Christmas Videos

This was the best Christmas we have ever had. You should have seen Riley's face when he saw the bike Santa left him in our living room. A squeal of joy came out of his mouth, then he started riding it from the living room to the kitchen and back. We went to Papa and Grandmas house later in the day and brought Riley's bike. Here is some video Papa took with his digital camera.

Cool Things God is Doing

God has been at work at Safeway for the past two nights. My supervisor got onto the topic of the Bible - he initiated it, I didn't. Well, that led me right into sharing the Gospel. If you know me, I will look to see how God is working in someone's life for the right timing to share the Gospel. God is definitely working with him. He keeps on talking about his conversations with one of the professors here at the seminary, even though it was years ago, and God is still using those conversations to bring him closer to becoming a child of God. He even got his wife to buy him a Bible he could understand and has the Bible on CD, he is most certainly searching for God. He did not yet come to a relationship with Christ, but he is so close, and last night he asked me why I chose to become a pastor. I was able to share my testimony with him and tried to show him that what God desires most from him is a relationship. God has really been focusing in on Jim and Jim may even come to church with me soon. Please pray for Jim as God has locked His sights on him.

Sawyer's second Christmas

This will be Sawyer's second Christmas and he will probably be more into the paper rather then the gifts. God blessed us with two great boys who keep us very very busy. Sawyer is toddling along and getting into everything that he can get his little hands on. Enjoy these pictures.

Riley's Christmas program

This past Thursday Jason and I had the chance to attend Riley's Christmas concert at school. We had snack with his class and then they sang some song's for us. They did a great job! Here are some pictures of the kids during their program. Riley has matured so much since starting this program. It is a class of all boys. The teacher is really great with the kids. We want to wish you all a Merry CHRISTmas and a blessed New year. Check back after Christmas for some Christmas pictures.

Chariots of Fire Christianity

Watch the clip



God created you to glorify Him, and He wants you to do that while having a relationship with Him. He created you with your own personality, your own interests and desires, and God wants you to glorify Him with those. Your desires and interests are most likely different than mine, and quite honestly it scares me when Christians look like clones of each other. God created you to be unique just like everybody else. So how do we take the desires, the dreams, and the personality that God gave us and use it to glorify Him? Hebrews 12:1 tells us:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

We need to turn from our sin and put our focus on Jesus. My race may be different from yours. My favorite thing to do is to tell people about Jesus - that is what I love to do; it's my passion and my desire. My friend Terry Cooper in Cut N' Shoot, TX is a biker. He LOVES his Harley - he even let me sit on it once. He and his wife love riding on his bike. For a few years they were even part of a Biker Ministry where they rode with the Bandidos and shared the Gospel with them. The cool thing about it is they were able to talk to more people about Jesus on the trips to biker rallies than at the actual biker rallies themselves.

Maybe you like to paint, maybe you like computer programing or web design. Maybe you like to act or sing or play sports, but as you are on your journey with God, shed the sin that so easily entangles and put your focus on Jesus Christ, then as you fulfill your passion, joy will come as you feel God's pleasure on you.

"Jennie...I believe God made me for a purpose. He also made me FAST. And when I run, I feel His pleasure..." - Eric Liddel, Chariots of Fire (1981)

Tea and Things

Riley and I went Christmas shopping for Mommy today and one of the places we stopped off at was a tea shop here in Cochrane. I couldn't wait ten days to give my wife her tea because it smelled so good, and of course I am drinking some right now. The type of tea that I got her is called Yoga. Now this isn't the cheap grocery store tea, this is high quality stuff that does not come in any tea bag. I bought a tin to put the tea in, and the tea will be good for two years in that tin! (I don't think it's going to stay there that long though.) Now, I'm not as sophisticated about tea as my friend Nick is, but I am starting to really get into it. So, as I'm drinking this tea, my stress is actually melting away - I haven't been this relaxed in months! So I need to thank my friend Nick for telling me about this tea shoppe that I will definitely go back to.

I can go on about how good this tea is, but there is something better in my life than tea - you guessed it -- God. I'm not going to go into details, but God has again provided for us that can only be explained as supernatural. It's amazing what happens when we pray. God has proven time and time again that He is our provider and through these amazing and undeserving acts of grace that He bestows upon us, He gently reminds us that He will take care of us in Medicine Hat also.

Thoughts on Scripture

Psalm 9:11-12 "Sing praises to the LORD, who sits enthroned in Zion! Tell among the peoples his deeds! For he who avenges blood is mindful of them; he does not forget the cry of the afflicted."

In two hours I have the awesome privilege of going to church, and I am embarrassingly curious at how many times I have gone to church and mumbled praises to my Lord and my God. How can I, as a child of His mumble praises to Him after all that He has done for me and my family? NO! Not this morning, this morning God will hear my praises, clearly - maybe a little tone deaf - but clearly!

Busyness, I believe, is a trap from the devil himself. I work 40 hours per week, and go to seminary, and live on the holy hill - separated from our community. I hate being separated from pre-Christians. I have a fire in my bones, much like Jeremiah the prophet did. I need to tell among the people what God has done for me and for them! I need to tell them they have an avenger - King Jesus! I need to tell them that sin killed them, but Jesus wants to give them new life! He is our avenger, and He is mindful of them.

You may be afflicted right now, by abuse, disease, poverty, or lack of love, but know this: God will not forget you if you cry out to Him. What better news can you get than the King of the universe is mindful of you? If you are reading this and you do not have a relationship with Jesus, the Lover of your soul, you need to know that no matter what you've done, or what's been done to you, there is One who wants to be your avenger. You are precious in His sight. He wants to give you a new life. If you want this new life, there is a small part you need to do.

1. Repent. This literally means to change your mind, do a 180 degree turn in your lifestyle - you were walking in the way of sin, now walk in the way of Jesus.

2. Let Jesus know right now that you want to belong to Him. This means that you want to live for Him by loving Him and doing what He commands, and His commands fall into 2 categories
a. Love God
b. Love people.

