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Got several of these to add. They've built up over the years & I though I had shared. They need to be shared! Here goes: Freddie's expired passport comes the DAY we leave for Spain!So back in 2021 when we were all packed up, empty house, killing the last 4 days before flying to begin life in Spain we realized FREDDIE'S PASSPORT WAS EXPIRED!!! How did that slip us? We had looked everything over. Must've mistaken numbers or something. So what do we do? Call the passport agency, do everything we can to get an emergency passport. Post-COVID, emergency passports were taking MINIMUM 3 weeks. So what to do? Someone had suggested to call our Congressman, so we did & got put on a list. They said they would call us when they got us an appointment. So Thursday goes by, no call. Friday goes by, no call. Saturday & Sunday go by, not open. Then MONDAY- the day we leave- arrives. REWIND A MINUTE: We were worried, but over that weekend, GOD really spoke to that worry. He helped us realize, if Freddie can't fly & him & Sarah stay behind, its part of His plan & He's got this. We don't how or why, but He's got this. THIS recognition is key in ALL of these Jehova Jireh stories- having CONTENTMENT IN NOT GETTING YOUR WAY. It's GOD'S WAY & His way is better than our way. We realized that & were OK with whatever happened. BACK TO THE PRESENT: So Monday morning rolls around & no call, so around 9:30 Freddie & I (Ace) head to the Petaluma DMV to get him an ID and hopefully maybe they'll let him fly with that. We pull into the DMV parking lot & I realize I left the paperwork at home, so we drive back to Santa Rosa, get the paper work and DRIVE BACK to Petaluma. As I'm taking the exit I get a phone call with an odd area code. ITS THE CONGRESSMAN'S OFFICE & THEY GOT US AN APPOINTMENT! Same day appointment! So we turn around, go to Santa Rosa to pick up Sarah, Aurora & my mom who will drive the car back from SFO. There's not room for luggage so our good friend offers to drive it down for us later. We are able to go to the passport agency & Freddie has a brand new passport in his hands by 3:30pm!!! We later meet up with our friends at SFO who drop off our luggage, hugs goodbye to them & my mom & our flight to Spain takes off at 8pm. WHAT A CRAZY DAY. It was a crazy day, but it shows GOD can show up when it matters. He calls us to faith. Faith that His way is better. We put our security in planning & preparation, but we should put it in Him. When we fear a future outcome we don't want we need NOT fear because if that's the way GOD has it planned out, it WILL be for the best. Sometimes he wants us to learn that before He works everything out at the last minute. TRUST GOD 100% ALWAYS, EVEN WHEN IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE IMMEDIATELY Grandma's Passing & Emergency Return to the U.S.We returned Stateside toward the end of Summer 2023 for Home Assignment. It was a blessed time to spend with family family, church family, see old friends, make new friends & have some light vacation time. We returned to Spain, expecting to possibly have to return within the year if Ace's grandmother's health took a dive, but nobody was expecting her to pass away so soon & suddenly.
We were in Spain for about 5 weeks until we came back Stateside again. We HAD to, we knew it was God's will- sometimes His will is for us to stay put and endure, but we KNEW because of some things that had gone on when we were there last that it was NOT His will for us to stay put, but to come back and spend some more time Stateside. FLIGHTS TO THE US ARE EXPENSIVE FROM SPAIN! Where would the money come from? We didn't know, but knew what had to be done. So we got the tickets & put "the ask" out there if the many out there could step up & help us cover these- AND GOD'S PEOPLE DID!! IT'S NOT EASY FOR US TO ASK even though it's something we were taught in our missionary training. God provides for HIS WORK, He chooses workers & the workers go find the relationships that support God's calling. Even understanding that it sometimes is hard to ask when younger generations seem increasingly less inclined to supporting missions. BUT GOD DELIVERED THROUGH SO MANY OF YOU! And more than just finances, that filled out hearts with LOVE. You see, God knew we not only needed the "simple" matter of finances for the trip, but in the hurt of losing our Grandma Margie, God knew we needed to FEEL LOVED & NOT ALONE. God renewed what we understood about support & asking, the BEAUTY of the RELATIONSHIP. The whole ordeal has brought so much PEACE to so many aspects of life. WE MISS GRANDMA MARGIE DEEPLY, but we know she was & is glad that GOD can be glorified through all of this, that her absence leads to new chapters and opportunities for growth. Her faithfulness & longsuffering love is a testament to us of a faithful servant loving others- even when it wasn't easy- JUST as God loves us, when we aren't being very lovable towards Him. THE AMOUNTH OF OUTPOURING CONFIRMED IT WAS HIS WILL- Sometimes we have to take a leap of faith. Sometimes people will question if it's really God's will or we are pushing our will. We believe the FRUIT is the proof. Were it not His will, maybe we would've canceled the flights had the funds not come in. The extra 2.5 months stateside were a very needed extension to what God had began when we were there a month previously. JEHOVA JIREH'ED AGAIN!
