His Promises Endure Forever!

There was a rainbow a couple of weeks ago on our way to get our new car in Upper Hutt which is near Wellington. I've seen a few lately and they totally blow my mind! They are beautiful, complex, full of color and light...God is so awesome to give us such a tender reminder that he will never destroy mankind again like he did in the flood. At one point we could see it from on end to the other and it seemed to move with us, so my suspicion is, if there is a pot of gold at the end, it's either invisible or you will never be able to catch the rainbow to find out! :)

Blessed to be a Blessing!

it's amazing how fast you can begin a new life in a new place. we've only been in New Zealand for just over a month but because of how quickly God has integrated us it feels like it could be much longer! God's been so faithful to prepare a place for us to connect here! over the past few weeks we've been connecting more with our new church family and have really come to the understanding of us how ordained and prayed for our presence here is. all glory be to God for his marvelous works because this is not something we could've planned even if we tried. multiple people have told us that the church has been praying for a couple to come and partner with them in ministry, new friendships have been a blessing to those here feeling alone, an artist i met from the church said she's been praying to connect with a christian female photographer. all of these things were prayers entrusted to God who through his faithfulness began to stir our hearts for something new...challenging...even scary...and through these things he brought us all the way from Boston to Otaki, New Zealand, to show a group of people that he had heard them and that they were not forgotten. God is so awesome friends! God is calling all of us to be someone's answer to prayer. we are so humbled and truly in awe of how God can use a willing and surrendered life.

A few new interesting "New Zeland" facts (i have to start taking notes because i see something or hear something and think i'll remember...but i don't):

• i think i forgot to mention this when we last talked about "New Zealand" foods. other than fish-n-chips, MEAT PIES are the favorite around here! Love them! the most talked about meat pie is the "steak and cheese" pie but today i had a beef curry pie with potato in it and it was pretty great!
• Kiwi's seem to be pretty interested in what things are like in America and in President Obama. one of the men from church has even read Obama's book.
• from what i can tell, the youth here are really into hip-hop and acting/talking "gangsta" like. we saw a dance team from the church in wellington on sunday night and they were very good.
• much to my amazement there seems to be a MULLET trend here. :/ yeah...i know...i have no idea. sigh.
  

we met a couple a few weeks ago at Levin City Church and they let me come to their farm on Friday to take pictures of the baby cows! the youngest is just 10 days old and she's a cutie! *PICS COMING SOON!

i've got a few things to catch you up on but this will have to do for now. off to clean our new rental! moving in tomorrow! woot!

*don't forget to scroll down and check out 'Talk Like a Kiwi' at the bottom of our page!

Never Forget

Church was really great today! Pastor Paul spoke on "Significant Seasons" and how to recognize God in the changing seasons of our lives. Before he started preaching he asked the church and his wife to pray for America as we remember the devastation and continued threat of 9/11.  As Americans, we all know how 9/11 affected us but I don't think we realize how 9/11 affected the rest of the world.  The pastor spoke about how New Zealand was never the same after 9/11. The repercussions of that day were world wide. Although the devastation happened in America, we were not the only country grieving and not the only ones wrestling with fear. It was very eye opening to hear these words come from a man I would've at that moment considered a stranger to me personally but also a stranger to my country.

The past few days have been pretty quiet. Torre had his first day at the clinic on Thursday and saw his first patients there on Friday. He said it was really great and that it was nice to work with children again. :) I was invited to tea at a new friends house on Friday and that was really nice. Everyone is very friendly here and those who know what it is like to be away from home and new in town are going out of their way to make us feel welcome. This weekend turned out to be a rainy one. The weather has been mostly sunny and beautiful since we arrived so we don't mind the rain so much. Sunsets are so beautiful here! They remind me of home. Today we visited Levin City Church and went to a BBQ for the Clinic. It was kind of a "going away" for a doctor from Canada who's heading back home in a couple of weeks and a "welcome" for Torre. They served barbecued beef, lamb, Chinese honey sausage, a variety of salads, breads and desserts.

Here are a few new pics to keep you coming back!

Downtown Wellington along the harbor walk way

This was the sun setting on our way home from Wellington!
My camera was hanging out the car window as we were going about 100kl/phr down the express way.

The "Prowler".  I want one! :)

God is SO AMAZING!

freedom from myself

The Rich and the Kingdom of God
Matthew 19:21-23 NIV

"Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” “Why do you ask me about what is good?” 
Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 

"When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth." Ouch...although I am very familiar with this account of Jesus and the rich young man, the impact of what Jesus is really saying has recently hit very close to home for me. All too often I have found myself thinking and behaving just as the young rich man did...so bound to my 'wealth', the things I place too high of a value on, instead of living freely to follow the One who is ALL I need.


The process of sorting through our belongings has been challenging for me. Torre is definitely better at tossing almost anything he feels is taking up unnecessary space, but I, on the other hand, have kept everything and anything that relates to a special occasion, moment, vacation, childhood favorite...you name it, I've probably got it. No, it may not be a bad thing that I like keepsakes, but when those keep sakes and memories take over a piece of your heart that was intended for Jesus, when the thought of giving a Snoopy Shaved Ice maker away brings you to tears because you loved it so much as a child, there's a problem!!! It's a problem for me anyways. God has been teaching me to let go of all kinds of things and showing me that nothing of importance and value is actually lost when I let go of my earthly possessions to follow him, because so much more is gained!!! I want to be free to go when Jesus asks me to. The freedom we are finding through this process of sorting, trashing, selling and giving away is so amazing and it's extremely exciting to see how God is continually aligning our lives with his heart. 


Father, I choose you. I want my hands and heart to be free from clutter and distraction so that I am free to JOYFULLY follow you wherever you lead!