Musings on Faith

Faith is something I've been musing over for the past while. Being a broke seminary student trying to support my family while following Jesus on the adventure of a lifetime is quite the roller coaster ride. There is definitely some amazing highs, but the free fall turns your stomach into knots, and then back up the track you go. As you have read previously this month, God had provided us with a van we have been praying for, but just like Elijah, after a great spiritual high, there comes a low. During my musings, I think I realized why God lets us do the free fall in the roller coaster car - to grasp tightly onto Him! God is teaching us more and more, it's not what I am going to do in Medicine Hat, it is what Christ wants to do through me, and He can't work through me if I am not grasping onto Him. In my weakness He is strong. The last thing I want is for people to come to church because Jason is the pastor. I want people to come to church because Jesus loves them immensely, and Jesus loves them through Jason. Even though the roller coaster ride can be frightening, I always seem to hear, "Fear Not, I am with you." Remember, when the roller coaster is going down - Jesus hasn't forsaken you, He's telling you to hold on to Him. Faith is hoping against all hope, and trusting against all odds and trusting because Jesus told you to. Giving the reigns to Jesus sometimes isn't comfortable, but it is definitely worth it!

Relaxing Evening

Let me set the scene for you. Our Christmas lights are on, our Christmas tree is up and its white lights let off a soft glow in the living room, Bing Crosby's Christmas album is playing and my wife and I are drinking peppermint tea, enjoying each other's company as we pray and read Scripture to each other. God has a way of speaking to us in that kind of setting. Guys, there is something awesome that happens when you pray with your wife. There is a deeper sense of intimacy when both you and your wife come into the presence of God in prayer and Bible reading. In our quiet time together we both agreed that we will fast together once per week to pray for the people of Medicine Hat. We aren't too good at fasting, so to start we will miss one meal together per week because we love the people of Medicine Hat, even though we have not met them yet.

Technology can be great so instead of just praying for people without a face in Medicine Hat, we went onto facebook and typed in Medicine Hat. There were over 500 people that popped up that live in Medicine Hat. Tonight my wife and I started praying for real people - people with names and faces - in Medicine Hat. We are going to pray through one facebook page of people per day for their salvation and that we might get the chance to minister to them. We know that God loves these people. As we pray for them, can you pray that we can love them the way that Jesus does. Maybe you can do the same thing and start praying for the same people we are praying for in Medicine Hat. Leigh and I also want to thank all of you who are visiting our website. We have been blogging since April, but only put the counter up on October 7, 2007. I never realized how many people have been taking interest in us and the ministry that God has given us. Thank you for your prayers.

Book Review - New Beginnings

I needed to do a presentation on a discipleship resource for one of my seminary classes today and once I was finished I was amazed at how many people went to go and purchase the book I just did my presentation on. The book - New Beginnings: Things to Know to Become A better Christian by Don Dilmore.

We will be using this resource in the new church plant in Medicine Hat to help disciple new Christians, not because Don Dilmore is my wife's uncle, or because he was Vice President of Development for the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary, but because this is a solid resource. It is a 13 week study that we will use in our home groups and I will be the facilitator, not a teacher of the book. The book is priced at $10 per copy, but really is worth much more than that - it is a hidden jewel that is only 165 pages and that includes the 13 weeks of Bible Study.

Each chapter has a daily assignment plus a weekly assignment that we would end up discussing at each home group during the course of the study. Here is a breakdown of the book:

Chapter 1 :Am I Really Saved?

Gospel presentation 4 Spiritual Laws
Lightly touches on why Christians suffer
Encouragement to start new life in Christ

Chapter 2: Who the Holy Spirit is and What He Does

What He does
Lightly touches on talking in tongues - it is biblical but not necessary for Salvation

Chapter 3: The Holy Bible

How to pick a good translation
What the Old and New Testaments are about
Get on a reading plan

Chapter 4: Why Do I Need To Go To Church?

What church is
How the church helps its members
Sunday School
Baptism
Moving Your Letter

Chapter 5: Repentance

Repentance is more than feeling bad
Repentance is more than being sorry
The Importance of repentance

Chapter 6: What is Expected of Me as a Christian?

The biggest error that Christians make
Love God more than anything else
Change your lifestyle
We need to have complete faith and trust in God
Study God's Word

Chapter 7: Make It a Matter of Prayer

Just don't pray for self and family
Pray for pastor, missionaries, and government
Spend time thanking God
The importance and the power of prayer

Chapter 8: Why do Christians Sometimes Suffer?

These times are opportunities for growth
No one has all the answers to why Christians suffer
Denounces name it and claim it / health and wealth preaching
God's perspective is different than ours
Sometimes we suffer because of our sin and wrong choices
Not all of our suffering is our fault

Chapter 9: Baptism and the Lord's Supper

Differences in opinion on Baptism and what the Bible says
Passover related to the Lord's Supper

Chapter 10: Southern Baptists - Who are they?

A quick church history lesson from 1170 AD to 1997

Chapter 11: How Southern Baptist Are Organized

We are a theocracy (explains difference between theocracy and democracy)
Many churches start off as missions/church plants
Pulpit/Pastor committees and other committees
Job of music minister as church grows
Different ministerial positions and their roles
Deacons
Business meetings
Associations and Conventions
Lifeway
NAMB/IMB, seminaries, Annuity Board, Ethics and religious liberty commission, WMU

Chapter 12: Where The Money Comes From

It comes from God
God uses people
Tithing
Budgeting
The importance of Debt-Free Living
Church Expenses
The Cooperative Program
Different SBC Offerings (Annie Armstrong / Lottie Moon etc.)

Chapter 13: It's Up To You

Being a cheerful giver in money time and talents
Volunteers that built the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary
Use your talents and gifts to minister to people

If you would like to order the book you can click on the picture of the book at the top of this article or you can leave me a comment and I can get you in touch with Don Dilmore.

Answered Prayer

For the past month we have been praying for a minivan. We have a little car that we brought up from Texas that is good on gas, but it is little and with a family we just need something bigger. As students, our financial portfolio says that we can't buy smoke off a cheeseburger, yet we know Scripture to be true. Jesus tells us to seek the Kingdom of God first and then seek His righteousness (not our own) and all of our needs will be met. (Not all of our wants, but all of our needs) So after a month of praying for a minivan, someone we don't know gave us one. We didn't take out a loan, we aren't making payments and we didn't ask him to have his van. God knew what we needed and gave it to us - a 7 passenger minivan! God is good. Where are you with God right now? Are you relying on your own strength to get through life or are you relying on Him? Scripture is true, and when we surrender our lives to His will, miracles happen. To seek His Kingdom first means to love God above everything - your spouse, your kids, your bank account, your golf game, your vehicle - and then have that self sacrificing love for people especially those that don't like you. The only way we can love God above everything is to realize that He first loved us. When we were His enemies, He sacrificed His Son by going through the worst torture possible in order make us right with Him. He has every right to send all of us to Hell because that is what we deserve, but because of His love and mercy and grace He is willing, able and desiring to reconcile us to Himself. Only when we humble ourselves to receive that gift of salvation through Jesus Christ can we love people the way that He does. You may think that many people in this world don't deserve your love, but remember nobody deserves the love of God, but because of His goodness He loves us.

