Help me or kill me!!

Help me or kill me!! That phrase leaped out at me from a recent email. It was the prayer of someone I’ve known for several years who is struggling with a personal issue (and has been for almost 15 years). This person, a committed and engaged believer for many years, said their prayer at this point is for the Lord to help them or kill them, they are so tired of the struggle. They feel as though they’re in a constant battle and are getting worn down. I was forced to look back over my life in the past few years. How many of my personal struggles are ones I’ve dealt with before? How many times have I “laid them at the feet of the cross” only to have them resurge into life later on? How many times have I experienced victory for months or even years, and then in a moment of relaxing my guard or being in a weak place I find myself yielding to a thought or temptation once again? Our adversary is roaming about seeking to kill and destroy and devour all that he can (1 Peter 5:8)! Is it any wonder we are in a battle not of flesh and blood, but “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12) Followers of Jesus are a minority in France, less than 1% of the population. Many are isolated and discouraged. Pray for my friend and others in similar situations. Pray for perseverance, renewed strength for the battle, grace in time of need, a fresh outpouring of His Spirit and encouragement from like-minded believers. Pray, too, for us to be salt and light. We may have difficulties in a few battles and skimishes, yet we know the final outcome of the war!

Fragile whispers

Just a few days ago I attended the memorial service for Claude. He and his wife of 50 years, Ginnette, are one of the two founding couples of Famille Je t'Aime, the family ministry we work with here in France. Celebrating the life of Claude was again a reminder of how fragile life really is. It was also a reminder of the bitter sweet experience it is to loose someone who has been suffering from illness for quite a few years. (He had Parkinson's disease for 12 years.) There is the aspect that he is no longer suffering, yet the very reality that he is indeed gone leaves a hole in our lives. With our schedule of traveling I had not seen him in several weeks. I happened to go by the hospital to see him and spend a little time with Ginnette the afternoon of the day he died. I am so grateful for those slight whispers from the Holy Spirit that prod us into action and I know later that He gave me an opportunity that I might have missed and never had another chance to do. As I stood beside Claude's bed I watched him struggle to breathe. He had not responded in any way for over a week. Ginnette and I went out to the waiting area to visit and she said that he appeared to have already gone, that his body was still here, but he wasn't there any longer. That evening after he passed away, she told a close friend that she was wrong. She understood now the difference when he really died, he was gone. Signs of life may be diminished but there is still life. Up until that final breathe there is life and therefore there is hope. Once death arrives our hope shifts toward eternity. Life is a whisper of the hope we have in Jesus who is there through it all. Fragile though it may be life holds so much- joy and delight, pain and sorrow, questions and adventures, crisis and suffering, challenges and fulfillment. I am grateful for every breathe the Lord gives me to live.

Communication is important

Blog start number 2
Communication is important
I have become peaceful with the fact that even sporadic communication is better than no communication. Granted, to maintain a relationship takes regular and effective communication. So...I desire to write more regularly. I'm not saying how often that is yet!
Life is too short and too much fun to keep to ourselves. It really is a feast that is both abundant and mobile. Sometimes in the routine and mundane of everyday I can easily forget. I am fortunate to have lived in several countries. I have friends and incredible memories of experiences from each of them. St. Paul once wrote to a group of his friends in Ephesus the following declaration: "God can do anything, you know--far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!" I have a short memory though. I need regular reminders of this truth
That has actually been our life's motto and experience from the beginning of our relationship as a couple. And we have seen God grant us so much and so faithfully over these thirty six plus years we've shared together. I am so incredibly blessed! I have wonderful wife,four great kids, three of whom have awesome spouses (and an amazing friend who would be an awesome wife for someone, just saying)! We have three fantastic grandkids (and two more arriving before year's end!). I have the best job in the world, living in our adopted country and culture (of choice) with the privilege of loving people into the Kingdom of God and making a difference in families and relationships.
I believe that what I am doing at this moment God has been preparing me for my entire life. What else can I say...life for me is truly a mobile celebration, "a moveable feast" of all that God so graciously allows us to experience wherever we are or whatever we do and no matter the circumstance.

Andrew Howell
Buhl, France