He is God!

We serve a Great God! And though we don't know what is next or how we will get there.... we serve a God who is THE beginning and end. Praise God that He knows even when we do not! Praise God because He is God and deserves the Glory and we do not! Praise God because He is ruler of all, majestic, good, kind, loving, and faithful.... even when we are not... Praise God that His faithfulness is not contingent on our own... Praise God because He is GOD!

Psalm 118: 28-29

You are my God, and I will give thanks to you;
you are my God; I will extol you.

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
for his steadfast love endures forever!

Anticipating the Day

So my roommate and best friend is getting married. As each day gets closer the checklist gets smaller. I have loved rooming with this soon to be bride; watching the excitement and anticipation for what is to come. As the days get less and less the excitement builds. This Bride and Groom wait in Anticipation for the day they are united as husband and wife.

Watching their anticipated day play out has been an incredible challenge to me in my relationship to Christ. The earthly husband and wife is a picture of the ultimate Bride and Groom; the church with Christ. We should be waiting with excitement and anticipation for the day the church is united with its Groom, Christ. The return of Christ should be an anticipated day. Anticipating the moment, planning and preparing should be done for when we are ridden of our earthly bodies and finally see the face of our Groom. We should be actively participating in the coming of our Savior, not because we have to or because it somehow affects our salvation but because we love Christ more than this earth and what it may bring. We look forward to the day we are united with Him; longing for the moment we are finally joined together. As we live out each day it should be with the hope and desire for the day our groom returns for us. We long for a better country, a better home. We long for the home and relationship we were created for.

Hebrews 11: 13-16

"All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. ¹⁴ People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them."

Far More Abundantly

"Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen"

Ephesians 3:20,21

I am continuously overwhelmed by the grace and mercy of our God. That He would not only allow me, but desire me to be apart of His plan. To look at His blessings and relish in the fact that God loves me and desires a relationship with me!! Is overwhelming. This past week God has worked in the hearts of his people to support me while in South Asia! To Him be the glory, Great things He has done! By Him, through Him, and for Him. While there is still much left to be raised, I am overwhelmed by His faithfulness. I am not sure exactly where my support numbers are at, because of the incredible influx of support, but I will post as soon as I know! Knowing that God is faithful and seeing His faithfulness is more than my feeble mind can handle.

Sunday, I had the wonderful opportunity to worship with a group of believers that I have never worshiped with before. It was such a blessing to be encouraged by this group of Saints and see there desire to serve and glorify the Lord in all that they do. This church is a rare group of gathered believers and I was honored to be a part of their service.

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3: 22,23

In His Grip,

Jen

Prayer Letters

I finally sent out my prayer letters! What a blessing, it fills me up with excitement for what is to come! Here is a copy of the prayer letter I sent out...

Happy New Year! I hope that this letter finds you at the beginning of a wonderful and joy-filled new year! What an exciting time of anticipating what He is going to do and looking back at the work the Lord has accomplished. And what a year it has been! These last few weeks, I have been continuously reminded of the blessings over the past year as the Lord has answered so many long term prayers of my family. We are very blessed indeed!

This next year will also be filled with exciting opportunities and events. In May I am graduating from Liberty University with a dual major in Elementary and Special Education with a Middle School History Endorsement. Praise the Lord for bringing me to this point! Last year, I spent a lot of time in prayer, searching for what the Lord would have me do after graduation. I have had many wonderful opportunities while at Liberty and have grown and been stretched to deeper dependence on the Lord. While I still have much to learn, I am thankful for Liberty and all that I have experienced; most importantly, that I have grown in my walk with God and in spiritual maturity. Through this, the Lord has brought me on an unexpected path. As I looked at what was to come after college the Lord opened doors and placed a passion in my heart for South Asia.

After much prayer and guidance, the Lord has confirmed in me the desire to go to South Asia. I have joined the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism (ABWE) and will be joining a team in South Asia for two years in August. I will be teaching Middle School History in a school for native children; both middle class and orphaned street children. I am so excited for the opportunity to go to the other side of the world to give students an education. Most importantly, I am excited to share with them about the Savior who died for them, Jesus Christ. I cannot begin to express the changes and desires of my heart as the Lord brings the date of my leaving closer and closer.

