God is not dead.

by | Apr 7, 2014 | Blog |

He is Alive. God determines how those of us that follow him will be used. He raises up communities like ours in spite of all our failures and weaknesses. He certainly did with ours. We did not start WyldLife at Murchison. God did it. We got to see it. I did not gain His favor by going on mission trips to Mexico, or serving on mobile loaves. I did see Him use me. He’s invited us to pray and be involved in His work here, and because of our relationship with him, we have seen him do so much. Changed hearts, healed bodies, one answered prayer after another. He invites each of us into those types events. The things He is doing on this earth. Not just those that move your family to Costa Rica. Or Timbuktu. But downtown. In our schools. Our neighborhoods. Right here, right now. Through each of us, if we let Him. I saw God move when I visited Mexico and we see him alive everywhere in the world today. It is his glory on display every day right here in this city and around the world. He is constantly doing things big and small to draw people to himself. In Ephesians it starts out with what God has done for all of us. Then he invites us into what he is doing. His word at the beginning of Ephesians 4 is “in your vocation” Your vocation now. It does not say you need a new one. It is a YES, a response to his invitation. Then as you respond, watch him move. The last...

One Hundred Million Pieces

by | Oct 26, 2013 | buildingaboat, buildingaboat |

John 20:21 – Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” I want to tell you about one of the best Christmas gifts I ever got from my parents. I asked for a remote control car. The one that’s bad to the bone; not like the simple forward and reverse kind. AIR. I want this thing to catch air. Christmas morning comes around and I am so jazzed up and ready. I knew that after presents I was going to be building ramps and jumping stuff by 2 p.m. that afternoon. I got the present I wanted. I knew which one it was. I had scoped them out in Hobby Lobby for months. Even though I knew what was inside, I played it cool anyway. When I unwrapped the box, there it was. Oh, yeah, the Hornet. I double checked the cover. YES. Awesome. I raced to the front room and opened the box. 100 million pieces. The car was not even recognizable. It had no form. There was nothing there, not even a tire to roll around. Everything had to be put together. I burst into tears, devastated. It was not what I wanted. We are pretty good at knowing what we want. For years, we did the Jimmy and Jeannie plan. We worked to get what we wanted. The school we wanted. The house we wanted. The life we believed was for us. But it wasn’t until I got on my knees that I got what I needed. As I sat there crying on...

Vida Abundante.

by | Jul 15, 2013 | Blog, push to costarica site |

We are half way into week three here in San Jose. This trip has been very good. We have spent time with Young Life kids, with staff, and we have met new friends. We do miss our friends and family back in Austin and we are excited to get back and see them, but it is nice to know that when we move here there are some great families that are anxious to help us settle in and start to build a life here. Wow. That is hard to type. I think because as I type it I think of all the people we will miss. People like you reading this and especially our family. We went to a church yesterday called Vida Abundante. Abundant Life. I think those are marvelous words because I feel like more and more that is what Jesus is doing in our lives. I think our kids are learning that fear is not real. Maybe ‘worry’ is a better word. They are learning that when you trust Jesus and go to club even though you don’t want to, because you will be one of a few speaking english, Jesus has something to show you. When you get in the car and go, Jesus shows up and you get to laugh till you are just busting at the seams. Vida Abundante. I mean sure, maybe they were laughing because they were still a little timid but the emotion is so powerful and it is all built on Faith in Jesus. Trusting Him. Trust Him with something big. Something you think is impossible. But believe He...