Update from Brooke 12/17/12

Brooke was finally able to post a blog update. Please visit the following link to see the amazing vision God gave a friend for her:

www.livingwater17.blogspot.com

The Dump

My daughter who has lived in suburbia her whole life...who has a soft bed with pretty pillows...who never has to wonder where her next meal will come from...my daughter just spent the night in a garbage dump.

She is interning with Pioneer61, a ministry dedicated to rescuing homeless boys in Tete, Mozambique, giving them a new identity as dearly loved sons of Abba Father, co-heirs with Christ, and dwelling places of the Holy Spirit. These boys have been tossed aside by society and run off from place to place to place, until  they ended up at their current living quarters - the city dump.

We are raising funds for their Shekinah Healing Home to be built and the boys themselves are helping to build it, but until it is built, this is their home. Brooke and the team from Harvest School 17 felt led to experience life as the boys do by sleeping at the dump. They took nothing with them. Pioneer61 founders, Nick and Marlene dropped them off last night, choosing not to stay with them, so they got a true feel for what it's like to live among them with no interpreter.

Brooke texted to let me know what was happening and to ask me to pray...um...helloooo...my baby is about to sleep in a DUMP!!  Of course, I'm going to pray!!!  She said not to worry, because they had three big Alabama boys on the team plus a guy who looks like Jesus. I told her I wasn't worried, but I was going to call on some angels...not the pretty ones who sing in the choir...the big, muscle-bound bodyguard ones!!

Nick posted a picture to Facebook of the team standing in a circle holding hands with the boys, surrounded by garbage.  Several people had commented on the picture and I felt led to write the following: 

Praying the radiance of His glory is seen for miles around...and no one will be able to fathom that it's coming from, of all places, a dump! Kinda like the first Christmas, huh?

I had sent an email to our church family asking them to pray for Brooke and team as they slept at the dump. We have services Friday evenings for adults and Sunday mornings for families, but Eddy and I didn't attend last night, because of a birthday party for our son. This morning I got the following email from a friend who was there (who had NOT seen my facebook comment, since she doesn't have a facebook!):

We all prayed last night at The Nest for Brooke. I had a picture and was praying through it in my own heart as others were praying out loud…..and then [someone else] prayed exactly what I was seeing! Not feeling especially nostalgic or Christmas focused, I saw Brooke and the team and the boys out there in that smelly ole dump just like the shepherds to whom the angels came and announced the birth of Jesus. So I prayed the glory of God would fill that place where they were last night. And I thought of how that is just what Jesus came to do…..reach everyone with His love and good news…..from those living in the dump, to those of us living in Williamson County, TN! And I also thought of Brooke being much like Jesus himself in her going. She has left her own comforts and privileged life to love on the lowly and destitute and those without hope, unless she is willing to come to them and bring them the good news. Anyway, it was a beautiful and powerful thing I was experiencing and I pray she had a taste of it. 

Brooke (not knowing about ANY of this correspondence) sent the following update:

My life is changed!...[She then directed me to read her facebook status, which said, "We had the honor of spending the night with our boys in the dump where they are living right now in the city. They made beds for us out of giant rocks, gave us their only sheets and served us dinner. God has done a huge work in them and begun to transform them. They kept saying we are their family. It was such an amazing experience getting to see how they live every single night. Now I know how to pray for and relate to them and raise awareness to get their home built soon! We are so wrecked today. Jesus blessed us so much through our boys"]...these boys have begun to be transformed and it's incredible. They were moving giant rocks and stuff, making us beds and serving us their dinner. They said we were family and they would protect us from the bad guys. We all slept in a pile together in the same area....The oldest, who's their leader had a sheet keeping him warm an he looked over to me and asked if I was cold, 'cause I didn't have one. I told him I was fine, but he asked like three times, then he said, "No. You are cold", then he put his sheet on me. So sweet taking care of his sister. I almost started crying right there. None of them speak English, but somehow I was like the translator. I don't know how I did it, but I did! We literally felt the Presence while we were out there last night. It was so peaceful where we were and just across the street was partying and fighting.

