How Can They?

It has been too long.
Too long since I have blogged, yet it has not been far from my mind. God has blessed our little family with so much possibility and though much is still unknown or set in stone, it is all too exciting to not share! Alas, this is not the time nor the post to do so. Let that suspense lead you into prayer for our family and ministry Cwtrials.

In reading through Romans 10 today during my precious almost-two-years-old nap time, I was bursting with joy and "amens"! With all that I have strategically planned for blogging, to begin next month, THIS could NOT wait. It is His word that interrupts my grace-filled life, and that I will not hinder.

Let me just whisper to you some of the history behind this and why my heart is so struck-
ever since I was a young girl, the Lord has impressed upon my heart a passion for missions. I married a man who loves the Lord and together we desperately seek to see Him glorified through our lives, our family, our ministry. We just celebrated a beautiful weekend with a friend who poured into us hope and truth and vision for our unique ministry. He's been where we are and God has brought him to a point now where he can humbly pour into our lives from the wisdom he has received. What a blessed time we are still processing through!

My prayer, written out on a piece of paper and again in my journal goes like this "My hearts desire and prayer to God for the (Turkish, Albanian, Greek, Zimbabwean, New Englanders, Napali) is that they may be saved!" It is Romans 10:1 and when I skimmed this first verse yesterday, I was stunned to see Paul's letter to the Romans, praying for the Israelites, to be MY very prayer for these people groups (listed in no particular order).

It later goes on to say in verse 14 &15, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news?'" (inside quote from Isaiah 52:7)

How can they?...call on the one they have not believed in, if they have not heard, if nobody has preached it to them? How can they preach unless they are sent? "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17)

Don't get the wrong idea, dismiss that picture in your mind of stoic missionaries to foreign lands, dressed and living as if they never left the US, not willing to get down in the dirt and work with the people they are among, or standing on soap boxes with bullhorns preaching only condemnation.
That is not the Gospel. That is NOT the example Christ set for us, His humble life displayed throughout scripture, befriending the adulteress and washing the dirty feet of His companions... a job meant for the "lowly".

The fact is, the truth screaming here and now even in 2012 with all of the technology at our fingertips if you are reading this... There are still people in our world, in our own country that have never heard the Gospel message, never seen a "little-Jesus" in action. How can they believe if they have never heard?

We don't need to travel to foreign lands or live among the Refugees and immigrants here in America to preach the gospel to ears that have never heard. The question is, if you are a follower of Christ, are you ready and willing to share it? Are you reading the Bible to "know your stuff", are you praying, pleading on behalf of those around you, are you living it out in your everyday life and not just at church or among certain people? Truth is, do you believe the Gospel message for yourself? That Christ came and died to give you new life. For you.

Go ahead and sing the song "Jesus loves me this I know..." But do you know that even if it was just YOU He was dying for, He would have still died. It is so easy to be caught up in "Jesus died for everyone" and follow that in our heads by telling ourselves lies that we aren't good enough. Honestly, there isn't anything you could ever do to make Him love you more, or love you any less. He loves you.

I say this all because I am learning to embrace this for myself. I'm not who I was 3-4 years ago. I was so eager to share the Gospel, but I wasn't believing its truth for myself and when those Christians weren't around I sure wasn't acting like it either.

Learning to live in God's grace, accepting it and believing it is the first step to living a life of freedom. It is where the road to living a Gospel-filled life begins, enabling you to truly live and giving you the tools to share the Truth of our Life Giver. Embracing the message of Christ, through His word, equipping us to preach it "so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." (Romans 10:4)

A (not-so boring) Education Story

The spring of 2009 was awkward for me to be around people my age. Everyone was graduating from college. I hadn't kept up with most people from high school, but I knew... they were all graduating.

Craig loved high school. I, on the other hand... still have bad dreams regularly. Like the one I have too often about me failing math (which was almost a reality) and not being able to graduate high school early. Sometimes I have to pull out my diploma to make sure I really did finish high school. I DID. I was eager to get out and finished a semester early, skipping the senior events including my own graduation. People said I would regret all of that. Almost 7 years later I still don't. I headed out to Savannah, GA to live with my sister for a while. I was sooo done with high school and New England. I was a fresh 18 and had big dreams.

