Having Heart

"...at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart..."
Luke 18:1

We would ask again for you to pray specifically about two churches in the mid west that have indicated a desire to begin supporting us. Both have said money is tight, but they have not forgotten about us. One church will be voting sometime in the next few days to support us.

We have had our needs met above and beyond the necessities. God has seen to it that the expenses of this trip appear to be covered now. For that we are so thankful.

Tomorrow we must say good bye to this great Grants Pass, Oregon church family. We move on to Eugene, Oregon for a few days. Hopefully we will be able to take a short trip back to Portland to see our niece, Alicia. She is moving from Corpus Christi, Texas to Portland to begin work in a medical practice. We hope to see her before we begin making our way back east.

Jim will be preaching and presenting the Brazil work this Sunday in Eugene. Thanks for your prayers. Those prayers help us to "have heart."

Postcards

Redwood National Park in California


One fond memory I have for Janelle, Dan, JD, and Jim is their grandparents would send them postcards from places they visited. The postcards were greatly enjoyed and kept on display for quite some time. I hope we can send along a few postcards to our grandchildren in days to come.

I am really small next to those great redwood trees. They are said to be several hundred years old. We also went a few more miles to the Pacific and hiked down to the shore where a couple of brrrr-ave souls were swimming in the icy waters.

We had a blessing seeing those great trees and the ocean today.

Getting around

For those who have trouble finding their way to church....




We drove to Lacomb, Oregon yesterday morning and back to Grants Pass this afternoon. The truck turned over 100,000 miles on the way through Montana a couple of weeks ago. We certainly praise the Lord for a dependable vehicle. Today Jim taught a combined Sunday school, and then he preached for the morning service. We have been invited out for some lunch and fellowship tomorrow, and look forward to keep getting to know the folks here better.

I have been reading one of my favorite authors again. Elisabeth Elliot writes in, A Path Through Suffering, that the "sign" of the cross for every believer is to die to self daily, surrendering the will in obedience to the Father. I have heard this before and probably need to hear it daily.

Time and expectations

On our way to Crater Lake National Park we stopped for a bit to see this waterfall. Further up the river the water has carved out holes and come through rock to create a natural bridge. Water is so life-giving and so powerful that it can tear rocks apart.
But it doesn't happen quickly.


"My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him." Psalm 62:5
Waiting for things is one of my biggest heart challenges. Please pray that we will not wait upon churches or people to have our expectations met. We need to learn to wait on God and make Him the only true satisfaction of our souls.

Jim preached last evening from the book of Haggai. It was a blessing. Please pray for the folks here in Grants Pass to consider supporting the work in Brazil.
This weekend we will travel to Lebanon, Oregon for Sunday services. Keep us in those prayers. Thanks.

Also we congratulate our nephew, JD, and his wife, Danielle on the birth of their daughter, Lily Grace. Lily Grace is our first great niece. Some pictures are posted on JD's blog. See the link to the right of this post.

Snow in June?

We left Michigan on Tuesday the 5th, exactly 2 weeks ago. The weather wasn't good when we left. On our way through Minnesota, South Dakota, and Montana we continued to have tornado-like storms and got caught in a hail storm in Gillette, Wyoming. All along, the weather has been "unseasonably cold." So it only makes perfect sense to find snow on all the east facing slopes at the park yesterday. The air temperature was in the 60's, but the snow is still being removed from roads around the rim of the crater and from off the tourist paths.

The red sweet Bing cherries are in season here and absolutely delicious. We have also been enjoying fresh, 33 cent, California avocados.

The second picture needs a bit of an explanation. The stump in the picture remains alive because its underground roots are grafted naturally to the large tree next to it. Even though the stump appears to be dead, it lives because it abides in the life-giving forces of the living tree. Some spiritual applications there, eh? I did not know until yesterday that it was possible for trees to graft their roots together underground. Pretty amazing!

Jim has been invited to preach tomorrow evening here in Grants Pass. Please pray for him to be clear and Christ-honoring in his speaking. Thanks.
We will travel to another church this coming weekend and then return to Grants Pass for a few more days.

All I can say is, "WOW!"

Today, for the first time, we visited Crater Lake National Park.

We heard the Indian myths about how the crater was formed....
We heard the progressive secular explanation: "millions of years ago"....
We saw the handiwork of the Lord.
It completely defies human words to describe the beauty.

Yesterday's presenting of the Brazil work went well. We were blessed and pray for the good folks here to keep their wonderful heart for missions. Please ask the Lord to help them think about supporting us. Thanks.

Thanks Dad

I am NOT kidding....this is the great view from the back door of the mission home looking east!

In his book, Humility: True Greatness, C.J. Mahaney reminds us to be always watching for evidences of God's grace in other's lives. Thanks Dad, for your faithful walk with the Lord. Thanks for working hard and keeping a Christ-centered world view about family, church, and work. You are a truly generous person. Happy Father's Day to you as a Dad, Grandpa, and now a Great-Grandpa.
Today Jim is teaching a combined adult and teen Sunday school, we are doing a children's program during the morning preaching service, and tonight we will show the DVD. Jim will also speak on Brazil and then preach. It's a wonderful day with much to do. Thank you for remembering to pray for us.

Pioneers

See the roses along the front walk of this missions home!

It's interesting to think of the early settlers who left their known homes for the unknown, unclaimed territories out here on the west coast. I know some came in search of earthly fortunes in the gold mines; others came due to restlessness in their spirits. Many came and stayed and worked through the hardships.
I have just finished reading King of the Cannibals: The Story of John G. Paton by Jim Cromarty. In 1858, Paton left all his comforts of home in Scotland and set out for the New Hebrides islands in the south pacific. He took his first wife and shortly lost both his wife and child to disease. He continued on, though, for many years with a second wife, several children, and most important... many he saw saved and discipled in Christ. He came, he stayed, and he worked through tremendous hardships, and God blessed him with eternal rewards. Paton was a true missionary pioneer.

Beautiful southern Oregon

Rogue River

Jim and I are staying for a few days in Grants Pass, Oregon. We are surrounded by mountains, sunshine, and lots of roses. Apparently this is an ideal climate for growing things. We are told snow rarely falls here.

We have the blessing of staying a few days in a mission home. We will present our Brazil work on Sunday here and then travel next week. We were in two Portland churches last Sunday and the hospitality has been great.