Creation?

For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. Romans 1:20

Today is a beautiful day outside, with sun shining bright and temperatures that allow the flowers to bloom and smell wonderful. It is one of those days that make me ponder on what it was like on that first day of completed creation. The beauty we see now in the world is probably only a glimpse of the glorious perfect first day of life.

The verse mentioned above was written by the apostle Paul. It was written probably within 60 years after Christ ascended into heaven. Which means Paul was not there to see day one of life, matter of fact he did not see the death and resurrection of Christ with his own eyes. So what sort of credentials does Paul have to write about something he didn't experience first hand?

Paul did experience the beauty of creation first hand because he lived and traveled all throughout the middle east, Europe and Asia. With all that travel he saw the beautiful mountains and valleys, rivers and waterfalls, animals of all sorts and so much more. Paul also saw Jesus with his own eyes when Paul was traveling on the road to Damascus. Jesus miraculously changed Paul's life and the way he saw the world and its beauty. Even with Paul's glimpse of true beauty through creation and the creator it was enough to change his heart and mentality of whose will to follow.

Paul was without excuse because his eyes were opened to beauty, love, compassion, grace, joy and all the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Paul believed in Christ and the grace he lavishly poured out, that he wrote, all of us are without excuse. Paul was only following the will of God through the grace of Christ being led by the Holy Spirit. Sometimes I wonder why we make up excuses. Have your eyes been opened?

-T

Faithfulness.

We recently passed through the 80% mark of raising our initial support to get out into the field! Three cheers! It is really surreal to look at our goal percentage. God is faithful to complete what He has started! Throughout this whole process, we've had goals and dates when we've liked to be moved to Indy. It looks like God is preparing us for a summertime move.

You can check out our latest update/prayer letter here: March 2011

Thanks for taking this journey alongside of us!

"Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

Tony & Jonelle

Photo Friday: Cakealicious

My sister is getting married next month! Her bridal shower is this weekend, so off to BG we go. My aunts and I are throwing her the shower, and I'm in charge of the cake. I have an idea in my head of how I want the final product to turn out - and this idea needed a 12" round cake pan to do it. I've never baked a cake in something that huge - scary! I was very pleased, when I checked the oven this morning to see how things were progressing...



Mmmm, chocolate. I hope it makes it until Sunday!

-J

Photo Friday: Mr Dignified

Oops. It's Saturday. Sorry.

Sammy is special to us. We lived with his parents and older brother for nine months, all while he was cooking in his momma's belly. He's a very lovey boy. Sometimes when I hold him, he gives me a big bear hug and cuddles. I appreciate Samuel's concern, because my husband simply does not like to cuddle.

I like to entertain the thought that Sammy will be a high ranking government official one day, possibly even the President of the United States. In the midst of a crazy fun moment, he many times has the most dignified little look on his face.




Remember us when you're big and famous, Samuel!

-J

Photo Friday: Move It, Move It

This edition of Photo Friday has been brought to you by Two Men &


A Truck [Dayton North]...and my hubbs. :)

Yesterday, Tony & I went to the Grand Opening & Ribbon Cutting Celebration for our friends' [David & Laurie] franchise of Two Men & A Truck in Huber Heights. We wanted to show support for them - and who wouldn't turn down cookies shaped like moving trucks!

I got the chance to practice photography in a casual, party-like setting. I knew there would be something special at this party because earlier this week, Laurie was asking around for a transparency projector. When we walked into the office, we saw their company's logo transformed into a wooden cutout for pictures! My hubbs snapped this picture of me with the party planner...

Great job, Laurie! We're excited to use Two Men & A Truck when we move to Indy!

-J

Details Matter.

In December, I learned about a local ministry that was birthed through some people from our church family. I received an invite on Facebook to vote for this organization, Shoes4theShoeless, so that they could win this $50,000 grant from Pepsi. I hadn't heard of the organization, so I went to their website to see what it was about.

While investigating, I saw this story: [Remember, this is December. It's cold in Ohio in December.]

There are thousands of kids all around us who do not have shoes/socks fit to wear. Just an hour ago a school nurse called me because a little girl walked to school (it is 4 degrees here with snow) in shoes with no soles. No socks either. Her feet were soaked and frozen.
Right now, shoes and socks are being taken to her, along with the 90 other pairs we are delivering this morning to 10 schools.

They give hope. Their mission is to provide properly fitting shoes to children in desperate need. They provide kids with brand new shoes that fit, along with a clean pair of socks. For some kids, it's the first time they have ever owned a brand new pair of shoes.

Long story short, I voted for the organization. A lot. So did other people, because they won the grant. Tony and I were able to go on an outing last week to deliver shoes to some area schools. God reminded me of something last week. I know He deeply cares for these kids, all of us in fact. I was reminded that He doesn't just care about us. He cares about the precious details in our lives...even down to the shoes.

I had the pleasure of meeting this little girl pictured on the left. While I was getting and opening her box of shoes, I was talking with her about different things. I peeked in the box, and oh wow, were these shoes pink! I looked up at her and asked her if she liked pink. Her eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning. She excitedly nodded her head "yes". Then, I dramatically shut the box and gave her a confused-like look. I asked: "Are you sure you like pink? I mean, really sure?" She exclaimed, "Yes! Yes! Pink is my very favorite color!" I will not easily forget her huge smile when I showed her the box of pink shoes. She saw another volunteer's shoes [on the right] and was excited that they were "shoe twins". Yes, she would have been happy for shoes that simply fit. But, God cares about the details. He made sure they were pink.

