Planting-Watering-Growing

1 Corinthians 3:6-10

English Standard Version (ESV)

6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we areGod's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.

10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid afoundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it.

Here's a little story of that scripture realized for me:

When I went to Uganda last year I met a beautiful lady when we were doing an outreach ministry in a local slum.  I was attracted to her because she had the most beautiful baby that looked to be the same age as my Grand daughter whom I was missing very much.

One thing led to another and we invited this young lady to church with us.

She showed up.

We went to church and I got to hold her precious baby.

On the way home from church Kathy shared the gospel with  this young lady.  That was the 3rd time she heard it in just a few days...in the slum...in church....and while walking home from church.

It took hold. 

 She asked Jesus to be the Lord of her life that day.  She became a christian that very day.  She had started her day as a muslim and Jesus changed all that as she understood what He did for her and she wanted it.

We came home.

Kathy continued to disciple this young lady, and then Mollee, who is the missionary at Redeemer House picked up from there and began to disciple her and teach her God's Word.

Her husband remained a muslim and would beat her for her new faith in Jesus.   I got an e-mail asking me to pray for my friend. 

 I was heart broken for her.

But God!!!!! 

 He saw fit to bring more of the body into action and my sis and her hubby went to Uganda.

  As they were there they shared the gospel with my friend's hubby..because he was willing to listen to a man, although he would not sit on the furniture because of his muslim faith...he did not want to be "unclean". 

Justin kept speaking truth and my friend kept sharing her testimony, and after a few meetings, Jesus saved this man. 

 He became Christian!!!  

Justin got to baptize my friend and I got to pick her new name...as her old name was a muslim name... and then just a few weeks later Josh, another part of this body, baptized her hubby.

In 6 days, I get to go and see my friend and love on her a bit and encourage her and be encouraged by all that has taken place in a year's time.  

It has been quite a year for both of us. 

God is GOOD!!!  

Baptism

I'm going to get baptized.  

I got baptized by my Grandpa when I was 8. 

 It was the real deal...I remember it...I meant it, and I understood it,

 (as much as any 8 year old can mean it and understand it).

 I have always thought I was good to go....I had THAT marked off the list.

But lately, and I mean for awhile now, I have been thinking the Lord is telling me to get baptized again.

 He is not backing off, He is convicting me stronger and stronger every time the subject comes up. 

 I have given Him and anyone who will listen to me every reason I can think of that I don't need to do this.

I said to my older sis recently, that I don't want to act legalistic and do it.

I explained that I am not questioning my salvation or my relationship with the Lord.

People can get all tangled up with questioning their relationship and their

 salvation if it is based in

"activities I have done".

 For example:  We can get so tangled up with fitting into our little religious boxes of things to do and not do.....did I wear the right thing...did I think the right thoughts...did I hold my breath just right....did I raise my hand long enough when I asked Jesus into my heart...did I pray loud enough...did I really mean it, and the list goes on and on.

(Notice all the I's in that sentence...it's nothing I did...it's always about who

 HE IS AND WHAT HE DID FOR ME AND YOU.)

...and she said...

maybe by your NOT doing it, when you are clearly being asked to, you are being legalistic.  

For example: I already checked that mark off the list, and even though in my heart I know what He is telling me....I keep pointing to that time when I was 8, and the check list that is so neatly marked off.

OUCH!!!  Truth hurts sometimes. 

I can give you a few reasons why I think the Lord is asking me to do this and I can give you 100 reasons why I don't need want to....and I have discussed every single one of those with the Lord in great detail...and I keep getting the same answer....

JUST DO IT!!! 

Here is the bottom line, I feel like He's telling me to do this, and we have been learning a lot about obedience at church, and SO....I'm just going to do it because

 He said so! 

 I don't know why He is telling me to do it again, and I honestly do not WANT to...I would rather get on a plane and go to Africa...but I do want to be obedient and SO, I'm just going to

 DUNK my PRIDE and my FEAR

 and do it

HUMBLY AND AFRAID.

I have thought about Peter...and when Jesus told him to come out of the boat and walk on water with Him...Peter didn't ask 

WHY?  You didn't tell everyone else to get out of the boat!

 he just

 DID IT.

I love to encourage people to get baptized..... why would I not be willing to

 DO

 what I encourage others to

 DO.  

One last part to this...I really just want Charlie to fill up the bathtub and dunk me and I can tell the Lord,

 "THERE, I DID IT!"

BUT, I kinda know THAT is not what He means. He isn't just interested in my

 "action",

 He's interested in my heart and my obedience and apparently my transparency.

Because I went from...let's just get this done in the privacy of my own bathtub...to hey, I'll just blog about it.  

UGH!

We were discussing this very topic at Bible Study on Thursday and something that stuck out to me is this:

My walk with the Lord is very different than it was when I was 8

 (thanks be to God),

and  if this is a step of faith for me to further my relationship with Him.....

DUNK ME AGAIN!!!

Quote from Amy.  :)

Perspective

I have a very fresh perspective on some things right now.

 I have a front row seat with several people that have recently lost a loved one or are losing a loved one.
 It's difficult and holy at the same time.
 I see these people that have their focus right on target.

