...all over the world. Your Spirit is moving all over the world...You're touching the nations. You're bringing Your love. Your Spirit is moving all over the world. Divisions are falling. You're making us one. Your Spirit is moving all over the world. Terry Butler
So we go to pick up the kids from school and Delaena's teacher approaches me. "Make sure you ask Delaena for the book I gave her. I just felt like I was supposed to give it to you." It turns out to be a double volume by Stormie Omartian. "Stormie" and "Just Enough Light for the Step I'm On". And it turns out to be just what I needed, just when I needed it. "Just Enough Light..." especially has been speaking to me.
When Koos heard the original call to head for Brazil, we hadn't really expected an 'in between'. Straight from the frozen North to the Amazon jungle as far as we were concerned. When this whole Duncan thing came up, we both kind of squirmed and wormed and tried to talk our way out of it, but alas, the squirming, worming and bargaining with God were to no avail. Here we are in Duncan.
So then, we reasoned. "Well gee, thanks God. It was so good of You to allow us to gradually adjust to the new climate we are going to be living in. From frozen North to Canadian rain forest, then to Amazon jungle seems reasonable. We'll go along with that." For a while, anyway. "Probably about six months should do it here in Duncan, hey Lord?"
We've been in Duncan now for almost seven months and don't honestly seem any closer to figuring out when we will be in Brazil than when we first got here. Summer 2012 seems plausible, so that's the answer we've been giving. But to be honest, neither of us feels that is absolutely, concretely, the final answer. Darn it.
So, what is the logical thing to do when things aren't going the way you were expecting? Freak out. Exactly. Or at least until the grade 2/3 teacher hands you a book that basically tells you to stop freaking out just because things aren't going the way you were expecting. That pretty much sums up "Just Enough Light..."
We have been blessed to be introduced to an individual who lives near the 'broken park' that we hang out at each Sunday. He is filled with compassion for his neighbors. He decided to invite the entire community to an Easter bash on his property. He also invited Kidztown. He showed up at the 'broken park', (which incidentally isn't so broken anymore, since this same individual has taken it upon himself to fix it up for the kids and make it more accessible for the Kidztown van and trailer, he had pity on the guys who had to push it through the mud on the really wet days!) in a customized - airbrushed - lowered - chrome - to - the - hilt- souped up Peterbilt attached to a low boy filled with straw bales. And on piled the children! We arrived at the destination, with much air horn fanfare. The place was fantastic. And our new friend gave an amazing 'pep talk' to everyone there about how it is time we all started working together toward unity, "it doesn't matter what color we are, we could be pink or purple" and then he told everyone what we are up to down at the 'broken park' every Sunday.
I personally kind of stood there not quite sure what to think the whole time. There had to have been at least 100 people there. It got worse when two of the pastors from our church came up to both Koos and me and asked if we'd ever dreamed we'd be part of a breakthrough like this when we left Hay River. Apparently they have been praying long and hard for something like this to happen and we walked smack into the middle of it. No, actually, we'd dreamed we'd be smack in the middle of Brazil when we left Hay River, so what exactly is going on here?
Well, according to Stormie, I apparently shouldn't be concerned with what exactly is going on here, but rather I should just embrace the situation and go with it. My head tells me many conflicting things, "Don't get involved with these kids, you are going to fall in love with them and then have to leave." "If you choose this, Brazil is history before it even began." Shut up head. My heart tells me to listen to Stormie. And so, slowly but quietly, I think there is a change happening.
I came home from the Easter extravaganza and out of instinct, I checked out Rick's blog. He usually posts something new on the weekends. And sure enough there was a blog about some Brazilian kids who had had their first ever Easter hunt this year and his words describing that almost matched exactly the words our friend had given in his pep talk when he commented that this would be the first Easter egg hunt a lot of the kids here in Duncan would have had. Then I checked out a picture of the creature that a local had packed across Rick's property not too long ago (see link below) and it struck me that that wasn't so different from the whitetail deer carcass that had been suspended from someone's deck across from the 'broken park' a couple of weekends ago (next time I'll try get a picture!).
