Martinxsix's Xanga

Back fromm Kenya ...

Fri, 24 Aug 2007 19:00:02 GMT

I am back from Kenya. Back to the routines of life. Yet, somehow I am different. I want to live in the memory of what I discovered. I want to be different. Live different. Never forget. Time keeps moving, fresh experiences take over new days. I keep struggling to hold onto it. God did awesome things in Kenya.

We arrived in the village of Soy to the new, empty church building. It was built by local men who were very proud of their work. They happily told me they would be attending regularly! After worshipping with men and women from Uganda, who met us there to share in the mission, I set off with my translator on a path through a field of enormous corn stalks! Though I cannot see them from the trail, there are red-mud huts scattered through out the giant corn stalks. Some squarely shaped, like houses with tin roofs, others round with thatch roofs. I would have never known this is a main path from many huts to the village shopping area. Don't visualize a plaza or mall, but an area of small plywood structures, fresh potatoes, onions, hanging whole portions of meat, occasional live goats, cows and sheep.

As my translator, Timothy and I, walked the trail, I found myself scared! I confessed to Timothy my fears, who asked, "is this your first time to Africa?" In humble fear and trembling, I answered, "yes." He wanted to know if I had shared the gospel before. Sigh... When I told him I hadn't shared the gospel this way, never went out into the community sharing with people, he didn't understand. I explained I liked to share the gospel with people after
I had gotten to know them, developed a relationship. He didn't understand why I would hold back this priceless message, but said, " It is ok, you will feel better after the first time." We stopped on the trail and prayed.

Timothy led me to our first home. A man without shoes, wearing tattered clothing stood with a small tree branch in his hand, keeping a cow from eating the surrounding corn. After an introduction, I shared the message, shared
from the Bible what Jesus has done for us and offered that gift to him. He told us how he struggled with drugs and alcohol and couldn't stop. My heart flooded with emotion. I told him I felt certain God sent me to talk with him! The first person I talked to, hand picked by God. We shared something, we were the same. Stuck in our sin, trapped, not able to see the way out. I shared my story, my bondage to drugs and alcohol. Before trusting Jesus I couldn't stop. When I trusted in his death on the cross, his death to pay my penalty, asked him to help me live for him, I never did drugs again! I told him if God could change me, God is able to change him too. I asked him if anything was keeping him from trusting in Jesus today. He tearfully responded, no. He prayed with us, recognizing his need for the Savior, Jesus.

God prepared our meeting for both our benefit. I left our encounter with monumental confidence in the Lord's ability to do what he had planned for my part in the mission, he left with a new life ... Eternal life!

A shoppong area in one of the larger city areas. It is similar to the one in the village.

Pray for Kenya

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 14:14:43 GMT

The time has come so quickly, tomorrow Brittany and I leave for Kenya! We are filled with excitement, and a good mixture of other emotions, too :)

We've been preparing to share the gospel of Jesus with hurting people. As I considered the message of the gospel, and the American message of the latest charity fad for Africa, I began to comprehend the true value of the gospel. Lately, millions of dollars are being raised for Africa. I often wonder how much money actually makes it, and what the African people will be left with when the fad passes. Will money have brought the hope promised?

American Idol, Bono, other groups and individuals desire to alleviate the horrible suffering caused by unclean water, lack of food, AIDS, and Malaria afflicting Africa. Diseases causing many, including children, to suffer horrible, agonizing death's. Mother's watching their children suffer without any means to care for them. That sounds like living hell to me. Speaking of hell, that's where many will live for ever, even with all the contributions to bring them good life. Without trusting in Jesus death as a substitute for our sin, humans will live in everlasting hell. (II Thessalonians 1:5-12)

I applaud efforts of those concerned, to bring hope to those suffering in Africa. I pray we continue to supply needed medicine and water, but I'm left considering is there something more important? I want to bring genuine hope to those suffering, not counterfeit hope. I have the real thing to share, am I willing to give it?

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! Romans 5:8-10

Brittany and I, with a team of concerned others, are headed to Soy, Kenya tomorrow to bring the message of genuine hope, the gospel of Jesus. Jesus died for our sin, and rose again, so we may live well forever with God. Eternity with God who truly loves people. He will bring peace to lives, now and forever.

A church has been built, prepared for the people in the village of Soy, Kenya. A home built for a native Pastor, a well for the people, supplies will be left behind to ease suffering, but we will go into the village and bring the message of everlasting hope to the people. I am so excited to see what God will do through a few humans, nothing great in ourselves to offer, just willing!

Thanks to all of you who have prayed for us as we have prepared, and given your finances! I am amazed at the ways God has supplied all our needs. Please pray for our health, travel mercy, courage, and most important the power of the Spirit to lead and work through us. May God prepare hearts to hear the message from simple people, carrying a genuine message of hope.

What is a Missionary?

