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God Stories
Clay Family Extreme Home Makeover
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The Waterboyz for Jesus
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Frederick, MD 21703
MEMO: Clay Family Kingdom EXTREME Makeover
MORE KINGDOM FRUIT - Serving is planted in another community
HI Everyone, I just love it!!!!!! That would be so awesome to be a part of something like this. What a special thing to be able to do that for a family just for fun! I would like to start a little group to do small things for people. I love the whole extreme makeover. I really miss you all and send tons of hugs, Shelly
A God appointment for Victor:
I would like to thank God for the chance to do His work with you all, what a great week it was. Let me start by letting you all know what God did for me in this walk of serving in His name. The last time I was in this neighborhood was when my son Dominick died as we lived at 101 meadowlark a few houses up from the clay family. When I first read the e-mail that was sent out on this. I said "no way was I going to be a part of this one. Just was not going to happen….!" God had a different plan for me; I felt this strong pull, it had to be a God thing, there had to be a reason why God wanted me to be a part of this. Some healing thing I guess, I just wasn't sure what it was. It was hard at first to drive in to the neighborhood then I don’t even remember driving in. God was at work even with something as small as driving in. Praise and grace to Him. So Monday came and there was a lot to get done, so all of you could come and serve. As I was getting the walls ready here comes a Lily to help .I placed a caulk gun in her hand and off she went. Let's not forget the boyz and lilyz that had to clean out the house on Friday and Saturday and the two boyz that came after church on Sunday to start working on getting the wall in shape. Back to Monday, floor needed to be sealed due to all the damage from all the cats the family has. (Stinky big time) Tuesday came it was 8:00 am. I was talking to Bernie on the phone giving him an update on where we stood, which was not good at the time. Then I was invaded by waterlilyz 8 or 10 I don’t know there were a lot of them. So men if would like to know where your ladyz where and with whom on Tuesday? Yes they were with me and I have to tell you it was cool to have so many pretty lilyz instead of you hairy men LOL. They went right to work doing the dirty job of sanding dry wall and mudding for hours to make all the walls ready for paint, taping up windows if it needed taped up they did it, cleaned up all the dust, so I could spray the job, then I got a call from Jodi Foss to let me know that there were more lilyz coming that night. I had to tell her 'no' i was not ready for them to tape off all the trim so we all could paint. You could have heard a pin drop I was kind of scared of what the head lily was going to say next LOL. It was all good but I was still scared. By the end of Tuesday night I was ready for all to come and help. Wednesday: There where people all over doing all kinds of things. By 7:00 pm. The top 2 floors where 85% done as far as painting. What great job from you all you made me look good when it was all of you who need the credit not me…GOD was at work.
Then the devil stepped in, and my wallet was taken by someone who needed it more than I did. Found out on Thursday when I went to the bank that someone had charged up about 500 dollar’s yes I said 'why did I even come back here to this neighborhood?' I was good and mad! when I went home then our God stepped in. I was no longer mad! He was at work in me, He showed me GRACE in how I could deal with bad things that may happen in my life. You can have GRACE. When things go wrong in our walk with Him we just have to listen. He will take your hand if we just let Him and give you GRACE in all parts of life. Looking back I am glad my wallet got taken, so He may give me the gift of GRACE. Now I know why I needed to be there Thank you Jesus for the gift….
All went well with the next two days we just kicked some butt, praise to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. A JOB WELL DONE TO ALL THE BOYZ, LILYZ AND TOO ALL WHO ARE NOT APART OF A TABLE YET. GO TO THE WATERBOYZ OR WATERLILYZ WEB SITE TO SEE A TABLE NEAR YOU.
Praise God thank you all for being part of this… Victor D Gonzalez #82
Another report about Everett!
Thank you so much for sharing this! This really lifted my spirits today! I believe Everett will be coming to church with us again this Sunday. This is huge because he is the FIRST in his family to come to the Lord. I'm giving him a New Believer's Bible today! Last Sunday, I gave him a copy of Wild at Heart and he has started reading it! Maybe we could look at possibly doing a scholarship for Everett to attend the Wild at Heart Boot camp?? (Everett has a scholarship!) I know Ben wants to go and we are saving up for his ticket but I don't think we could afford to pay for Everett's ticket as well. Everett has been so moved by this experience and he has talked with Ben at length about "trying this religion thing out". I am so overjoyed by this whole experience and I just LOVE God's timing. He does want to come to more Waterboyz events and service projects so he is just jumping in with both feet and it is GOOD!
Blessings and Peace,
Joy Brunnelson
"Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who don't need to repent." (Luke 15:4-7)
More Stories and Updates from Saturday
Everyone,
I want to thank all those who prayed for Everett Estes, everyone who spoke to him and everyone on the project because he did see the Kingdom working.
When he left with my brother Ben he told him that he really liked working on the house and he wanted to check this Waterboyz thing out. Ben told him that it was no joke and a serious commitment. On Sunday Ben arrived a little late to church followed by his wife and son. And then came Everett.
I wept. I truly can't remember being any happier to see someone in church that him. Everett saw God at work and I hope and pray that he will see that God loves him and that he is valuable to God's family. Please please please keep praying for him and thank you for the prayers that helped get him to church Sunday.
In Christ,
Jon Brunnelson
Well Paul - Its Monday and even though I have tons of things to do that I
didn't do last week there is a huge letdown setting in .! I miss the
action, meeting and working with people I didn't know from not only DRCCC but from so many other churches as well. On the first day when I was taking the old shower out of the master bath I thought "are we going to be able to
do this? " The enormity of the project and the time constraints seemed
overwhelming but God made it happen!! I want to thank you and the
leadership for all you have done with the boyz and lilies. especially I want to thank Bernie for his style of leading. I told Bernie in my years of coaching baseball and basketball and football I always admired coaches who stayed calm no matter the pressure or the "bad news" happening all around.
That calmness was displayed time and time again by Bernie and showed the "players" that everything was under control and was going to be alright.
How lucky are we to have not only a Bernie but people like Victor who so unselfishly gave of their time and leadership. my daughter sheree made the welcome home sign that was on the light pole and was blessed by seeing what the church of Christ can do when it works together without worrying about
who gets the credit!
Your Old Guy Buddy,
tony d
Clay Family Home Makeover Update
Day 8 Saturday
The crowd spilling out of the Clays' freshly landscaped front yard by 6:00 is not only people who worked inside during the week, but curious neighbors who've been invited to share a pizza and soda picnic and watch the homecoming of the Clay family. Vickie, Mark's caretaker for ten years now, is especially excited to watch his reaction, being closely acquainted with the "before picture".
