in the saddle

Along with getting into a good transitional house we now have a kitchen suitable for cooking. So we were able, for the first time since getting back from Missouri, to cook and serve breakfast  this last Saturday morning. We were not sure if anyone would show up, so we were surprised and glad when a dozen people came.


What was really awesome was the time we all spent just talking around the table. Getting their stories and listening to their struggles. We were able to pray for a guy named Lance, who had tripped on a tree root in the park and twisted his ankle really bad. His wife Cynthia was also telling us about how she was just "thinking" one day how she wanted a bible and the next day, out of the blue, another homeless person gave her one.


The conversation turned to God often and it wasn't because we were preaching. It was simply because we were listening. It's very evident that this group is hungry for more than just food! Afterwards, as we were driving away, Joel said something like "wow, we just had church and they didn't even know it". It's amazing to see God at work, to see him transforming people before our very eyes.


Please pray for the homeless in Oakwood Park, that God will keep them safe, dry and fed and that they will come to know him. Please pray they realize that they are not alone, that God is with them and please pray that we have enough food every Saturday morning and that we have enough gift cards for the work for food program.

culture gap

It had been a couple of months since my last haircut and I was starting look a little straggly. When I work, moving furniture for people, I sweat horribly and my mop of hair was not helping. I finally had enough and desperately wanted and needed a change. So, with no idea of which barber or hair stylist to go to, I went with the natural choice, the first place I could find..... Supercuts.


I am now the proud owner of one of the worst haircuts I've ever had. Yep, it's gonna be a  bad hair month. Apparently all of my spanish lessons have not yet paid off, because the non-english speaking stylist didn't really care if "the girl is riding a horse" or "the boy is playing with a ball".  Even in english, I don't know what the difference of a no. 2 and a no. 3 comb is, so trying to have a conversation in a different language about it was futile, we just weren't connecting.


It seems that whenever we get a tunnel vision like focus on our own lives and what we have to accomplish, it's harder to connect with both God and others. We end up missing the important things going on around us and cannot communicate effectively. When we get so caught up in what we need right here and right now, we often don't take the time to listen. I'm sure that if I had taken the time to pray about finding a great place to get my hair cut, that God would have not only provided it, but, we would have made another contact.


So, lesson learned - Pray and listen more and rush to get something done less.

"The Circle Maker"

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman

Yesterday we started reading "The Circle Maker" as a family. Considering the road that lies ahead for us, we figured our faith needed encouragment. I started reading this book myself at the beginning of the year. It has done so much to encourage my faith and make me realize that when God gives us dreams and visions, He also is there to answer all the prayers along the way.

We have blogged much this past  few weeks about how God has answered prayers in miraculous ways. More than we ever expected or imagined. Really we should expect or imagine it, it is just that most of time we don't. We should know that God is there for us, but in our humaness it is easier to rely on ourselves. What I am taking from this book more than anything is that God is not our genie in a bottle but someone who is "For Us." He really is for us! Why? Because He loves us!

So last week we moved into a house that has been great for our family. After having an hour long conversation with the homeowner, she decided that we needed to live in her house until she could decide what to do with it. She was transferred to New York city over a year ago and has been trying to make the decision for some time. It will give us an opportunity to save money up for a house in North Miami where we really want to be. Rent here is $1,100 a month and all we needed to do was pay her one month and a small Utility deposit as everything was kept in her name. She let us move in last week without paying any of this up front, but now we have to pay her. We have incurred other expenses this week that were not expected due to having to move our stuff in Fulton that has made coming up with this more difficult. We need to have this money by the end of the weekend. We know that God is able and we are trusting him. We are asking that you would join us in praying for these things today.

Below is a list of things that we need prayer for. Would you join us in making circles around these prayers.

Prayer Requests:

Money for our first months rent, $1,500 in total. This is an immediate need. We need to pay this by end of weekend.