Fear and Great Joy

I usually don't blog what God is telling me in my quiet time, but this morning was amazing. For the last hour I have been weeping over the lost in Canada - broken because they don't know Jesus when Jesus had his body broken for them. As I read the resurrection story from Matthew, I began to weep again because I know somewhat of the feelings these people were experiencing.

"Don't be afraid, because I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here! For He has been resurrected, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead. In fact, He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see Him there.' Listen, I have told you. So, departing quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, they ran to tell His disciples the news." (Matthew 28:5-8 HCSB)

After seeing the angel, these ladies had fear and great joy as they went to tell their friends about Jesus. I know that I am working by myself and not with God when I don't have fear when I tell my friends about Jesus, but there is an inexpressible joy that comes when I tell someone about Jesus. My job is not to tell them how bad of a person they are - the Holy Spirit will do that - my job is to tell them that Jesus paid the penalty for their sin, so they can experience the extreme joy of having an intimate relationship with the God who created them. The God who cannot look upon sin loves you so much that He had His sinless Son pay your penalty so He cannot just look upon you, but walk with you, talk with you, love on you and have you tell others about Him. Yes, it is going to be fearful because we don't know what the other person is going to say, but yes there is going to be extreme joy when we do that. "I pray that you will be active in sharing your faith so you will know every good thing we have in Christ Jesus." "Philemon 6

Strategy Coordinator Training

I just finished 9 hours of Strategic Coordinator training at the Canadian Convention. I will be the strategic coordinator for church planting in the Medicine Hat area. I have another 2 more days of this. I am very encouraged about what God is doing in Canada right now. So far in 2007 the Canadian Convention has planted the most amount of churches it has ever planted in a single year with less funds it has had in previous years. This is only something God could do. Please continue to pray for Canada. God is doing a mighty work here. Pray that God may use you in Canada also. To be on the frontier with God is one of the most exciting things one can experience.

Drive It Like It's Stolen

I was reading a friend's blog yesterday and I'm pretty sure you can identify with him, because I sure did. He is struggling in his walk with God, it's hard for him to pray, get into the Word, even go to church. He knows what he's supposed to do and he wants to do it, but he is very depressed about his walk with God right now.

For the first 2 months the Mazda RX-8 was out, I was the top RX-8 salesman in Texas, number 4 in the United States. I understand RX-8's. Do you know that the manual transmission model has 6 gears and you shift at 9,000 RPM? You are doing between 40-50 mph in 1st gear alone! I had one up to 120 mph in 3rd gear on HWY 290 one time, and there were 3 more gears to go! The RX-8 was designed to be driven like that. If you drive it like a granny car, it will end up not performing well at all. It's designed to be driven fast.

We are not designed to have Jesus as part of our lives. We are designed for Jesus to be our life. Big difference! (Deut. 30:47) If we keep Jesus as a part of our life - then our life is in granny mode and we will never get to the performance we are designed for, but when Jesus becomes our life - well then we're shifting at 9000 rpm.

Winter fun

This past week we received some snow. Riley loves playing outside and really enjoyed playing in the snow. He would try to throw a snowball, but the snow would stick to his mittens. I tried to have him make snow angels but he did not want to do that. These pictures were taken in our front yard. He had so much fun. I could not forget about our youngest Sawyer. He has not played out in the snow but we sure have to bundle him up which he does not like

Winter Wonderland

Well, the snow has come heavy this morning. We were only supposed to get 2 cm today and we already have it by9:00 am and it is supposed to snow through the week. I worked an extra 2 and a half hours today. I could have went home to bed before church, but I had a great opportunity to earn the right to share the Gospel today. I am working night crew at Safeway and it was just me and my supervisor. I could have left when my shift was over, but I worked the extra 2 and a half hours, then I brushed the snow off his car for him and left before he could thank me. It's just the 2 of us tonight again and he is starting to ask questions about the church we are starting and about seminary. I anwer his questions, but I have not yet got to the point where he has permitted me to share the Gospel with him. Maybe this was the the door God wants to use.

Amazing

I had class today and somehow we got onto the topic of our oldest boy, Riley. Our neighbors across the street love him to death, and Riley loves them. They are like a third set of grandparents to him. Anyway, my professor got into the discussion, and his exact statement was, "I love Riley. Riley ministers to me." This is a man who has known Jesus for over 47 years, flew a float plane over British Columbia to minister to people who were inaccessible by road, has his own Christian Counseling practice for the last 20 some years and has his Doctorate of ministry, and years ago - he was one of my deacons. It is amazing that God would use a 4 year old boy who doesn't talk to minister to somebody with that rich of a ministry background. There are many fathers who are proud of their sons' achievements in sports or school, or hunting and fishing, but I am so proud and humbled at the same time (I know it's an oxymoron, but that is how I feel) that God has chosen to use our son to minister to a seminary professor.
I wonder if this is how Samuel's parents felt when Samuel began to minister at the temple?

"For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, "let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."
-1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Buffalo

I did a spiritual retreat yesterday for a class of mine, so I went to the Stoney Indian Park Campground about 30 km west of Cochrane, AB. I sat upon a plateau and looked over a gorgeous plain to the south and the majestic Canadian Rockies that had a slight dusting of snow to the west, and just down the gravel road about a 45 second walk was a buffalo ranch. I stood about 100 yards away from some mammoth buffalo and watched them watch me. I am so glad they were penned in, because I could hear their deep grunts as they let me know they did not like me there, but I stayed anyway and watched their calves jump and play. I have had buffalo meat before and I really enjoy it - it is more lean than Alberta Beef (the best and leanest beef in the world)- and I was looking at these buffalo and envisioning eating some good Tatonka (buffalo) burgers.

I was at the same campground about 2 weeks ago and the buffalo were on the plain, and I couldn't help but wonder how much simpler life was 200 years ago. There were only about 100 head of buffalo that I could see on the ranch, but I wish I was around when there were tens of thousands at one time. To hear the roar of their stampede, and feel the earth shake as the heard came through would be amazing and terrifying at the same time.

I guess it would be much like God. For most of us, we see small doses of God. What I mean by that is we are not really longing for Him. When God shows up, it is really cool - like watching those penned in buffalo, but what would happen if God showed up in full force like ten thousand buffalo? What if we longed for God to really show up in our lives? What would happen if the terror of the LORD fell upon us and we were faced with the grotesqueness of our sin compared to His righteousness? I think we would be scared stupid, much like being caught in the middle of a stampede of ten thousand buffalo on a flat Albertan plain.

