Persistent

"Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you." Luke 11:9

God seems to be drawn to those who don't give up. We can see this in several stories in the Bible (Matthew 15:21-28, Mark 5:25-34 and Luke 19:1-10). We haven't given up, but some days it seemed the easiest thing to do. But praise the Lord we didn't. We constantly have more questions than we have answers, but we have learned to TURST Him in ways we never have before. Life on the mission field is equal to living in a pressure cooker all the time. We are always under pressure; pressure to learn 2 languages, pressure on our marriage, pressure on parenting, pressure from a culture that is not our own, pressure in ministry, pressure from Spiritual warfare, just to name a few. It wears us out physically, emotionally and spiritually. 

I am sure to most people we seem crazy for being persistent and not giving up. But for us, we see that God's best rewards go to those who are persistent. Jesus has much to say about prayer and being persistent (Luke 11:5-10; 18:1-8) and only those who press through obstacles and initial appearances will receive what only He offers. We have seen God work in mighty ways because of the prayers of our prayer partners, our church family, and our team. James tells us that we do not have because we do not ask (James 4:2). So we are accepting his invitation to continue to ask and be persistent in ministry to reach the deaf in Mexico. 

As we get ready to head back to Mexico after a much needed furlough time, we are ready to be more persistent in asking, seeking and knocking. The way to experience God in more tangible ways is to ask repeatedly and persistently. We are prepared to press through the circumstances, negative voices from the enemy, the pressures of mission life, disappointments, and a lack of immediate results. We are His servants on His time schedule and we are ok with that. Because we trust HIM! 

We know the benefits of persistently seeking, asking and knocking by what we have seen God do over the 3 1/2 years we have been there. First generation High School graduates, Second generation High School graduates and 18 enrolled for this year. The hiring of 2 deaf teachers by the Government to teach elementary and middle school ages in public school. This answer to prayer made history in the country of Mexico. We would say that is one of the best rewards to persistently asking, seeking and knocking. Praise be to God for His rewards. 

On a personal update, Ashtyn graduated in May and we moved her to TX in July. Elise and Clay are expecting twin boys in February. We will return to Mexico as empty nesters. Pray for our family as we are all making adjustments in this season of life. Leaving is always a bittersweet thing for us and difficult to leave our family behind. 

I am hoping to be much better about updating the blog on a regular basis. Thank you all for keeping up with us and praying for us. We appreciate each of you.