God is Working

Life has been pretty busy since we got back from Kenya.  Time sure flies by these days.  We have been home almost two months and we haven't posted a single thing, but that doesn't mean that God hasn't been working.

Let me take a step back to recap Kenya 2012 for a few moments.  I learned that God is ALWAYS in control. After three trips to Kenya without any issues I was a little boastrous about never having a delay, losing a bag or any major issues.  As we were checking in at DFW the Burrell's had passport issues and were not able to fly and that threw everything off kilter.  Then a huge storm blows in and delays our flights for several hours.  I am so very thankful that we had planned an eight hour layover in London.  If we had planned a three hour layover we would have missed our flight to Kenya.  Once we made it to Kenya we were delayed again about 45 minutes.  The flight from Nairobi to Mombasa is only 45 minutes so needless to say I was getting a little frustrated by this time.  One team members personal bag did not come for four days.

Our team did a great job ministering to the Kenyan people.  We hosted two dental clinics and a couple of medical clinics as well.  We only got to go hut to hut witnessing one Saturday because it rained so much the second Saturday.  Our team got to play games and visit with the staff at Mbewau.  It was great fun for everyone.

Chris and Lisa are doing a wonderful job there.  I am so thankful that they followed what God had asked them to do.  It opened up an opportunity for Kim and I to use talents that God gave us by leading teams to work there on the field.

Since returning from Kenya God has opened up the door for me to start going to Tyndale Bible College. I am going for an Associates Degree in Missions.  So far it has gone well.  There has been a lot of reading and reading is not one of my favorite things to do.  Reading about grammar and how to do research papers it not the most fun thing in the world but I know that this next two years will allow God to stretch me and make me a better Christian, a better man, a better husband and a better missions leader.

Kim's photography business was a little slow for a while but is picking back up with school starting and fall on the way.  We look forward to seeing how God blesses through her business.  He has always provided for us when we least expected it.

Please pray for us as we seek God's will for our lives.  I know that He will open some doors and close others.  I pray for wisdom to walk through the right ones.

God Bless!
David

Things are great!

The internet has been very slow!  Things are going great here.  Our team has laughed so much and had a great time working with the missionaries.

Please check out the latest blogs from the team.  I promos that Kim and I will post more personal thoughts as we get time!

Faith, Hope and Love...I am having the time of my life. Please check out the latest blogs post by Karen Sandifer and Chris Thames. http://missionmombasa.blogspot.com

Thank you so much for all of your prayers!
David

Kenya Day 1

Getting to Kenya was quite a journey.  Two team members didn't get to come because of passport issues, there was a hail storm in the dfw area and it caused some delays.  We got to Nairobi and there was another delay!  So my record of getting teams into Kenya without issues is now crushed!

Today we spent the day at Maasai Corner.  It rained for several hours.  We finally got to go hut to hut witnessing and saw 10 people accept Christ as their Savior.  After that the heavens cleared and it was a beautiful day.  The dentist saw about 10 patients and pulled a bunch of teeth.  Kim got to make a bunch of baloon animals for the children that were running around.

Maasai Corner last year was just a piece of property where a church was starting.  Today it was alive and happy!

Great things are happening and it is exciting to get to be a part of it!
God Bless!
David

Kenya Here We Come!

Tonight we fly out for 2 weeks in Kenya.  This last year has been so crazy but we have seen God work in our lives and in ministry.  Last year when we left for Kenya we hoped to move there for a year as Team Missionaries.  God had other plans and we did not get that confirmation.

Today my devotion was in Psalms 1.


1 Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
    Nor stands in the path of sinners,
    Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
    And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He shall be like a tree
    Planted by the rivers of water,
    That brings forth its fruit in its season,
    Whose leaf also shall not wither;
And whatever he does shall prosper.

Verse three really stood out to me. "He shall be like a tree, Planted by the rivers of water."  I love to be outdoors and I LOVE a big pecan bottom on a creek or river.  There are always a few HUGE trees that it takes several people to reach around.  The big trees have been around for maybe 100 years.  If they could tell you of the things they have seen in their life times I am sure it would be amazing.

One day when I am gone I hope that some people will be able to say that David was a tree that stood firm in all the storms that life could throw at him.  Every now and then a branch may break and cause some pain but our heavenly father knows that we need to be pruned to get rid of some things in our lives.  It saddens me to see people in and out of church. Living by faith and being blessed and then living in the flesh and struggling.  They are blown by the winds of life every direction but the right one.

As we leave for Kenya in a few short hours, I want God to open my eyes and my heart to love like I have never loved before.  Kim and I ask that you will pray for our team as we travel.  God has great things ahead of this team and I am very excited to see what happens.