Oh Emmanuel, was this what it was like for you? You left the comforts of Your Home - Heaven to be born in a stinky stable. You did it because of Your love for Your people. You did it for the least of these. You did it for the poor and the poor in spirit. You came to show us what The Father is like. You came to make a way for us to be like You. Brooke was like You last night. She reflected The Father's glory in a very dark place. She went to love the least of these. But the amazing thing is that she was the one who was loved. 

Honestly, I can't imagine a more beautiful expression of loving The One and loving the one...

All Means All

Refer to post titled "Multiplication Anointing" for the back story to this post.

Jehovah Jireh is at it again!  Brooke called last night to share another story of God's miraculous provision. Yesterday God took me to two scriptures I felt led to send to Brooke. It was more in light of knowing she was upset about having to say goodbye to her brothers and sisters in Pemba. The first was Colossians 2:2, which says, "I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God's mysterious plan which is Christ Himself." The other was Philippians 4:19, which says, "And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus." This second one is one I usually read in light of God providing for my material needs, but I sent it to Brooke with the revelation that "all" means ALL! He will supply ALL our needs! Brooke was sad and needed comfort. He supplies comfort!

She had spent more money while in Pemba than she'd originally budgeted, because God told her to buy certain things for certain people and she obeyed. As she packed up to go to Tete, she grew concerned that she might nor have enough money for the trip and her stay there. She doesn't want Nick and Marlene to be out any money on her account, and wants to contribute to their living expenses. She asked God to provide what she needed. She was going through the pouch where she keeps her passport and important documents, making sure all was in order, and discovered 4 metical bills (Mozambican currency) worth 1,000 mets each, which translates to about $200 US dollars! She KNOWS she didn't put it there, because she didn't even know there was such a thing as a thousand met bill!!  

She checked in at the Pemba airport, and ended up having to pay a bag fee. The amount? 1,000 mets! All means ALL!!!

He supplies ALL our needs!!  How? His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. His supply of whatever we need never runs out. Need love? He lavishes it. Need joy? He gives it for our strength. Need peace? He's the Prince of it. Need healing? His stripes paid for it. Need provision? He's Jehovah Jireh, God our Provider! Not only does He SUPPLY all we need, He IS all we need! He is our Abba Father, Who generously blesses His kids with good gifts. He is our All in All.  

  

Multiplication Anointing

Our kids and teens at church are collecting money to help Pioneer61 build the Shekinah Healing Home in Tete, Mozambique. My son, Blake was cleaning his room one day last week, and every time he found money on the floor, he'd put it in his bottle, then he'd turn around and there would be more money on the floor. He'd pick it up and put it in the bottle, then he'd look again, and again there'd be more money on the floor!  

Blake shared his story at church last Sunday, then after church as I was walking to my car, I saw $11 cash in the middle of the parking lot, so I picked it up and asked around to see if it belonged to anyone, but no one claimed it, so I thanked God for it and put it in the Shekinah bottle. Later God reminded me of the scripture He gave Nick and Marlene for Shekinah...Jeremiah 29...guess which verse...11!

This week we had some missionaries staying with us from We Will Go in Jackson, MS (See previous post). Laura has a multiplication anointing. The whole time they were here, she shared story after story after story of God's miraculous provision in her life. 

Wednesday evening, I attended a conference here in town put on by Larry Randolph with guest speaker Bill Johnson. I rarely carry cash, but when the offering bucket was passed, God told me to check my jacket pocket, so I did. I was surprised to feel some bills in there! He said not to look at the amount, just to give it all, so I did.

Thursday evening I went back to the conference. This time when the bucket was passed, I started to check my pocket again, then remembered the jacket I'd worn that night didn't have any pockets. God said to check my billfold, so I did, and again there was cash in it! Again, He said not to check the amount, just to put it all in, so I did. My missionary friends had gone to the conference with me and we'd stayed late to receive prayer from Bill Johnson's team. Afterward, as we made our way toward the exit, Laura looked down and saw a $20 bill on the floor! She picked it up and asked God what to do with it. He said to put it in the offering bucket, so she did.

Friday morning my friends left, but first they blessed our family and home, including a prayer for the multiplication anointing to be upon us. That evening Eddy went with me to the conference and checked his wallet to see if there was any cash in it to put in the offering bucket, but there was NO CASH in it, so he wrote a check instead. 

