Lessons from the work

This past week Brian and I had a woman and her five children stay with us. The mom had plans, but needed a helping hand until she could make them happen. Many people would say that she was a bad parent because she had left herself and her children without a place to stay for an entire week, but she isn't. We all need that hand up sometimes. We make bad choices or life knocks us down, but a lot of us will never admit to the help we so desperately need. This mom was humble enough to ask for help when she needed it. She told me the day before she left, "I'm not the mom I wanna be, but I'm working on it." To me, this is what we are all doing, working on being better within our lives as Christ would see fit. I think that I learned a great lesson in this week, and it will surprise many of you. It is that when you think you are being the biggest blessing to someone else, that God uses the situation or the people in it to teach you. I learn so much from this mother and her children, but more than that, I learned just how much I have to how much I need.

This video is what our room looked like the entire week. We had to empty the closet and clean out the spare room to accommodate all these people. This mess frustrated me and challenged my slightly OCD organizational side all week. As I struggled to gain control of my indignation because I was living in a one bedroom apartment for a week, I realized that though we say everything we have is God's, we don't always mean it deep down. This week I had to give my home back to God. I needed to struggle through the fatigue, financial worry, and self-righteousness in order to see that no matter the sacrifice on my part it will never compare with that of God's. On Easter Sunday, we remember that sacrifice, and it should humble us and create a burning desire within our hearts to do His work.

  Sometimes we are called to be inconvenienced for the sake of the Gospel!

 

Learning to do His work,

 

Are you working?

Brian and I have been working at City of Hope Outreach (CoHO) for about a year now. We have had a lot of adventures, but none that I was so prepared for as the latest ministry started by one of the girls that Brian had in a youth group back in his "single" days. (; we don't talk about those dark days before...well...me! LOL) Andrea decided that the teen girls in the community that we work in (Oakwood Village) needed Godly women to mentor them. She felt God was calling her to organize this and she is always incredibly faithful in her work.

We had a girl's retreat to kick off these amazing mentor relationships. We went to a place out in the sticks :) called Glenhaven Youth Ranch. It helps teens that are troubled and they allowed us to us their bunk house for free. They are an amazing ministry...check them out at http://ghyr.org/.

At this ranch, the girls and their mentors learned about God's beauty that he has given them and how that differs from the world's ideas of beauty.

One of the speakers put it like this... Godly Beauty never goes out of style, but worldly "coolness" changes all the time.









Although the speakers were wonderful and the girls seemed to enjoy them, the goal of the retreat was to get the girls together with their mentors to form a relationship. It went great. They did crafts and had Bible application times that the mentors got to know their girls in a whole new way.

The event was a success and all of the relationships are off to a great start.
For your consideration today, Who are you influencing? We all have people that are around us that encouragement. Use those gifts that God has given you and really pour into someone else's life.

Working for Christ,

Time flies...

I know it again has been forever since my last post but things around here have been nuts. I will tell you about everything, but it's going to take a minute! So instead of putting it all in one really long post, I will try to catch you up over the next few posts.

First, I have to tell you how much God has been working on me in so many areas of my life. He has presented opportunity after opportunity that challenges me in ways I never thought possible. Life has taken so many turns in the last six years. From military to school to married life, God's plan has never made sense until after I have walked through each open door He placed in front of me.

Can't wait to tell you all about them!

Keep reading,

 

Voting

I am not the most politically minded, but I do feel like I should know what I am going to be punching on my ballot in November before I walk in the door to do so.

This year Brian had the opportunity to go to a political breakfast, hosted by one of our candidates for senate, Jason Rapert. During this event, Brian was given a lot of information, but one of the best was a newspaper that showed every candidate for the house and senate seats. They had given all the major issues that are most important to the people of America, such as abortion, homeschooling, and marriage. All of this information came from the Family Council. They give the web address, www.arkansasvotersguide.com, as a means for getting more information on the candidates. I know that a lot of my readers aren’t from Arkansas, but this might be a good place to start finding information for your state and your candidate.

A quote from the Family Council says, “Bad politicians are elected by good people who don’t vote.”, but I would go further and say that bad politicians are elected by good people who don’t educate themselves before they vote. November 6^th is coming up and we don’t just need to be praying about the election, but studying and researching the issues and candidates that will be on the ballot.

Here are a few more sites to help:

For those without TV, CNN has the debates online: http://www.cnn.com/election/2012/debates/first-presidential-debate

Family council: http://www.familycouncil.org/

Just a reminder! :)

 

ABC Dating

I know it sounds a little childish, but, I think if you will hear me out, you will love it! Brian and I lately have fallen into a pattern of being together, but not spending quality time talking and enjoy each other's company. So I set out to find a solution to our dating needs that fit our budget and time schedule. This is what I found...

You start with the first letter of the alphabet...A (for those of you who were a little slow :)

Find things in your area that start with that letter and plan out your whole date using those things.

Foods, parks, museums, attractions, people to visit, hobbies to perfect, movies to watch...whatever floats your boat or I should say puts fuel in your Airplane!
Here's what Brian and I did on our "A" date:

First, we started out at the Art museum in Little Rock.

