Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness

I love looking out the window in the morning and seeing Claira with her bible open starting her day off right.

"Thank you Lord for a daughter who desires to seek you out in the morning. I pray that all the things she in learning in her mind will continue to penetrate her heart."

We hope we are Never the same....

 List of the children above in no particular order: Damaris Barasa, Dorcas Indekhwa, Diana Ambunya,
Melson Madela, Elizabeth Anumbi, Tony Karani, Bofine Alosio. Defline Samuli, Susan Masimiyu,
Sintnia Masimiya, Elizabeth Chimoli, Irene Bakoya, Edwin Barasa, Benjamin Barasa, Bryan Bilai,
Brian Wanjala, Francis Okwavuri, Jesse, Emanuel

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you  need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ   Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

“And now dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. ….Then the God of peace will be with you.”
Philippians 4:8 &9b

It has been just over three months since we’ve been back from Africa, and we are not the same; Praise the Lord! I personally prayed while we were in Kenya that  I would not forget all that I had learned, seen, smelled, and touched. I knew that as soon as I was back in  my busy American life the temptation would be to forget the lessons I had learned. The Lord has been gracious to me by answering this prayer. At night have dreams about Rehoboth House; I hear the children laughing and playing, and see the faces that are in the picture above. I look up Kenyan recipes on the internet. I tear up, amazed that we are here in this great country, but yet God has allowed us the privilege to help care and pray for these 20 sweet children made in his image.

The other day I came across the pair of shoes I wore while in Africa, I realized that I wasn’t wearing them because they still had red dirt all over them; it was imbedded in the fabric and in every groove of the soles. I threw them in the washer wondering if they would be ruined, but knew I wouldn’t wear them again if they weren’t cleaned. After they were washed and laid out to dry I was thankful that I hadn’t ruined them, but that not all of the red dirt was gone. I showed my shoes to Jay laughing about it and he said, “You know, those shoes are like our hearts; we just can seem to get the  “Africa” out of it, it is forever there.” I am now proudly wearing my “African imbedded dirt shoes” because once again, God, was gracious in reminded me that, NO, I will never be the same.

My intention wasn’t to write a book today, but I did want to say thank you to all of you who helped us with our most recent donation to Rehoboth House. In October we were able to send $350. Peter was able to purchase three months worth of beans, rice and maze (corn) along with two new coal stoves and enough coal. Peter is modeling Philippians 4:6-9 to the children. He, with confidence, always trusts that God will provide and he continually fixes his eyes on Jesus, which produces in Peter true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praise worthy thoughts and actions.  

            In his own words:

Thanks brother,
We got the funds and bought everything as it had been planned. Everybody is fine and we thank God for everything. God bless you so much and we miss you so much. Say hello to Melissa and whole the family and all the brothers who are supporting us tell them we are very grateful.

Thanks so much,
Brother Peter

_____________________________________________________________________________

Our goal was to raise $2,000 to cover food and unexpected expenses. God has been so faithful through your response to this need. We have currently raised $1,440!

We only need to raise $560 to reach our goal for the year. WOW! We are blown away. We will let you know as soon we have reached the goal.

If you are interested in donating please send your donation to:
New Height’s Church

P.O. Box 8668

Fayetteville, AR 72703
Please write Gresham’s Africa on the memo line.


Blessings to you all,
Melissa & Jay

        

Blessings Flow...Our Goal Was Met

Our goal to raise $2,000 to feed 20 children 3 meals a day for 1 year has been MET! Praise the Lord from whom all blessings flow by Him through many of you. We are overjoyed by the generosity that has been shown to our Kitale family, and it doesn’t stop there. In early December a good friend called and asked if there were any other needs that could be met in Kitale. It was “God timing” once again, because we did know of some specific needs we wanted to see met, but didn’t want to ask, you our friends and family, for more money, so we began to pray.  The amount of money given enabled our friend, Peter to do the following:

Meet Caleb- a.k.a. Chris Rock:

He is a proud father of a boy and new baby girl and is Peter’s right-hand-man. His English is very good so he loved talking with us about all kinds of things and he really wanted us to love Kenya as much as he does. When he smiles he looks like Chris Rock, his nickname since the 2009 trip. While we were in Kitale we noticed that Peter valued Caleb’s opinion on food prices, mattress prices, how many jump ropes we should buy etc.. After spending two weeks with these men we learned that Peter oversees the housing for the children as well as getting the kids enrolled in school, meeting with their teachers and making sure they have uniforms and clothing. Caleb’s expertise is the food! He was very particular the day we went to buy the food making sure we got a fair price and excellent quality. We were so thankful for his knowledge.  Due to the extra money that was given, Caleb now owns his own laptop. This has allowed him to get a better paying job so that he is able to help Peter with the expenses of the children’s home.