As Jeff and Will finished their night shift and went home for a few hours' sleep, the PODS returned and were unloaded this morning. The family's possessions were moved back in along with new or gently-used furniture. Back on the first day one woman commented, "I'm just amazed that Sharon could trust strangers to go through their stuff and decide what to keep and what to pitch!" (On the other hand, who could be better suited for that assignment than a bunch of moms?) Inside some of those women are now staging the rooms-making up beds with new linens and comforters, hanging curtains, art and reframed family pictures. They're even stocking the kitchen with food.
Although at 3:00 "things still looked pretty grim," according to Paul, one of the project coordinators, great progress has been made in three hours.
The backyard storage shed is been finished and filled. A critical but lost
piece of Mark's hospital bed is found. A wide-screen TV is installed. The
front door is hung. The handicapped bathroom cannot be finished until next week, and the deck will be painted then too.
A hand-painted Welcome Home Clay Family sign hangs on the lamp post. The crowd lines the sidewalk, cheering as the Clays are chauffeured back down their street and escorted up the front steps. Photographers shoot a crowd picture from the second floor windows as we hold an enormous "THANK YOU" banner to be sent to the donors, suppliers and contractors who supported this marathon. Paul speaks briefly, giving the numbers-250 volunteers, 20 churches, 10 businesses-and giving glory "to the Lord Jesus Christ who planted his generous love in our hearts" and who orchestrated countless details to complete a total renovation in nine days, work that one carpenter estimated would have taken his company a month to do.
The Clays are speechless, smiling. After they are given a tour, the crowd is invited to remove their shoes and take a look. Granddaughter Skylar is already enjoying her playroom.
Soon we leave the family in peace, home again.
Matthew 25:37-40, from The Message translation:
"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me-you did it to me.'
Report from Saturday:
Thanks! Had to leave at 3pm, wish we could have stayed till 6pm, we would have loved to see the faces of the Clay family. Feels like we know them a little bit after taking care of all their things and their house. Hope everything went smoothly. I told my kids that every person there and every effort they made brought the Clay family closer to having a nice place to live. Every second, every movement, every breath, all God inspired. It was AWESOME to be part of it, thank you. See you tomorrow.
Can you please add Everett Estes to the list. He is Ben's childhood friend, and he and Ben along with Ben's dad installed most of the flooring in the house. I am praying that the Lord will really speak to his heart as a result of this time spent ministering to this family through these renovations. Thanks! (Pray in agreement with this - Everett saw the Church at its best!)
Post-Party report:
Dear Family,
Saturday was a roller coaster ride from beginning to end. I arrived at the Clay home around 8am on Saturday morning to find 10 or so people already there. I soon discovered that Will Maier and Jeff Bohraus had been there all night painting and putting down the flooring in the basement. Will told me he had never pulled an 'all-nighter' but the Lord kept giving him energy and strength and he just kept working. He had the coolest smile on his face!
Pretty soon there were 40 or so volunteers ready to do some serious Kingdom damage (read rebuilding broken walls and restoring what the enemy had stolen). We prayed in, drank some coffee and ate some donuts………….. yes I even saw a donut in Pastor Fredericks hand! Sang Courtney McFee a 'happy birthday' as she and her family had chosen to spend several hours serving as part of her birthday celebration. ……And then the doors of the two pods were opened the battle was on!
My daughter had driven from several hours away on Friday for us to celebrate her and her two sisters birthdays so around 11am I left for a few hours. When I returned around 3pm things looked pretty grim. The front yard and sidewalk was still pretty full, the basement, living room and deck were not close to being done, the volunteers had thinned out, and the workers were still building the shed out back. Oh yeah - and we couldn't find THE missing part for Mark's bed. "It just isn't working!"
Jodi and I reminded ourselves that God is sovereign and we rallied the troops. God brought renewed energy to us all and more volunteers started showing up. The bed part was found - Hallelujah! The Ladiez were AMAZING! And minute by minute, hour by hour things rounded into shape. By 5pm the last shutter was hung (almost sounds like a Christmas story), the shed was finished and stuffed with stuff, and each bedroom was finished, vacuumed, guarded against any last minute dirt, and the Suellen and her ladiez were finishing the living room.
Renee Henning and her krew had handed out invitations to the neighbors to come and see what God's people had done out of a response of love and gratitude………… in other words, the feast was set, the guests had arrived, and the guests of honor were the only thing missing. and then their van rounded the corner and the 100+ people broke into a cheer.
We remembered together that God took 7 days to create the world because He took the time to enjoy the journey. He gave us 9 days to BE the church, to experience fellowship together, to give a watching world a glimpse of what the Kingdom really looks like - 250+ volunteers from 20+ churches along with 10+ businesses - laughing, talking, praying, singing, crying, oh yeah and working together to right a wrong.
The Clay family home has loose ends to finish - tile work, deck cleaning and painting, we will have a list prepared and a plan developed to see this through to the end. But the Clay's are home - God has received glory and honor - it was a GREAT 9 days.
One final note - if you see Bernie and Becky Thompson give them a hug, high-five, a pat on back - love on them! They were service hero's - Bernie & Becky - I can't wait to see Jesus grab you in a giant bear hug and then hear Him say "WELL DONE YOU SERVICE MONSTERS!!! Welcome to the Kingdom!"
We will have a video of the project and the Clay walk-through on our web site later in the week - so stay tuned!
Hitting the Streets
A Letter from Kevin O'Neill
Paul,
I just wanted to pass on a story about this mornings adventure of "hitting the streets" to share the love of Jesus and invite the homeless to next Saturday's Men's Quarterly Breakfast. For me and my small "Band of Brothers", it was an amazing God Story! The morning started off without much success in finding the "Homeless" men we had come to reach. I was with John Conlon, Johnny O'Reilly, Dave Ridenour, Bill Getz, & Mark Schaefer and we went to the Carroll Creek area near the Frederick library where, we were told, there are normally many homeless people hanging out by the creek and on the benches. After searching for a while we could not find even one homeless person to share the coffee, donuts, water and brown bag lunches and the love we had come to share. It was, quite honestly, a bit frustrating! All of us were on a "deadline" to get back to various forms of "busy"! We all had agendas for the day and had agreed to come for only an hour or two before "needing" to get back to our list of things to do! Frankly, this delay just wasn't part of OUR plan. Interesting how God always has a better plan for us, even if we can't see it at the time!
