Thanks to JRazz!!

My blog was having some technical difficulties (mostly for all you MAC users out there...which is better, MAC or PC?) So my genius friend Jeremy Rasnic did something late last night to fix it. Check out his web page for JRazz Creations www.jrazzcreations.com

Thank you Jer!!

Rainy Saturday Mornings

I love mornings like this. Instead of jumping out of bed to fumble with my alarm clock I awoke to the sound of steady rain hitting my window. I got out of bed just long enough to get a cup of coffee and was disappointed to find that I was out of Amaretto creamer...it's just not the same. Some people would consider this a gloomy day with nasty weather. I am just the opposite...I love sitting here on my bed watching the rain and listening to it run down the side of my house. It almost makes me feel like I am in a movie. Life just seems to slow down for a few minutes. For some reason, on days like this I am more quiet and thoughtful. It's easier for me to be still before the Lord, which is normally difficult. When I was little my sister, Melanie, and our cousin, Mandi and I would take our shampoo bottles outside and wash our hair in the rain! I am not sure how this 'game' started. Maybe my parents were trying to save on the water bill. However it started, it was always a blast. While I no longer wash my hair in the rain, I have to confess that I still like to splash around in large puddles. Great memories. I have so much to be thankful for.

Ready for Deployment!!

Our summer team is finishing up their adventure in North Africa. God has truly been at work in this group of college students. Over the past three months they have traveled many miles by train, bus and camel! They have seen the breath taking view from the top of a mountain. They have felt the victory of walking through the scorching heat of the Sahara (130 degrees!) More than that, they have prayer walked throughout the country and built relationships with local Arabs. God has broken their hearts for the unreached. They are coming home more in love with Him and more passionate about reaching the lost. Please pray for them as they finish their training and return home. (The reverse culture shock can be difficult. ) I believe that God is going to continue to use this radical group of students to impact the unreached for His glory. Eleven more graduates ready for deployment!! Praise God!!

The most exciting news of all...one of the locals in our country is now a brother!!! Check out this blog spot to see a video of one of our students telling the whole story!! www.mikepenny.blogspot.com

Getting on Board

Cowa Maharsa (Arabic for coffee with a little milk) I remember the first time I could order coffee by myself. The waiter grinned at the sound of his language mixed with my lovely Tennessee accent. As we sipped our coffee, my classmates and I talked about our first impressions of Arab culture and wondered what was in store for the rest of our journey. I had no idea then how much I would fall in love with the precious people of North Africa. I love the way they embrace eachother when they meet, how they touch their hand to their heart to show affection for a friend, and how their homes are always open to a stranger far from home. What was at first strange and foreign to me, slowly became both wonderful and normal. Coming home with excitment, confidence and renewed joy for life, I was eager and ready to send or to go. This has definatly been a conflit for me as it has been for many. I would love to be there and I would love to send others...and there is a need for both. My mentor with our program in North Africa told me that I have one set of hands. I can use them overseas, or I can use them to send many, many more to the unreached. My prayer is that my labors here will impact them just has much as if I were there among them. Oh how I want to put an end to the term "unreached people." It will happen...praise the Lord! He promised that the gospel will be preached to all the nations. Any time or money you invest in missions is not in vain, it is not a gamble. The promise is sure! I love this truth! As John Piper once said about evangelism, "You can either get on board and enjoy the triumph or cop out and waste your life."