Other blogs to check out!

Here are some links to blogs/articles I've also done recently:

Colorado Baptists.org:

-Rounding Up Cowboys for Christ

Texas Freshman.org:

-Cooking at Home in College

-Finding a Church


Also please keep praying for the High Park fire in Colorado to stop!

A Full Week and a Full Update...

It has been quite the week here in Colorado. The two new summer missionaries, Kali and Gabby,  got here on Tuesday from Texas. I love em already. They are incredible, Godly women that will surely touch lives as they love on Fort Collins. Gabby is on the left and Kali on the right!

We went through the traditional orientation on Wednesday. And as tradition goes we did a personality profile... I think those things dont know what to do with me because I am 3 all combined into one. Welp only God knows haha

Thursday we went to Denver for the Front Range church plant coalition meeting at the Colorado Baptist General Convention building. I got to meet some great people including the media coordinator for the CBGC who taught me some helpful photography and video tips. I have had very little training in both of these areas so I was thankful for all the info i could get!! 

That was just a cool day for me in general. I realized how God had been orchestrating this whole thing since the day that I left Fort Collins back in 2010. I am so humbled that He would choose to use me. As I listened to their meeting and got assignments I knew immediately that this was a task beyond my current skill level but felt at peace remembering that in my weaknesses God shines through all the more. I dont think I ever believed in the saying, "God doesn't call the equipped, but He equips the called," more than I do now. But I'm excited and encouraged to see how God is moving through Colorado church planters. 

Also had the chance to take advantage of all the greatness that CO has to offer and hiked Horsetooth twice this week! Once with the summer missionaries and John and then again the next day with Anne and John. Its a great hike right here in Foco that we plan to do a few more times. We want to build up to doing the difficult fourteener Longs Peak by the end of the summer!!

Tonight we got to see Matt Kearney in concert at the Taste of Fort Collins festival. All the fun was slightly ironic the High Park wildfires burn nearby. It was eerie to watch the smoke slowly creep over the city as we sang along with Kearney.... Be praying for the fires to get under control. The summer mishies are spending the night with us tonight in Loveland to get away from all the smoke in town!

This morning John, Anne and I visited Life Song Church in Erie (about 45 min from Loveland). They were dedicating the building they have been renting for 5 years and have now been able to purchase. Friends of the church spoke and a beautiful message of total selflessness and abandon to expand God's kingdom rang through each message. I was touched by the genuine spirit of the people in this group of believers and their dedication to seeing the Gospel spread.

I miss everyone back in TX and appreciate your prayers so much. I will be in Colorado Springs all this next week to visit several more church plants and a youth camp focusing on church planting called Power Plant. Looking forward to heading to a city I have yet to visit and getting the opportunity to meet some more awesome people. Please pray for wisdom and the ability to hear and tell the stories that God wants me to share that will encourage and point people to Him. Thanks and gigs :)

Church Planting: Cowboy Style

Last night Anne, Alex and I went to Round Up in Glory Cowboy church in Loveland. When they call it a cowboy church it is not a joke! I mean, I don't know what I expected but its the real deal- boots, chaps, cowboy hats and the works. We stuck out like a sore thumb in our "city wear" but certainly were welcomed with open arms. here is a link to some great photos someone captured of their church

Although neither country music or the cowboy lifestyle are really my thing, I was truly moved at the beauty of God at work in this group of believers and seekers. Several years ago, the Deal family began to ask the Lord how they could be more effective in reaching their friends and neighbors for Christ. After realizing that many of their neighbors were not a part of a community of believers because they were afraid they would not be received well in a traditional church with their lifestyles, the Deals began inviting their friends over to worship and learn about the Word in their backyard. People showed up and were encouraged with Pastor Deal's simple message of abundant life and hope in Jesus Christ. The Deal family learned the culture they were a part of and contextualized their ministry to meet these individuals right where they were at while faithfully sharing the Gospel.

Their meetings grew and grew. Now roughly 60 to 65 people that make up Round Up in Glory Cowboy Church meet every Saturday night in a dairy barn that a church member donated to them. Their example of ministry with a "come as you are" attitude is a great picture of how the love of Christ knows no one specific language or culture but transcends all labels we may try to put on it.

Here is a picture of Anne with Jodie Deal (one of the pastor's daughters)! It was sweet seeing them reunite as they have been long time friends bonded over being PK's. A club which I am also a part of ;)

We managed to get a quick shot with me and Alex in it as well!

     Anyhoo, this was a good first night back. I am looking forward to meeting other inspiring church planting families like the Deals who are reaching the different communities all over the front range of CO. 

This morning I actually got to return to a church plant that was just getting on the ground when i was here back in 2010. Pursuit Church in Fort Collins has grown and changed. I was blown away at how much God has done there in two short years. It was great getting to hear Pastor Alan Reed preach on why Jesus is THE way to God in a culture where the popular opinion is that there are many "right ways" to God. 

