Part II: Grief Comes Knocking Again.

Thank you to all for the prayers, messages, and etc... concerning the passing of my uncle on Monday. I found myself staying in the house today/tonight due to still trying to get over this blasted head cold. Little did I know why I was really to be here...

I ask that you continue to pray for my extended family. I have spent much time with Dale's daughter today via cell phone. That would not have been possible had I been at the physical church building. Ah! I'll take a head cold any day then.

I believe we are take our experiences and use them to help others notice God. Please join with me in praying for all those connected to my Uncle Dale.

Signed,
His Servant

Grief Comes Knocking Again

This evening the phone rang... upon looking at the caller id - I knew.... Yet another family member had passed on. His name was Dale. He was one of my mother's brothers. And he called this niece, "Dear Sweet Camey" for as long as I can remember. He had been ill for so very long with cancer. I am incredibly thankful that he is no longer in pain and suffering.

There is no question that grief was going to come with his passing.... Yet, it does sting a bit more given the timing. The last time I spent quality time face to face with Uncle Dale was a year ago..... we were together due to another family member's passing (cousin Dennis - he was 47).... and I was in charge of taking care of the family. Did I mention before how large our family is? At least on my mother's side...

Uncle Dale and I had really in-depth conversations over those few days. We talked about the time he called me from his hospital room while I was in the hospital in another city. And we laughed.... It was appropriate at the time - just like it makes me laugh still. Two people hooked up to oxygen tanks trying to talk on the phone... while the people around us were trying to insist we needed our rest.

We also talked about where he stood with God. I can still hear him saying, "Camey? That's the minister in you! Just for the record... we're good. Best we've ever been." And right now.... this moment - I am counting that as a sheer blessing.

Grief comes knocking again. And truthfully.... ministering to ones own family is so much harder.

Please pray....

Pictures Worth A Thousand Words

Parker and I

went on a date last night.

This is the park taken by Park. On the other side is the river.

This is just a tad of what we saw.

This picture was taken upside down from behind me.

Trees... Trees... Trees. More trees. What else do you see?


Sometimes it's worth it to ride in the golf cart. Otherwise, we might drive by too fast and miss out on the beautiful scenery of life's moments.

Whose Eyes Do You See With?

Sunday morning, one of the guys in our group told me my hair looked beautiful. He later went on to say that he noticed I had it going the opposite direction than normal. This touched me deeply. Let me explain why.....

I've written about him before. His eye sight is not good. He has had surgery on both of his eyes in recent months and years. He knows who I am by the sound of my voice most of the time - not because he clearly sees me with his own two eyes. Most of the time his own eyes are too cloudy and are partially closed. During the week, he lives and attends a school for the blind. He rides a bus back to town on the weekends.

So, let me ask you this moment.....

Whose eyes do you see with?

Experiencing God. Seeing Him Move.

In the last post, I talked about prayer. It is safe to say that answers to some prayers have clearly been seen in the last couple of days. Thank you again to all who have been praying.

First up is Uncle Logan. He was certain he was going to die in Hurricane Ike. God spared his life. And while I do not claim to understand it all..... I do know this... only God knows.

Yesterday morning, Barbara and her family were at the physical church building. Barbara is a co-worker of Austin's at the little store here in the highly secure gated community. We've been praying for Barbara and her family for well over a year now. The smile on their faces, especially Barbara's..... priceless. Invite people to come..... All they can do is say no. It just might be the invitation they've been waiting for.

The response by individuals in regards to prayer - beyond words.

After I was done with the whole prayer thingy..... it was time for our Bible study group to meet. I walked into the room where Brother G was already sitting with them and had begun talking. As soon as I hit the inside of the room - IT was obvious still.... Brother G taught, there was discussion, and then he had to leave. Where I was sitting - I didn't have a clear view of each one - I knew I needed to move in order to make eye contact. I knew it.... I got up and moved.

Brett J. was sitting directly in front of me. His eyes were filling up with tears as I continued. A twenty-something year old guy - getting all teary. As I looked over to my left - so was Austin M. I talked about Uncle Logan. I talked about not knowing when our time may be up. I shared about when I was 11-years-old. I had surgery on my back and almost didn't make it off the operating table. I talked about the years I was ill - what the doctors had said.... about being in the best health ever at age 40 now. I talked about being lifestyle missionaries.... as we go about our daily lives being his hands, feet, eyes, ears, and mouth. I challenge them to not wait until tomorrow or when they're finished with college. That if they are Christ-followers - they should want to be about sharing Him with others now. It flowed out of me..... I wasn't the one talking. I was merely the vessel.

Brett J. came up to me after the group was over... he said, "When you moved to where you were looking directly at me, I knew God was speaking to me." Brett and Austin M are praying about and will be discussing this week with our staff where they can get plugged in. It may mean they're not a part of our group on Sunday mornings..... and we are thankful. For while we enjoy having them - we'd rather them follow His prompting. Please pray for them.

Brother G and I came back to the house and took a nap. We slept for 3 hours.... 3 hours..... we had a wonderful rest of the evening with each other and our boys.

Experiencing God. Seeing Him move......

What about you?

Prayer - More Than A Chance Encounter.

This morning at 2:00 a.m. I woke up. I had been sound sound asleep - in fact - dreaming. But at 2:00 a.m. - I was wide awake and praying..... Ike made landfall at 2:00 a.m. here in Texas.

