When I first arrived to this country, waiting in line was an exercise of the fruit of the Spirit.  I needed lots of patience, kindness, and gentleness as I would be skipped by people who supposedly reserved their spot in the imaginary line.  In recent years, number systems have been installed in almost all locations reducing the frustration and now I get to experience joy and peace.  It is amazing how much we have been conditioned to love order.

Living in an apartment building makes it challenging to get to know our neighbors. Most people are out at work or school all day, then come home and close their doors behind them and don’t really engage in relationships outside their own apartments. We have found one of the best ways to get our neighbors to open their doors and get to know us is by bringing them fresh baked cookies over the holidays. Many reciprocate the gesture and bring us special local holiday treats and express their gratitude that we took the time to reach out to them. Please pray it will lead to more opportunities of them opening their doors to us so we can share with them the hope we have.

Minority religions in this country are publicly accepted by national religious leaders. As we continue to work primarily with those identifying  with the majority religion, God has unexpectedly opened doors to those more familiar with other faiths. What a great reminder to us of His power to bypass barriers and fears in order to create common connections that lead to Him. 

This is the typical view on a Thursday night standing on the outside steps of our Enrichment Center. Please join us as we pray for this neighborhood and those who live here, that His light will shine into their lives in an enriching and irrefutable way.  

Asking for help is at times something I tend to avoid. However, there are some situations we find ourselves in that are obvious to others but that we can not fix by ourselves. Here, I found myself at a local car wash ready to pull my van out of the bay when it would not start. The workers quickly assessed the situation and immediately jumped in to help get me on the road. As unexpected situations pop up in our lives let us not hesitate to receive and/or to ask for help!  

God has created opportunities in the past few months for many on our team to have deeper conversations with two local friends. As a result,  we recently held our first scripture reading and discussion with them. Pray that this will lead to more meetings. After reading the word — all of  us in our heart languages, and one of them for the first time —  when asked the question, “How does this impact us now?” one answered, “Life is meaningless without God.” We praise the Living God for this and continue pursuing His purpose and plan in this! 

Every Saturday night at our center is a special time for many young adults to gather and have a safe place to connect. Last fall an opportunity opened up for our team members to join the fun! We ask for existing relationships to grow and for new connections that will lead to Him! May we continue to walk through new doors to join Him. 

This is the view I get to see in the morning as the sun paints the sky, during the daytime as the sun reflects off the mountain range, and at night as the moonlight lights up our city.  It’s a totally different perspective from up here, above the mayhem of life down on the streets. It’s a good reminder of how God sees things. We often get stuck looking at what may seem overwhelming to us when we’re in the midst of it — but if we can take a moment, rise above the situation, and ask for Him to give us wisdom & direction, His peace will wash over us and allow us to see He is creating beautiful things even in the midst of the chaos! So look up, and ask for His perspective! 

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.” – Ezekiel 37:5

May the local church buildings once again become a place filled with hope.