I ran into a sweet girl who is entering her third year of college in Vermont as an out-of-state student (don't even think about how much it costs her!) She wondered if she had made the right choice. Her friend is going to a community college for her first two years to save money (AMEN for choosing to go into as little debt as possible!) with plans of transferring to a Christian college. This girl wants to be a missionary... and most mission organizations require a 4-year degree... and to be debt free.

My husband has told me, if he could do it over again, he would go this route. After 4 years at a Christian school in the mid-west (which he loved and gives so much credit to his spiritual formation to) I married a man with a lot of debt. Student loans to be exact ;) We have battled the regret of student loans and the blessing of only having one set of them.  

I do not believe he would have his current (or former) job 

if he did not have a degree.

I rebelled against the idea of "traditional college" but I was also broke. Not the typical college kid broke, the-my-parents-don't-believe-in-debt-and-won't-co-sign-for-me-to-get-a student- loan kind of broke.  

I spent 2 years taking classes PAYING AS I WENT in order to help work me towards getting a college degree.

And then I did it. I had everything set up to move to Michigan and do my traditional college education. I was 21 years old and my two roommates were going back to school. I had an apartment waiting for me and was 2 weeks from moving when my loans wouldn't come through. My parents hadn't changed their minds and even though I had been living on my own, I couldn't declare independent on loans. 

You know what? God had better plans for me. 

Seriously, I know that sounds cliche but less than 2 months later my now husband (and then friend of 7 years) and I began dating intentionally and married 5 months later. 2 1/2 year into marriage, I can tell you  how I become more and more convinced that God was behind all of that..  

BECAUSE HE HAD SOMETHING BETTER 

THAN WHAT I WANTED. 

Some people ask me when I will go back to school. I don't have plans to right now. I can't say that in 20 years when Abigail is grown and my hearts feels pressed to pursue my passion for nursing and we have the money that I won't then. 

If I truly believed that it was beneficial to my family and our ministry to continue my education right now, then I would be taking classes.

My ministry is my husband and then our daughter. 

Abigail is my more than full-time job. Whatever odd jobs I can work (working for my Dad's carpentry business, baby-sitting) AND bring her to help provide for our family financially I take them! I started my own business from home (REDEMPTION soap) for goodness sake to help pay off Craig's student loans faster!

OUR ministry is Cwtrials.  

God has been blessing this ministry like crazy 

and we believe He has BIG plans for us using this. 

My plate is full. I want to do everything well, so I limit myself. My little family comes first. Our ministry doing Cwtrials is second. and my business comes after those first things are DONE WELL. 

This is our season, this is the life God has given 

us when we offered our lives up to him. 

We couldn't be more happy to be serving Him this way.

I recently read an article in Gospel for Asia's magazine. K.P. Yohannan wrote this 

"Man measures the quality and usefulness of a person by his education, ability and expertise. Yet God determines his true value by the condition of his heart: 'Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.' (1 Samuel 16:7)"

If going to college, getting a degree or going for a Masters + is what you believe in your heart is what is right and best for you (AND your family if you have one), and if you know the Lord and He has placed this on your heart - GO and do it, but do it with ALL of your heart. Soak in your lectures and readings. Attend classes and make your money worth it. Use you education to maximize how you can love and serve the Lord, or if you don't know Him, make the most out of your hard work. 

Your value is not in what you do or who people say you are. 

You have value because Christ loves you and 

HE says you are worth it.

  

Soul Fest + Cwtrials

This past weekend we ran around from event to event, meeting lots of new people and reconnecting with some old friends. The one thing that kept coming up among these people (many of whom we haven't seen/ talked to in months or even YEARS) was Soul Fest + Cwtrials. Yes Cwtrials was the hot topic (umm esp since we spent our Saturday at a kick'n event doing 3 demos) but a lot of people asked how Soul Fest went.

