Dreaming with God

"Encounters with God as an intimate are quite different from those of a servant.  His heartbeat becomes our heartbeat as we celebrate the shift in our own desires. The realm of His presence becomes our greatest inheritance, and divine encounters are greatest memories."
~Bill Johnson, Dreaming with God

This past week began our new schedule for the next several months.  It has been great to finally get to this point, as we have been anticipating this all summer.  We are excited but already feel that our schedule will not be doable except by the grace of God...which we have experienced over and over again SO I am trusting Him to sustain us.

On Tuesday morning, we came into Waco early to sign Josiah up for Muttin' Bustin' (an event in the rodeo where little ones ride sheep! Adorable and hilarious!).  Josiah has been looking foward to this for sometime and was so excited to finally be old enough to sign up to be in the rodeo just like all those cowboys he admires! 

WELL....signups started at 8am with a limited number or entrants...the little boys and I stood in line for sometime...and missed the cut off by one person.

It was so sweet and sad explaining to little 4 year old Josiah why he wasn't able to be ride in the rodeo after all.  He was disappointed, for sure.  But took it in stride.  Once I dropped them off at their mother's day out program, I started crying!  Just knowing that this was his one chance since next year we will be gone.  I was so sad for him...and me, too!  I started thinking about all the "normal" things that I expected to see Josiah do as a boy...little league, 1st day of Kindergarden...Mutton Bustin'.  I knew it was silly but I grieved the things our boys will not experience because we are moving to Haiti.

Tonight, while sitting on the front porch with my current read, plus amazing weather and a beautiful sunset,  God brought me to this quote by Bill Johnson...about the realm of God's presence being our greatest inheritance and Divine encounters our greatest memories...It grabbed my heart.  And I rested.

Thank you, God!  The boys and I may not have all the expected memories and experiences of an American mom with 3 boys but wherever we are (America, Haiti, or elsewhere),we WILL experience God's presence and His divine encounters.  It will be our greatest treasure...our most prized possessions...cherished memories of being friends with God and not merely servants.  Of not just obeying God but living our life on earth with Him...experiencing Him and his adventues.

Tangible Good News With Earthy Relevance

The Poor Will Be Glad by Peter Greer & Phil Smith is my current read...I am just getting started but can already tell that it will be a book that I recommend again and again. Here are some of my thoughts so far:

Jesus never seperated evangelism and service. His life modeled the perfect combination of the two and they were one and the same. So many of our American churches have seperated the two (missions committee vs. benevolence committee...sound familiar??). Jesus lived the Greatest Commandment to love God and love others but also called us to Go, Baptize and Teach to obey in the Great Commmission. This book is growing my desire to present a "two handed" gospel...because Jesus is all about meeting both our physical and spiritual needs...they are so interconnected I think it is difficult to present the fullness of the Good News unless we do both.

"The disciples did not seperate doing good works from proclaiming the good news. The gospel wasn't only an abstract idea that could "save souls" but tangible good news with earthly relevance. This had been impressed on the disciples not only by the daily actions of Jesus but in their first assignments."

~Phil Smith