Sweet Baby Boy July 14, 2009

Hanging out with Mommy and Daddy

 

 

Here is our sweet baby boy hanging out with us at Walmart…  We saw this hat and couldn’t resist.  He is such a good little boy.  He is just happy and content to be with you that you can pretty much take him anywhere and he will enjoy being along for the ride.

 

That being said… What is it about Walmart that brings out the crazies?  It seems like every sort of crazy thrives on the Walmart air.  We weren’t three steps in the door this time when we saw a redneck family fight complete with cussing and name calling.  Well, at the very least it is a little entertaining how ridiculous people can be…

 

I better get back to what I was doing.  What was that anyway?

Yep. I’m still here… December 29, 2007

Well, what can I say.  Life is good.  I haven’t had a ton of time to post lately, but it’s all good.  For those of you that haven’t heard yet, Amy and I are expecting a little boy come the end of April 2008.  We are really excited about this new life and are getting ready for our new rolls as daddy and mommy.

 Oh yeah, for those of you that didn’t yet see our new york vacation video, here it is:

be blessed
-pastorj

Back from Texas, Glad to be Home May 20, 2007

Well, God may have “blessed Texas with His own hands” as the song goes, but I sure am glad to be back home in Michigan.  For those of you who didn’t know, I was in Frisco, Texas these past few days at a conference for my new church job in Kalamazoo.  I was blessed that the leadership team decided to send me down at the last moment.  I learned a lot that I believe will really help me to do the job of assimilation with excellence.

As having to go out of town goes, it was a pretty nice setup.  The conference was held at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center of Frisco.  We stayed in the hotel as well, and if you have never stayed in an Embassy Suites then you need to try it at least once before you die!  It was also good to get to know some of my fellow laborers in the ministry on a more casual level.  I walked away from the weekend with a renewed understanding of how much the Lord has blessed Amy and I by putting these kinds of people into our lives.  I can already see how the Lord is going to use events like this to mold and grow us into the people he wants us to be.

Well, I sure did miss my family and my friends.  I am glad to be home, and Pat, we’ll definitely catch up this week.

be blessed…
-pastorj

So Where Have I Been? May 3, 2007

I know that I haven’t been very good at getting my devotional thoughts up for the past few days.  This been, primarily, because I have not been feeling very good.  I have had some form of a cold for almost 5 weeks now.  I thought that I was over it and then 2 days ago, it snuck up and punched me in the stomach again.  Last night I laid down after dinner and ended up falling asleep.  I pretty much slept until 7:30 this morning.  Ugghhh…  I am going to the doctor’s office in about an hour – I have put it off long enough!

 On the up side, I had my first meeting @ KVFC yesterday.  It was very encouraging.  I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but I could tell that I am going to enjoy serving with this group of people.  It was nice to be with a group of people that were ready to actually hit the road running and serve the Lord in whatever way that He is calling us to.  My first official day on the job is today, but I am unsure if my health will permit me to go or not.  Please pray that I would get better fast!

Oh yeah!  There is some other exciting news from the church front right now too…  If you haven’t heard, KVFC recently purchased the Cathedral of Christ the King property which includes this magnificent building and 28 acres in Portage off I-94 and Oakland Drive.  The plan is to build a brand new 80,000 square foot facility next to the Cathedral.  It is very exciting to be involved in this ministry during such a time of growth and God’s blessing!  You can read more about the purchase by clicking here to read the Kalamazoo Gazette article. 
Be Blessed My Friends!!!
-pastorj

The End of One Crazy Week or The Beginning of Another… April 22, 2007

I feel that I have so much to say, but feel unable to say much of it.  Some parts of this week have been downright unpleasant, while other parts have been pretty good.  Amy and I are in this weird state of limbo right now.  We believe that our next step is to move to the Portage/Kalamazoo area and serve there, but so much is left undone that we can’t just pick up and go.  For one, our house hasn’t sold yet.  Today, we are lowering the price another $15,000 and having a big open house with advertising from Battle Creek to Jackson.  At the same time, we feel really torn about selling the house.  We are ready to get out of Marshall, but not ready to leave Amy’s parents here.  Our relationship with them has grown so much in the past months that we really enjoy living next door and having the relationships with them that we do.  The thought of us leaving is hard on them as well.  BUT, I am no quite sure how long I can drive to Kalamazoo every day before I go insane, so the time will come to move -it’s just a matter of when.

I also feel in a weird state of ministry limbo.  I am more at peace about leaving FWCF than I ever thought I would be, but I am a little anxious to see exactly what the Lord is doing with us next.  At first, it seemed clear that the Lord was opening a door for us to start a new ministry job in Portage in short order.  Now it appears that although that there will be some sort of ministry job in Portage, it may not start in such short order.  Which is really quite okay with me, because I have really enjoyed working for my father in the interim.  He really needs the help and I need the job, but more than that I think the Lord is drawing us closer and taking our relationship to a new level.