Can I just tell you how encouraged and blessed we felt this weekend? People we hardly know were telling us that they have been following Cwtrials and been praying for us. Others were excited to see a demo live for the first time since they had only seen the YouTube vids.

So, let us give a praise report for how freaktastically amazing Soul Fest was for Cwtrials. 

Yes it was exhausting with long hot days (that we expected and well prepared for) and yes we slept every chance we got when we came home, perhaps going to sleep at, say, 8pm? But it blew our socks off! We were on a beautifully exhausted high the week we came home. We were so encouraged by those who came out to see the 10 1/2 shows (one got rained out part way through), people who stopped by our booth and many who eagerly asked how they can get us to their event. We were blessed by those sincerely poured out their hearts of gratitude for the ministry God has called us to. It was so humbling and we soaked in every word of truth spoken to us as fuel for the mission we are set out on. God has given us a big vision for Cwtrials and our family and we are amazed by what God is laying before us. 

So here are the details of our week at Soul Fest. 

Craig and I got there Tuesday the 2nd and spent the night setting up our RV that his Grandparents let us borrow (HUGE blessing!) Little Abigail joined us the next morning with our friend Abby Woodman (who has been an incredibly huge help in preparing for Soul Fest including, but not limited to, designing and sourcing our amazing vinyl banners and making t-shirts)

Our friends let us "borrow" their 12 year old daughter for the week as a Mother's helper. Oh. My. What a blessing that was! Honestly, my biggest stress leading up to this event was our very own sweet daughter. How in the world was I going to be at the booth, prep our meals, support Craig, manage our volunteers and our daughter who still naps 2Xs a day?? Our little helper was amazing! Truly, that could be a whole blog on its own. We are SO thankful for her!

In the 4 days of Soul Fest, doing 10 1/2  15 minute demos and sharing the Gospel, we estimate about 2,500 people were at all of the shows combined.


God first put Cwtrials on Craig's heart in July 2010 and Cwtrials was launched in October 2010. Our YouTube video that we launched with has had over 3,000 hits in the past 11 months. People from New England, all across the US and our friends serving in other countries around the world have asked us when we might be able to come and do an event with them.

Our vision is to partner with churches/ ministries throughout the US and around the world, using the stunts of extreme biking to draw peoples attention and share the Gospel. We are passionate about partnering with ministries so that there can be follow up and an opportunity for people to connect with other Christ-followers to learn about having a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Below are a list of links to connect/ follow us via the internet. Sign up on our website to receive our e-newsletter with reports on events, prayer and praises. We are so excited and thankful for you journeying with us in this ministry!

Click here for our website www.cwtrials.com
To e-mail us info@cwtrials.com
Click here for pictures via Flickr of Soul Fest, and other Cwtrials events.
Click here for our YouTube link
Click here to like us on Facebook with regular updates and events, pictures and tags.
Click here to follow us on Twitter
Click here to support us via Paypal

Big Vision Big Dream

Last summer, while at Soul Fest I remember whispering to my husband "Cwtrials is going to be here next summer!" It seemed a little far fetched at the time since the vision and launch of Cwtrials had just been born. I'm a dreamer, I know this. But I don't believe any dream is too big when you have God working with you to proclaim His name. 

Just 12 months later, we returned from Soul Fest again... this time as Cwtrials vendors. 10 1/2 demos later, 5 nights, 2 full-time helpers assisting us, and even bigger visions have been cast for next year.

We thought it sounded a little crazy last summer when we felt God pulling us away from youth ministry and working with our church at the time. We stepped away for 3 months as our daughter came into this world, we struggled through unemployment and a dream for Craig's career having been crushed just weeks before sweet Abigail was born. It was a lonely, desperate and scary time for us. We watched our daughter battle something within her as we sought Doctors and Specialists out, sometimes going 4 times in one week.

All this was going on as we earnestly prayed and were ministered to by close friends and family. We both have felt a call on our lives for ministry, but we needed to take this crucial time to see if we were headed in the right direction of ministry- that being church ministry.