The children’s home now has electricity!!!

This is no small feat, In the Kipsongo area very few people have electricity. What cost only $400 American dollars would have taken them forever to save. Well, it just wouldn’t have happened. They are so excited for many reasons. One being that it gets dark pretty early, around 5:30pm during the rainy season, and even earlier because of the cloud cover. The children are so excited!!  (We would have loved to see their faces and hear their cheers, but it seems even more appropriate that the men and women who have cared for them were able to share the news!)

The children now have a television!!!

Watching African Christian music videos is quite popular. Peter and Caleb were both very excited about exposing the kids to music and Christian videos.

These three things that were provided weren’t “needs” for them to survive, but it sure was fun getting to tell them that that God had seen fit to prod someone to give extra so that these things were no longer dreams, but possibilities.

“And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for. Keep on looking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And the door is opened to everyone who knocks.”  Luke 11: 9-10

Below is an email received from Peter this week:

“Hello Brother,

How are you doing? I hope you are doing great in the Lord. Receive greetings from Rehoboth kids. We are very happy for the results are out and some of our kids have done well in the last examination. We are hoping for them to continue working hard even as they move forward to next level of their education and lives too. This is our priority and happiness to see these kids doing great in their lives, despite the challenges; they have shown a lot of strength in the Lord. So keep us in your prayers always brother and may God bless you so much.

Your brother in the Lord,
Peter”

Love and Blessings to You,

 Jay & Melissa

Lesson Learned

Every girl/woman wants to be thought of, told you are special, and surprised!

It was one of THOSE days for me. I felt forgotten, which was a lie, but, the thought stuck with me all day. I didn't feel special , important or worth doing something special for. I knew I was believing lies so instead of drowning by sorrows in my latest novel I decided to glen some wisdom from my favorite marriage book. Help Meet by Debbie Pearl. I read the chapter about having a thankful spirit. I felt filled up by the Lord. I realized that I was, once again, looking to Jay to make me feel complete instead of my creator.

I put Help Meet away and decided to get back to my novel and look what I found when I opened my nook to read.

Does he know me or what?!! He left my love note in my Nook. He knew I would read before I went to bed and he wanted me to know that I AM special, important, and worth doing something special for! BE STILL MY HEART!

Technology...how do they do that?

The TV below was given to us by Levi. When we got it we were pleased with a bigger screen, but the depth was at least 3 1/2 feet! He gave it to us when we moved in to the apartment during the "down sizing" time of our life. So, here we are in  an apartment and the only place the TV could go was in the only corner the living room offered.  We often joked that we had a 50" TV, Fifty inches DEEP! HA!

The day came when Jay decided to take the plunge and purchase the "dream" TV. He was so excited to see his movies in HD and I couldn't wait to re-arrange the living room! It was a win/win. Although, I am still trying to figure out how that have put 3 1/2 feet of stuff in FIVE inches (yes, 5, I measured)!

Snow Day! 2013

JT, the diligent student.

Mom, the cookie maker.

Dad, the pipe smoker/ thinker. (Hemingway, wine, and cheese)

Claira, the adventurous spirit!

Where do we start?

To see our new flyer click here

Where do we start? This summer has been so full of revelations from the Lord. We have no idea how, in the world, we are going to relay it all to you in a short email.

Disclaimer: if this is too wordy for you, just read the bold stuff and skip the details!

First, we prayed, “Lord, if you want us to go to Africa this summer, provide the funds. If you don’t, don’t provide a cent.” Well, he provided in a very BIG way through many of you and we went.

Our plan was to travel to Kenya, Uganda and Sudan. God had laid very specific ministries on our heart to see. This trip was all about finding out who we were to partner with and where God wanted to use us, in the flesh on African soil, in the next couple of years after Jay finished his RN degree. In the words of Isaiah, we were saying, “Here I am Lord, send me!”

When we arrived in Kenya the Holy Spirit moved very quickly. Jay was awakened from his sleep with the following revelation:

We went to Africa with the expectation that God would show us where he wanted us to serve and a time frame for our permanent move. Well, what he revealed to us, actually was a shocker, but he gave it with such clarity and peace that I knew it could only be from HIM!

