazing awesomeness wrapped up in wonderfulness.
Best.Time.Ever. I loved every second of it.

Truth be told, I was a bit nervous heading into this conference. I may, or may not have shed a few tears over it in nervous anticipation. Ha! I wanted Jed to be the one to represent us, but he had to work, so he sent me instead. He’s the “connector extraordinaire”. I’m usually too busy herding kids to do much connecting. But, God definitely had a plan for me this week. I’m still reeling in the wonder of it all.

This is an absolutely amazing time to be a part of the Vineyard family. God is calling the Vineyard out in the areas of justice, mercy, and compassion like never before.

“If we’re Kingdom people- believing that God’s kingdom is coming to earth right here and now- than we should be the frontrunners in justice, mercy, and compassion ministries”
–Tri Robinson

YES!!! Oh man, I loved it when I heard those words spoken. To see a room jam-packed with Vineyard folks wanting to know how their body can better serve the lost and forgotten did my heart good. I won’t soon forget it.

The theme of the conference was “All In”. “All In” has two meanings. One meaning is that all ages are “All In”. All are needed for God’s full purposes to be accomplished. We don’t just need the young- forgetting about the wisdom of the old. We don’t just need the older- forgetting about the energy of the young. No. ALL are needed in this movement. We honor what each age can bring to the table. Everyone gets to play.

The second meaning of “All In”, is that we are ALL IN. Not just dipping our toes in the things of God, not just testing the waters.
No. We are ALL IN.

“We believe that if the pursuit of the Kingdom of God is worth anything, it’s worth everything.”

-Phil Strout (National Director, Vineyard USA)

He is worth everything. EVERYTHING.
Why not?
What have we got to lose?

One speaker that I loved was talking about the fear of the Lord. He said that what we fear most is what we love most, what we want most in life. We should fear losing sight of Jesus more than anything else. More than fear of failure, fear of change, fear of losing my kids, fear of giving everything up…we should fear the Lord above all else.

We’re giving up just about everything to move to Ukraine. We’re all in. But what do I fear? I find myself fearing how my kids will do. I find myself wondering if our kids will hate us for this decision. I find myself fearing failure. But, why? If my kids are perfectly safe and comfy, but I have lost sight of Jesus, then it’s all for not. We must step outside of our coziness, our need for safety and control, and fall into His arms. ALL IN. Fear losing sight of Him over fear of losing control, fear of being unsafe. Jesus never called us to safety. He bid us come and die. Only then will we know true life. Oh boy, I want true life so badly. I want to be all in- holding nothing back. What have I got to lose? If He is my reason for being…why not spend myself for Him?

All In is saying yes. Step, by step, by step we say Yes to Him. Comfort, my expectations, and safety, all move aside in order that I might keep Him in my sights.

“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it.”
Matthew 10:37-39

Will you dive ALL IN with us? What if you stayed on the same path you’re on for the rest of your life? Would it lead to Him? What if? What if you said yes to Him today, and the next day, and the next day? What have you got to lose? Whatever it is, He is worth it.

kimnjed July 21, 2013 1

EncouragementWide Awake InternationalYes

Good Gifts

“The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save.

He will take great delight in you,

he will quiet you with his love,

he will rejoice over you with singing.”

Zephaniah 3:17

You know that feeling when you’re about to surprise your kids with something they really love? I don’t know about you, but when I know I’m about to bring my kids joy I can hardly contain myself. I get so excited, looking forward to their reaction- the squeals (or screams) of joy, the huge smiles, the knocking-over-with-force hugs. The fun things in life are that much more fun when I get to watch my kids enjoy them. I delight in my children. Greatly.

Yesterday I learned that no matter if my kids are small or grown, that delight in watching their joy won’t end. The same with our God. He delights in us, His kids. He LOVES bringing us joy and giving us good gifts.

