"...The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much." James 5:16
This Tuesday, please pray for: 1) The health of our family. Satan loves to mess with us on trips with someone getting very ill right around the time for us to leave. 2) Our parents, as they watch Elijah and Abigail for the week. Pray for patience, endurance, and peace for them all! 3) Us, that we would trust God and not worry about our children. Pray that we stay focused on the task at hand, and trust God, knowing that He will watch over Elijah and Abigail, just like He does everyday.
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God is AWESOME! We have seen Him work so much recently as we have been preparing for our visit up to Clarion next week. God is wanting to do some big things while we are up there, and we are praying that this trip is the final push for us to have the support we need to leave for Clarion for good!
So, this week, I am asking each of you if you would stop each day and pray for us as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus in our final preparation. We know that Satan is already working to devise schemes to distract us and frustrate us, in order to cause us to fear, be anxious, to doubt, and that we would not "acknowledge Him in all our ways." "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Heb 4:16 Monday, I am asking you if you would pray that: 1) God would fill us with the Holy Spirit, and that we would follow the leading of the Holy Spirit within everything we do while we are up in Clarion. 2) Pray that we would speak with the authority of the Holy Spirit as we meet new ministry partners on this trip. 3) Pray that this week of preparation will be Spirit filled and Spirit led, and that we will not allow this trip to be a burden on us. In Christ, Scott and Briana "But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31
He has answered! After weeks of prayer and playing phone tag trying to reach the pastors of both Zion and First Baptist of Clarion, our magnificent Lord has given us answers from BOTH on the same day! Praise Him! We love to hear in such a powerful way that we can have full confidence answers are from Him. We will be heading to Clarion the week of April 10. Again, God knows all the plans, we are only stewards of that plan. Will you again pray with us that we will seek His perfect plan for this trip? There are a ton of details to be worked out. We only want to do this one way: His way. Pray with us: -that we will carry the name of JESUS well every step of every day and all the way to Clarion -that we seek HIS wisdom in every decision -that He gives us confidence in the dates we have chosen around April 10 {April 9-17} -for the Holy Spirit to speak through Scott on April 10 at FBC to share God's vision on this campus and in this city. -for a set date to meet with the pastor of Zion -for other fruitful connections/relationships to be made in and around the city (staff, students, organizations, etc..) -that those God has called to financially support us will immediately see the need and respond. -that God would settle our minds and give us peace about whether our kids will go or stay, and that He would provide for those who will be caring for them if they do not go with us. - for the small details to be taken care of :Hotel vs Finding a family to stay with :Fly vs Drive :everything else How can you help? We would like to ask if any of you have frequent flyer miles or hotel points that could be of assistance to the financial burden of making this sort of trip. Also, If anyone has any other tips regarding the travel portion, let us know! We want to be the best stewards of what He has given us that we can. We love you all and thank you for your constant prayers! ~Scott and Briana Isn't it amazing how when we really take the time to listen to God's voice, He lets us in on His heart?
And when He does that, He tends to apply it to our life immediately. That is exactly what has happened to me recently. Through many bible studies and sermons, the point has been made very clearly that if I truly love God, then I will love people. On the surface, that's easy to swallow. But when God places people in our lives that are hard to love, we realize it's not so easy! At the end of John, Jesus tells Peter that if He really loves Him the most, then He will shepherd His sheep. And He tells Peter this three times in a row, which seems to be quite normal for Peter. Jesus was making it clear to us that if we really want to love God, then we are commanded to love and take care of His people. This includes people who are easy to love, and those who are difficult to love. We are drawn to those who are like us and people who make us comfortable. But God wants us to be like Him. Jesus did not hang around the popular. He did not hang around the loved. He went to the sinners and tax collectors. He went to the neglected. He went to the severely sick and disabled ones, who probably smell and had been laying on the same "pallet" for a very long time. Next, Jesus tells Peter that he was going to die in a very unpleasant way. And then He told him to 'follow Me'. In order to follow Christ, we must die to ourselves, and allow Christ to loves those through us when we are unable to on our own strength. So what does this have to do with college ministry? Well, God has been challenging me and preparing me to love and minister to students who I might not immediately connect with. He wants me to love ALL the students, not just those who I can understand and get along with. And He wants me to challenge my students to live the same way, and