Uncle Logan would not leave Texas City. He has Parkinson's like his oldest brother, Glen does, and like his youngest brother, who was also my daddy, did. Like that isn't enough - he also has cancer. He didn't see the need to leave in an effort to spare his life. I must confess to having rather mixed thoughts and emotions about his decision...

Hubby's sister and her family live in Katy... we spoke with them last night... she is suppose to call us this morning when they are able... No call yet..... Hubby's parents live in Magnolia. They decided to stay in Colorado where they had been on vacation.

This morning as the G family was eating breakfast together... we heard about Ike making landfall at 2:00 a.m. Hubby and I discussed the fact that's when I was woken up to pray. Truly believe it was a prompting of the Holy Spirit... of God. I don't discuss these things lightly. It tends to make some rather uncomfortable.... That's okay... Parker said to me, ""That's why you're speaking/teaching on prayer tomorrow."

During the years I was ill - I was often awake at 2:00 a.m. Some times I could move and would get up with the assistance of a walker or cane.. and others - I laid there. It was during that time that praying went to a whole new level. Looking back - I am beyond thankful. For while prayer had always been a part of my daily life.... it took me deeper than I might have gone otherwise.

I have had the opportunity to speak/teach on prayer numerous times since being ill and then having been healed.... and especially since daddy passed on. I am grateful. Yes, I believe in the importance as a Christ-follower of reading His Word.... But even more so than that - there is a level of communication that takes place through prayer. Some times it is me listening to what He has to say in the quiet of the moments... others.. well.... I could go on and on...

It is my prayer today.... wherever you are... that prayer will be more than some thing you do at meal time when ready to chow down. That you will stop..... get alone with The Father... and be still.. and listen.... and speak from your heart even if no audible words come out of your mouth.

It is not a chance encounter. It is an Absolute.... just as He is... even if we don't see our prayers answered immediately or in the way we thought best. It is about the relationship and drawing nearer and standing in the gap for others.

If you have a prayer request - please feel free to leave it.

As always.. you were just prayed for.

I will update on Ike and the status of family members and etc... when I know more.

UPDATE: Uncle is safe! No electricity.. not sure about damage.. but is safe. Sister-in-law and family are without electricity as well. They have downed trees, but are safe too. Still waiting to know more about damage and how best help is needed. Thanks all for your prayers!



Note: For those who have asked.... Yes, the latest Serve! ezine is up... This month's article is entitled, "The Lawn Pastor"... http://www.serve-others.com/issue21/

When the axe fell....

Once upon a time a fat, sappy teenager stumbled across an addiction known as anime. Engrossed and obsessed, he worshiped this sinful collection of Japanese animation while playing the Church game. Over time, the fat sappy teenager (who eventually became slimmer and happier), became less obsessed, yet still held on to his little drug. He became more involved in Church and didn't play the game anymore, yet he still held on to the thing that held him from a true relationship with his Creator.

Case in point: The 16th of Wednesday in April of 2008. The Beginning of the End.

A wonderful devotional named "A Call to Die"entered my life during a stroll through the city. Coming from Bestbuy, I remember, holding the DVD set of this obsession in my hand, turned it down, went to Lifeway, and bought this book, and started a 40 day fast from anime and manga. That day was March 29th. On Day 18 of this intense devotional, a wonderful speaker named Brandi spoke on wednesday night, one of the best wednesday nights of the year. It was that night I chose to end my relationship with anime. I remember holding a piece of clay she had passed out while speaking, saying "Are you going to let God mold you into the person He wants you to be?". At that point, angel and demon Armageddon broke out in my mind. I knew why. He was asking my to give up the thing that had been in my life since childhood, which mutated into a unhealthy idolatry. I sat, as my buddy Linc led closing music, letting the battle rage. Finnally...i took my thumb and pressed it into the clay. It was finished. That was my decision. That night we didnt leave until 9pm ish, a large group who had been moved talking about what had happened. I then immeadiatly trashed the manga and stuck the DVDs in the garage.

Now re-read the last sentance of the last paragraph. "I stuck the DVDs in the garage." Hm. Why did that happen? Over time I died to it...yet something haunted me still. Maybe I still saw it...in the garage, getting out of the van...in a little green travel bag...the wretched DVDs, the majority of the sin materialized even still! While I went a whole summer of no anime, still in my mind, I couldnt quite get it out of there. Duh! The temptation was still there! What could be done to solve this, to finnaly break free from this obsession...?

This!

Yes, sometimes the way to truly put something to death is to literally kill it with an axe! The punishment for my delay to fully kill my old obsession was my hesitancy at first - I debated in my mind if this was the right thing to do. When you are going to do something radical for God, dont wait. Do it now, before Satan gets a chance to give you doubts about your actions. Even though I havnt watched any of those DVDs since the day I started the fast, the temptation was the fact they were a few doors away. Now that they are in ribbons, there is no more temptation, since they are dead! After a while, it got easier and easier to lift the axe and slice them up. It was fun too! Poor tree stump.

Celebrating A Servant!

Today is our oldest son's birthday.... Austin is seventeen! Time has flown by....