Saturday morning, I went to the conference and sat by two friends. One asked if either of us had $1, so she could buy some bottled water. I checked, but this time found no cash. My other friend said she'd just spent 10 minutes searching every nook and cranny in her purse trying to find some money to buy herself a Diet Coke. After scrounging around, she finally found enough, but only left about 8 pennies in her purse, but she said she'd look one more time. She pulled out a pile of change, which added up to just enough to buy the bottled water!  

Saturday morning, Eddy wrote our tithe check to the church and put it in his wallet. When he opened his wallet, there was NO CASH in it. At church this morning, he opened his wallet to take out the tithe check and there, in his wallet, where he'd checked both Friday night and Saturday morning, there was a $5 bill!!  He shared what had just happened with our church family, holding up the bill for all to see. He felt like it was to go to Shekinah, so he folded it up and set it on the corner of the sound table, where he sits every Sunday. The table is near the front of the room, so there is no way anyone could have sneaked any money into that folded up $5 without being seen. 

We continued with the service, including a lesson on Isaiah 61, so we spent some time talking about and praying for Pioneer61 and the Shekinah boys. After worship, my son Brent came over to put Eddy's $5 into the Shekinah bottle. When he picked it up and unfolded it, a $20 bill was tucked inside the fold!!!  

WOW!!!  Talk about MULTIPLICATION!!!

Jesus multiplied bread and fish in the Bible, so why wouldn't He multiply $5 bills???

How have you experienced the multiplication anointing? I'd love to hear your story!

Stories

Who doesn't love a good story? I have spent a good portion of my day sitting around swapping stories with a couple of amazing missionaries who I have the honor of hosting in my home for a few days. To the casual observer it might seem as if we are attempting to one-up each other with what sounds like "my daddy's bigger than your daddy" stories, but the thing about the stories we're sharing is that we're all bragging about the same Daddy! Our Papa God is worth bragging about! The purpose of our stories about Him isn't to try to out-do one another with a better story, but to give Him glory for what He's done and to say, "Do it again, Lord!". When I hear a story of how God has miraculously provided for someone's needs, it reminds me of times He's miraculously provided for me, which builds my faith, and in turn builds the other person's faith when I share my story with them. It's part of that iron-sharpening-iron, building-one-another-up thing God instructs us to do. 

Both of these beautiful missionaries currently serve in the inner city of Jackson, MS at We Will Go, which is dear to my heart (See previous posts). Both have also been to Harvest School in Mozambique, which is where Brooke is right now, so I love hearing their stories from that experience. It helps to fill a void from not having her here with me, and somehow makes me feel closer to her. 

At this moment, they are out on a Holy Spirit adventure in Franklin, listening to His voice saying, "Turn to the left, turn to the right, this is the way, walk in it."
Can't wait to hear the stories that come from this little journey!  

See, the thing about stories is that they need to be told. The Israelites made the mistake of not telling their God stories to the next generation and got themselves in a lot of hot water because of it. Psalm 145:4 says, "Generation after generation stands in awe of your work; each one tells stories of your mighty acts." I'm so thankful my boys were here today to hear these stories as they did their school work, occasionally chiming in with a story of their own. 

Do you have a story of His mighty acts? I'd love to hear it! Swapping His stories is a powerful way to love The One and love the one...

Voices

A few days ago I was awakened at 4:30 a.m. by my cell phone vibrating on the night stand. The picture on the screen showed it was coming from Brooke's number. Brooke has been in Pemba, Mozambique for nearly 2 months, attending Iris Ministries Harvest School http://www.irismin.org/missions/harvest/, and the only times she's called since then have been when she's walked into the village to a restaurant called Hakuna Matata, which has free wi-fi. We are then able to either attempt to Skype (though we usually get disconnected numerous times), or Viber call or text, and it doesn't cost anything. So, in my still-mostly-asleep-state, I couldn't imagine why on earth she was calling from her regular phone service. 

I groggily managed to key in my passcode to unlock my phone and slur a sleepy "Hello". Much to my surprise, it wasn't Brooke's voice on the other end, but a Mozambican male, saying his name was Joe and he's a friend of Brooke's. I asked where Brooke was and he replied that she was "in the kitchen getting food". When I asked why he had her phone, the call was disconnected. 

