As One Chapter Writes Its Final Words a New Chapter Writes Its First Words

Sunday, June 1st the Lord was writing the final pages of The V-Team's time as the pastoral family at Radford Wesleyan Church.  It grieves my heart (puts knots in my stomach and tears in my eyes) just to type that.  

RWC has been home for 11+ years.  She has been a part of many wonderful days (the birth of two of our boys, the salvation story of all four of our boys, the Lord calling me into full-time ministry, my graduation from graduate school, both Barry and I experiencing freedom from things in our pasts, and many more).  She has also walked alongside us during life's challenging times (my parent's separation, their divorce, their new marriages, a newborn with breathing concerns, and so much more).  RWC has allowed Barry to grow in to an amazing pastor, mentor and leader.

Radford Wesleyan sent our boys out with a special blessings.  Each first Sunday the church has a "Penny March for Missions."  For the past three months the church has been "secretly" saving the "Penny March" money to give to the V-Team boys as support of the boys' new ministry.

They then had the church pray over our guys and the new ministry they will have.  What a blessing to have a home church who cares about our kids' lives and ministries'.

We were then blessed to have two of our good friends sing a special (this was the first time John had sung publicly).  

Barry preached his final sermon at RWC; challenging the people to continue their partnership with Radford Wesleyan Church.  I continue to be blessed by MY pastor's leadership and heart for the church (whether that means he is the pastor of that church or not).  We both believe, with all our hearts, that Radford Wesleyan's best days are still to come and that God has something special in store for her.

Today, Saturday, June 7th, as I on the other side of the United States in the state of Washington, the V-Team Boys are moving out of the place we called home for 11+ years 

(1011 Dundee Drive, Radford, VA 24141).  They are bringing Austin's pet guinea pig, Cocoa, to her new home with The Deu family.  

Then they will move into our new temporary home and our permanent address, 

for while we are in Central America , 

(3020 Mud Pike, Christiansburg, VA 24073).

This upcoming week we will begin all our summer traveling.  We covet your prayers for our family as we head to Missionary Training Institute (June 15th - June 27th).  We will be learning a lot of information, the boys will be learning as well.  Please pray that we will be able to be Jesus' hands and feet even as we grow and learn.

We would, also, like to ask you to pray as we travel and share our story in several different locations.  Feel free to follow our traveling at http://www.wesleyan.org/gp/minfo/WM04-0393.  We are excited to meet new friends and we are praying for new partners in ministry.

We currently have approximately 25% of our fundraising needs.  We have a long way to go and are trusting God's timing.  Would you like to join the V-Team in helping us get this next chapter written?  You can join our team at http://www.wesleyan.org/gp/minfo/WM04-0393.  Thanks for praying for this need, as well.

"Let it Go"

Last week I had the privilege to spend some time with the kindergarten class at Dayspring Christian Academy during their lunch and recess time.  I had a blast helping them with their lunches and playing with them on the monkey bars (as a principal, with a busy teaching schedule, I do not get the opportunity to do this as much as I would like).

During that lunch hour two sweet little girls came up to me and began singing the popular song, "Let It Go."  At the time I had fun listening to them sing, thinking about the movie Frozen and playing.  However, a couple of days later "Let It Go" has become the theme song of my life.

Within a couple of days people were rummaging through my belongings like vultures feasting on an animal who recently passed away.  I was reminded on several occasions throughout our yard sale that we must be willing to "let go" of our earthly if the Lord asks us to.  At this time of my life, the Lord is asking me and my family to "let it go."

It isn't just our "stuff" that we find ourselves "letting go" of.  We are "letting go" of relationships as we know them, a community we have grown to love, a church family who has stood beside us through several extremely challenging years of life, the safety and security of knowing (just knowing anything...just anything), really I could continue to add to this list.

In the middle of all this crazy busy weekend we found ourselves "letting go" of dear family friends and partners of the V-Team.  Our friends have chosen to follow God to another city in another state.  B3 "let go" of one of his best friends and Barry and I said good-bye to an amazing couple friend who we have grown to love.

The amazing thing is, as we are "letting go" God is reaching down and holding on.  His peace, confirmation and faithfulness have been what keeps our hands being able to "let go."  We find ourselves trusting more.  His faithfulness has not failed and it just seems to grow with each new day.

Please continue to pray for the V-Team as we end our chapter of ministry (and "let go") at Radford Wesleyan Church on Sunday, June 1st.  I am sure our church family would appreciate prayers, as well.  We will be moving out of the parsonage (and "letting go") of the place we have called home for almost 12 years on June 4th (pray for an easy transition for the boys and us).  We will be beginning a very busy summer traveling to Wisconsin, Indiana, Virginia, West Virginia, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and New York.  Pray for us as we "let go" of summer as we have known them and embrace the traveling and new relationships.