After talking for 10 more "precious" minutes about what to do we decided to split up and in doing so we could cover more ground. After all we had food to deliver and our own lives to get back to! It was decided that Conlon, O'Reilly and I would load all of the food and drink in the Jeep to take it back to Centennial church where the others would meet us with their cars to split things up and then go in separate directions to find "the needy" and get the job done. 
When we reached Centennial church we ran into 4 men who were very appreciative of our invitation to next weeks breakfast and the water and brown bag lunches we shared with them. Their names were Rick, Scooter T, Daniel and Mike. We struck up quite a conversation with them and after a while discovered that one place where we were sure to find people in need would be "In The Woods" at the tent city located on East Street. In the meantime Victor Gonzalez pulled up having had luck in distributing his food and invitations to men he found at the Saturday breakfast that was held at the Beacon House. Victor decided to join us and we all headed to "The Woods".
As we walked into the tent camp, not sure of what to expect or how we would be received, I ran into a man living in his "Home" consisting of a tent, a mattress and a couple of tarps. I asked him if I might share some water with him and he said sure. I also gave him a brown bag lunch and asked him his name- which was John. John looked like what you might picture a homeless man would look like. He had scraggly hair, dirty clothes, a lot of snot running out of his nose, dripping down, and filling his scruffy beard. Frankly, the way he looked made me think that this whole idea might just be a little dangerous and a little crazy! Thankfully, at that moment the Spirit reminded me that God loved him as much as me and I decided to show him that I loved him too. After introducing myself we talked for a bit, I reminded him that Easter was coming tomorrow, I let him know that Jesus loved him so very much and then I moved on to some of the other tents to "get the job done".
After a while Victor came up to me and said that John, my new bearded friend, wanted to talk to me again. When I went back to him he thanked me for coming and told me that he wanted to let me know that he had problems. That he could tell that we were the kind of people that would help him and then he said that not only did he need help, but that he was was "Mental" and a wreck. He was "Messed Up" and he was begging me for help. His plea's were coming from his heart and from his soul, his bloodshot eyes were cutting holes through the back of my head! How could I possibly help him? I wasn't sure what to say to him at first. He proceeded to say that he had done so many bad things in the past and he told me that he wanted to be free from it all, that "Demons" were messing with his mind and he asked if I knew a pastor who could help him. I told him that I did know a pastor, and I would be happy to get one for him. I also told him that I know Jesus and if anyone could help him it would be the King of Kings. He said "I WANT HIS HELP, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE". We then discussed what Jesus had done for all of us, some 2000 years ago this very weekend, and how Jesus had died for him. How Jesus had come to seek and save that which was lost. How Jesus had come to restore his heart. How Jesus could save him. He stopped me, looked me straight in the eyes and asked, "Really?... I know he died on the cross, but did he really do it for me? Even me? Jesus died even for me? Are YOU telling ME with all that I have done wrong that he actually died for someone like ME?" From the depths of my heart I relayed to him that "YES!!!!!!!! JESUS DIED FOR YOU, FOR ME & FOR ALL OF US. It doesn't matter what you have done, Jesus loves YOU as much as he loves any of us! His blood was shed for YOU and he will always love YOU." We then both spent time in awe at what that really meant! Both of us truly loved by God himself! The creator of the Sun and the Moon loves us all! I then told him that he had a decision to make. That knowing and believing that Jesus died for us is not enough, even the devil knows that Jesus did those things. I told John that he needed to decide if he would let Jesus come into his heart. I told him that Jesus doesn't force his way in. That wouldn't be true love! Instead he wants us to decide if we want him to live in our heart. "John, If you do invite Him in He will bring joy and peace and freedom. A fullness that only He can bring! It is a decision YOU need to make, John. Do you really want Him in your life, do you really want to follow Him?"
After more discussion, healing prayer, binding and casting out of the enemy, all by the blood and authority of Jesus Christ, a decision was made. John, my new friend, literally cried out to God, asking him to come into his heart and his life, asking him for forgiveness and literally begging God to free him from the prison of addiction and from his pain! Praise God! Then we hugged him, (snot and all), we hung out with him, and we loved on him. We cried, we laughed and then we left to find others we might love on.
As we drove home no one spoke, we all were just trying to process what God had done. I cried (snot ran out of my nose, too) as I was trying to process everything that had just happened! I realized that the love and attention we gave was honestly more important to him than the food we brought! I believe we all discovered today, that God's plans are much, much better than our own. That if we will be obedient, and follow His leading that He will use us to help others. I am certain, from deep within my soul, that all of us, not just our new friend John, were touched and changed today, literally by the Spirit of Jesus. I was humbled today by His love. I am certain that God blessed me as much as he blessed John. I am certain that I am just as "needy" for the love and fathering of God as those who we label as "Needy". We all need HIM and I thank God for the Grace and Mercy he has shown us. I was shown today that Jesus truly LIVES because Sunday already came! The victory has already been won! Let's all remember that this Easter and live from that place in our hearts!
BTW, I attached a picture of our new friend John. He said he would be there for our quarterly breakfast next Saturday and that he wanted to see us all again. Will you be there to tell him that you love him? He needs to hear it from you! Don't make the mistake of letting busy get in the way of what Jesus wants to do in your life. We almost blew it by rushing through it all and I am so glad we didn't!
Humbly,
Kevin O'Neill
Dear Family,
This morning a really good friend of mine told me a God-story I have to tell someone……….. you! This friend of mine is a recovering addict……… he is SO much more than that, but that is where the battle rages for him. Anyway………..while at work a few days before New Year’s someone came to his job and offered everyone there a case of beer. My friend took a case meaning to give it to his brother-in-law. The case sat in his truck for a day or so and before he knew it, it was New Year’s eve. That case of beer began to work on his head. Early on in the day he knew he was going to finish his day of work, get in his truck, and drink the beer. No way out! After all he WAS an addict, and it was New Year’s eve, and he was too weak to resist. That was that!
Then a friend of his called him and asked if he would pick up the coffee pot for the AA New Year’s party. My friend wasn’t planning on going……… obviously since he had that case of beer to deal with. But because he is a servant at heart he agreed to do this errand. Well, he thought, I’ll just hold off drinking the beer until after I make the delivery. A little later another friend called him, my friend ignored the call. But this guy, Matt, kept calling until finally he took the call. Matt told him he was really in trouble and really needed to get picked up for the party. He couldn’t be alone………. Not today. Because my friend is a really kind man with a heart of gold he agreed to do this.