Now any mother will tell you that regardless of how faith-filled we are during the day, when we are awakened by a phone call regarding our children in the wee hours of the morning, most of our brains automatically go to a place of worry, and mine was no exception. All I could think was that Nick's phone had been stolen in Tete, Mozambique. Nick and his wife Marlene are founders of Pioneer61, where Brooke will intern for 3 months following Harvest School. http://pioneer61.org/  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUEBGp649mw

Needless to say I was now wide awake! I immediately tried calling her back, but it went straight to voicemail. I texted, asking her to call me, so I could hear her voice or to at least text me something only she would know, so I knew she was OK and in possession of her phone. I waited a few minutes, but got no response. OK, now what?!  I remembered I had an emergency number to Harvest School, but didn't want to use it unnecessarily, but still I could possibly send an email to someone, so I got my computer out. I had not logged out of facebook the night before and it came up when I opened my laptop. The first person's status which appeared on my newsfeed was Papa Jim, a missionary there in Pemba! Right below him was our sweet friend, Tetra, also a Pemba missionary!  Thank You, Jesus!! I messaged them both, explaining what had happened and asked them to check on Brooke for me. 

Within an hour, I heard she was safe and sound and that her phone battery had just died, but still no explanation about this guy named Joe or why he had her phone. Finally, I got a text from Brooke with the explanation. Joe is one of the kids who lives at Iris and Brooke had allowed him to use her phone to listen to music while she ate. She had given strict instructions that he not use her phone to call, text, or get online, and she thought it was hilarious that after he disobeyed, her phone had died, providing a natural consequence to his disobedience. OK, maybe hilarious to her, but not to her poor, worried, sleep-deprived mother!  ; )

I texted back that I was thankful she was OK and had her phone, but to tell Joe he is on my "naughty list"!  ; )

Now that I knew all was well, I decided to go ahead and get my day started, so I opened my devotional book, Jesus Calling for Kids http://www.jesuscallingkidsapp.com/ to that day's date and the title made me laugh: "My Voice". It was hearing a stranger's voice on the other end of the phone that caused my mind to go to a place of worry. This was just too funny! The scripture was Isaiah 30:21, one of my favorites: Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, "This is the way; walk in it."

This verse always reminds me of an object lesson I did with kids at camp one year. I blindfolded one child and gave him a marker. In front of him on the wall was a maze. I instructed him to only follow the instructions given to him by his dad's voice. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, as his dad began giving instructions, "Draw a line going left...now draw a line going up...now right...", I had everyone else in the room begin giving false directions at the same time. The child had to learn to tune out all the other voices and only listen to his dad's voice. The lesson? Our Daddy, Father God, will always lead us on the right path. His voice will tell us which way to go. It's our job to tune out distractions and listen to only His voice. 

I had allowed a stranger's voice to take me down the path of worry, when all along my Daddy's voice was behind me saying, "All is well. I promised to take care of Brooke and I am. Trust Me."

Can you think of a time when you clearly sensed God's voice behind you saying, ""This is the way; walk in it."?

Please share.

Emotional Roller Coaster

The title pretty accurately describes my life the last few weeks. August 17, our family packed up a rental mini-van and Bradley's little black car and headed to Florida. We were moving Bradley into a dorm on the campus of Southeastern University. Brad was dual enrolled as a senior in high school at our local community college, but various circumstances led him to stop going to school and work full time. This year began with some serious challenges for Bradley, but God is good and faithful, and He began opening doors for Brad to return to school, this time at SEU, where he is studying all aspects of the film industry. While most of his friends graduated from college this year, he is just now experiencing college life. As we said goodbye, I thought to myself, "How in the world do moms do this when their kid is only 18?! Mine's a few days shy of 22 and this is HARD!" Yet, we prayed together, hugged goodbye, and drove off to our next destination for some much needed family vacation time.

The next few days were filled with theme parks and literal roller coasters, finishing with a couple relaxing days at the beach.