While we know we are living in a culture where having the belief that Christ is the only way is viewed as "narrow-minded, big headed and arrogant," Alan reminded us that if we are Christians, the most compassionate thing we could do is to share that Christ truly is the way, the truth and the life and that no one can come to the Father except through him. (John 14:6) 

No one wants to be viewed as a bigot, but as believers in absolute Truth that comes from the Father, it is our duty to share that in love and in a palpable way for those outside the church culture. 

Home again, Home again jiggity-jig

As many of you know I have returned to the Longs Peak area of Colorado where I was a summer missionary two years ago. That summer was truly the most pivotal of my life as the Lord used the people here to teach me what it means to live missionaly and to open my eyes to the mission field all around me.After I left Colorado that summer, I thought about going back every single day.

 The mark made on me was substantial, and I knew I could never live the same. I often wondered if there was something the Lord still had for me here and if I would ever return. By the grace of God, here I am in Colorado once again. This time, while I am still here to build relationships and share Christ with the locals, I will be a missional correspondent telling the story of how God is working in the different church plants throughout the Front Range of CO. I feel incredibly privileged to be doing this as being in Colorado and getting to write is a dream job for me.

The fact that the Lord (and thanks to John Howeth for his help and mentorship) is allowing me to do it as an "internship" is amazing to me. I still don't think I'm over it. :) The verse I named this blog after is so true:

 "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever, Amen!" Ephesians 3: 19-21

 What the Lord has done in my life has always surpassed anything I could have ever come up with for myself. This summer I will be using this same blog that I used two years ago as a missionary to keep everyone updated on what's happening here and to talk about little adventures I'm having.

 Today is my first day back! Dad and I drove from Austin to Denver yesterday and then this morning after dropping Dad off at the airport I headed over to Loveland where I will be staying with the Howeth family. They have graciously opened up their home to me once again and I am so thankful for them! They were basically my colorado fam in 2010 so it is so fun getting to be with them again. Hence the blog title... ;) Currently I am watching spongebob with their 11 year old Alex while I blog. Like I said.. right at home. I am looking forward to getting reunited with other fort collins friends in the coming week! Ive missed everyone a ton.

Tonight, John's daughter (also in college and home for the summer, aka my roomie!!) Anne and I are going to visit a Cowboy church up right next to the Devil's Backbone in Loveland to see what their church service is like. Yeehaw! ha 

Okay thats all for now..


 Please pray for the people that the churches are reaching here in CO. Pray for me too as I venture to tell the story of God at work and that I will have His words and not my own!! I appreciate all of your prayers and support more than you know. Thank you!

Sowing Seed

Among other ministries, we have had the opportunity this summer to work with the youth group at Southside Baptist Church here in Fort Collins, Colo.
We were able to share our testimonies of how we each came to Christ and our individual journeys in accepting the call to Colorado this summer. The difference in each of our stories shows the beauty of how God works through a vast array of experiences in each person’s life. While it was beneficial for me to reflect on what Christ has done in our lives, I pray that it was equally meaningful for the students as they listened. My hope is that it inspired them to think about the value of their own story of God in their lives and how they could share it with others.

My favorite part about going to talk to them was sharing what we have learned about sowing the gospel and harvesting the fruit that comes once the truth has been sown. In our experiences with reaching out to nonbelievers here, it has proven the significance of willingly taking time to listen to others so as to fully grasp who they are.

The sowing does not begin when we start preaching. It starts with showing a genuine interest in the person and what matters to them. Being OK with simply hanging out without having to force our beliefs on them speaks volumes. As trust builds, the gospel can be much better received and strategically explained according to that individual’s learning style, established beliefs and personality.
This can be a very tiresome process at times, as we often do not see the results of sowing into an individual’s life for days, weeks or even years. Maybe we will never see the impact at all, but we obediently continue sowing God’s word through the way we live trusting that God will use it to expand his kingdom in the long run.
Mike helped provide an example of how these teenagers could apply this lifestyle. He asked them if they enjoyed playing sports, and most of them raised their hands. He said that as they are playing these sports and interacting with those they are playing with, they can start friendships with the goal of being a light in the lives of others. Instead of asking their friends to go to church and then building a relationship when the invitation is accepted, they can build a relationship, and maybe their friend will get involved in a church later as a result of seeing Christ in their life.

It excites me to think that us sharing with them what God has taught us could play a role in helping them to grasp the concept of sowing and its importance at a much younger age than I did. Watching these youth realize the opportunity to build relationships in their junior high and high schools, on their sports teams, in their neighborhoods, in their clubs and other various activities made me hopeful for the eyes of the younger generation to be opened to the mission field right in front of them.