Realizing God was rescuing him from himself my friend had his boss follow him out to the truck and he gave his boss the case of beer. With that he picked up Matt, they delivered the coffee pot, stayed at the AA New Year’s eve party until after midnight and he has felt strong and clear in his recovery ever since.
2 Corinthians 4 says, “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed, perplexed, but not in despair, persecuted, but not abandoned, struck down, but not destroyed.”
Whenever I hear someone saying, “I need to try harder!” or “I need to do better!” I think – good for them. I’m not that strong. I can’t do better. I can’t try harder. I’m weak and my best effort is pathetic. God looked at my friend’s heart and saw that he truly wanted victory…….. then He looked again and saw that my friend just didn’t have the strength in his own power to follow his heart……….. so God used my friend’s servant heart of ‘yes’ to do the coffee pot favor, and God had Matt call my friend to ask for help because Matt knew this man loves to help others in trouble. God used my friend’s weakness to serve and love to give him victory in his own battle.
I love this stuff! I love that all I have to do is make myself available to God in a persistent way and He will help me become the man I so desperately want to become. This story has made my day – I pray it will give you a clearer view of God as well.
Dear Boyz,
God is at work! We have started six new tables (a 25% increase!) over the last couple months and new ones are being formed as we speak. If you want to experience God, join him where he is at work. Often we miss out on Gods’ perfect will because we get it backwards….we ask Him to join us where we are.
And how about the choir! Thank you to all the men who so graciously gave of their time. Be sure to thank your wife and family for their support. Singing in the choir for me was like going to war with a 100 men beside me and tasting victory! Now I know that I must go back and daily do battle against the many strongholds that oppose the cross. Put on your armor and be strong in the Lord! Pray without ceasing.
This past Friday I had the pleasure of visiting with a new table led by Bobby Findley, which started a couple of weeks ago in Myrtle Beach, S.C. It was so awesome to meet these men (Keith, Robert, Riney, and Steve) and hear of their hearts for the Lord. They started the table on their own using resources from the Waterboyz Website. They all made their call and they all had their verses memorized! Anyone up for a road trip?!!!
Here is a report from Dave Berg, table leader on Monday nights. How cool is this!
Cam Overs - saw news paper article and then visited the Waterboyz web-site. Cam then came to the Wednesday Morning Table at Lohr's. He was very interested in coming out to sing with the choir, so I came home made up a copy of the CD- took that to him, he listened to it all week and showed up at DRCC Sunday Morning @ 8:30 --- Cam sang with us and is feeling very spiritually fulfilled. His wife and Daughter saw him sing and was very proud and happy. Cam goes to Epiticial Church on W. Church St across from Fredericks City Hall. He made his Waterboyz call for the week, he has memorized his memory verse, Waiting impatiently for Tomorrows Table to be here. He is very fired up about the Waterboyz and wants to bring a few guys from his home Church to some Tables, someday like to start his own Waterboyz Table with his Church.
Maybe send Cam an e-mail or give him a phone call and welcome him.
camovers@comcast.net
301-788-1930
Dear Boyz,
I have carefully put together my foursome for the upcoming Waterboyz golf tournament – mixing and matching based on short game, putting talents, distance off the tee………… Not that I needed a lot of help, after all I think you’ve all seen the picture of my literally hitting the ball so hard last year that it blow up……. exploded…….. it was AWESOME! Although last year on the ‘drive closest to the pin’ I lost out to someone I suspect of……. Lets say bending the rules a little……… I’m not bitter. I think I can get it even closer this year than the 99 yards away I managed last year. So how is your foursome coming? Are you ready to accept my challenge? If your foursome beats mine I’ll come to your 10MAN table and will sing whatever song you want. But if my boyz beat yours then you’ll need to come to my table and sing a song of my choice – anyone up for a little challenge? By the way it IS June 4th – a Thursday…….. The original flyer was a little confusing.
This past Tuesday night 97 men showed up for our 2nd choir practice – as we were singing Exalted the Holy Spirit showed up in a powerful way! I can’t wait to see what kind of harvest God brings us, in new men coming to the tables, new tables (they are already in the planning stage), and visitors who will come to see what a100MAN choir looks like. They will be changed by hearing us declare that a sovereign God wants to have a personal relationship with them…….. a speck on an insignificant planet in a vast universe – it is stunning isn’t it? Kingdom fruit will happen and ground will be taken.
Today and tomorrow 8-10 men are helping to build a second story on a home for battered women and foster kid care in Clarksburg. If you would like to have a piece of this Kingdom action give Bernie Thompson a call – 301 639-5943 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 301 639-5943 end_of_the_skype_highlighting. Last Saturday many of you showed up at the Baltimore block party to enjoy the magic of being part of Matthew 25…… the abundant life! Take a look at our web page for the story as told by Dave Berg and some great pictures! Well done!
Check out the attached Meeting Attendance list - if we are missing your information please send it to me.
Grace & Peace,
Paul
Dear Boyz,
A few of you sent me your thoughts from the Lon Family project. I know you will all enjoy reading them as much as I did. I have also attached the link to the Germantown Gazette story on the makeover. Along with the article is a video – which does a pretty good job of capturing the spirit of the project. I pray that these articles will cause someone or many someone’s to seek out a relationship with Jesus! I just received a call from the Frederick News-Post and they are running the story about the makeover in the Thursday edition (tomorrow).
In HIM - Paul
Here are some stories from some of the Boyz & Girlz:
Paul, what an incredible journey with the Lon family. I just wanted to let you know God is proud of you Bernie, Greg and the Boyz and for your part, vision and leadership in this adventure! I was reading Acts 5 for my devotion this morning, and came across verse 38-39. Made me think of the Waterboyz and this project. NIV - "Therefore, in the present case I advise you. Leave these men alone, Let them go. For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only be find yourselves fighting against God.” Now, in this case, this was Gamaliel, a Pharisee and teacher of the law advising the Sanhedrin against killing the apostles, who were preaching that Jesus IS the Christ. Other men were leading uprisings and revolts, but they were not of God and quickly failed and the men scattered. In the case of the Lon house, Men of God rose, had purpose in their activity, and worked together to honor THE CHRIST. I think it is safe to say that all the heart, soul and sweat put into the project was of God. Have a great day - Mark Matheis
Paul, Very simple story: This project provided the opportunity for three men who are a big part of my life to finally meet and for all of us to spend a morning together serving others. We worked, ate, talked, and laughed - it was all you could ask for in a day. Dan Petty
Also, I wanted to share this. When the family was going through the house Jackie came up to me, hugged me like I have never been hugged before, thanked me over and over again when I asked if she like her room, but then she started crying and said "thank you for helping my mom, this will make her life sooooo much easier and life better for all of us, you have no idea what you have done for us" Have a great day! Robin
Dear Boyz,
New Ireland Bath House – The Waterboyz move out into the South Pacific
New Ireland Translation Institute (NITI). At the beginning of 2007 the Waterboyz reached farther than they could image, to the country of Papua New Guinea (PNG). Where is that you may ask? Well! It’s northeast of Australia, and 4 degrees off the equator. Hot there? Well in a way it isn’t. What is hot? Like 117 deg F. (as in Arizona). No, it’s more like 75 F low and 103 F high. Stormy and wet? Yes, with severe lighting, high humidity (24/7). But it is absolutely beautiful with some of the most pristine coral you will observe in the world.
