The Truth Project

Well, we've just completed the Truth Project series put out by Focus on the Family. We've led about 80 people through it for this first time and there are many impacted souls. I can't say enough good things about it. It is an incredibly impacting, life changing, life transforming worldview study. I am very excited to see what God is going to do with this. I have written quite a lot about the Truth Project in a section a few scrolls down - with a trailer and the website address for you to view. Feel free to scroll down and read that also. Their website is www.thetruthproject.org

How can I begin to share how it has transformed my soul and touched my inner being so deeply. Each session spoke to the core and I learned so much. Never having attended Bible school, I was completely enthralled with each one. Were there things I wasn't sure about or was it 100% perfect in every way, no, but when I kept my mind and heart open, it taught me so very much. I am hungry and thirsty for God and for His Word. At times I just can't get enough but then there are other times where I go much to long without even looking at His Word or just taking a brief 5 minutes a day for a real quick devotional. If I don't give myself enough time in the morning by awakening early and spending time reading and praying, my day just goes by with soooo much to do that I barely have time to have devotions with my family. That's not enough. God wants more of us and He wants to spend time with me each day - undisturbed time. For me, that's first thing in the morning before anyone has awakened. Going through this study has shown me how very very important it is to stay in God's Word and continue learning and growing each day.

It has changed how I view people. God forgive me cause way too many times I've put myself above others and seen others as not as important. Hearing Flash's testimony and the others in the videos sharing their hearts has really convicted me as to how in my mind, I've viewed others in the wrong way when they "look" or "act" different than I. My heart went out to Flash and I want to hug him, no matter how many tatoos he has. God help me to love others and see others through Your eyes, not mine. I need to see others who are not following the Lord, as captives being held by lies that they have been led and engrained to believe. I need to pray for them rather than pointing out what's wrong.

Watching each video 4 times in a week has a huge impact. I pray I will never forget what I've been taught and how God has touched my spirit. I pray that others that have gone through it will not forget how God has spoken to them and that this will not stop, that others will in turn, turn around and touch those around them with what God has done in their lives. Oh that we will love others the way God wants us to love. As I typed what others have given me to share, tears ran down my face. Thank you God for giving me this privilege of walking through this study with so many dear people who love you and want to learn more of you. I love you all and can't wait to see what God has in store for us from this point on. Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing your heart and what God has taught you.

In His Service, Lisa Braun


In this section, I wanted to share with you how others felt about the study and how it impacted them. So here they are:

I have truly enjoyed my participation in The Truth Project. I appreciate the approach Del Tackett uses -- a very calm, rational, reasoned, academic approach, backed up by scientific, historic, and empirical evidence and the veracity of scripture. While dramatic and emotional approaches have their place, their impact seldom lasts. The balance of Dr. Tackett's approach and presentations, academic and reasoned but not without enthusiasm and emotion, is what is generally lasting, I believe, and is an approach effective with me. Dr. Tackett has ably demonstrated throughout the study that we do not have to "separate head from heart" to be intelligent thinking 21st century Christians.

Absolute truth is hard to get at these days. North American and European world views are almost universally accepted and adopted in North America, and many Christians (evangelical included) are included in that mix. It is great to be stopped short in our tracks and forced, mentally, to take restock of our basic and fundamental beliefs. Topics like the cosmos, the natural state of man, evolution, the science and math of design verses randomness, Darwin's impact on scientific and social thought, and God's social order (for home, church, government) are so important for the thinking Christian today. With little thought or question, I had taken for granted the validity of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I had long recognized Darwin's impact on scientific thought, but had not recognized his impact on social thought and design. These were important revelations to me. The need to apply, with compassion and generosity, the truths of scripture and reach out to others and form relationships was a great conclusion to the study. As Christians, it is our responsibility to be the neighbour God wants us to be, and demonstrate His love and care.

Thank you, Roger and Lisa, for your sacrifice, time, energy, and enthusiasm in bringing this project to our church and community. I believe I have truly grown as a Christian through this program and your leading. The written resources will be an excellent source for examination, refection, and study for many years to come. God bless and thanks again.

Dennis Ens


Dear Roger and Lisa: Thank-you so much for being leaders for the Truth Project! It's a big commitment to lead study groups. You have a gentle way of allowing people to pray or share without making anyone feel pressured. I wonder if you sometimes felt frustrated, and wished that there was more participation during sharing time. I found that there was so much to take in and often felt too overwhelmed for words. I wonder if others didn't feel the same way.

I'm glad that Bill and I took part in this Truth Project study. Just when I think I'm beginning to understand how awesome God is, how much He loves me, or think that I'm filled to overflowing with love for Him... He blows me away!, fills me with more wonder and awe, gives me deeper truths and challenges me to new depths and new boldness.

It's not okay for me to quietly live my faith and hope that others notice I'm a Christian by the things I do or don't do. God has given each of us a responsibility. I think it's time as Christians to speak up. Not in a confrontational way, but to offer a comment or ask a question that might challenge others to rethink some things. So many people think they have it all figured out, but they're so lost! They have no idea that there is TRUTH to be found.

There were so many things from this 12 week study that challenged me and gave me new understanding, or helped me to see something I already knew from a different perspective.

-----It was encouraging to be reminded that there are so many that have gone before us "such a great cloud of witnesses"

-----I know that we are to love and live in a certain manner, to strive to be like "Him", but I never thought of God as "humble". Knowing that, seeing God as a humble God, humbles me.

-----I loved the question at the end "what do I do?", and the answer "I have no clue, but I know the One who knows". That God gives each of us our own personal stirrings, passions and abilities, and as Christians if we would only use them as God intended....to glorify Him and be a good neighbor. As Dr. Tacket said "we would turn the world upside down". Or maybe right side up!

Thank-you again for your leadership. Love Kim


“The Truth Project” was an excellent reminder for me that in teaching and equipping students we must always come back to the foundation—who and what is truth? Without a foundation and an understanding of the character and nature of God, our faith begins to pull apart at the seems, and can be partitioned off into tidy little compartments that don’t have to interact with each other, rather a faith that flows, touches, and impacts every corner of our soul.