As I write this, Austin is not here. My brother-in-Christ is out being God's servant at the little store here in the highly secure gated community. He is being the hands, feet, ears, eyes, and mouth of the Father he loves and adores. It is one of the ways he worships. He takes being a lifestyle missionary seriously as well as being in vocational ministry.

It is has been such an incredible blessing to watch how God has used Austin and continues to use him to show others His love and kindness. Austin is a generous young man. He has already adopted one child through Compassion International.

I could go on and on.... (no, I'm not the slightest bias am I?)

Today.... this moment... I am celebrating a servant....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUSTIN!

How can you serve others, today...... this moment?

As always, you were just prayed for....

God is moving.... are you?


Watch for the next edition of Serve! ezine... The Lawn Pastor!

On Grief: The Two Year Countdown

We've officially entered the two year countdown with the end of August happening. I was asked to share where I am with the whole grieving process of saying goodbye to daddy and learning to live without him being here in the flesh. So, here I go....

Grief is one of the necessary emotions and processes of life. I do consider to have been incredibly blessed by starting the process before we ever moved in with my parents. For the man who had been my dad in my childhood and teenage years would have never needed his daughter and son-in-law and three grandsons to take care of him. The man in May of 2005 did without question even though he did numerous times - question it that is.... until he and God got it all straightened out and he was able to accept it and no longer be mad at me/us.

My daddy and I were exceedingly close. We shared the same passion for serving God and serving others. And even in his dealing with Parkinson's and Diabetes - that did not change. It just made it more interesting at times. There were times when we simply had to laugh even though others thought it might have been inappropriate to do so. That's what happens when you had one who was healed and one who was ill. Of course - he got the ultimate healing.

At the end of August of 2006 is when daddy had his heart attack and spent the next two months in such a battle before winning the race on November 1st. What we learned about God, ourselves, and life and living during those two months - I would not change for the world... not even with the pain that was involved. Funny how God can work like that if we allow Him to.

We're still getting phone calls for daddy even after all this time. And I must confess - that can be hard and hit me/us when we're least expecting it. Yesterday there were 2 of them. One of which we've repeatedly asked for his name to be taken off their list.... It gets a little frustrating as well. If he had just been out playing golf and missed their call - I could understand. But deceased is deceased. It is the ultimate change of addresses.

One of the things that I/we do deal with on a daily basis is the fact that because of how loved daddy was and how God used him to touch others right where they were.... we are not in the grieving process alone as a family. On any given day - he is talked about and remembered... and I'm often called or sought out in person to be a support for that individual - whether it's just listening, praying with or giving that hug I promised him I would give on his behalf and mine.

It is no secret that I loved my daddy dearly. He wasn't just my dad, father in law/friend/dad to my hubby, and amazing grandpa to our three sons...... he was a very dear friend... but more than that.... he was my brother in Christ... and still is. Taking care of daddy will always be remembered with fondness even with the many tears that were cried and still are at times. Tears are a necessary part of my grief and my joy in Christ and salvation that only comes through Him.

So, that's where I am today. And I am good with it. For like I said... grief is one of those necessary emotions and processes of life. It should not be swept under the rug, or put on a shelf, or ignored. And it can reap untold benefits such as helping others who are dealing with their own grief. We were not meant to walk through life's moments alone.

It does, however, go back to God.

It always goes back to God.

For that is the most important relationship any one can ever have.

I could still have my daddy here and not have that relationship with God.

And my daddy could not save me. That's not what dads are for or moms. (nor daughters their dads.)

That's why Jesus came, lived, died and rose again conquering death.

Jesus is the Only Savior....

And while I loved my daddy and he loved me.......

There is no love that compares to that of my Real Father - God.

His love is sufficient. It is complete.

He is the Only One worthy of Worship and Praise....


Even in grieving a man I knew as daddy.



Have a story about grief to share? Feel free to do so...

"The Questionator"

One of my nicknames is "The Questionator"..... This is why:

SO....

If you're a Christ-follower.... how's your walk today? this moment?

Have you thanked God today for today?

Can you name people in your daily path that you are reaching out to with God's love?

Can you even see them for who they are? right where they are? or just where you want them to be?

Is it easier to trust God in the small things instead of the big? He's God... He can handle it all.

Where are you on your Spiritual map? Are you wanting to stay there? Are you wallowing in it? Or putting one foot in front of another? Or running? Or hiding?

If you were to lose every one in your life that you love and cherish - would you still know God loves you? Would God be enough for you to want to keep on living?

Where are you on faith? is it in yourself? in others? yourself and God? God alone?

Did you notice God yesterday?

Did you help someone else notice Him by acts of kindness? by loving them when loving wasn't easy?

Do you love generously? with a love that is not yours alone to keep? that requires the Holy Spirit?

Where is God found this moment in your life? is He in a building? on the street? kicked to the curb? on the back burner? in your hands and feet and with your eyes and mouth and ears?

The most important relationship any one can have is with God....

with Jesus...

with His Holy Spirit.

Where is that relationship today? this moment?

Listen to God's voice today.... and respond.

As always... praying!

Oh That Son. Those Sons. The Only Son.

His name is Travis... and he is 14 today. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRAVIS!

He's a Christ-follower.

He is a lifestyle missionary. He helps others to notice God in the every day.

He isn't afraid to share about Him either with words... actions....

How he is with little kids? Unbelievable!

He's also a mean trumpet player.. and golfer. And is a pro at pretty much any thing Wii sports.

