Our God is faithful

2 Timothy 2:11-13 contains a statement, or rather a poem, that has puzzled me and encouraged me for years.

"Here is a trustworthy saying:

If we died with him,
we will also live with him;

if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;

if we are faithless,
he remains faithful,
for he cannot disown himself."

Even when I am faithless, God remains faithful for he cannot disown himself. Our God is unchangeable, immutable. He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. This is the theme of what I have begun learning in the last few weeks of October. The month of October was full of stress, difficulty, discouragement, and  God's faithfulness. I have struggled mightily with my faith that God will do great things for his children in the last month. There are so many situations among close friends and family where I watch and wonder where God is in the midst of these heartaches. 

I have also struggled with how slowly the fund raising process has been. I know there are important steps to take in these initial stages: 

• We have been developing a team of prayer warriors to cover our partnership development in prayer.
• We have been creating materials to help share our ministry with others: brochures, portfolios, prayer cards, etc.
• We have been reading and reviewing our instruction manual to receive guidance about the plans we are making for presentations.
• We have studied many passages from the Bible to learn about the biblical precedent of asking for financial support from other people.

I have also felt the changes that God is making in my own perspective and heart to prepare me for pursuing this life of dependence. It has been a challenge to learn how truly dependent we are for everything we possess. Living with family is a constant reminder of how little of our surrounding belongs to David and I.   I have also been painfully conscious of the fact that David's last paycheck will arrive December 31st. We have been blessed to receive monthly support from financial partners throughout our entire marriage. However, we have always needed to supplement our monthly support with income from other employers. God was faithful to allow Cadence International the funds to offer David full-time income which met the need created when David and I ended our other part-time employment. However, we are reaching the point where even that form of employment will end. In January, we will fully devote our time to partnership development. Our only source of income will be monthly gifts donated to MMS Aviation. Honestly, that is a scary thought to me despite the fact that we have received pledges equal to 3% of our total support goal. Only 97% to go! 

God has been faithful to remind me through his Word of this truth: I am utterly dependent for all my needs on HIM, not on the people whose gifts I receive. He is the one leading David and I to take this step of faith. He is the one leading these friends to also step out in faith and give sacrificially in support of our ministry needs.

God has been faithful to provide these needs:

1. Four families have pledged to give monthly donations for our support.
2. Other family and friends have committed to pray faithfully for our ministry
3. Some have contributed financially toward our one-time expenses: moving costs, tools, and training fees.
4. Some of our supporters are recommending our ministry to their friends
5. Our family is committed to providing housing for David and I long-term (quite the financial commitment)
6. Special gifts have helped offset costs for printing and other supplies for our presentation materials
7. One gift provided funds to seek much needed chiropractic care to resolve my recurring back and shoulder pain as well as frequent headaches
8. Our small group has donated gifts-in-kind to provide recent pictures for our prayer cards, hair styling, and binding our portfolios
9. God has provided sufficient income for this season where we have many medical costs to ascertain the cause of several issues. Most of the test results have returned normal. Praise God for protecting me from more serious medical conditions. My Celiac's Disease is being managed and my symptoms may resolve with further diet changes alone.
10. We still have no debt to hinder our ministry and our ability to follow God's direction.
11. On Sunday mornings, we are participating in a small group study about marriage with one other couple from our church. We also receive fellowship and encouragement through a small group study on the gospel and other Bible studies during the week.

In all these things, I will give thanks! Will you join me in thanking God for his unchanging faithfulness?

New Job

David and I have chosen to participate in a small group through church. We have both individually appreciated the community and growth of being in small groups of believers. After we married last year, we hoped that growth would occur as we joined a small group together. However, multiple part-time jobs soon interfered with our ability to be involved in any small group or group Bible study.  Our current transition of work and ministry is finally allowing us to be a part of a small group as a couple. What a blessing! There is no greater privilege than to learn within community.
The small group is studying the book of Galatians with the help of a Tim Keller publication, "Galatians for You." Right from the beginning the study overwhelms you with a fresh sense of the grace God has shown us and the prominence of this grace in the gospel. Today's study focused on Paul's testimony that his life was not spent in an effort to receive approval from men, but to please God. Tim Keller used an example of how a child lives when they are trying to earn their parent's love or approval versus a child's response when they already know they are fully loved. A child who knows their parent loves them still wants to do what pleases their parent for the parent's benefit, not out of their own desire for approval.
One of the study questions given for reflection said, "How are you most tempted to fear men and seek their approval? What would change if, in those moments, you lived to please the God who is pleased with you?" The question prompted me to pause and reflect on how I am tempted right now to revere the approval and attention of people. I have often wrestled with an imbalance of desire to please certain people rather than a desire to please God. I do not find life pleasant when I am striving to please other people rather than be pleasing to God.
I think this season of life, faith, and following God provides a lot of occasion to reflect on, "Who am I living to please?" One of the hardest things about becoming involved in full-time, faith-supported ministry is asking for support. People don't often approve of or enjoy talking about money, especially if you are asking for their money. What have my own responses been in situations where I have been approached for a financial contribution?

