have you ever

Have you ever sat thru numerous different things and got the same message out of each one of them even with different messages being put forth? Conviction! Not a message on conviction but that I need to be convicted of something.

I can hear the jokes now, so let me know your best punch line to my last statement of being convicted of something.

Well that happened to me this past weekend. Saturday night we had Lifegroup (MiniChurch) then Sunday we went to two different Churches and their Services. Went to Bent Tree and then to McKinney Bible to see my buddies daughter baptized. In each one of these things I heard only one thing. I need to change.

Recently I have been experiencing many personalities that I have a very tough time dealing with. Right now there are 4 people who are in my immediate life that tend to drive me crazy. These personalities are tough for a laid back guy like myself to deal with since they are so over the top.

Well the Lord was speaking to me all weekend that I have to change this. I need to seek out the Lords guidance and patience in dealing with these people. I was not looking for this as his answer since I never really questioned him to change me on this aspect of who I am. I always just tried to ignore in hopes of them going away. I have always known this not the correct way to deal with it but it has worked for me in the past, why not know?

Well now that we are seeking out his work on the Mission Field someday he needs for me to change this aspect of who I am. My wife and I will be coming across so many new and different personalities that we need His Love to be shown to these. Ignoring them has not shown them God's love and grace.

OK, Not fair at all. Reading thru this week lessons for the Wildlife (Jr.High group at my Church) has hit me across the head as well. Can one love someone in Christ even when they despise them and find them hard to be around? Of course not! One of the fruits of the spirit is Love right? Well when you are not sharing love what are you doing? Not reflecting Christ but doing satan's work.

Need to work thru conflict rather than running away from it like I have and find the place where Christ's Love shines thru me all of the time even to those I choose not to deal with. The fact remains that God has chosen them to Love as he has everyone and it is up to me to reflect his love to them.

Maybe no one else took the message the way I did but since he is working on me hard in this area that is what I am seeing.

Guilty as Charged, but being broken!

Understatement of the year

"The armed forces commander and the national police commander have successfully taken over Bangkok and the surrounding area in order to maintain peace and order. There has been no struggle," the announcement said. "We ask for the cooperation of the public and ask your pardon for the inconvenience."

By GRANT PECK, Associated Press Writer BANGKOK, Thailand

I can understand them asking for cooperation but asking for their pardon for the inconvienence as well? It is not like they just ripped up a road to repave it and you might have to go a block down to get around it. They just took over the governement of a country in a coup for pete's sake.

Extra Extra read all about it

OK my wife beat me to my update about this weekend.

Well Friday afternoon we received an e-mail from a gentlemen that was in town who works for WorldVenture. He was in town for something at Dallas Theological Seminary and would like to meet with us on Saturday. Well I emailed him back about setting up a time for Saturday.

Around noon thirty I received a call from him and asked if we were still available to meet up with him today. Well we set up a time to meet him around 3 that afternoon at Starbucks (mmmm Banana Creme) down near SMU. We met with him for an hour and he mentioned a number of things that would work for us to be heading over to Nigeria in the future.

After meeting with SIM the Thursday before meeting with WorldVenture (WV) we were feeling confident that SIM was the direction that we were being lead. Well after meeting with WV we have a second agency that would lead us to Nigeria as well.

There are some major differences but yet similarities. So we have much praying, not that we did not already, ahead of us and plenty of listening to the Lord on who we are to work under.

Our biggest concern is how involved the Lord is needing us to be while in Nigeria. With SIM my brother and his friend with SIM could write our Job Discription for us while we are there. WV is not yet located in Nigeria but wants to get invloved there. This is where we become part of their vision to open up Nigeria to ministries for future WV work. At first we would be under WV but partnered with SIM until we identify a need that is yet to be filled. From there we would need to set up the Ministry and the roles that would apply. Yikes!!

SIM would over many opportunities to setting up different ministries as well but not setting up an Agencies whole agenda for them to start ministry there.

That could be a huge task but with the Lord's help and guidance He would be honored in our service.

Well sometime this week we are hoping to set up meetings with our Church's Mission office to talk over our options. Also we should be talking with my bro in Nigeria this week as well and see what he thinks of everything. If you have not found Skype yet it is FREE PC to PC calling anywhere in the world. I have spoken to a friend in France and my brother in Nigeria with perfect clarity all for FREE. Just a little FREE Advertising for Skype.

So if you could pray for his direction in this all that would be awesome.

I, Toebee, am a Blogging Slacker

Hey y'all how ya be?

Well it has been a very very busy week so I will try to go thru a bit of it for you. That is if you care.

This past weekend I upgraded my PC with a Firewire card to download my Video Camera onto my own PC. Also got a DVD Burner to burn my edited videos as to show them on DVD players. Well I could not figure out how to burn the DVD and it took me to Tuesday night to figure it out finally. Got it to work but the quality of the video is still something to be desired. Oh well I am going to try and figure something out to hopefully improve it.

Also on Monday I IM'd with my bro in Nigeria. That was awesome to chat with him for a while and to see how we can fit into his ministry there in Nigeria. For those that do not know Alycia and I are planning to join my brother and his family in Ministry in Nigeria. After chatting with him I feel awesome in the direction that we are going and how the Lord will allow me and my wife to work alongside or at least close to my bro and his fam. How awesome is that?

