posting I will do, a posting I will do...

Hi...I am going to type something because i have not said HI lately.

so...HI (lately) ha!

I have been busy volunteering at church. I suggested a project....let me tell you NEVER suggest a project unless you really, really want to RUN the whole thing! That is where I am. Running, scrambling and counting. Let me tell you about my project (but God's idea!)

Change4Change...
We are still in debt for our worship center. You should be done with your debt BEFORE the building is complete. Why? Because once the building is done people "assume" it is paid for. Not always true. Not in our case. We still owe. So Brian and I have been on the Gateway team for awhile. Gateway was our capital campaign. We are no longer doing a "campaign" but we still need to keep those $'s coming in. There are still faithful givers to the building fund. But what do you do with the new people or those who just are having a hard time giving. God gives you an idea...Change4Change. We are collecting coins (and yes we will take bills-foldable coins!) to help pay for the sanctuary (okay Worship Center). The reason we built the Worship Center was to "change" lives for Christ. So we are collecting change from cars, homes, couches, etc. (note: the number 4 key on your keyboard is the dollar sign, and there are 4 types (mainly) of coins --so cool) So I used to the verse about the widow's mite. (great verse for this purpose) and got some buckets with the name on it and the verse reference and set up a table and wham....a project begins! So once a month we collect change. We have handed out stickers so people can start a "change" jar at home. It has the logo and verse on it! (this is when i should grab a picture of the logo and place here....coming soon...right Cindy...I will learn to do this!)

So we had a kick off weekend about 3 wks ago that people did not know we were collecting and that weekend we brought in 909.01 (penny is important). We are too do the collecting the first weekend of the month...so the following weekend was the first weekend of the month! Here I go again. But in the meantime, the 909...had to be sorted and counted and rolled! Yes...you got it...me again! But we do have a small coin roll machine at church...it does 4 rolls of each at a time and very slowly! The following weekend plus the next weekend...we got more coins. So this week i spend 3 days counting...and I took a deposit of 1500.00+ to the bank! it is amazing! God is sooo amazing! I have seen some 20,000 pennies, 3,900 nickels, 6,000 dimes, and 4,000 quarters! dirty coins! Yes, I wear rubber gloves! You would be amazed at what i have found in the coins! Fuzz bunnies, paper clips, mickey mouse confetti, coins from around the world (Canada, Dawn!) and most recently a 1943 dime and a 1849 Indian head penny (is that worth anything?? for the church?), i even found an American girl play quarter that is the size of an ant! God has kept me smiling as i find the odd things...amazing how i can see a foreign coin in the bucket!

Speaking of "foreign" things...do i have some in my bucket...(body)? Do I see the things that God wants me to see or do I pick around them? I am a foreigner to this world. What do people see in me when they look at me? I want them to see Christ.

I love the song "hosanna" (another time to slip in a YouTube blurb)..the words are incredible...here are my favorite...

"Heal my heart and make it clean...
Open up my eyes to the things unseen...
Show me how to love like you have loved me..."
"Break my heart from what breaks yours....
Everything I am for your kingdom cause,
As I go from earth to eternity."

So my prayer is that song...Dear God, Please heal my heart and make it clean. Open my eyes to the things I can not see. Show me Lord, to love like you have loved me. Lord, break my heart from what breaks yours. May I do everything to further your kingdom here on earth. Amen.

gotta run....