So, I’m here in Anaheim for the National Vineyard Conference. When my dad heard I was heading to Anaheim for this thing and we would be arriving a couple days early, he asked the burning question, “Are you going to Disneyland?” Well, if you know me at all you know that I absolutely ADORE Disneyland. I can’t even adequately describe to you my love for all things Disneyland. I love everything about it. It’s my most favorite place ever. But, we were just given a trip to Disneyland in March and we’re trying to pinch every penny to save for our big move, so I didn’t think I could justify spending the money for a day in Disneyland. My dad, delighting in his grown-up daughter simply replied, “Oh, you’re going to Disneyland!” He said if I could find a way to get there he would pay my way to spend the day. You should have seen the grin on his face when he saw my joy. Dad’s love giving good gifts to their kids.

So, the question remained, “How would I get to Disneyland?” I was coming to the conference with our pastor (Lanny), his wife (Anne), and their two grown daughters (Christen and Abby). I knew I wouldn’t have a car, so I would just have to wait and see if it worked out. We arrived in Anaheim and realized the little condo we were staying in was literally RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET from Disneyland!!!! Shut the front door!!! Case closed. Disneyland was definitely happening on Sunday. (Plus the wifi password at the condo is “TO DISNEYLAND”. I took that as another sign.) 😉

On Saturday night as I prepared for Disney I was super excited, but a tad bummed that I was going by myself. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I could enjoy Disneyland alone- no problem. But, I did realize it’s much more fun to share your joy with someone else. Annnnddddd the love of parents stepped in again. Abby, Christen, and I were in the bedroom chatting and Anne walked in and asked the girls “Do you guys want to go to Disneyland with Kim in the morning?” You should have seen the looks on their faces. “Ummm OF COURSE!” Anne let the girls know they would pay for them to go to Disneyland in the morning. No matter what the age, parents love delighting in their children and giving them good gifts. (I may, or may not have been jumping on the bed with joy…)

I know you might find it cheesy for me to use Disneyland to talk about the Father God’s love for His kids, but if you do, you don’t know me well enough, or understand the extent of my love for Disneyland. 🙂 When we were on Space Mountain I was just laughing- out loud! I could not believe God gave me that opportunity before we head to Ukraine. Before heading to Anaheim I actually had quite a bit of nervousness and anxiety about attending the conference. I felt like “Who am I? What business do I have attending this conference and chatting with other missions folks? What makes me think they’ll be interested in what we’re doing?” Well, Jed put me in my place about that. He reminded me again that it’s not about us or our abilities. It’s about obedience to The Lord. All we have to do is say yes and tell our story. The rest is up to Him! This has never been about our abilities or lack thereof. This is about what God is doing and His ability.

When I was on Space Mountain I felt like God was saying, “Look at what I’ve given you today! I am taking care of every single detail. I love you and I love delighting in you and watching you laugh. I delight just as much in my children in Ukraine in their cribs. I’m their Father and I want to give them good gifts. You don’t worry. No one will stand in my way. I’m gonna give my babies good gifts and delight over them with singing- and I’m going to love every minute of it. The joy you feel right now is just a glimpse of the joy that’s on its way.” Oh my word. It brought me to tears. I don’t care how cheesy it sounds, God spoke to me on Space Mountain in a big way and I won’t be the same.

Today, wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, know that YOUR Father in heaven delights in you. He loves you. He rejoices over you with singing. Maybe things are rough for you. Maybe you feel like you have nothing to be joyful about. Maybe you think “Easy for you to say, Kim. You don’t know hardship!” Maybe I don’t know your hardship. Maybe I’ve never experienced the pain you’ve experienced, but I’ve experienced the delight of the Father- and He is your Father too. I know His Word is true. If He can bring joy and delight to children wasting away in cribs, and He promises to do that, He can bring joy and delight to you. Fix your eyes on Him and allow Him to father you. This is not about your ability. This is about God’s ability and His great, never-stopping, overflowing, abounding love for you. I see Him with a big ol’ grin on His face. That grin is for you just as much as it’s for me.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

James 1:17

kimnjed July 15, 2013 9

EncouragementYes

Stirrings.

Something’s stirring.

