Five Ways Christians Must Stop Failing the Poor

Read this post over at deeperstory.com. Check it out here.

T-Shirt Blitz! Fundraising for Guatemala Mission Trip!

Who wants to own a really cool t-shirt and support us at the same time?

We are having a T-SHIRT BLITZ from... NOW until September 30th. 

We have partnered with Kari Gibson over at My Crazy Adoption blog to 

offer these  awesome t-shirts with a great message. 

100% of the profits from the t-shirt sales will be for our missions trip. 

If we do well with the T-SHIRT BLITZ this month 

then we can offer them again along with other cool products!

Click HERE to go to our website and to order your t-shirts!

We are pre-selling the shirts for $15.00 each.

This is a pre-sell only and I do not have samples of the shirts. 

The t-shirts are high quality brands. 

The two styles for women are "junior fit" but I would suggest 

ordering a size or two up if you don't like it snug.

That's what I am going to do.

I would love to sell these t-shirts along with other products year round to 

raise money for other ministries and missions!

We are headed back to Guatemala in January 2013!

We are very excited about going back to Guatemala in January! We originally planned to go in November of this year but we truly believe we were getting ahead of the Lord. Our kids are thrilled and counting down until they see their little buddies at the Malnutrition Center again. More information to come soon!

Face Value

I am not a theologian. I don’t own a Greek or Hebrew Lexicon. There are many people I know that are gifted in teaching and research. My study of the Bible is pretty simple. I just read what the Bible says at “face value”. I try to listen to the Holy Spirit and then try to live out what the Bible says.

Simply put, I desperately want to read God’s word and not add anything to it.

Here are a few examples… maybe we can all relate to these.

The Bible says, numerous times, “Love one another”. The Bible doesn’t say- Love one another only when you are loved back.

Jesus says in John 14:15, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my words.” It doesn’t say- If anyone loves me, he can keep my words when it is convenient to his circumstances.

Jesus says in Matthew 6:25, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.” It doesn’t say- Do not worry about your life, well except when you lose your job or when money is tight.

Reading the Bible at “face value” is enough to keep me going for a lifetime. I sin, fail, pray and keep getting back up trusting what His word says. I believe His word but it is hard to live out. His word also says in Luke 11:28, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” It says that I will be blessed if I hear the word and obey it.

So, if I believe what God’s word says at “face value” then another verse to live out is James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” Some may say that’s not literal. He’s just using that as examples. He could be using it as examples of what religion should “look like” but what if we actually lived out the specific examples mentioned in the verses. I am certain you would agree that it may actually help someone else and even ourselves... that’s my thinking anyways.

This “face value” kind of faith journey our family is attempting to live out is what took us to Guatemala. By the way, we will be going back sooner than later.

The trip to Guatemala allowed us to see more of Jesus & His glory! It allowed us to bring Him glory even in our failed attempts. That’s amazing! God did just what His Word says. If we obey His word… He will bless us! That’s what we experienced as we took care of orphans in their distress.

I want to encourage you to simply read God’s Word at “face value” if you aren’t already doing so.

Our Visit with Zuly & her family

After our visit with Zuly Elizabeth & her family today I tried to think of the words to describe it.

Blessed...that's what came to mind. We have sponsored her for about 4 years now and only seen a few pictures, drawings and letters. The experience today made it so incredibly real and tangible.

When we arrived we introduced ourselves even though she had received letters and pictures from us today. It was hard to believe we were meeting her. Zuly didn't know this but for us it felt like we were meeting someone famous.

We shared with Zuly, her mother and sisters how we pray for them almost daily as a family. Seeing them live and in person was truly amazing!

It was obvious they were nervous or unsure. Mike broke the ice by pulling out a Frisbee we brought for Zuly. They had never seen a Frisbee before so we started showing them how to use it. Zuly got out there and was having fun giving it a try.

It is so obvious that the mother loves her six girls very much. She was a joy as well as the rest of the family. It was a little overwhelming to see the conditions they live in and the structures they call their home and kitchen. I know God is in control and I truly pray they know that as well in their hearts. It was just hard to believe that all of them live in such a small area.

I think of the lyrics from a Brooke Fraser song. It is about her visit to Rwanda and a girl she meets- Albertine. It speaks to me now about Guatemala and our visit with Zuly.

Here's the chorus to the song Albertine:

Now that I have seen, I am responsible

Faith without works is dead

Now that I have held you in my own arms, I cannot let go till you are

I am on a plane across a distant sea

But I carry you in me

and the dust on, the dust on, the dust on my feet

There are so many other things to share but I am still processing it all. We will share more words and pictures soon.

We were blessed beyond words by the whole experience.

Mitzi