Our belongings in Fulton are being moved from the current storage facility it is in to another smaller facility. Please pray for our family that is helping us with this. Pray God will bless them for their time. Decisions have to be made about what can be left out since it will all not fit. Pray that everything in this way goes smoothly.

Since last October, Jeff has been using our big 15 passenger van to move people locally. It has turned out to be a great beginning business. We are praying about buying a box truck. A 14-17 ft truck so that we can expand and do smaller moves. We could also use this truck to move our stuff from Missouri to Miami. A Uhaul would cost $1500 to get from there to here, we could most likely get a box truck for around $3,000 if we buy it used. It just makes more sense to do it this way. Pray that God gives us wisdom in this and if it be his will that He provide the right truck at the right price.

My work has been really slow right now, Pray that it picks up. The girls and I have also been cleaning houses on the side. Pray that more jobs will come.

Hannah and Rachael are both auditioning for New World School of the Arts. They both have danced for quite some time and would cherish this opportunity to get into this school. It will be the first time that any of our kids have attended school outside of the home. Pray that God will give us wisdom if this is what the next step is for them. Pray that their audition goes well. For the last 10 years we have paid for them to take dance. This would be amazing instruction that would not cost us anything, but we want God's will in it for them.

Pray that we will be able to continue to work steadily and that we will be able to save up the money needed to get into the right house when it is time for us to move out of here.

Lastly, Pray for Joel. Joel has been here in Miami since before we came. Pray that God will continue to provide all of his needs. Pray that God would bless him beyond all of his imagination. Joel has been helping Jeff with the moving and has not been taking any money for pay these past few weeks to enable our family to get more stable here. Pray that God would bless this selfless act beyond anything he could ever imagine.

Our Lemonade Stand!

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman

So today marks one week that we are living in the house that God provided for us. It is a 2 bed, 2 bath house with a very big living room, dining room, kitchen and fenced in back yard. You might be thinking that is a tight fit for a family of 8 with 2 animals, but to us, it is a palace. We are all so grateful that God has given us this space no matter how temporary it may be. Hannah keeps saying how she can't believe how big the house is. It is kind of funny coming from a teenager who just 6 months ago had a bedroom that was size of our living room now.

Honestly though that is what this experience has done for all of us. It has made us realize how little we need, how much we really have and how most of it does not really matter in light of eternity, in light of reaching those who have nothing, nothing at all!

So at the beginning of the year we decided that we would try to do some goal setting. For the last few years we have tried(mostly failing because of lack of follow up on our part)at helping each one of the kids as well as ourselves to set goals for the year. A New Years resolution kind of thing, but then again not really. To be honest, they always fight us on it. They hate doing it. This year I resolved to do better at helping all of us follow up on these goals and also encourage each other in them.  One of the ways we plan to do this is to meet once a week as a family and discuss one of our goals and how it is going. We also plan to spend a few minutes praying for each other about our goals so that each person will see how important these goals are to God and how much He values our dreams and the things we want to accomplish as well as to ask God for direction and guidance as we live out how to achieve our goals.

So last night we sat down for the first time since we started writing our goals to discuss at least 1 goal. We went around the room and each person told what the first goal was and one way they thought they could accomplish it. For each one it was different. The twins want to become more healthy and active(mostly feeling the lack of activity since they did not get to play football). Hannah and Rachael are both working tirelessly on their audition pieces to get into New World School of the Arts in Miami. They have both danced for 10 plus years and they would cherish the opportunity to get into this dance arts school. It is a by audition only and Hannah's audition is this Saturday, Rachael's is the second week of February. They have a goal to be attending in the fall, so they are working their butts off to get in.  Jeff and I talked about our goals for our new moving business and how we wanted to be reaching out to our neighbors and showing them God's love no matter where we live.

Then there is Ruth. If you know Ruth, she can be pretty ambitious. Her goal: To raise money for the homeless! The first way she wants to do this is to have a lemonade stand. Now as a mother, I am proud of all our kids goals. They really thought about them all and have great big dreams. As parents we want to help them accomplish all of their goals. Ruth's goal however was not about what she wanted for herself, but about what she wanted for someone else. That was pretty great, I thought.

