Where has the week gone??

It has been a very busy week – don’t know where to start! Last week I mentioned that God provided stuffed animals for our Christmas distribution in the colonias – after many loads of washing and drying there were 67 toys available. We knew we needed about 150 to make sure each child and teen received something. As I volunteered at CHI resale store, I noticed a plastic bucket of stuffed animals which had previously been for sale. They were just sitting in the hallway. After talking to the director, I was then the proud owner of 23 MORE animals (yep- more loads of washing and dying). Still need more toys. OK Lord, lead us to them. As we picked up a more than abundant supply of produce on Friday, one of the workers asked how the washing of toys went. As I related tat they all looked wonderful, she asked if I could use more. What – thank you Lord. Of course, I said yes, so next Friday I will again be in the bear washing mode. Two of the toys were dolls that had only underwear – one had shoes and socks, the other only socks. And no hair! So I made dresses, I pair of shoes, and bows for their hairless heads. Ready for some little girl to love.

2 babies for someone to love

We received some really strange fruit this week – sort of looked like miniature hedgehogs. One of the workers gave me one to try – just peel off the hairy outer layer to reveal a soft small fruit – sort of like a lychee. It was sweet and very good. The name of this fruit is rambutan and comes from the Malaysia, area, as well as the Philippines. The name comes from the Malaysian word ‘rambut” which means hairy. Strange little fruit that has many nutritional values. Many times you may see this at a Chinese buffet.  After we had loaded the produce and were driving down the road, a car pulled alongside us and wanted to know if we would sell them some tomatoes!! How funny was that?

 rambutan - a teaspoon for size

the inside of the fruit

Many of our chaplain are traveling down to the Valley in preparation for CRMI board meeting and training. It will be so great to see them all again – to see where God has lead them this past year. Jeff Hastings, one of our chaplains, and his son kayaked the Mississippi River from the headwaters in Minnesota to the mouth in Louisiana to raise awareness for returning service folks with PTSD – what an amazing accomplishment. Check it out on Facebook.

We attended a Quincernera in Reynosa for a beautiful young lady and two young boys. Usually this celebration is for the girls only, as a tradition is that the family has a girl of marrying age. Sort of a coming out party. In these days it is just a celebration of entering young adulthood. It was a beautiful ceremony with everyone dressed up for the occasion. As one person said, “a wedding without the groom”. As American teenagers coming of age tradition is getting their driver’s license, the Mexican tradition is a Quincernera. So excited to see all of the kiddos, all excited about the party. But the they did not know that there was also a big surprise for them – the July through October birthday celebration. Directors Betsy and Malena pulled it all off without the kids being aware of it. We all were sworn to secrecy. When the curtain was pulled back and they realized what was going on, the noise grew to a roar with clapping and whistling! What a wonderful day – we were exhausted as we traveled back across the border in the early evening.

 strange stop lights in Reynosa - all green or red

 the cake, which was delicious

 all of the girls receive a professional photograph of their Quincernera

 the throne is ready

 the two 15 year old boy who act as escorts

 the lucky girl and her parents

 trying to sit still through the long ceremony

 family picture - the parents are house parents at the Haven

accepting the blessing

 so very beautiful

 Our Pati and Fred (He looks so sober)

Two lovely ladies

 some of the birthday celebrants

 happy with their gifts

more kids getting ready for the signal to open presents

Miss Opal, our resident quilt maker here in the park, made 3 quilts for the kids she sponsors as well as one for heir mother who comes to the Haven to visit often. The boys are twins with an older sister. They were thrilled with their quilts and proudly placed them on their beds.

Miss Opal and Aida

the twins boys who love their quilts - all the quilts were made by Miss Opal in the favorite colors of the kids

