Hello everyone! If you are taking the time to read this we are very grateful. We have been preparing, for the past couple months, to go to Africa on a missions trip. We will be going in January to start what we hope will be an annual trip. Philip's parents have journied to Africa every summer for the past few years. They have some Athletes in Action staff in Nairobi, Kenya who have mainly done some basketball ministry. This last year there was hopes of doing a golf clinic to help raise money for their local staff as well as teach local businessmen about running a business. We're also hoping to do some youth ministry and work at Soweto Academy, the school that AIA has developed a relationship with. If at this point you are wondering what AIA is, it is a ministry that uses sport as a platform to share the gospel. Philip's parents have worked with AIA for 9 years. When the vision of a golf clinic transformed into reality, they reached out to Philip to lead it. Since we have started working on the trip, it has grown from 4 people to a group of about 9. We have a team of golfers from all over the country, businessmen, AIA staff, and myself. Haha. I don't really fit into a category, I just want to witness the kingdom of God across the world.
Philip and I are planning to both host a party at our home and an online party to raise support for this trip. Scentsy is our partner in fundraising. Scentsy sells decorative warmers that are an alternative to candles. They use a light bulb to heat a scented wax bar set above it. There are plug-ins, room sprays, different size warmers to decorate any table, and even car fresheners. I was once someone who didn't like a lot of scents and was very picky about what kind of scents I kept in my home but my boss, Celeta, who is hosting this party for us, bought us one as a wedding gift. Once I found a scent that I liked, I was hooked. You can click on the link to be directed to our fundraising page titled "Nancy and Philip go to Africa." These will work great as holiday gifts and if you order before the 18th of December you will get yours in time for Christmas. If you are reading this and not living in Colorado, that is okay because Scentsy allows you to order from anywhere and they will ship it directly to your home.
Philip and I, as well as our team would greatly appreciate any purchases made through Scentsy to help make our trip to Kenya possible. If you are not interested in ordering Scentsy and would still like to be involved by donating then you can go to http://www.give.ccci.org/. Once you are at the website you can type in our staff number 5623065 in a box on the right hand side of the page. Whether or not you choose to donate we still ask that you would join us in praying for this trip. This is the beginning of a journey for this team. We hope to continue a relationship with the Kenyans and the AIA ministry there through an annual golf clinic. Thank you for all of your support and prayers. God's kingdom is at work in every corner of the world.
https://celeta.scentsy.us/Buy?partyId=63859661
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Kingdom Gold
I am beginning this blog to share about a million thoughts that go through my head on any given day, usually about the church and being a disciple. Not only will it alleviate some of the pressure of my husband to hear my unedited thoughts but also I keep reading blogs that say exactly what I'm thinking and it's starting to irritate me. It's kind of like when someone figures out the Mad Gab phrase before you do. If you can believe it, I have a lot of things I want to share but for a long time I've kept pretty silent. Silent because God had some humbling to do in me and because I'm finding I have a pretty "liberal" faith which is cause for persecution in the American church. Please do not misunderstand my last comment. It is not meant to offend, we are all part of the same way (I think) and we are all journeying together no matter what opinions we hold. Plus if you read my blog you will find that I am a young disciple, trying to weed out the good from the bad and keep my eyes on the feet of Jesus right in front of me. With all the different paths we have today, it can sometimes be hard to recognize his heels.
I want to begin with a confession. Confession is probably one of my better qualities. I will always do my best to swallow my pride, show my embarrassment, and confess my errors. Just ask my husband. I have given a number of confessions to him after disagreements we've had. Albeit, they are usually a week later....I didn't say I was quick to confess. I think one of the reasons I believe strongly in confession is because it says in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." This is not the only verse either that talks about confession, there are many, many, many and I think that's a clue that it is important to God. I so badly want to purified too. The only way I can bear the image of a creator so genuine is to remind him that he is the potter and I am the clay. So I confess.
Up until recently I was struggling with prayer. I was so frustrated because I wasn't sure what to pray for. I'd pray for bills to get paid, for me to hold my tongue (which isn't a bad prayer, trust me), to get days off with my husband, and just in general very personal things. There was no compassion, no conviction, no hope, no joy, just words. I'm not sure what caused a shift in my heart and conversations with God, it was probably a number of things but I became inspired to plead with the Almighty for "kingdom eyes." I actually have been praying that prayer off and on since I'd been in Ireland. God has not been quick to answer. However, the way he did was a blow to me. Here comes the confession part of my confession. I really did not think that following Christ meant I had to obey and be a servant of the kingdom. One of my pet peeves is when Christians say they're Christians but get caught up in the minutia of church politics alone and pray for their own prosperity. Then I started seeing myself in my judgement mirror and just got frustrated. Now, here's a thought that I'm going to leave myself with. We cannot truly live out the kingdom life unless we are willing to dig into the word, pray with humility and joy, and listen to other disciples who are making more sense of God than we are. I know that I am talking simple truths and it seems elementary right now but if you will use this as a platform to understand the journey I am documenting then you may begin to see what God is saying and doing in me and possibly through me.
I want to begin with a confession. Confession is probably one of my better qualities. I will always do my best to swallow my pride, show my embarrassment, and confess my errors. Just ask my husband. I have given a number of confessions to him after disagreements we've had. Albeit, they are usually a week later....I didn't say I was quick to confess. I think one of the reasons I believe strongly in confession is because it says in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." This is not the only verse either that talks about confession, there are many, many, many and I think that's a clue that it is important to God. I so badly want to purified too. The only way I can bear the image of a creator so genuine is to remind him that he is the potter and I am the clay. So I confess.
Up until recently I was struggling with prayer. I was so frustrated because I wasn't sure what to pray for. I'd pray for bills to get paid, for me to hold my tongue (which isn't a bad prayer, trust me), to get days off with my husband, and just in general very personal things. There was no compassion, no conviction, no hope, no joy, just words. I'm not sure what caused a shift in my heart and conversations with God, it was probably a number of things but I became inspired to plead with the Almighty for "kingdom eyes." I actually have been praying that prayer off and on since I'd been in Ireland. God has not been quick to answer. However, the way he did was a blow to me. Here comes the confession part of my confession. I really did not think that following Christ meant I had to obey and be a servant of the kingdom. One of my pet peeves is when Christians say they're Christians but get caught up in the minutia of church politics alone and pray for their own prosperity. Then I started seeing myself in my judgement mirror and just got frustrated. Now, here's a thought that I'm going to leave myself with. We cannot truly live out the kingdom life unless we are willing to dig into the word, pray with humility and joy, and listen to other disciples who are making more sense of God than we are. I know that I am talking simple truths and it seems elementary right now but if you will use this as a platform to understand the journey I am documenting then you may begin to see what God is saying and doing in me and possibly through me.
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