Stephen Thiessen - Youth Pastor


One of the things that I enjoyed most about this project is how the design of God for mankind was emphasized over and over again. We seem to get so caught up in the influences that the world has upon us that we miss the beauty and simplicity of God’s design. By simplicity, I mean simple for us to grasp and yet immensely complex as God is complex. He has ordained everything in the universe to operate in a certain order, and man has distorted so much of it to make himself king. I have enjoyed all the teaching and as a youth pastor I saw the need in each session to bring it to my youth group. I have already incorporated it to some extent in my Bible studies and I hope to teach it fully to all of my young people. Personally I see the need for God’s truth in my life, my family, and my church. Philippians 4:5 says, “Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.” The second part of that verse struck me the other day. There are no conditions to that statement. The Lord is near, now what are we going to do about that.

The first time through the videos seemed really fast and I am excited to watch them again and again to further implant the truth of God in my mind. Thank you for this blessing in my life.

Ron Doerksen

I have looked forward to attending "The Truth Project" every week. It has given me and my husband a lot to talk about every week, and it has challenged me to think differently about people. No one is a mere mortal. The section on art in church particularly resonated with me.

Janet Gieck


What has this series meant to me!

I am so very thankful to God for this series. It is an affirmation of the truths that I believe. Each week, I just could hardly wait to go bible study in anticipation of what would be taught that day. It was like being a kid in a candy store.

My journey in faith has been touched dramatically because I am beginning to really know the true nature of our God and as I open my heart to him, I can feel him healing me and also changing my heart. Week by week God has introduced ways of serving the needy and as I follow him in obedience I find him speaking to my heart in a very compassionate loving way. I'm finding the giving till it hurts a blessing to me because as soon as I'm finished the task and do this, God brings something better. He blesses me ten fold. Each task gets harder, but I'm finding that if I keep my eyes on him and his face, each blessing gets greater. I am so touched by this because ultimately man in his sinful nature deserves nothing. But I have discovered that man following God and loving him with their whole spirit, soul and mind is truly redeemed and forgiven on a daily basis.

There simply is no other way in life to succeed without God as number one in all areas and this series teaches us how to do it. God can do anything. Throughout this series each week he brought me new things, even viewing the story of William Wilberton before it is even discussed in the video. Mr. Wilberton fights the good fight for 46 years. This is such an encouragement for Christians around the world fighting for loved ones. I speak especially for our husbands. I have been praying for mine for almost 27 years, it gives me the courage to fight the good fight and not ever to give up.

I don't know what the future has in hold for us but I know with absolute certainty, that with God involved, in the end everything will be wonderful. My prayer for all of us and myself would be that God would put us through a metamorphosis, a complete change, and then he would use all of us to bless mankind. This to me would be the greatest role and calling. A life of service and supplication to the greatest God that I have had the privilege to know. I am truly thankful.

Rita Schmid


What is truth? Truth is that which is really real. Our actions reflect what we believe to be really real. Why did Jesus come into the world? To save us, the world, to set the captives free, this testifies to the truth. In this world we distort the truth, lies, sin deceives, truth sets us free. Faith is to have hope and trust. Truth is what God is.
These truth lessons have really brought out the reality of how great and awesome God is, he is everywhere, he is All in All.
This has brought out a new urgency in my life, to love God with all my heart soul and mind, to love my neighbors as myself and to pass it on.

Tina


The Truth Project series of videos and discussion were a good medium to help us to be reminded as to the necessity of studying our Bibles. The content of the series was much the same as the first semester of Biblical Theology in a Seminary. I found it helpful in just updating some of the present day studies in Biblical Theology. I was pleased in the approach it took to "work". It gave work or labor a positive spin rather than the negative spin that our society has given to it. My one negative to the series was the one Tour concerning the Nature of God. I have no idea why he chose "God is a jealous God" as his premise for the nature of God. Aside from the high probability, in my opinion, of the concept being misunderstood and misinterpreted, there are much better premises to use. 1 John 4:16 lends itself as a good starting point that encompasses so much of the Gospel message. Or use God's own words when Moses asked God what to say when asked about who sent him "say I AM has sent you" Exodus 3:14. Other that one tour, I was very impressed with how much he was able to put into a fairly short time.
I want to thank Roger and Lisa for their faithfulness and excitement that they have put into providing this series for us.

In Christian love, Wayne McLaren

I really enjoyed the Truth Project. It showed me the real foundation of the truth and what the original plan of God was in creating the earth and us as human beings and how we should live. It has helped me to understand and reafirmed why I believe what I believe. I hope that I can remember and use what I learned to further the truth in our lost generation that has come so far from the truth. Martin Luther King, Jr., said it well, when he said " Stand up for righteousness, stand up for truth; and God will be at your side forever.'

Rita Wiebe


The Truth Project has made me think more on if what is being said is the truth. I'm checking on what is said if it is from the Bible. Learned how easily we can be deceived. Each session made me excited about God's Word. The discussions after were very uplifting. I enjoyed the whole study. May the Lord bless you always Lisa. Thank you for leading us.

Mary Hildebrandt


I would have never guessed the height, the length or depth of God's overarching love and plan for the human race. It was like a startled response that I, almost, for the first time, understood Jesus' mission to come to us and tell us the truth about all things.

I never knew how hard an adversary works to destroy us because we are of God's image, how slippery his tongue and his penetration into all facets of human society, governments, regions and ethnic groups. "So great the con of man" has been our adversary's work.

The project assembled a new way to hear and feel the heartbeat of God. Over these many tours, I would not have guessed how God has surpassed the warnings and commands of the old testament--dietary laws, laws about land and title, about dealing with the poor---With Jesus breaking in to our history as he did, and through the apostles, the organization of my personal life, the family, my family, my fellow believers, worldwide and society has been designed to flourish only when He is present in the picture.

Although the Truth Project is not an evangelical tract--as it speaks primarily to believers, it gives me greater confidence to open my mouth and tell my story, my testimony to those whom God wants me to speak to.

Tony Kesler


I learned the "new age" lingo from this series and how to listen with a 2nd ear to what people say. My knowledge was increased on how to practically defend my faith and challenge others with the TRUTH of Jesus Christ. I can now discern "false doctrine" so much better than before. My goal is to share this series at two Bible study groups in September/October 2008.