“If there is a wrong way to do something, someone will do it”. This is a quote from Captain Edward Murphy in 1949 – revised to modern day Murphey’s Law. How do we always mess things up?? I suppose it is because we are always looking for an easier, quicker, cheaper way to do things.  We all like to cut corners. But do we still do so when it is important? A few years ago, a group of folks wanted to build another Casa at the Haven in Reynosa (House #7). All of the other homes are built of cement block for warmth and coolness. Butt his group decided they wanted to build a better home as they do in the states – a stick built contractor type home When they got done, it was indeed beautiful. But they had not taken into consideration the climate of Mexico near the border – the home now needs to be redone because the lumber has molded, the bathrooms did not hold up to the heat and moisture. So even though they thought it was better, perhaps cheaper, and quicker, it really wasn’t. Cutting corners tends to cut durability.  And so, it is true in our spiritual life also We should not cut corners in our discipleship endeavors. Cutting corners cuts costs, but also comes at a high price. Do we just tell others about Jesus, then go on to tell others not following up with those we have ministered to? It seems to be the American way – cut corners, cut time. As mature adults, time is a very important commodity to us right now. We need to use this time wisely. When corners are cut, it creates cheap products Jesus does not want cheap products – He wants us to use our best – abilities time, and resources – only the best for Him.

Fall? or Spring?

Today seems just like a beautiful fall day – doors open, sun shining, football game on tv (Packer’s of course). The only difference always seems to turn my world backwards - flowers planted and put out! Herbs planted in herb garden pots, flowers in pots put out, hanging baskets up.  We usually don’t have a lot of plants that need upkeep as we really do not have a lot of time to care for them, but we are going to make an effort this year. I do loves plants and flowers, but eke to see a beautiful garden appear with no work. Just like I love to travel and see new places and re-visit familiar ones, but I want to get from here to there with no in between. But as I sit here content in my own little world, my heart breaks for Las Vegas and all of the sorrow and heartbreak that occurred, I cannot imagine the feelings of all those folks there. One story sticks in my mind – a small passage of time when a complete stranger stayed with a dying man, promising to call his girlfriend who made it to safety and let her know how he was doing. Sadly, the man passed away, and the stranger called the girlfriend to inform her that he had passed away before help get to him. What a sacrifice that stranger made – to stay in immediate danger in order to minister to and reassure a dying man. If only everyone in our county would “Lay down his life for his brother” could you imagine what an amazing world this would be?? Continue to keep all the families involved, including the family of the shooter, in your prayers. Someone made a comment as to where was God when all of this was happening, where were the answers to all the prayers lifted up that day?  God was there with each and every person, He heard every prayer and plea from His children, and He answered in His own way. We need to keep on believing and having the faith that He is always with us.

This Friday as we picked up all the wonderful abundance of produce, we were asked if we wanted a humongous box of stuffed toys – the only drawback was that the box came from a flea market, was wet, and who knows what ese. We immediately said yes, bought the toys home, washed and dried them, and now they look beautiful. A very few needed just a few touch ups (clothes for a couple of stuffed dolls, new ribbon for a bear, a stitch here and there) and two were not salvageable. As I relayed to Ida later that day that we had received these toys, there was silence on the other end of the phone. Ida said with awe in her voice, “Leila, the ladies and I prayed today for toys to be able to give away for the Christmas distribution”. God knew – He knew before we did what was needed. We may need a few more, but we know that He will provide.

after many washer and dryer loads, all clean and fresh smelling. Now to bag them up and be ready for Christmas surprises.

In Sunday School we are studying about Moses but I wonder about his wife Zipporah. Not much is mentioned about her in the Bible people be freed??—Zipporah was one of the seven daughters of Jethro who is also called Reuel and Raguel (Exodus 2:18; 4:24, 25; 18:1-6; Numbers 10:29). It was to the home of this shepherd-priest in Midian that Moses came when at forty years of age he fled from Egypt, and meeting the seven girls drawing water Moses assisted them. Arriving home earlier than usual they told how the Egyptian had helped them. Brought up as a son of Pharaoh, Moses must have looked every inch a cultured Egyptian. Invited home, Moses was content to live with Jethro’s family, and married Zipporah, eldest of the seven daughters. Two sons were born of the union, Gershom and Eliezer. Some writers affirm, without adequate support, that the dark-skinned Ethiopian, “the Cushite woman” whom Miriam and Aaron were jealous over, is merely a description of Zipporah, and that therefore Moses was only married once. But the statement “He had married an Ethiopian woman” implies a recent occurrence, and that Zipporah, whom Moses had married 40 years previously, was dead. It is most unlikely that Miriam and Aaron would have waited all those years to murmur against Moses if Zipporah and the Ethiopian had been one and the same woman.

