Our Lord IS Able!!!

We have all heard the song...we teach children in Sunday School that God is able to do anything, but what a joy and delight when you personally witness Him breaking through--as only He can!!!

Today we were pleasantly surprised with three new families at Bible Club! There were so many people that we had to go get more snacks. We ended up with eighteen children all together, and only six were from the church...that means eleven visiting children were there! Two of the moms  are planning to bring their children and visit the church. 

Once again we were grimly threatened with black skies and gusty winds. We could even see rain off in the distance. But we stepped out in faith and set our little blue tent up anyway--driving our stakes in deep and praying God would hold back the downpour. He did. As a matter of fact, we didn't even get a sprinkle until we stepped through the door at the house. Literally as soon as we shut the door, the bottom fell out!!! God is so good. He truly is in control!

Pray for these young families that we will be attempting to follow up. We do not know if they are born again, but they are full of questions and say they will be back.

Be encouraged, as we have been today, that truly NOTHING is impossible with the great God that we serve!!! What a privilege to be called His child. What an honor to serve Him. May His will be accomplished in all that we do!

(pictures will follow soon, I promise!...just haven't had a chance to upload yet)

Wildhorse Lake

During the summer the Davises try to spend some family time exploring the beautiful outdoors. Last week, we discovered an incredible lake that was only 15 minutes from home!

First impressions of Wildhorse Lake

"Little Christian" and his "burden."

This was another lake that we discovered when we wandered

through the bush down a wild game trail.

Beautiful Ain't Big Enough!!!

Two weeks ago we took our first trip to Jasper. I just now downloaded the pictures and thought you might enjoy them. It was absolutely amazing!!! We drove for nearly 30 minutes...straight through the heart of the Rockies. All I can say is the pictures speak for themselves--just not nearly loud enough!!! 

Maligne Canyon--over 120 feet deep in places!!!

(sorry, no way to catch that on film...we tried.)

This is what you find when you leave the path to follow wild game trails!

Taking a quick breather on the trail

"Maligne Lake Boathouse"....I guess???...just thought it was pretty.

More Bible Club News

Bible Club under our home-made "rain-guard"

Thank you for praying for the Bible Clubs. The sky was very clearly threatening to shower us with most untimely blessings, so we resorted to buy a tarp and make a tent to make our Bible Club "weather proof!" It was quite amusing watching Ben and Brother Davis fighting the huge wind gusts to get it set up. 

We ended up with three children from the neighborhood and the six children from the church. Two of the visitors were children from the Davis' homeschool group and one girl had seen the fliers and her mom decided to bring her. We were SO excited!!! I used to get excited to see fifteen or twenty children come, but how thrilled we were just to have three! The little girl was hard of hearing and was about eight years old. She and her family are moving in a few weeks in order to enroll her in a school for the deaf, so we won't be able to follow them up about church. The other two visitors were the pastor's kids of another church in Hinton.

We also saw the family from Albania that I wrote about in one of my previous posts. They were just playing in the park both nights that we had the Bible Club. We were able to talk with them for a bit, but unfortunately they are moving soon as well. They left this week end for vacation and will be home in a few months to pack and move to Edson. (about an hour and a half outside of Hinton) She made a special effort to tell us goodbye and thanked me for the long chat we had when they visited the church a few weeks ago. Pray that the Lord will continue to bring them across our path and that we can reach them with the Gospel!

The longer I am here, the more I see that people just don't desire to know the truth. Oh, that God would open their eyes to see the emptiness of the pleasures this world has to offer! Pray that God will make their hearts hungry and cause them to see their great need of Him!

Ben vs. the wind (and the wind is winning!)

The children loved having Bible Club under a tent!

The Davis and Parton children 

from Hinton Baptist Church

Ben teaching the lesson of the five loaves and two fishes

Our last two Bible Clubs will be Monday and Tuesday night of this week. Please pray that the Lord will give us good contacts and bring kids out!!!

Bible Club Report....

Thank you for praying. Although it did rain some, it was not enough to rain us out! Brother Davis bought a tarp and we made a "tent" to keep everyone dry. The children thought it was great. We ended up with seven children. Six of them are from the church and one was a friend from the Davis's home school group. It is amazing to me that after running two weeks of newspaper adds and passing out over 1200 flyers there were no other children from the community. I am quickly realizing how differently people here respond to the things of the Lord. Pray that God will soften the hearts of the people and that children will come out today. The weather is much nicer, so I am hoping that will help! 

(We did take pictures, but I haven't had time to upload them yet. We will try to have them posted soon!!!)