Every single day even when being a moody teenager at times... he helps me notice God too.

Why is that?

The Great Physician showed the medical world to be wrong again with the birth of Travis.

The medical world only knows what they think they know...

Then there's the GOD Factor. The Real IT!

Talk about WOW!

Just as another little glimpse into Travis... if we said we were moving from the highly secure gated community with her two golf courses and plans for a third to go start up a ministry in a lower economic area.... he'd be all over that in a heartbeat! He went and worked at one earlier this summer and is still talking about it.

In fact.... that's where Austin wants to go for his 17th birthday... which is coming up on the 6th of September and Travis is right there with him on it... We're taking others with us too when we can arrange it.

No fancy presents are needed. They already have the Priceless Gift of the Only Son.... Jesus.

And they can't help but want to share Him with others.

What about you? Do you know Jesus?

If you do.... do you know that God isn't found in a building on Sunday mornings or whenever the doors may be open?

Austin and Travis are proof of that as well... They accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior in our own home back when they were each in 1st grade. Austin - up in a tree... Travis in the playroom after spending some time talking with his big brother Austin.

Oh... and they both became Christ-followers during the years that I was ill... 98 to 03.

Due in part to others showing God's love to a family in need.

That's part of the reason why it flows out of them with ease.

Thank You Lord for the gift of Your Son Jesus.. and Thank You for allowing me the pleasure of being a mom.

Shhhh. Since He's Already Read..

Since I know Brother G has already read today.... I can get away with sharing this.

Shhhhhhhhh....




He uses more hair products on his really short hair than I do on my really long hair.

What's up with that?

Celebrating 19 years of marriage today!

It's the little things that add up. Like goatee hairs in the bathroom sink. (I'll take those over nose hairs any day!)

A vital part of our marriage? Laughter.

That man can make me snort.

Aren't ya glad you read this now? ;)

And you thought I was going to be all mushy.....

"You're Not Finished Here Yet."

Remember: You were warned.

Do you ever get hurt so badly that you want to leave? You want to go anywhere else, but stay where you are at? That was me/us at the beginning of the summer. And yet, Brother G and I kept hearing, "You're not finished here yet. You're not released to leave this town." We were even told by another church in another place - "You're not finished there yet." Confirmation yet again... This is definitely where having a praying life and not a prayer time is crucial.

As God so often does.... He is using the hurt and the pain and is continuing the work here in G-town in ways that there is no denying it's Him. How do I know? It is totally beyond me/us...

One of the things that Brother G and I have the privilege of doing is teaching the late teens and twenty-somethings Bible study group on Sunday mornings. At first we said yes to doing it because there was an immediate need for teachers/leaders. We thought maybe we'd be "the substitutes" for a couple of weeks and then be gone. Little did we really know.....

I was walking up the stairs after having been moved greatly by the Holy Spirit... and I saw him.. and he saw me. And he walked into the room I was going to.... Then came the..."Camey? You're just going to have to trust me on this. You're going to be uncomfortable as hell, but I know what I'm doing even if you don't." Brother G was not going to be with us for today's group either.

We sit in a circle.. We were discussing "Spiritual Maps"... I had asked the question, "So? Where are you on your Spiritual Map this moment?" We were going around the room. When it came time for Tommy.... he said, "Well, this is my first time in a church in about a year. I live in Ft. Worth now. I came today because I knew I was supposed to. I used to live here and worked at ______ before changing jobs and moving." Then, Tommy and I looked at each other in the eyes. That's where we knew each other from. And he remembered... and so did I.

Brother G and I were on a double date with Smithee and his wife when we first met Tommy. He was our server that night. He already knew Ry and so the conversation flowed more as individuals who knew each other and not as that of complete strangers. As Brother G and I do... I asked Tommy how we could pray for him... he responded... and then Brother G prayed... He was treated with kindness our whole time there. God's kindness.... and received a generous tip. We had Tommy as our server several more times... whether Brother G and I together on a date or my being with others that I was meeting to minister to in a neutral place. Each time offering to pray, treating with God's kindness, and leaving a generous tip. At that time in his life - Tommy really didn't want any thing really to do with a place known as a church. Remember - Brother G and I (nor our sons) consider the church to be a building.... that is how we live life as lifestyle missionaries. That is where life in the moments come from... it's not just about those couple of hours on Sunday morning or whenever one might "do" church...

Had we treated Tommy like dirt - he would not have been as open to listening to the Holy Spirit talking to him about coming or through me and the others in the group. He also said he was in a cave right now and the light peeking in was really bright. Then he brought up "Hell" and we discussed it. It included me throwing my Bible down in the middle of the room. Talk about uncomfortable.... Talk about totally relying on the Holy Spirit...... I'll leave the rest of what was said between those there for now... except this part..

As they were walking out of the room - one by one - we hugged and "I love you" was said, meant and known. I almost did not hug Tommy. "I" had to get out of the way again... He hugged me hard and told me he was glad we were still here and that he came. He really hadn't wanted to but knew he wasn't finished here yet. That even though he didn't think there had been any way to reach him.... God was.

I'm quoted now as saying, "Included moving to a town I said I would never live in." That's because I knew I would truly have to die by living here...

