hi. i've been gone a while.

i have a new blog.

on jan. 19, i will become a wife, to a very patient, loving man.

i am now writing my confessions of being a messy, flawed, and imperfect wife. because where i am messy, imperfect, and flawed, He is strong.

there's a lot of pressure out there to be super wives/moms, i know i'll fail at this, so i figure i'll write about it as i fail at perfection, and point the finger to Jesus through it. :)

here, see: confessions of an imperfect wife

happy readings.

and, we're adopting a child with special needs, you know, after we're married and all. because james 1:27 makes it pretty clear about all that.

blessings,
an imperfect fiance

all things...

as of mid-april, obama along with other members of the UN are lifting sanctions off burma (myanmar)

this mainly applies to non-profit and charity workers in the beginning, which is great for kingdom kids.  the process of becoming a 591(c)(3) is moving quickly, we are an official non-profit now, and have an account set up through wells fargo (which i will update on the paypal link soon).

i am still hoping to go next summer, during the summer camp, for a short time, and we remain in contact with our connections there regarding the needs.  the needs are great.  but, so is the vision.

God is greater.

He has begun a good thing, and we know that His purpose will be accomplished:
from isaiah 55:

¹⁰ “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
     giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
¹¹ so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

¹² “For you shall go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
the mountains and the hills before you
    shall break forth into singing,
    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
¹³ Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall make a name for the Lord,
    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

thank you for your continued prayers, for those you do not know.  <3

an update

change is beginning ---aung san suu kyi has won a seat in parliament!  wonderful news!

suu kyi, who was recently released from over 10 years house arrest (which is somewhat at the center of the financial embargo between the u.s. and burma) has won a seat in parliament--much like the election she won over 10 years ago, and then was falsely arrested and ordered to house arrest by the ruling military dictatorship.

we pray for her protection.  we pray that this will be the beginning of a new hope for the burmese.

we are one step closer to getting our official 501c(3) status, and will then begin being able to raise tax-deductible donations.

one of the pastors we are communicating with has updated us with the emerging and pressing needs for the children's ministry, and training of "teachers".  our initial goal is to raise $10,000, this will cover a year's worth of materials (books, workbooks, etc)., transportation for the summer camp months (approximately 5,000 children attend during the summer camp months), food, "facility" use, a book the pastor is writing for distribution to the homes, as well as training for all the adults involved. this is incredible considering they reach thousands of children!

i want to return next summer,  for approximately 3 months, and will begin fundraising for this soon, since many of my expenses will consist of "appreciation" money to keep me "safe."

more details to come, just wanted to provide this quick update and send out a prayer request for suu kyi, that he Lord would protect her, and work through her to bring hope and peace and freedom back to the people of burma.

isn't she beautiful? :)











and since this is a happy post, of hope and joy, i also want to include a picture of a seagull, on a glass ceiling, taken from underneath:

please continue to pray for the people of burma, all the children of southeast asia, and for God's Word to reach all ears.  <3

...to break every chain

there is something that is happening, so beyond what i deserve to be a part of, that i have to constantly remind myself that i am.

a very sweet, dear man named dr. charlick heads a medical mission agency whose focus is to reach the unreached, and he so beautifully states, "everyone deserves to hear at least once"...i heard him say this, and was moved, when in that southeast asian country last year, but now, now it moves my heart to break, tears to flow relentlessly down my cheeks.

my dear friend and lovely roommate is forming her own non-profit to support the children's ministry that one of the local/native pastors has formed...see, there is a financial embargo against this s.e. asian country right now for numerous human rights reasons/violations/etc, so while there is a local church here in the states that wants to support his (children's) ministry monthly, there is no way to get it to him. seeing the problem, and having the resources, my sweet friend who was also there with me last january is forming a non-profit as a way for money to be raised to support his children's ministry.

there are many layers to this story, hopefully i'll type most of them tonight....

for lack of a better description, evangelism is "illegal" (t)here...but, in this case, since the ministry is for children,  and the government doesn't really care about them (children), they go relatively unharrassed (there children are considered to be without worth..less than the stray animals that roam the streets). this is good for us, the government's lack of care about the children, because it leaves the door pretty open for us to work with this children's "club", which tells them all about the love of Jesus, and is seeing many of the children, and their families come to have a personal relationship with Him.
the children are the future of any country, and beginning here, where hundreds of children are coming each week to learn of Jesus, the spiritual climate of this s.e. asian country can be completely changed in the next 30 years!

this local pastor, let's call him stephen (he was a great Jesus-loving man in the bible), has taught the children how to share the gospel with their peers...they do so through a set of index style picture/word cards (kind of like those "bead bracelets" we used to wear as children)...anyhow, the number of children that attend increases each week, because they are all evangelizing each other.

here's another problem, since evangelism is "illegal" there, so are bibles...now, there are bibles there, they've been snuck in, etc, but, there are definitely no children's bibles. when my dear friend asked me to be on the board of her non-profit as "child outreach specialist and consultant" i eagerly agreed....actually, i think i probably "eeeeked!"...but she now knows what my "eeeks" mean. ;)
i immediately went back to dr. charlick's words "everyone deserves to hear, at least once"...and i thought about these children; i thought about the stacks and stacks of children's bibles in people's garages, thrift stores, used book stores, etc. and the ease of resource we have to give our children children's bibles here...and how there are NO children's bibles in this country's language. i then thought, well, let's fix that.  it just so happens the church i started attended newly this year has a service offered in the evening on sunday's for our city's population of people from that area.  we were invited to go up front and speak to them, so, we of course, jumped up to it like giddy little girls, and told of the wonderful things the Lord is doing there, and our plans.  i asked for volunteers to help translate a children's bible, and after the service was approached by 3 very excited enthusiastic young ladies to do so.

this is where we are, the paper work is filed, she's awaiting some sort of identification number for it then she can proceed...we're hoping to have it established by summer, i'm hoping to have a children's bible translated (story style) by august and at least generically bound book style in time to take about 100 for the next team that goes there in january of 2013.

these people are so beautiful, they are so eager to hear.  i know it is so hard for some to fathom that there can be people who have not at least heart of Jesus, the story of creation, etc. but, last year, i met many, and they were all so eager to call Him their Savior. the harvest is ripe!

i think over my life, the last few years, and drop my head. i shake it, and i often fall to my knees in humble praise.  He can use anyone, and that He would use me, i still cannot wrap my head around. to quote st. francis: "i have been all things unholy, if God can use me, He can use anyone".  people that know me may ask "what's been that bad", and i sadly can state that they can't even begin to imagine. if there's ever been a reason for God to throw up His hands and say, "I can't/won't use you again"...i have provided it, i've been it, i've

this isn't the same type of country where i've been that mothers come to me crying, shoving their babies in my arms, begging me to take them with me so they won't starve, but the desperation and eminent need is a whole different measure.  full belly, empty belly,  this concern is what's filling the heart. i fall to my knees and plea with Him, please, Lord! give them time, give them time to hear!  let their hearts be filled! if i cannot make it soon enough, You are mighty and able to appear to them in dreams, You are so much bigger than I can wrap my mind around, provide a way!  do not let their hearts perish! i cry this over, and over, and over, and over, and over.

more to come, less rambly i hope.   :)

EVERYONE DESERVES TO HEAR, AT LEAST ONCE.  <3