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So its been 2 years since my last blog post!! Why? Well, with a combination of sending out regular news letters, posts on Facebook & just a lot of actual 'boots on the ground work', the website BLOG just felt unnecessary. The website here informs of who we are and overviews of the work we do. I don't believe it gets as much traffic as our facebook pages or read as much as the newsletters, so whats the point?
But hey, if there IS a point, would you let us know in the Comments? Regardless if anyone reads these or not, could be a good place to curate my lessons. Much love & many blessings to everyone As I was updating our page recently from "heading to Spain" to "serving in Spain" (Jehova Jireh!!!) I also updated "THE WORK" section since the Lord has opened up quite a thriving homeless ministry. As I was writing the descriptions I noticed each paragraph finished in a single word, all aligned with each other- as in, one paragraph is not longer than the other.... and the word is JESUS. "Wow, that's interesting" I thought, because the end goal of everything is to reflect Jesus, to share Jesus, the thrive in Jesus!! Jesus is the end, but He's also the BEGINNING. God is the Alpha & the Omega, but Jesus IS God, so He too is the Alpha & Omega. OUR REAL LIFE DOESN'T EVEN BEGIN UNTIL WE KNOW JESUSJesus is the Alpha of our life. For 1, He is our leader- like the Alpha wolf, who gives us guidance and instruction to survive & thrive while we are on this earth. We learn from His wisdom in His Word. We can spend our whole life seaching for fulfillment and it always be out of reach or we might just perpetually need "the next level" but when we find Jesus he becomes the BEGINNING (Alpha) of our REAL life- the ULTIMATE satisfaction. WE REACH THE REAL FINISH LINE WHEN WE KNOW JESUSAt the same time that Jesus is the Alpha of our life at the same time, when we come to Him, He also becomes the OMEGA, the end of our life. If our life here is to know & serve Jesus, when we come to accept Him we have already reached the goal of this life, the end, the Omega in that aspect. But a whole new aspect (Alpha) opens up in the Great Commission of serving Him, although that comes from love. It doesn't earn us a "better" salvation or more religious points. And when we reach the end of this mortal life HE becomes our Omega as in we dwell with HIM & The Father eternally. ALL OF CREATION WAS MADE FOR JESUS- SATAN DIDN'T "RUIN" GOD'S PLAN.No one can "fool" the creator. God always knew He would be sending Jesus when He did. Jesus is and was "in the beginning" as well (John 1:1). When we see the continuity of creation and history we can recognize this clearly. From the second God began creating all of this, the purpose was for Jesus to demonstrate His (God's) glory by the redemption of the weak mortals. Of course, we can't stand being weak mortals & want to be God's in our own rights, but our foolish, finite minds could never handle what being God entails. We should be able to take solace that God is sovreign and cares for us. But Satan easily preys on our pride and we seek SOOOOO HARD to find validation for ourselves of our own making. WE DON'T EVEN GIVE JESUS A CHANCE!! THATS WHY OUR PARAGRAPHS END WITH JESUS- BECAUSE HE IS THE REAL BEGINNING OF LIFE!