Quick update and prayer request

Kellie, Mrs. Davis, and I went out for three hours yesterday putting Bible club flyers in mailboxes and on doorknobs. Praise the Lord, with the help of several church members, we have handed out almost twelve hundred of these flyers in the last three weeks (that is about a third of the town)! Please pray that many children and parents come to hear the gospel. We have no idea how many are coming, so pray also that God would provide the snacks and prizes we will need. 

While we were handing out flyers, Kellie pointed me to an older man who was taking a break while mowing his lawn. It was about eighty degrees outside, a real scorcher for western Alberta. She figured that he might not mind if I finished the small lawn for him. Well, I didn't get to help with that, but I ended up talking to him for about half an hour. His name was Larry and he was ninety-two years old (yes, he was mowing his own lawn). He told me that the heat normally would not bother him, but he just got over pneumonia so he was a little weak! I eventually found out that he came to Hinton over seventy years ago in a covered wagon when the town was no more than a trading post for the miners who lived around. He was a fascinating man! Please pray for him though; obviously there were no churches out here when he grew up, and he told me that he did not really hold to any religion other than to do good to those around him. I was not able to share the gospel with him right there, but I am hoping to visit him again with Bro. Davis and possibly start a friendship that will allow us to witness to him. 

Oh, by the way, for those Canadians following the blog, we had our first Timmy's after finishing with the door-knocking (Tim Horton's is the national coffee stop). The Ice Capps and Canadian Maple Creme-filled doughnuts were fantastic... I see now why everyone loves this place!

Anyway, please pray for the Bible clubs tomorrow and the next day from six to seven in the evening (that is Mountain Time Zone). We look forward to telling you great things that the Lord has done! 

A Word from Ben

This is a picture Kellie took from the car window as we drove around Maligne Lake down near Jasper. God's creation is so amazing...so much larger than I ever imagined! Sadly, so many people here are blind to the God behind this beauty, please pray that they would be healed by finding Christ, the Light of the world!

I have been able to help with several things around the church and the Davises' house, as well as doing as much door-to-door soul-winning as possible. Only a few people have even listened to the gospel, but many have taken the church packets we have been distributing (they contain invitations to the church and the books of John and Romans in pamphlet form). Pray that God's Word would be read and would bring conviction.  

At one door, a college-age girl seemed very closed when I first started talking to her, but she started asking some interesting questions. Finally, I started with creation and worked my way to the cross of Christ. It seemed that she softened as she heard for the first time how Christ died for her, but she told me later that it was all still too much to really believe. She was probably the most interested person I have encountered so far, please pray that God will work in her heart. 

We are planning a children's Bible club for the next two Mondays and Tuesdays. There is no way to guess how many will attend or what the age range will be (several teenagers have expressed some interest in the club), so pray that we can be fluid and get the gospel to whoever comes. Also, please pray that many parents will come with their children and hear the gospel. 

I cannot thank you enough for your prayers. Please continue to pray that God would use us to help Bro. Davis and to encourage the church members up here. 

Reflections on the past few weeks...

What an amazing three weeks it has been. I guess you can't really prepare for, or anticipate, exactly what the Lord has in store for you when you step out in faith. It has been such a help to be able to see what the next phase of the ministry looks like. We take so much for granted at home. I think you come out of Bible College thinking you are prepared for anything, and somehow, you think it will all be downhill from here. That is the farthest from the truth that it could possibly be!!! I have been amazed at all of the "behind the scenes work" that falls on a new pastor and his family. Dorm life hasn't got anything on the daily life in the ministry. All I have to say is..."Graduates, buckle up and hang on!!!" It definitely won't be slowing down any time soon. 

I have loved watching the early stages of a new church plant. Truly it would be impossible if it was not started, and worked through, by faith. As a matter of fact, if there is one thing I have learned while being with the Davises, it is that you can't rest in the Lord's perfect will if you can't trust Him with your all. And believe me, they do!!! From the food they put in their mouth to the souls the Lord brings to the services, they ask in faith believing and waiting to see what He has in store. 

If we don't get anything else out of this summer, I think that lesson has been invaluable. It is the key to being content with whatever God allows you to walk through. What a joy it is to know that the One who redeemed my soul cares for the tiny details of my daily life!

A few things to pray about....

1. One of the things that has greatly grieved my heart is the huge need for a youth outreach here in Hinton. Every day and night (sometimes till 3:00am or after!) the streets are filled with children from about the age of 8 to 18, that are just wandering around and getting into trouble. Most of them look very tough, but we have actually found them to be pretty open, and several have sounded interested in Bible clubs. Pray we will have an open door with them. But most importantly, pray that the Lord will provide the needed help to reach them through the church. 

