Seeking

When Fall comes, I am reminded of the Fall of 2019. This was when my husband and I first visited Cornerstone, my grandmother who was like a mother passed away and I was in a situation that would cost me my job. It was one of the most trying seasons of my life. But God ...our second church visit was during the annual "Thanksgiving Service," and I was beyond blessed by the brethren praising the Lord, in the midst of loss and suffering . Six years later, I stand in awe of God's sovereign goodness to me, in spite of old and new sufferings. Below is some of what I shared at this year's service of thanks. I want to share three stories that show God's love to me, and why I am grateful to Him. In May, my husband and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We had a terrific two weeks enjoying France and one another. This is a testament to God's grace, because year 7 was far from enjoyable. It was hard and felt insurmountable. We had allowed various patterns of sin t...

Happy Fall Beloved! Over the Summer, I had the blessing of reading and discussing Dane Orlund's book, "Deeper: Real Change for Real Sinners" with 8 other women, and it was a fantastic read and time of fellowship. I used to think if I wanted to grow spiritually, I had to try harder, be more disciplined or focus more on the end result i.e. be more patient or submissive (I can easily fall back into those thought patterns, too). But by God's grace, He continues showing me: spiritual, heart changing growth is only found as I gaze at Jesus then walk in His provision  - may the Spirit quicken us to remember [the gospel], rejoice and repeat. First, as the book title implies, to grow in our walk, we do not need to learn new things, but, rather, keep pressing into the one thing and person we have already come to know: the gospel of Jesus Christ. As stated in 2 Peter 1:3, "...His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true ...

While I was in high school, one of my favorite songs was, "Come What May," from the musical Moulin Rouge. The sum of the song and film is this: this man and woman are changed and can overcome anything, because they are "in love" and now have each other. As a 16 year old teenager, this appealed to me; I, too, thought I could find myself in other things, experiences and people. I had yet to discover fullness being in Christ. But the Lord was and is so good to reveal that in order to know ourselves best and be most satisfied, is to know Him  ( John 4:13-14, 6:35 ). As believers, the reason we can face anything the Lord allows in our life, is because our sure and steady anchor is Christ alone. And while we are more than conquerors and have no reason to fear...believers still fret. Thankfully, we do not have to do this alone. This month, we want to share a few family updates, praises and ask for your faithful prayers, as He continues growing our confidence and trust in H...

February brings much celebration to our home - me, Husband and both of our dad's have birthdays. I'll admit, I play the birthday card, because I enjoy spending time with people :D But as my D.O.B. neared, I was reflecting on my life as a whole, and especially since coming to Christ. The one thing that stands out is: the mercy of God - saving me, refining me and loving me.  To start, here is a bit of my testimony . I was raised catholic and attended church with my mom and older sister. Because of what I knew about God and what I did, like go to church, I believed I was going to heaven when I died. I thought I was a good person, or at least, good enough. In 2002, my dad who practiced no religion put his faith in Christ and "shared" Him with me. Shortly after, I prayed the "sinner's prayer," but my life was unchanged. Quite the opposite, I continued enjoying and walking towards sin. Another moral ritual, I now thought believing in Jesus and doing some of wh...

In the event we have not spoken, my Father-in-law, Jose Valadez, went home to be with the Lord on November 3.  I was listening to an old message from my pastor saying, 'anyone can point out someone's failure; it takes spiritual eyes to see that which the Lord is doing in their life.'  This mont h, we want to share a bit about Apa’s life-how he loved, served and grew [in the Lord]-because telling his story, brings glory to God and points us to Christ.  First, during his memorial service, more than one person stated, "he loved in his own way." As I was trying to process their words, this phrase did not settle well with me. Thankfully, the Spirit brought to remembrance 1 Corinthians 13 . While individuals express love differently from one another, the word sets a perfect standard and Jesus demonstrated it perfectly in real life. Though I cannot recall a single time Jose told me, "I love you," I know he loved me; he was patient, kind, was not easily provoked...

Beloved, it is that time of year when the season is about to change and students are going back to school. Recently, in a Q&A, a young lady shared her testimony and call to serve as a missionary with bible translation. She defined her "spiritually dry season" as a time of being lonely with unmet expectations, in a region where there are no thriving, strong or welcoming churches - she had to bear her burdens alone, apart from her strong church family and look straight to the Lord. This summer, while reading "God does His best Work with Empty," by Nancy Guthrie, it was made clear I am naturally dry and empty, but Christ is faithful to continue providing Himself  (see Philippians 4:19 and Romans 8:32 ). In her book, Nancy hones in on the perspective of seeing emptiness in our life as a pre-planned opportunity for God to personally fill us in ways no one and nothing else can. Instead, we tend to quickly and regularly feed on our 'disappointment or frustration...

This past month I had the blessing of two weeks off from work at CBU, since my job is active 10 months each year. With some of the time I was able to rest and reflect, quite a bit. For our update, we would like to share some pictures, praises and prayer requests.  Praise Reports: July 1, Husband, Zachary and I toured the Master's University, and Zachary said it was his favorite college tour, so far; he also enjoyed his first time eating sushi, and we had a great conversation (picture #1); July 4, Husband and I celebrated by taking "A," an international student athlete to the airport, before she went back home to Western Europe; I met her at work, and it was a gift befriending her; I gave her a copy of the "Gospel Primer" and pray the Lord continues drawing her to Himself (picture #2); Husband and I had the blessing of meeting up and sharing with two young couples that are courting; Husband and I were able to fellowship with a brother and another family for lunch...

Happy February Beloved! Recently, I had a conversation with a sister about the film, "Redeeming Love" and the book of Hosea. That evening, I had a sobering dream that Husband was unfaithful. I woke up, distraught, speaking truth to myself about my marriage and the Lord, but I began to weep. Husband woke up, and we prayed together. He hugged me tightly and told me, "I'm right here. I'm right here." But I could not sleep. There was a stirring in my spirit. I went to the living room, began to write and the Lord showed me a deeper instruction: there are  three types of love 1) imperfect, 2) cheap and 3) redeeming. Engagement November 2014 I pray it goes without saying, I love my husband, and I know my husband loves me, yet I am keenly aware,  our love for one another (& others) is imperfect, conditional and ebbs . At times I find myself believing the false reality that our marriage will endure anything, because of our love for each other. But disappointmen...

Good day Beloved! Husband and I would like to share a bit about how our last week has gone and give God all the glory (video recap here ). As you know, we set out for Rome on Sunday, January 9 to attend a conference and meet a missions team. We were compliant with travel regulations and documents but were detained in Zurich by customs. We did all we could practically to get through but were sent back to L.A. on Tuesday, January 11. It is with sadness we share this news, coupled with hope, encouragement and greater faith. This week, we would like to highlight three ways the Holy Spirit has been moving in strangers, the church and us . On Our Way to L.A.X. L.A.X. Airport Line for Document Check & Boarding Passes Zurich Airport, On Our Way to Customs & Connecting Flight Once the Chief of Police said, 'It's not going to happen folks,' referring to us passing through to Rome, tears began to pour out, and I began to sob, processing the reality that our trip would not go a...