Then I thought about it more last night. Her goal came out of her experience. Yes, all of our kids have experienced the poverty, homelessness and desperation of the poor here, and it has caused them to be more thankful for what they have and realize that we can do with so much less. But Ruth, has been out on Saturday mornings at the Homeless Breakfast spending time with these people. She has gone to the park with her Dad to take them pizza, she knows them all by name and they know her.  When she is not there on Saturday, they want to know what is wrong and where is Ruth? She is investing in their lives by having a relationship with them. I don't even think she realizes it yet. That is what I love about it. She is seeing a need and filling it because it is the natural thing to do.

I wish that we could all keep that childlike attitude toward life. It is so hard doing what we are doing right now. There have been many days in the last few weeks that I just want to quit. Today we need $1,500 to pay the rent and utility deposit on this house we are living in and I don't know where this is going to come from. I know God knows and I am just trying to trust in Him, But after last night, all I really want is that childlike faith and fearless attitude that is ready to go all out and do whatever it takes to help someone else accomplish their goals.

So I guess I will start by going to the store to get the stuff for a Lemonade Stand!

The Faces of Love!

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman  

Love.  What a small, powerful word.  It has the potential to change the world.  To change us.  Most of us seem to excel at self love, but selfless love...that's harder to come by, and it's that selfless love poured out that makes even the harshest cynic stop and take notice. 

I think we came to that discovery this past week. We were invited by a group of homeless that we spend time with to come to a BBQ at the park where they live and listen to the football game on the radio. For whatever reason, this really hit me pretty hard. I was so astonished that they would want us to come and share in that with them. Then yesterday Jeff came back from taking them pizza again and he said that Cynthia said to say hello. I have never met her before and she is acknowledging me to my husband.

I was really thinking about this during my prayer time today. We are going to them to simply show God's unconditional love for them, but I forget about their capacity to love as well. They want and need people in their lives to show love too. I think what I am realizing about the the poor and those who suffer is that they know quite a bit about selfless love. Could it be because it's what brings meaning and fullness to their lives?  Could it be that they understand more about what Love is than we do?   

 

becoming invisible

When I was a kid the berry farmers would hire people to pick strawberrys starting in May and what was really awesome is they would let the kids out of school 2 weeks early if they were pickers. So every year that I could, I signed up to pick. In my first year of picking eligibility, I was a scrawny little 12 years old. One day, about half way through the morning, I came across a patch of rotten berrys, so, after picking several and realizing they were rotten one at a time, I got frustrated and started chucking the bad ones. Well, one hit this girl that was picking a few rows over. She was about twice my height, 3 times my weight and around 16 or 17 years old. She stood up and said, in a very intimidating voice, "if you throw one more berry at me, I'll give you a berry shampoo!"

Well, that was just to much for me to handle, so, what did I do? Yep, I chucked another berry at her. Then, without further warning she walked right over, slapped me upside the head and grabbed a pint of my berrys and smeared them in my hair, working up a nice sticky lather. I was in shock! I just couldn't believe it! All the other kids in the area just pointed and laughed as I was absolutely embarrassed, I just wanted to become invisible and disappear.

Last Saturday, Joel and I went to the park and took a couple pizzas with us. We fed a couple of homeless guys and were walking around looking for more. It was a beautiful 79 degree day with a slight breeze. Blankets and people dotted the grass, everyone enjoying the mild January weather. Then a guy sitting alone in the midst of everyone else caught my eye. I felt like God was saying "him", I wasn't sure if I heard right, because he looked just like everyone else. We walked up and asked him if he was hungry. He was surprised and said he could use a slice of pizza. We sat down and the first thing he said was "I spent the night at a homeless shelter last night. It's the first time I ever did that." We sat and talked  for a half hour or more and ended up praying with him.

