peachicks | family ventures

as a result of having a 10-year-old fascinated with bird watching and a mom who grew up on a farm and dreamed of raising chickens with her kids, we found ourselves with nine chickens growing fast in the garage and four little peachicks hatching in the basement.

pepper, penny, pippin, and peaches were their names.

and now a week old, they take off to a new family.

adventuring savannah + charleston

 

it's been a long time dream of mine to visit the great cities of savannah, georgia, and charleston, south carolina. and this week it finally happened, however short the stops may have been. here is a brief photo journaling of my friend's and my adventure in these grand places. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

life update

Crazy to already be half way through the year, but 2013 has proven to be an incredibly stretching and joy-filled year for me. I’ve kept busy traveling to many new places with TeenPact Leadership School, teaching a hands-on government class to students, with the goal of raising up young Christian leaders who impact their communities and their world for Jesus. As I wrap up this internship and look ahead to what God has next for me, I see a trend in where He’s leading me and what He’s asking of me. The theme is the gospel, the ministry is to young people needing Jesus, and the place is new and outside my context.

This summer, I’m joining a team headed to the Czech Republic to put on a week-long English camp, through the organization Josiah Venture. Josiah Venture uses these camps as a tool to bring the gospel to their young people, many of whom have never heard about Jesus.

Czech is one of the most atheistic countries in the world, as much of Christianity in Czech was suppressed during the largely communistic rule during the 1900′s. Consequently, most Czechs are extremely skeptical of religion and deny that there is any sort of God at all, and less than 0.33% of the country professes Christianity.

Yet a new generation is rising—young men and women who have lived free from the Communist regime, and who are growing into strong and open-minded leaders. Josiah Venture seeks to invest into the lives of these individuals, and to see “a movement of God among the youth of Central and Eastern Europe that finds its home in the local church and transforms society.”

So, July 8-24, my team and I will:
- Teach English to students who are learning it as a second language.
- Build relationships with dozens of Czech students who may have never heard of Jesus.
- Engage with their families and communities by living in Czech homes for a couple days.
- Connect those students with their local churches after camp is over to help set them up for lasting discipleship.

This is a job description so far beyond my qualifications and outside my context, but God promises to go with us and so I’m banking on many prayers and much faith this trip. As my team and I prepare to go, would you be willing to support us by praying with us? We would greatly appreciate prayer for:
- Health, safety, and team unity
- That God would use this time to help provide direction for my next steps
- For strong and fruitful relationships with my team, the Czech students, and the churches we’ll be     working with
- That God would reveal Himself in this spiritually dark nation, and that many will receive Him
- For our English Camp, that God would use it to bear much fruit, both this summer and into the future

The cost of this trip is roughly $2400 per team member, much of which I still need to raise—so your support, no matter the quantity, will make a difference! If you would like to partner with me in this ministry, you can make a tax-deductible donation online at https://bethanyefree.ccbchurch.com/app/trx_submit_bp.php?type=public_gift.

Thank you so much for your continual encouragement and influence in my life. I’m very excited to watch God work through this trip and am thrilled to get to partner with other people (like you!) for His Kingdom work.

and God knew.

for four hundred years, the Israelites groaned under the rod of their oppressors. their stomachs growled, their children cried, their souls pleaded for rescue from the God who had promised prosperity many long, bitter years ago. they didn't see this God and they didn't feel him.

but we read a different reality in exodus 2.

"their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. and God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel--and God knew."

God heard. he remembered. he saw. and he knew. and he acts. his presence is immanent. his timing is perfect.

feelings and circumstances rarely reflect reality and truth. so when you walk unknown paths and stumble in blindness, when life slows and feels like a series of groans and cries, when deep desires and prayers seem ungranted, when you can't see God and you can't feel him--God hears. God remembers. God sees. God knows.

since pictures are worth more

The moments, memories, and miracles that have taken place in the past month or two since the last post are so many more than can be typed up at this point in time. So to summarize, God has been undeniably good to me. I have been pulled and stretched in ways I couldn't have predicted and have laughed harder than ever before. So here are some pictures from my staff teams in Arkansas, Missouri, Maine, and North Carolina--life is so full of joy because of these gifts from God. Two more classes to go!

"our soul waits for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. for our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name." 
psalm 33:20-21