Why PNG, well it seems one of the Waterboyz shared that there was only one flush toilet in the entire village of Sohun, no big deal, except white skins are kind of used to this feature in each and every home, maybe even 3 or 4. Well, there are no showers either, no big surprise for a village without electricity. (However, all of this is changing, with the help and support of the Waterboyz. YOU, have contributed $6000 dollar’s, but there was one small issue, the nationals at first turned it down, this was not bad as their desire was to use any monies donated to NITI for more import things (classroom, housing, food). It’s hard to think that there could be a more basic need, but don’t forget the bush works fine, and for hundreds of years in their culture. When there are 60 plus Nationals and Ten or so visiting translators, and 100 deg F heat, and two outhouses located on the site, well! let’s just put it this way, a National when asked, what do you think, of the outhouses, he said, “the best thing that could happen is to pour in gasoline and toss in a match.
So after some careful thought and the growth at NITI it was decided that flush toilets and showers were not a bad idea. In the summer of 2008, Sherm and Bernie Guyer headed back over to PNG, with three goals, build a classroom, build a house (for guest translators), and the bathhouse. Priority number one was a class room; two housing, and while classes where in session, work on the bathhouse as planned. If any of you have ever traveled abroad you know what to expect, expect the unexpected. Sherm placed the order for wood from state side thru a trusted local National worker. He expected it to be at the site when he arrived. Especially if you allowed three months to four months, as he had built a rapour with the Nationals, and felt comfortable dealing from abroad. Well, Sherm got there – right no wood. It’s cut by chain saw and moved from forest to site the same day some of the time. It was felt that a three month lead time was plenty of time to expect it to be there on arrival. The contracted cutter, contracted out with someone else, plus they had some other issues (excuses). NO WOOD. That’s a big deal. The CUM (block) was being shipped from the main land. When (when they get to it) and when the ocean cooperates. Sherm understood that, and had placed the order in advance, but no CMU.
So, Sherm had his hands full getting the wood cut and house built before the courses started to handle all the students. This trip was full of delays, supply issues, and on top of that a death to deal with (There were Visa issues and much, much more to this story, that I would love to share with you). In addition Sherm and Bernie had to come back to the states early as Sherm’s sister went home to the Lord, and it is a bitter sweet story for the Guyer’s.
The Good News
It’s all there the SUPPLIES (CMU, wood, toilets, sinks, and piping, ready to build). The target date is Mar 8 or (?), for 3 -6 months they will be back in PNG getting ready for the next story God has planned for them. If you ever wish to become a missionary, don’t expect that you will be the most efficient and organized one in the field, your not in control of organization (blame it on others, yourself, the devil, or all the above, but what you have in mind to accomplish – will more than likely not happen. AND be prepared, to place it in GOD’s hands and say, “HELP” then have the patience to trust HIM to make it happen according to HIS WILL. That’s right our plans are important and good stewardship, but be prepared for your plans to change, and be willing to TURST Him.
The Real Story,
As I shared with Ed Condra, the translator that spent 17 years getting the New Testament into the hands of the Sohun Village people— A translator I’m not, English is a challenge for me! Just ask my wife (who loves to bleed all over any letters I write). I wrote to Ed, and asked him to share the current status of NITI. I want you (you that took the time to read this) to know what the real work is, and the Story of what NITI is about, not just the status of the bath house.
NOTE: It took Ed 17 years, living in the village, building relationships, trust, making disciple, building a house, while learning the language, not to speak of caring for his family, three children and his wife. Wives, could you live without a bathroom, or electricity. They did for a long time—17 yrs!
OK! The real story, here goes it’s the WORD of God (in their native tongue). The Barok (people group) are emailing a number of chapters of Acts to me, which is a great first for NITI. The Nalik language have done the same with newly translated chapters of Revelation which they started at the last course. Do you realize the important of this? It’s not the white skins – it’s the Nationals that are doing this, it’s not just the educated trained translators. It has moved to the Local Nation Church and the National people that are supporting the work of Translation and stepping up. It’s the most wonderful thing that can happen to a Translator (to be supported or replaced, to move to the next people group).
As for an overview, we had our last course in July-August (08) with 11 language teams there. One team couldn't come because of the high seas, apparently, and another was fearing for payback because of someone in their language murdering someone in a language they would have to travel through to get to NITI. (Can you imagine do being able to travel from Fred. to Baltimore for fear of your life) So, both good reasons. We made terrific progress on checking through a lot of translated Scriptures and improving both the quality of the translations and the translation abilities of the translators as they saw what they were doing right and wrong. After the NITI course all the teams went back to their villages and have been translating there. We won't know what progress is being made until next NITI course in April (unless more get to Kavieng (north tip of the 65 mile long island, a 5 hour ride) to email me like the Nalik and Barok have done). I expect this next year we will have a number of books ready for our first formal consultant checks, which will be a big milestone: Mark and maybe Acts in Barok; John in Nalik; Mark in Feni; Mark in both Label and Kandas and maybe more in those two languages; John in Fanamaket perhaps. These languages have been translating on other books too; it is just that these are the ones that we may have to a very good quality by second course next year to have checked. For instance Barok have also been working in John, as have all the other groups; Patpatar has all of Psalms and Proverbs in first draft (which is just waiting for me to have the time to get to again).
At t his very moment I am corresponding with another likely consultant, probably to begin working with the Konomala language next NITI, and we met this week with another couple who are headed to PNG in January and expect to begin working with NITI, probably the Notsi language. So a HUGE praise to the Lord. Right now we just have too many languages for our consultants to cover. I would appreciate their prayers for this.