So many homeless and hungry people out there are just wanting to blend in, becoming invisible. For some reason, we all naturally want to hide our hurts and pains. We want to hide our situations, hoping it will go away and we'll wake up to something else. Yet there is also something inside us that wants someone to know, we want someone to listen. Even if they can't help, as long as someone listens, it makes us feel more normal. When talking to the homeless, sometimes I feel it necessary to reassure them that God has not forgotten them and that he knows what they are going through and loves them no matter what. It validates them when they hear that Jesus hung out with the poor and the addicts. It makes them realize that they matter. 

Jesus wants to hear from us. He wants to hear what's bothering us, what hurts us, what needs we have. He wants us to turn to him with all our pain. Rich or poor, hungry or fed, He loves us so much that he paid the ultimate price, his death for our life.

Being invisible, might be desirable, but, it's also a very lonely place. So, who can you be the hands and feet of Jesus to? Or, maybe I should ask, who can you be the ears of Jesus to? They don't have to be homeless to be hurting. You may not be able to help them, but, if you take the time to listen, they'll never forget it and who knows, it might just be a step towards leading them to life.

Do You Trust Me?

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman

Well a lot has happened since my last blog post.  I am even surprised at how much has happened and how it has happened.  To say the least these last few weeks have been very trying to my faith. I am the kind of person that wears my emotions on my sleave, to my own fault and these past few weeks have been a waterfall of all different kinds of emotions. There are days I want to fight, there are days I want to quit. There are days where I ask God if He has left us when I already know the answer.

About a week ago God really hit me with this:  Do you trust me? I seem to be really good at talking about trust but these last 3 weeks has been a real exercise in walking that out. God and I have had quite a bit of face time lately and one thing that I have to come to realize is that when I am able to "Let Go" and "Let God" then there is a real peace that comes over me. The problem is, I have discovered, is that I am not real good at that most of the time.

So today I was reading in Matthew 6: verse 34 in The Message translation of the Bible reads like this:

 ³⁴"Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

So there is something truly freeing to say o.k. God then "Bring It".  There really is no other place that I would rather be than where God wants me to be. I know that God has called us here to Miami and that He has great plans, really perfect plans for us. 

Reading this verse today though helps me to realize more and more that where God takes us may not be free of hardship and suffering but that He will be there to help us deal with it.  All He really asks of us is that we trust Him in what He is doing right now. So today we are off to spend the afternoon in a park with some homeless friends who invited us for a BBQ.  We will lay tomorrow at God's feet!

becoming broken

Chris and Tammy are a homeless couple that spend most of their day drunk out of their minds. He is in a wheel chair that he really does not need, but, uses because it helps him to get more money on the street corners when he panhandles. She pushes him in the chair and is his hands and feet.


One early Saturday morning, while serving breakfast in a park, Tammy could not help but to go on and on about how beautiful our daughter Ruthie is and what a good girl she was. She would at times tear up about missing her own kids, that were taken away from her. Her addiction to alcohol has ruined her life and landed her on the streets. The only way she can get help is if she stopped drinking, yet, the pain in her life causes her to continue going to the bottle to numb the hurt. The only time I've seen her sober was during a long weekend when Chris was in jail and she had no means to collect money to buy liquor. I saw her sitting on a bus stop bench with her face in her hands just sobbing.


Chris was a construction worker who one day was giving a co-worker a ride home. The co-worker asked him to pull over at a store real quick, then ran inside and robbed the place with a gun. He came out with a bag and jumped into the car and they took off. Chris had no idea of what had happened. Then, as they were stopped at a light the police surrounded them. After being arrested and missing work for a couple days, Chris was fired. He was released from jail and to make the rent, he went out on a corner to panhandle and was hit by a car. In two very bad instances, he lost everything.


We can plan and work and hope and dream all our lives and it only takes a second to change the future for the rest of our life. All those things can come crashing down and for many people that's exactly what happens.


However, the amazing thing is, Jesus can meet us where we are and in an instant our future can be changed again. The work we're doing is heartbreaking, every single day we meet broken people and it hurts to see them in such dire straights, knowing that living life to the fullest is just an instant away for them.