There was a man in the Bible named Isaiah, who came face to face to God in the Temple in Jerusalem. His response was, "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." He knew he was going to die when faced with the holiness of God. If you are brave enough to come face to face with your sins, click here, then click on "are you a good person on the bottom right. By the way, here is another little resource for you. Just so you know that you are not going to live forever and you will come face to face with God one day, click here.
Get ready for the buffalo stampede!

Say No To Hell

Ok, so this is my friend Jarrod Roberts at XL in Rome, GA. He is the pastor of West Rome Baptist Church and the Pastor of XL, a church plant of West Rome. West Rome is the church that is sponsoring us to plant the church in Medicine Hat. They present the Gospel in a very non-traditional way, but Jesus says to change the packaging but not the message. Here is the Gospel Message in two parts, if you have time, watch BOTH videos.

Gospel

I have been in Canada now for a month and a half, and last night at work I was finally able to share the Gospel with a young man. We had a good discussion, but no decision was made. Praise God that we are just called to be witnesses and He is the one that does the soul winning - I just need to tell people about Jesus and when they accept Him as their personal Lord and Saviour that is an added bonus.

It has been a month and half since I have been able to share the Gospel. That's one thing that sucks about going to seminary - everybody is a Christian! It was such a relief to earn the right to tell somebody about Jesus. I have a really hard time if I don't share the Gospel in a whole week, so you can imagine how stressed out I was not sharing the Gospel for a month and a half! Please pray that I get more witnessing opportunities - not only for the population of the Kingdom to potentially grow - but also for my own sanity.

Thanksgiving and Secret Service

Yes I did say secret service. We are going to a church in NW Calgary called Tapestry and it is located in the community of Tuscany where Prime Minister Stephen Harper has his home. When we got to church, which is located in a community center, we saw secret service outside the community center and they came and did a sweep of the community center while we were attending church. The Prime Minister must have been home from Ottawa for Thanksgiving.

We had Thanksgiving dinner at my parents place in Calgary. It was good, but of course there are some things I miss - like my Aunt Lunnette's homemade perogies, my Grandmother's wheat germ salad and all my cousins and I having contests to see how much we can eat. Today was a special Thanksgiving though, because I got to hold my new nephew, Jonah Ray Cooper, for the first time. He was born on Thursday, so he is only 3 days old.

I can't stress enough how much I missed being in a church whose desire it is to plant churches. There is such a freshness in a church plant in an unchurched area. I am so thankful that God has brought us back to Canada to share the Gospel with those who have rarely if ever gone to church. To see people genuinely seek God - not because it is Sunday and it is the cultural thing to do - but genuinely seek the Living God brings a freshness and new light to church.

So this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for what Jesus Christ has done for me and my family, I am thankful for seeing a cool site - like secret service at church - and am thankful for the new addition to our family, by the way, here is a picture.

New Addition

Leigh and Jason are now proud Auntie and Uncle of Jonah Ray Cooper who was born in Calgary Foothills Hospital at 5:30 pm today! We will post some pics later of the little ankle biter.

Oasis On The Prairies

We just got back from Medicine Hat last night. Wow! When Leigh and I drove into The Hat we felt like we just came home. We stayed at a wonderful Bed and Breakfast called Friendz of Ours in Dunmore - just outside of Medicine Hat. We had a great time at the bed and breakfast and went to church with them the next morning. They go to the Nazarene church in Medicine Hat and that is also where West Rome Baptist church goes when they come up. I was very impressed with the church and was very encouraged by the Pastor who told me that they need at least 25 more churches in Medicine Hat. He also wants to have coffee with us next time we come up to give us some good strategies for Medicine Hat.

Our new friends at the bed and breakfast have a house for sale and they took us through it. It would be a great location for the age group we are trying to minister to. Keep us in your prayers and take a look at the pictures of Medicine Hat. Comment on as many as you like. By the way, the following pictures are only 2 blocks away from where we are looking at buying our home.

Disqualified?

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 9:27 "Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified."

While I'm living in Cochrane, I am working at Safeway. For those of you in the States that are reading this, it is the same chain as Randall's. I am working the night shift and my supervisor, who has been in the grocery business for almost 20 years, said, "Jason when you start your church in Medicine Hat tell your people not to go grocery shopping on Sundays." I asked him why, and he said that Sundays are one of the busiest days in the grocery business and this is because of the after church rush. Apparently we get slammed around 11:30. He went on to tell me that grocery stores used to be closed on Sundays, but to appease "church people" we opened up on Sundays. Now very few people in the grocery business have a family day to do whatever they want. He also went on to say that we have double the staff we had twenty years ago, but since we opened up on Sundays we are less busy (and Safeway in Cochrane is the busiest grocery store out of the three in town, and the city's largest employer).

Why is it that Christians demand more respect than unbelievers do, yet the Bible tells us in Philippians to consider others better than us? When we go to the supermarket on Sunday, or go out for dinner and leave a lousy tip (if one at all) or demand more respect from others than we are willing to give a homeless man, we are disqualifying our witness for Christ. Not only are we doing that, we are almost guaranteeing that others will not enter the Kingdom of God. So if you are a Christian, please, FOR THE LOVE OF CHRIST, DO NOT go shopping on Sunday (and therefore keep people out of church) and if you go out for lunch - give above and beyond what the tip calls for. Ask yourself, have I disqualified myself and countless others from leading people into the Kingdom of God? If so, how am I going to change it?

Bedtime Blessings

For those of you that know our family well, you know that our oldest son does not talk yet even though he is four years old. We almost lost him when he was 2 years old and later on that year the state of Texas told us that our son was mentally retarded. They said not to take alarm to the title because there is no other category to put him under - what they meant is that he is developmentally delayed. I remember crying when I got the news and one of my deacons reminded me that God told Moses, "Is it not I that created the deaf, the lame and the blind?"

I don't know why God chooses to talk to me in the bathroom, but he does. Later that day it's like God spoke to me in my head as he said, "Jason, what would you rather have, a so called normal son or one that loves Me with all his heart." I told God that I would rather have one that loved Him with all his heart.

It never ceases to amaze me how good God is. Every night during bed time, Riley will point up to heaven for us to sing the "Jesus Song" and when we are finished that, he will fold his tiny four year old hands in prayer and pray with daddy. Many times, including tonight, he will bring his Bible up to me so daddy can read him the Bible before bed.

"Isn't it I that have created the deaf, the lame and the blind?" And just why would God do such a thing? To bring glory to Him. Thank you Father for giving me a son whose desire is to love you even at four years old.