Then we came home for two days, re-packed, and headed west to Texas for our niece's wedding. We arrived on Wednesday, August 29. I ran wedding errands with my sister-in-law, the mother of the bride all day Thursday. When we got back to her house that evening, I received a phone call from my dad, saying Grandma had passed away. I cried, but the overriding emotion was thankfulness to my merciful God for taking her while we were there in Texas, not waiting until we had returned to Tennessee. She's been missing Grandpa for 26 years, so it brought great comfort in knowing they were at long last together again. I pushed my grief to the back of my mind, so I could focus on helping with wedding details. We had wedding festivities all day Friday and Saturday, culminating in the beautiful wedding Saturday evening. I had left the house at 11 that morning and collapsed on the bed at 11:30 that night! What a fun time it was though!

Sunday we drove the two hours to Mart, which still reminds me of an old western town with the false-fronted stores on the main road. On the drive, I felt those emotions I'd pushed back coming to the surface. I coped by regaling my kids with stories of my childhood - much of which was spent at Grandma's. Many of these, they've heard thousands of times, yet they patiently listened and laughed at the appropriate places...some stories God brought to my memory, which I haven't thought of in years...

By the time we arrived at the funeral home, I once again had my emotions in check...until the moment I'd been dreading...

From the time I was a child and attended my first funeral, I have hated the tradition of viewing the body...I've never understood the need some people have to see it. I don't get the need to critique whether or not they "look good"...I believe with all my heart that Grandma's soul went straight to heaven in the blink of an eye and that she is there with Jesus, Grandpa, her parents and five siblings, and countless friends who went on before her...so yes, I was dreading the inevitable. Since our portion of the family was last to arrive, I called my brother to see which entrance we were supposed to use. My dad had told me to park around back with the other family cars, so Tim said he'd meet us at that door. The last time I was in that funeral home was 26 years ago when my grandpa died, and I'd forgotten that the "back door" was actually the one that led straight into the chapel area. As soon as he opened the door, there to the right was her casket. Oh boy. Might as well get it over with.  So, I tentatively approached it and saw someone who looked very much at peace, but her clothes were too perfect, her hair too coifed, her face too...something...

Then my eyes traveled down her arm to her hand. And that's when the dam burst. Those were my grandma's hands. Those were the hands that had seen more than their fair share of the hot Texas sun...the hands that flew over piano keys, starting out with How Great Thou Art and ending with Yes, Sir That's My Baby! Those were the hands that pulled countless weeds and showed me how to shell peas properly, singing silly songs the whole while! They hid rubber mice under pillows and napkins, and waved glow-in-the-dark owl keychains from the doorway when we were trying to settle down to sleep. Those hands patiently taught me to sew and crochet, dusted my shivering fresh-from-the-tub body with talcum powder, and held my face ever so gently to tell me goodnight. Those were the hands of the strongest yet gentlest woman I've ever known. Those were the hands of my grandma. And I wept.

The funeral was a very sweet tribute to the woman loved by so many. I was touched to see so many cousins and church members in attendance. Grandma had outlived all her peers, so it was sweet that so many people who love our family were there to show their support.

From there, we drove the short distance to Kirk, where Grandma was born and raised. She and Grandpa owned the general store when my dad was little and after Grandpa retired from the Texas Highway Department, he became the caretaker of that very cemetery. He and Grandma lived in the little white wooden house across the street. The house is still there, and I was thrilled to get to show it to my kids. It was such a magical place, where imaginations ran wild. Grandma spent 93 of her nearly 98 years in that little town. In fact, the only time she ever left the state of Texas was to visit me when I lived in Mississippi in the '90's!

Following the graveside service, my sister and her family, my brother and his family, and my family and I all went to my dad's house for supper, stories, and to look through old photos. 

We spent the night, then drove back to the DFW area to spend time with my mom and pick up Lily, who we'd left at my sis-in-law's. We spent one more night there, then drove the long road home the next morning.

We've been home 4 days now and I'm still trying to catch up on sleep! As I reflect on the events and emotions I've experienced the last few weeks, I realize that woven throughout the roller coaster, are bolts of love holding it all in place...through the joys and the sorrows...followed by more joys and more sorrows, it is love that holds it all together...the love of a merciful Father, Whose timing and plan are best...the love of a Savior, Who has experienced all the same emotions we do and Whose compassions fail not...the love of a Holy Spirit Who comforts like none other...

May the roller coaster of emotions cause me to turn to The One Who loves me most and Love Him in return. May the roller coaster cause me to rejoice with the one who rejoices and mourn with the one who morns. In other words...Love The One and love the one...