Please pray that God will continue to use us in peoples lives and that seeds of hope and love will be planted in good soil. Please also pray that God will provide for all our needs so we can continue the mission without being distracted.

becoming hopeless

At the time of' the last blog post, we started a campaign to raise money to get into a real house and out of living at an extended stay motel. We have since found a temporary house that we can stay in for the next two to six months. It's a two bedroom two bath (insert a million exclamation points here) with a nice fenced in back yard. It also has a garage, so we wont need a storage unit while staying here. It's still a little small for 8 people and two pets, but, after cramming into a motel room for over 4 months, it seems like a palace (especially without furniture in it). It's a great interim house, while we wait for the perfect house in the perfect location. It's also a huge glimmer of hope.

It seems that hope is really hard to come by for so many here in Miami. The streets are lined with people that have nowhere to go, nobody to love them and no way to change their situations. They are hopeless.

A month or so ago, Joel and I went out with some pizza, to feed some people we had seen at a park. We ran into a married couple from Kennett, Missouri. They had arrived in South Florida around the first of September and, like us, tried to rent a house. Of course, they had no proof of income and nobody would rent to them. They ended up spending what they had on an over priced motel room while they looked for work. No work was found and they soon found themselves on the streets.

They searched hard to find a safe place to sleep and ended up by the beach. Then one night, the police woke them up and made them leave. The police gathered up all their stuff and put it in trash bags, including their marriage certificate, identification cards, birth certificates and social security cards. As they protested the police throwing their stuff away, they got arrested. A few days later they were released and back on the street, this time without I.D. Now they can't get a job, because all employers require valid I.D. before they'll hire you.

So, they started the process of getting new I.D.'s and of course you need a social security card and birth certificate along with two pieces of mail with your name and current address on them. So, they're stuck in this viscous cycle and have lost hope.

We were not able to help them with any more than a little pizza, but, they were very open to being prayed for. She started tearing up during prayer and I think that just standing there with them in that place at that time gave them a glimmer of hope. I have not seen them since, but, pray that God continues to improve their situation and provide for their needs.

The hope that God gives us is what really keeps us going. With finding this interim house, our hope has been strengthened in a tangible way. Yet it's the intangible hope that really makes a difference in our lives.

becoming homeless

Upon arrival to Miami, our first steps have been to establish relationships with the outcasts of society, establishing residency and winning the hearts of our community. We have found a never ending supply of poor people. Jesus was not kidding when he said "the poor will always be with you". It's easy to see how people become hardened to the plight of the homeless. Everywhere you go, there they are, everywhere. It leaves us wondering how so many can end up on the streets and why they can't get out of the situation they're in.


After considering our own situation, it began to make more sense. When we arrived in September, we attempted to find a house. Every house we found that was for rent required a very strict screening process- first you pay $50 for a background check, then if you pass, your application is considered. With the application, you must have proof of income for the past 6 months, first months rent, last months rent, a security deposit in the amount of one months rent and a non-refundable pet deposit of $200-$300. So, with monthly rent averaging $1400, it would take as much as $4550.00 just to move in, not to mention the required utility deposits of around $400.


So, disheartened, we set out to look for an extended stay motel. God led us to a great little motel, one block from the beach that was very competitively priced and seemed much safer for the kids to be at. The cost- $400 a week for a 600 sq. ft. 1 bedroom efficiency apartment.


Things were progressing along, a little slower than we wanted, then in December as we started to gain some real momentum, we had to leave for Missouri for our oldest son's wedding. The 2 week break brought all momentum and income to a screeching halt. Not to mention the additional expense of not only traveling, but, paying for Christmas and helping with a wedding. When we came back to our nice little motel by the beach, to our dismay, it was the beginning of the tourist season and they downsized our room and increased our rent. Now, we have a 400 sq. ft. apartment with a kitchen smaller than any RV kitchen I've ever seen and unusable for cooking for more than two people. The cost- $520 a week.