I remember so clearly the day Craig came home and shared his heart with me that he believed he was supposed to use his trials biking skills to share the Gospel. I didn't laugh. I didn't cry (though we were so stinkin dirt poor and I was so stressed it would have been an appropriate emotional response) I just agreed to join my husband ENTHUSIASTICALLY on this journey God was taking us. We accepted Cwtrials as our call to ministry. And can I tell you something? God has not stopped blessing our socks off and reaffirming what we are doing. 12 months later and we are going stronger than ever. We have an incredible support system and so many people all around the world have messaged us encouraging us to keep doing what we are doing!

One scripture that I have clung to this past year comes from 1 Corinthians 2:3  "I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power." (emphasis mine) Craig and I are both gifted in many ways that the Lord has enabled and equipped us to be living examples of the Gospel. In all of it though, we know and we feel inadequate because any good that comes from what we do is not because of what WE do, but rather us allowing the Holy Spirit to work through us.

2 Corinthians 12 goes on to tell how in our weakness, in the trials and hardships we face, Christ is able to shine His light into those painful, dark places of our hearts, bringing about healing, blessing and bringing Glory to His own name. What we went through during the first 3 months of our daughters life was the most awful season of our lives, but having gone through it all and come out a conqueror through Christ's power, I wouldn't trade one hardship.

So this post really didn't share a lot on our time at Soul Fest which many of you have messaged me to hear about. I promise to share more over the coming weeks as we process and as we get to see evidence of our time there bloom. Our hearts are bursting with joy over the responses we heard from people at Soul Fest and with our follow up as well.

Our vision for 12 months from now is to be doing Cwtrials full time. 

It isn't just about Craig riding his bike, but God has gifted us both with speaking and leadership abilities and we share a heart for discipleship training. So while we are excited to see where God takes us around the country and world, we are humbled that He has given us a heart to help teach and train others to be more effective leaders in their community. Pray for us. We need wisdom as we book events throughout this year while Craig still works full time and we have a little one at home. Our journey these past 12 months has been unbelievable. I can't wait to see what the next 12 months unveil!

Check out our website to learn more www.cwtrials.com We also have a Facebook page and Twitter account... and YouTube and Flickr and Paypal... yeah we are a little into social networking ;)

Big Thangs

Some BIG thangs are happening around here.

Not necessarily changes for us. But changes around us.

And I have to say, I love me some routine.

So my hubs and I are really close with this other couple our age. We actually see each other a few times a week. And it rocks my socks off. I loooove community.

Well, they are moving to South Carolina. Next week. 

It's a weird emotion when you are so excited for someone and sad they are leaving at the same time.

I have had to conciously decide to not be selfish and wallow in what I am losing, but to REJOICE in this opportunity for them. 

Did I mention that I have known this friend since we were 10? Yeah, she isn't going anywhere on the friends list. Just the country. 

But get this quirkiness- 

my sister/ best friend/ Andrea and her 3 CHILDREN are moving here that SAME week our friends leave. My beloved Andy-Bear is trekking up from Georgia with her hubby, 3 kids and dog. Phew! (Pray for their journey, yeah?) They will be here for 6-18 months while her husband finishes up some schooling with the Army. 

So on the one hand, my friend that I hang out with the most is moving, but at the same time, my sister is moving her. I NEVER thought I would have the chance to be near my sister for more than 2 weeks at a time. With her being a military wife and us living in New Hampshire, it was pretty much never going  to happen. 

We are going to have pictures of Abigail with her cousins that span over MONTHS, not just several DAYS! 

And more than the pictures, we will have so many sweet memories and fun times! My husband Craig (aka Father Goose) is pretty excited too! 

Did I mention- 5 kids (Abigail + Nathan, and my sister's 3) all 5 years old and under?! Oh! And we are watching them for a week while my sister and her hubby go away for a romantic getaway to celebrate their 10 year! EIK!! I have my planner out already and am eager for the keys to her mini-van to run around doing fun-tivities allll that week!