Susan Kesler


It seems to me like a long time that we attended a potluck at Cornerstone and first heard about the Truth Project. Although there was not room on my calendar to commit to another study, I signed up. I am very glad that I did!

I have been blessed every single "tour" by the wisdom shared by Del Tackett. His insights have made me laugh, moved me to tears, and caused me to reevaluate the way I think. I enjoyed hearing the stories shared by the people who were often interviewed--many of whom looked very different from me. Their candidness allowed me to see their humanity and their need for the touch of a loving God in their lives. I will not forget Flash, the female minister who talks with her hands, or the 13-year old "handicapped" boy who understands more than many people will learn in a lifetime. Although I have been a Christian for many years, I am seeing the world and the Bible in a new and fresh way, which makes me both excited and nervous. I do not believe that God has provided me these insights without also expecting something from me in return. With His help, I am going to find ways to bless the people whose paths cross mine with His love. May they glimpse--perhaps even through me--a look at the face of God, the source of all Truth. And may I be His ambassador in a world that is being held captive and needs Him more than ever.



For me, the Truth Project was a reminder that we need to use the Bible as the only real source of Truth. Often we hear ideas and concepts, and if we hear them often enough, we begin to accept them as truth. Instead of doing so, we need to go to God's word and look at these ideas through what He has written there to guide us.


The Truth Project has been an interesting and in-depth look at the world through the lens of the Bible. It has allowed me to see truths that I have known all my life from a different viewpoint and it has brought to light some new truths that I had never thought. From the very beginning, this study has sought to transform or morph us into men and women who are willing to live by the truth and for the Truth, Jesus Christ. Through the process of looking at every aspect of our culture and then comparing this to the Bible and the very nature of God, I have had my mind renewed to be inline with what I now know to be true. Having said this, I am still finding it hard to be transformed completely, both heart and mind, to live out what I know in my head to be true. Being challenged with the different spheres of our society and how God has arranged them to point back to Himself, I see how far short our society has fallen in having sphere sovereignty being violated all the time. With the government paying out welfare instead of having the sphere of labor provide jobs for the poor or social assistance programs replacing the church roles in reaching the inner needs of people through bringing people to Christ, I find it hard to know where to start any change when the task seems enormous and I do not know what I can do. I have seen some change within myself over the past weeks though. After studying the sphere of labor, I find myself being reminded to be the best worker that I can possibly be in the workplace and I know that people around me have noticed. I also find that I am more passionate about issues now than ever before. I believe this to be due to the fact that I have seen truth and am beginning to be willing to fight for it and live it out. Although we all want to be great Christians such as William Wilberforce or any great man or woman from scripture, I think that if we would just allow God to effect a change within ourselves, we would begin to see not only ourselves transformed, but also the world. And to effect this change we must ask ourselves one simple questions, "Do I really believe that what I believe is really real?"


I found that through my involvement with the Truth Project my outlook on God, life, myself and others has changed into something a lot deeper. I saw in old and new ways who God is and how He has created this world to be. I see God as more involved in all aspects of our lives than I did before. All of the lessons taught me something new and thought provoking, however the last one is the one that got me really upset. It made me upset at the church and how we don't care of each other, much less anybody new coming into the church. Everyone says that they give, but do we really? Do we obey God and give or do, even when it hurts? I don't think so. I know I don't. so, I want to remember what I've learned, repent and return to what God has called me to do. I want to be a sacrifice and to give sacrificially whenever God asks it of me, which is always.

God's Calling

This morning in my devotions, I read about Paul in Acts 16:6-10 "Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. 7 Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia,^[a] but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. 8 So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas.

9 That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10 So we^[b] decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there."

Paul and Silas listened to the Holy Spirit's promptings, they obeyed. And because they were obedient, they played a very significant part in starting a new faith community in Macedonia. The had their own route they wanted to take, but the Holy Spirit stopped them from going that way and He showed them His way to go.

As a believer, I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit, all believers are, and our utmost desire should be to please Him. Ephesians 2:22 says this "Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit." But then further on in Ephesians chapter 4 verse 30 it says "And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own,^[a] guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption." When I don't listen, if I ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit, to His still small voice, I grieve Him and I stop the blessing that God wants to shed upon me for being obedient to Him. When I obey, God will use me in mighty ways, and He will bless me in ways I could never imagine. May we hear the inner promptings of that still small voice so that we may make God's will our choice -- even if it takes us out of our comfort zone -- God does mighty work when we're out of our comfort zone, that's when we're relying on Him and not on what we know and are comfortable with.

Then after this, I read John 20:19-23 "That Sunday evening^[a] the disciples were meeting behind locked doors because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Suddenly, Jesus was standing there among them! “Peace be with you,” he said. 20 As he spoke, he showed them the wounds in his hands and his side. They were filled with joy when they saw the Lord! 21 Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven. If you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” I had never noticed this before. Here Jesus breathed on his disciples the Holy Spirit the first time he appeared to them after his resurrection and before he descended into Heaven. But the words, "as the Father sent me, so I send you." - this spoke volumes to me! And then He said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." WOW! Jesus didn't want his disciples doing anything on their own - he was giving them the power to do it - the same power that was in him! This speaks to us here as followers today too. Whatever God has asked us to do, our authority comes from Him and Jesus demonstrated by words and actions how to accomplish what God has called us to do - as the Father sent Jesus, now Jesus was sending his disciples - sending us. In order to do this work, this calling, I need the guidance and the power of the Holy Spirit - I cannot and am not able to do it in my own strength because my weaknesses, failure and human nature come into play and I mess up big time. If you remember in Genesis 2:7 where God breathed into man, Adam, the breath of life "Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person." WOW! Each day previous to this, God spoke, HE SPOKE, and the flowers, trees, water, living animals, light and darkness, sun, moon and stars, mountains, waterfalls.....it all came into being just by speaking it - whooogh, and there it was. Can you imagine the angels?? What a show it must have been, how glorious! But then, God didn't speak man into being, He got down on His hands and knees and formed him specifically - with the Hands of God! Then He leaned over and breathed into Him the breath of life. WOW! Amazing God we serve. So, God breathed life into man at the very beginning, but now over here in the New Testament, in the book of John, we see Jesus breathing on the disciples the breath of the Holy Spirit. God's first breath made man different from all other forms of creation. Now, through the breath of Jesus, God imparted eternal, spiritual life in His followers - this breath gave believers the power to do God's will here on earth. God has breathed His Holy Spirit into my life to do His will. Oh God, how thankful I am for what You have done for me.