With that, I am writing you to ask you to be a part of my team of prayer warriors. God has continuously impressed upon me over the years the gift and power of prayer, and I would consider it a great honor if you would include me in your prayers as I continue on in this journey.

· Please pray that God would prepare the hearts of both me and those in South Asia.

· Pray that God would use me to share His Name and His Glory!

· Pray that God would provide for my financial needs. (I have to raise about $40,000 to support my two years.)

· Pray that God would prepare the heart of his people to spread the gospel in South Asia.

Thank you for your prayer support as it is greatly coveted! If the Lord would lay it on your heart to contribute to my financial need, you can give through www.abwe.org/give or by sending to ABWE Donor Services, PO Box 8585, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8585.

A time to wait...

It's Almost been a year! Time has flown since I have decided to go to South Asia this August. oh my how things have changed! Sometimes time seems to be going slowly that I think i will die of slowness and other times so quickly that I can hardly catch my breath. Right now though, it feels like a long time of waiting.

To think that a year ago from today I wrestled with God and had no idea what was to come. A year later I find myself still wrestling- not with what is to next and not to the same extent but about hte how and why. Why would the Lord me to go? I don't know except for his abundant grace and mercy. How it will happen- I have no idea. There is such a large financial obstacle between here and August, but I trust in his sovereignty.

Its funny how often we wrestle with God. And rarely is it over the day to day activities but rather the large decisions we wrestle with God and his sovereignty and we wrestle with ourselves and our trust in Him. I wrestle through my plans and desires. But sometimes, there is a time to wait...

Home Sweet Home

Oh how good it feels to be home! To cuddle up in a blanket, watch a Christmas movie, drink a hot cup of tea, and do NO HOMEWORK! What a blessing to be in such a wonderful home. Tomorrow, a wonderful day of shopping with my Mom! I love Christmas break. Free, from the distractions that school brings and the ability to laugh with my family, devote time to Studying Scripture, and preparing for South Asia. I can't wait for this break!

Psalm 116:5-7

The LORD is gracious and righteous;

our God is full of compassion

The LORD protects the simplehearted;

when I was in great need, he saved me.

Be at rest once more, O my soul,

for the LORD has been good to you

Praises with joyful lips

Psalm 63 has been one of my favorite psalms for a very long time. On many occasions this song of intimacy has been the cry of my heart that my mouth can't seem to express. It is a psalm of pure thanks. One that cries of desperate longing for the Lord. It is a psalm that exuberates the groanings of the soul as it waits to be before the throne of its creator; declaring Holy Holy is the Lord God almighty!

It is this psalm that I find myself at today; not because of the mountain top but because of the weariness of my soul. However, this psalm reminded me of the joy of the Lord. Tomorrow night I am speaking to a group of girls on the Joy of the Lord. I found myself asking God how I could speak of the Joy of the Lord when I simply felt so weary. The Lord brought me back to Psalm 63. He reminded me of what I had learned as a child in Sunday School. "Is Joy the same as being happy all the time? No. It is the contentment of our Soul, the outcome of our worship to the King." And I suppose that was the reminder I needed of the deep contentment within my soul, brought on by peace with my maker through my relationship with Jesus Christ.

"And in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me." In the shadow of the wings of our God we can sing for JOY! The clinging of my soul to the Lord and knowing that his right hand upholds for me, I sing for JOY! Praise our Lord and God for he upholds us in our weakness and in our strength! As I was reading I felt the prompting of my heart. The Lord reminding me to trust Him! Proverbs 3:5,6 has also been on of my favorites over the years. "Trust in the Lord with ALL of your heart! Lean not on YOUR OWN understanding but IN ALL your ways acknowledge HIM and HE will direct your paths." How can we have the Joy of the Lord? By trusting in Him. Sounds easy enough... but in order to trust I have to give over everything to the Lord... everything I am still holding on to (or keep taking back!) When I trust in the sovereignty of my Lord the Joy of the Lord overflows within my heart. The circumstances of Today are of no worry because the circumstances of eternity are secured. In the Lord I find Joy!

"Thus I have seen you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory. Because your loving-kindness is better than life, My lips will praise you. So I will bless your name as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in your name. My soul is satisfied as with the richest foods, and my mouth offers praiseswith joyful lips."