Zipporah, as a woman of Midian, did not share the spiritual values of her notable husband who found himself acting against the sacred tradition of Israel. This may be one reason why he named his second son Eliezer, meaning “The Lord of my father was my help.” To keep the peace, Moses compromised with his unbelieving wife and withheld circumcision, the sign of God’s covenant, from Eliezer. The Lord intervened, and as a sign of divine displeasure, Moses is stricken with a mortal disease. Both Zipporah and Moses became conscience-stricken over the profanation of God’s covenant, and Zipporah yields. Moses is too prostrate to take a knife and circumcize the child, so his wife severed the boy’s foreskin and, throwing it down before Moses said, “Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.”

When Moses was restored to health relations in the home were not congenial, for he went on alone to Egypt, and Zipporah and the two sons went back to her home in Midian. Of this unhappy incident Alexander Whyte says, “There are three most obscure and most mysterious verses in Moses' history that mean, if they mean anything at all to us, just such an explosion of ill-temper as must have left its mark till death on the heart of Moses and Zipporah. The best of wives; his help meet given him of God; the most self-effacing of women; the wife who holds her husband in her heart as the wisest and best of men & under sufficient trial and provocation and exasperation, even she will turn and will strike with just one word; just once in her whole married lifetime.”

When Moses became the mighty leader and law-giver of Israel, there was the episode when Jethro, his father-in-law came out to the wilderness to see Moses and brought with him Zipporah and the two sons. The union was devoid of any restraint for Moses graciously received them and neither disowned nor ignored his wife and sons. But after this visit during which Jethro gave his over-burdened son-in-law some very practical advice, nothing more is said of Zipporah. She disappears without comment from the history of the Jewish people in which her husband figured so prominently. “Neither as the wife of her husband nor as the mother of her children did she leave behind her a legacy of spiritual riches.” How different it would have been if only she had fully shared her husband’s unusual meekness and godliness and, like him, left behind footprints in the sands of time!

  If you remember, Moses was found in the reeds in the water by the daughter of the Pharaoh. She kept him and raised him as her own son because the Pharaoh had demanded that all male babies be killed. He demanded the midwives kill them at birth – except many of the mid-wives defied the Pharaoh’s orders and let the babies live. Moses was raised in luxury but then left because he saw an Egyptian abusing one of his people, killed and buried him. Moses then had to flee back to his birth people, where he met Zipporah and lived for 40 years tending her father’s flock. What a sacrifice she had to make when he came home with his announcement – to go into the unknown with Moses after the Israelites were freed and wander about in the desert for 40 years. I believe our “liberated” ladies today would have questioned Moses, gave tons of excuses why he should not follow God’s words, and even refused to go with him.  

Pray this week that we, as wives are obedient, not to the point of being walked upon, but respect the wishes of our spouses. I am not saying that every decision does not need discussion but after all the pros and cons are presented, let the final decision rest upon the husband. Why do I believe this – read the Bible and you will see.

Fall Rains

At the point of repeating myself, we again sang this song in church services again this morning. We need to keep praying for our country and world which seems to plunge deeper and deeper into chaos.  The disrespect for what our country is seems to have become the norm, provoked by those who normally are held in higher respect than the common man. These are the folks who should be role models for our children, not leading them into rioting and protesting everything and everyone – including our flag, president, and even God. Whatever happened to pride, love for your brothers, respect for those in authority but most of all for Jesus our Savior?? Folks, wake up – this cannot go on.

Build Your kingdom here

Let the darkness fear

Show Your mighty hand

Heal our streets and land

Set our church on fire

Win this nation back

Change the atmosphere

Build Your kingdom here

We pray

Song lyrics by Rend Collective Experiment

We have had lots of rain this week, so much that we could not deliver produce to the colonias this last Friday. The area where we deliver was flooded, muddy, and impassable. We are trying to come up with an alternative area, but anything more suitable is farther away from the colonias, where most of the people cannot walk to pick up their produce.  Some of the nearby towns were wvwn flooded this past week.

This week has brought so many more hummingbirds that we have to fill two feeders a day, sometimes twice a day. They are so much fun to watch – when they think that another bird had had enough to drink, they will poke at his head to remind him that it is now someone else’s turn at the feeder. They soon will be leaving for Mexico, and just leave the few resident birds here.