We were lying awake the first night because of jet lag, and I was just laying there praying, things like, “God just show us where you want us to live, and show me where you need me and my nursing skills.” What he answered was something like this, “Jay, I know you love me and I know you love my people, but you’re not needed here for a while. You have spent the last 6 years raising other people’s children, you need to go home and raise yours!” I was not prepared for that news, but like I said before, he gave me so much peace!

Later that week one of our friends said, “Don’t orphan your own kids by taking care of orphans.”
God just continued to show us how much we’re not needed there physically. What is needed, though is our time, influence and resources for our friend Peter and Rehoboth House. He is doing so much with so little! Our “call” now is to help raise money to feed the children of Rehoboth House. That’s the most strategic, efficient thing we can do with your help.

As many of you know, three years ago in 2009, Ken Childress and Jay headed off to Kitale, Kenya to meet a Kenyan man named Peter who Jay and been emailing for about four months. Peter had been using the Bighouse website to get ideas about his own outreach to orphans in his community. After a few months he decided to send an email to Jay thanking him for all the hard work he was doing at Bighouse and how much our ideas of ministry had helped him with his outreach in Kenya. We were all very taken back by this. After communicating back and forth Peter invited Ken and Jay to come and see what God had allowed him to do in Kenya.

The results from the 2009 trip were huge for Peter. Ken and Jay quickly realized that Peter was doing a great work in trying to provide for the needs of 20 orphans. At the time they were living in three 10x10 rooms with a large mattress on the ground that they were all sleeping on. They had shelter, food, and were getting enrolled in school. Ken, a long time board member for Lightbearer’s, brought with him knowledge on how to partner with locals so they could provided a sustainable income so the gospel could continue to be spread to those in physical and spiritual need. Jay and Ken were about to set Peter up with a motorcycle taxi service that he had always dreamed about.

The “Pikki Pikki” was purchased for $1,100. Peter lives on 40% of the profits and 60% are used to care for the orphans. Keep in mind when we use the term orphan we are talking about children without any family members to care for them. In 2011, due to the gift a generous family, another “Pikki Pikki” was purchased and he was able to move them to an even better home, this home looks quite different from what Jay and Ken saw in 2009.

These 20 children now live in a gated compound in their community called, Kipsongo, where they all attend school and church. They are provided with clothing, bunk beds with mattresses, three meals a day and loving care by Nixon and Fatuma who are married and have a little boy named Jenkins. And also by Eunice who has two son of her own.

God’s desire for Jay and I, right now, is to use our time, talent and resources to help Peter with the work God placed on his heart. We were so blessed to attend church with him and his family, eat in their home, meet their friends and watch them interact and live life with each other. Their love for the Lord was so evident. Their compassion for the needy was present every day. They spent hours a day caring for the children. They make sure they all have food & clothes. They spend time having meetings with their teachers at school to see how they are doing and what they may need. We were so overcome by the unselfishness and gratefulness we saw and we knew that it was no mistake that Jay got that “not so random” email three years ago. God totally orchestrated all of this so that we can continue to help Peter with what I would call his Matthew 25 ministry.

One day we sat down with Peter to get more details from him. Below is a list of what we accomplished while in Kitale, Kenya and what we hope you will help us accomplish this next year:                                                                                          

5 mattresses: $150
3 soccer balls: $40
3 jump ropes: $20
200lbs beans: $83
200lbs rice: $83
200lbs corn: $83
Laptop for Peter $400
Hiring Evans to drive us to Jinga, Uganda $210
(Hiring Evans proved to be an incredible relationship building time. He was able to have an experience of a lifetime plus provide for his family and get much needed car repairs.)

Total: $1,069

After talking with Peter we quickly realized that providing food for the children is his biggest stress. Food prices fluctuate depending on harvest and the time of year. There are times that the prices double or triple. We want to relieve the food burden from him so that his resources raised from the “Pikki Pikki” can be used for upkeep on the children’s home.

It will cost roughly $100 a month to provide food and coal for 20 orphans and 3 care takers and their three children. Wow! We can do that and we would love you to be a part of it! We would like to raise $2,000 this year to help Peter with food and any other unexpected costs that may arise. If you are interested in helping that would be great. As you can see we don’t need much so send what God lays on your heart and we will let everyone know when we have met our goal.   

We have attached a detailed flyer with pictures and more information on how you can donate. Feel free to print this out and share it. We will be sending emails from time to time sharing prayer needs and updates on the children. Join us in prayer that these children understand the love of their heavenly father through the love of their earthly care givers.

Love and Blessings,

Jay & Melissa

“What does the Lord require of us: To do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.” Micah 6:8

To see more photo's and to learn more about Rehoboth House CLICK HERE

#37 the BEST Birthday....Yet!

