The story of God by Matt Papa

I heard this at a youth conference last weekend!  10 Minutes long...but...WOW!  I just wanted to share!  ~Emma

A note from Emily....

^{John 13:6-7 "}Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."

This is a verse that I found while having my devotions this morning, and thought about you guys "the one(s) who sent him(her\me)."  I am the one going to deliver the message but, without you guys I wouldn't make it very far... 

Thanks so much!

~Emma

March 23, 2013 Update

Good morning friends,

Melissa here.  I am so sorry!  I am behind in updating, and many of you have asked how the journey is progressing.  I typically do blog updates on Saturday mornings, when it might be a wee bit quiet at our house of chaos and my "excuse" is that my husband and I were out of town last weekend.  We had the JOY of taking some teens to a weekend youth conference and we were blessed beyond words to spend time with our teens  worshiping our AWESOME God and learning about our "real" life.

"Your REAL life is hidden with Christ in God." Colossians 3:3  

A quick stats update as of TODAY:

340 blog pageviews  (tells us many are following this journey and praying- thank you!)

104 days left till her trip (it still feels so far away but as things start winding down for another school year...we will quickly begin feeling the pressure)

 $1715 in donations so far!!!   THANK YOU GOD!  Only You could have moved in hearts and caused so many sacrificial donations!

What still needs to happen?

PLANE tickets can now be ordered.

ONLY $785 + the cost of plane tickets to and from Dallas (I will know this final total by the end of the week)

Travel plans and some permission forms need to be completed.

Would you please pray with us regarding a few things:

1.  That God would provide the remaining money quickly.

2.  That Emily would continue to learn about the people of Alaska and develop a hearts love for them.

3.  That Emily would continue to learn how to be bold and share her faith well.

4.  That we would be able to have plane tickets that would allow Emily and her friend to fly together.

5.  There is an opportunity at BBC in a few weeks that would allow Em some hands on mission training.  She would have the opportunity to learn to present the gospel to children, do hands and feet service of passing out lunches and food to some in need, as well as some door to door type evangelism.  This is all completely out of her comfort zone, and yet, she has asked to do this.  Please pray that we would be able to quickly make plans.

AGAIN, THANK YOU so much for all that you are doing in praying for, encouraging, and financially supporting her.  God is GROWING her and she is learning to be bolder.  She read a monologue at our church's Talent Night...that was a huge step for her.  She sang in a trio as part of a nursing home ministry this week, and has been playing percussion in the worship band for some time now.  We have been blessed and encouraged as we see her learning to step out and trust God to take care of her, even when she doesn't feel like it.

Keep those prayers rising!                                -Melissa "MommaSa" Brink for Emily and the Brink Bunch

Some interesting facts about Alaska...

As I have been looking forward to my upcoming trip, here is some information about the state.  I found most of this information at the state website for Alaska.  (http://www.alaska.gov/kids/)

State Name:  "Alaska" is derived from the Aleut word "Alyeska," meaning "great land."

State Nick Name:  "The Last Frontier"

State Motto:  "North to the Future" - This motto was chosen in 1967 during the Alaska Purchase Centennial and was created by Juneau newsman Richard Peter. The motto is meant to represent Alaska as a land of promise.

State Capital:  Juneau, located in the southeast region of Alaska, has a population of 30,684.  

State Flag:  

The blue field is for the sky and the forget-me-not, the state flower. The North Star is for the future of the state of Alaska, the most northerly of the Union. The dipper is for the Great Bear, symbolizing strength.

State Flower:  The forget-me-not, which grows well throughout Alaska, is the State flower.  

Common Misconceptions About Alaska

Bad Weather:  During the summer, average daytime temperatures throughout the state range from the 60s to the 90s.

Bad Road Conditions:  Almost the entire length of the Alaska Highway is asphalt-surfaced, and approximately half of the roads in the state’s highway system are paved.

Secretary of State William H. Seward arranged for the United States to purchase Alaska from Russia in 1867 for 7.2 million dollars, or 2 cents per acre. Check out this link from the National Archives, it shows the actual cancelled check for the purchase!
http://www.ourdocuments.gov/doc.php?flash=true&doc=41  

Favorite Sport:  Dog Mushing is the state sport. It was once a primary form of transportation in many areas of Alaska. 7:34 AM  TODAY!  3/8/2013 Sunrise in Anchorage, AK  (the time is from today...but the photo is not!) State Land Animal: Moose

State Insect: The four spot skimmer dragonfly

State Marine Mammal:  Bowhead Whale  size comparison to the whole USA

more REJOICING about stats!