It's as if people get tunnel vision.

 Living out every minute with intention.
 They aren't necessarily whipping the world into shape and getting everything under the sun done with a list of to-dos......they are taking the moments as they get them and living and speaking with such conviction and truth.
  The filters are gone and everything that is said and done is with one filter...and that filter is

God's Word.

The Way, the Truth and the Life.

Jesus!

It's as if the fluff and distraction and lies of this world are intolerable and everything gets very focused and yet urgent.

  Urgent to LOVE and LIVE!

There is an urgency to let people know WHO LOVE is and WHO LIFE is all about.

People get very honest and blunt.

It is hard to watch suffering and sadness, but I love the perspective that comes.

 I pray there is peace and relief for those that are suffering or grieving, but I pray that we are  never the same, that we never forget this "perspective" and this "urgency" and this "intentional living".

It is Holy Ground. 

Would I Do Anything??

The Lord was preparing me for something about a month ago and I didn't even know it.

  I was running and just spending some time praying and it came to my mind...

"Would I do anything the Lord asked of me?" 

 Whenever I get that question I instantly throw Charlie under the bus.

  I say, 

 "Yes, Lord...Charlie will do anything, and we are one, so technically, yes".  lol

  And I go on to say, "I will support and pray and help Charlie do whatever you throw our way." 

 So I finished by knowing I had every good reason to not do anything out of the ordinary. 

 Of course I went through the list of why I'm not a good one to call on.

  I went through the list of things I can't do,

 I emphasized ALL my weaknesses, and there are many, 

 and then I went through the list of  my kids, and there are many,

 and then the list of  things I'm responsible for, and there are many,

 and felt like I let myself off the hook for everything outside of my

 safe and comfortable home and routine.

About 3 weeks after that little talk with the Lord, it came up that someone would need to go to Uganda and take our newest missionary there to serve in Redeemer House.

  I instantly did my usual default and threw Charlie right under that bus...I said, "It's only logical...he is going at the end of December...we can just change his ticket."

  All the while I knew...I knew and remembered the conversation me and the Lord had just recently had.  

As it turned out Charlie crawled out from under the bus that I threw him under and  he explained to me that he is unable to change his schedule.  

Several of us committed to pray for the Lord to send the right person....again,

 all the while...knowing it was me.  

I woke up in the night one night and was wrestling through the whole thing and I said,

 "OK, Lord I will go, but I just ask one thing...the kids need to go on and not miss a beat...because I know and you know Lord, we are all still bonding and adjusting to having a new big wonderful treasure in our family (our newest child), 

and he does 

 NOT

 need to have any crazy changes....not even for a week or a day". 

As the Lord would have it....Lashae and Maubry and maybe one other sweet niece get to come and be better than just me for a week!!

 I have to thank the Lord for going above and beyond anything I could have requested and also I need to thank Lashae and Miss Maubry for being willing servants to come and without a hint of hesitation and I thank my wonderful Son-in-Law for "sending" his wife without hesitation. 

GOD IS SUPER SUPER GOOD!!!!

I will post more about the details later...I haven't even had a chance to fill my family in.  :)

Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant!!

My precious mother in law, Marcella, got to meet her
 Lord and  Savior,
 her King,
 her ALL IN ALL today.
 There is a part of me that is jealous, but then I think of  how many lives she effected to come to know their Savior too, and it inspires me to LIVE this life out and do the same.

  She has lived an amazing life of  LOVE.

 She is standing before her precious Jesus and He is saying to her,

 "Well done, good and faithful servant."

Every talent He ever gave her, she used for Him.

  She has been a servant and faithful, and one of the biggest blessings in my life.
 This woman has taught me more about a life of faith, and love and servant-hood than any other person on this planet.
  She never preached at people, but she lived it and she spoke truth
ALWAYS.

She reflected her LORD. 

We will miss her terribly, but we are happy that she got to meet her sweet Jesus today.
  She left this earth with NO doubt in anyone's mind where she was going, or what she believed.

She lived her faith in Jesus
 EVERYDAY.

  She has lived her entire life waiting for this moment, 
living for this day,
 for meeting Jesus face to face. 

 She has always known what it is truly all about.
  She has had her priorities and her heart right. 

 It's not Jesus first and then family and then........

It's Jesus and Jesus ONLY. 

 Just Him!!! All Him!!!

 That is what her life has been about, and out of that has come some pretty amazing family and friends and talents and joy. 

 She got it right!
 And now she is standing before the Lord with the righteousness of Christ!!!!
A joint heir with Jesus.

 How amazing is that????

I will miss her as will so many.

  Willy Bill, the love of her life on this earth that has been with her

 FAITHFULLY

 for 47 years.

He has loved her well, and taken care of her with the utmost attention and love!!
  

This man has stepped up more than ANY man I have ever known.

 He is patient, and attentive, and faithful and loving, and I could go on for pages, but there is not enough room in bloggy land for all he has done.

  I'm so thankful for him and so proud of him.

These are her 3 kids.
  She loved them, and she taught them EVERYTHING that matters.