There were other things going on this particular weekend that I will not write about here... except to say this... I would rather look like a fool and follow the Holy Spirit even when it does not make sense than to leave in an effort to become comfortable again and lick my wounds.

Where are you not finished yet?

Are you willing to die to self and let Him use you as HE wants?

It's not just about Sunday.

Warning! Don't Read If You Can't Be Moved.

This post is merely to warn you about the next post from me.

Don't say I didn't warn you.....

Don't read the next post if you can't be moved. Or don't want to be....

I'm just sayin'....

And you are being prayed for!

More Than A Free Lunch.

It's Thursday now... my mind keeps going back to Monday. To the Monday family.

Five days a week during the summer, our local church body feeds children free lunches. We take the sack lunches to four locations throughout our town. Designated spots where the children know they can come and get something to eat... The boys and I go out on Mondays with our Student Ministry... Sometimes the boys and I go to the same spot.. other times we split up. Just depends upon the Monday.

This Monday was different. It was cooler outside. Last Monday it was 105 degrees. This time there were even little sprinkles happening. This time - there was a man and his little granddaughter.... Her name is Tori. A beautiful little blond who loves to play in the park.

The grandfather and I spent a good amount of time talking while sitting at a picnic table while Tori went up and down the slide. He showed me picture after picture of his family..... a family that knows much heartache. And Tori kept playing.

Tori's mother is in jail. She is expected to get out in October. While there is no doubt that he loves his daughter - he is nervous about what is going to happen when she is no longer behind bars. When she comes to live with him, his wife (her mother), and Tori. Drugs... Oh, those drugs. He prays this time is different - especially for Tori's sake.

I walked over to Tori as she got on a swing. She started singing "Jesus Loves Me"... and I sung along with her while pushing her higher and higher. There is no doubt she held my attention... and took a piece of my heart. So did her grandfather.

When it looked as if the bottom was about the fall out of the sky.... Tori and her grandfather decided it was time to go. The three of us, Smithee, Austin, and the Michaels (there's two guys named Michael) all held hands and prayed for their family. And hugs were given. Tori whispered in my ear, "Camey? Thank you for being here today."

Five days a week during the summer free lunches are provided.

It's all in the name of Love..... God's Love.

For there is no love like His....

Please join us in praying for the Monday family. Thank you.

What ways can you share God's Love today.... this moment?

(And yes, Austin shared with her that her name "Tori" means bird in Japanese. She thought that was cool.)

Hearing and Responding: Public School (by Austin)

Ohayo..."Good Morning" in Japanese...to the peeps of da' blog.

S0 the last few days have been rather interesting to say the least. Thursday evening I was working and I got this burden about the High School. As my momma-in-Christ Camey said, I had a major conviction about going to the High School of Granbury to be a lifestyle missionary. If you want the full story you can read a few posts back.

I'll get to the point.

GHS or LBA? *Drum roll please*



LBA

And now I explain.

At the wonderful Mission Arlington complex, there is a faithful volunteer named Matt. One of the points he repeatedly bashed into our heads during the Middle School Mission Trip earlier this summer was "We can get a group of students excited about going to a country like China, thinking 'Yeah lets go! We can get shot and killed, but who cares?', when we can't even get excited about going across the lunchroom table.". The high from Philly is still in my spiritual bloodstream, so being reckless...yeah. But that's not what God has in mind.

You see, I have only been spiritually sane since April, during the first time I did the devotional A Call to Die. April was the closing of the school year. Even though last year was a living soap opera episode, I grew close to several of my friends there that either aren't Christians or aren't plugged into church. I don't recall inviting any of them to any church events this year...well how can I go to a high school, and get risked getting shot for my faith, when I haven't even done that at my small, little Christian academy. Yes, it may be "Christian", but several of my friends there aren't or aren't in Church. As my Pastor Mark says, 'We get so caught up in hitting a home run that we forget how to do a routine ground ball'.

So there you have it...If several of you were thinking "Austin is going to the High School" - nope, I have my instructions from God- Step up in your own little school, before you tackle the big world.

Sayonara peeps! And thank you for your continued prayers and support.

Precious Resources

*Note from Camey: Please watch the name of the author at the bottom of each post before commenting.

Last night, we had just sat down to dinner, when there was a knock at the front door. It was a guy from our local water company who was driving through the neighborhood looking for green grass...you heard right...green grass. And anywhere he saw green grass, he pulled up, stopped, and went up to the front door of that home and knocked. Which was why he was now knocking on our door...because we have green grass.

The man from our water company proceeded to explain to me that the reason he had stopped and interrupted my highly nutritious Pizza Hut dinner, was because he saw our green grass. Not trying to be a Mr. Smarty Pants, I said to the man, "thank you, I'm glad you like it." Unfortunately, the man was not there to bestow an award for the greenest lawn in our neighborhood. To the contrary, he launched into this somewhat probing interrogation relative to my watering habits...which I must confess caught me just a little off guard.

"How many days a week do you water? What days of the week do you water? Do you water on even numbered days or do you water on odd numbered days? Do you water between the hours of 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM on any day of the week regardless of whether it's an odd or even numbered day?

