Renfro Ramblings

Deuteronomy 8:6-11 6 Observe the commands of the LORD your God, walking in obedience to him and revering him. 7 For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegran ates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills 10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. 11 Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. One of the great things about being a foreigner in a country is that you observe things about that country that those who live there overlook. I still marvel at beauty of this country, at the snow capped mountain range that runs the length of the country, the worl

April - Nimi on Easter Sunday...this was aoutfil #2. Guess what happened to the pretty dress she had on before? On May 9th Nimi turned 2 months and was dedicated at church, we celebrated my first Mother's Day and celebrated my moms 50th birthday! I was so grateful my mom and sister were able to come to Chile. Josh's 1st Father's Day July - Saturday mornings in Guayakan. We go and minister to the children of this low income area. We teach them about the bible and about how much Jesus loves them. August - Nimi was my number one fan at my half marathon race. After having Naomi I had to dedicate myself to something to help me feel and look better so I trained for my second half marathon. I was grateful for Josh's support through it all! September - Nimi's first meal! She's done good so far. A few days ago we added beef to her baby food and daddy was proud! October - Nimi almost has the whole crawling thing down BUT thats not limiting her from getting around. She'

We have less than a year left in Chile before our 3 year term ends. It is overwhelmingly amazing as I reflect on the experiences we've had pioneering campus ministry these past few years. We've had victories and we've made mistakes but most importantly we've learned. It is so easy to get discouraged by the mistakes, then get motivated thinking about the victories but what matters is what you do with them both...and that is to PRAY! God spoke to Josh and I yesterday and called us to pray: to pray more and seek the face of the God that will continue to touch the lives of university students in Chile and to use our experiences and what we've learned to lead us to pray for what God can do in Chile. We've strategized, we've planned and done but the spiritual work can never be enough.

is full of seasons with and without people. The Lord constantly puts people in our path to shortly or sometimes never take them away. No matter how hard parting may be we have to look at the purposes God has through those seasons or times together. In the end if we are really close to God everything will be okay. It reminds me that He is the only thing constant in our lives. If we aren’t grounded in Him when people come and go then we will have nothing. We don’t own anything and we don’t have a right to relationships. Relationships are a gift from God and we must enjoy the best of them no matter how long we spend with the person. If we begin to own relationships then it only makes it harder when the Lord parts our ways. Some of the most beautiful friendships in my life have been long distance. My heart longs to be with those people but I trust that God’s purpose have us apart. I realize that we are fighting the same battle and our hearts are knitted by the call we have obediently chose

God has opened up the door for us to partner with a local church in planting a new church in Guayacan. This neighborhood is full of young families and only 4 blocks away from the Northern Catholic University of Chile. Our vision is to plant a church that will bring hope to families and will be a beacon of light to the university. We have the land! We have already poured the foundation! These next two weeks students from Sam Houston State Chi Alpha will help us initiate the work with children's services and street evangelism. Last Saturday we had our first children's service and several children and their parents attended. That same night we returned to pass out tracts and offer prayer house to house. We ended with a beautiful time of worship in the neighborhood's main plaza. God's love is becoming present in Guayacan and we can't wait to see the lives that will be touched! BEFORE AFTER

Leaders Retreat We recently held our leader's retreat to start off the 2010 school year. It was a purposeful time of prayer, worship, planning and fellowship to help the students focus on meeting people and starting their small groups. This is our second year working with university students in Chile and its amazing how the Lord has specifically lead us through the pioneering process. The students are beginning to take ownership of the ministry and are joining us in the vision of what God can do through university students to impact the country of Chile. Prayer Walking We can't do anything before prayer, but we can do everything after it. This month we have been going on several campuses teaching students to prayer walk and intercede for their universities. This allows them to envision what God can do on their campus. Here is a view from Universidad de La Serena giving the students a view of the whole city. Bible School The new bible school year has also begun and Josh is teach

The New Renfro Family Monday night we went to bed around 1:00 am. Veronica and Melody ha d been over that day. We had lunch at a Peruvian restaurant, came home, had coke floats, watched the movie Up and ate popcorn. It was a fun day off and a great way to pass the time as I anxiously awaited for Naomi to get here. I was 39 weeks and 2 days along. That night before bed I journaled a bit in Naomi’s prayer journal, then fell asleep in Josh’s arms as he consoled my tears of anxiousness and impatience. A t 2:30something am I was awakened by a sharp abdominal pain. It wasn’t the type of contraction I had been looking out for. I decided to have a bit of hope and began to take down the time. At 2:45 I felt another one. I thought to myself “can this be it”. I laid there and just waited. 3:00 am, another one. I turned on the lamp and Josh must have sens ed something because he rolled over and asked if I was ok. I, surprised at the fact he had actually woken up, told him I thought I was having

PSALM 52:8 But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever. May our lives be like that of an olive tree; standing firm and deeply rooted in God's truth. That we may trust in His unfailing love and not give in when troubles come our way. He has made us strong and our faith in Him will be evident for all to see.