So, after trying to make it work for the past 2 weeks, we have decided it's not worth it. We are paying $2250 a month for a 400 square foot apartment that 7 of us and two pets are miserable in.
We have considered all options, a tent or a campground or living in the vans, down by the swamp or living on the streets or finding a cheaper, more dangerous, more sleazy motel or moving back to Missouri or buying a pop up camper.......It's now easier to see how people become homeless.


The only option that makes any sense to us is to try to get into a house again and, well, we found one and it's perfect! It's located right where we want to be, in North Miami, and it's only $1100 a month.  HALF of what we are paying now! However, we still need to come up with the deposits. So, we are kicking off a campaign to get into this house and stop wasting money by living in a motel.


WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please help us end our own homelessness and get into a house! A place that is stable for our kids, half the price of our current conditions, three times larger than where we are now and has a great fenced backyard for our pets. It also has a kitchen big enough to cook for an army of homeless people! The longer we stay in this motel, the further behind we will be, so we have determined that we must leave SOON and not waste any more money on this place....


All we need is 100 people to give $35 or 50 people to give $70 or 20 people to give $175. Rest assured that Wendy and I are working our tails off to get into this house as well.


So please, checkout the "chip-in" gadget on the right and help us fight our own homelessness!

Jai-Alai

One of the things that is different about South Florida is the Basque sport Jai-Alai, which can be found in 5 different special arenas, called frontons. It is a sport that seems to be a cross between raquet ball and lacross, where helmet wearing players sling a goat skinned ball against a wall at speeds of up to 170 miles per hour. The opposing player must catch the ball and sling it back.


It was actually introduced first in the U.S. at the St. Louis Worlds fair in 1904 and quickly became popular across the country because of the gambling associated with it. As different gambling options became available across the states, it didn't take long for the sport to die down in popularity, becoming extinct everywhere but South Florida, where it thrives to this day.


It attests to my theory that the culture of South Florida is unlike any other culture in the United States. Which is why starting a traditional church in the traditional ways is more likely to fail than to grow and prosper. Sure, we would probably have short term success, but, that success would more than likely be building a church out of people that already believe and already go to church somewhere else.


To build a church out of the culture of South Florida requires understanding the culture of South Florida. Which is still something we are learning on a daily basis. In the mean time, we will continue to love and serve the least of these and allow the church to organically grow out of the necessity of our labors.


Please pray that God gives us understanding and compassion for the people we serve along with eyes to see them as God sees them.

squeez play

We seem to be gaining ground in our efforts of building relationships here is South Florida. However, the need is overwhelming, everywhere we look there are lonely broken people, who need God's love. So as soon as we think we are getting somewhere, the tide changes and it appears as though we are loosing ground.


Recently we made a trip back to Missouri to attend our oldest son's wedding, which fell between Christmas and New Years day. With the holidays and the wedding, it took us out of state for two weeks. That is a long time to leave a sprouting ministry unattended. Not to mention a long time to not be working. So as we returned to South Florida, it's as though evil forces were waiting for us to ambush us and steal time and resources. So many bad things have happened (which I wont get into now) in such a short amount of time that we have found ourselves once again questioning if we can even continue to move forward.


One very positive thing that happened was reconnecting with "Sheriff Dan", an older homeless gentleman that lives in a park, under a bridge. He's been dubbed Sheriff because he keeps the peace in the park among the homeless population that live there. When we arrived at the park (with a pizza in hand) he was very glad to see us and was interested in how we were. He introduced us to a few new homeless residents, who had all heard of us and were excited to meet us and seemed very interested in getting involved.

It was encouraging to see that we're already having an impact and are very excited for what God is doing.


However, with being out of work for those two weeks and having the work van break down again, our income has been cut and our expenses have raised dramatically. I know that if God wants us here (and he does) that he will provide as he has provided so many times before. It just seems that at dark times like these, we can feel like we're all alone and hopeless. A lot like the people that we minister to. Please continue sending us encouraging messages and emails, it helps! 