Now the Paul Harvey as to why this young man was now standing on my front door step has to do with more than the fact that I have some green grass in my front lawn. Several weeks ago the water company had sent out a letter telling all the residents of the neighborhood that the water well that provided water to our quaint little village was running dangerously low because of the hot temperatures and high demand for water. The letter had specifically instructed all residents not to water between the hours of 8:00 AM and 8:00 PM. Furthermore (now I'm sounding like a lawyer, right?), according to the instructions contained in this letter, if your address ended in an even number, like mine, you could only water on even numbered days of the week...but only before 8:00 AM or after 8:00 PM. The letter contained a similar admonishment for those water mongering odd numbered residents.

Well it seems that the water level in the water well has not recovered, and in fact, has now reached a critical stage. If drastic conservation measures are not initiated immediately the neighborhood could temporarily be without water in a matter of days and until such time as the water company can drill an additional well. Which brings us back to my dinner time visit from the water company representative. The water company has apparently decided that if you have any green grass in your yard, you must somehow be in violation of the aforementioned water edict. So the pointed questioning as to the true nature of my aquatic habits continued unabated.

I must admit that at this point I was beginning to feel like I was back in the fifth grade at North Euless Elementary School being lectured by Ms. Morrison, my fifth grade teacher after someone ratted me out for stuffing papertowels in the drain of one of the sinks in the boy's bathroom and turning on the water. She kept me after school that day for what seemed like at least six hours...which I think it was only an hour, but to a ten year old wanting to get home and play, it was an eternity. Ms. Morrison went into great detail with me about why we should respect God's creation and the precious resources He gave to us to sustain life on this little blue planet. She read to me the Genesis account of creation from the big ol' family Bible she had on her bookshelf, and she told me horrifying stories of kids my same age in other parts of the world who were dying because they lacked enough clean water to drink. Then, she made me write on the blackboard 100 times that "I will respect God's creation and not waste water ever again." That's a long sentence for a 10 year old...especially when you're having to write it 100 times!

But you know what? I can promise you that after the lecture I received from Ms. Morrison that day some 36 years ago, I have never, ever, ever, knowingly wasted water. What's more, I have always been keenly aware of God's incredible creation and of the awesome responibility we all been charged with by God to care for it. Whether it's the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat, or other resources he has blessed us with, we are God's stewards and caretakers of His creation. How sad that we so often take for granted the gifts we have have been given...many times until it's too late. One day, we are going to run out of something that God has given us, like water...and we won't be able to just drill another well...like they are planning to do in our neighborhood.

Oh yes, the nice young man at my door - where did I leave off? Oh yeah, I explained to the fellow that the reason I had greener grass than both my even and odd neighbors, was because I happened to have an anaerobic septic system. The kind that cleans the water to the point where its cleaner than our lake water, and then waters the yard with it. Our's is the newest house in our neighborhood, and by the time we built it seven years ago, all the building codes had changed and traditional septic systems were no longer allowed. No one else had a septic system like ours. Obviously this nice young man wasn't aware of that fact. After several minutes of explaining the finer nuiances of our septic system to the guy...while my highly nutritious yet somewhat cold pizza dinner awaited...he went away - I think still somewhat skeptical.

However, I appreciated the reminder of just how precious the things God has given us are. And that includes a lot more than just water!

Hearing and Responding. Public School.

Thank you to those whom have commented on Austin's post below whether through here, via email or in-person. He has been beyond busy at the little store since he posted it. He will respond himself when time permits. In the meantime...

I ask that you continue to pray for Austin. He has a big decision to make that only he can. The ball, as they say, is in his court.

Austin has been home schooled/academy since the middle of seventh grade. His decision involves responding to how God is speaking to him these days. There's no doubt he is hearing from God because it would truly mean dying to self even more so than he already does. Austin so enjoys the way he has been doing school the last few years. For him - the most important person ever to walk the face of the earth was Jesus. Curriculum based off that is right up his alley. The academy also meets in our physical church building.

That's where the rub is..... He went to Philly.... the inner-city streets to follow God's call. What about the public high school here in G-town? It's ranked one of the worst in the nation? One reason being drugs. I know it's ugly... but it is the truth.

Brother G and I have never lived or believed that our children's education is totally up to the public school system and the government. If we had - Austin would not be a junior this year. He would be a sophomore. Austin took a test a couple of months ago at a college not far away from here..... he more than qualifies to take dual credit courses for a couple of subjects. (dual credit means they count for high school and college)

There's a lot of talk in certain circles about Christ-followers needing to home school their children these days. That, we believe, is for each individual family to decide after much prayer and seeking God's face... not His hand and not a way to separate ourselves from the world. Strong? Perhaps. We also believe in doing what is best for each child.. not what is easiest necessarily.

If you've spent any amount of time reading this blog - you'll know we see Austin as our brother-in-Christ first.... then our son. That's why I said...

He has a big decision to make that only he can. The ball truly is in his court. We'll support him either way. And for the record... he currently helps pay for his schooling... So, he really does have more than a vested interest in it.

As a note here: I never had any intentions for any of our children to attend public schools. Austin being enrolled in kindergarten at the public school was a response to being obedient to what Brother G heard clearly six weeks before school started. We had Parker - our third child that spring. Parker's story has been shared here before (okay: here's some about him written this year Dream. Prayers. Nineveh. Note.) Austin's first grade year was when I became ill. God clearly was protecting our family. Yes, even in public school.

Hearing and responding.....

Are you hearing God these days?

And what is it going to require of you?

Are you willing to look crazy?