Sorry fort he cloudiness but I took this through the door so as not to disturb the little guys

almost too many to try to keep count

some patiently wait their turn

Along with the hummingbirds come the Snow Birds – those Winter Texans who come for the winter months to escape the colder Northern states. A few have arrived already (we had to pick up one couple at the airport this last week) with a few more to arrive this coming week. Soon the park will be a beehive of activity. It is great to see winter friends again, and mourn the loss of those who have passed away, or those who cannot return for any reason.

We have been watercising this week – exercises in the pool. The first night when we were done I thought I would never get over being sore from using muscles that I had not used in a while, but after the first day it was easy. Just a short 45 minutes workout, with a cool down period, then a 15-minute social time in the hot tub. It is relaxing and a great way to start the day. Fred and I usually have morning devotions with our cup of coffee after breakfast, then he mows the park and I play!!

Some of our Chaplains have already returned as we have a week of training again this year the end of October.  We attended church services this morning with Chaplain Jim and Shirley Maxson, then had a nice quiet “catching up” lunch with them. They serve at Mission Bell RV Park where Shirley also works in the office.  

A good foundation for construction requires preparation. We have to anticipate problems while setting our foundation. Should we build on bedrock rather than sand?? The answer seems simple enough, but it can be dangerous to build on bedrock. It is hard to find bedrock, because it is the best – better than sand or stones. When we go to Jesus to find the bedrock of our faith it is a danger, too. Bedrock is more memorable because it is so hard to find. It fills us with joy when you find it when we meet Jesus. It is the most memorable thing in your life. Bedrock is impossible to break.  Was Jesus broken?? He was pounded on, spit upon, crucified, buried but He could not be broken, does this sound like a foundation we want? The foundation of our faith is our relationship with Jesus. Jesus is the bedrock, but what we build our relationship on is the foundation. The house may fall, but the bedrock never moves: we may have set backs or roadblocks, but Jesus is always there, had been and always will be. So, search for the best foundation – the bedrock of Jesus Christ.

Fall is Here!!!

Did I mention that I love fall?? Perhaps every September I do. I love the colors (although here in S Texas the trees don't change color) but all of the stores have the browns, gold, yellow, brown and orange colors on display, Not to mention the candy corn! Pumpkins in every grocery store promise great jack o lantern carvings. As a kid growing up in Chicago, our "Firehouse Gang" loved the fall season. That was when the neighbors raked their leaves into little piles on the curb and burned. Oh, the wonderful smell. They would light them on fire, but most of the time they just smoldered. Then we would all run and jump over the piles, hollering "Jack be nimble, Jack be quick,' as the neighbors swore at us and tried to grab one of us. But we were quick - jump over the leaves, scream at the top of your lungs, and on to the next pile. Sometimes there were only 3 or 4 of us, sometimes a lot more - a bunch of rag tag city kids who loved life. Dad would load us into the old ugly green car and we would drive to "the country" - just a veggie market in a nearby suburb, and we would pick out the biggest and best pumpkin, perhaps if we were good (and lucky) we could go through the spook house. Back home Mother would carve out the pumpkin, (she never came with us) , wash the seeds, cover them with salt, and then roast them in the oven. The leaves would crackle under our feet as we walked 10 city blocks to St. Angela Catholic School with the rest of the "catlick" kids and plan our Halloween get ups. Cutting out fall leaves from construction paper, making ghosts from white sheets ( if we did not get caught), and dreaming of the mountain of trick or treat candy we would receive. I do remember one year though that we did not have the fall leaves. That year we had a plague of caterpillars who hung from the trees on sliver webs all over the sidewalks. They ate all the leaves from the tree sand made my life miserable as I hated to have to walk under the trees and have them fall on me! I would silently scream and brush them off as quickly as possible. I certainly would not let the gang hear me scream out loud! Oh how I wanted to be a part of the "boy's gang" and persuaded them to let me join - only if I would crawl up on a roof of a garage and jump off. That was an easy dare, and so I climbed the fence, scooted up on the roof and jumped - not close to home though so that Mother could not see me. Little did I know that no one else had ever done so - guess I scared them more than myself. I did sprain my ankle, but never let on to Mother that it hurt. AND, those dumb boys never did let me be a part of their gang. I still love fall and all of the wonderful memories growing up as an Italian Catholic kid in Chicago. Thanks for listening.