Another little girl really loved the shoes she had and thought they were pretty, but they were just too small. What a God-thing when she opened the box to see the exact same pair, only new! The picture above is of her new shoes [left] the team gave her and her old shoes [right].


Greg & Tony after a successful shoe fitting!

photos taken by Shoes4theShoeless

Are you in love yet? Want to help out with a shoe drive, a shoe delivery, or just want more info? Email Shoes4TheShoeless@gmail.com

-J

Photo Friday: March Madness

You can disagree with my opinion. It doesn't bother me. I don't particularly care for March. Yes, I just said it.



Before we got married, I did not have a feeling either way about this month. It wasn't until nine whole months of marriage - our first March together - that I realized the horribleness of this particular month.



March Madness.



Basketball is on the television. All. The. Time.



So, in honor of this crazy month.....







Tony & Allen were shooting hoops one afternoon [in late February, can you believe that?] and I captured this swoosh by my hubbs. Here's hoping my bracket beats his. :)



-J

The Earthquake in Japan

The recent tragic events in Japan have made my mind wonder what this all means biblically. An earthquake so powerful it caused a tsunami and claimed the lives of thousands. I started thinking about what an earthquake is and how we can be prepared for when one hits. The crazy thing is you can never be ready for an earthquake. Sure we can build strong buildings or try not to live near a fault line, but we will never be prepared for when the actual event of the earthquake happens. Scientists can tell us how strong it was, or explain in science terms how it will destruct the area, but they can never tell us on what day or hour an earthquake will hit.

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

Matthew 27:50-53

The bible tells us of the very first earthquake and it happens at a time that filled with spiritual battle. During the death of Jesus on the cross we witness victory. I find it interesting that this earthquake hit amidst most likely the strongest spiritual battle in history. I believe spiritual battle is real and it can affect us deeply and personally.

So I might be concluding that earthquakes could be the result of very powerful and scary spiritual battle. Think about how powerful our creator God really is and when He goes to battle against the darkness that is Satan, how much really goes on. I almost imagine the death-match we see at the end of movies when superheroes fight each other for victory. Terrible destruction and casualties even occur during these spectacles of heroes rising to the occasion of fending off evil. Our God is doing the same thing still. He is alive and fighting off evil and darkness.

It is also no coincidence that these scary and tragic natural disasters happen where darkness reigns. I know we have false gods that we worship in our own country, but I sometimes will think that our safety in worship is incidental because we don’t build statues of idols and the like. Then I realize we do, it is just through fame and fortune, or through engineering and technology, or through pride and protection of ourselves. These natural disasters that happen to the spiritually dark countries are horrific and change lives, but honestly we are not that much different. God is fighting hard to defeat the darkness that resides in Satan’s heart. God is fighting so hard for you and your eyes to be open to the truth that He literally shakes things up.

-T

Photo Friday: Now I Know My ABCs

When it's not raining or snowing these days, which has been very few days recently, Moses & I typically take a walk around the neighborhood. Even though he sometimes puts on the breaks and won't move, he likes it. He does. His tail usually keeps wagging. I'd like to think that he is not overly out of breath, but just taking in the scenery. :)

On our walks, I've recently began to see letters. [I don't care if you laugh; I can't hear you.] I know my brain doesn't usually think like most, but just look around the next time you are outside. I think you'll start to see them, too.

So, I've decided that on my walks, I am going to capture these letters. I'm not sure what kinds of words I am going to make out of them once I get a good alphabet going. If you would like any words, let me know, I can look for those letters first.




Here is my first letter, Mr. Y. [Does anyone remember The Letter People?]

-J

What is a blessing?

Luke 5:1-12

What is a blessing? Jesus gave us the Beatitudes to help give us a clear picture. Sometimes I still wonder what the core point was of that portion of His sermon on the mount. It is the opening statement in order to catch the attention of those attending. Jesus is describing parts of life and the choices we make that are either spiritual or tangible. He is describing actions and emotions that we encounter as we make daily decisions. Jesus describes a way of living that is upside down to what the world standard is. It is completely opposite to the American dream mentality and pushes the envelope when He shares, “rejoice and be glad” after you have been persecuted for His name. 

Have you ever taken time to reflect if you have actually been persecuted? Have you meditated if you even measure up to the list of blessings Jesus describes? Sometimes the term “I am blessed” or similar phrases get thrown around a lot in Christian circles, but do we really know what the blessing really is? It is easy to see a tangible blessing that makes us live comfortably, or the amazing miracle of growing your family in child birth. Maybe the act of service and sacrifice for others are the blessings you hold onto. But I am still wondering how all this stuff we believe to be a blessing looks like to our Father and his Son Jesus. 

The Holy Spirit moves inside of our heart and mind telling us, yes indeed that was a good thing to do. The Spirit is there to determine and decipher what the Lord desires for us. It even lets us know that our motive behind a blessing is either pure or not. This is another grey area of defining what a blessing is. 

I am asking the question because I believe there is an answer. The four gospel letters include numerous accounts of when Jesus tells us the truth. The truth is Jesus is the son of God and gave Himself as a sacrifice to pay for our sin. Jesus is now seated with His Father preparing a place for us, who know and believe this to be true, in His kingdom. I think that truth is the core to what a blessing is. Knowing and believing absolute truth is the best blessing we could ever have in our life and helps us be confident in salvation. Absolute truth from God is powerful, sharing that truth with others is important. The absolute truth Jesus fills us up with helps us fight against the world. Believing in absolute truth helps guide our thoughts and actions through the Holy Spirit. If you meditate on how truth through Jesus has changed your life, then discovering what blessings are actual blessings might become clearer. 

-T