I then read Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." Do you see how this all works together?? It excites me to no end having read all these verses today in my devotion time. God has such wonderful plans for me, not to harm me but to give me a future and a hope. It's gonna be so exciting to find out what all those plans are! It has been such an exciting journey already - He has done amazing things in my life. He knew how much my spirit needed to read these words today and to have these devotions that spoke so clearly into what is happening in my life right now.

To tie this all in with what has been happening in my life. :-) I've gone through some health issues and have been recommended to stay away from wheat, sugar and dairy. Well, that has been a lot of my diet so it was not easy to give up. But, have I ever been feeling much much better and also losing weight - big bonus. :-) My blood is being cleansed and so is my soul. I've been on a cleanse for the past couple of weeks - 4 days of which I was unable to eat any food, just drink a certain drink to flush out my system 4 times a day for 4 days. That hasn't been easy but it sure has felt good. Well, I've just completed those 4 days this morning. It's been interesting to me that during this time that I've had to fully rely on God for strength to do this, He has also been having me walk through a journey with a friend whose desire is to be baptized. For the last couple of weeks, we've been meeting one on one and studying God's Word together and what it means to be a believer in Jesus Christ, to accept God's gift of salvation, to be baptized and to follow God's calling in living our lives as a Christian, as a believer. What a blessed journey we've been on together and oh how much I have learned from this time of study in the Word of God. Lydia has been in the "Believing God" study with us and is now in "The Truth Project" study with us. We have walked through a lot together and have both grown immensely in the Lord. When I told my pastor that her desire was to get baptized, he said to me, "So, when are you going to baptize her?" Well, that sent me on a journey like no other. My first reaction was, "me? why me? it's your job, isn't it? your the pastor of our church?" God was calling me, through my leader, through my Pastor, to baptize this woman who I have been journeying together with through these studies this past year. I felt very unworthy, incapable and I guess fearful because I didn't want to mess up or cause anyone to stumble. Lord, how can I do this when I am so imperfect? I have no qualifications, no Bible school teachings, no experience in this area. But through verses in His Word, God has shown me that it is not only Pastors that are to baptize. Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus says "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,^[a] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” He was telling all His disciples to go tell everyone about Him, to go to all the nations, and baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Those are the qualifications. But my strict traditional upbringing still nagged on me that this was not my job. God has shown me that this time, He is calling me to do this for Him. Father, send me, I'll go, I'll go for You, to bring You honor and glory.

God is so good! He prepares us so completely when He calls on us to do His Will, not ours, but His. He has been equipping me these past couple of weeks, through this body cleansing, through meeting with Lydia and studying His Word together and through spending time alone with Him in prayer and reading the Bible. God is faithful, ever so faithful! So as all these toxins and impurities have been cleansed out of my system during this time, so God has also been cleansing and filling my soul with His promises, His desires for my life and His Word, the Bible. I am ever so grateful that I am never called to carry through with something that He will not give me the power and the strength to do. He is at work in my life, in the lives around me and sister/brother, He is at work in YOUR life right now too. Trust Him, cause He is gonna do great and mighty things in your life.

How Great is Our God, sing to me, how great is our God, for all will see how great, how great is our God! Worthy is His name, worthy to be praised, His Majesty, how great is our God! Amen?? Amen.

Memorable Christmas

This past Christmas's was one of the best ones I think. We had such a wonderful time with family and friends at the lake - we were totally blessed. The weather was good, the company was good, the quiet times were good, the food was good too. God is so good!!



It was the first Christmas that we spent all of Christmas there - it was such a blessing. We had our individual family gatherings before and after. My family has grown so much - we were able to get almost all of us in a photo together - except me cause I was takin the photo. :-) The kids just keep on growing and maturing each year. Roger's family is much smaller than mine but the kids are growing all the same - they're pretty precious when they're young like this - even if there hair is super long and hanging in their eyes, hey Brandon?? :-) They'll be all grown up and left home before we know it.


Christmas Eve was Brandon's birthday so we had friends over for cake. We played games and the kids went snowmobiling for a bit. That evening we walked to the church in town for the Christmas Eve service and then there were fireworks afterwards. I've never had fireworks on Christmas Eve before - that was neat. It was such a beautiful, mild evening, a great evening for a walk contemplating on the true meaning of Christmas - God sending His Son Jesus to earth as a baby, born in a stable and using angels proclaiming the Good News to lowly shephards, outcasts of that day, to take this New to all the world. WOW! What a God we serve. The kids camped out in the living room for the night, by the tree - something they'd never done before either. It was so great to be spending this Christmas at the lake. Another first for memories and family traditions in our own family. :-)

At another time, we had spend a night with the church family from Mont Nebo, we crashed their Christmas party. :-) But they forgave us. One Sunday, Pastor Bill welcomed all the new people but he looked at us and said, "You're not new anymore - now you're one of us." :-) That felt kinda nice. What was really great about this Christmas party was that the woman's home we were at, she knew Roger's family - Roger and his dad often farmed part of their land near Hepburn - her husband had passed away not too long ago and then her and her son finished this cabin at Big Shell. It was such a blessing talking to her, getting to know her family more and being with these good folks from Mont Nebo church. We just love church families, we can't get enough of them. :-)





On Christmas Day we had our own family Christmas and then our dear friends Peter & Helen came up with their kids for the day of sledding, snowmobiling and a wiener roast for lunch. I've never had an outdoor wiener roast on Christmas Day before - that was so cool! The guys got stuck really really bad out at the buffalo jump bowl close to Morin Lake and they really thought they'd have to leave the sled there until Spring - it took them nearly an hour to get out and it was getting dark. :-) But God was good and gave them the strength and power to get unstuck and brought them home for a Christmas chicken dinner. hmmmmmm. Copper was so funny - he couldn't get enough of running up and down the sledding hill with the kids when we were out by the lake. He'd just run and run....and chase that snowmobile, oh he would howl and chase that snowmobile. If we didn't let him outside, he's whine and whine to go out after that thing. :-)


Later in the week some of Roger's family came up for a few days and it was so good. We took them on a horse and sleigh ride through the frost covered land up there - that was just way cool!! Some of them had never had a sleigh ride before so that was great to be able to bless them in that way. We also went to see a super lights display at a home up the hill - that lady goes to a lot of work to bless others with a fantastic light display. It was a really good couple of days of laughter, movies, games, sledding, snowmobiling/giving rides to each other and talking. :-) Thank you God for special times with family.

