Good morning friends,

If we wrote a story just from some of the newest statistical information alone, it would be a HAPPY one!

as of today...

283 blog pageviews (again this just is a snapshot that tells us many are following this journey and praying)

119 days till the trip (it still feels far away)

donations so far have been $1135.  THANK YOU!

only $115 needed before she can order her plane tickets...once the plane tickets are ordered I will know a final TOTAL...

I am totally blown away by God's provision for her.  Many of you have promised to be praying and have already encouraged her with your words, notes, and hugs.

THANK YOU so much!  

On a personal note, in case you didn't know, I will let you in on a secret.....this mama is HUMAN!  Our family has experienced some out of "our" ordinary LIFE these past few days.  LIFE that God has chosen to allow, but LIFE that has made the days hard and long.  My HUMAN instinct is to cocoon my kids around me, get quiet, find a way to protect myself, HIDE.  I am glad that God is so much MORE than my humanness.

I do not know what plans God has for our family, and the control freaky part of me HATES that.  I want to SEE what He is doing and of course I want to see it NOW (if not yesterday!)!  And most days...that is not how God operates.  He asks me/us to TRUST not SEE.

John 20:26-29 (NLT)  "Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said.  Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed.  Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”

To believe and not see...is HARD, really, really hard!  But that is faith...to believe when I can't SEE.  Without faith God says it is impossible to please Him!  He even counted Abraham's faith towards Him as righteousness.

Do I totally understand how that works?  Absolutely NOT, I am not a theologian.  I am just a Jesus follower who is HUMAN.

When we started praying and planning about this trip, all I could SEE was an incredible amount of money.  I still do not know how or if God will provide, but through a variety of circumstances and His Word this week, I have been reminded that I can choose to TRUST what I cannot see or even begin to fathom.  God's plans and ways are so far beyond what I could even imagine...and believe me I am good at imagining.  BUT, I am choosing to TRUST that He is writing a story that is far, far BIGGER than whether or not Emma receives enough funds to go on this trip.  He has reminded me that He allows LIFE to occur so that we will see our complete need of Him alone, and so that He alone can be glorified.

I am grateful that He allows us to be part of His story and I can't wait till the day when we get to see the FINAL production and finally understand what our role was.

Thanks again for all that you are sacrificing to provide for Emma and for loving our family!

~Mama B 

God Provides! (from Mom)

Philippians 4:19   "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."

Matthew 6:31-32  "Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all."

Matthew 7:11  "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!"

I am REJOICING this morning at all that God has allowed and provided for Emma.  The stats as of this morning are:  

232 blog page views  This ENCOURAGES me to know that so many of you are following this journey and are praying for her/us!  THANK YOU!

$775 donated by 12 people  So many of these are sacrificial, we know that.  THANK YOU!

125 days till her trip.  PLEASE keep PRAYING that God would provide and that she would be ready!

$675 needed before the end of May...(she can order plane tickets when this goal is met)

One of my greatest joys this past week is watching God use all of you to provide for this trip.  A friend of mine from college and I would always wonder how God was going to help us pay our bills.  Humanly speaking there was no way it was going to happen.  We were doing all that we could by working as much as we humanly could and endeavoring to TRUST Him with the rest.  EVERY TIME He provided.  We rejoiced and said with the Psalmist  in ...

Psalm 37:25 (NLT)  "Once I was young, and now I am old.  Yet I have never seen the godly abandoned or their children begging for bread."

I sit in awe of what God is doing both in the physical provision of money and in her heart as she desires to be a blessing to people.  She is always ready to serve.  Even this week, she went to a lady's house and meticulously cleaned and dusted, never asking for pay just desiring to help the best that she can.  

I keep remembering the verse in James that says "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you." (James 1:27).

That is how I pray for Emma, and all of my children...that their religion would be pure and genuine in the sight of our Heavenly Father and that they would not just talk about their faith but that they would LIVE it LOUD!

Thanks again for being part of this journey!  

We truly appreciate each of you.

~Momma B