|
The Praise Report Update: Summer 2002 |
Our Wedding Day
1992
Ten-Year
Anniversary
We are celebrating
our ten year wedding anniversary this summer!
Ten years ago we were
married and during the ceremony the pastor prophesied, right in the middle
of the service, that we would be a missionary couple. He saw us traveling
to different nations ministering the Gospel.
As he said this a dog in the yard next door
let out a very loud howl, almost as if to confirm his word, which resulted
in a lot of laughs and cheers as God’s presence filled the atmosphere.
God has continued to bless us in our marriage and to also fulfill that
word since then.
The School
for Character
Reformer Martin Luther was once a monk and
celibate, yet having witnessed all the immorality in the priesthood (much
like today) realized the truth of The Word which says “It is not
good for man to be alone.” Gen. 2:18.
Luther left the monastery and married a
former nun with whom he had 6 children. He said that there was no better
school for character than marriage, much better than the monastery had
ever been. He agreed with other reformers who stated that no institution
was as highly lauded in Scripture as marriage.
Divine
Matrimonial Appointment
It was through a divine appointment, which
took place approximately 3000 miles from where we both lived, that led
to our meeting and eventual marriage.
Even though we both attended the same church,
we had never met there , although we had noticed each other one time while
passing in a hall way. It was actually at
a conference in Kanas City, Missouri where we had the divine appointment
that would lead to our matrimony.
The conference went as planned and had some high points but for me (Bryan) something seemed unfulfilled, though I didn’t know what. Things were starting to wind up fast though, and the last meeting was quickly approaching.
I saved a seat in the front for this last meeting and that’s when strange things started happening.
Returning from the break, I came in to find all the stuff I’d put on my seat gone. It had been thrown into a big pile, along with hundreds of other’s things in a corner.
Apparently during the break, the ushers had gone into a legalistic fit regarding the evils of seat-saving and had taken everyone's stuff and thrown it into a massive pile. Which just resulted in a lot of agitated people who couldn’t find their things. But God uses everything for good, even things that can be frustrating and seem ridiculous at the time.
I finally located all my stuff and decided I’d go sit in the rafter seats with the pigeons after that experience.
However, as I was passing by the front rows,which were now full, something strange happened.
Some guys I ‘d never met called to me as I walked by. I thought they were mistaking me for someone else, but they were insistent that I come talk to them. They told me that I should sit in a seat they had there because they saved seats and then prayed who they should give them to. They felt strongly when they saw me that I should sit there in the one seat they had left. It seemed quite unusual... but “Why not?” I thought.
Even with persecution awaiting them from the ushers should they be caught, these guys carried on their unique little ministry undercover. I’d never seen anything quite like it but God certainly used it! I sat down and looked around and thought: “Three rows from the front is nothing to complain about.” Then I noticed something even more interesting, “Hmm, I’m sitting next to that cute girl I’d noticed at the Vineyard that one time.”
We were now sitting next to each other and it wasn’t long until we got to talking and then spent much of the meeting talking and finding out how much we had in common, including being called to missions .
Mercedes was also sitting next to her mother who whispered into her ear when we
met: “I think I just met my future son-in-law.”
An impression whose fruit proved it was a word from the
Holy Spirit.
Mercedes and I prayed together at the close
of the meeting and an extraordinary sense of God’s presence filled
the atmosphere during our prayer.
This was the beginning of a friendship that
would develop and mature and two years later find us saying vows to one
another.
God used the crazy ushers and undercover
praying seat savers to reshuffle our seating arrangements and to orchestrate
a divine appointment where we ended up meeting by sitting next to each
other. Bringing us together, 3000 miles away from home, in the middle
of a 7000-person, overflow -crowd conference.
Two years later as we stood at the altar
saying vows the pastor prophesied about us being called to missions. That
which started out as an exciting supernatural ride has definitely continued
to be so. To the praise and glory of God.
Ministry
Update
As we continue to minister South of the
Border and other places God is moving in power with people coming to Christ
and the Holy Spirit being poured out regularly.
In a meeting in Mexico recently we experienced
many young people being powerfully filled with the Holy Spirit as God
consecrated their lives to Him.
At a large church in inland San Diego, God’s
presence was poured out in great power as waves of the Holy Spirit washed
over and over and over the congregation long into the night. It was glorious
time as we prayed for many many people there.
Perseverance
The Lord has been emphasizing the importance
of perseverance. A few incidents recently have demonstrated this.
We were recently going to preach at an outreach
in Tijuana when we had, like on many trips to Mexico, become completely
lost.
Bryan praying for some kids in Mexico who were baptized in the Holy Spirit