After the New Year, I brought up 7 kids - yah, I know I'm crazy at times :-) but it was really good. Roger came up later with some friends and we stayed the weekend yet. It's just so wonderful to be building great memories with our kids and our friends and family. In years to come, we'll look back with joy at the growing up years that our kids had - and we'll have oodles of photographs to go through to remember those by.





Here Copper is getting into trouble....again. He always got into my socks if they were laying around on the floor. If it wasn't the socks, then it was the mitts that were drying on the register, or the milk jugs - which were empty of course, but they are one of his most favorite toys. :-) He likes making Coke angry too - which doesn't take much - Coke growls everytime he sees him or walks by him - he's gettin to be an old grouch. :-)

Thank you God for this place, this lake home to build memories and to enjoy with family and friends. You have brought many people through our lives in this place and we are ever so grateful for every one of those precious precious people and these very precious memories.

Israel - November 08 ??

Have I ever wanted to tour the Holy Land?? Have I ever wanted to walk where Jesus walked?? Have I ever wondered what the sounds and smells would greet me in the Promised Land?? Would I like to stand on the shores of Galilee?? Have I ever wanted to see the Judean Hills or take a walk through the village of Cana?? Would I like to experience the historic city of Jerusalem?? Do I want my Bible reading to come alive as I visualize the areas that I am reading about?? Would I like to experience the lands of Israel, Jordan and Egypt??

OH YES YES YES!!!! That has been a desire of my heart since I was just a young girl. I can just picture all the pictures that I could take and have on my computer and in my photo albums and to show my children and grandchildren in years to come - if we are on this earth for that long. :-)

You know, God loves to grant us the desires of our heart when they align with His Will. First Bolivia in March 2006, it was such a desire of mine to go to Bolivia to see my friends who are missionaries, and also to find my dad's brother and sister on the Mennonite colonies there - he hadn't seen them in nearly 50 years. God is so good and He allowed that to happen for me. Now, it looks like He may grant another desire of my heart to go to the land of Israel. How my, how wonderful that would be.

We have a new pastor at our church and he leads tour groups to Israel once every couple of years. The questions that are above, are the questions he had put on a brochure he had created. So this November, he will be leading a group there. He's led 3 groups there so far and has been in Israel 4 times. So, the Good Lord willing, we will be going along with his group in November. I'm so excited!! I can't wait! I've been leading Bible studies for about 15 years now and have learned so much and have grown so much. Going to Israel would enhance those studies that I've done and the studies that I will continue doing so much. God has such wonderful plans in store for me yet - I can't wait to see what they all are. I keep telling my kids what great things God has planned for them in their future - plans to prosper and bless them, not to harm them - extraordinary plans for each of their lives. I feel deep in my heart that going to Israel is part of His plan for me in my life - if not now then sometime in the future. He loves to bless us with the desires of our heart - if they align with His Will. Amen???

Courage

I've known a woman for over 10 years and have always admired her and treasured her friendship. When we first met, she was not sure of the Christian faith and had not been taught to read her Bible. We have developed such an incredible friendship and have had such wonderful discussions about God/the Bible/angels/the virgin Mary/Jesus/the New Testament.....you name it, we talked about it. Sometimes we'd go for walks together and just talk and talk. Wow, did we ever grow and learn together. I've seen her children grow up into beautiful ones who love the Lord. She's raised her children in the way that "they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it" and has stood by her faith in very challenging times. She's rocked the boat when it comes to school politics and church traditions. I have learned so much from this woman. Her kids, like any other kids who love the Lord, have been challenged, tested, ridiculed or made fun of for their faith and have stood strong for God. Her family has challenged her for her faith as well and so have others in her life who are close to her. We all have at times. She has courage, this special friend of mine, much courage and she has taught it to her children. Recently, her daughter, who is in Grade 12, wrote a paper for a class assignment. This young girl is stunningly beautiful inside and out, a Grade A student and God has blessed her with many gifts and talents. My friend read this paper to me and it pulled at my heart so much, what a prayer, what a stand, to take for Christ. It completely speaks for the special youth of our day, the challenges that our youth, our teenagers who love the Lord and who yearn to stand for Him, what they go through each day - the struggles and challenges. She's given me permission to share this with you. Let it be a prayer for your children and for their children. This prayer is for all the youth in Canada, in our churches, in our schools. May it bless your heart but I pray that it will also spur you on to pray diligently for our youth, for our young women, to stand strong for Jesus and to remain pure during their young lives as women. God bless you!


"With the current spiritual state the world is in today, I believe that the gift I need most is courage. I need courage to combat the daily pressures placed upon me by an immoral society, pressures that I may not have been faced with had I been born in a simpler time. It is extremely difficult to maintain good moral values in a society tainted by drugs, alcohol, promiscuity and premarital sex. Not only am I pressured to exhibit these well-known traits of society, but I am also faced with pressures to hide or abandon my value system. I am constantly faced with rejection in various forms for standing up for what is right and true in the eyes of God. Values such as abstinence, modesty, truthfulness, patience and diligence are seen as "abnormal" or "uncool" in society and individuals who do not sport these values are faced with ridicule and rejection. Everyday I am faced with pressure from my peers as well as the media to be that "ideal" person. This "ideal" person is "cool" by society's standards, but does not exhibit good values in God's eyes. I need courage to stand up for what is right and refrain from becoming this "idealistic" person.

