OUCH!

Ouch!  I feel  the pain. 

The pull I thought would drive me insane. 

The wind from the north, the breeze from the west,

 Started to stretch me and break me a sweat.

 Yet all settled down and quiet it be,

 I wonder how long till the tarrying would seize.

Then up from the south and the north wind again

Came blowing about to uproot some men.

With promise of planting and nurture and care,

The song in the wind was to mold thee for where?

 

Oh Lord let us trust you as we stretch in the breeze. 

May our roots be grounded beyond the soil we see. 

For Your plan is alive and multifaceted it be. 

Let us bathe in the light of our Savior, yes, Jesus, it is He. 

May this encourage you as our husbands go through the interviewing process.

                                                                           God Bless,  Kelly Cross

What Am I Doing Here?

by Candice Torres

It’s Monday and I feel like I have lived this day 1000 times before. I am used to having a beach to walk on, a city to explore, a boardwalk to stroll along with an ice-cream, a train or bus to catch, a variety of malls to choose from, a job, a million options… and you get the idea.

But here I am miles away from my home; Perth Australia. In an entirely different culture, without my family and friends, alone in a little apartment with my newborn baby Micah, in Collegedale Tennessee, which according to me is in the middle of nowhere!

I begin to feel discontent, frustrated, anxious, and irritated. What am I doing here? Surely God does not want me to spend my life staring at the four walls of my apartment while my husband achieves his goals. What about my goals? What is my purpose? And we don’t have any money, we barely have enough for food, for gas, and baby formula. I can’t even get clothes… It’s summer, and I am still wearing my maternity winter clothes! UGH!

After a week of discussing with my husband our options so we can both enjoy our lives and so I can have a purpose too, I give up trying to figure it all out. I decide to take a shower, where I break down in tears. I now know what it means to truly pour your heart out to God. I have never felt so helpless. I don’t want to take away my husbands dream of being at SAU, but I want to be able to enjoy my life too, and be the best wife and mum I can be. I ask God to at least take some of the burdens away of our situation like no money for food, for gas, the basic necessities in life. I also ask God to put a new desire within me to enjoy the place He has called us to go.

The next day is Sabbath morning. Micah gets dedicated. I am super excited to dedicate my son to Jesus. What a privilege! Unexpectedly I broke down in tears during the dedication. I was happy for my son, but unknown to everyone else, I was mostly crying from exhaustion and the frustration of the past week. At the end of the service, I am approached by a member of the church. She begins to tell me that she wants to adopt Marcos, Micah and myself as her family. She is now our 2^nd mum, and Micah’s yaya (grandma). God had just blessed me with family that I don’t have in Tennessee. But that’s not all. She speaks of how she wants to make sure we never have an empty fridge or pantry again. So now I make a shopping list each Wednesday night for her, and she buys my groceries and provides us with gas money each week! We never have to worry about being without food, formula or gas. Praise God! He has provided once again! Just when I thought He was through, I notice my heart begins to change. I recognize my selfishness, and my discouraging countenance of the past. I now have peace, joy, and am filled with content. I realize my purpose. God didn’t just call Marcos to ministry. He has called me also. He has called me to be a help meet for my husband, and this I will gladly do for the rest of our lives. 

 

Thank You!

This post is for Kelly.

What an inspiration you are! You a busy busy mom-student, yet you still find time to minister to others. You are caring, loving and talented beyond compare. You show the love of Jesus in everything you do. You are one of the most genuine people that I've ever met. Your kids and husband are blessed to have you in their lives and so are we! Thank you for your dedication to this ministry and for taking me under your wing. I have BIG SHOES to fill!!!! You have done such an amazing job with the M & M's that no matter where you are, you will always be a part of it. You have offered me your friendship, and for that I am grateful. I PRAISE G-D FOR YOU!!!

Thank you Kelly.

Ana

P.S. Your cooking is amazing!!! you should have your own cooking show...... :)

Kelly (displaying her gifts) and Mary

Blessed...

Ana (New President) & Kelly (1st President of Mates in Ministry)

Mrs. Wilson, Kelly & Mary (our lovely sponsor)

What a blessing it was to have Elder and Mrs. Ted Wilson with us over the weekend!  The highlight for me was in the afternoon when Nancy Wilson shared from her heart to the Mates-N-Ministry group and extended family members.  It also provided an opportunity to gave thanks to those gifted gals who have worked so hard to make our year in M-N-M's a successful one,  Kelly Cross the outgoing President, and Ana Banos our current President!  Praise the Lord for these energitic ladies who have a heart for the Mates-N-Ministry!

This blog has already blessed me, I look forward to others discovering it's richness.

Living in His Light!

Mary

Ministry

Last night I settled down on the couch to enjoy the latest issue of Adventist Frontiers. I always enjoy the mission stories from around the world.

My favorite in this issue was the story of "Ishmael," a Muslim man in Turkey who was drawn to the missionary and his message. Eventually one day after worshiping with them for some time he was invited to attend a baptism service. He was very moved and approached the missionary afterward and said, "I want to be next. I also want to be a true son of Abraham."

I was moved by this and other stories and found myself wishing I could be a part of something that exciting. Then the Lord gently reminded me that I am already involved in a similar ministry. My husband does Bible work every Sabbath and I always work alongside him. It is often discouraging, and it can take a long time to see results. However, I realized that the missionaries work in even more difficult circumstances and see even fewer results. I realized that I shouldn't wish for a different field of labor unless I am willing to serve in the one where I have been called.

With that thought in mind I went into our work this afternoon with more willingness than has sometimes been the case. We were very excited to actually have someone to give a Bible study to today. As we sat down to begin, the man asked earnestly. "I have a question. How can I get baptized?" It was the exact experience I had read about and wished for last night. God showed me that He does have a place for me in His work.

Janice

Still....

I'm lying here in bed. It is the end of my day. Our 5 year old daughter is lying next to me and my husband is doing "Hebrew" homework, in the background I'm listening to Hillsong United "Still". I've played that song at least twice tonight and over 100 times in my head through out the day.  The words to that song come to my mind quite often. "when the oceans rise and thunder roars, I will soar with you above the storm; Father you are King over the flood, I will be STILL and KNOW you are G-d." 

 Being "Still" is something I struggle with daily. I am worry wart by nature. I've worried myself sick before. We get so busy in the loudness of our daily life that we can't hear G-d's voice. 

Being "still" is detaching your self from all the thoughts, all the worries in your life. Finding your quite time alone with G-d is important when we want to hear his voice. 

Being here, so far away from home has taught me that I have to be "still" and trust in the Lord and he will lead us to the path that he has chosen for us. I have to admit, it is hard sometimes. I think about how will we ever be able to pay for school, but then I remember all the miracles that G-d has done in our lives and how he has made it possible for us to be here. I also think about the future: what plans does he have for us? and I stop myself. I think about a magnet on my refrigerator door. "We have nothing to fear for the future, unless we forget how G-d has led us in the past."

Right now, our house is quite. The Tv's are off and the cell phones aren't ringing. This is my quite time. the end of my day. I am "Still" Lord... 



Ana

Welcome to Our Blog

We (the M & M's) are the wonderful wives, fiance's, and girlfriends of Religion Students and Professors at Southern Adventist University. This blog was created to document our lives as Mates in Ministry.

Please, visit us frequently, we are gracious hosts and will love the company.

Happy Reading!!!!

M & M's