(and you thought this was just about praying for Austin...)

Philadelphia '08!

Hey everyone! This is Austin, Camey and Brother G's eldest son, coming to give you a hint of the Mission: Philadelphia trip!

So every now and then something comes along that just seems to make you say 'Wow'. That 'Wow' was Philadelphia. To quote my good mentor Lincoln, 'there's something about [Philadelphia] that brings me to my knees.' Amen, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord!

I must get the first two days out of the way. Let me rack my brain to see if there is an appropriate adjective that describes the first two days of the trip... other than the fragment 'Never Again'... I can't think of anything else to say about it. 48 hours, 4 of them asleep. Everyone. By air, land, train, and sea...all in one day. I never want to go back to NYC again...aaahhh!!! 3 minutes to catch trains....lost subway rides....3 hours in a train station...yeah...I could go on.

Before we finally got to our hotel, which was actually in New Jersey, we had experienced an incredible worship service at Open Door Baptist Church. That was my first time in an African-American church, and I gotta say, how they worship makes us white boys look bored. Dancing, Clapping, Shouting...man, it was contagious! We all caught 'Praise the Lord!' syndrome, and Pastor Mark, who was only gonna preach 20 minutes he said at first, turned into an hour of pure Word-reading. Amen, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord!

3 Churches, 2 Vacation Bible Schools, 1 Mission: To bring the love of Jesus to a community thirsting for one. The street I was on happened to be Cocaine Alley, where the most cocaine is dealt in the United States. I saw quite a few drug deals go down...thankfully we weren't approached by any dealers. My street was one of the most dangerous of all Philadelphia, but I never felt intimidated. We received quite a few death threats (one of them I will tell later in this post), but God defiantly put a hedge of protection around us this week. Our Vacation Bible School was interesting. The first day, only 2 kids showed up. We know why though : when we were starting, kids were getting out of bed. So we pushed it back an hour later, and guess what? The next day, we saw like 14-15 kids, and they kept coming every day later in the week. We saw 2 of the kids accept Christ, a major blessing. This all happened in the morning.

The afternoon dawned pretty fast every day that week. We each had our own project to help. Several rebuilt a basement, picked up trash in a neighborhood, painted rooms...I had me and 3 other guys working on computers. I was going to wait until the end to talk about what God taught me, but in order to continue with this story, I must say now: God will reward you for saying 'Yes' to wherever He puts you. I now have a very keen concept of the term 'Flexibility' now. Our "plan" wasn't what God had in mind for us. I was so excited about working on rebuilding the basement, but God had a different plan for me. I got the chance to try to get some computers set up. The pastor of the church gives me 4 computers to work with, and he wants Office 2007 Professional installed on each of them. At first I was okay with that, but It wasn't until I plugged one in and turned it on did I realize the true scope of the situation. These computers were 20 years old. Each of them were different in specifications. Each had a different hard drive. One of them had Windows XP installed already - on a 2 gig hard drive. Yes, I said 2 gig. And it was an internal hard drive. We didn't get to use much CD-ROM; we got to see countless Floppy disks - including all 28 floppies for Windows 95'. I can't tell you how horribly messed up these poor computers were. One other thing that I learned is this: Whenever you can do a project, when it comes to computers, never, ever say 'I can do it, no problem' without looking under the hood. We worked with MS-DOS pretty much the whole week, and thank God Ryan S. knew his server commands, because none of us had a clue what to do. By the end of the week, we had officially deemed one of the computers 'Dead', and even though we couldn't get a single computer working enough, we got the one with Windows XP cleaned up...and it had easily the worse disk defragmentation report I've ever seen. I can't describe the frustration and annoyance the 4 of us had working with these old pieces of technological archeology (Seriously, we saw a HP Vectra!), but at the same time, the rewards I got for getting several days of hands-on training with old computers was definitely invaluable. So when you say "Yes" to God, He will reward you. I firmly believe that now, as it has happened to me. On a side note: One of the funniest things we saw was when we were driving down the road one day, in front of us was a van that said : Cyberhood: Bringing the Cyber to the Hood. Priceless.

Now for the story of a death threat. We were passing out fliers for Vacation Bible School, and this guy walks up to me and asks for a flier. I hand him one, and he starts asking about why we're here, what we're doing, when my friend Caidon comes and joins the conversation. We couldn't tell what his mood was at first, but we thought he was interested. Ah...no. This guy then starts yelling and cussing at Caidon, who is 5 feet away from me, and I seriously thought something bad was going to happen. I thought he was going to hurt her, when he just shoves the flier back at her. He starts walking away, and in the corner of my eye, I saw these 3 big guys coming our way, thinking 'Not good...This could get bad'. Before I could say a prayer , these 3 guys start shouting at this guy "Hey fool, leave the girl alone. What she do to you?" Then they start shouting back in forth, between us, and we thought a fight was going to break out. Then the amazing John comes and peacefully breaks the fight up. Me and Caidon were shaken, but we then thought, 'We must be doing something right for Satan to attack us like this". That experience also taught me to rely on God in times of trouble and not human strength. My backpack weighed probably 25 lbs, and was the pretty big. When I saw the guy getting aggressive to Caidon, I un-slung one of the straps, with the full intention of using it to protect, a sign of my pride saying 'I can handle this', when my response should have been, 'God, protect her'. I have yet to learn the difference from being brave to protect someone and being an idiot. I was the latter.

