Home is Negotiable

Home.

A mud hut.
A one room apartment.

In a city.
In a gated community.
In a desert.

The classification of "home" is negotiable.

Some could never consider a home, no matter what kind it was, truly a "home" if it were in a city. They feel made for the open air of the country. Some could never feel truly at home living near the ocean because they simply must have the hustle and bustle of honking horns, taxis, endless walking of pedestrians and the echo of heels striking the pavement to feel at peace. But most would never consider the meaning of "home" to be negotiable for them. It must have a sense of familiarity to feel "homey". Comfort zones are built around the familiar, and from the time we are infants, we are brought up to feel that we must be at home in our "comfort zone" to feel happy, fulfilled or at least to keep us from having a total emotional breakdown.

For me, "home" has taken on an unexpected twist. The American Dream, white picket fence, idea of home is what I and what most have grown up with. Graduate. Have goals. Get a job to achieve those goals. Get married. Buy a house. Have kids. Get a dog. Oh... and don't forget the white picket fence surrounding your "home". Nobody said anything about running through the streets of a 3rd world market place dodging hecklers (because you're the only foreigner in the place), getting grabbed by beggars, bumping into rice sacks (not realizing that there is actually a person walking underneath until the last second), hopping over the produce sitting at your feet and sweating through the shirt you just put on 5 minutes before in the extreme heat-- all because you needed tomatoes. This is where I live most of each year... so this is "home" right? Or is home the American Dream that I came from?

Home is negotiable.

I have referred to both America and Africa as home all in the same week, and I don't know if that will ever change, because deep down at the root of it all- neither qualifies as home.

Home is where we feel complete and whole.
Home is where we feel comfortable.

In a state of rest.
In a place of peace.

And I have come to realize that I will never feel at home anywhere. And may I dare say that I am not meant to feel at home anywhere?

David said, "Cast me not from Your presence."

Moses said, "If Your presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here."

The Bible says that Jesus often withdrew to "lonely places" to pray (Luke 5:16). Do we think it was because He wanted to go somewhere where He would feel lonely? I think it was much more than that. It's those "lonely", not so "homey" places, when we are away from the hustle and bustle of the "normal", the familiar, our comfort zone, that God meets us. And I can tell you that in those moments... in those beautiful "lonely places"... We are never alone.

It's in the "lonely places" where "rest" takes on a new definition, because we only have His promises and not on our outside circumstances to rest in. It's there that He promises us- "Where your treasure is there the desires of your heart will be also." (Luke 12:34)

He is our treasure.

I have a whole new understanding of these words that I have heard since childhood:
"The kingdom of heaven is like TREASURE hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again and then IN HIS JOY went and sold all he had a bought that field." Matthew 13:44

And so, I do it all over again... year after year... transfer from one place that's not quite home to another that is even further from home... because they aren't and they will never be. I do it because HE is home. His Presence is home. The human definition of "home" is negotiable... my place in Him never is.

Goodbye America... Hello Africa

Tonight, we leave for Tanzania! Please keep us in your prayers. We will have a brief layover in Turkey for a couple of hours and then arrive in Dar Es Salaam around 3 am Sunday morning (Tanzanian Time). We love you all and appreciate so greatly all of the prayers, love and support that you continue to shower us with. We are blessed to have you stand with us. Thank you!

As I finished packing last night, these simple words rang in my heart from an old hymn, "Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, just to take Him at His word". We are blessed to know the depth of these words, stepping out and going to some of the darkest and most unknown places of the world. I was overwhelmed as I sat and thought about all of the moments in the last few years in Africa when I should have felt fear or apprehension, due to the severity of the situation that I found myself in. I also remembered back to when we first decided to leave it all and actually GO to Tanzania. We sold everything, quit our jobs and left. All of these moments came rushing back to me, and I realized a reoccurring theme among them all. A deep peace that, according to our circumstances, that I "shouldn't" have felt. A peace that went beyond the logic in the moment. Those words from that hymn have rung true in every moment. And I am so thankful, as we step out again, that we truly can just "take Him at His word". 

Whatever situation you may find yourself in in your life today, may you feel that same peace, despite what your circumstances might look like.

Be blessed.

When Serving Him Is Forbidden...

On our second trip to this village, we took the opportunity to greet many of the villagers, hoping to establish friendships for when we returned with the Jesus Film. Welcoming us with open arms, they couldn't wait to see us return.

As we were waving goodbye, this woman quietly came forward to the second in command of the village, asking him if it was ok to ask us for prayer. She had suffered for a long time from pain in her neck, numbness in her extremities and was unable to sleep well at night, due to the severity of her symptoms. Caitlin’s father (a physical therapist) was with us on this expedition and was able to give her a little medical advice, since there is no hospital or doctor in this village. The only “help” they have is a little mud hut with a grass roof, which serves as home to a randomly acquired stash of a few expired medications, rendering it an “illegal” dispensary. We knew that Jesus truly was her only answer.