Getting older is something that I honestly have LOVED.

I feel:

Wiser
Closer to the Lord
Closer with Jay
My marriage is better
More confidence in Motherhood
Family time is sweeter
Friendships are dearer

Cherry planed the best friend party for me! Since my love language is quality time I loved hanging out with some local girl friends. We ate at Market Place Grill, Callie, made my favorite -Strawberry Shortcake plus, I got a free Chocolate Mess! The food, friends, dessert and conversation was perfect but what meant the most was the creative way they shared what I mean to them.

In the center of the table were all different colors of daisies. Since I LOVE flowers this was very beautiful to me. Tucked into each pot was a tissue paper flower. Cherry opened up one and read:

“The language of flowers, sometimes called floriography, was a Victorian-era means of communication in which various flowers and floral arrangements were used to send coded messages, allowing individuals to express feelings which otherwise could not be spoken. I am not always best with words, so I thought I’d let the flowers speak for themselves.

The flower symbolism associated with the daisy is purity, innocence, loyal love, patience and simplicity…all of which are descriptions of you, Melissa! Today we celebrate you and praise God for bringing you onto this earth. You have made an impact in our lives and I believe we all count you not only a friend but a sister.

Romans 12:9-13 ‘Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil, cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Hone one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.’

I have seen all of this displayed in you at one time or another. We praise God for you and have learned so much from you!

With Love Always,

Cherry M.”

The next morning I opened the rest of the tissue paper flowers and read the following with tears in my eyes:

Back Row: Amy Gaddy, Molly Kiltworth, Cherry Martinez, Marla Rusack, Heather Richards, Callie Granderson
Front Row: Ruth Epstein & ME! Angela Story not pictured but there in spirit!

“Oh, gosh, it is hard to sum up Melissa and what she means to me in one short paragraph. I started to make a list of all of her shining attributes, but there were so many it looked like I just copy and pasted a list of positive character traits. HA! First thoughts, Melissa is a really good friend. Not only to me but to almost anyone she encounters! There is not telling how many women that would consider Melissa to be in their “T-5” (top five) friends. She is an excellent friend. She truly, truly cares about people. One of the qualities that make her such a good friend is that she is a ridiculously good- listener. Not only that, but she also gives wise and practical advice and she is patient when you first don’t take her advice.;) haha! She is gifted in counseling other. People feel comfortable sharing with her because she is trustworthy and honest. She has been a mentor and role-model to dozens of you girls, women and new moms. J  She is so selfless and generous with her time and talents. What an impact she has! Not to mention she is an awesome wife and mother. She sets and example for both a Christ-centered marriage and Christ-centered parenting. She is a very genuine, authentic, woman of God. Melissa could also write a book or teach a class on arts and crafts/home-Ec. She is so resourceful! I have learned and adapted many of her house-hold/home-keeping/domestic tricks. I sometimes refer to her as my “Martha Stewart.” (Martha before she was incarcerated). I laughed out loud here! Melissa and I have gotten to share some fun memories, the most special being the birth of Jack Mitchell. J

Callie Granderson”

“Here is my story:

Fall 2008: Noah is telling me I have to take him to this Pumpkin Caring Party for his fried, JT. And I’m supposed to bring soup! We get on the road and I ‘m not believing how far I ‘m driving! I’m driving up the mountain and get the end of the road and I’m still driving!!! But that night was special, combing family and friends, soup, pumpkin carving, games and the giant fire! The view was breath-taking from your front porch! And I loved talking with you, Melissa! I love you and our friendship. Anytime we get together, I love hearing what God is doing in your life, your marriage and your family! You share what God is teaching you! Thank you! You are generous, kind, wise and beautiful! Thank you for being you! I treasure more time with you in the future!!!

Love, Ruth”

“When I think of you, Melissa, I see you smiling. Your sweetness and sense of humor are two things that drew me to you when we met. It is obvious that you the Lord and are yielding to him. You are committed to your husband and kids. I hear you speak with kindness and grace. And you are full of wisdom. Steady and level-headed come to mind as well. I’m glad you have a little “crazy” streak- another thing that drew me to you! J I am privileged to know you, just this short time, and look forward to more years of friendship!