Meanwhile, for my part, I keep pouring over translated texts in Barok, Patpatar and Tangga to get ready to go over them with the translators at the next NITI, as well as preparing to teach at the next NITI. We will start translating epistles next NITI and this will be much, much harder than the narratives they are used to in the Gospels, Acts, and Revelation. So, come April, we could use their prayers for that too. Other consultants are working on other translated Scriptures.
Overall, we are making very good progress and the mother tongue translators are keeping dedicated to the task.
A Huge Concern
One note: you may not have heard there was a huge tidal surge earlier this Month (Dec 08) that hit New Ireland. I cannot find out what kind of damage resulted; I read different accounts online. One story reported all the equipment in the hospital in Kavieng were washed away although the patients were safely evacuated; quite a number of houses were destroyed; I'm sure hundreds or maybe thousands had their houses destroyed or at least damaged and under water for awhile. Namatanai area was also hit. So (19km (14 mi.) from Sohun), it may be a very good thing our staff house is up as high as it is on stilts! I'm serious. Or, we could actually have damage, especially to the new wing. I have not had any word from anyone at Sohun, but I assume if there was damage someone would have gone to Kavieng and let us know. However, I also hear the roads have been washed out, so perhaps it is impossible to get to Kavieng.
In HIM,
Paul
Dear Boyz,
Our 3rd Annual ‘Christmas at the Margins’ was a smashing success! We arrived at Centennial Methodist Church Saturday morning to find a basement FULL of toys, clothes, food boxes, and a God-excitement that always produces ‘God-bumps’ and a fresh clear view of who Jesus is. It was so cool to see men arriving, some with their families, some with other men from their tables, and I know of at least one man who had only been to his first 10MEN table the day before who came. They all came in with bags of presents and big smiles on their faces.
We sang a few Christmas carols, remembered that we were giving two kinds of presents – a) our actual presence like the shepherds and b) gifts just like the wise men, and then the semi-organized chaos ensued. Three Santa Claus, Newspaper reporters, and gathering up presents and matching up deliveries, loading up cars, vans and off we went. It was SO much fun.
As some of you know, a reporter from the Frederick News-Post arrived at Centennial and interviewed several of the Boyz as well as Juanita with 2nd Street and HOPE (our partner in this adventure). He talked with a guy who used to ride in a motorcycle gang, a scientist, and a retired police detective about how the Waterboyz for Jesus had affected their lives. On Sunday morning I ran out to the curb and opened the paper to a front page story about our adventure. Here is the link
http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?StoryID=84251.
I’ve also included a PDF scan of the article. (See table below for link)
I wanted to give you three short ‘the rest of the story’ reports. So here they are………………….
First – Here are four pictures that Ron Paulin took – and Dave Kull’s thank-you email to Ron: (See table below for links)
Dave:
What a blessed day it was for all! Kim (the mom that the Tuesday night table had adopted) REALLY appreciated all the gifts! Thank each man at our table for stepping up in this God adventure! Each man will be blessed in a special way. (I have a picture of Kim,too. ) Enjoy – and pass on to the awesome men at our table Ron
Second – here is an email from Dave Berg after his reaction to his time at HOPE ALIVE:
WAY TOO COOL<<<< Paul the look on those kids faces were PRICELESS,,, One little girl looked up at her Mother and said "Mommy I thought we weren't going to have a Christmas and Santa wasn't coming ??" I almost cried !!!!!!
Third – here is an email from one of the moms who were blessed:
Good Morning Dave, I thank you for sending the link to this (the newspaper article), I am so proud of you. You have come so far and changed so much! I was so blessed by you guys. You have no idea what it means to me. Yes I was one of those families in need. I was very chocked up yesterday as they arrived with the gifts and food, by Gods grace, I now can give my kids a Christmas, it has really been rough for me this year, I still haven’t found a job in a year, Merry Christmas.. Thank you so much for being a part of fulfilling someone’s Christmas... love,
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Dear Boyz,
Jim Shields and his Krew arrived in Easton this past Wednesday for our long awaited Easton church build out. As they walked through the building where the new church was going to be built all of them were OVERWHELMED! There was A LOT to be done. The framing had been done but some of it needed to be moved around before the inspector would approve it. Jim saw that the inspector was wearing a cross so he pointed to it and said – “Look we are here to help build this church. I see you are a man of faith so can you help us out?” God used Jimmy to help get all four approvals so we could get to work.
I love this story – Jim told me on Wednesday it seemed like nothing went right. So they got together and admitted they were in, way over their heads. So the solution they came up with is to get up early on Thursday and hold about an hour of worship together. They read, prayed, and worshiped God. They all said that the rest of the trip went SO much better! Their solution wasn’t to work harder……. It was to praise God first. “Save time – pray first!”
By the time the second wave of help arrived on Friday afternoon an unbelievable amount of work had been done. Eric Closs, Greg Lueck and a couple of VERY unskilled labors (Me and Larry Goldman) did a few walls and got a REAL appreciation for how much work the Krew who had gotten there earlier had accomplished. By the time the last wave arrived on Saturday morning there were about 25 Waterboyz and 6-7 guys from Midshore working onsite working together. What a GREAT day! Midshore prepared wonderful meals, we had four 10MEN Tables during a delicious breakfast. The tables were lead by Larry Goldman, Jim Shields, Dave Berg, and Eric Closs. I walked around listening and marveling at how awesome it was to be in the presence of a living breathing personal God. Of course we handed out a memory verse and exchanged phone numbers. Men be sure to call your man this week!
Jim Shields and Dave Berg stayed through Sunday and went to Midsore church. They gave their testimonies as part of the service and were followed by Ryan Smith who talked about his upcoming 12 month mission trip to Honduras. Ryan, whose sister goes to this church told how he was planning to go to help at an Orphanage teaching them how to do high-yield farming. Many members came up to the men afterward and told them how much what they said meant to them.
A couple of my favorite memories are a) seeing Sam Closs (Eric’s son) with his tool belt helping to clean up the construction waste b) The hand written Waterboyz sign above the doorway going into the auditorium c) the view of 4 10MEN Tables meeting Saturday morning d) Larry Goldman and Tim Pitts working on putting up mud and tape in one of the rooms (wait till you hear THIS Story!!!). I can’t think of any place or anybody I would have rather spent these couple of days with. In taking this trip to Easton I heard and I saw the Kingdom of God. It sounded like laughter, saws, screw guns, and looked like a construction site.