Produce is very light for a few weeks as another growing season has just started here in S. Texas, but we were truly blessed this week as we received 6 bags of clothing lots of winter jackets sweaters, and coats. It is strange thinking of heavy clothing, but it does get cold here in the Valley - the colonias usually do not have heat or any means of warmth, so the coats, sweaters etc are wonderful to layer in order to keep warm. The wonderful quilts that our Helping Hands sewing group provides us with are a huge welcome to the folks who are struggling. Many people think we are just enabling these folks by providing for them - a lot of them work at of jobs to try to support their families. If we see them making attempts rather than just standing there with their hands out, we would probably not be so quick to help - although God asks us to help, no matter what circumstances.

A wonderful man here in our park has donated his time to wiring  the building in the colonias - just in time for the Baptist group of men men to come and dry wall it in order to finish it off.  It will be great for insulation, as well as having electricity to do Bible studies , store surplus commodities, and even use as a meeting area for sewing groups, etc. We are so very thankful for the generosity of everyone to help make this happen.

We have had several break-ins here in the park - all that was taken were TV's but there were broken windows, etc. At church we spoke to another couple in another park who have had this happen also. We do keep our doors locked always, even when we are home in the daytime. We pray for protection, but also that whoever is doing this comes to the realization that stealing and breaking into others' homes is really a sin, and they must be accountable for their actions. It could be kids looking for a few extra dollars (seems that the break ins happen around 11 PM) or others who take the stolen items and sell them at the flea market next door. Hopefully the thieves will be caught before a lot more damage is done.  I cannot understand taking something that does not belong to you! Even at Children's Haven Resale store, there is some theft. One day some one put on shoes from the store and left their old beat up ones behind. I do wish that these folks would come to us and say they needed clothes or whatever and had no money. We certainly could provide for them.

Jesus is the Architect, the plans are the Bible, but people are needed to follow the plan. Life is certainly not a do-it-yourself project. The church, meaning all of us, is Plan A for building disciples for Christ - there is no Pan B or C. What makes the church so special (not the building but the people)?  It all revolves around the Greek word Proskart, meaning continuing, perservering, devotion. The church is devoted to teaching but there are times when we become distracted. We want to teach what or whom we are, and not who Jesus is. Jesus died for all of us - not just you or me, but everyone The church should be devoted to being like Jesus, going into dangerous waters. I am reading a book by Beth Guckenburger titled "Reckless Faith". It challenges us to put our faith into action,  as she describes the many time she acted on reckless faith in Monterey, Mexico on behalf of orphans. This is how we should react. The church is also devoted to sharing like Jesus. Jesus gave everything, just as we are to give our all. Can you do that?  Our most precious commodity is our time. Once gone it is gone forever. We need to share that ime with others, letting them know about God. Do so in prayer - do  not be afrid to pray anywhere, anytime.

Fall is Coming

Whew, what a busy week this was. Wednesday, Betsy (CHI Director) hosted a thank you for the summer volunteers as the winter Texans are starting to filter in to S Texas. It was a really fun time as Betsy seems to come up with really unique ideas for all of us. This time it involved a “road trip” and then a mystery luncheon. We wrote our names on a slip of paper, our favorite color and our hobby. Then we picked names from a hat – that was the person we were supposed to buy a gift for – with only $1 that Betsy gave us. The whole reason for this was to prove that a person could buy a gift for someone in a thrift store. So, we visited Texas Thrift Store, Dollar Tree, and the Antique mall, where CHI has a booth of special antiques items that were donated. I drew Fred’s name, which made it was pretty easy for me. I purchased 4 woodworking books (at 25 cents each) as he loves to do projects. Of course, I had an ulterior motive – maybe there was something that I wanted and he could make it for me.  We then went to eat a Peppers – the very best tomato basil soup I have ever tasted – along with a chicken salad sandwich on a croissant – the chicken salad had grapes, nuts, and apples. A perfect end to a wonderful afternoon.  The gal who had my name gave me a red journal – perfect for the Monday night Fellowship Bible Study at CHI.