We only have one chance at this thing called life.

We have one chance to live- truly LIVE.

The things of this world will pass away.

What if we gave our lives away? What if we stopped grasping for what our society, our neighbors, our friends, or even our family tells us is important?

What if we gave our lives away- all the way?

What if we spent our lives completely on Him?

It’s His breath in our lungs- there for purpose- to live this life for Him alone.

“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.“

-Luke 9:24

There’s something new stirring in me. Something more radical than before. What do I hold on to that doesn’t really matter? What do I worry about for my kids that is of no eternal importance?

I want to live radically for Him. I want to give my whole life away- holding nothing back.
Why would we not? That’s what we were created for!

My world is turning upside down again and I’m not sure what that means, but I’m pretty sure it needed to happen.

He is worth it. He is worth giving our lives away. He is why we were created. He is why.

kimnjed July 3, 2013 2

The KidsThe MoveYes

The Necessary.

We’re really alive! Finger still intact, though angry as can be when required to type, hence the lack of posts. It turns out pointer fingers are super useful. I’ll definitely appreciate mine more in the future.

Although I haven’t been able to type it out, my brain has been spinning a mile a minute since we landed back on US soil. The trip was so good. When people ask the question “How was your trip?” I say “Good, and necessary.” It was oh so necessary, in ways we couldn’t have anticipated before going. I thought it would be necessary in the scheme of houses, visas, and job descriptions, and while all those things were discussed and worked on, they aren’t the necessary I’m talking about. This trip was another leg in the Journey of Learning to Say Yes.

Kiev was great. Super fun, great connections, awesome time with old friends- going deeper and getting stronger. Kiev was comfy, cozy, and superb.

Zhitomir was good too…and Zhitomir was reality. Necessary reality.

We LOVE Mission to Ukraine (MTU). We love the staff, we love the vision, we love the people being served. We are more excited than ever to join them in their ministry. Jed could be busy there 24/7. His professional skills are so right on for the areas they have need. My heart was bursting to think of how I get to help and how our kids get to be involved and learn to serve. We are totally and completely more excited than ever for MTU. YAY!

Honestly though, I struggled in Zhitomir. Nothing personal to the city or the people, I was struggling with doubt, fear, worry as we walked the streets of Zhitomir, and it was all personal to me.

“What are we doing??? This is crazy.”

“Our lives are PERFECT right now and we’re leaving it all for the unknown. Why???”

“We’re taking our kids away from their cousins, their friends, their church. They’re going to hate us!”

And on, and on, and on. Being the verbal processor that I am, Jed got quite the earful. THIS was the necessary of this trip I wasn’t expecting. I had to come around to the fact that although our life right now is the absolute best it’s ever been, the biggest reason for that is because we are smack dab in the will of God. Yes, there will be challenges about moving to Ukraine. No, it will not be easy. Yes, there are some major sacrifices, but it will be the best because we will be smack dab in the will of our Loving Father. After I got over myself and the lies, fear, doubt, blah blah blah, I could truly enjoy our time in Zhitomir.

Look how far The Lord has brought us! Oh my, the joy in the journey really increases when you die to yourself a bit more. Ha!

Today my kids and their friend Milaey decided to pick various herbs and plants from the yard and set up a stand on the porch to sell to passerby’s. Great idea, except for the fact that we live on an extremely quiet, out of the way street. People don’t just meander down our street for the fun of it. It’s almost like a ghost town, except for us. 🙂 I didn’t want to discourage them, so I just warned them it might be a bit hard to get customers, but they were welcome to try!

They set to work gathering, pricing, making signs. Soon they were out on the corner yelling to the empty street about their wares. “We’ve got carrots, we’ve got herbs, we’ve got stuff to make your house smell good!” They chanted over and over, then cheered like crazy when a random car would drive by every 7 minutes or so.