People are the same, and the Spirit is the same, all over the world, and they need to be introduced to one another. So for now, even though we don't understand it, and whether or not it seems to fit into the plans we had formulated, we are going to do our best to facilitate some of those introductions right here, in Duncan, in the Light that is shining on the step we happen to be on.
https://picasaweb.google.com/ritchard.bergen/CoolPhotosWhen Koos heard the original call to head for Brazil, we hadn't really expected an 'in between'. Straight from the frozen North to the Amazon jungle as far as we were concerned. When this whole Duncan thing came up, we both kind of squirmed and wormed and tried to talk our way out of it, but alas, the squirming, worming and bargaining with God were to no avail. Here we are in Duncan.
So then, we reasoned. "Well gee, thanks God. It was so good of You to allow us to gradually adjust to the new climate we are going to be living in. From frozen North to Canadian rain forest, then to Amazon jungle seems reasonable. We'll go along with that." For a while, anyway. "Probably about six months should do it here in Duncan, hey Lord?"
We've been in Duncan now for almost seven months and don't honestly seem any closer to figuring out when we will be in Brazil than when we first got here. Summer 2012 seems plausible, so that's the answer we've been giving. But to be honest, neither of us feels that is absolutely, concretely, the final answer. Darn it.
So, what is the logical thing to do when things aren't going the way you were expecting? Freak out. Exactly. Or at least until the grade 2/3 teacher hands you a book that basically tells you to stop freaking out just because things aren't going the way you were expecting. That pretty much sums up "Just Enough Light..."
We have been blessed to be introduced to an individual who lives near the 'broken park' that we hang out at each Sunday. He is filled with compassion for his neighbors. He decided to invite the entire community to an Easter bash on his property. He also invited Kidztown. He showed up at the 'broken park', (which incidentally isn't so broken anymore, since this same individual has taken it upon himself to fix it up for the kids and make it more accessible for the Kidztown van and trailer, he had pity on the guys who had to push it through the mud on the really wet days!) in a customized - airbrushed - lowered - chrome - to - the - hilt- souped up Peterbilt attached to a low boy filled with straw bales. And on piled the children! We arrived at the destination, with much air horn fanfare. The place was fantastic. And our new friend gave an amazing 'pep talk' to everyone there about how it is time we all started working together toward unity, "it doesn't matter what color we are, we could be pink or purple" and then he told everyone what we are up to down at the 'broken park' every Sunday.
I personally kind of stood there not quite sure what to think the whole time. There had to have been at least 100 people there. It got worse when two of the pastors from our church came up to both Koos and me and asked if we'd ever dreamed we'd be part of a breakthrough like this when we left Hay River. Apparently they have been praying long and hard for something like this to happen and we walked smack into the middle of it. No, actually, we'd dreamed we'd be smack in the middle of Brazil when we left Hay River, so what exactly is going on here?
Well, according to Stormie, I apparently shouldn't be concerned with what exactly is going on here, but rather I should just embrace the situation and go with it. My head tells me many conflicting things, "Don't get involved with these kids, you are going to fall in love with them and then have to leave." "If you choose this, Brazil is history before it even began." Shut up head. My heart tells me to listen to Stormie. And so, slowly but quietly, I think there is a change happening.
I came home from the Easter extravaganza and out of instinct, I checked out Rick's blog. He usually posts something new on the weekends. And sure enough there was a blog about some Brazilian kids who had had their first ever Easter hunt this year and his words describing that almost matched exactly the words our friend had given in his pep talk when he commented that this would be the first Easter egg hunt a lot of the kids here in Duncan would have had. Then I checked out a picture of the creature that a local had packed across Rick's property not too long ago (see link below) and it struck me that that wasn't so different from the whitetail deer carcass that had been suspended from someone's deck across from the 'broken park' a couple of weekends ago (next time I'll try get a picture!).
People are the same, and the Spirit is the same, all over the world, and they need to be introduced to one another. So for now, even though we don't understand it, and whether or not it seems to fit into the plans we had formulated, we are going to do our best to facilitate some of those introductions right here, in Duncan, in the Light that is shining on the step we happen to be on.
https://picasaweb.google.com/ritchard.bergen/EasterEggHunt
YES!! That is the journey! Your on the right path and I understand the struggle between the two! Lean into God and where He is breathing life, you will know and be assured He is leading you there. Don't worry about the time frame! It's all about the journey! Praying for you and Koos!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing!! This post was exactly what I needed right now.
ReplyDeleteThanks Kelsie for the encouragement, you've been such an inspiration! Cammy if anyone could relate to what we're feeling, I know it is you. You are in our hearts and prayers.
ReplyDelete