God Bless.
David and Kim

Prayer Request:
Divine Appointments
Safe travels in Kenya
On time flights
No lost bags
Health
Missionaries Chris and Lisa Moore and Bobby and Lisa Bechtel
Maasai Corner
Mbewau
Injilli
Families at home

Time flies when you are having fun!

Kim and I got married on Jan 5, 2008.  In July we met Chris and Lisa Moore, missionaries to Kenya.  They were in the process of raising their monthly support so that they could move to Kenya full time.  Chris lead our first trip to Kenya in March 2009.  Kim and I left part of our hearts in Kenya that year.  I never imagined that I would ever go to Africa and in two weeks we will be making our fourth trip to Kenya.

God has done some AMAZING things through the Moore's and their ministries.  The school at Mbewau had about 20 kids when we first arrived there and were having school in a small classroom and church. Today they have a beautiful six classroom school. There was a small building that ladies cooked porage at.  Today there is an open air feeding center that doubles as a church!  The Moore's have been in Kenya now for 2 1/2 years and are in the middle of a huge building project at Maasai Corner on the south coast of Kenya.  There is a church, clinic and restroom facilities there now. Last year it was 5 acres of raw land where people worshipped under a couple of mango trees.

This year I am excited to see what God has for us!  There is a youth pastor, a dentist, a teacher, an ER nurse, a collage student, a lay pastor and a professional photographer and blogger on the team.  God has really supplied for each team member.  We fly out on June 13 and will return on June 26.  Please keep this team in your prayers and ask for God to have his way in all of our lives.  I hope that everyone is ready to get MESSED UP for CHRIST!

Kim and I want to say thank you to everyone who has supported us financially, with prayer and encouraging words!  We could not have made all of these trips without your help!

One day when we all get to heaven don't be surprised when a Kenyan walks up and says thank you.  You may ask what for and they will say,  "thank you for sending people to tell us about Christ!"

God Bless!!!

Life begins at the end of your comfort zone and I am definitely there...

I feel like I am coming up to another important chapter in my life. This last one has been full of adventure, heartache, self discovery and growth, but I am eager to see what's to follow. I'm not sure what is coming, but I know Life begins at the end of your comfort zone and I am definitely there...

I am glad that God is in control and I am not, because sometimes life doesn't make any sense. I am learning yet again to Let go and Let God have control of every area in my life. 

Sometimes I will ask God for advice, get an answer, ask friends what they think, get confused and finally do what I think is best. Then, I go back to God and say, "Is that really what you meant? OK, I'll do it now. You were right. You always are." The great thing is that He always knows best and I need to trust that He has a good plan for me.

David and I are leaving in two weeks for Kenya! I'm excited to pack up and take the long journey to the place where I left my heart four years ago... I miss the hustle and bustle of people and animals walking everywhere, open markets, hooting traffic horns and the smell of diesel in the air. I miss the bright Kenyan smiles and Hakuna Matata way of living, but most of all I miss my friends Chris and Lisa Moore, Jackson, Justin, Dunkin, Winnie, my sweet MBEWAU girls: Anna, Gladys and Naomi, just to name a few:) I cannot wait to see everyone!

I am sure that God is going to do great things during this trip, because the devil has been hitting hard and close to home lately. But God had been with me through it all and continues to assure me that someday everything will be worth it all.

XOXO,
Kim

Soil and the Heart

I have really enjoyed working in our yard since we moved into the house last September.  Our front yard has pretty good dirt in the flower beds.  Pretty much anything will grow there.  We bought a bunch of bulbs and a rose bush and its all growing great.


On the side of the house there is a retaining wall.  The neighbors have peagravel on their side of the fence.  A few weeds spring up there and grow for a little bit but dont last long if there isn't any rain.  Within a few days things wither away.


The back yard has pretty good soil right around the house.  The grass is thick and green but in the very back its hard and not much is growing.  I am transplanting St Augustine grass back there hoping that it will eventually cover over the hard dirt and we can have a pretty green back yard to enjoy.


All of this reminds me of the parable of the Sower and the Seed. 
Mark 4:3  “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air^[a] came and devoured it. ⁵ Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. ⁶ But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. ⁷ And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. ⁸ But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”


Two questions for you: 1What kind of ground is your heart as you read this? 2 Are you sowing any seeds?


I must confess that lately my heart has been a little crusty and hard.  I have had a bad attitude towards my daily job.  There has been A LOT of change going on and some of it doesn't even make sense.  I am so very thankful to a loving and gracious heavenly father that allows us to go through some tough times to soften our hearts for His glory.


We fly to Kenya in 47 days.  
Please pray for:
Our team of 12 going to serve the Lord there.
Divine appointments
Safety
Health
On time flights and luggage
Families that we leave behind