Sat, 19 May 2007 12:26:34 GMT

~Oswald Chambers

“As My Father has sent Me, even so I send You”
John 20:21

A missionary is one sent by Jesus Christ as He was sent by God. The great dominant note is not the needs of men, but the command of Jesus. The source of our inspiration in work for God is behind, not before. The tendency today is to put the inspiration ahead, to sweep everything in front of us and bring it all out to our conception of success. In the new Testament the inspiration is put behind us, the Lord Jesus. The ideal is to be true to Him, to carry out His enterprises. Personal attachment to the Lord Jesus and His point of view is the one thing that must not be overlooked. In missionary enterprise the great danger is that God’s call is effaced by the human needs of the people until human sympathy absolutely overwhelms the meaning of being sent by Jesus. The needs are so enormous, the conditions so perplexing, that every power of mind falters and fails. We forget that the one great reason underneath all missionary enterprise is not first the elevation of the people, not the education of the people, nor their needs; but first and foremost the command of Jesus Christ-“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations.”
When looking back on the lives of men and women of God the tendency is to say-“What astute wisdom they had! How perfectly they understood all God wanted!” The astute mind behind is the Mind of God, not human wisdom at all. We give credit to human wisdom when we should give credit to the “Divine guidance of God” through childlike people who are foolish enough to trust God’s wisdom and the supernatural equipment of God.

Martin Family Update and Request

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 20:39:11 GMT

The Martin family sends greetings from Katy, Texas! Or should I say, “Howdy ya’ll!” We are hopeful that you are doing well. Our family continues to grow in the Lord, our journey with Him continues to change our lives, and we pray He is doing a great work in yours, also. We have worked through many difficult changes, as the Lord walked us through the crazy times of 2006, and 2007 has brought along it’s challenges, as well.

One of our biggest adjustments has been relocating from Thousand Oaks, California, our home of 19 years, to our new home in Katy, Texas. While difficult to leave behind those we love so dearly, the Lord used this move to lead our family closer to Him, and bless us so much. Before leaving California, we went through some hard times, made some wrong choices, but the Lord is so faithful to us, even when we fail him. A pastor friend once said, “Some of the greatest times of blessing come after the greatest times of failure.” We have experienced that. The love of our Savior, Jesus, is amazingly more than we can comprehend.

Since our move we have been able to buy a beautiful, large home, more than we could have hoped of. With both our son’s now living near us, we enjoy gathering the family, including our grandchildren, at our home as often as possible, but usually each Sunday after church to enjoy a meal together.

John’s air conditioning company is growing, now employing both our son’s, Robbie and Justin. Barbara works full time in the office. We have been exploring the opportunity of a second company back in California, where we have been able to employ our daughter, Jenna, as an office manager. This time together has allowed us to have inspiring and challenging conversations, work on our relationships, and reveal the Lord’s shaping of our knowledge of Him.

After so many wonderful years home schooling, we closed that door of our lives as we graduated our youngest daughter, Brittany, in 2006. She still lives at home while she attends a cosmetology school. If you’d like a sassy haircut or some glittering highlights, she is the person to do it. She has become a devoted daughter: devoted to her family and her Lord.

We have found a small, welcoming church, Calvary Chapel, in our area. It’s a new church, just beginning life in Katy, too! It’s so refreshing, and inspiring to be back in a church dedicated to teaching God’s word without apology or compromise. We share a similar testimony with our Pastor, and are encouraged by his fresh vision for the church.

We have the awesome privilege to worship with our children and grandchildren each week, since they have chosen Calvary Chapel as their church home also, except Jenna, who still lives in California. Justin was asked to be involved in leadership. Katrina (Justin’s wife) and Brittany serve in Sunday school. John and Justin hope to work with an orphanage in El Salvador, in the future. Robbie and Heather have their hands full leading their five little ones to church, but Heather continues to bake some tremendous foods each week for everyone to enjoy after the service.

This year Barbara and Brittany feel a great commitment and call to serve Jesus Christ, through a short-term mission. As a family we have been having conversations about serving the poor, and sharing the gospel. One without the other seems pointless. They have decided to join with others from Calvary Chapel churches in our area to plant a church in the town of Soy, Kenya. They will evangelize hut to hut, in schools, in prisons, as well as giving testimonies at crusades every afternoon. The new church will have a meeting building, a home for the pastor, and a well for those in need of water.

Soy is a small town with over 28,000 people in the surrounding area, and located about 200 miles northwest of the capital city of Nairobi, and west of the Great Rift Valley, at 6,000 feet above sea level. It is an agricultural village. The climate is good with fairly constant daytime temperatures between 75 and 80 F and relatively cool nights (60’s). Though there are 117 tribal languages in Kenya, English and Swahili are the official languages. We are told the people of this area are very welcoming and gentle, and live on very little income (about $360 a year). Because of the hunger and diseases such as AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, the need for a Savior rings very loud. We want to bring them hope.