Midshore Community Church – THANK YOU for allowing us the joy of serving you. In serving we were all served! (see Luke 12)
In HIM,
Paul
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Estelle's Story
A few weeks ago I told you all about Estelle (I said Stella but I got her name wrong) and her little infant daughter. She had met a man, they each made commitments to each other, she got pregnant and on the day she was giving birth to her daughter the man ran back to Baltimore, back to his addictions, leaving her alone. Boys will run but men will stand firm! When Gabe told me that Estelle’s roof was leaking and she had no means or idea how to fix it, I knew the Boyz HAD to do something! I told all of you the story and almost immediately donations began to pour in: Charlie who owns an electrical contracting business had sold a truck and sent the entire amount of the sale for the project. Several other men and their families sent funds. Dave Pennington talked with a contractor friend of his and as a result Larry Harold from the Roofing center donated 9 squares of 40 year shingles – what a gift! Wayne Parrish donated a couple sheets of plywood, and Jim Shield and David Berg agreed to do the job at a very reasonable price. This morning, Gabe, Jim, Dave, and I went to visit Estelle. I gave her a little history about the Waterboyz for Jesus, told her that she had given us a chance to practice some PURE RELIGION (helping the widows and orphans in Jesus’ name), and that there was a large circle of men who had chosen to stand in the gap for her. I then invited her to check God out, gave her a few options along those lines, and then we prayed over her. I prayed that God would help her to see her TRUE standing as a favored daughter of the King. Thank each and every one of you for doing your part. This was an awesome example of the Body of Christ BEING the Body
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The Rickshaw & Feeding Families
When the Waterboyz India team went to Calcutta in December of 2007 we invested over a $1000.00 in a local church to start several micro-businesses. With Paul Ramsey’s help we bought two bicycle rickshaws and we are allowing local Christian men to buy them over time at no interest. Which means that each year we will be able to buy two more rickshaws, then we’ll have four and so on. An increasing number of men will have a way of earning a living for their families. For $175.00 we are able to buy each rickshaw and with each one another family began to earn a livable wage. How cool is that?
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Coming or Going Jesus is praised and families are meeting their needs. |
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The Widow & Her Kids (HIS STORY!) — What happened
last weekend January 19, 2008.
James 1:27 - "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress"
A couple of months ago Jeff Beatty got a call from Judy asking for a quote to cut down a tree in her front yard. Jeff came out, looked at the tree and sent her a quote. She called and asked if he could cut down half the tree since that was all she could afford. Jeff being Jeff, cut the tree down for half his usual price and after hearing the story of her husband dying of a massive stroke leaving three kids and a wife with MS behind, he knew something had to be done. Every few days Jeff would call me and ask if a few of the boyz could go and help this family. There is a story in the bible of a women getting justice from a judge who didn't care about justice just because he was sick of the lady asking..... well that isn't exactly what happened here.. But Jeff WAS persistent.
Finally God broke through and our service calendar cleared up enough for us to schedule the makeover for this widow and her kids last Saturday. Greg & Sherri Lueck did a site survey and determined all that things that needed fixing. They figured out the colors for each of the bedrooms that were to be painted, what materials would be needed for each task, and went to countless stores to buy the needed material. They prepared the list of jobs that needed to be done (an impressive list indeed). There was everything from major electrical issues, to a simple landscaping job. It was perfect for anyone and everyone regardless of what their skill level was. As I wrote the email letting the Boyz know about the need, and what the list of things to be done were, I had this special God-tingling in my body. I just knew this was going to be something eternal.
As Jeff was racing around last Friday getting all the details taken care for a project this size, he ran into a news crew from Channel 7 - WJLA. He explained what was about to happen and they suggested we contact the news room to let them know about the event. I called and got through to Vince the news director - on a Friday afternoon a real miracle. I explained that 60+ people were going to do an extreme makeover for a family in need and was told that maybe we would be hearing from them. We didn't.
Saturday morning dawned clear and cold. As the first wave of volunteers showed up, we got them right to work. Pretty soon you could hear laughter, hammers pounding, saws cutting, and lots of conversation taking place all over the house. It sounded a lot like "Holy Holy Holy - you God are King of our lives and we love you and will serve you forever!". The two supervisors (Jeff because he is good at it and myself since I can't do anything else....) were racing around helping people know what to do next. The real fun started a little after 9am when the second shift starting arriving. It was like a flood broke loose. By 9:30 there were over 50 people in the house - painting, fixing, carrying trash, building steps, landscaping, loving this family in a hundred ways. It was the Kingdom of God - it was pure religion - it was unforgettable!
By the end of the day several local businesses had contributed various goods and services, Channel 7 had arrived to capture the event for the 6pm news, and 92 men, women, and children had come and served Judy and the kids. They had answered the call to 'look after the widows in their distress'. Everyone who came was changed in so many ways. In talking with Tom, who was serving for the first time, in the girls room as he was fixing the window I challenged him to take the step of publically declaring himself a follower of Jesus by being baptized - he agreed. A neighbor heard about our plan and showed up to help. He is coming to the Tuesday morning 10MEN table next week. Steve, who I had seen often in church but never really talked to, heard and came to help - he is coming to the table this Thursday night. There were dozens of stories about how in serving, we were changed. It is the difference between building our homes (lives) on sand or on the rock - we heard and we ACTED. I am so proud to call each of you brother and sister. I love the memory of little Mason Davis vacuuming the sofa, the group of kids washing the sliding glass door four or five times, of Cameron Felix painting with her dad, of my wife and her friend Sue cleaning and laughing and enjoying the pleasure of serving at the margins. So many stories - each will be remembered, told, and rejoiced over while sitting under a tree in Heaven - each will be the beginning of even more stories and we will only see there in eternity the full effect of our day of service. I can't wait to hear it all - I can't wait to hear the rest of the story.
Judy was blown away - she didn't know what to make of it. She wants to visit Jeff's church. She has agreed to have some of our ladies come and help her learn how to keep up with the cleaning. God is loving Judy in a way that only He can. Today Jeff and Marty Weaver are finishing the last of the punch list. Tomorrow the new carpet will be installed. Look for the before and after pictures on our web page by the end of the week. In the mean time if you didn't catch the news report here is a link. Check out this link click
Last Saturday was a little taste of heaven - serving with each of you was SO COOL!