I am already having a difficult time standing up for what is right because I have been faced with rejection on many occasions. I am not faced with physical harm or death, but rejection even in its mildest forms is painful and can cut a person deeply. I know that I must remain close to God and to the values that are right in his eyes even when it is hard. As I graduate and begin university, I know that standing up for the truth will only get harder. Thus, I need courage now so that I can stand up for what is right no matter what pressures I am faced with in the future. Courage will significantly impact my life by enabling me to stand by my values right now, in university, in my career and in all my future endeavors. I truly desire to be blessed by God with a courage that allows me to stand up for what is right without succumbing to the immoral behavior that is horrifically prevalent in the world today. I want the courage to stand up proudly as a follower of Jesus without faltering, even though it might result in rejection, abuse or even death."

Written Feb. 26/08 in Saskatchewan.



Oh God, may this young woman be blessed for having such a heart and a prayer for You. May this be the prayers of us as well Lord, that we would stand strong for You no matter what. No matter what the ridicule is from family and friends, from spouses, teachers or parents. May we stand strong for TRUTH and Your Word - because we know that those things endure forever. Thank you God for the heart of this young woman - bless her Father, bless her for voicing her heart in such a way that it stands as an example for all the young women in her generation. May this prayer continue on in the next generation and may it also touch the hearts of women in the generation of her mother's. Lord that this would be the prayer of all women in Canada, in the world. Don't stop this here - take it to the ends of the earth. As you tell us in Your Word, the Bible, "so be strong and courageous, do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord Your God is with you wherever you go." Oh that we would hang onto that Father, that we would pass that on to our children and to their children. That we would never tire of teaching those around us of You and that we would have the courage to stand strong in our faith, in You Jesus, no matter what comes before us. Thank You God for hearing our prayers - we know You will answer. In the precious, everlasting name of Jesus, Your Son who died for our sins and who rose again and is now living in heaven preparing a place for us, Amen.

Brandon's Memorial Weekend

We had been at the lake this past weekend when the kids had their week off school. It was great to be out there and to spend time with each other and with friends. Brandon now has his Learner's license and so he's been driving a bit. When we got there, I had him make tracks in the driveway cause there was quite a bit of snow and we wanted to walk where the snow wasn't so deep. So, he was driving up and down the driveway, and oops, went over too far and got stuck. At least it happened in the driveway and not on the road in the ditch. :-) The deer traffic in our back yard was just incredible - they were beautiful to watch.

Kyrstin and her friend Amy had great imaginations and were pretending to be scientists. It was fun to watch them make their experiments. It's neat when they have such creative ideas to pass their time rather than sitting in front of a tube.

Copper, a beagle, the new addition to our family since November, was so funny, he just loved running beside the snowmobile while we gave rides to the kids and drove around the lake. Sometimes, one of the kids would sit in the saucer and hold onto him while he ran down the street - he just pulled them along like a sled dog. :-) It was hilarious!! He loves running up and down the hill chasing the kids while their sledding. He just can't get enough - and he hardly gets tired. I wonder what would happen if we let him into the bush chasing a deer or a rabbit - we'd probably not see him again for a long time. :-) Oh did he love watching the deer out the window with Roger and wanting to go after them too - he was so funny. Other times he would just be bored and lay upside down in his kennel.

The kids were just begging to go sledding down this huge hill which was down the road from town. We did! They had fun although Kyrstin got plowed pretty good so we had to take her into the clinic at Shellbrook and get her checked out to make sure she hadn't broken anything. Fortunately she just got a huge bruise on her butt!

After a great week, I decide to let him drive partway home and he was taking the curve a little too fast and ooooops, slid into the snowbank on our street at the corner. :-) Our neighbor drove by on his snowmobile and saw so he got his truck to pull us out. Then another friend walked by with her kid and saw too - Oh how humb

ling it is learning how to drive. He was very quick to remind me that he hadn't hit a deer yet, which his mom has done and his dad; he hasn't driven into a huge hitch on a guy's truck and had to sit in the backseat of a police car - which his mom has done; - we'll just wait to see what his driving experiences will lead to yet. :-) He's very lucky we didn't get far enough into the ditch to hit that huge rock!!!

L.I.F.E. (Living in Faithful Evangelism) Groups - Bible Study Groups

This is part of my dear family - my brothers and sisters in Christ - God has brought us together to walk through difficult and joyful times of life with. I treasure these people with all my heart. Yes, I treasure Roger too - he's missing from the photo cause he had to go pick up the girls from gymnastics. Brandon took this photograph for us. Ever since Roger and I started going to Cornerstone, we've always been part of an evening Bible study group and have just loved it. So many wonderful people have come through our lives as we've lived and grown together in the Lord.


We come together and we talk, pray, laugh, and cry too, and study God's Word with. In these photos we're having a dessert and finger food potluck just before Christmas. It's so good just to get together and fellowship. We've gotten to know so many people through church and our community through groups like this - so many wonderful people have walked through our lives in these groups. What an important and exciting part of church life. If I didn't have groups like this, or Ladies Bible study groups, I'd find it very difficult - they've both always been such a huge part of my life/of our lives - it'd be super tough to live without them. :-)


The following is a report that I wrote up for an annual church book that gets printed each year with reports from all the different committees in it - it gives everyone a heads up as to what has been happening in our church all year and what each individual committee looks after.


Since L.I.F.E. groups/Bible study groups began so many years ago in our church, Roger and I have always been a part of one, it has always been a huge part of our lives. We've always enjoyed the fellowship, laughter and the learning of God's Word together with other believers. We've always believed strongly in the gathering together as believers to share our lives together - whether in joy, laughter, sorrow or hardship. Fellowship has always been an important aspect of our walk with God and in our marriage. It has strengthened us and it has taught us so many things of being part of the family of God. We learn and glean so much from each other and we share a bond with the people of God that can not possibly happen just on a Sunday morning each week. When there's laughter, we laugh together; when there's sorrow, we cry together; when there's pain, we carry each other's burdens together in prayer; when there's joy, oh how blessed it is to share that joy together. God never meant for any of us to travel this life alone, He's blessed us with people, with fellow believers to share the journey together with us all, to uplift and encourage each other.

Hebrews 10:25 says " Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching."