Medicine Hat

We are now very excited. We get to do our first scouting trip to Medicine Hat on the last weekend of September! We will keep you posted on how it goes.

Exerpts From "On the Love of God"

This was written by Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153). I have to read it for one of my classes. It is so deep that it helps one look on the very Face of God and totally desire the Fourth Degree of Love that is explained in the article which is based on 1 John 4:7-21. Enjoy.

1. Why should God be loved?

You ask me, "Why should God be loved?" I answer: the reason for loving God is God himself. And why should God be loved for his own sake? Simply because no one could be more justly loved than God, no one deserves our love more. Some may question if God deserves our love or if they might have something to gain by loving him. The answer to both questions is yes, but I find no other worthy reason for loving him except himself.
God is entitle to our love. Why? Because he gave himself for us despite the fact that we are so undeserving. What better could he have given? If we ask why God is entitled to our love, we should answer, "Because he first loved us." God is clearly deserving of our love especially if we consider who he is that loves us, who we are that he loves, and how much he loves us.
And who is God? Is he not the one to whom every spirit bears witness: "Thou art my God?" God has no need of our worldly possessions. True love is precisely this: that it does not seek its own interests. And how much does he love us? He so loved the world that he gave his only Son; he laid down his life for us.

2. The First Degree of Love: Love of Self for Self's Sake

Love is a natural human affection. It comes from God. Hence the first and greatest commandment is, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God." But human nature is weak and therefore compelled to love itself and serve itself first. In the human realm people love themselves for their own sake. This is planted within us for who ever hated his own self?
But if this love of ourselves becomes too lavish, it will overflow its natural boundaries through excessive love of pleasure. People can easily become slaves to the soul's enemy: lust. This love of self is held in check by he command to love our neighbor. If we cannot love our neighbor because of our love of self, then we must restrain our lusts and give to our neighbor's needs. Your love will then be temperate when you take from yourself and give to your neighbor.
But what will you do if your own needs are not met? Will you look to God to meet your needs? God promises that those who seek first the kingdom and his righteousness will have all things added unto them. God promises that to those who restrict themselves and give to their neighbor, he will give whatever is necessary. Seeking first the kingdom means to prefer to bear the yoke of modesty and restraint rather than allow sin to reign in your mortal body.
In order to love our neighbor we must see that God is the cause of our love. How can we have pure love for our neighbor if we do not love him in God? And you cannot love your neighbor unless you love God. God must be loved first in order that we may love our neighbor in God.

3. The Second Degree of Love: Love of God for Self's Sake

God, therefore, who makes everything that is good, makes himself to be loved. He does it as follows: first, God blesses us with his protection. When we live free from trouble, we are happy, but in our pride we may conclude that we re responsible for our security. Then when we suffer some calamity, some storm in our lives, we turn to God and ask His help, calling upon Him in times of trouble. This is how we who only love ourselves first begin to love God. We will begin to love God even if it is for our own sake. We love God because we have learned that we can do all things through Him, and without Him we can do nothing.

4. The Third Degree of Love: Love of God for God's Sake

In the first degree of love we love ourselves for our own sake. In the second degree of love we love God for our own sake, chiefly because he has provided for us and rescued us. But if trials and tribulations continue to come upon us, every time God brings us through, even if our hearts were made of stone, we will begin to be softened because of the grace of the Rescuer. Thus, we begin to love God not merely for our own sakes, but for himself.
In order to arrive at this we must continually go to God with our needs and pray. In those prayers the grace of God is tasted, and by frequent tasting it is proved to us how sweet the Lord is. Thus it happens that once God's sweetness has been tasted, it draws us to the pure love of God more than our needs compel us to love him. Thus we begin to say, "We now love God, not for our necessity, for we ourselves have tasted and know how sweet the Lord is."
When we begin to feel this, it will not be hared to fulfill the second commandment; to love our neighbor. For those who truly love God in this way also love the things of God. Also, it becomes easier to be obedient in all of the commands of God. We begin to love God's commands and embrace them.
This love is pure because it is disinterested (i.e not offered in order to obtain something). It is pure because it is not merely in our words that we begin to serve, but in our actions. We love because we are loved. We care for others because Jesus cares for us.
We have obtained this degree when we can say, "Give praise to the Lord for he is good, not because he is good to me, but because he is good." Thus we truly love God for God's sake and not for our own. The third degree of love is the love by which God is now loved for his very self.

5. The Fourth Degree of Love: Love of Self for God's Sake

Blessed are we who experience the fourth degree of love wherein we love ourselves for God's sake. Such experiences are rare and come only for a moment. In a manner of speaking, we lose ourselves as though we did not exist, utterly unconscious of ourselves and emptied of ourselves.
If for even a moment we experience this kind of love, we will then know the pain of having to return to this world and its obligations as we are recalled from the state of contemplation. In turning back to ourselves we will feel as if we are suffering as we return into the mortal state in which we are called to live.
But during those moments we will be of one mind with God, and our wills in one accord with God. The prayer, "Thy will be done," will be our prayer and our delight. Just as a little drop of water mixed with a lot of wine seems to entirely lose its own identity as it takes on the taste and the color of the wine; just as iron, heated and glowing, looks very much like fire, having lost its original appearance; just as air flooded with the light of the sun is transformed into the splendor of the light so that it appears to be light itself, so it is like for those who met away from themselves and are entirely transfused into the will of God.
This perfect love of God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength will not happen until we are no longer compelled to think about ourselves and attend to this body's immediate needs. Only then can the soul attend to God completely. This is why in the present body we inhabit this is difficult to maintain. But it is within God's power to give such an experience to whom he wills, and it is not attained by our own efforts.

6. Entering Into the First, Second, and Third Degrees of Love

What are the four degrees of love? First we love ourselves for our own sake; since we are unspiritual and of the flesh we cannot have an interest in anything that does not relate to ourselves. We we begin to see that we cannot subsist by ourselves, we begin to seek God for our own sakes. This is the second degree of love; we love God, but only for our own interests. But if we begin to worship and come to God again and again by meditating, by reading, by prayer, and by obedience, little by little God becomes known to us by experience. We enter into a sweet familiarity with God, and by tasting how sweet the Lord is we pass into the third degree of love so that we now love God, not for our own sake, but for himself. It should be noted that in this third degree we will stand still for a very long time.

