Walk To Emmaus

Chris will be on Monteagle Mountain this weekend at the Dubose Conference Center for the Men's Walk to Emmaus. He is serving on the Emmaus team this time around. He will drive directly from Atlanta tomorrow straight to the conference center. Fortunately, he will be home late on Sunday afternoon and we will head down to the Church to watch the game. Please pray that his weekend is blessed and that his travels are safe.

For those whom have asked, this is exactly what we will be doing when at Wounded Knee:


JOHN LOVELACE ASKS YOU TO PLEASE CONSIDER SERVING OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST ON THE PINE RIDGE RESERVATION IN SOUTHWEST SOUTH DAKOTA JUNE 8-13 AND JUNE 15-20

For the past 11 “Junes” the Lord has called me to take youth and adults to conduct Vacation Bible Schools and build and repair houses, churches and ministry buildings for the Lakota Indians. Hundreds have been there with me and some stay for both weeks.

Each year the groups have done a good work for Jesus as they have helped a lot of children learn more about Jesus and lead a few of them to make decisions to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior during the Vacation Bible School.

Other members of the groups have helped a lot of people get very needed home repairs done and have built two new homes. Our groups have built 55 outhouses. Many churches and ministry buildings have been given much needed repairs. The groups have had to buy the materials they used in almost all of the building and repairs.

The groups take air mattresses and sleeping bags to sleep on at the Oglala Rec Center (Ass. of God) and Wounded Knee (WK) Church of God. These churches have showers with hot and cold water. Some of the volunteers cook delicious and hearty meals. Some sightseeing is done during the week.

Weary and Burdened

Actually I am NOT weary and burdened today, but there are MANY days that this seems to be my mantra. I listen to a song a lot in the car called "Come To Me" and the kids love it. Last night, Abby said "Mommy I know the verse that your song talks about. It is in Matthew!" Isn't that so cool.

Chris is leaving for exactly 7 days and I know that by Thursday that song will be playing full blast in my car. So for all you Winchesterites, if you see me and my music is blaring, know that I am praising my God loudly so that I don't end up "cursing" Chris!

Please visit my friend Amanda (dear, dear friend) whom I miss much at http://www.backtothetable.blogspot.com/. She posted some GREAT recipes this week!

Also, please check this out - I LOVE IT!!

Update from the Homefront

Chris - Out of town in Atlanta - very busy with work. Found out last week cholesterol was 258! Now on Lipitor. Please lift him up in your prayers. We underwent major food changes in our house - kids not happy.

Melissa - Working, working, working. Sad about Heath Ledger. Evidence that people need hope and faith in this weary world. Trying to get my brother out of the hospital into rehab facility. It is now at the Congressional/attorneys level (Zach Wamp involved) and I am very frustrated! Studying Beth Moore's Stepping Up Bible Study - just what I need this season of my life and trying to figure out ways to raise money for our missions trip - pancake breakfast at our church????? Ideas welcome. Website currently most interested in: www.thesimpleway.com.
Reading nothing - have no time.

Kids - They are kids. Doing basketball and soccer and trying to get keep grades up. Tried of mom nagging them about cleaning and nagging about basically everything. Spend most of their time in the car with mom when not at school. Jacob is currently into 80's music which makes me laugh!

Eddie - laying on the bed sleeping - I currently despise him! :)

Love,

Melissa

P.S. Bright spot - my niece Marcie and her husband Nick find out if their baby is a boy or girl tomorrow!

Pine Ridge Mission Trip

I have had several people ask me how they can contribute to our trip. We are going to have to raise around $1300-$1500 for all five of us to drive out there and participate. If you feel led to contribute, please send to:

Winchester Cumberland Presbyterian Church
200 2nd Avenue NW
Winchester, Tennessee 37398

Thanks to everyone who wants to help!

Following Jesus - really doing it.....

To be the kind of person who selflessly serves takes everything a person has. It is difficult. It is demanding. And we often find ourselves going against the flow of all of those around us. Which is why we are reclaiming the simple fact that Jesus said the way is narrow. We are honest about this, especially to our friends who wouldn't say they are Christians . Very few people in our world are offering anything worth dying for. Most of the messages we receive are about making life easier. The call of Jesus goes the other direction: It's about making our lives more diffiult. It is going out of our way to be more generous and disciplined and loving and free. It is refusing to escape and become numb and check out of this broken fractured world.

And so we are embracing the high demands of Jesus' call to be one of His disciples. We are honest about it. We want our friends to know up front that the costs are high, which is what is so appealing about Jesus - his vision for life takes everything we have.

Velvit Elvis - Rob Bell

Wow - isn't that great! I just love it!

M

The Browns Are On A Mission!

My prayer was finally answered that I would be able to find a mission trip which would include our entire family! We are so excited.

June 15th-20th we will be traveling with a group from The Tusculum Church in Nashville to Wounded Knee, South Dakota to work on the Pine Ridge Reservation with the Lakota Indians. This is a very poor area and after researching it, I was frankly shocked at how poor these Indians are and how much they need help. I am including a link about the reservation and the Indians that reside there.

http://friendsofpineridgereservation.org/

We will be in the process of raising money for the trip from here until the end of April, so if you have any fundraising ideas for us - please let us know. We will need to raise approximately $1300 for our entire family to participate. This includes the cost of driving out there (rental car and gas). I can only just imaging what fun I will have with all of us in car for a 20 hour drive! Lord, help us.......

Blessings,

Melissa

Me

For those who don't know me very well, I accepted Christ at age 6 and I mean REALLY accepted Chirst - had full understanding of Him and what He had done for me. I don't remember a time in my life that I was not in love with Jesus. But I also am a stubborn, independent, intelligent (or so I thought) and very rebellious girl, and when my mother died unexpectedly when I was 20 years old - here is how I reacted:

http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5

I am so glad God already knew what I would do and already knew that I would come back to Him SO full heartedly and SO committed. What a loving God. He already had it all planned. I can't wait to get to heaven and talk to Him about it!

Melissa

Who We Are in Christ

"There is a person who we already are in God's eyes. And we are learning to live like it is true. This is an issue of identity. It is letting what God says about us shape what we believe about ourselves. This is why shame has no place whatsoever in the Christian experience. It is simply AGAINST all that Jesus is FOR. As the writer to the Romans put it, 'Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.'

None.

No shame.

No list of what is being held against us.

No record of wrongs.

It has simply been done away with.

It is no longer an issue.

Bringing it up is pointless.

Beating myself up is pointless.

Beating others up about who and what they are not is going the wrong direction! It is working agains the purposes of God. God is not interested in shaming people; God wants people to see who they really are.

I am not who I was.

You are not who you were.

Reborn, rebirthed, remade, reconciled, renewed."

This excerpt from "Velvet Elvis" by Rob Bell is what I felt led to share with everyone this evening. I am going to continue to share some points from this book throughout the week, but this one really hit home with me. For those of us who are "people-pleasers" or those of us who feel like we have to "get it all together and make things right" before we are really loved by God. We must bask in the free gift of grace and love that God has given us. To not do so would be ungracious and full of doubt in the Saviour that we claim to love. Maybe this is too deep for some, but we MUST dig deep. Even though it is painful, I am living testimony that it bears nothing but fruit when we examine ourselves fully before the Lord and believe COMPLETELY AND FULLY in His Holy Scripture.

Love and blessings to all,

Melissa

Whew! On a lighter note - the picture is of the girls making dinner Saturday night for all of us. Emma made homemade potato soup (it was delicious!) and Abby made a WONDERFUL salad to go along with it! (Jacob made cookies.......) :)