I think we should get a bonus for having everything start with an
additional "A" for Arkansas!

Next it was dinner time, so we found an amazing wing place. I know what you are thinking.
"Erin, wings does not start with an A, honey." It was called...

See not just one "A", but two...again!

After our delicious wings, we toured the Arkansas State Capital. It had many amazing facts and it was so fun to just walk hand in hand around such an incredible building.

This was a fun CHEAP date! We only had to buy lunch and yet we spent the entire day together. There was no time limits and nothing to do but talk.

Dating your spouse is important. Life gets busy, so even if it is just a cup of coffee on the couch before bed. Talk. Find out their likes and dislikes again. People change over time and if you don't take that time, you will wake up one day to a stranger laying next to you and have to wonder where the person you married went. But if you take the time to share as life changes both of you, your spouse will always be your best friend and you will grow closer to each other as the years go by. :)

What is your spouses favorite place to watch a movie? In your home, a friends house, a theatre? Find out the little things and ask the silliest questions to get to know your spouse better.

Staying in love with my husband,

King's Club

So my last post, I told you about how busy CoHO (City of Hope Outreach) keeps Brian and I. I promised you the why and here it is.

Introducing...

King's Club. Brian and I are co-directors of this initiative with another couple. Every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month, we go out and get the children to play games, teach a Bible lesson, and feed them a snack. A very simple program, but one that has changed many lives and most of them were well over the age of a 6th grader. 

This is our Oakwood community bunch...they are changing so fast
and I cannot believe how much they pay attention WHEN THEY ARE TALKING! LOL


Oakwood is a trailer park that CoHO started in and it has grown ever since. These are some of the children that come out to enjoy King's Club. They range in age from K through 6th grade (with the occasional stow-away being 3 or 4 and of course they never want to leave so a few 7th and 8th graders too :)

Jack and Kristy (our co-directors) teaching at Brookside.
We are working our way through the Bible stories. This
was creation! :)

This year we have started within a new community, Brookside. It is across town, but the children know all about us from their Oakwood friends. There is so much work to be done in both communities, but already we have seen God moving. During the last King's Club after the lesson was finish (it was on the fall of man), four children came to adult volunteers with questions. 3 out of those 4 walked away with Jesus as the Lord and Master of their life, and now the work begins. There is so much more than just bring them to Christ. Making disciples and teaching them to grow into Godly men and women, who will take over programs like King's Club, with a heart for the work of God takes time and resources. We are always looking for volunteers, but, for those of you who live too far away, please put us on your prayer list. We need the encouragement and the passion of Jesus to "run and not grow weary" in this work. :)

I have learned so much from these children. They have increased my prayer life, my patience, and my passion to teach the next leaders of our communities and country what right living is all about.

No, we don't just sit on the parachute!

Look around your town or community and find a place to plug in, give of yourself, and watch how much God teaches and encourages you on a daily basis.
If you would like to donate time or resources to CoHO, please email me or visit http://www.cityhopeoutreach.com/ for more details.
 

Stay busy in His work!

Here is our "busy"ness!

I know everyone has hectic schedules these days and there is no excuss in this post, but an explanation and detailed description of why Brian and I are SOOOOOO busy! :)

Brian had back surgery in the spring and was unable to keep the job he had because of the probability of re-injury. The Lord had already been working in our hearts though to ready us for this next move.

Brian never went back to work (not because he can't). God led us to join the staff of a non-profit 501(c)3 here in Conway called City of Hope Outreach. This organization seeks to promote holistic community renewal in under resources areas through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Brian goes to work four days a week with them and we find that a lot of our conversations are centered on "work". :) It was a budget decrease for us (Brian doesn't get paid), but we have found that in the will of God His children never lack for necessities. It is an amazing place to be.

Brian and I are King's Club directors, a program that I will explain in my next post! :) (Don't ya love suspense!) We work with children and have learned so much through watching them learn about Jesus and put the pieces of salvation together for themselves through lessons, examples, mentoring, and many other facets.





 
City of Hope Outreach (CoHO for short) provides tutoring through the Oakwood Learning Academy for grades K through 7th. Our tutors come and help with homework, improve reading skills, and spend time investing in the education of the children in the Oakwood community of Conway.




CoHO has opened a technology center to provide educational programs for adults to help them complete their GED, study job skills, and fill out work applications. We encourage the adults to come to us with idea they have for THEIR community and let us help THEM implement them.

We work to provide counseling services, find financial resources and jobs, and most important encourage them to further their education about Jesus Christ.

Brian and I are sold on this non-profit. We are ready to go to battle on this ground of community renewal through the gospel of Jesus Christ because any other way change is impossible and impermanent.

For more information on CoHO or to donate time or resources to our mission, please email me or visit their website. http://www.cityhopeoutreach.com/

I hope that this post encourages you to find those under resourced areas of your community and begin working to help them find a better tomorrow through Jesus Christ.

God bless,
Erin Kingston