After a bit they came in, discouraged at the lack of business. Then Milaey suggested they pray and ask God to bring them a customer. I certainly didn’t have the faith I should have had (hehe), but was so proud of Milaey for suggesting it! They prayed, and I kid you not, like 5 minutes later a car stopped at the sale! A random lady got out and said “I never drive on this street, but I thought I’d try a shortcut today.” Seriously??? The kids were FREAKING OUT. They hovered, they talked up their goods, and the kindest lady in town walked away with a ziplock baggie full of hedge trimmings. God is so faithful. He cares about what’s important to us.

I got to talk with the kids about the goodness of God, they were thankful, elated, and back to sign-holding and chanting. Guess what? Not one other car stopped the rest of the day. Addy and Ezra came inside an hour later crying (sobbing) about their “failure sale”.

“Why did no one come? It was important to us and no one cared!”

How quickly they forgot the Lord’s provision. How quickly they forgot the joy in the answered prayer, the delight in His care for them. He provided a miraculous customer right when they asked!

Yep, that was me in Zhitomir. Totally forgetting what God did earlier. Totally feeling forgotten, wondering if God cared. Seriously????? He’s done AMAZING things. He’s gone above and beyond for our family to pave the way and make it straight. Seriously. Once I got my head and heart on straight, stopped looking at the “yikes” and looking at all He has done and promises TO DO things got a whoooooooole lot better.

Lesson learned for me, and the kids.

Next post will be more details about our time in Zhitomir. Many of you have been asking and I’m sooooo sorry for the delay. I blame it on my immersion blender skills (or lack thereof).

kimnjed June 6, 2013 1

Wide Awake InternationalYes

It’s Not Nothing

By Jed:

Have you ever tried to move a piano?

Have you ever set out to lift something you have no business trying to move?

You call all your friends, you even grab a neighbor or two. Everyone gets their hands on this huge piece of wood. 1… 2…. 3…

If you got enough helpers you’re thinking, “Wow, we got this! Geez, this thing is dense.” Though the weight is significant and you can tell that you are part of lifting something quite large, it’s not unbearable.

On the other hand, if you only have three other fellas… That pre-war mass of oak, steal and copper is a whole other animal. 1… 2… 3… “Put it down! Put it down!”

You all step back and think, “What did we get ourselves into?” You do a bit of strategizing, come up with your best possible plan, dig deep, get a little angry, and hype yourselves up. You grab that big piece of wood and with every muscle and ounce of strength; you heave that beast out of the house.

Hold that feeling in your mind. The one we’ve all felt right before doing a job we feared would break us. You knew the weight was crazy, we are bending at the knees, stealing ourselves for the pain…

1… 2… 3…

As I landed in Kiev yesterday I started feeling this weight. Not overbearing, just a subtle nagging in the back of my brain. I was mostly sensing God’s pleasure and enjoying the sights and smells as Sergie, Elvin and I headed for the metro to find the closest Puzata Hata. YUM.

It was so nice to sit down and hear what God is doing in Elvin’s life and to hear Sergie’s passion for Ukrainians to know Christ. They are sweet brothers and I’m looking forward to spending time together, playing music and drinking some good beer.

After having a full belly, which is what Puzata Hata means, we dashed off to where I could get on the bus to Zhitomir. “Kim, I’m so close.” I woke up a couple hours later and stumbled off the bus. Right after grabbing my bag, I started looking around for my beautiful bride.

I knew I would see her bright eyes and shining smile if I kept looking around. Then I heard my name through a wide grin and turned around to see Kimber skipping toward me. I am the most blessed man in the world. I am married to a beautiful, confident, and passionate woman who loves God and loves people. She is going to change the world and I get to watch it happen right in front of me.

She dragged my ‘sight-for-sore-eyes’ back to the house we are living at to FaceTime the kids and get cleaned up. “You can’t fall asleep, Jed.”

As we went out for dinner, that nagging feeling started at me again. Hand-in-Hand with my wife, talking about her adventures and what God was speaking and doing and I couldn’t shake it. So, I decided to embrace the feeling and see where it would take me. Let the melancholy sink in and figure out what I was trying to process. All the while, feeling God’s pleasure as I listened to Kim share about the wonderful people she met and all the wisdom they had shared with her.

