God Says, "I've Got This!"

I was reminiscing the other day and felt led to remind everyone about the "miracle quarters" story from last year. If you remember, Carey and I went shopping before last year's mission trip to get the last final items that we needed, but we weren't sure we'd have enough money. Luckily, God was faithful inspite of our doubt and we had three quarters to spare! Well, something similar happened to me last week...

Imagine a perfect Tuesday - the sun shining down with warm beams and a gentle, cool breeze that makes you want to move to Colorado (like right now, not in a couple years). Now imagine your perfect Tuesday being ruined by a nail in a tire that nearly prevents you from making it safely off the highway. No big deal, though. "Old" Leah would have thrown a hissy fit and growled at everyone for the rest of the day. "New" Leah, however (the Leah who has been slightly polished since becoming a mom), was able to recognize the positive points:
1. I made it safely to the baby-sitter's house to drop off Joe and thus had a safe place to change my tire (and no baby to worry about in the car).
2. I was dressed most appropriately in well-fitting, dark dress clothes that would hide any leftover residue from changing a tire.
3. It really couldn't have been a NICER day. Really, no exaggeration here.
4. There was a fire station across the street. If all else failed, I could ask them for help. But that would be a last resort, of course!

So, I took off the bad tire and put on the spare, all the while singing in my head to keep my spirits up. Soon everything was changed and put away and I was close to singing my "He-Woman" battle cry. Until I realized the spare was flat. I DID need the firemen. Darn.

I drove my three good tires and my halfway-aired-up spare tire across the street. Went in the reception area to find no one there. I knocked on the garage door. Nothing. I went to the back and knocked a little harder on another door. Still nothing. Then I banged the crap out of the other two doors that were left. NOTHING! I couldn't help but think, "Gosh, where is a fireman when you need him?!"

Then I did what any other twenty-something female would have done - I called my parents. Mom said she would come rescue me and we could go air up the spare tire, but luckily the firemen arrived back at the station soon after our conversation. A nice gentlemen aired up my spare tire and even put it back on the car (which was nice because my right arm was literally going to fall off if I had to put on ONE MORE TIRE).

On the way to work I realized I'd have to shell out at least $100 to get a new tire. It caused instant stress. Here I was trying to help my husband go to Costa Rica and some crazy person decided to lose a nail right where my car was going to drive (yes, I became more petty at this point). I told God that I didn't understand. He whispered on my heart, "Relax, Leah." As I continued to mentally whine, I was reminded of the three "miracle" quarters. We had enough then, and I instantly knew that I would have enough now. God had already provided the funds for this new tire. I didn't know where the money would come from, but I knew God was more than capable of figuring it out so I wouldn't have to.

After school I went to get my tire changed and the gentleman behind the counter politely replied that my flat tire was still under warranty. And he told me it would cost $23 to get a new tire put on my car. My mouth fell open and I asked him to repeat the amount.

I wanted to kiss the man behind the counter. No, not the fireman from earlier, but the man who saved me money (but don't worry, I refrained)! There was no way he could have realized the blessing God allowed him to be a part of. And the amazing reminder is God says, "Leah, I've got this!" even with a flat tire.

And he's got the whole Costa Rica thing too. Just like he did last year. My heart is full of his provision and thankful for reminders of his faithfulness. His mercies really are, "New every morning," even when those mornings involve a flat tire! I hope my recollection blesses you today.

Ways to Give

Several people have asked how they can financially support Carey for this year's mission trip. Thank you so much for your encouragement and giving hearts! If you'd like to give, you can write a check to "TNBC" with Carey's name on the memo line. Then send it to 526 Hercules Lane, Denton TX 76209. We're asking that all checks be made out and sent to the church for discretionary reasons.

Also, there will soon be a Costa Rica mission trip website linked to our church website. An option to donate through PayPal will then be available. You can wait for this method of payment if you like. We certainly welcome all who feel called to give towards this special ministry!

Thank you for your continued prayers as our church gears up for another trip!

Garage Sale Plans

The date for the garage sale is Saturday, March 9th. If you have some old junk lying around that you want to get rid of, let us know! The money earned will go towards Carey's Costa Rica trip in August. Please pray with us that this garage sale will be extremely successful. Our hope is that we will be able to help others go as well!

We are also working on getting DVDs made of the 20-minute presentation from last year's trip. It is VERY convicting to say the least! We hope to give them out as reminders of the trip and as extra motivation for those who are thinking about going this year. We will let you know when we get them finished.

If you'd like to see some of the people we met last year, here is a link to a Christmas video taken a month ago. We met most of the Guaymi people featured in this video. We hope it blesses your heart!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWCG0vNn6A4&feature=player_embedded

Here We Go Again!

Well, Carey will be going again anyway. Our church recently made a three year commitment to the Village of Pita (a different village than the one we visited last year) on the Guaymi reservation near San Vito, Costa Rica. We will fund and build the school! This means we will be sending a team each year until it is completed. We are beyond excited and honored that God has entrusted us with this task.

Carey is confident in God's calling for him to return to Costa Rica this year. I, however, am confident that God wants me to sit this trip out. There are several other people who did not get the chance to go last year who feel led to participate this time around. So, I am going to have a more supportive role - helping with the fundraisers (we will be having another garage sale for Carey plus several church sponsored fundraisers), giving so others can go, and lifting each member up in prayer. The trip will consist of a lot of manual labor (swinging hammers all day), so I don't know how much help I'd be anyway! lol But I know God will send the right people to accomplish His will for this second trip to the Guaymi people. It is quite an adventure!

Please join us in praying for the upcoming trip. And if you'd like to give towards the building of the school or towards traveling expenses for those who are going you can certainly do that as well. We want everyone to do what God is leading them to do because He has already equipped us to meet these needs.

I think of the verse found in Isaiah 6:8 which says, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" Our church has obediently said, "Here [we] are! Send [us]!" How wonderful it is to be used by God!