Later that day Keith Bostian and Bill Mills from Prairie Grove Christian drove from Arkansas to here with a van load of Pack a Sack food and two boxes of t-shirts for the Caring Hearts ministry. What a blessing. After a quick unloading at Rio Grande Bible Institute storage area, we took them on a tour of the colonias that we serve. As we were driving I told them of sweet Sol (whom I mentioned in earlier blogs) and how because of a rift in the distribution, her mother will not allow her to attend church anymore or take part in the quarterly or weekly distribution (although a neighbor lady brought them to the last distribution for school supplies!). I had given Sol a necklace with the Ichthys (the Christin fish symbol) at one time because she was going through tough times with her family and I wanted to remind her that not only did we love her but so does Jesus. If she ever felt lonely or sad, the necklace would be a remembrance of the love that surrounds her and that God is always with her.  As we drove through the colonias we noticed some of the residents were cleaning up their property, raking, watering, piles of rubbish were gone, etc.  As we neared Sol’s home, we saw her mother, Jessica, watering the grass (what little there was of it) and stopped to say hi and ask about Sol. I had not seen her nor her mother in quite a while. She hugged us and went to get Sol and her sister – was I ever surprised to see that Sol had grown taller – she is now in 7^th grade and almost as tall as I am. After lots of hugs, I noticed that she had the necklace on that I gave her!!! We’re hoping that perhaps this meeting had broken the ice and Jessica and her family will return to church and the other activities, as well as taking part in the weekly distribution. God always gives us so much more than we can imagine!

We also received lots of quilts tops which we receive every year from the ladies in Chicago and Louisiana. Marlene is a lady in another park who provides us with these -she travels from Minnesota with her vehicle full for us. What a wonderful gift. Some went to our Helping Hands group and some are going to the colonias where the ladies are learning to sew and quilt. It seems as if the blessings are endless. Fred and I are awed every week at the surprises He has in store for us.

It is really scary with all of the information that has been hacked from the internet. But did you know that Someone knows everything about you? Every piece of infrmantion, even your innermost thoughts. Of course, that is God who knew you before you were even born. He knows all about you – even more than you know yourself – He knows us inside and out. If you are planning to build something, you need to get your blueprints in order before you pour the concrete! In other words, get you ducks in row. Mine are not always in a row but at least they are in the same pond.  We are God’s designs and He is the divine architect. Our blueprints for life are in the Bible, from which we are supposed to build our lives.  God develops the very best plan for our lives, which do not always work out. “and we know that in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose”. Romans 8:28. Everything does not happen for a reason- it just happens – hurricanes, fires, divorces, death, financial situations. God can redeem our situation and make it good. Our birth nor our death was not an accident – it was God planned. As I told Sol, God is always with us.

This morning as we read our morning devotion on gossip, it brought to mind how gossip can really hurt others – why do we want to be the first to tell a really juicy story about someone??? Gossip can ruin a life, marriage, a career, even a life. Please think before you speak, do not speak ill of others, and do not spread gossip, which for the most part is not the truth anyway. Have a blessed week.

Harvey, Irma, and Jose

It seems that all we have heard for the past couple of weeks is the threat and devastation of the tornados, fires, and earthquakes throughout the world. Harvey was horrific, Irma is even worse, now we are watching out for Jose. Do you wonder why all of this is taking place right now – and how God is making this happen?? God doesn’t make this happen – but He does allow it.

An amazing thing happened this week – so totally unexpected yet actually the exact results of all of our ministry work. We are so blessed to have donations of beans and rice – thousands of pounds over the course of a year. We usually bag them up to be distributed once a month to the colonias – not every week as sometimes there is a shortage, so we store the surplus for the lean times. This past week, a lady was going to Houston with as much as she could pack in her vehicle to help out those who were devastated. Some of surplus of bean, rice, and canned goods that were destined eventually for the colonias was quickly and generously donated to her for the relief of those in Houston. The folks in the colonias have very little, sometimes not enough to feed their families all week, yet they donated a portion of their blessings to those in need!! This is what our ministry is all about – showing others the Christian way of life – the way to follow Jesus direction. I am so proud of the residents of the Alton colonias. Thank you, God, for allowing us to be a part of this ministry for You.

Thankfully we received a lot of much needed rain this week – the result of the hurricanes skirting their way round us.  The grass is greening up, even the birds seem to love it as they are singing every morning (sometime waking me up). The hummingbirds must be making their trek to Mexico, as they are attacking our feeder which needs filing almost every day. We love to see them as they fill up and refuel before their continued pilgrimage.

