Back in the 'Burg

This is the picture our friend entered in the photography contest for Testify magazine.

This is our new van the Lord provided for us. Can you guess what the side says??

We are back in Missouri! Cody, Samuel and I arrived about 2 weeks ago. We have enjoyed spending time with friends and family we haven't seen in about 6 months.

For those who don't know we gave our Ford escort away before we left Missouri in December. We believed the Lord would provide a vehicle for us when we needed one and He did! Before we parted from our friends that we had been traveling with the past 5 months they saidthe Lord wanted them to give us their van! The same day they told us this, they received a call from a friend who said they felt led to buy their family a car! How awesome is our God!

A few days ago while Cody was in prayer one morning in the van, he began to smell coffee in the Spirit. There was no coffee to be found. Soon after he was given a vision of the coffee shop down town. The Lord told us to go there, so we did. When we pulled into a parking space there was a woman knocking on the window of our van. Cody got out and found out that she had been sitting at the coffee shop reading her bible. She wanted to enter a magazine photography contest and felt like seeing our van was a sign that she should still enter it since that day was the deadline and she had no pictures yet. We hung out with her and her kids all day. She took us out to lunch, snapped photos, and we had the privilege of ministering to her. Talk about a divine appointment!!

Samuel is 18 months now!! I can't believe he's already 1 1/2! Cody recently taught him to say "ouch" when he gets a boo-boo. He will say it and lift up his pant legs to show the scrapes on his knees. If I say "moo" or "ruff ruff" he can imitate me. And if he's playing with a car he will go "vroom vroom." He can point to his nose if we ask him where his nose is. He's also really good at waving and will wave at people driving by when we go for a walk. If he wants to go outside he will bring me his shoes and sit on my lap, so we can put them on. He is also doing really well at following directions. I will ask him to give me something and he can do it. He also likes to help me load and unload the dishwasher and put clothes in the dryer. We went to a friends house last night for a bible study and our friend gave Samuel a bike that was too small for their son. Samuel loves riding his new bike and being outside.

Arizona Sun

Samuel loves anything with wheels...

The biggest tumble weed I've ever seen!! It was rolling down the middle of the road by the house!

This is the water park I take Samuel to. It's only about a mile away.

A little late in posting, but this video is from Samuel's 1st birthday party at my parents house in December. Check out those moves, he's got rhythm.

Arizona

We have been in Arizona for about a month now. We came to Chandler, AZ to bring some friends back here and are staying at Julian's brothers house. I always had a desire to see the place where my brother was born. (I love you, Tim!) One of the things we have done with the kids is go to the Phoenix Zoo. Samuel's favorite part was the area made especially for kids with things to climb on. Cody and I also went to the movies and saw The Cross. I think everyone should see this movie. It is a documentary about Arthur Blessitt. Arthur answered the Lords call on his life to walk around the world carrying a cross on his shoulder. He traveled to every country on every continent. He started in 1969 and walked through the last country this year. He shared the gospel along the way with the people he met. It was a really powerful movie and I just wanted to love people and tell them about Jesus after I saw it. Sharing the gospel with people has been a struggle for me in the past. Because I have been afraid that I wouldn't have the right words or that they would reject me. The truth is that God says if we open our mouth He will fill it. And if someone rejects me for telling them that Jesus loves them, they aren't really rejecting me, they are rejecting God. So, if it doesn't hurt to share the gospel with someone, why not do it? I don't know when Jesus is coming back, but I believe He is coming sooner than the majority of the Church believes. I want to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to everyone that I meet because I don't know where their soul is headed. People get ready, Jesus is coming! The harvest is ripe and the workers are few. The Lord is good and I love getting to work with Him here on earth. I want to encourage you not to be afraid to share Jesus with someone. You may be the vessel the Lord uses to offer them eternal life.

Yesterday the Lord helped me talk to 4 people about Jesus and it was awesome! Afterwards I realized that it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be in the first place. Two of the people spoke Spanish and no English so this was a bit of a challenge. Amongst all of the other broken up Spanish I told them, "Jesus Christo amor tu." I hope they understood what I was trying to tell them:) Meeting these two Spanish guys really gave me a renewed desire to learn Spanish again. Earlier that day I wished that I had a Spanish book and the Lord provided one for me later that day. I found one sitting in the middle of the road. Someone must have thrown it out their car window!