After praying with her, we asked if she would like to accept Jesus, she sadly shook her head “no”, saying that her husband wasn't there to give permission. We told her that God already knew her problem and that He was going to touch her body, believing that she would be totally healed.

Two weeks later, we pulled into this village, just before nightfall to show the Film. Within the first couple of minutes, a woman left the site where the Film was playing (which was most likely the only opportunity she would have to see a movie in her entire life), and came to our campsite, where we were busy setting up our tents for the night. Excitedly, she grabbed our arms, and in the moonlight, we recognized her face as the woman we had prayed for. These were her words:

“I have been completely healed! I know that Jesus has done this, and I am now a Christian. My husband is a Muslim, so I am worried that he will be angry and forbid me to serve Jesus, but I cannot ever be anything else but a Christian from this day forward! He will always be my God.”

When serving Him is forbidden... you can be sure that His amazing love will win out every time.

How Far Would You Go?

Video Log: The Never Ending Night

When Pagan Altars Are Burned...

I watched them burn their altar to nothing. 

This is taking things to a whole new level. 

Within a few weeks after I had the privilege of praying with this young woman to receive Christ, we returned to do follow up ministry in her village. That day, she and her husband decided to burn their altar down to the "ancestral spirit" that they worship.

I am reminded of the scripture when King David insisted on paying for the threshing floor that he was going to sacrifice burnt offerings to God on. It costs us something when we choose to really follow Him. There is always a price. This people group live in fear of offending their "ancestral spirits". According to their fearful beliefs, these ancestors have the power to harm their family, cause their crops to perish and ultimately bring death to their house. Worship, honor and sacrifice are ways of appeasing them. Putting their faith in Jesus to be their ultimate Source, would cost them "everything"- especially, if they were wrong. It would mean turning their back on everything that they put their trust in. It would mean sacrificing their reputation (about 10 villagers observed this tearing down of the altar). It would mean destroying their worldview at the root. It would mean going against culture. Burning down their altar would be the ultimate abandonment to God. 

2 Samuel 24:24b

"... NOR will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing..."

When altars are burned... when it costs us something... that is when His freedom has access to our hearts.

When pagan altars are burned, there is a question at the root of it all...
Is it time to light a match in our own lives? 

"If you are still measuring out your offerings, then you haven't seen His worth yet." -Klaus Kuehn

"Stay Amazed" Klaus Kuehn YouTube Song

When Witches Encounter Jesus...

     Next door to Pastor Moshi’s house, where we always set up our tents in Kama, is a house of Tongwe people. This house becomes a party house when their banana liquor has finished fermenting– they drink the one or two 50 gallon drums dry in a 3 day binge. It is the same house where the witch doctors of the village have their meetings, and it is also the home of a female witch (but we didn’t know about her yet). Javen has felt drawn to show love to the husband of the house, making an effort each day to speak him in his own tribal language, Kibende. Last year, this man gave a gift to Javen and has continually softened his demeanor towards our team.

    

      Coming over to greet us one morning, he said that his wife was ill. Our request to pray for her gave him pause for a moment, but he agreed.  We mentioned to a member of our national team (a former witch doctor of the village) that we were going to go pray for this man’s wife. Horrified, he said, “You can’t! She’s a witch!” Once he found out that the husband gave permission, his jaw dropped to the floor. 

     

     We arrived at her house with an entourage of followers, all waiting to see if the witch would allow us to pray for her. Little did we know what God had in store…

    Arriving at her house, I recognized the witch. She is a woman who I greeted almost daily in the village and had sat with at 2 village funerals in the last 3 weeks; yet, I had never known much about her or who she really was. When asked if we could pray for her, her response was, “Do what you want to do.” Not exactly the most welcoming response, but it was all that we needed. As we prayed, the focus of our prayer was not the fever that she was suffering with or the pain that she had physically, we prayed for her heart.

    

     Laying my hand on her shoulder, I began to speak life over her and something happened. As I prayed, I saw a picture in my mind of a little African girl, crossing a river, and as she crossed this river, she witnessed something horrible. It was a traumatizing experience for this little girl, but I never saw what it was that happened. I felt that this picture somehow related to this woman and that God was looking to heal her heart of every hurt from her life. So, I shared a little with her about God healing her heart but never said anything about the picture I had gotten in my mind.

      

     The next day, we went over to check on her, and all that I had been able to think about for the last 24 hrs was this picture of the little girl. As we went back to her house to check on her, I wrestled with myself, knowing I needed to say it. Even as we talked with her, the war inside me continued. It’s one thing to ask God to use you… it’s totally different to actually LET HIM. Finally, I explained what I saw the day before and asked if this meant anything to her, before my interpreter finished speaking, she blurted out, “It was my mother. The little girl was my mother! She told me of this experience when I was a girl.” She looked on with a face of reliving what had been spoken to her at such a young age.