I'd say that this is the theme verse for Cornerstone L.I.F.E. Groups. We are not to give up meeting together. God wants for us to have the fulfilling fellowship with other believers. It has been such an incredible blessing in our lives. We have walked with others through the joys of baptism, graduation, reunions, weddings, birth of children or grandchildren, job promotions, and many other celebrations of life. We have gathered strength from each other as we've walked through and prayed through the sorrows and hardships of this life; death of a child, sicknesses and diseases, death of a spouse or loved one, children moving away or not following the Lord, chronic pain/illness, financial difficulties, the challenges of dealing with aging parents...and many others. Other times we've shared such laughter together that our guts hurt, especially when Pastor Russ Reid had to eat baby food blindfolded at a baby shower. :-) What a blessing it is to be part of the body of Christ.

In Fall 2007, Roger & I accepted the invitation from Cornerstone Church to become L.I.F.E. Group Co-ordinators. After being a part of Bible study groups for so many years, it felt very natural for us to become leaders at church in this area. We have been and we know we will be so blessed by accepting this call from God. We have learned so much already and we've only just begun this role. We were only in this role for a month when The Truth Project vision stirred in our hearts, in my husband's heart. I knew that was what God was calling us to bring to our church and to our communities. After attending the conference in November, we knew even more, that this was where God was leading us. Confirmation after confirmation has now gotten us to leading 85 believers in 5 different groups through this series, both in our church and in our community; leading them so that in turn, they can then lead others through the Truths of God's Word. When we receive teaching and truths from God, we are not to keep it to ourselves but to tell others about it and to share the Good News. "Go ye therefore into all the world" and to me that means into all our communities and homes too. In the homes is where transparency and lasting relationships often take place - a great place for Bible study groups and sharing a bond with each other through Christ. In John 8 verse 31b & 32, Jesus is speaking to the Jews who believed Him, and "Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." This is what the Truth Project is all about - setting the captives free - we are being held captive by many lies that our culture is feeding us and Jesus wants us to be set free. God wants us to live in freedom, not capitivity. When we are in God's Word, praying and acting on what we believe through Christ, we will be set free. When we learn and grow together through Bible study and prayer, we will be blessed.

We are excited with what God is doing in our church, in His church. We wait in expectation as we witness Him transforming hearts and renewing minds to become more like Christ's.
Serving Him,
Lisa & Roger Braun

Breakforth 2008

At the end of January, Roger & I had attended Breakforth 2008 in Edmonton with a bunch of other great people from our church. It was absolutely fantastic!! I don't know of any other place that you can worship God together with over 10,000 believers and choose from over 150 speakers to hear or workshops to go to. It was an incredible blessed time! I had been once about 5 years ago but this was the first time Roger and attended. He was very impressed! It was really a total God-thing that we went. Usually I'm saying that we need to go to stuff like this but this time it was Roger's idea to go - in spite of the costs involved and even though we also went to the Truth Project seminar back in November as well. I know God is working and moving in my hubby's life, my life and in our lives together as a couple, and in our kids lives. God wanted us there for a very specific purpose. And we were blessed!!







Roger & I went to a couple of the same workshops but we also attended different ones as well. Roger loved Lee Strobel - who was an atheist for many many years and has now come to believe in Jesus Christ, the resurrection, Creation and our God of the Universe - who made everything in it. Lee had amazing testimonies, photos, videos and presentation. What a journey he's been on. So many of his teachings went along with what we've been going through in the Truth Project. We took those as confirmations from God that we were supposed to be there and He had us there for a purpose. Josh McDowell (www.josh.org ) also had a great talk. All the speakers did - Erwin McManus, Lee Strobel (www.leestrobel.com ), Josh McDowell, and David Nasser. I had gone to two of Donna Carter's workshops but I would've also loved to have caught one of Kay Arthur's workshops - she was really good too.



The music was outa this world - really - it was, it was, it was, sooooooo good. Friday night we were led into worship with Mercy Me and then later that night they gave us a concert. WOW! We love their songs - each song is so deep and so meaningful and so about God. Mercy Me has this one song on their new CD and I just cried the first time I heard it. They sang it at their concert and of course it really affected Roger & I. The lead singer's dad had passed away when the singer was 19 years old - hadn't started this band yet. So in the song he talks about wrapping his arms around his daddy's neck when he sees him and telling him all the things that he's wanted him to know - telling him of how far he'd come and what God had done in his life - hoping that his dad would be proud of him - he wanted to tell his dad how much he's missed him and tell him how much he loved him. Then at the end of the song he sings about when he sees Jesus how all the questions that he thought he would ask him would all leave him and how he might just be speechless and then he sings the line "But the sweetest thing my ears have yet to hear, are the voices of the angels - aaaahhhhh!" Oh it's such a beautiful song and spoke to closely to Roger's heart and to mine. The kids love it too - especially Alysha, she wants to play it over and over again. There's just certain songs like that that just go so deep into a person's heart and every song that Mercy Me sings seems to speak to a person to deeply like that - each song has so much soul in it. What an incredible gift the Lord has given to this band. They will surely be blessed for singing these songs that God has written on their hearts to bless others with. WOW!




I'm not sure what happened with this one photo but I love it. I had been taking a picture of the stage with all the lights and pulled my camera down too soon. Instead the camera caught the reflection on the floor of the lights along with a shadow of a person. To me it looks like a young person standing with their face raised up to the light that God is shedding on their face. I love the thought of that - standing in God's spotllight. :-) In a sense, are we not doing that everyday??



There were 4 separate worship sessions where we sang for about 1/2 hour and then we listened to a speaker after that. On Friday, Mercy Me led worship - that one was my favorite. Then on Saturday morning during worship, a fellow was painting this picture - it took him about 45 minutes while we were singing songs along with the band. It was incredible!! There was a silent auction on the painting for the rest of the weekend and it went for $4,500 - and that money went to World Vision or Compassion, I can't remember, one of those two. It was a gorgeous painting. Two of my other favorite worship leaders are Robin Mark from Ireland and Paul Baloche from Alberta (I think) - they both led worship - Paul on Saturday night and Robin on Sunday afternoon for the final worship time together. Both of these men have written so many worship songs that we sing in our churches today. It was great to sing their songs that they've written together with them too.