Samuel is 16 months old. He can shake his head "no" and he loves to jabber on the phone. He likes to follow the other kids around and be where the action is at. And at the same time, he isn't afraid to venture off by himself. He loves anything with wheels, skateboards, tricycles, skooters, stollers...if it has wheels he either wants to push it or ride it. He also likes to throw balls, run after them and has even caught a football. He has a total of 12 teeth and but doesn't like to sit still and eat for too long, cause he would rather be on his feet doing something :) He helped me put some silverware in the dishwasher yesterday. He also likes to play in water. Yesterday was the first time he would get in the swimming pool with mom and dad. He will let me walk in the pool while holding him in my arms. Unfortunately, he got his first bee stings yesterday at the pool. He reached out and pick up the bee, and got stung in his right pointer finger. His finger did swell up, but Daddy was able to get it out with tweezers and he was ready to go play again.

It has been 4 months since we left Missouri with a couple suitcases and Samuel's carseat. The Lord has been faithful to take care of us as we go on this journey with Him. We have never gone a day without food in our bellies, a roof over our heads and every other need met. God is awesome and greatly to be praised.

Below I have included a poem that Cody wrote a couple weeks ago.


Shifting shadows and abstract voices
Rule the insanity of deceits choices.
Pride parades itself in fiction, fantasy, and make belief;
The absence of love and the enemy of reality.
Truth is love and love is truth,
Constant, unshakable, the plumb line is truth.
Hope, peace, and grace are fragrances of love;
Pillars of the kingdom reigning above.
Love inhabits eternity;
Three in one harmonizing the holy symphony.
Burning passions and embedded impossibilities;
Love's highest calling was dying on a rugged tree.

Love was embodied in the helplessness of an infants cry;
The genesis of Love's mission to lay down and die.
There was no injustice He did not taste;
Compassion raged against the hatred of the human race.
Love lived to die that we might love;
Like a lamb to the slaughter He came from heaven above.
Like an unmovable stone, He tarried on sufferings road;
Bent on mercy He carried the fullness of sins load.
Love chose the cross to display His power;
Death, hell and the grave vanquished in the same hour.
Three days underground love buried the curse of mans sin;
Like a jealous warrior, Love was the victor and rose again.
Love's name is Jesus the Christ;
The beloved Son of God, who spilled His blood at ransoms price.
If you ever face the lie that you are not loved this day;
The proof is at the cross where Loves body did lay.

15 Months and Counting

Samuel is 15 months old today! Can you believe it. He is becoming more handsome everyday and looking more and more like his daddy! We are amazed at all the things he can do and look forward to watching him learn how to make more sounds. Samuel has moved on from "baby food" for the most part. He has 10 teeth fully in and two more working there way through. He can walk really fast and looks like he's almost running sometimes. He has a friend named Selah who had her 1st birthday yesterday. They are becoming best buds. They both like to listen to music and dance. They will go up to the stereo and turn it up really loud. Then they dance. Samuel's favorite move is to sway his head back and forth like a lion. One day Samuel even took her hand, dancing to the music he bounced up and down. They can be affectionate too. They sometimes give eachother hugs and Selah gave him a kiss on the cheek yesterday. We'll keep you updated on their relationship :)

Through prayer Cody and Julian felt led to apply at Google. They are applying through our friend Teresa's department. She overseas the department that is scanning a ton of books. Google wants to have books available online for the public. So that is what her department is doing. It seems like monotonous work, but they can listen to music on an ipod and there is no dress code! They have completed the online application and are going to do the online test next. We will keep you posted. In the past couple weeks I have started home schooling an 11 year old girl who is staying with us. It is a fun challenge to plan lessons and think of things that will be fun, but educational for her to do each day. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday we do Math, Spelling, Reading and Language Arts. On Tuesday and Thursday she joins with Liam (Rachelle's 7 yr old) for Science, History and Geography. Rachelle teaches Science, I do History and we teach Geography together. This week we have been learning about South America in Geography. I enjoy teaching and look forward to homeschooling Samuel.