JESUS

She would have them memorize CHAPTERS of the Bible.
 They didn't like it much at the time...NOW, they are thankful and grounded in
 His Word!

 She taught them with her life AND with her instruction.

The thing that I would say summed up
 Marcella Grace Brewer
 is her acceptance of others.  
She loved the Lord so much, that she

 LOVED like HIM.  

She did not care who you were or where you were from, what color, what belief, what you looked like or lived like,

she LOVED!!!!!

 She loved like Jesus loves.

Uncomfortable Grace

Recently I was faced with a day that felt like the  "perfect storm", and I have to add...that storm started about 15 minutes after I purchased a ticket for Charlie to go to Uganda.

  Among a few warning winds, I came face to face with a situation that we are 7 years passed.  

7 years ago we had to walk through a situation in our lives that

 "rocked our boat"

 to say the very least. 

 And the hardest part for me to swallow, even all these 7 years later....is why....what?  We felt like we had prayed it through, we do NOT claim to have done everything perfectly, but we absolutely sought the Lord with all we knew how.  

We felt like what we embarked on was exactly what the Lord had for us, and it made so much sense and it went through and every step of the process, was a step a faith, but confirming that we were where the Lord placed us, He confirmed in so many ways.

And shortly after we were in the situation, it was 

 train wreck. 

 An absolute train wreck. 

 I have made peace with it all, but have often asked...

"WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS THAT ALL ABOUT?"

I saw this video last week, even before the day of the

 "perfect storm"

and all I can think is:

UNCOMFORTABLE GRACE.

That is the answer to the question I have asked over and over.

You have to watch this 6 minute video to understand what I'm talking about. 

 Warning:  This video is NOT the prosperity Gospel...it does not claim that life will be roses and smiles if you follow the Lord...it tells the TRUTH of the GOSPEL.

  The real GOOD NEWS!!!

And it is such GOOD NEWS and such wild GRACE!!!!

A Piece of Heaven

I have a couple of confessions:  
We are church junkies
 and
 we crave Uganda like it's a piece of heaven.

Why?  This is what I have been asking the Lord.

"God's Spirit lives in us when we know Him,

 sooooo,

 why not stay home or at least in the same country?"

I have been wondering....what in the world is our problem.  :) 
(please don't answer that..bloggy people)

 Church is wonderful and it's good to go,
 but why do we want to be there every time the doors are open?

  It's not out of guilt or duty....
it's a desire, a draw, a joy.  

I have been in great churches my whole life, I enjoy it I learn from it, I love the people.

You  would think that after 42 years of
 "church going"
 I would be used to it, and make time for it, but not plan the week around it...right?

  WRONG.

It's an addiction. 

 I'm addicted to Jesus!  

I'm addicted to His presence.  
The more I experience Him, the more I want. The
 GOOD NEWS

is, there is plenty MORE where that came from.  

He is the living water.  I can drink it up as fast and as much as I can....and there's always MORE. 

James 4:8

English Standard Version (ESV)

8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

When you have felt the sweet presence of Jesus, you want more. 

 When you get to know Him, who He really is, not just a God to say you know or a God to throw a prayer up to when you are in need of something you want, but
 Him, His presence, His power,
you can't get enough...you just want more.  

The thing that makes it extra sweet, for us, is we get to attend church with people who have been some of our dearest friends for years and years, and also some new friends.
 We have loved these old friends, but not necessarily worshiped together....and  we sit and listen, and sing and pray and praise

 TOGETHER. 

 I'm telling you...that is what heaven is going to be like.

It is a piece of heaven on earth!  

Here's a side effect of a Jesus addiction:  We can spend time with Him alone, and get to know Him, so that when we go to church we recognize Him and His Spirit and we can enjoy it with many friends.

  He wants us to experience MORE of Him...He wants us to enjoy being together and lifting His name up together.  He can minister to us when we are alone in our houses and out doing our thing...but when he is present with us in a group and we see the love of Jesus in our friends, it multiplies in crazy  ways.

Matthew 5:14-16

English Standard Version (ESV)

14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that[a] they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

It hit me this morning that the "city set on a hill"  is a picture of many 

"lights"

 coming together....

CHURCH!!!

As far as our Uganda thing....well, there are a couple of draws...besides the obvious one that one of our children is Ugandan and we will forever love and be connected to that country.  Also,Uganda is crazy populated and there is more

 visible

 evil and darkness there, but there is also this undeniable

 Spirit

 in the people that know Him. 

 These people live in difficult circumstances, like we have never  known, and when they learn about Jesus, when they trust in Him....they are

 changed and amazed

 and they live for HIM whole heatedly.  

They aren't just a "light"...they are
 BRIGHT LIGHTS.

They cling to Him like they have nothing else to live for.

That's all they have and that's truly ALL  any of us have, but it is easier to  fool ourselves, when we have so much.

 So in the crazy populated, third world darkness...there is a quiet and a slowing down and a 

 LIGHT

 that we can see that is BRIGHT and draws us closer to Him, reminds us of how big He is and how small we are.  God has blessed us with friends that we get to see when we go there, and a connection that only comes from fellow

JESUS ADDICTS.