Your Brother on the Journey,
Paul
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A Christmas Story
Sometimes we consider the thought, "Do all the good things we do in the name of Christ really have an impact on anybody?" Angie Chandler and her son Bailey live at the Heather Ridge apartments in Frederick, Maryland. Last Christmas, Angie truly believed that she and her son would have no Christmas. A single mother eking out a meager living at best, Christmas was something only for those who were more blessed by God than she was, or at least that's what she thought. Little did she know that Jesus put her on His special Christmas list to be visited by those who had decided to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
In the kitchen of Centennial United Methodist Church on a cold but sunny Saturday morning, a group of Waterboyz, their wives and children had gathered to pickup boxes of food and Christmas gifts for a dozen or more families. Little did they know that this simple act would change Angie's life and bring some morsel of hope and joy to the other families in Frederick and Washington County. The Waterboyz for Jesus with the help of Second Street and Hope, Inc. were going to change Angie's perspective on life that day and neither they nor Angie knew it....but God did.
As the packages were grouped together by family, Santa appeared in the kitchen adding a magical touch to what was a joyous and fun occasion. Least than two miles away in Heather Ridge, Angie was going about an ordinary Saturday with no idea that something God-magical was about to happen.
As each team of Waterboyz participants received their assigned family and packages, an excitement filled the room. Who did you get? What are you delivering? Grown men and women were acting and feeling like the children they had brought with them to experience the fun. If only the same joy pervading this kitchen at this church could be expressed and shown upon gift delivery. All they could do was pray that it would.
Angie and Bailey received a delivery of a gift that day that was more than a few wrapped presents. From what I heard from Juanita Dutrow who organizes the endeavor through Second Street and Hope, Angie's life changed that day. She and her son were treated to presents, songs and praise. Then one woman, who is known only to Jesus, went up to Angie, threw her arms around her in a tight hug and whispered in her ear "Jesus loves you, and so do we"
Today, Angie is on her way to completing an associate’s degree at Frederick Community College with a new outlook on life. She knows that there are people who care and truly do love her. According to Juanita she's on her way to a new productive and promise-filled life...and why? Well Juanita says it's because a woman whispered in her ear...I say it's because God did!
Larry
Paul, I am crying as I write this.
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Waterboyz Make a Splash in Frederick County
I received a call this week from a friend who helped organize the Waterboyz (and children’s Ministry) this summer as we served Frederick Country at the fairgrounds to raise money for a little girl who had cancer. Renee asked me if our church could do more at the fair next year. When I asked her what that would look like, she asked if we could provide a Sunday School for the day. Could we bring puppets, plays, music, dance teams etc. I was more than happy to say “yes”! (These are the moments I live for.)
“Will the Waterboyz be available as well” she asked? “I’m sure they will be” I replied. “Why?” “We never want to attempt something this big without them” she explained. “As a matter of fact, we had a meeting last week and the person who organizes these events appointed an entire committee to be sure we don’t hold the waterboyz up next year when they come to work. Last year the Waterboyz came in and worked so fast, they ended up waiting while we went to get the trucks for them to load.
Talk about “shock and awe” – the Waterboyz made quite a name for themselves that day. No one had even thought of having “waves” of workers come in so people were always fresh. Renee couldn't say enough about how the men came in and were able to set up, take over, and tear down. I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but I may have agreed for “kidtown” to be run by the Waterboyz and Children’s Ministry next September. What an amazing way to witness! People were willing to come and sell things, give things away or wander around the fairgrounds, but most people didn’t see the value of taking care of the kids. The Waterboyz not only kept the kids safe, they upped the fun factor by throwing them onto velcro walls, teasing them as they entered the mouth of the giant caterpillar and made playing games the highlight of the day.
Another wave of men hit late in the afternoon when everyone was too tired to care anymore and helped clean up quickly and efficiently. There are many ways to witness to our neighbors and friends – but this was a HUGE one. The men in the Waterboyz stepped into a sweltering hot day of ministry and became the “go to guys” within an hour. I am so proud to have had the experience of working beside you that day. It must have been the hottest day all summer and yet you were all laughing and playing with each child that came through as if playing with them were the most important thing you had to do that day. You didn’t get grumpy with the heat, impatient with the kids or even ask for breaks. So many times in life we do the right thing at the right time for an audience of one. While we should continue to do that, just know in your hearts that on one hot summer day as you were serving Jesus, people noticed. Because of your willingness to do the hard work, we’ve been given the opportunity this September to bring the gospel of Jesus to His youngest friends. Lives will be changed because you did the hard thing. You put yourselves out, sweated and laughed as you opened a door for the kingdom.
Thank you!
Jeannie
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A Couple of God Stories:
Dear Family,
This past weekend Eric Rice went on a camping trip with some of the youth from DRCC. They had a great time and experienced God in a real and personal way. On his way back home he decided to treat his niece to a TCBY. As he was pulling his truck into the parking lot he saw a parking spot right in front of TCBY. When he got closer he noticed that there were some 'shady guys' parked in the next spot over, so he decided to park somewhere else. He circled the parking lot a couple of times - no spaces - so finally he pulled into that last remaining spot. As he got out one of the 'shady guys' yelled to Eric - "Hah I know you from somewhere!". Eric didn't recognize him but started to guess as to where it could have been - "I'm a member of DRCC?" - "Nope" "2nd Street & Hope" - "Nope" "Frederick Rescue Mission - "Nope".
Finally Eric said - "Well you must just being seeing the Jesus inside me!!". The man said, "Well I'm an alcoholic and I need something - maybe it's Jesus". This started a conversation where Eric simply and powerfully told the story of who Jesus was and what He could do. Then he asked the man if he could pray for him. The man agreed. As soon as Eric finished praying the man said - "I felt something powerful inside of me". Eric responded "That is Jesus and the Holy Spirit". They parted both with something to think about - Eric had just heard a man testify to the power of our risen Lord - it is true. The man now has to decide what to do with this Jesus. Pray for him - Marlea is!!
Ruthie Marsh struggled Mother's day Sunday. She wasn't a mother and her own mom has pasted away several years ago. Should she go to church or just take a pass? She decided to go just because it was the right thing to do. As she listened to the sermon God showed her that if she just changed two words everything Bob was preaching about applied to her. She took notes and was blessed deeply. After church she sat down and wrote out 25 ways that God had blessed her for coming to church. In fact in typical God-like fashion she actually lead her small group in unpacking the sermon the following Tuesday night.
If Ruthie had stayed in bed - she would have probably had a very average week. But because she put herself in the company of believers she had an overcoming week. A victorious week. A week that blessed both herself, her fellow workers at work, and her entire small group. I am increasingly convinced that the treasure God has for us is often found when we just do the little things we already know we need to do. If we are faithful in obeying in little ways - God is faithful to bless and multiply in ways that only He can.
Be faithful this week - take a chance and do the right thing - just because it is the right thing. Watch and see what God does.
Your Brother (just reporting the action from the front)
Paul
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