First Day at the Beach

Vera, Moses and Samuel

Cody got back from his trip to Phoenix, AZ on Sunday, February 8th, early in the morning. I woke up to him standing over me. It was a wonderful surprise! The day before they got back Rachelle and I took the kids to the beach. We had a great time. Samuel loves to get in water and was not afraid to walk right in. He didn't even mind that it was a little cold. I was glad that I brought an extra set of clothes because he fell in and got soaked. I let him go around in his diaper for a while after he fell in. Then when he fell in the water again, I gave him some dry clothes. And as you might be wondering...yes, he did try to eat the sand :0)

February 13-16, we went to the World Christian Conference at the Alliance Redwoods. The conference was put on by the World Christian Fellowship (WCF). The WCF seeks to enable and mobilize Asian American Christians and those who closely identify with the Asian American world view to fulfill their calling. Our friend Albert was heading up the children's ministry and Cody and I volunteered to help. We had a great time hanging out and doing crafts and activities with the children while their parents went to the different sessions throughout the day. One of the speakers I got to hear was Michele Rickett. She is the Founder of Sisters of Service, an innovative ministry that informs, mobilizes, and equips advocates for global outreach to women and children in the least Christian regions. She has worked with women and children who have been victims to human trafficking and sex trade. My heart was moved as I listened to her share testimonies of women and children who are victims to this in other countries and even in the U.S.A. I want to look into this more and see how I can help these women and children who are coming out of such horrible situations.

Children's Discovery Museum in San Jose

The Adventure Begins....

Could this be Samuel in 2 years ??

Samuel with Christmas present from Great Grandma and Grandpa Black.

Enjoying his birthday cake at Great Grandma Morris' on Christmas Eve.

Samuel drinking from a straw celebrating his birthday at Grandma and Grandpa Bowler's.

We had a great time with Cody's family for Christmas and New Year's. It was nice to have an extended visit with them and they enjoyed getting to spend time with Samuel. He has changed a lot over the past month. Samuel not only likes to take his blocks out of the container, he also likes to put them back in! Samuel likes to pick up objects and bring them to me. He knows how to feed himself with a spoon also! He doesn't always get it in every time, but he is doing a great job learning. One of Samuel's new nick names is "The Climber" because that's his new favorite thing to do. If it's there, he'll try and climb it. Today he had fun climbing on the chairs and then onto the kitchen table!! So, do not leave him alone in a room! Once he gets onto the table he likes to pick up things and throw them off!

Before leaving to come to California to see Cody's family we felt we were going to be staying here longer than we had originally thought. Not knowing exactly how long we would be in California, we felt led to end our lease at our apartment. We also felt the Lord leading us to give away many of our things. We gave the majority of our furniture to a friend who is a manager of an apartment complex. They plan on opening apartments to the homeless and discipling them.

Samuel and I are staying with some friends in San Jose while Cody and Julian are traveling down southern California to Arizona right now. They are sharing the gospel along the way and seeing people come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. In one testimony, they went to a skate park and were sharing the gospel with some teenagers. The majority of them were resistant to it, but one of them stuck around after the others left. He said that he felt like the reason they came all the way from Kansas City to California was to tell him about Jesus. He made a decision that day to live his life for the Lord!

Even though it is hard sometimes to be apart from Cody, I know the Lord has a purpose for it. With Cody being on this trip, the Lord has revealed to me how much I depend on Cody. I long to spend more time with the Lord and long to hear His voice. I am learning how to trust in the Lord in all things and He is teaching me how to hear His voice in greater ways. He has also been using this time to prune and refine my heart and reveal things that I didn't realize were in my heart.

I have found that as we have left our home and the majority of our belongings behind that I am left with Jesus. It's true that at the end of it all, all we have is Jesus. He is all we will have when we die and He is ultimately all that we can hold onto in this life. I desire to be filled with His love in such a way that when I meet other people, His love spills out of me and they are consumed by His love for them.

Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." Matthew 19:21

Then Peter answered and said to Him, "See we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?" So Jesus said to them, "...everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first." Matthew 19:27, 29, and 30

We all are happy to have Cody back with us!! Since he got back we have been blessed to spend a lot of time together with family and friends. Heather and Jay came to Missouri for Thanksgiving and we enjoyed hanging out with them at my parents. We are now getting ready for our trip to California. We fly out there on December 18th. We are excited to see the Morris'. This will be Samuel's 1st plane ride (outside of the womb). We will bring toys, books, cheerios and hope he will take a nap sometime during the flight :) While visiting my parents they wanted to give him his birthday present early. We can learn the alphabet with his new talking and singing catepillar. Samuel is making new "guh" and "duh" sounds. He can also climb up and down the stairs like a pro. When we go outside he likes to walk, so I don't carry him as much. He's singing a lot more and dances when we listen to music. He also likes to climb and explore. We love our boy!