A very recent update since we started writing this is that Ace's aunt's mother passed away at the beginning of Christmas week and his cousin's wife on Christmas eve which led this to be a VERY different Christmas for a lot of people. No one expected to be visiting the cemetary on Christmas Eve & Christmas to mourn this abrupt loss. She had been battling cancer but seemed to be making really good progress in recovery. She was 43, her children 9, 18 & 20. This is going to be a very difficult and possibly unpleasant holiday for many people moving forward. WE pray God will Romans 8:28 the situation, He can do any incredible thing. We pray that with this happneing ESPECIALLY at Christmas the HOPE of eternal peace in CHRIST ALONE will transcend the pain & grief we feel on earth. To paraphrase John 3:16- God LOVES US so much, He sent Jesus to be the perfect sacrifice- to pay the price for our imperfection- so we can join Him ETERNALLY- IF WE BELIEVE. All we have to do is believe in Jesus & ask Him to forgive us. No rituals, no right amount of stand ups or sit downs, no amount of repetitive prayers, Ephesians 2:8,9... THAT'S GREAT NEWS that transcends the worst news! I know if I lose my Sarah or Aurora or Freddie that they will be forever with Jesus in the next. I will miss them, but there is no question where they'll be. I don't have to lob the right amount of prayers skyward & hope I can "get them into heaven", thats not in the Bible, John 3:16-20 was spoken BY JESUS, not some other person. Instruction straight from the source. KNOW THE BIBLE- not man's religious propaganda (Ps. 119:11)Psalm 119:11 says "I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you." But lets not forget this isn't ONLY talking about knowing rules so I do the right thing. David, more profoundly speaking, is talking about KNOWING GOD from His revealed word. Its keeps us safe, it gives us peace & confidence when we know WHAT THE TRUTH IS & how that secures us. Look down just a couple verses from verse 13-16 he talks about HOW GREAT knowing & following God's word is. The JOY it brings. Joy from following rules- NOT JUST- Joy from knowing what GOD SAYS ABOUT HIMSELF TOO- LOOK....Look at this and think.... in Psalm 119:16 David says "I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.".... what does that mean, more rules? NO, God makes decrees, statements, promises... and in doing so tells us of HIS characteristics. So if I hid HIS WORD in my heart, I would also know Jeremiah 29:12 & 13.... what does that say?Jer. 29:12 & 13 says "Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." If I knew my Bible & hid The Word in my heart I would know that God WILL be with me in the good & hard times, when I seek with with ALL my heart. That means legitimately. That means He isn't a magic genie that's there for me to casually demand favor from when I pray- that's not ALL MY HEART. There is much more that HIS WORD says about His character and promises that gives me TRANSCENDENT HOPE IN TRAGEDY, but it all revolves around really loving Jesus more than ourselves. That doesn't mean we aren't going to act selfishly from time to time, but we don't treat Jesus or "religion" as our good luck charm to make things go good for us. That shows US focus & NOT Jesus focus. That is exactly what God IS NOT interested in according to Jer. 29:12-13 Romans 8:28 assures us things work for our utlimate good- BUT only for those that follow HIM. Rom. 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Who love HIM. So aligning with the previous paragraph- if we practice religion we are demonstrating more of a love of ourselves and our own well-being. Another reason those that LOVE God & Jesus first can have TRANSCENDANT PEACE is because we know where our eternal security lies. We're not that concerned that we don't receive healing in this life, or if a loved one is taken early, because if they LOVED Jesus, we KNOW where they are! its secure, guaranteed- Ephesians 2:8-9 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast." The opposite side of that fence means that for those who DID NOT love or follow Jesus & did it more for their own interest DO NOT HAVE HOPE- that IS tragic! THERE IS HOPE FOR ALL IN JESUS & ONLY JESUS- there's nothing in the Bible that says you will have hope if you love anything else more. God reiterates He's NOT a "good luck charm" interested in religious tasks of show... HE WANTS OUR HEARTS- Thats great news!!!!Because who of us can do ALL the religious tasks right all the time? God gives us GRACE & MERCY THROUGH JESUS, if we LOVE HIM. But WE have to make that decision that we actually LOVE HIM and accept Him BECAUSE WE BELIEVE HIM. That doesn't give us persmission to live any which way we want, but it does give us grace because we KNOW Jesus paid the price for our failures and that... no amount of chanting or water spraying will get us right with God.
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Your SUPPORTING PARTNERSHIP help restores abused & broken lives in GRANADA through the Gospel!Help support Ace & Sarah's SONRIE Ministries through Equip International's secured website. All contributions are tax deductible and accountable with the ECFA. 
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