Here is the link to the above article as it was on the Baptist Standard:
http://www.baptiststandard.com/index.php?+option=com_content&task=view&id=11481&Itemid=9

Father Abraham

For those of you who grew up going to traditional Sunday school or kids choir may remember dancing to the tune of “Father Abraham” on more than one occasion. The song is highly interactive, incorporating a different arm and leg movement after each repetition of a single verse as you continue to sing it over and over. As you can imagine, you begin to look pretty ridiculous. While children’s songs like these can be cheesy and overused, you never know where they might sneak up and surprise you in the most unexpected instances later in life. For example, not an age-appropriate sing-along time with five year olds, but in Bible study between two college age girls.
I was in a crowded coffee shop with a girl that I have been meeting to do Bible study with who is learning to read the Word for herself for the first time. We were discussing what she read in Romans 4 about Abraham’s justification through faith. Assuming she knew the background on God giving Abraham and Sarah a son despite a seemingly impossible circumstance, I attempted to relate this to having faith in God to accomplish the humanly unattainable in our own lives. Before I could finish, she burst into her rendition of “Father Abraham.” I could not resist this flashback to my childhood days and proceeded to sing along. We made quite the scene in the middle of the coffee shop as we sang at least three verses complete with hand motions. In the midst of hysterics from the complete goofs we had just made of ourselves, she asked me if that song was about the same Abraham in this passage. Somewhat taken aback, I asked her if she understood what the song is referring to when it references Abraham’s many sons. To my surprise, she had not, giving me the opportunity to share about how God miraculously provided Isaac as a son for Abraham and Sarah in their old age, asked Abraham to sacrifice him and then stopped him at the last minute, and how God rewarded Abraham for his faithfulness by promising him many descendants.
It was eye opening how easy it is to grow up singing songs about stories from the Bible and never really understand the meaning behind it. My sweet friend had known that song for years and never knew the story behind it. She has a long way to go in understanding God’s Word, as we all do, but the little moments like that when something finally clicks for her are so encouraging to me. It is a glimpse into God at work in someone’s life as He becomes more real to that individual through His Word.

Learning the Thoughts of the Fort Collins Community

One of the ways we help Inside Out church as they are trying to get started in Fort Collins, is by doing video surveys downtown. We approach people asking them if they would like to participate in a video survey explaining that we are with Inside Out looking to better understand the Fort Collins community and how people think and believe. This method allows us to ask spiritual and personal questions without people being too skeptical of what we are doing. After all, we just want to know what they believe and do not have a separate agenda of preaching at them.
Our list of what to ask included surface-level questions about how people spend their time on the weekends to more in-depth questions about their feelings when they hear the words “Christian” or “Jesus” and how they carry out their own spirituality. The answers we get in these surveys capture the essence of the spiritual condition and the majority consensus of how people think and believe in this area. Openness and tolerance are the most common overlying theme in the way people view the world here. While these could be desirable traits of a peaceful environment, it leaves out room for absolute Truth. Many people will acknowledge the possibility of the existence of God, but believe spirituality to be highly individual and kept personal to avoid conflict. The ideas that we have come across make up a diverse pool of belief systems including but not limited to religious pluralists, New Age enthusiasts, agnostics, Mormons, and even a couple evangelical Christians.
While each interview is eye opening, one stuck out in particular this last Saturday. We approached a group of teenagers with edgy style choice in clothing, pierced up bodies, dyed hair, and their guitar-playing ringleader who looked to be the oldest of the bunch. In the middle of trying to explain to one of them the video survey we were doing, an older girl spoke up over our shoulder asking what we were doing. We quickly learned her name was Christina that she actually worked with youth at a local church and had come out there to hang out with one 14-year-old girl in particular that she had been trying to reach out to, and that the groups of teens that we had been trying to survey were the young girl’s friends. The group quickly scattered once our attention had been directed off of them and Christina explained that it was probably because they had been in trouble with the police already once that day and were avoiding making a scene by being on camera. Christina was trying to meet the girl in her element with the people that she spends most of her time with. After interviewing both Christina and her adolescent friend, we found that Christina could fit perfectly in the type of ministry we have been a part of with Inside Out church. She expressed a desire to talk with the pastor Nate Templin about helping him out. This was such an answer to pray for Inside Out who had been looking for a college-aged female in the area to help them connect and to be a part of their vision of being the church to the lost and reaching those who would never set foot in a church building. Not only did we make a great connection, but also Christina was excited because the questions we raised in our survey were going to be a great way to open up spiritual conversation with her searching friend. It excites me how God may use Christina to continue to impact that one girls life and potentially many others. I am grateful for this new friend made through what I believe to be divine appointment. Each day is an adventure, as we never know whom God will place in our path.