  

     I was then able to say that God loved her so much that He sent a person all the way from America to come to her house, because she was physically in pain, so that He could actually heal the pain in her heart.  Whatever this pain was that affected her, her mother and their family, I (practically a stranger) could never have known it. But God revealed it, so that He could show her how much He loves and cares about her.

Because it doesn’t matter if they are murderer, a church goer, a rapist or a witch…

He Still Loves to Save the Lost.

4 Village Blast

We are kicking off our 4 Village Blast on Wednesday, July 17th.

Here is a look at what the ministry has in store:

Village 1: Kama (Our Base Village)

Follow up visits to the sick families that we prayed with and treated on our Medical Expedition two weeks ago, as well as, showing the Jesus Film.

Village 2: Esther's Village

Many of you may remember us sharing Esther's testimony last year. Once completely insane, now set free by the power of God!

Last year, the people who came to the Jesus Film that we showed in her village were threatened that they would be killed if they accepted Jesus. Javen was asked to lead about 6-7 people to the Lord in secret behind a hut.

Our Goal: Personally visit every hut in her village for relationship building and inviting them to the Jesus Film that evening followed by prayer for the sick. 

Prayer Focus: Pray for miracles to be done and lives to be changed, that the power of fear and witchcraft would be broken from their lives.

Village 3: It Started with the Youth

You may remember this picture from last year. These 7 young men gave their lives to Christ in a village with only a 1 member church in it, and Javen spent 2 days pouring into them. They asked for Bibles when we return.

 Village 4: New Village

Meeting with the Chairman of this new village is our first priority. We will fellowship together with him for the day, get his permission to return with a team and invite his village to the Jesus Film showing that night on their land.

Prayer Focus: Pray for God's favor with this village. Our indigenous missionary pastor to Kama, Pastor Moshe, has been to this village and shared with one man about Christ there. We are so excited to break ground in this new place! 

Thank you for your prayers- Can't wait to share all the testimonies when we get back!

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory..."
Ephesians 3:20-21a 

A Witch Doctor's Invitation

Having a doctor on our Medical Expedition was a key used by God to unlock even the darkest of hearts. Within 10 minutes of arriving in our host village, we were handed a baby who was covered in a contagious skin condition. Since she was returning to her village the next morning, the baby's mother invited the doctor and our whole team to her village (a new village for us) to come and examine the baby further.

Hiking an hour and 45 minutes, crossing a river and a stream, sighting leopard dung along the way, we arrived at a homestead containing 15 people; yet, we had unknowingly stepped into a great plan from God. While, Tim Roberts, our guest physician from the States examined the entire family, gave medical advice and prayed for the sick, Javen and John met with the elder grandfather of the homestead. After sharing with him that this is what we do (show God's love to villages) and that we want to be able to do so in his, with a soft heart, he gave permission for us to return. Needing permission from the surrounding homesteads in the area as well, he offered to go there himself and obtain it for us. Hearing about our desire to show the Jesus Film in his village, he invited us to a larger village where "more people could have the opportunity to see it", and all the surrounding villages, including his village, could gather and watch it together. At the end, God gave John a word specifically for this man and his situation. All he could do was thank us.

Walking back another hour and 45 minute, this time we sighted fresh leopard paw prints at the stream we had just crossed, no more than 40 mins before. Arriving at our host village, we shared the story of our afternoon to the pastor there. He said, "Do you know who you just received that invitation from? That man is one of the most powerful and feared witch doctors in the entire area. Everyone lives in fear of him. Your access to share the gospel in that area just came from A Witch Doctor's Invitation."

The Lord gave me this scripture before our first expedition this year for when we go into the mountains:

"Even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you." Psalm 139:12

God is taking the darkest hearts and piercing them with his light. I never saw a dark heart in this man- I saw only a soft one. 

Medical Training Expedition

Our Medical Training Expedition begins TOMORROW! Along with a special ministry guest flown in from the States, our team is going out to do a 4 day basic first aid, water purification, food safety, wound care and personal hygiene course. But it doesn't stop there...

*Daily discipleship teachings in the Word will be taking place
*The Jesus Film will be brought to 2 different villages
*Some of our team will be overseeing the current church building going up in our host village

And...
We will be setting foot in a new village that we have never been to before, developing relationship and bringing the light of the Gospel! We are looking at a jam-packed expedition, and we couldn't be more excited!

Please cover us in your prayers as we head out into the mountains.

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord Your God...

I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and the the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth- everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made...

I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from Me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed..."

Isaiah 43:2-3a, 6-7, 12a