I fell asleep, holding Kimber and feeling blessed. But, I also just had this sense of weight. “What we are about to do is weighty. It’s costly. It’s real,” I said to myself. This isn’t just a dream off in the distance. This is happening. 1… 2… Zzzzz… I was out cold.

I woke up with Matthew 11 running through my noggin’. “My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” I felt like Jesus was saying, “My yoke is easy and light for you, but it’s not nothing. You are joining me in something I hold dearly and is heavy on My heart, Jed.”

I can feel the dense weight of what God is calling us to, but, in faith, I trust that He is carrying the weight.

So, instead of digging deep and hyping myself up, I am sitting here feeling the density of what we are a part of, but I am entrusting the weight of it in the hands of the one who stretched out His arms for the world. He lifted a far heavier piece of wood and I can trust Him. 1… 2… 3…

kimnjed May 17, 2013 3

EncouragementThe MoveYes

Pass the Tissues…

So last night I laid in bed awake till almost 1:00am with a brain that wouldn’t shut off. What was I thinking about, you ask?

-What will we do tomorrow?

-I have to take advantage of every moment. What if none of my contact hopes work out for tomorrow? Will it be a “wasted” day?

-Is Mission to Ukraine (MTU) expecting me to come in tomorrow? Hmmm…I better check in with them first thing.

-There sure are a lot of dogs barking. Kinda makes me feel like I’m in Kosovo. 🙂

-I hope Jed gets to Zhitomir okay on Thursday. He won’t have a phone…how will I know when to meet him at the city center?

-How will I fit all my kids on the tiny marshrutkas they have here in Zhitomir?

-I kind of wish I had ice cream right now.

-How will my kids make friends here?

-Will we be lonely?

-What will we do tomorrow????? Surely God has a plan, right?

Yeah, my mind was spinning and I was kind of worrying…about everything. People tell me all the time that they could never do what we are doing, or getting ready to do. How do we do it? How are we so brave? Hahahahaha! Now you see. 🙂 We are nothing special. Sometimes we look like deer in headlights. We cry (well, not so much “we”, more “me”). We fret. We keep ourselves awake worrying about things we can’t do anything about. But, in the end, we just put one foot in front of the other and praise God He’s not afraid to use cracked, imperfect vessels like you and me to be His hands and feet.

It kind of reminds me of our time fostering. People would always say they could never foster; that it would be too hard to let the babies go after you start to get attached. Let me tell ya, it was too hard. It was impossibly hard. But, God called us to it and He gave us grace for what He called us to. It doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt like crazy. It doesn’t mean we didn’t ever cry ourselves to sleep at night because of the heartache. It just means that when He calls you HE gives you every single thing you need to accomplish His purposes. And because of that, I would do it all over again in a second.

This is scary. This is wonderful. This is exciting. But trust me; we are not anything special. Talk to our close friends and family. Pass the tissues, ’cause we all got issues. We worry about all the same things you would worry about if you were in our shoes, but we know He will give us every single thing we need to accomplish His purposes. We just need reminders of that every 5 minutes or so.

That truth is not only for us! I don’t know who all is reading this, but I know that God wants to remind someone about this truth today.

He is enough. He will make the way. He will smooth the path. His word does what it sets out to accomplish. He doesn’t expect you to be super strong or super brave or even a little bit perfect. He asks you to be willing, and the rest is up to Him.

Step out! Act on the dreams God has planted in your heart. Tell Him you are willing and watch what He does. Don’t let fear hold you back. Love fully. Live fully. Trust. (I’m preaching to myself today too!)

Isaiah 55:10-13 rocks my world:

“For your thoughts are not my thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares The Lord.

As the heavens are higher than then the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

Oh, but it gets better. Listen to what happens when we trust! This is the best:

“You will go out in joy and be led out in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you and all the trees of the fields will clap their hands.

