Kokubun Konexión: October 2012

What Can I Do?

9:05 AM

What can I do? What can I do for God? I'm not good enough... I'm a sinner... I fail all the time... God could never use me... Truth is, we could all come up with plenty of excuses for serving God. Maybe some day, I'm just not ready yet... I don't really know if that's what God wants me to do. Maybe when I get older. Perhaps after I get out of college. Maybe when I have more time. I'm just not that type of person... The list goes on and on, and yet when we really face reality, anyone can serve God. It doesn't take some awesome college professor who has studied for 20 years to finally be able to teach the Bible, or share Christ with someone. Anyone can do it!

This is Logan Foust. He is 8 years old. Logan is the son of some missionaries on our team. He doesn't use any excuses for why he shouldn't serve God. Each week, he goes out with His family, passing out tracts. You never know the impact that one tract- just ONE, could make!

One Saturday morning, Logan was passing out tracts. He gave one to an older man named Miguel. The next day, Miguel came to church and got saved! Ever since then, Miguel has been faithfully attending our church, and has become a core member! Miguel was baptized several weeks ago. He was SO excited to get baptized!

It takes one person. One willing person, to see other's lives changed. One person, just like Logan. Let's get rid of all the excuses, and start getting the job done. All men everywhere are in desperate need of the gospel. We have the truth to tell them, why won't we go and tell?

Meet Denise

8:16 AM

Denise, Manuela and I

It was a normal Saturday afternoon, I had gone with my husband Daniel to watch him play soccer with some of our teen guys near the church. The guys usually pick up some neighborhood kids to play with them, and this week, I noticed a particular one. Although she wasn't a guy! She was very much a girl, but had absolutely no fear playing with all the guys. She was Denise. I fell in love with Denise the first moment I met her. She has a smile that could melt the north pole! After the soccer game, we met and then parted ways, as my husband, the teenagers, and I headed back to the church.

Several weeks later on a Wednesday night, I looked out into the darkness just outside our store front church building, and I saw that familiar sweet smile. "Denise!" I said, as I made my way out to greet her. I talked to her for several minutes before I attempted to share the Gospel with her. Just when I got to the good part, her mom called her and she apologized as she ran off to obey her mom. I watched her as she ran, praying for her sweet soul. "God please save her...." I prayed, "Help her to come to know you."

Just last Saturday during the children's choir practice, Denise walked by our church again. One of the other team ladies invited her to come in and sing with the kids. After choir practice, I grabbed Carol, one of my teen girls and we went and talked to her. This time, I was able to explain the whole gospel, and it was clear that Denise understood. We bowed our heads to pray, and she asked Jesus to be her Savior. It was such a sweet time. After we prayed, I asked her if she lived nearby and if her mom was home. She answered yes, and began leading me to what I thought was home, to meet her mother.

Little did I know that her mom was right across the street, selling snacks on the street. I walked up to her and introduced myself. Because her daughter's name was Denise, I told them both about my mom. Then I told them the story of my mom leading me to Christ. As I shared the story with them, I also included the details of what Denise's mom, Manuela, needed to know herself to be saved. Once I had finished sharing my testimony, I asked her if she also would like to be saved. She said yes! Before we knelt our heads to pray, however, something most unexpected happened. Manuela started calling all the other vendors around her on the street, as well as several friends to pray with us. I didn't know what to do. I kind of just froze...Nothing like this had ever happened to me! Before I knew it, I had 6 other adults standing around me, watching and waiting for whatever it was I was going to tell them. I took a few moments and explained to them why I was going to pray with Manuela. I shared the gospel with the 6 of them, and then told them Manuela and I were going to pray. I told them that if any of them wanted to except Jesus as their personal Savior, they could too. As I bowed my head to pray with Manuela, I didn't hear only 1 voice praying with me: I heard 6 more! To God be the glory, He saved all 7 of them!

As Carol and I walked away that day, I felt overwhelmed and amazed. I know it wasn't anything I had done that had brought all of these to Jesus that day. Some days, I feel like I have to try extra hard to pray for souls to be saved, or I feel like if I'm not good enough, I won't get to lead people to Christ. Sometimes I feel pressured like I have to "make the cut" so God will let someone be saved through me. I'm so glad God is merciful and gracious to let us serve Him. We don't have to be perfect (thank goodness!) for God to do something good through our lives. I'm so glad He's willing to use even the least of these. The truth is, all God asks is that I be willing and obedient. He'll take care of the rest. Knowing this brings much peace and contentment to my heart. What a joy it is to serve the King. There's no greater honor in the whole world!

Mouse Attack

11:07 AM

What's the only possible thing that's worse than being sick in bed with the flu? Having a MOUSE in your bedroom! I'm convinced... there's nothing worse in the world than having your personal space invaded by a stinky rodent!
I woke up in the middle of the night (in between throwing up) to hear something scratching on our door. I thought at first that maybe it was one of the dogs that live on our roof. We often here them scratching around up there, running, barking etc. But this time, it was different! Several minutes later I woke again to hear more scratching. As I pulled myself out of bed, I caught a glimpse of the furry creature running across the floor. Immediately, I woke up my husband.

"BABE!" I had to have yelled, "There's a mouse!"

"What?" He asked, still half sleeping.

I couldn't believe it! Yuck! The only thing that stinks more than running to the toilet to throw up is having to watch out- lest you step on a rodent! Urg! I forgot about the rodent mostly until the next afternoon.

I was laying in bed (still sick) and I heard a scratching behind our bed. Paranoid, I kept telling myself, Heather! Stop being ridiculous! I'm sure you're just imagining. But I wasn't. Before I knew it, the mouse flew across the room and behind my dresser in broad daylight. I was scared out of my whits, and by this time I think my fever must have hit an all time high. Before I could go back to watching my movie, I noticed something jump on TOP of my dresser. There it was! MOUSEY! How dare he invade my privacy and jump up on my 3 foot dresser! I mean seriously, if he could get on my dresser, he could climb on my bed! That would be aweful! "GET!" I screamed at the mouse with my most fiercest scream ever. Then, I did what I think most girls would do. I called my husband, who was out working in town. Why he couldn't jump through the phone I don't know. But after freaking out for 10 minutes, he was able to calm me down and encouraged me to leave the room until he got home. I screamed and grabbed a few of my precious belongings, (the ones I didn't want mousey to get) and left the room.

That night, my husband had set several traps and there was poison on the ground. Surely we would be safe. Somehow, my husband convinced me to go to bed in our room. That night, I didn't sleep well. I kept waking up in panic mode, looking for mousey. At about 2am, I woke with a start! As soon as I glanced I my husband's pillow, I saw mousey scrambling less than 3 inches from his head! I almost died! Instead, however, I woke up Daniel who sleepily went to turn the light on to try to find Mousey. After he had done a thorough search throughout the room, He kindly told me we could sleep in the living room. And so, Mousey had won. We camped out in our living room. Not one night, but 2. It was horrid knowing that Mousey was in our home. On one occasion, I grabbed some toilet paper for the front bathroom, only to find a fourth of the roll missing--compliments of tooth marks from Mousey.
Finally, yesterday we sacrificed a little bit of our precious Peanut Butter. (It was a gift to us, and is very special here in Peru.) Daniel put it on two of our sticky traps and yesterday when we got home, guess what Daniel found? MOUSEY! He was stuck in the trap! Daniel took him outside and gave him to the doggies! Mousey is history, and we are back to living our "normal lives." I think that's what we call them that is :-)

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Kokubun Konexión

What Can I Do?

Meet Denise

Mouse Attack

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