At the same time, the Lord is working in a mighty way in and through my family.  Now that more people have come to know Jesus as Lord, it is becoming like a spiderweb of God’s love moving through my family.   We have had some tough times (with my Aunt near death at Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo), but the Lord is moving even through those events.  This week I had the opportunity to spend time with one of my uncles that is really going after God hard and wanted some direction.  Without getting into the details, this in and of itself is an amazing work that the Lord is doing.

Well, I didn’t really talk about the part of the week that I called “downright unpleasant” earlier in this post.  I don’t want to say too much, but the situation that caused this unpleasantness was a reminder to me that the attempted manipulation of the spiritual realm to support ones personal assertions is one of the most ugly things that we as Christians can do to the church and to one another.  I don’t want to dwell on this stuff, but I also don’t want to miss how the Lord would grow me in and through these sorts of conflicts.  As I did my devotions this morning, the Lord used 1 Corinthians 11:17-19 to remind me of this.  Check it out…

Thank you for your continued prayers…

be blessed
-pastorj

Time to Head Back to Reality… Bummer eh? April 12, 2007

The time has come to leave our plush temporary vacation home in North Carolina basking in the mid-70’s temps and head back to mid 30’s temps of Michigan (or as Amy’s mom calls it – Popsicle land).  I do love living in Michigan, but coming back to that kind of weather is always kind of tough.  The last few days here have been absolutely enjoyable.  We have spent a bunch of time just relaxing, some shopping and a little sight seeing as well.  Yesterday we drove to Raleigh.  There we visited the North Carolina Museum of Science.  They have an extraordinary whale exhibit with several amazingly large whale skeletons.  It was a huge museum with a lot of interesting things to see.  Best of all, it was free!  We found a little dinner and then went to the I-MAX theatre and saw an amazing 3-D movie about Sharks.  It was so cool; it re-ignited my passion for scuba diving and snorkeling…

Well, I am happy to be heading back home, but there are some not so pleasant things awaiting my return.  Some of it is just the messiness of change.  Amy and I have so much change in front of us in the next couple months and there is always a bit of uneasiness during these seasons as many of you know.  For those that aren’t up to speed, I resigned my position at Four Winds after sensing the Lord leading us to serve at a church in Portage.  The next couple of months will be filled with the selling of our house, moving, wrapping up loose ends at one church and getting settled, connected and plugged into the new things the Lord is calling us to.  So, your continued prayers for peace during this exciting time would be much appreciated.

be blessed…
-pastorj

Vacation update and a BIG Prayer Request April 8, 2007

After a couple days of enjoyable driving, Amy and I have arrived at the ministry retreat home called “Renewal House” in Southern Pines, NC.  The name of the city says it all.  Southern Pines is a beautiful city with about 15 golf courses within 5 square miles totally surrounded by beautiful pine trees.  The house we are staying in is absolutely huge and very beautiful.  It is quite a blessing to be able to stay here.  We will decompress here for about a week and then head back home.  There is a lot of change on our plates when we return, so this week will be a welcome retreat.

Now I would like to covet your prayers for a major thing that is playing out in my extended family right now.  My aunt Rose (my dad’s brother Brad’s wife) has been in critical condition in Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo for over a week now.  She has some sort of major infection all through her body.  They are basically keeping her alive with machines and can’t seem to get her to turn a corner for the better.  They tried to operate on her last week to remove something that is appearing in her lungs, but she flat lined and the had to resuscitate her.  They canceled the surgery and she is basically in limbo.  PLEASE PRAY that Lord would move in and through this.  I am not sure if she really knows the Lord, nor much of her family.  I am asking God that he would totally heal her and glorify himself through this.  Thank you for your prayers…

 -justin

Big News and a Busy Week March 27, 2007

By now many of you have already heard that I have resigned my position as pastor of Four Winds Christian Fellowship in Marshall, MI.  For some time now, Amy and I have felt the Lord leading us elsewhere but did not know where or what the timing would be.  After much prayer and seeking the Lord we believed that we found the right time to move on.  We resigned last Monday and are now earnestly seeking the Lord on our future direction.  There seems to be the possibility of a ministry job opening up in Portage for me, but we are still seeking the face of the Lord on that matter.  Amy and I both are so excited to see what the Lord has planned for our future.  As the song says, “our future is wide open”.  Wherever he leads us, we will go!

 On top of all this happening, it has been a busy week.  Yesterday I met with one of the leaders at the church in Portage to see whether the Lord was opening that door.  I am hoping to hear back from them today or tomorrow.  In the mean time, Amy and I are preparing to lead worship on a missions trip in Gulfport, Mississippi.  I am excited for the opportunity we have to work together on this trip.  After the trip, we are planning on taking a brief retreat of our own in Georgia.  Please pray that the Lord will guide us in some of the big decisions we have to make in the coming weeks.

be blessed
-pastorj

Happy Birthday!!! March 7, 2007

I just want to say happy birthday to my most favorite person in the world….  AMY LYNN!!!  Happy birthday princess, I am so thankful that God brought you into this world and into my life.  I pray that this year will be one of blessings beyond compare – I LOVE YOU!!!