An Evans Update

An Evans update : We are praising the Lord for his goodness to us during this entire process of support raising ! We have never gone hungry, slept out in a cold night or had to give away or sell anything that has truly mattered. The ONLY exception might be David's 68 convertible red Mustang that we sold to a man in New York.... that was VERY hard for David. That was his first car and the car that we took out for our first date ! Another married couple in town also had their first date in it ( J & L) ... good memories but God only asked us to let go of the things. He is so gracious in allowing us the wonderful memories forever. 

As David and I continue to walk through "last" events, holidays,etc... I often forget that our children are processing the same type emotions. This weekend our "older" 3 are at Disciple Now weekend with their youth group. They were so excited ! I was caught a little off guard when one said to the other... "can you believe that this is our LAST Disciple Now weekend? " It is hard to imagine but by the time that we have served our first term in Guatemala our boys will be graduating and heading off to college or jumping right into life...They are such amazing children growing into beautiful "big" people. We are grateful for everyone who has invested time into our children. They are Gods' work ...for His purpose and for HIS glory ! 

Our support is raising and I will try to give an accurate percentage on Monday when we receive our report. We have been blessed to have several speaking opportunities this month and in March. We are seeing that the Lord could truly be calling us out as early as June ! This is INCREDIBLE to think about. After listening for the Lord in regards to missions...taking LOTS of short term mission trips..we are embarking on 10 years of waiting to be sent out onto the mission field ..... some days it just feels like we need someone to pinch us...other days it feels like they pinched us ..hard ! Either way , there is no mistaking this great call God has put on our lives. As our support continues to climb we are reminded that we were not created to be self serving or self seeking but to be surrendered and submitted to the one and only TRUE God! Peace, joy and contentment come for us daily and we are experiencing in abundance when our eyes are fixed on the Lord ! 

Peace to you from our home to yours tonight. And , for everyone who has children at Disciple Now this weekend .... WELCOME HOME ......(the theme for D.Now),

Mel

Going Back In Time....

During Christmas break, Grayson , our 3 little ones and myself traveled to Chattanooga , Tenn. for an amazing chance to take part in writing a brand new NIV BIBLE . It is their (NIV's) 50 year anniversary of their first published Bible and so they were inviting anyone to come in and copy one verse which will be transposed into this Bible in our very own hand writing. Very cool ! The missionaries that were heading up this work said that they had even had some children as young as 4 write out a verse. What a great privilege. Thank you Moody radio for letting people know that the NIV bus was near us that day. Oh yeah, if you are interested in seeing the final copy... this Bible will contain every verse of the Bible in individuals from all over the United States personal handwriting.... it will be in stores by Sept. 2009.

How Did This Happen?

I am now the mother of a legal teenage driver. (pause...sigh) 

How did his happen? 

When you are given children you know that they will most likely grow up and literally pull out of your driveway while you can only stand by and watch. Let me tell you that actually having them PULL OUT OF YOUR DRIVEWAY for the first time in your family car will make your life go flashing before you. As I stood on the porch waving goodbye to my 3 older children (with NO adult in the car ) Tuesday for a trip to the gym my emotions were somewhere between "this isn't fair" and " how could I be this OLD?!" After sitting on my sofa and catching my breath (plus wiping a few tears ) I have come to the conclusion that life just IS.... it IS whatever God decides it to be for that day... whatever the day brings. It's not about my age or the newly acquired drivers license of a child/ growing adult person.... it is ALL about God and what he is accomplishing in not only my life but in my child. After the initial shock of watching this drama unfold from teary eyes on Tuesday am I slightly surprised to see that I have been given a HUGE breath of fresh air .... it's just gonna be all right the Lord said to me. Today... I choose to agree.... Lord, it's all good and whatever you decide...it's just gonna be alright...older age, older children, the whole "giving them wings so that they can fly " thing.... I trust you Lord !