He's a Walkin' Man

Samuel took his first steps on his own October 21st!! He has been practices his walking quite a bit and is doing very well. It's hard to believe how fast my little boy is growing. And he isn't so little anymore. He will be 11 months old on the 14th. And he weighs 21 lbs. 8 oz and is 30 inches long. Samuel and I went to a conference in Chicago with some friends this weekend. Our favorite speaker was Heidi Baker. If you are not familiar with her, she and her husband are missionaries in Mozambique and the countries of South East Africa. They minister and share the gospel with the poor and the orphans. They have seen thousands of people give their lives to the Lord and witnessed blind eyes see and deaf ears hear. I love her passion for the Lord and how she loves people. Cody has been on a ministry trip for about a month. Cody and the guys he works with traveled to Indiana, Ohio, Arizona and California to share the gospel. They have seen many people accept Jesus, be healed, delivered and baptized. We are excited for what the Lord is doing. Cody will be coming back home soon and we look forward to seeing him!

9 months

Samuel wants to play
Samuel with his friend Elisha. She is 6 1/2 months old. Cale and Samuel

Samuel is crawling really fast now and does really well holding onto things while he walks. If I turn over a hamper, he will push it in front of him while he walks! He says mama and dada on a regular basis and gets a reaction from us every time. He gets really excited when Cody brings out the guitar. If Cody stands up to play, Samuel will try to climb his legs to get to it! He also enjoys having play time with babies and children. When I take Samuel for a walk in his stroller by the park, he gets excited and wants to get out and play with the kids. I started watching Cale, who is 3 mos. old a couple days a week and Samuel enjoys the company.

On Saturday night we went to the city to feed the homeless. This was the first time I had done this and it was a life changing experience. We went with some friends who live in Kansas City. We made breakfast burritos with scrambled eggs, potatoes, green bell pepper, and onion. We also brought corn on the cob, apples, donuts and soda. The Lord provided all the food for us. We didn't have to pay for any of it. We prayed before we went and asked the Lord to direct us to where we should go and who we should talk to. The first person Julian and Cody talked with while the rest of us stayed in the van and prayed. Bobby was his name and he was a veteran. He was a Christian and they got to pray with him, give some food and give him a Bible. We pulled over at a bus stop and Julian talked with two older men. One took the food that was offered to him, but the other man refused. Julian asked the other man if he could leave some for him to have later and the man said no. Julian asked if he could give them a Bible. The first man said the had one and the second man said, "I want one of those!" He had lost his Bible and was grateful to receive a new one. He wasn't hungry for food, he was hungry for the Word of God! At another spot we saw someone sleeping on a bench covered with newspaper. Julian got out to leave some food with a Bible beside the bench and realized it was a man and woman, nicely dressed. The man had a little bit of facial hair like he might have not shaved for a day or so. Julian thought they may have just lost their business and that's why they were on the streets. We got to minister to many others that night. It was awesome to be the hands and feet of Jesus. I feel like I have been missing out on a big part of Biblical Christianity. Feeding the poor and pointing them towards Jesus is something necessary in every Christians life. Even if you don't feel "called" to be an evangelist, the Lord can use you to give someone a hug, a word of encouragement, a piece of bread or a cup of water. We know from the scriptures that Jesus ministered in the temple to believers, to tax collectors, prostitutes and the poor. He wasn't afraid to get on their level and hang out with them. He loved them. The Lord shares a lot about his thoughts towards the poor in His Word.

"He who oppresses the poor reproaches his Maker, but he who honors Him has mercy on the needy." Prv. 14:31 NKJV

"He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker..." Prv. 17:5

"He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given." Prv. 19:17

"He who has a generous eye will be blessed, for he gives of his bread to the poor." Prv. 22:9

"Do not rob the poor because he is poor, nor oppress the afflicted at the gate; for the Lord will plead their cause, and plunder the soul of those who plunder them." Prv. 22:22-23

"Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out; when you see the naked, that you cover him, and not hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.'" Isaiah 58:6-9

"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me, because the Lord has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor..." Isaiah 61:1

"When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your
relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lamed, the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just." Lk. 14:12:14