7. Can We Attain the Fourth Degree of Love?

I am not certain that the fourth degree of love in which we love ourselves for the sake of God may be perfectly attained in this life. But when it does happen, we will experience the Joy of the Lord and be forgetful of ourselves in a wonderful way. We are for those moments, one mind and one spirit with God.
I am of the opinion that this is what the prophet meant when he said, "I will enter into the power of the Lord: O Lord I will be mindful of Thy justice alone." He felt certainly that when he entered into the spiritual powers of the Lord he would have laid aside self and his whole being would, in spirit, be mindful of the justice of the Lord alone.
When we attain the fourth degree of love, then the net of charity which now drawn through this great and vast sea, does not cease to gather together fish of every kind, when brought at last to the shore casting forth the bad, will retain only the good. Still I do not know if we can attain this degree in life. We live in a world of sorrow and tears and we experience the mercy and comfort of God only in that context. How can we be mindful of mercy when the Justice of God alone will be remembered? Where there is no place for misery or occasion for pity, surely there can be no feeling of compassion.

A Lesson in 1 Corinthians

I am taking a class on 1 Corinthians right now. One of the assignments is to do 4 book reports on the book of 1 Corinthians, each from a different translation. Have you ever got to the point when you were reading the Bible and God gives you one of those WOW! moments and you just can't put the Bible down - then when you put it down, you are still trying to wrap your head around what God just said? That's what happened to me tonight in the Chapter 1 of 1 Corinthians.

1 Cor. 1:30-31 "But from Him you are in Christ Jesus, who for us became wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, in order that, as it is written: The one who boasts must boast in the Lord."

This verse is building upon Jeremiah 9:24, "Let he who boast, boast in this: that he knows and understands Me."

When we start that journey of knowing and understanding God, Jesus then becomes wisdom for us sent from God on top of righteousness, sanctification and redemption.

Jeremiah 9:23-24 says, "The wise man must not boast in his wisdom; the mighty must not boast in his might; the rich must not boast in his riches. But the one who boasts should boast in this - that he knows and understands Me."

When we unpack this, and see what Christ has done for us - it almost becomes mind boggling. 1 Cor. 1:5 says that we were made rich in everything, in all speaking and all knowledge (let not the rich man boast in his riches, or the wise man boast in his wisdom). 1 Cor. 1:24 says, "Yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is God's power and God's wisdom." (the mighty man not boast in his might & again, the wise man not boast in his wisdom)

This is what I'm getting at: To boast in the LORD means to have an intimate knowledge of Him (let he that boasts, boast in this: that he knows and understands Me), and through that intimate relationship, God greatly increases through Christ what men long for: riches, power and wisdom.

Material riches will fade away. All it takes is a few bad hits on the stock market, or a recession and see what happens to material wealth; however, the riches God gives through Christ will never fade or spoil. To the homeless man $10,000 seems like a fortune, but the multi-billionaire would give everything he had to have his deceased son back. In this case, who desires the true riches?

Physical power is limited and will eventually be gone. Sickness will take it away and so will death, but to us who are called, Christ is God's power and God's power is infinite. The 12 year old boy would idolize the massive body builder because of his strength, but would pay no attention to the tower crane lifting steel beams to the 60th floor of a skyscraper. What has more strength?

We all want to look smart, nobody wants to look like a dummy, but our knowledge and wisdom are limited also, but God sent Christ to become wisdom for us, even though it looks like foolishness to those who are perishing. Are we going to look to man's wisdom that gets us into trouble, or are we going to seek God's wisdom. The Psalmist says that God's foolishness is wiser than man's wisdom, just like the tower crane is stronger than the body-builder and just like the deceased son is worth more than billionaire's fortune.

So this is the question I am going to leave you with. Who is Jesus Christ to you? Is he a myth or an archaic god? Is he a theological entity that we should at sometime learn something about, or is He truly the Son of God who desires you to know Him in the fullest sense?

God's majestic beauty

It is 8:26 here and I am sitting at the computer in Jason's office looking at the sunset. it is gorgeous as the sun goes down behind the mountains. This past week has been filled with the beauty that God created with there being snow on the mountains at the beginning of the week and now that the snow is gone. There are barely any clouds over the mountains and they are gorgeous. God has definetly shown his glory.

The boys are doing wonderful. Riley and Sawyer love their new environment. The cool mountain air makes them sleep really good at night especially after playing outside alot during the day.

well time for me to go

Full Time, Full Time

Well, Jason got a new job to put us through school this semester. God is good, isn't he. Jason was hired for part-time, but was moved to full-time his first day. He works the night shift at a grocery store - that pays extremely well. On top of that, the grocers union is going through negotiations for pay increases and when that goes through, he gets the difference in his wage retrod from the first day he started until the new contract comes into play. He is almost making what we made at the church. So now Jason is employed full time, taking two classes at the seminary and taking 2 online classes. He should be done his Bachelor of Christian Ministry by the end of April and start on his Masters of Divinity (online of course) in September. Why does he always push himself to the limit? Probably because he doesn't know any better. Maybe if he works super hard this semester, planting the church in Medicine Hat will seem like a breeze..... well maybe not quite. Please continue to pray for us - and for Jason to hold up this semester.

Family update

Hey everyone, This is Leigh from Canada. As of 7:40 our time Tuesday night, Jason and his dad are in Great Falls, Montana which means that they will be in Calgary between 1-2 tomorrow afternoon. The kids are doing wonderful.

The Big Day Has Arrived

Jason's parents flew in about 1:00 pm today. We got the U-haul and that is almost fully loaded. Tomorrow morning Leigh and the kids make the flight back to Calgary. They should be in Canada by noon. Dad and I should be there no later than thursday. There won't be any posts for a while until we get our computer up and running - but until then, Let God be God and let you be you.

Camp Photos

A friend of mine emailed some pictures from Preteen Camp. Here are some of our family. Enjoy!

This is one of Jason getting a Wedgee from a bungee jump trampoline.





Riley and Daddy at the Rec Field. Riley loved the Golf Cart

No, this isn't the family car. We don't have one that big!

Fairwell Party

The church had a commissioning service for us tonight. It went well - Hewy preached out of Acts 13, then the church laid hands on us. After that we had a good Baptist Fellowship. (It's always good when food is involved!) The church decked up the fellowship hall for us in a Texas Western theme. They had the hay bails and everything! As Leigh, the kids and I were eating, Hewy came and gave us a card from the church. We opened it up and out fell a check for a lot of money. The church just paid three quarters of our move back home. Leigh and I want to thank Security First Baptist for being so generous to us these past 2 years. God really does answer prayer because I did pray months ago that the church would provide the funds for us to go back to Canada - I didn't tell anybody - not even Leigh until tonight. God does answer prayer, so please continue to pray for us as we move back to Canada next Sunday and pray that God would go before us in Medicine Hat.

