Tuesday, March 29, 2011
joey's going to zambia and we need you!
here's an email joey sent earlier today about his upcoming missions trip to zambia!
Hello friends and family, I am seriously humbled as I write to you now. 10 minutes ago, I found myself weeping in my office. And I am more convinced now than ever that God's will is for me is to visit the orphans of Zambia in their distress (James 1:27). It is a strange conviction to have as I look up and see that I am still $2,515 short of my goal with the April 1 deadline 3 days away. I certainly don't want to seem naive, but I do believe that all things are possible with God. And I don't want to claim promises that He hasn't made by saying "I know God will raise $2,515 in 3 days!" But from where I sit now it seems irrelevant whether I make this trip or not. I will go. If I reach my support goal or not I will go at some point. It's a relief to realize that Gods desire to rescue and redeem His children in Zambia doesn't depend on your check or my making the trip. He will accomplish His purposes with or without us. But I want to be in on it. I wasn't sure of that a week ago. I was doubting God's desire for me to go because the money wasn't coming in. I'd been half heartedly asking God to give me His heart for His children in Africa. And I had been occasionally praying for God to provide the money. But I don't think I was really ready to be serious about it. I think I was waiting to see if "I" could actually make it happen first by bringing in the money. At our last Zambia meeting the speaker reminded me that Satan wants me to be discouraged and to think that God doesn't want me to go. I decided to start asking God seriously if He does, in fact, want me to go. So I've been praying. And I've seen that Satan can be quite convincing. "God would have provided the money by now if He really wanted you to go...Kyle will be very pregnant by June, what if she needs you..." But I continued to ask, "God, do you want me to tell them about Jesus. Do you want me to show them Your love?" And today, 10 minutes ago, I asked "Do you want me to tell them that You are their Dad?" And I started to cry. I know that He is the Father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5) and that they need desperately to meet Him. I stopped praying and started to look at a book with some pictures and stories of some of the of the Zambian orphans. The tears came again as I looked at the cover and was overwhelmed with the thought that God loved His daughter, that little African girl in the picture. And I am floored at the prospect of being part of God's process of revealing Himself to others just like her. His answer to me was yes. So I'm ready for the final stretch. And I hope that you can be in on it with me. Thank you so much for reading this email and for being willing to consider your part in what God wants to do in Zambia. If you've already given, thank you so much. If not, please pray. If you are undecided, I hope you'll continue to pray about that decision. You can make contributions online at www.camplifezambia.com/joey . There is also a fun way for you to buy a silly Tshirt or hat that will contribute to my support at www.joeyvanderveer.com/fmwhy . I certainly don't want to pressure anyone but I may be calling some of you over the next two days to see if you have any questions for me and just to follow up on this email. I'd love to talk to you more about this or Zambia in general if you want to talk. 817-907-6357 Thank you
our family would greatly appreciate your support!
Hello friends and family, I am seriously humbled as I write to you now. 10 minutes ago, I found myself weeping in my office. And I am more convinced now than ever that God's will is for me is to visit the orphans of Zambia in their distress (James 1:27). It is a strange conviction to have as I look up and see that I am still $2,515 short of my goal with the April 1 deadline 3 days away. I certainly don't want to seem naive, but I do believe that all things are possible with God. And I don't want to claim promises that He hasn't made by saying "I know God will raise $2,515 in 3 days!" But from where I sit now it seems irrelevant whether I make this trip or not. I will go. If I reach my support goal or not I will go at some point. It's a relief to realize that Gods desire to rescue and redeem His children in Zambia doesn't depend on your check or my making the trip. He will accomplish His purposes with or without us. But I want to be in on it. I wasn't sure of that a week ago. I was doubting God's desire for me to go because the money wasn't coming in. I'd been half heartedly asking God to give me His heart for His children in Africa. And I had been occasionally praying for God to provide the money. But I don't think I was really ready to be serious about it. I think I was waiting to see if "I" could actually make it happen first by bringing in the money. At our last Zambia meeting the speaker reminded me that Satan wants me to be discouraged and to think that God doesn't want me to go. I decided to start asking God seriously if He does, in fact, want me to go. So I've been praying. And I've seen that Satan can be quite convincing. "God would have provided the money by now if He really wanted you to go...Kyle will be very pregnant by June, what if she needs you..." But I continued to ask, "God, do you want me to tell them about Jesus. Do you want me to show them Your love?" And today, 10 minutes ago, I asked "Do you want me to tell them that You are their Dad?" And I started to cry. I know that He is the Father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5) and that they need desperately to meet Him. I stopped praying and started to look at a book with some pictures and stories of some of the of the Zambian orphans. The tears came again as I looked at the cover and was overwhelmed with the thought that God loved His daughter, that little African girl in the picture. And I am floored at the prospect of being part of God's process of revealing Himself to others just like her. His answer to me was yes. So I'm ready for the final stretch. And I hope that you can be in on it with me. Thank you so much for reading this email and for being willing to consider your part in what God wants to do in Zambia. If you've already given, thank you so much. If not, please pray. If you are undecided, I hope you'll continue to pray about that decision. You can make contributions online at www.camplifezambia.com/joey . There is also a fun way for you to buy a silly Tshirt or hat that will contribute to my support at www.joeyvanderveer.com/fmwhy . I certainly don't want to pressure anyone but I may be calling some of you over the next two days to see if you have any questions for me and just to follow up on this email. I'd love to talk to you more about this or Zambia in general if you want to talk. 817-907-6357 Thank you
our family would greatly appreciate your support!
Friday, March 18, 2011
spring break
this was our first year for joey not to be off for spring break, and ill admit it it was weird. we still managed to have some fun though.
my mom, amy, max, and i went to the fort worth museum of science and history. although it wasn't max's shining moment there or at lunch after, we still managed to have a little fun.
and then on joey's day off, we went to the amon carter for a family funday and had a picnic after. it was a gorgeous day...until that hour and 15 min drive home-boo traffic :(
the weekend was filled with fun though....my little sis is engaged! we are all so excited! she and uncle jared are so fun and i know max will be the cutest little ringbearer ever!
date 2 of 12
since a few of our dates dont fall into the "safe" category for a pregnant person, we are spreading them out a bit. so this date was supposed to an omni movie, but once again, the vanderveer budget got in the way. no biggy though. we just took it old school with the dollar movie and a little boston market. hey, its the time together that counts right!?!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
update on the preggo
things are good in the pregnancy department. i was super tired my 1st trimester and was suffering with alot of headaches up until about 2 weeks ago, but now things are back to good. i am 16 weeks and as you can see look to be about 8 weeks further along then that (well, at least compared to my preganancy with max). at our next appt in mid april we MAY find out what we are having, but that decision is still up in the air. i'm letting joey decide and he said "i'll decide on the way." but don't worry, when we know, you will know. 
what spells max?
M-A-X
and he knows it. along with all of his letters and most of there sounds.
now go ahead, think im one of those ex-teacher moms who spends hours with my toddler working on flashcards. nope. all i do is talk to the kid. and boy does he listen. we love him.
Monday, March 7, 2011
back to the real world
so i just wrapped up a 12 week substitute job, and boy was i ready to be done. i loved seeing my friends everyday and making some extra money for our family, plus it was only part time and i had an aide so all in all not too bad of a gig. but i like my real world better. the world were i wake up to max talking or singing in bed. the world were i can go to the gym when its not too crowded. the world were i can go to bible study and play dates. i love this world as a stay at home mom and am continually blessed to be able to do this.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