2. Right now there is hardly any outside help with the ministry within the church. All duties fall on Pastor Davis and his family. What a blessing it would be to have just one faithful family. They are very much still at the phase of helping people understand the importance of faithful attendance--something I think we take for granted at home. In a church of 500 when one family is not there, it is not a big deal. In a church of 20 when a family doesn't come...a fourth of the congregation is gone! Pray that God will put a desire in the hearts of the people to get involved in His work, and that they will take His Commission personally!!!

3. We have spent the past couple of weeks out with a few of the church members canvasing the area for contacts and trying to get the word out about Bible clubs. We have knocked nearly 1000 doors and still have about 6oo to go by the end of next week. Pray that God will bless our visits and give us good contacts! (most people here will tell you they just don't have time to squeeze God in to their busy schedules)

Thank you for your prayers and for taking the time to keep up with us! God has really challenged my heart, and we are just getting started!

"Baby 101"....continues

Living in a house with four small children has brought back many fun memories for both of us. Every day I am reminded of something we used to say or do. I remember playing with the baby and being mommy's little helper, but for Ben, a lot of these memories are vague ones. Since he was the baby we played with, he has little recollection of that phase of family life. We both had a feeling this was going to be a new experience for him...and boy were we right! He has done great with it though. He jumped right in to the role of being the latest and greatest climbing tower, baby stroller, book reader, toddler husher, bucking bronco, bottle feeder...(and the list goes on) I think it has been a lot of fun for him. We definitely both have a new appreciation for the many faithful souls (namely our parents) who spent countless hours feeding our imaginations and playing with us!

The Davis children share Ben's love for books. 

This seems to be a favorite pass-time for all of them.

My what a pretty...kitty cat? 

There were actually cougar warnings in the neighborhood last week. 

Imagine opening the back door to find one of those guys in your trash can!!!

"It's crying, how do you make it stop?"

...Ben making do with what he's got to keep baby Bella happy.

Anyone for a hike around the lake? 

Don't forget those little legs won't make it without a little help!

After a day of playing together, I think they are going to be fast friends.

They seem to have a better understanding of each other...

...at least, I think they do!

Happy Birthday to Marshall and Isabella

On Tuesday we had a combined birthday party for Marshall (now 3) and Isabella (now 1). I had forgotten what an ordeal it was to get ready for those kiddie parties we used to have! Mrs. Davis and I spent the entire morning making their cakes and preparing the food. By the time we had fed everyone lunch, finished the cakes, cleaned everyone up, and packed our gear, it was time for the party. We had a cookout at one of the big parks in town and had a lot of fun eating and playing with all the kids. There were two other families who joined us to celebrate. Here are a few pics from the big day...

Mrs. Davis is amazing at cake decorating. 

She made a Pooh cut out for Marshall and a Pink #1 cut out for Isabella.

Ben's idea of a dish washer!

Since the car has reached maximum capacity, 

Ben hiked down the hill with the birthday honoraries.

We couldn't find a tree to hang the pinata on...so Ben worked as a substitute!

Kellie and Emma after cake and koolaid...

...you might be wondering what in the world I have been doing? Mostly trying to capture memorable moments on film, and also helping Mrs. Davis to keep the laundry running, food on the table, house clean, and whatever else comes up that I can help with. It has been a blast, and I can honestly say Ben and I are both learning far more about "family life" than we ever expected!

Welcome to Hinton Baptist Church!

Sorry it has been so long since you have heard from us. Life gets pretty crazy with four small children, a brand new church, and lots of special events on the weeks calendar! I will try to get y'all up to date...

Last week was our first Sunday at Hinton Baptist Church. The church meets in the Hinton Center, a large building in the community that is used for everything from flea markets to wedding receptions. There are several small rooms and one large reception hall. We use two of the smaller rooms--one for the church meeting and one for Sunday School/Nursery. This week, Ben and I helped out in the Sunday School and sang a special for the morning service. Ben has also been helping with congregational song leading and graphic design. Sunday I "unofficially" started the nursery. We had planned to wait a week, but necessity demanded otherwise! It was a lot of fun! We hope to start a regular rotation next week. Pray that the ladies will be willing to get involved. It is a huge need because several of the families have very small children and our current auditorium is very small!

Welcome to Hinton Baptist Church!

We were surprised this week with visitors from Albania! Their little girl was almost two, and quite a challenge in the nursery!!! I had a lengthy conversation with her mom, Kate as she was very interested in knowing what brought us to Canada for the summer. Pray they will come again. They are inquisitive about the truth and starved for fellowship.

Ben is getting quite an education in "Baby 101" this summer! 

Here he is trying to set up the play pen in the nursery as the children look on.

This is Laura from Albania. She was a real go-getter!!!

This is baby Isabella Davis. 

She just turned one year old this week.