The trip will last thirteen days from July 20th to August 1st, and we need your help. Would you be willing to pray? Please pray for the spiritual battles, especially for hearts to be prepared to receive Jesus, and for hearts to be prepared to share Him with hurting people. Also, please pray for the needed finances. We trust God to provide what is needed to do His will. (If he leads you to give financially, please send Barbara an e-mail for the details.)

~The Martin Family

Look Out Kenya ...

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 01:16:00 GMT

... here's part of a group getting prepared to bring some GOOD NEWS!

Lives will be changed forever!

Rebecca's Day In LA

Wed, 28 Feb 2007 03:49:23 GMT

Sunday, John and I planned a day at Disneyland for our sweet granddaughter, Rebecca. Jenna and Emmy joined us, to find Disneyland overfilled with people, rainy and cold :( Disappointed we left to create a day for Rebecca in LA.

We headed off the to Los Angeles Science Center ...

... where they did a little "rock climbing" ...

... and steam watching while waiting ...

... to see a 3D movie of ocean life, in the IMAX theater.

Then, we went into the Science Center to see the Star Wars exhibit, where Rebecca met Yoda and the Master Jedi's.

Lastly, we were off to Pinks for old-fashioned chili dogs, fries, onion rings and soda pop!

Rebecca was sleeping before the food arrived! It was her big day in LA.

I LOVE LA

Thu, 22 Feb 2007 23:07:43 GMT

I have been away from xanga a while! I guess I have been preoccupied with other parts of life. I just haven't felt like writing.

I have also been away from my Texas home, spending some time working in my other home town. John and I went to LA last weekend to have dinner, then a play in Glendale.

This is a wonderful restaurant that my friend, Mike, introduced us to. It is an old fire station, remodeled into a restaurant serving some old fashioned american foods, like meat loaf and pan fried chicken cooked by a fabulous chef. It's elegant, with great service and food.

After dinner, we took a walk and stumbled upon this beautiful old building.

A ride to see some more of the city revealed the unique and artistic LA experience.

I love to experience the LA culture!

Food for thought ...

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 15:05:11 GMT

"... I can feed a man food to fill his stomach, but he is still going to hell ..."

~ Pastor Morris of Uganda, Africa, speaking of those suffering without trust in Jesus.

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--
not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

Wisdom Calls Aloud in the Street ...

Tue, 09 Jan 2007 12:21:40 GMT

I spent a bit of time with the Lord this morning ... this caught my attention.

Wisdom calls aloud in the street, she raises her voice in the public squares; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out, in the gateways of the city she makes her speech: "How long will you simple ones love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge? If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you. But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand, since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke, I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you-- when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you. "Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me. Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the Lord, since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke, they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.

Proverbs 1:20-30

I love the writing ... the way wisdom is talked about as though it were a person. What are the figures of speech and what do they mean? What do you think passage means?

This is written earlier in the same chapter:
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Proverbs 1:7

Christmas Eve 2005

Thu, 21 Dec 2006 12:58:07 GMT

As I browsed through my old journal entries, I read this post I wrote last Christmas Eve. It encouraged me today ... enjoy the Savior, the Newborn King. May His peace be yours.

Christmas Eve 2005 ...

I felt overwhelmed with memories, emotions, and preparations, yet aware there was more than crying, cooking, cleaning and wrapping presents to experience. Please don't misunderstand, serving others is a good thing, that brings me joy, and joy was what I wanted, but I had a nagging sense there was something more, something important happening that I was going to miss by busying myself. I sensed a battle raging around me that I knew nothing about. Maybe a spiritual battle?

I had hoped to get out early in the morning to spend some quiet time with the Lord and John, but other things stole that time away. When I mentioned my thoughts to John, it became clear ... we made a plan to be ready one hour before time, to spend it together in prayer. What was needed would be done, what wasn't done wouldn't be needed.

Even in spite of our determined plan, it was hard for me to give up ... to stop the preparations, to be with the One whom the celebration was for. John mentioned patiently, "It's past time." I sighed, as I could hear Jesus talking with Martha, though a recording were playing in my mind. I stopped ... and it was good! Good to quiet myself before the Savior, the one who's birth we celebrate.

We talked with the Lord, gave him praise, asked for specific things for our family, and for our celebration together. We confessed our lack of understanding, our awareness of a battle, but no clue how to engage it. What release ... all given to him, inviting him to work through us as he would choose.

We then met with our family and went to a Christmas Eve service. It was amazing. You say, what the carefully planned and prepared service? No, in fact the service was quite simple. It was the the time spent worshipping with so many others who came to worship the newborn King, all bringing their own gift of love and praise, the gift time carved out of their preparations to give him the acknowledgement he alone deserves, all together, at the same time, in one overfilled place, with standing room only. Amazing! I could hardly contain the joy and expressions of praise that were building inside me.

The rest of the evening was very special ... time spent loving my family, enjoying real, lasting friendship, peace ... What was needed was done. What wasn't done, wasn't needed.