Also, I hope you will join us in praying for provision so we can continue our work. Without your involvement and contribution to this ministry, we would not even be here in the first place. If you feel like God wants you to contribute funds, send me an email and we'll let you know the best way to do that.

all ya gotta do

I've mentioned before how I love going to garage sales and buying stuff and re-selling it on Craigslist. Which is why I'm particularly interested in going to the HUGE swap meets they have in Miami. I haven't really had the time or the money to dive into one yet, but, someday soon I hope to.


One thing I always listen for when buying something are the words "all ya gotta do", which implies there is something minor wrong with the item and a quick cheap fix will take care of it. When I hear those words, I kind of cringe, and look at the item with a much more critical eye, because, if that's really I'll I gotta do, then why didn't the seller do it?


It's easy for us to step back from something and offer our unwarranted advice. Hoping to input a "quick fix" solution for someone else's problems. However, many times, the issue is much deeper than what appears on the surface. We're finding that many of the people on the streets have deep rooted and complicated issues and a simple "get a job" mentality really isn't the fix they need.


It's a long process of gradually gaining mutual respect that leads to being able to get to the real issues. However, it's not just like that for people on the street. It's the same for the people that sit next to you in church, or in the cubical next to yours, or the the people next door. Building relationships is the beginning of being able to speak into others lives and every action taken is either a step up or a step down in that relationship.


Please pray that God gives us wisdom in everything we say and do out on the street. Please pray that we are able to gain great big steps every time we encounter those God has sent us to.

hey! watch this!

When we first moved to Florida, the only thing the twins wanted to do was see an alligator. To tell you the truth, I'm pretty interested too. It seems that infatuation with things that can kill you is a major character trait most males share. We like looking over the edge of 5000 foot cliffs, we like surfing in shark infested waters, we like to stick our tongues on 9 volt batteries..... well, that may not kill you, but, it is pretty shocking.


Come to think about it, there are so many things we'll do that I couldn't possibly list them all here, but, I can say that some of the most famous last words are "hey, watch this".


I think of the Apostle Paul when I think about crazy things guys do. Here he was (ACTS 14) in Lystra and he healed a crippled man and started teaching the people about Jesus. However there were some Jews that had hunted Paul down and turned the crowed against him and they picked up rocks and stoned Paul. Thinking he was dead, they dragged him out of the city and dumped him. Then a few of Paul's friends gathered around him and he got up and marched right back into the city.


What was this guy thinking? Usually when we do something that causes great pain and discomfort and brings us very close to death, we don't usually get up and go right back to where it all happened. We usually limp off and chalk it up as something not to do again.


Yet this seems to be exactly what Jesus wants us to do, when he says "pick up your cross and follow me" and Paul said "I die daily". Now I'm not saying you need to head to the darkest places on earth where being a believer in Christ can mean certain death (unless God tells you to). What I am saying is that every day is a day for a new step of faith. We cannot rely on the adrenaline rush of yesterday, because the comfort zone we like to create around us can quickly become a prison. A prison that holds us back from experiencing what God is doing today.


Even if it seems that we are totally crazy for all the stuff we have been doing in South Florida, we are always in danger of building our comfort zone around us. Please pray for us that God will always show us what he is doing every day, so we don't get apathetic in our mission.


What are some things you can do to step out in faith today? Has God put a friend, co-worker or neighbor on your heart? What risk can you take to show them God's love?

Joy Ride

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman                                        

 So first thing in the morning we are headed home to Miami. It has been great to be able to see family and friends and have an amazing time celebrating the changes in our lives. Just over the last 2 weeks we have seen our oldest son Jeremy get married and leave for basic training in Fort Benning, Georgia. We had our second son, Jason, announce his engagement to Annie, which we are very excited about. We found out that my sister is pregnant with her second child, my parents 17th grandchild. My brother is very close to moving into his house that he has been working on for over a year now. My nephew, David, who lived with us for a while a few years ago, is getting married next summer to a super sweet girl. So many amazing and great things going on.