Saturday night Lincoln Brewster gave a concert as well but we hadn't stayed for that one - but we heard it was fantastic. Sunday night Third Day gave a concert and we stayed for that - was that ever worth it, even arriving home at 3:30 am and driving all the way home through a blizzard - it was sooo good. I loved seeing older people raising their hands and dancing to the music. I loved seeing so many people moved by God as we all worshiped Him in unity. Something that really struck me during these concerts was the fact that we were all there worshiping God together, people's hands were raised and the band wasn't there to put on a show, but to praise God in the songs God had given them the words to sing for us. These singers weren't there to get the glory from us or for us to 'worship' and idolize them but to give glory and praise to God. To me that's such a difference at a Christian concert - the band always talks about God and brings the praise to Him rather than to themselves. Incredible.

Both Friday night and Saturday night were a ton of different events you could take in from movies, to live comedy acts, to blues cafes, to concerts.... It's a very full and uplifting weekend and you don't want to miss a thing. If you ever get a chance to go, it is so worth it. It happens every year at the end of January. Be sure to check out their website www.breakforthcanada.ca

When Life Ain't Easy

It was 5 am on Friday morning when I got the phone call from a friend - he was calling from the hospital. Their son had just been in a truck fire and was hanging onto life from his hospital bed. I got up and was at the hospital as quick as I could. As I drove I prayed. What do you say at times like these?? Often you don't say a thing, you just be there and give hugs when needed. I had never been in this type of situation before. Just before Christmas I had witnessed a mother holding her son in the ditch right after an accident - he had already passed away - her son was the same age as mine. I had thought then, "God, why her and not me? Why her son and not mine?" Well this morning at the hospital, little did I know that I would be meeting a teacher who taught with this mom and God would give me an opportunity to share my heart of my experience through that difficult day. A bittersweet blessing.

We don't always make sense of God's timing in our lives or in our kids lives. What can we do at those moments when things just don't seem to make sense? Hold on to God for dear life and personally, as hard as it is, what other option is there but to trust God to take us through those dark valleys.

You know I had only met my friend's child once a couple of years ago. When your kids are older and don't always attend the same church or are not in the same circles of life, you don't always know that much about the family of your friends. In our Bible study groups we often pray for each other's kids and talk about them, but that's about it. So that's how it was with this friend. What a blessing it is though when you have a group of friends or a Bible study group that you can pray for each other. God had brought us together for such a time as this.

So, I had stopped at the hospital a few times that day, to stand by my friend's side and to support and pray as much as I knew how. I didn't always know how, it was something that I hadn't done before in this type of situation. But it's amazing how God gives you strength and the ability to do the things which He calls you to do. It was such a privilege to walk through this dark valley with this friend, as difficult as it was and as sad that it was. At one point, when Roger and I were there together, they asked us to come in with and pray over their son. I had never done that before either. God is amazing at how He prepares us for these moments where it would just not be humanly possible to do something like that on your own strength. Even though it's so difficult, it's amazing to see how God is at work through these times. Tyler had been on life support since he was brought into the hospital. His one brother was down in Texas and would not get in until late that night. But it was like he waited. In the evening, his vitals kept going down and down, but when his brother got there and started talking to him, they just jumped. It was like he knew. But then they plummetted again and mom said, "It's okay Tyler, you can go now." And you know what? He did. It was like he knew his brother needed to say good-bye and he needed his mom's blessing to leave and be with Jesus. God is so amazing!!

The funeral was on Wednesday. God had it all worked out that my girls would be asked to sing a song at the funeral. Alysha had been working on this piano song for a good month now -- she was playing it completely on her own. She had just gotten a new book and had seen this song and just started playing away. She knew it quite well. Kyrstin also knew how to sing it because we had sung it in church many a time. So, when the question came up if they would sing and play at the funeral, we knew just the song that God had in mind. The girls had never done anything like this either. The only other funeral they had been at was their grandfather's 5 years ago. They were quite nervous and it was quite difficult for them to practice together without fighting. The day of the memorial, they were practicing at church and just fighting and crying. I held up my hands and said, "God, there is no human possible way that this is going to work unless you intervene. Please be the song that comes out of Alysha's hands and please be the voice that comes from Kyrstin's lips because they cannot do this on their own. You gotta work through them and help them. Please Lord." I was frustrated and thinking that this had been a big mistake. God had other plans in mind.

The Memorial service was beautiful. A teacher shared, a mentor shared, an aunt and uncle shared on behalf of the grandparents, and then the brothers shared. After the sharing, Pastor Russ gave an incredible message of how God loves all people and how He loved each one of those people at that Memorial - even the rough tough dudes that don't like to step inside a church. There were not many dry eyes after the sharing and the message of love. Everyone there needed to hear that message. Then came these two girls, these two angels, to sing to the hearts of all these souls that had just heard the message. And you know, God was in Alysha's fingers playing the piano and God was in the voice that came from Kyrstin's mouth. It was beautiful! He did it just perfectly. The mike wasn't working but Kyrstin didn't flinch and she sang her heart away for God. I had told the girls during the sharing that God was at work in all these hearts through all these messages and that they were going to finish this message for Him through the song. They were missionaries that moment, sharing the love of Jesus through song. This was the song they played and sang:

Above All

Above all powers, above all kings,
above all nature and all created things;
above all wisdom and all the ways of man,
You were here before the world began.
Above all kingdoms, above all thrones,
above all wonders the world has ever known;
above all wealth and treasures of the earth,
there's no way to measure what You're worth.

Crucified, laid behind a stone,
You lived to die rejected and alone.
Like a rose, trampled on the ground,
You took the fall, and thought of me,
Above all.


You know, they didn't do it for themselves or for their parents, but they did it for our friends and for God. It wasn't a performance, it wasn't a show - it was a message from the heart from the angels of the Lord to the hurting souls in that church. God amazes me. He is so worthy beyond our comprehension. His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts. He is amazing, steadfast, loving, forgiving and comforting. He is everything to us and He'll take our hand through anything here on this earth as long as we let Him. Won't you let Him today?? He's waiting for your invitation to be a part of your life. He wants to bless your socks off but He also wants to walk with you through the difficult valleys of life here on earth. He wants nothing more than an intimate relationship with you. It's the best place on earth to be, in the arms of our Loving God, in the security of His Wings, and the shelter of His Promises. Thank you God for loving me and everyone else.