The gas problem is really crazy here – prices range from $2.39 to $2.59 and many stations are out of gas Somehow a rumor was spread that there was going to be a gas shortage in the area which then produced a panic and everyone rushed to fill up. What they did not realize was the fact that they themselves were causing the shortage!! Announcements were made on social media, television and the newspaper that there was no shortage but to no avail. Luckily, we are able to find the least expensive gas (the brand we always use) at most of the stations we go to – sometimes we have to search but so far all is well. Sometimes folks are their own worst enemies.

Today’s sermon was a continuation of last week’s Christians Under Construction. We always know where we stand with Jesus. He requests our presence daily with Him. His invitation to us is “Come and See”. Just as He told the disciples to follow Him – to come and see what He was all about, so He invites us to do the same. His question is what are you looking for?? Whatever it is, He can provide the answers. Come and see – rise and follow Hm. What a simple invitation.  It is easy to answer the question are you a Christian, but are you a disciple? We need to follow who Jesus really is and not what we perceive Him to be.  Push out into deep waters. Just as He told the disciples to go out to deep waters and let down their nets even though they had been fishing all night and caught nothing. They did as they were told and filled their boats and strained their nets with the amount of fish they caught. Are you frustrated with your faith? Pray, read His Word and step out in faith. That is where we will find peace – He will give you rest. Accept Jesus’ invitation and discover more in your life. The church is the carrier of the invitation – not the building but the people. The building is only a tool.

Continue to pray for all of those in the path of the recent and coming storms.

A Gulleywasher

We had a huge rain on Thursday – sure don’t know where that came from as the skies we sunny when all of a sudden, the sky seemed to darken and then poured down on us for about 15-20 minutes. We definitely need this as the next day the grass (or rather the dried stems) started to green up a bit. We did get another rain last night, which is truly a blessing. I am sure this is not a result of the next approaching hurricane Irma. Thank you Lord for this refreshing of the earth.

Today is a day of prayer for Texas and all of those affected by the hurricane. Please keep everyone in your prayers and thoughts today – if you choose to donate to the Harvey Hurricane fund, please make sure that 100% of your donations go directly to the victims (such as through your church or a missionary fund). Too many organizations take advantage of these disasters to fil their own pockets – which is not how God wants us to help others.

Despite the heat and dryness, many of the cacti and other hot weather plants are flowering here in S Texas. It is hard to believe that it is already September and the fall growing season has started here. We already have seen fresh winter squash along with other wonderful veggies and fruits. This abundance has been a blessing to the Caring Hearts Ministry as we have a great supply for those in the colonias.  Now that the kiddos are back in school, it seems as if it is a bit easier on the mothers as the kids are able to get really good meals at school. Yes, there are school programs in the summer for meals for kids, but the biggest problem is the fact that the families have no way of transporting their children to the schools. We again delivered produce to the Colonia on Friday. As we drove up to the distribution home, there were the ladies, ready to box and distribute the huge abundance of produce, as well as bread and tortillas. This week we will also be delivering beans, bagged in 3# portions. God has so amazingly provided enough beans and rice to make sure each family receives some at least once a month.

This morning in church we were instructed to keep the main thing the main thing! Just as the new church is being built on the grounds, we as Christians are also still under construction. But we have to remember that we build relationships and not church buildings. Today’s world is broken – broken with poverty, racial inequality, and nature’s unrest, just to name a few.  We see brokenness all around us, especially in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. What, as Christians, is our response to this worldly brokenness? Some folks do something, some do nothing. So, when the going gets tough, what do we do. We love others – this love should be shown without pretending. Show genuine love not just pretending to love because others are doing that. Don’t think that you are better than anyone else – be genuine and love effortlessly. Hate evil and hold on to what is good. Pray about what is evil and do something about it, with sincere love. Being silent supports injustice. I don’t mean go out and join the protesters, but speak up – do not be afraid to stand for justice and goodness. Don’t pay back evil with evil – live at peace with everyone, even those who really seem to get on your nerves. Face hate with love and defend evil with good. Hard to do – of course. Nobody said following God was easy!!!

Remember to continue to pray for Texas as even though the storm and flooding seem to be over, the rebuilding and repairing is just beginning.