So it has really baffled me as to why I have had such a hard time keeping my joy. Anyone reading this would think you would be crazy to not be on cloud nine to see all the great things going on.

For me, though, it has been hard to stay joyful in the midst of it all. I don't know why, but it is easier for us to think about all the bad things that are happening instead of all of the amazing things that God is doing around us. Right now we are in the struggle of our lives trying to keep our heads above water financially. There are so many unknowns as we return to Miami. So many things we are unsure about, or even how to go about getting them done.

It hit me tonight though, it is my connection. In the middle of everything going on I have not taken the time to really spend talking with God every day like I normally do. I am usually pretty good about spending a considerable amount of time with God everyday. It is something that I make a priority for sure, but I have found myself thinking about my situation in the natural trying to figure how to get it all taken care of.

One thing God has really shown me these past few months is that there is nothing natural about what we are doing and why we are doing it in Miami. It really is a crazy, pretty supernatural thing.

That being said, I realize tonight that I cannot possibly keep joy, feel joy or know joy without having those daily times of connection with God. It is quite possibly the single most important thing we can do. It does not take much, a little time in the Bible and a little time just having a convo with God about what He wants us to do today. One thing I know for sure is that it makes a big difference in the joy I feel. I do need joy!  If this is something you need too but don't know where to start, a great Bible reading plan can be found here.http://www.vervecatalysts.org/.

Love Never Fails

Happy New Year!

Blog Post by Wendy Kauffman

This is my first blog of the New Year, but don't worry it is not going to be full of resolutions that I probably could not or would not keep.

These last few days have been such a whirlwind. 2 days ago, Our oldest son Jeremy was married to Sheri. Their wedding was beautiful, fun and full of fun times with family and friends. As Sheri put it today it was, "epic."  We are so proud of them and the new life they will build together.

During one of Jeremy's favorite songs, everyone pretty much got up and danced and as Jeff and I were dancing, Jeff said to me there are 3 generations of our family on this dance floor right now. We could look out the window and see the hospital that Jeremy was born in 22 1/2 years ago. It was a very sweet time.

One thing that was very hard about the day was the fact that we were all very worried about my Grandfather who was hospitalized on Wednesday. He went to the hospital to have a somewhat routine procedure done and ended up being admitted for some other pretty serious health issues he was having. It was hard at times to enjoy the moment of Jeremy and Sheri's new life together with thoughts of Grandpa being in the hospital very ill when we really wanted him to be with us.

As we got together yesterday evening as a family for New Years, we were all very tired from the events the day before, but, we did not want to pass up the opportunity to ring in the New Year together. It seemed the conversation during the night came back to life cycles and how quickly time goes by and how fast everything can change. That is definetly one thing that was so true about these last few days. Our lives change minute by minute.

Ringing in the New Year this year has made me think about how our lives do change so fast. There are so many variables to our lives and so many things that can go right and so many things that can go wrong. We never know what might come next.

Today though as I was helping my sister in the kitchen with our New Year's dinner, we were listening to some music and this song came on that brought me a great deal of comfort during these vastly changing times in our lives. The song is "Your Love Never Fails" by Jesus Culture.

Nothing can separate
Even if I ran away
Your love never fails
I know I still make mistakes
But You have new mercies for me everyday
Your love never fails
Chorus:
You stay the same through the ages
Your love never changes
There maybe pain in the night but joy comes in the morning
And when the oceans rage
I don't have to be afraid
Because I know that You love me
Your love never fails
Verse 2:
The wind is strong and the water's deep
But I'm not alone in these open seas
Cause Your love never fails
The chasm is far too wide
I never thought I'd reach the other side
But Your love never fails
Bridge:
You make all things work together for my good.

As we start a new year, with so many unknowns on this journey, I was so glad that God reminded me today that the Love that came to be with us will never leave us, never fail us or never run out. Today I remembered that in this ever changing life, there is one constant I can count on. My hope for you in this New Year is that you will know the Love that never fails, never leaves and never runs out.