Happy Birthday! Love You!
Marla Rusack”

“Dear Melissa,

I can still remember the first time I met you. We were about to move into Woodway and were spending some time there with the Gaddy’s. Michael and Amy wanted to drop by and say hello to the Gresham’s. “They’re a bit older than us, say upper 30’s but they’re so cool!” Michael informed us. He was right. You are so cool, Melissa. But, you’re so much more than that. I remember you being so warm and welcoming, even to strangers. I think you already had dinner guests over, but welcomed us on in. I love your “the more the merrier” mentality. In a room full of multiple conversations, I ended up sitting right next you and we had our own. You told me your story and how God led your family to Woodway. Then you told me something I’ll never forget. It has encouraged me and inspired me ever since. “Don’t feel the need to have that American ‘cookie-cutter’ life. Don’t by a house, settle down, and plant your roots UNLESS GOD tells you to. And if he doesn’t, then don’t. And that is ok.” J Such simple words, yet so bold and powerful. When I think of you I see an elephant. It stands for power and wisdom. I love these things about you because they come straight from the Lord. You accept the gifts with such grace and poise. From the obedient way you homeschool your kids, to the love way you raise them-from the organized way your run your household, to the hospitable way you open it- I am inspired. From Bighouse, to New Heights, to Africa- God is using you in beautiful way. When Ryan and I think about our family one day…we think about The Gresham’s. J We see and love so many things about your family that we desire for our one day too. Though we don’t get to spend as much time together as I wish, your life has been a light to mine. Thank you for being a wonderful neighbor, friend and sister in Christ.

Oh! And P.S. Did I forget to mention how TOTALLY excited I am for what God is doing with your family in Africa?!?! Ryan and I are in love with Africa and its people. So cool to see you guys faithfully following that dream.

Happy Birthday Melissa!

Sincerely,
Molly Elizabeth Klintworth”

“Melissa

What a blessing you have been in my life over the past few years! You have such wisdom in many areas of life from childbirth and raising kids to cooking tips! Michael and I appreciate the example you and Jay have set by choosing to live differently and with purpose. Thanks for serving me so much through offering advice and wisdom. I hope you have a great birthday this year and feel loved!

Amy”

“Melissa,

You’ve made and incredible impact on my life. Watching you from “afar”-living out being a wife, a mother, a daughter of the Most High.

I’ve learned from you that it’s always best to:

Seek God’s wisdom above all else
Think like a man (I laughed out loud here, I am glad it is working!)
Find humor even in the difficult things in life

The reassuring feel of your hand on the nape of my neck as I labored with the birth of my first born taught me: A silent, humble, prayerful spirit of a servant is incredibly powerful
Peace
Surrender to God’s precious gifts admits trials
I’ve learned so much from you.
Your spirit Glows.
Your laughter is contagious.

Thank you for imparting yourself to me: your wisdom, your friendship, your “sisterhood” in Christ.

You are much to celebrate!

Love,
Heather”

“Melissa-

The dictionary defines the word friend as someone who values someone else and the bible says that friends love at all times. You are a perfect picture of friendship. Thank you for always being so willing to love on us throughout good times and bad. Thank you for showing other what unconditional love is and what listening without judgment looks like. Thank you that you have always been a shoulder for me to cry on and the friend I can’t wait to tell my greatest joys to. Thank you for loving my boys as if they were members of your family and for teaching them with kindness and affection. Thank you for your encouragement to ALWAYS be looking to God for answers and NOT to the world. Thank you for loving Jesus so fervently. Thank you for being so generous and hospitable. Thank you for sharing life with me! My family values and appreciates you more than you know. I love you and am very thankful that the Lord gave me a friend in you. I look forward to many more years of friendship with you. There is no greater love than this.

Love you,

Angela and the Story brood J”

I was overwhelmed reading all of these letters. I thought, “I am not this person…I am selfish, greedy, irritable & weak!” Then God spoke over me: “Yes, you are, but when you live in me when you let me fill you up and use you I am able to work through you so that you can be what your friends see. There is nothing good in you, Melissa, but me!” Wow! This is so incredibly true. I am so humbled that Jesus calls me friend. That He wants to use me to show His love. On this 37^th birthday I feel so loved!

“Thank you Jesus for giving me life! Thank you for allowing me to grow up with Christian parents who taught me about you. Thank you for all of the mentors you have place in my life at the right moments so that I could be challenged to grow deeper in love with you. Thank you for a loving husband and for the amazing children you have given me, even the two that I wasn’t allowed to raise. They have taught me so much about trust, timing, and the hope of heaven.  Thank you for always blessing with sweet friends at every stage in my life. Thank you for loving me through the really hard times, for being patient with me when I didn’t trust you, or believe that my broken heart was for my own good. Lord, show me this year all the places in my heart I haven‘t not given to you. Fill them up so that I can, in return, show your love to those you put in my path.”

Happy Birthday to Me!