Instead of the thornbush will grow the pine tree (Ha!!! Yesssss!) and instead of briers the myrtle will grow.

This will be for the Lord’s renown, for an everlasting sign, which will not be destroyed,”

It is my joy; it is your joy to partner with The Lord in His work.
Trees clapping, hills singing…bring it.

It was sunny, but consider yourself winked at. 🙂

kimnjed May 14, 2013 5

EncouragementYes

Christ is Risen: And Now Everything is Upside Down

HE IS RISEN!

As I looked out at the amazing sunrise this morning, I was reflecting on what we are gearing up for this coming year, in light of Easter. This is the day God’s Kingdom made a definitive beachhead into what we call the ultimate or final experience… death.

In N.T. Wright’s Lenten reading today, he highlights the issue with how Christ revealed his risen self. The gospel accounts have him first appearing to Mary and Mary Magdalene. He explains that women were considered an unreliable source of information in that culture, at that time. They were considered weak. But this was something new and God was turning our systems of thought and best ideas on their ear.

Paul reiterates this point in 1 Corinthians 1:25,“For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

Wright said, “That is part of what Easter is all about. God is doing a new thing, and, as Jesus said earlier in the story, the first shall be last and the last first. Easter is a day to put everything upside down and inside out.”

This morning I am filled with faith. I know, again, in my heart and mind that God has called us to serve these beautifully weak and poor disabled orphans. We get to be a part of His Kingdom-Coming-to-Earth story, His Death-is-Not-Final story, and His Wrong-Things-Made-Right story. (See Matthew 5, blessed are the poor…)

I know that as we serve these precious children, God will continue to move on the hearts of the hopeless; Hope has come, Love has come and He came for all of us. Our work of saying “yes” is a tiny sign. Your work of saying “yes” is a sign too.

As we celebrate the Risen King today, pray for those without hope to hope again, because Love has come for us all.

(He is Risen Indeed)

Jed

Images from The Jesus Storybook Bible, a big family fave.

kimnjed March 31, 2013 0

The MoveYes

Most Exciting News!

We have some amazing news to share!!

After many months of prayer and discussion, emails and letters, we have been invited to come volunteer at Mission to Ukraine in Zhitomir, Ukraine!!!

Zhitomir, (Zhytomyr) is just west of Kiev, the capital

This is our dream come true. Mission to Ukraine (MTU) is an amazing place where healing happens. Hope is given. Jesus is glorified. What better place for us to learn how to serve the disabled in Ukraine, than from the ones who are already doing it, and doing it with excellence? We are excited to serve the vision of MTU and help them in whatever area they need it most.

From MTU’s website:

“Mission to Ukraine is an indigenously run ministry that serves the Zhitomir region ofUkraine. It ministers to the most marginalized of Ukraine – the unborn and the disabled.

Children with special needs and their families live in a culture that is just beginning to emerge from the Soviet legacy of denying their existence. With limited access to state schooling, poor medical care and inaccessible buildings and transportation, the child with special needs is neglected and isolated by society. Mission to Ukraine offers much-needed educational and medical therapies, practical assistance, and community.”

After we visited MTU last April we said to each other “We have to be a part of this.” Now God has made a way and we are standing in awe.

We are starting with a commitment to volunteer for at least one year while learning and observing what the Father has in store. MTU may be a launching place for other things or a partner for the long term. We don’t know, and we won’t try to figure it out (remind us of that a year from now...okay?). We are going to serve and give out of our overflow. God is the one doing this work and we say yes, one step at a time, trusting Him to show us what we need to know when we need to know it. Scary? Yes. Peaceful? Yes. Exciting? YES!!!! Thank you all for praying for us and for God to reveal His next steps. He is so good.

Praise God for His amazing way-making.
Praise God for His plans unfolding for the fatherless in Ukraine. Praise God for His love that never, ever fails.

Zhitomir Ukraine, here we come!

To read more about MTU you can visit their website here.
Read about our visit to MTU last April here and here.
Other awesome accounts of MTU’s work can be found here.

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