Thanks for your partnership with the V-Team.  You are a treasure to us!

Caught Between Two Worlds

On the surface, one would think that I am merely referring to the fact that while my heart is in Central America, I am still residing in North America. While that is certainly true, there's more to this than meets the eye. 

For the past eleven years I have been Lead Pastor at the Radford Wesleyan Church. I love pastoring in this community more than words can tell and I love the people even more than that. This has been one of the most gut wrenching seasons of my life, choosing to leave behind those who have given everything to serve Jesus in the trenches right along with me. And so here I find myself, caught between the world of finishing well (June 1st) and having things adequately prepared for my successor and the world of being in the thick of Partnership Development (in order to make dream of ministering in Central America a reality). 

God has blessed Christy and I with four amazing sons (as you probably already know) who have literally become my newest heroes in how they are adapting and preparing for a life unlike anything they've ever known before. And here I find myself caught between the world of ensuring my kids have everything they need/want and are living life better than I lived and the world of asking my kids to be willing to "give it all up" for Jesus.

Who am I that God would call me to serve Him in another part of the world? I still don't have a good answer other than we were just willing to be obedient. And as I think about the stark difference between living life in America versus living life in Central America, I know in my heart that everything and every part of the process is all worth it because what we're about to do, will, if nothing else, make a difference for eternity. And yet here I find myself caught between the world of the temporal (the things here and now that Jesus says will not last) and the world of the eternal (that which Jesus says will last forever.

Maybe this blog post means I'm not qualified to be a missionary. Or perhaps it means that accepting appointment as a missionary doesn't automatically snuff the human-ness right out of you. Just maybe this process is more about the transformation of my spirit than the relocation of my house.

Are you felling "caught" these days? If so, I invite you to press in a little closer to Jesus with me saying, :Lord, whatever you need to do in me, do!"

Thanks for listening,

PB

"I am the most relationally blessed person I know"

I work at a small private school in Blacksburg, VA, Dayspring Christian Academy.  DCA is a school that has rooted herself into and around my heart over the last 11 school years.  I never dreamed I would love my job, as much as I love working at Dayspring.

During my interview for a teaching position in the fall of 2003 the administrator, Dug Hampton, made a comment that has stayed with me for the past 11 years.  

He said, "As hard as you think it may be working at a small private christian school, you will wind of wishing it was that easy.  The true blessing of working at a small christian school is not the paycheck; it is the relationships.  I am the most relationally blessed person I know and most of that is because of the community of Dayspring."

Through my 11 years at DCA I have had the privilege to serve in many varying capacities.  Just a few things I have been able to do: teach third grade (6 years), main campus principal (5 years), field day co-ordinator (9 years), teach 5th grade, teach K-5 art (2 years), teach secondary Bible (4 years), and several other things.  

I have found that my experience at DCA has allowed me to build many unique and special relationships with students, parents, grandparents, and even police, and firemen.  I find myself arguing with my administrator more often.  "No, Coach, I am the most relationally blessed person I know."

I have also been blessed to share in relationship with so many amazing people through the ministry of Radford Wesleyan Church and the Shenandoah District of the Wesleyan Church Ministries.

As I travel from church to church, to share with churches what God is doing and how God is stretching my family, I find that my definition of being "the most relationally blessed person I know," is so bitsy compared God's definition of relationally blessed.  This traveling and sharing process is allowing me to share life with so many more people.  I have been humbled, and honored to meet so many amazing people.  

It creates a desire in my heart to be more passionate about sharing the special relationship I have with Jesus to people all around the world.  

How has God blessed you with relationships?  Will you allow your life to intertwine with other people?  Will you allow God to have a special relationship in YOUR life?

With love, appreciation and continued humility; for all God has done in and through my life,

She Did What She Could

My GALS (Growing and Loving Servants) life connection group has been studying the book, "She Did What She Could," by Elisa Morgan.  We have had a very sweet time growing together, being challenged together and even stepping out of our comfort zones to serve others.

While I love studying great books, like this one, with awesome ladies, like my Radford Wesleyan Church GALS, there is a continual battle in my spirit to race out of the comforts of the church and pour my life out for those who are outside of a relationship with Jesus.  I feel a pull to get out and then I am swaddled in fear of "getting out."  

My Jesus...

Help me to reach beyond the walls of my comfortable, my usual, my normal.  Help my heart to break with people's hearts.  Help my hands to become calloused with activities that reflect the scars on Your hands.  Help my feet to ache from running after the people You would run after.  Help my eyes to recognize the hurts, the bondage, the heart-broken, the physically ill, the spiritually weak and the lonely.  Help my ears to hear the cries of the broken, hungry, and those running from God.  And help my mouth to be used for only words that come from YOU.  Help me to do what I can!

Amen

Oceans by Hillsong UNITED