understand that their life is not about them, but it is about Him, and living sacrificially for Him. To love God means to love people. And if I am having a hard time loving people, then I need to re-examine my relationship with God. I know that God is going to bring some students my way that I am not going to want to minister to if I am walking in my flesh. I know that I am going to have to die to myself everyday, and love all students. They are all created in the image of God. He has a purpose for all of them. Who am I to get in the way of that just because I don't click with them at first. And let me just say this. I know that I have been that guy for someone else in my past. I know too many people while growing up that have gone out of their way to love me more than I deserve. I know that it was because of Christ in them. I know I have been difficult for some people, yet they still loved me. Even greater than all of that is the fact that "while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Even though we were an enemy of God, He loved us. He died for us. He seated us on the throne. He has given us His inheritance. He adopted us. Yet we were His enemy. If I love God, then I will love people. Praise God, He first loved me! THANK YOU
"Many circumstances connected with my own early life and service presented this aspect of work vividly to me; and as I think of some of them, I am reminded of how much the cause of missions is indebted to many who are never themselves permitted to see the mission field—many, it may be, who are unable to give largely of their substance, and who will be not a little surprised in the Great Day to see how much the work has been advanced by their love, their sympathy, and their prayers." Hudson Taylor, 'A Retrospect' Hudson Taylor, a missionary to China in the 1800's and the founder of the China Inland Mission, recognized something vitally important to every missionary around the world. The work of the mission can not be done without the support of brothers and sisters in Christ who desire to see the lost of this world come to know the Savior, Jesus Christ. Briana and I can not tell you how much we love you guys, and how much your prayers and support mean to us. The excitement you have for our calling, and the fact that we know you are praying for us is truly a blessing! We praise God for Him placing you in our lives, and for Him calling YOU to be a part of this mission. UPDATE We are now around 60% of our goal, so praise God! He is opening up new doors each week, and we have some new opportunitties coming up! - last week I was able to speak at Lebanon Baptist Church in Greensboro. They were very excited about the ministry, and we thank them for their coming on board and being our newest partners! - There are 3 churches that we are in contact with to have us come and share our ministry to their congregation. Please be in prayer for these possiblities. - I am planning a trip up to Clarion to visit both churches in the area, meet students on the campus, and to allow God to give me a future vision for what He wants to do through us for the sake of His Kingdom. Please pray that God will line everything up perfectly for me to be able to speak at both churches while I am up there, and that He will open up doors not only for partnerships, but for relationships that we can build on once we move. - Please pray that God will bless us as we continue to contact people about this ministry, and that He will call those He has chosen, and that they will be open to his call. As of today, if you give online or have a monthly draft taken out of your account to support this ministry, you will need to re-establish your account with NAMB. They have updated and made improvements to their system, but this also means they cannot re-enter your banking information. Automatic payments will not continue until you update your account. Please take a moment to re-enter your information, we appreciate everything you do and apologize for any inconvience!
http://www.namb.net/msc-recurring/ (Monthly Giving) http://www.namb.net/msc-onetime/ (One Time Gifts) Happy New Year! Scott & Briana Underhill **Original Message sent by NAMB to Online/Automatic Supporters** Dear Online Ministry Partner, We are pleased to announce that we are switching to a new online support raising system for 2011. The new system will help improve efficiency for online donors and gifts received. You will now have the ability to create a login and password so that you will be able to view your on-line giving history. Also there is a new opportunity to give weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly recurring gifts. Due to security reasons, we are not able to pull credit card information from the previous donation system and transfer it to the new system. Therefore, in order for your valued missionary support to continue, we will need you to initiate this process with us one more time. As of December 31st 2010 your current recurring gifts will be discontinued in our previous system. Therefore it is very important that all donors go to this link: http://www.namb.net/msc-recurring, in order to reinitiate the donation process by setting up a new profile and setting up a new recurring gift. It’s important when setting up your new recurring gift to uncheck the box that says “Please charge my card today”. Not un-checking this box may result in you being charged in both systems during this time of transition. We realize the complications involved in changing systems, but we appreciate your understanding that this will be a beneficial change. The North American