Departure Day!!!

Here we are, friends! 2 hours from leaving the MMBC parking lot...together on a shuttle that will hopefully begin our journey of a lifetime with our Mighty God. Just wanted to let you know that we will try to post of our safe arrival as soon as we get internet access! I promise we will make that a huge priority!!!

If we are not delayed, we will land at our destination Saturday evening around 6pm....then we go through customs, etc....then we will have to find internet, so don't be alarmed if it is fairly late Saturday evening before you hear from us (not to mention we will be 8 hours ahead of you...I can't do the math!!!) :-)

Please pray:

• for opportunities in the airport & on the airplane to have meaningful, God-centered conversation
•  travel safety
•  rest on the plane
•  good health
•  patience & calm going through security & customs
• high spirits for the team (considering we are leaving behind the ones we leave for such a long stretch of time.)

We love you....thanks for praying!!!
Sherri :-)

9 days out!

As I sit here in my living room tonight I am ever aware thaty we are 9 days out from our departure to the Middle East. I think it has been a hard few weeks for each of our team members...all struggling with lots of "life"! For me, I have been super heavy-hearted for many reasons, but yesterday God filled my heart with a longing to go serve Him and leave my heavy-heart behind! He reminded me how it felt as our team gathered at church-wide prayer a couple of weeks ago...how amazing it was to be surrounded by people who longed to see us make a difference, who "got it", who have given us their support by praying for us, who took the time to circle up...touch us...and pray in the power of the God of the Universe! And then, he reminded me about our team commissioning in church a couple of weeks ago...what a privilege (that I never want to take for granted, by the way) to be part of a church that places such priority on "launching" people out into the community and the world!!!!!

I have no idea what God has in store for our team...but this I DO know: He has clearly knit this team of 6 women together, He has clearly given us all the same heart to speak into the hearts of women across the world, He has clearly given us a spirit of unity, and He is CLEARLY IN CHARGE!!!

As we go out, please honor us with your comments. Thsoe comments will be our touch with home while we are gone. Above all, PRAY FOR US!!! We ask that you would pray daily that we would stay focused on HIM, follow HIM, glorify HIM, and honor HIM in everything we do!

I feel so blessed tonight to have been given an opportunity to see first hand what God is doing in a place so very far away. Isn't God so good that even though He definately doesn't need us to accomplish His purposes, He allows us to be His hands & feet?

From a plaque in my grandchildren's rooms: Jesus Knows Me, This I Love

In Him,
Sherri :-)

The Team

From left to right, Sharon Danley, Kim Cosgrove, Billye Knox, Charlotte Buell, Sandi Dietrich, Sherri Whitener. Not pictured, Mary Alice Brumley.

Ambassadors

For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;  that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says,      

“In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.”
  Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
(2 Corinthians 5:14-6:2 ESV)

We are ambassadors... we represent the King. If you know Jesus, you do too. I've been thinking on that this morning, and was helped by a book to think on three areas of focus on being an ambassador.

As an ambassador, I will represent:
1. The message of the King. An ambassador is always asking, "What does my Lord want to communicate to this person in this situation? What truths should shape my response? What goals should motivate me?
2. The methods of the King. Here I will ask, "How does the Lord bring change in me and in others? How did he respond to people here on earth? What responses are consistent with the goals and resources of the gospel?"
3. The character of the King. Here I ask, "Why does the Lord do what he does? How can I faithfully represent the character that motivates his redemptive work? What motives in my own heart could hinder what the Lord wants to do in this situation?"

It's a sobering thing to be an ambassador. We represent bodily, the currently veiled King. The King is too valuable to do this poorly. Lord, please help me do this well.

Kim

Ode to team barnabas (that means i couldn't think of what to write, so i wrote a poem- enjoy!)

Dear Jesus, how can I express in words

thoughts and feelings way too deep

for You have planted new seeds here

and left them here to steep (get it? - like tea :-).

how can I move on with life?

the daily demands too great,

my focus on myself, I stress

12 cookies I just ate.

I'm craving Diet Coke right now,

and maybe a glass of wine

but I'll cry out to You the same,

after all, it's just past nine (A.M.)

too early for that glass of wine,

and besides I promised and signed

a covenant with a precious team

with whom tonight I'll dine.

Thank you for these women dear,

they welcome me in their midst,

the tears they flow as i just think

of all we'll do, and say and list-

of all we think we have to do,

and all we want to see

but really Lord You know our hearts,

we truly bend a knee.

We exalt You as the risen King,

our Warrior and our Prince,

who gathers all His daughters near

and fights with armaments-

For You alone have victory

over death and flesh and sin;

our efforts, they are powerless

and implode our works within.

so we ask You, Lord, as we boldly come-

before Your throne of grace,

Show power, mercy and Your glory too

Shine down upon our face.

Praise Jesus, lift Your Name on High!

You alone have made us right

we walk with You and talk with You

and praise You for our sight.

Remove today the blinders still,

from women near and far

Reveal Yourself, O Mighty God,

in dreams, visions and the car (carpool line maybe?)

Let them know, that they are loved,

precious in Your sight

they can know You- Father, Friend,

For You have fought the fight.

Precious woman- you are the prize!

For You He gave His life,

Receive His peace, believe His Name

Let go of sin and strife!

True freedom in the Father's Name-

He offers to each one

please Jesus let them see and know,

You are God's one, true Son!

Give us Your message, loud and clear,

Protect us in this fight,

Your Name we lift on high today

You give us Life and Light!

Amen

What a great start we have had in becoming a cohesive group.  The women are fantastic and God is moving among us.  I can't wait for our next meeting as Sharon demonstrates the craft.  It makes me chuckle just to imagine these fingers involved in crafts.  But, we serve a big God and He is able to do even that.  I love working together with each of them and look forward to every step of our journey.

Billye

The Journey

The joy in going on mission with God is the journey on which He takes us. It's not just the time we are in country, but also the times we are together planning. As a team we've had three meetings. I wish I could convey how fun these meetings are as we pray, plan, laugh, and eat. It's just so good to be together. We are all so different, yet are hearts are united together to bring glory to the name of the One who has called us. Mary Alice, our special team member who is holding our prayer rope while the other six go, gave us a scripture verse the other day.

Isaiah 42:16 And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do and I do not forsake them.

We are clinging to that promise. We all want to make an eternal difference, so we are praying that God will be pleased to act.

So that the world may know,
Kim