• I'm already giving to someone else
• I don't have any extra money to give
• What are you doing to try and earn the money yourself?
• How do I know what you are going to be doing with that money?
• Is this some kind of swindle?
• I wish I could give to every person I know in ministry! Somehow that doesn't seem fiscally responsible...

Do any of these responses fit you? Have you heard the same thoughts in your head? Will similar thoughts pop into your mind if I approach you next week with a request for a financial donation?

I seem to have a pretty good idea of how and when I am tempted to fear men. I don't want to offend anyone or turn them off from the ministry I serve or the purpose of Christ. I don't like leaving a distasteful memory in people's hearts about my self, my family, or my God.  Yet, God has called us to provide a service free of charge. It's kind of hard to live off of that.  I admire the Apostle Paul's dogged pursuit of preaching the gospel "free of charge." He often wrote of his efforts to not be a burden to the new believers when he first presented the gospel in a city. Sometimes, he worked to cover his own expenses, even paying for his companions' needs. Often, another church from a previous trip would send gifts to meet his needs. Regardless, Paul's primary goal was that the gospel would not have come with a price tag to those who need it.

I am reading through Acts 20 today in conjunction with my Galatians study. Paul states to the church elders from Ephesus, "But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus-the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God." That statement brings me back to the question "What would change if, in those moments, you lived to please the God who is pleased with you?" What would change if I lived like Paul did? Is my life worth nothing unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus? Is Christ's mission to spread the message of the gospel and the hope of the resurrection more important to me than what other people think of me? 

I think a lot of Americans, myself included, derive our identity or our worth from our jobs. Here's a question: What if the job to which God has called you is one that brings you criticism, disapproval, and rejection? Would you finish that job? Would you share the gospel with that coworker who is Buddhist or the neighbor who is Jehovah's Witness? Would you leave a financially secure position and nice home to move to a foreign country with only financial donations to support your family?

Would you confront your boss about a business practice that is unethical or illegal? Would you tell your parents the truth about your addictive habit and ask for help to overcome it? Would you warn a friend that their lifestyle has terrible consequences like AIDS?

What job has God given you?  "What would change if, in those moments, you lived to please the God who is pleased with you?"  Timothy Keller, "Galatians For You"

P.S. I may be sending you a request for financial support.... just remember the request is from God, with my signature at the bottom. :o)

Moving Day

It is hard to believe how quickly a year can pass. On Labor Day, David and I celebrated our first anniversary. We enjoyed cinnamon rolls (family favorite) for breakfast, grilled burgers, and hiked Castle Rock at sunset. Thank God for Labor Day and our anniversary coinciding this year! It was wonderful that David could enjoy a day off. Especially since we moved the two days previous to that Monday. Our move from Denver to Castle Rock went as smoothly as possible. Several family members, a few friends, and our neighbors showed up to help us move. We had everything loaded on the moving truck in a few hours and were finished moving by dinnertime.  Thank you to everyone who helped us move!  God has really blessed us through your visible acts of love.

One of the greatest surprises in the past year has been God's answer to our prayers for our neighbors. Here are some of the surprises we've experienced the last month.

• Our upstairs neighbor, Lynn, has been studying the Bible with me for a few months. She wants to continue studying together by phone or email if possible. She really connected with the Bible study by Chip Ingram that we started a few weeks ago and has put applications in place in some major areas. Praise God for his grace in her life!
• Another woman who lives with a neighbor shared how she had walked away from her relationship with God; I prayed with her earlier in August. She has shared several ways that God is leading her to return to him including marrying her boyfriend instead of continuing to live with him unmarried.
• Our neighbor, Marsha, went to church for the first time! She has been very sick and dealing with alcoholism, addictions, and spiritual warfare. Pray for her salvation. She asked for a Bible of her own. Her friend (the woman mentioned above) has been reading the Bible and praying while staying with Marsha and this has peaked Marsha's interest in things related to God and Jesus. We spent significant time sharing the gospel with Marsha our last week in Denver, despite packing and moving. Marsha was moved to tears when I (Allison) brought her a Bible the following week. 
• Our neighbor from Burma was helpful to us during our move. He stated that he often comes to Castle Rock and would like to visit us here. We encouraged him to connect with us soon. 

Praise God all our neighbors are being impacted through our lives and our love for them in Christ! We are amazed and so blessed that they all want to stay in contact. Christ's love is contagious and worth keeping around~

We ask you to join us in prayer:

• for our landlord as he and his new wife move into a neighborhood desperately in need of Christ. Pray that God would strengthen this couple to continue reaching their neighbors with the hope of the gospel. 
• for our families as many of our siblings' families are going through transitions with work, home, and church right now. 
• that we would be a blessing to my mom and sister as they open their home to us for a little while. 
• that God would give us grace to be living in someone else's space with little room to call our own. 

God is so good to us. We are excited for all the next year has to hold!