Friday, September 20, 2013

Crafting the call

The temperatures in Bandung this week peak at 89o (days) and swoop to 62o (nights). What's not to like?!

As we pare down clothing for a smaller closet and a new climate, I'm happy. I've experienced so many occasions in the clothes that I'm giving away. There have been birthdays, funerals, weddings, dinners, walks in the neighborhood, bike rides on the trail, and everything between. Groceries and a grandchild have leaned against them. Very few haven't been worn often: I like variety in dress.

We're looking forward to two days of instruction: our ministry network hosts a LAUNCH workshop in Snoqualmie today and tomorrow. The landscape is gorgeous nearby, but the people in the room are more precious. We're learning to gather resources for service to others.

W spoke in chapel Wednesday. Students asked how they could go to Indo: that's very cool! The missionaries have told us to recruit people, as well as our necessary finances. We believe God will use every kind of participation to bless this country. Will you be part of that effort?

Do you sense a change coming in your own life? Is God asking you to go? Is he calling your name, whispering a new job, different country, or ministry challenge into your ears? Are you willing to listen? To respond?

For us, saying "yes" means clearing away anything that doesn't belong in the new season. It's an arduous process because we've rooted ourselves deeply in our community, church, and home. It's an ambitious project because there's so much to learn and to do.

This season is also reflective and meditative. We're rethinking life, going forward without all the props we've enjoyed. God is confirming our calling. He's drawing us in through scriptures, mentors, and stories. [Our story here.]

I want to ask you again: Do you sense a change coming in your own life? Is God asking you to go? Is he calling your name, whispering a new job, different country, or ministry challenge into your ears? Are you willing to listen? To respond?

Read more:
*Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given the early rain for your vindication; he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before. Joel 2:23 ESV

*God says, "I will be like the dew to Israel; he shall blossom like the lily." Hosea 14:5 NLT

*Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. Luke 12:27 NLT

Moravian Prayer: Providing God, grant us the faith to trust in you providence. If you care for the simplest parts of creation, how much more do you care for us whom you created in your own image? May we cease to worry and put our trust in you. Amen.

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