Mission Board wants to thank you for your prayers and donations given in support of our various programs. We appreciate your willingness to be used by God in advancing His Kingdom throughout North America. Through your giving, you tell the Good News. Deborah A Peterman Staff Accountant North American Mission Board 4200 North Point Parkway Alpharetta, GA 30022 770-410-6551 800-462-8657 Ext. 6551 dpeterman@namb.net Now the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Tell the sons of Israel to turn back and camp before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; you shall camp in front of Baal-zephon, opposite it, by the sea. “For Pharaoh will say of the sons of Israel, ‘They are wandering aimlessly in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ “Thus I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after them; and I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD.” And they did so. Exodus 14:1-4
This last month has been an interesting one. At the beginning of October, Briana and I felt like we had everything under control and we felt compelled to step out and make some big decisions. First, we decided to start the Dave Ramsey budget to help get our finances in order. Second, we challenged ourselves with getting all of our support by the end of October. We felt good with these decisions, and we were excited to see what God was going to do! So what happened? Well, a few days after Briana posted the last blog post, she ended up with Pneumonia, and our lives got flipped upside down. After a trip to the Emergency room one night and a couple days in the hospital, we had to rearrange our plans for awhile. Unfortunately, the Pneumonia knocked Briana down longer than we planned. And then we realized that the Antibiotic was what she was having the allergic reactions to, but that was after we went back to the Emergency room again! We were feeling defeated to say the least. We were having a hard time putting the pieces together on how this all happened. What happened to the whole month of October? WE had PLANS!! There was no time to do any ministry during this time because Briana had to rest to get better, and that led me to go into "Single Dad" mode. We were physically, mentally, and spiritually drained. We were struggling. Two things helped us through this time and helped opened our eyes to the truth. First, our church family stepped up big time and went over and beyond to help us out. Within one hour of us posting on the computer that we needed some help, families had volunteered to help us out for over a week! Someone was watching our kids all day that week while I was at work, and someone else was preparing supper for us every night. This allowed Briana to just sit and rest. We praise God for the love and compassion that our church showed us at a time that we so greatly needed it. Second, God led us back to Him through His Word. See, during these draining times in life, it is so easy to pull ourselves away from the Lord. I don't know why we do it to ourselves, but it happens. But our God is so merciful and loving to us, that He patiently waits for us to turn around, and He is there to bring back in! Briana was moved one day with a reading of the book of Job (which I will let her explain in her own words one day). But for me, I had been working my way through the book of Exodus. The night before, Briana and I had a conversation about where God was leading us, and how we knew He was in control, but it was hard to understand from where we were sitting. We both confirmed with each other that we KNEW we were called to Clarion, and that God was doing this for a purpose, for a reason. Then He placed me in chapter 14 of Exodus for my reading the next day. God had taken the Israelites around the Philistines and took them to the Red Sea. From the Egyptians point of view, the Isrealites looked lost and were wandering aimlessly, and they knew that they could catch them and return them back to Egypt. Then there were the Israelites who wanted to return to Egypt because they could not understand why Moses had led them to this position, a position between a sea, and the army of Egypt! They were stuck. It looked hopeless. There was NOTHING they could do on their own. But God led them on this wandering trip to the sea in order to do something: to demonstrate His power so that He would get ALL the glory, and that the nation of Israel would praise Him and honer Him. He parted the Red Sea and gave a passage way on dry ground for Israel to cross this impassable position. And He made the waters to crash over the army of Egypt! God did it. He wanted the Glory! The end of Exodus 14 says "When Israel saw the great power which the Lord had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and His servant Moses." See it might not make a lot of sense to us why God has on this long and wandering path to Pennsylvania. Satan wants us to question our calling, just like Israel did. He wants us to give up and defeat us. But God is victorious! He wants to demonstrate His glory. He wants to show us that He will get us to Pennsylvania, and not by our works. We are excited to see how God gets us through our Red Sea. We are excited to see God deliver us to our destination, and to see how He does it. He wants all the Praise, and He deserves it. Praise God that He is soverign, and He is in complete control. Guest post by Briana