I must tell you about a lady named Mrs. Yates. She worked at the church we did Vacation Bible School at. She has the incredible ability to call people out of their sins when they walk down the street. It was incredible. She got that way by studying the word. When she was telling us this, after we had saw in action, God slapped me and said "You pour your time into these other books, but not into my Word". For the trip I brought my Bible, a 400 page book I was about halfway finished with, another 400 page book I hadn't even started yet, and on top of all that, the massive Lord of the Rings. A little overkill, huh? As a result, I am going though the devotional A Call to Die for the second time this year, fasting from all books except the Bible and books for school. I've found that if you say something on a spiritual high, when you get to the trenches, if you don't do it right away, chances are you wont do it. So I did it right away. For me, what will make this trip a success or not is found months afterwards, how we are doing applying the things God taught us in our spiritual high. We can remember the trip for the great memories, but I'd rather remember the trip knowing it was the trip that led me on the start of a greater relationship with God in my everyday life. That is my hope and prayer for my fellow students who went on this trip, that we don't grow out of the way we lived that week, we grow into it.
Several of us told in front of others what God was teaching us, so now is the test. This was round one.

I could talk all day long about the trip, but I would probably kill the bandwidth of blogger. In all this, God really worked in our lives, and in the lives of others this week, both in our church and in the community. I would go back there in a heartbeat. I hope we go back next year, because the construction project couldn't finish the whole basement, and I would come up with a credit card and get whatever we need for those computers. By the way, I want to organize a fundraiser for the church I worked for, money where we could purchase computers and supplies they would need to have a computer lab. If any of you are interested in donating, please contact us. I want to leave you with an exert from my journal.

"I hope that [the trip] is the chapter that begins a story that doesn't end, one that continues for our lives...Like from camp, we are on a mountaintop, and on the mountain things do not grow. They grow at the bottom, in the trenches of life...We took the fight to Satan - but in the fog of war we can't see the damage done to his dominion. We may not in this life. I am about to get off the plane and head from Atlanta for DFW - and for home. You're the God of that city, you're the King of those people..."

The River. Undeniable Encounters.

The River:

Saturday evening, Austin, Travis, Parker and I headed down to the river. This was the first time that Austin had been back from Philly since we started going to the river again. Actually, it dawned me on while we were there.... I never had gone down to this particular river with the boys until a week plus ago - my dad had always been the one. Most of the time it was because the boys were staying with my parents because I was in the hospital. As I sat there watching the boys throw rocks - I thanked God for the pain of illnesses. For even though I would have preferred for none of us to have gone down that path - I wouldn't trade that time they spent with their grandpa. And even after being healed... and all that took place with daddy before his passing... again... wouldn't trade one single moment.

The boys skipped rocks and we were laughing ourselves silly. All the sudden we heard airplanes above us. In the midst of the gentle sway of the water - we had forgotten how close we were to the private airfield in the highly secure gated community. Up above us were two small private planes. One I'm sure was coming in for a landing... the other - it kept circling above us as if it were keeping watch of the river and those in it. As the sun continued to set - the plane would get harder to see - and yet we could still hear it. It's presence was clearly known.

At one point - Travis got a little mad at Parker. He walked off for a bit..... Parker followed him. Then, Austin..... then me.... After a bit - he came back to where we had been in the river. This time was different. They didn't just get a little wet.... they actually swam in the river. I think it is more than safe to say - had Travis not gotten mad - they would have been content with only being in the water up to their knees. Funny how that works like that..... Their smiles were simply contagious and their laughter was even more infectious. And I thanked God yet again for three boys who the world said I would never have. Yes, that's another part of my/our story..

As we were starting to talk about how dark it was getting outside... we all stood in the river and held hands and Austin prayed out loud. For even though I am their mother - it is not always necessary for me to do so. The music could be heard as we were linked together hand and hand... age to age... 40, 16, 13, and 10. I must confess - it was hard to leave the river. I wanted to capture the moment and savour it. I did take pictures and video. They will stay as just ours for now.

Parker took my hand as we started back to the van. He kept looking at me and smiling deeply with that red hair of his looking more like an apple than a pumpkin pie like it does at times. He'd tell you it's auburn.... We sang as we headed back to where I am now. We worshipped our Real Father. And even after I had pulled in to the garage...... we sat in the van and kept worshipping. Austin and I had tears in our eyes. A moment even Kodak could not capture fully and no Visa card could carry an amount so great.

Undeniable Encounters:

Without question, there have been numerous undeniable encounters the last few months. Some if I were to share with you..... you'd call me absolutely crazy. And that would be more than okay with me. For one thing my Real Father has shown me time and time again.... all I have to do is be available to be used. Sharing His love is easier than baking cookies or giving away free water. It also can include how one answers a phone or greets that visitor walking in to the door of a place they never thought they would venture. Or the person standing in line behind them getting coffee or a Happy Meal. I pray, you, dear reader, hear that with an open heart.

Tonight was the sharing time for those who went on the trip to Philly at our physical church building. That's why I've been waiting to post testimonies here since their return....

So, first up is Austin. Warning... he can be long-winded like his dad and mother. But I pray you'll see our Real Father in his every word.

And you have been prayed for wherever you are found this very moment.