Hope for Revival

The Methodist School is back in session for the year, and I was privileged to speak at their chapel for the past week. As I spoke, I witnessed some students who were readily engaged in the message, and some who couldn't have cared less. This is to be expected from a bunch of 13-17 year-olds, but it's also something that the school administration wants to change. They want to see a spiritual revival.

Last year the 500+ high school students elected a new student president, and she won by only one vote. This new president desires to serve God and, like the administration, see a spiritual revival in the school. I've promised her that I'm going to do everything I can to help her see it through.

I've already spoken with many new (and old) members of the teaching faculty, and their desire to see the Holy Spirit move at the school is stronger than ever. There are numerous prayer warriors within the faculty, and they have made the president know that they are on her side.

This past week I started the weekly Bible Study again, and we had 10 students show up, with at least one from each grade (7th-11th). That was an incredible blessing from my perspective, and each of those students showed a true desire to get their friends and classmates involved in the spiritual life of the school.

Over the course of the year we're hoping to get the students more involved in service ministries throughout San Jose, and we have a plethora of churches at our fingertips who are in desperate need of young helpers. From Kids' Clubs to soup kitchens to construction projects, we're hoping to let the students at the Methodist School taste the joy that comes from serving others in their local communities. And who knows, maybe they'll even attribute that joy to Jesus.

So please be praying with me and the school's administration, because we are hoping for revival.

Comin' along

Welcome to the front porch of House #1 at the Children's Home!

We are currently in the midst of a 5-week stretch with non-stop teams at this worksite, so we're planning on making quite a bit of progress between now and the end of March.

Our new goal for the house is to have it completed by October, allowing us to finally open our doors to the first 8-10 children who will be a part of our new loving family. Please be in prayer for us and all of the workers involved in this process.

In Platanares

Over the past few weeks I've spent a good amount of time at one of our churches on the foothills of a mountain range, in Platanares de Moravia. It has a lively Kids' Club on Saturday mornings and great preaching on Sunday mornings, so it's really been a no-brainer to keep going back. And this past week one of our mission teams was able to host a Vacation Bible School lesson for the kids in that community.

Spending that much time in one place has allowed me to build a close relationship with the kiddos--a budding relationship that includes chasing, racing, piggy-back rides, helicopter rides, and punishment for calling me slow and/or lazy. So, above, you have Warren, a pastor's kid (aren't we all alike) who was convinced that I was slow and lazy and that I couldn't catch him (because that's what chasing kids is all about). Finally, my competitive nature won me over and Warren became a heap in my arms.

So the new game has become, "How can I get Will to pick me up and throw me around?" Below you'll see Emanuel, who was proud to be a winner of said game . . . until things started falling out of his pockets.

After VBS there was a sight over the church that I have never seen before: a double rainbow. One was bright as the sun itself, the other was much more subtle. It was incredible. A big thanks to Mark White who captured one of the rainbows brilliantly (and who's responsible for the other photos on this post as well).