A friend of ours who is a missionary in Thailand (check out her blog) jokingly called her support raising efforts the 'Traveling Circus'. We have entered into that realm traveling just about every weekend somewhere new. It is so funny when we are back home on Monday and Elijah is asking me, 'Mommy, where can we go this Friday?'. God definitely gave us two of the best travelling kids, because that's just a glimpse of how awesome He is. He doesn't just prepare us, He has prepared them as well. What a blessing! But, really, it has been an enormous blessing for us to meet our Brother's and Sister's in Christ from all over and watch their passion for college ministry be transformed in their own churches. We can be fooled into thinking that we go and prepare to speak and share our vision for Pennsylvania campus ministry and pray for financial support.... but God is using His message in many ways for HIS Glory! We are thankful to be a part of that. In all honesty, there are times this process seems long and daunting. But when we step back and look at the timeline falling behind us, there has been such spiritual growth in our lives, it is nothing short of God's hand leading and guiding our path and equipping us for what is ahead. A wonderful quote I ran across recently, Jim Elliot said: “Missionaries are very human folks just doing what they’re asked. Simply a bunch of nobodies trying to exalt Somebody.” It is so true. We are not special. We are following God's plan for our lives and we were not fully ready before He called us. He is molding us, He is shaping us, He is preparing us. Please do not be disheartened at the pace of that little ticker on the front page. We are READY to be in Clarion, but it will be so much better when GOD is ready for us. Back in June, I had been praying very specifically for peace over when we would be moving to Clarion. I was asking God to please tell me if we were doing something wrong or if we needed to be more obedient with our time or efforts and just begging Him to teach me whatever it was I was missing.... June 29 during my quiet time, He answered me in a very powerful way with this scripture: "..repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem...But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high." Luke 24:47-49 Now, I know this is actually referring to the First time the Holy Spirit would descend on God's people... but that morning I knew God was answering me. Not with a date, not with a vision of what we needed to DO more of. He just isn't finished yet. He is clothing us for this ministry, He is clothing you for this ministry, He is clothing Clarion for what He will do there on the campus, in the community, and in the lives of individuals. You can rest assured that by the time you see us packing up our moving truck for Clarion, God will have broken us and pieced us back together more times than you can count. He might be holding us here by way of finances, but the work He is doing in the meantime is priceless. Please join us as we continue to pray that God would fulfill our financial needs by the end of October. His word tells us to come to Him and ask boldly. We are praying for miracles. We are praying for God to move in a way that there is no mistake that we did NOTHING, but HE did EVERYTHING to get us there!! But, we are fully aware that HIS time is better than our time. If we do not ask, we will not receive. Only He knows how He will answer.... it is only our job to do the asking. September - October Update: We have been blessed to meet our brother's and sister's at Pleasant Hill Baptist, Bethlehem Baptist, and Thanksgiving Baptist over the past month. We are thankful for those who were willing to share on our behalf and get us to those places. We are mostly grateful to God for decreasing ourselves, increasing Himself and allowing Scott to share the vision the Lord placed on his heart. Also, this month has brought a lot of sickness to our home. I have been sick since the last week of Sept and it has now progressed into Pneumonia. I am able to rest and Scott and the kids are such a wonderful help. Please pray for full recovery as I really want to do more than I am capable of at this time. Pray that distractions away from the Lord's work will be minimal. I am encouraged that usually when BIG things are getting ready to happen, life here in the battlefield seems to go haywire. Please pray this for us as we pray it for each of you! "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light" Col 1:9-12 Grace & Peace to you all! Briana Underhill We received this alert from NAMB today Mark August 28 in your calendars! Dear NAMB staff and missionaries: Leaders of the North American Mission Board and the International Mission Board are asking Southern Baptists to join in prayer on Saturday, August 28, as we lift up members of the search teams who are looking for new presidents for each entity. Would you please mark your calendar and plan to pray for this very important process? Below is the recent Baptist Press story announcing the call to prayer. Baptist Press Story 115 Ministries Golf Tournament August 21st, 2010 Registration Beginning at 11:30 AM Shotgun Start at 1:00 PM The Neuse Golf Club 918 Birkdale Drive, Clayton NC The mission of 115 Ministries is to reach our community and the world with the message of Jesus Christ by funding missions and community outreach projects. Proceeds from this tournament will help support Scott and Briana Underhill’s missionary vocation to Western Pennsylvania. $75.00 per Person $250.00 per Foursome Tournament fees include greens fees, lunch, awards dinner, vouchers to the Neuse Lochemere golf clubs, prizes and t-shirts Sponsorship opportunities also Available Any questions contact Justin Zimmerman at 919-369-5350 or any member of the Nearly/Newlyweds Sunday School Class. |