FBC Splendora

So, we are on vacation and I thought it would be nice to visit another church for a change. On Wednesday I called my friend, Kerry Baxley, the pastor at FBC Splendora and told him that we were going to be there that evening. He told me that was great and that I would be sharing the message. He wanted me to tell the church what God is doing with us and Medicine Hat. So three hours later I was speaking at FBC Splendora - on a Wednesday night. One of my girls from Elite Fleet was there along with the expected attendance on a Wednesday night. Why is it that in a Baptist church everybody sits from the back forward? After I spoke, Kerry told Leigh and I to go to the back an open our Bibles and he then told the church to prepare a love offering. We want to thank FBC Splendora for the wonderful gift that we were in no way expecting. It was the biggest love offering I have ever received for preaching - and it was on a Wednesday night!

We also met a couple in the church that went to Canada years ago to work on the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary's building.

Praise God for what He is doing in and through FBC Splendora, and thank you so much for wanting to partner in mission with us in Canada. To view FBC Splendora's website click here.

My Last Preteen Camp at Pineywoods

I got back home from Preteen camp about 4:00 pm Saturday and I was totally wiped. This was the largest and smoothest run preteen camp we have ever seen, and what God did there was amazing! Out of 1700 campers the only injuries on the rec field were: a stubbed toe, a scraped knee, a rolled ankle, and a broken nose. We saw hundreds of kids come to Christ and another church has stepped up to the plate to bring missionaries to Canada next summer! Splendora First Baptist Church!

At the end of camp, I was given one of the 5' x 5' banners from camp. People from Tryon Evergreen Baptist Association and all the preteen camp staff signed it for me. This will be a keepsake forever. Two pastors wrote some very encouraging things on the banner for me about my leadership and my ministry in the past 2 years.

Kerry Baxley, the pastor of FBC Splendora, told me on the way home from camp that I would never know the impact I had made on Splendora ISD. He told me that all of his kids in youth know who I am - Mr. Thursday - and they know that I did magic tricks in order to share the Gospel.

As I have been evaluating my ministry here for the past 2 years, I was truly wondering if I was making an impact. I believe that God showed me my answer - and the answer is yes.

I am going to miss preteen camp dearly. The planning meetings are almost as fun as the camp itself. To all of you who have invested in my life in the past 2 years, thank you. Leigh and I will miss you greatly.

Preteen Camp

Jason gets to go to Preteen Camp tomorrow morning. Camp doesn't really start until Sunday, but there is a lot of prep to do. Can you believe that there will be 1700 campers this year? God is really doing some awesome work there. Keep Jason in your prayers this week - he is running rec for 1700 3rd through 6th graders. It is fun, but you have nothing left in you by the following Saturday. To check out the camp just click on http://www.preteencamp.com/

West Rome

I went to Rome, GA for the weekend, and was totally humbled by what God has done, what He is doing, what He will do, and the hospitality shown to me by West Rome Baptist Church.

I flew in to Atlanta and a fellow named Quinton picked me up. It feels nice for me to stare straight ahead and look someone in the eyes. He is about an inch taller than me. If he was any taller, his head might scrape the stratosphere.

We went and ate lunch at a nice restaraunt, and our server was a new Christian who was about to go to a Christian University. It's awesome how God puts people in our paths. This young man was not getting the encouragement he needed from his parents to go to a Christian University, but we gave him more than enough encouragement. Funny thing is, he didn't tell us until we were about to leave that he needed that encouragement.

Quinton took me to West Rome, and I met Jarrod - the Associate Pastor who preaches at XL. You should check them out at www.xlwired.com Now Jarrod is another tall one. I was beginning to realize that I was being initiated into the six and a half foot tall club. The church was going to let me drive around the FUEL van (the youth ministry van) for the weekend, but Jarrod wouldn't have it. He gave me his truck. He let me drive his 05 GMC quad cab 1/2 ton. He never met me before. All I can say is that I was humbled again.

I was expecting to sleep at one of the pastor's homes on a child's single bed or a roll out cot, but of course West Rome would not have that. No - they put me up in a hotel; not just any hotel mind you, but a nice suite. You know you're in a nice hotel when the staircase you walk up to your room on is made of solid oak. I did not have an average hotel room. I opened the door and I saw a chair in front of me, a love seat to the left of me, a 36 inch tv beside me and on the right was a fridge, and a microwave. That was the first room of the hotel. Then I found my bedroom. Another huge tv, and a king size bed. Plus on top of all that, Quinton's wife, Ramona, left a beautiful gift basket for me above the refrigerator - it was filled with great sweets, fruit, Perrier, chocolates, a nice pen, t-shirts and prayer guides for all the missionaries that went from West Rome to Medicine Hat. I couldn't help but cry as I read over the prayer guides, and realized how God has used a church that I never heard of to prep the mission field for a church planter that they never heard of, to tell people we barely know about the love of Jesus Christ.

Later on that night Jarrod and his wife, Tiffany, Mark - the head deacon (he's only 35, I thought it was a baptist rule that a deacon had to be retired for 23 years first) and his wife, Susan took me out to Outback. That's where I met Garth. Garth is the manager of Outback and a member of XL. He moved from Louisiana to Georgia to take this job and he met Jesus Christ there in Rome. This past year his store was rated the top Outback in the Good Old US of A. Garth humbled me by the hospitality he showed us. He brought us these mountain berry smoothies - on the house. Now they were amazing. If you ever get the chance - get one. Then he brought us desert - on the house. It was amazing. All of us there were like a bunch of friends that haven't seen each other in months - yet it was the first time we met. I love Christian Fellowship.

The next day I was told to relax. Ya right. If you know me - I am not very good at that. So I went and toured Rome, GA. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. Now I know why God sent me to Houston. If I would have moved to Rome, I would not be going back to Canada. Later that night we had a BBQ and pool party at Mark's house. That's where I got to meet most of the missionaries who went to Canada. Leigh got to talk to Tiffany and Susan on the phone. They hit it off. My wife doesn't talk on the phone for very long, but they talked to her for over 20 minutes. We had a great night. I got to show the vision for Lifehouse and people loved it.

The next day was Sunday. I got to speak to the Single Adult class during Sunday School and shared my testimony from birth to Medicine Hat. I think it went well. The teacher of the class is Ken - the missions pastor. Even he is over 6 feet tall - it must be from growing up around those Georgia Pines.

We had church after that, and I got to meet the Governor of Georgia. He has been a church member there all his life.