Lastly on our Big Thangs list-

Craig and I have started the process of raising support to do CWTrials full-time as missionaries to New England. It's not just about my hottie-hubby riding his bike for kicks- it is S.O. M.U.C.H. more than that! It's about sharing the Gospel. 

God has burdened our hearts to disciple and train up leaders who can better minister in their communities. Our mission field is our community. Our city. Our great state of NH which is in desperate need of knowing what a relationship with Jesus looks like. 

To learn more, check out our website www.cwtrials.com

Church. Really- it's about leaving a church.

You may have read this blog title knowing that my husband and I recently left the church we had been involved with for the past 3 years. Maybe you want all the juicy details. The gossip. The drama. I pray your sweet spirit is not looking for that. You will not find it here. I have seen too many families leave churches on a bad note. Hurting their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as they shoot a quick e-mail letting the staff know that that they will not be serving at church the next day. I have been that person to help clean up the mess they have left behind, to feel hurt, degected and awkward when I run into them, wondering if they hate me too because of the way they left. 

This is not about why we left our church. It is about how. 

First off, leaving a church is not easy. Especially when you aren't leaving for a "reason". You don't like the preaching style. You are angry about the way the church spends money. You have a funny feeling. They talk about Jesus too much. Their coffee is gross. 

Hey, I get you. I have been to churchs that have gross coffee. Or no childcare. Or use flashy lights that make me dizzy.

However, these are not reasons to leave a church. 

My husband and I started praying about church, our family and ministry. We were simply praying to have more sensitive ears to hear God and a sensitive heart to feel His direction. We were not praying about or planning on leaving our church. That is the beauty of it. We could truly see the evidence of God transforming our hearts and redirecting our ministry focus. 

Our "plan" was to finish our last week of serving in Sunday School by the end of December 2010. We gave the Kids Ministry Director a month notice to let her know where our family was heading and to help her look for replacements. Shortly after that, my husband met with the pastor to let him know what God had put on our hearts. 

Having gone through the pain of experiencing people, and not just anyone- fellow leaders and sojourners in planting this church, leave on a bad note, only causing division and hardship for their brothers and sisters in Christ, we made every effort to leave on a "good note". We bought children's Bibles for the Kids Ministry to be given to children who did not have a Bible at home. We thought of it as a parting gift. It was a need that our church had and it was one way that we could show our love and support for the church and staff as our family moved on.

Not everyone takes a family leaving a church well. We left knowing that not everyone understood our heart and reasons for leaving. Even now, 3 months later, when people learn that we are no longer attending that church, they gasp and ask why. As if they are anticipating a horror story. Waiting to hear the drama. Why can't leaving a church be seen as a move of the Holy Spirit in our hearts? God does not always call us to one place for our whole life, we often experience things during seasons in our life. My husband and I were single when we started going to the church and left married with children. Our life had changed drastically. And our hearts did too. Our relationship with the LORD had only grown deeper and been strengthened during the trials we faced in 2010 and during that time we set aside to stop serving for a season and seek the LORD's direction for our family.

So why did we leave our church? Are you ready for this? Go ahead and gasp! Let that anticipation fill, but don't let your sin-natured mind wander too far. We left because we felt called to. God has been moving in our hearts and lives for the past 7 months or so since we first felt His calling to start CWTrials- an extreme biking ministry dedicated to sharing the Gospel. That's it. No "big deal". But really, it was. Our leaving the church was an act of obedience to the LORD. It wasn't because what they were doing was bad, I often think of obedience as turning from something that was bad. This was not the case. Our obedience was listening to God and in Faith, turning our focus and attention onto what He laid before us. Can I tell you something- God has richly blessed us because of our obedience. Not solely based on us leaving the church, but creating a habit of obedience in our everyday lives.

Where God brought us is a perfect fit for our family, our ministry, our marriage, our gifts and talents. That is another story. THIS story was about obedience. And how to leave a church on a "good note", out of obedience unto the LORD, showing love to our brothers and sisters in Christ.