First I started my class Intro to Theology class on Monday and have had some, ugh, homework to do. After one class I am feeling pretty good about the class and all that I have the opportunity to learn. Of course you could tell from earlier posts that the class freaked me out. But it is definately "Intro to Theology for lay people". I am debating starting a second blog for me to summerize my learning and reading. This way as I write it out I will be learning and hopefully retaining said learning. I know that one would not be viewed but it would be for me I guess with the thought that someone can read it and then respond. Well just a thought.

Well had to study Tuesday night after I figured out how to properly burn a DVD. Wednesday night my inlaws were in town so we did dinner and from there I went to Church for Wildlife our Jr. High group at my Church.

Well after chatting with Kyle Monday we have to find an agency that will allow us to work in Nigeria. For the most part we have been lead in the direction of SIM International. A friend of ours had the name of the Local SIM recruiter here in the Dallas area that has been and spent many years in Nigeria. So he has great knowledge of and a heart for Nigeria . Can you see the Lord at work? We sent out notes to 6 different agencies and most wrote back telling us to contact SIM.

Well we met with Dick on Thursday, he was such a blessing to talk with for a couple hours about the desires the Lord has laid upon our hearts for Nigeria. After speaking with him we are seeing a task that looks promising and exciting. We have received the Application and will start the whole process to Nigeria.

Work was just a crazy week altogether, as you can see I am a bit tired since there is not humor in my writing today. I am just plain tired today, sorry about that!

Music

Well I think the iPod is a great invention that also has it's down side as well. The best is that I can put all of my music in one small mechanism and carry it around wherever I want and not worry about lugging my whole CD case. Nice!

The downfall has been the fact that I want to fill it so I have been on a search for new music. This means money spent to purchase the music on iTunes. I cannot complain all too much since you can purchase one or two songs from particular album if you want and leave the rest there. Also to purchase the whole album it is cheaper than the $13-$16 for a CD. So all of those are very positive.

I have found three sites to be very helpful in my search for new music. One of them happens to be MySpace since you can hear a few of their songs with out purchasing them. Another site has been PureVolume which I have located a number of new artists. Well at least new artists to me, much better than wading thru radios stations. I like the control that I have to find what I like and then flip to iTunes to purchase. iTunes is another site the only prob with them is it only gives you 30 seconds of a tune to listen too. Not enough sometimes to really see if it is worth the purchase.

A couple of the new groups that I have found this way have been Feeder, The Fold, NeedToBreath and most recently have found Circleslide. Circleslide I actually found inside of an article online at CCM Magazine while they talked about one of my fav groups in the past The Choir. But they mentioned their MySpace address so I went looking and listening. Pretty cool stuff! So I actually used MySpace the way that it was originally made to be used, amazing!

Also PureVolume gave me the opportunity to listen to The Choirs newest album "O how the mighty have fallen". Listened to it and then went over to iTunes and purchased it along with the new Jars of Clay Album Good Monsters.

Kind of nice to have all of these tools to locate music you would not normally get to listen to on the radio.

I had a funny thought last night that there are only two groups in my library that I have enjoyed all of their music. One is not together anymore and the other still does music along with solo albums that are good. The first is The Call and the second is the 77's and Mike Roe solo stuff. Otherwise there are many groups that either never make another good album or have some hickups in their bands existence but come back strong like both Jars and especially The Choirs latest projects.

One thing on iTunes that I like is that they have Free Songs and Videos for you to down load as well. I have grabbed a few of those from the site as well.

Any other sites or groups to check out?

Catch up will ya!

Well for a while I was trying to think of what to write since I felt kinda dry. But recently it rained and things are brighter and looking alive once again. This is who I am starting to see the things going on in my life and with my wife.

Let me begin by saying that we have turned in our applications to our Churchs Candidate program. This is a program that assists those looking to the mission field a way of connection with others being called while giving us an opportunity to learn about the field. We are both really excited about the opportunities the Lord has for us in the future.

This weekend we took another step and e-mailed various mission agencies to start our process on find the best fit for our future plans. As of right now we are looking toward working in Africa specifically the country of Nigeria. My brother and his family have been working there in various positions for the last 5 years. It would be so awesome to be able to work side by side or at least within the same country with my Brother. Their web site is www.abtstract.com if interested in learning more about his ministry there. He has worked with youth and is currently working in Sports Ministry throughout the country. We look forward to possibly working with him for a few years so if you could pray for us and the Lords direction for us that would be great.

Wildlife, BTBF's Jr. High, program is just getting underway. I have a new group, they are eight graders that had a different leader last year. It will be a good year but with the change of leaders some kids tend to take that harder than others. But I am looking forward to year and to see how I will be used in their lives. One of them I am currently disciplining and even better I had his brother in my group three years ago. He was in my group for 3 years. I have been here in Dallas that long, yikes. After two years of working with Alycia at Wildlife this year she has taken a different direction towards the Womens ministry there. So that will be an adjustment since it was great working with her in Ministry here at Church.

Next Monday I am also starting a class at a local Church. They have a Theology Program that I have entered myself in. I will be taking Intro to Theology for the first class in hopes that I pass that and proceed further into the program. This way I have some knowledge of all of that while out in the field working for him.

What else could be up? There are plenty of other things up but these are the biggest and scariest things. Please pray for us as we start the process of leaving what we know and are lead by the Lords Hand to where he wants us.