The senior Pastor, Glynn Stone, gave his resignation that day and will be moving to Longview,TX. I was able to talk with him after the service, and of course - we hit it off. He is the only non-overgrown pastor West Rome has. I wish I could have known him before he resigned because he seems like such a wonderful man. He told me that their old administrator, Mo, who just resigned last month is now at the University of Texas running the Baptist Student Ministries. Mo wants to bring them to the Hat next summer!

I got to go to XL that night. Wow!!!! Seriously check it out. As a matter of fact, click the link and watch their PIMP MY RIDE series. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=368L9nCOx7Q

They played 3 songs, then the sermon. The first song - Carry on my wayward son by Kansas, second song - Livin' on a Prayer, Bon Jovi - third song Frontline - Pillar. They even have their own soda bar. For my Canadian friends - that is their own Pop Shoppe.

After that I met with the elders. This is like the interview. It went well. These were some of the Godliest men I have ever met. I think they liked the vision for Lifehouse. The next morning I flew home. It was a great time and we look forward to having a great relationship with West Rome.

Medicine Hat is coming way to fast.

Look What God's Doing

All I can say is WOW! OK, so this is what is going on. Last week I received my official acceptance letter from the Canadian Southern Baptist Seminary. I had to re-apply because I have been out for more than 3 years. Yesterday we received our address to our new house! We will have a kitchen view of the Canadian Rocky Mountains! Also yesterday I received a phone call from Ken Oates, the Missions Pastor from West Rome Baptist Church, in Rome Georgia. They will be flying me to Georgia pretty soon to meet the staff and the elders of the church. He told me that from everything he has heard about me, that Leigh and I are the people for the job in Medicine Hat. Now that is a humbling statement. To think that God would use us - two ordinary people- to start the first Southern Baptist work in Medicine Hat. We are excited, nervous, scared, joyful and humbled all at the same time. So when I get to Georgia, I get to also go to an XL service. XL is their church plant in Rome, GA that meets on Sunday Nights and is focused directly to unchurched people - the same kind of people we will be ministering to in the Hat. Have I already said that we are excited? I have been listening to XL podcasts since April and have seen many of their sermons on Youtube. Tallking about Youtube, here is their first sermon from their man series. Hope you like it.

Camp

We just got back from youth camp, God was good! I was able to teach a class on how to share your faith. I called it Effective Evangelism. It was a combination of 2 different evangelism programs I have used in the past. Anyway, last year only 30 people took the class, this year 90 people took my class and 1 person actually got saved in my class! It was awesome! Anyway, I got to meet the new pastor at Grangerland Baptist Church. His name is Jay Macintosh. God has burdened his heart for Canada. He preached at Bow Valley Baptist Church in Cochrane, about 12 years ago, and he is ready to bring a mission up to Medicine Hat next summer to help us.

I had one downside to camp. This past school year I went to three schools each week to have lunch with the kids; one of the girls that goes to one of the schools was in my family group at camp. She told me that one of the boys I ministered to hung himself this past week. The only comfort I got was that she confirmed to me that he did get a Gospel tract from me.

Kids today are going through hell. They are over sexed, over stimulated and totally misunderstood. Leigh found this great video on KSBJ, we like it so much, mostly because it resembles through a dance/skit what our teenagers are going through right now.

I hope you enjoy it, and maybe shed some light onto why we are so determined to share the Gospel in a country where 94% to 97% of the people do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Riley's 4th birthday

Yesterday was Riley's fourth birthday, man where have the last four years gone. He went to Sunday school and then he came to church with us and was excellent. After church we had a barbeque and ate hot dogs and hamburgers and other things. The kids that came enjoyed spending time in the pool and then we played Pin the nose on Elmo and they really enjoyed that. Then we had cake and ice cream. Riley got a My first story reader. cars and two monster trucks and some bubbles.

It's Official

Jason told the church today that we will be moving back to Canada to plant a church in Medicine Hat. There are a lot of people sad to see us go, other's are excited to see how God is leading through this - especially how God is making good out of the bad that Satan intended for us.

We have a sense of relief now that we have told the church, but at the same time there is sadness. We will be leaving the friends that we veiw as family to go and do God's work.

We just found out today that we can expect to have a lot of furniture all ready for us when we move back to Canada. God is always good. He shows Himself in the Bible to be a God who will supply all our needs after we step out on faith. Now that we are stepping out on faith, God is meeting our needs. We will already have a class or two fully paid for by the time we get back to seminary. God doesn't promise riches - but he does promise to take care of all our needs.

Tomorrow we meet Tim Williams - The Church Planting Coordinator for Western Canada. He flies down to Dallas tomorrow, and will meet us in Conroe for dinner. We are very excited. Pray this meeting goes well.

our family trip to the Children's Museum

On friday we took the kids to the Children's Musuem located in a mall nearby. Riley had a blast he could pretend to be a doctor, dentist or even dig for bones and play in recycled tires with dump trucks and shovels. He also got to play in a play submarine. He tired himself out big time there. Sawyer enjoyed playing in the area they had for the little ones.

Church Planting Assessment

Well,

I did my church planting assessment today. Turned out pretty well from what I can tell. I scored a 306 out of a possible 355 points I was evaluted in 16 different areas, each area had a possiblity of 15-30 points. I got a 15 out 0f 15 for relating to unchurched people. That made me very excited. Continue to pray for us.

I preached my second sermon on the Book of Philippians last night. It went well, I think I stepped on some toes though. One of my deacons told me he needed the spanking my sermon delivered. Jason

Sponsoring Church

Yesterday Jason received an email from the CCSB church planting coordinator for Western Canada, and he is very excited about us planting a church in Medicine Hat. He wants to fly down to Texas to meet us personally, and then he wants us to fly to Georgia. The church that will be sponsoring us is West Rome Baptist Church in Rome, Georgia.

We think it is best to go back to seminary for 1 semester, just to get reoriented with the Western Canadian Culture again. It has been almost 5 years since we have been down here.

To find out more about West Rome Baptist Church, click here.

Easter Sunday

Today was Easter Sunday. We had a really good day. The kids looked so cute in their matching shirts. Riley really enjoyed his Easter basket, he got four little cars, a chocolate bunny, a cup and some cashews. Sawyer got a stuffed bunny rabbit, a sippy cup and a book that makes noise. Our Easter service was very nice and the lunch that followed was also nice. The kids really enjoyed the Easter Egg hunt, they all got lots of eggs. Riley has a big bowl filled with candy that will be given to him a couple of pieces at a time.