It's A Wonderful Life...

It is a beautiful and wonderful life we live.
It's up to us to purpose in our hearts to see it in that light. Not because of all the things we possess or the money we have. It's not the nice places we live, it's not the jobs or schools we go to. You know what it is that makes it so wonderful, Jesus, you, me, our family, and friends, the ones we'll come to love and know. The memories that you make with the people around you.
Yes life is messy, painful, and full of suffering at times and for some it seems all the time. Just know that there is beauty in the midst of it all. After all the God of Genesis, the creator of everything, the whole entire universe, including us... loves us. He's in love with us, and we should be in love with Him too. If you are in love with Him, I encourage you to "count your blessings" and ponder upon the wonderful things God has given you, and then inquire in His temple of His love for you. If you are not in love with the God of Genesis, the one who is Creator of all, Emmanuel, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, The Great I Am, Jesus our Savior... I encourage you to open your heart and ask these three simple questions:
1. Jesus please will you show Your love to me, show me what it looks like, feels like...?
2. Jesus will you please open up my heart to understand, to have the wisdom, revelation, and Knowledge of who you are?
3. Jesus I don't love you like you love me, will you teach me how to love you deeply?

And everyday just say: I will love you when I lose and when I win. I will love you through it all. Jesus I love you.
Say it even when you don't feel like saying it, even if the enemy is coming up against you with false accusations, lies, and seeds of doubt... say those words anyways and put your mind and heart on the things above, the things of Christ and His Kingdom.

John 21:20, The apostle John got the revelation that he is God's beloved one. He understood it and wrote it down at the end of his life in the last book he wrote, the Gospel of John.
Do you know that you are a beloved of God and that you too can lean upon the chest of God the Father and ask... please tell me your secrets... I want to know you.

I love you all and may my love grow more and more like Jesus' love in the way He loves you, may I love you the same way too.

Enjoy the pictures.

Por mi Tia Beth: Muchos Gracias y Besos, con carino, Elisha

Had to get Brad in the picture to get her to hold still for one second. :)

In her pool for the first time this summer!

Hello.

I'll Praise The Lord and Splash!

Cheesy! Mommy!

It's All About Love

Hello Everyone!

Have you ever come to a point in your life where you look around and say: "Huh? Am I doing what I thought I was purposed for? I mean I thought I was... but am I really?" More and more as we look around our world we see that there's more we are purposed for than what we are doing right now. It's very exciting and at the same time very eye opening into our hearts and what is really there.

As of late I wanted to update you all that we are doing much better since we have gone through some rough patches financially. During the process I had a relative come and stay with us. It did not go well at all. I thought it would, it just didn't happen. There was a young 20-something we had just befriended who had come up to K.C. with friends. She was without a car, a job, and a place to live in a few short weeks. Without going into to much detail, during her time of need my relative was staying with us and our friend was not liking what she was seeing and did not want to be around us very much. It was hard. We wanted to help her but heard the Lord say: "Wait on me and do not make a move." So we prayed, and some very open-hearted people on the property said she could stay with them, which made me happy. Now that time has come and gone. Our friend still lives with the people on the property and my relative has gone with out hearing voice, with out seeing hide or tail. It has been heart breaking to have first not been able to work things out with the person and then to see them leave, and never hear from them again. My hope is one day we will.

Now in the summer there's a little less stress in our household now that the winds of change are blowing through. Brad has a lot of work coming in from someone he's worked with previously, which is totally the Lord. Nothing became of any other job he applied for. He's been working so hard there and then comes home and has to work a little on the property too. It's not easy but the grace of the Lord has made it bearable and He's given us peace. We'd like to throw a picnic here at the rental property for all the tenants but we are not sure when we're supposed to do so. Could you all be praying for us: about the picnic-when it's supposed to happen, and for us to create new friendships and reach deeper to the hearts of those living here. Many of the tenants struggle here and I know by the Holy Spirit that it is a stronghold of poverty over this place. The Lord has shown me we must continue to bind up the stronghold and bring it down for breakthrough is on the way.

I am staying home with Elisha and enjoying it more and more. The Lord has shown me a lot of things to be doing with her to train her in His ways. He's so creative too! We have lots of flash cards and books and toys, of course! The other day we went to the public library and I loaned out about 20-30 books for her! She loves for me to read to her and sometimes she'll read on her own. She babbles a lot... I think she is saying things she hears us say all the time it just isn't very clear. She's still very friendly and makes friends wherever we go. Sometimes when Brad leaves and we go downstairs to eat breakfast and play she'll look around and hold out her hands in a questioning gesture and say: "Where's daddy?" The first time she did it I was like, whoa? Are you supposed to be asking questions... but then again I've repeated that question to her so many times... :) She's also asked, "What you doing?" It's not all very clear but the basic syllables are there and her body language lets you know what she's saying. It's pretty cool and I'm kinda nervous about homeschooling her because she's so smart. But it's God's grace and mercy that will pull me through and He will give me strength. Plus my husband is pretty smart too so I know he can help if I get stuck on something later in the future, like Math! :) Please be praying for Elisha. She woke up with a fever this morning and her eye gunked up again and her nose is running green! Her fever has come and gone all day. We've prayed for her through out the day and noticed the fever would leave a little but then it would come right back. Thank you for your prayers. (We don't want to take her to the Dr. if it can be helped.)

We are going to be vacationing with Brad's parents in July and then I will stay with them for the rest of the month as Betty will be having minor foot surgery. I'm so exited and looking forward to it. We all need a rest and rejuivination right now. The Lord has shown me that some really wonderful things are going to happen during that resting and rejuivinating period. I really believe it's because I'll be away from KC for a while and in a place where Elisha's grandparents will help keep her occupied and I can get away with Jesus for a little bit. At home it's a little more challanging. Also Brad will be home in KC during that time and I believe he's going to be able to do the same thing. It's like a wind of refreshing will blow through and deliever us from things in our hearts that don't need to be there and strengthen us in our relationship and intimacy with Christ in the secret place. (*Sigh*)

From this point you don't have to continue to read, I'm just going to share my heart and thoughts on a book I'm reading: Compelled By Love by: Heidi Baker. (Pics and video at the end.)
(Heidi and her husband Rolland Baker are missionaries in Mozambique, Africa. They have taken in 1,000's of orphans as their own.)

In the chapter I was reading: Blessed are those that mourn, I was deeply wounded by the Love shown to some little girls described. One little, tiny, girl they found had been sexually abused a lot. When they found her she was weeping and tears were streaming. Heidi asked the Lord, "How do I comfort this one?" All she could do was hold her and rock her. Heidi said in the begining that's all she would do all day. She would hold and rock and pray for one child after the other without stopping, all day long she'd comfort them. This tiny little girl would weep all the time even when she went to bed. All Heidi could do was hold her and love on her. One day they were traveling up to a village and found another little girl who's stomach was bloated from malnutrition/not eating, her eyes were bright red, she had lice and scabies. They took her to a hospital and the doctor said, "She's going to die." Heidi swept her up in her arms and held her and rocked her. She did get lice and scabies, but she didn't care, it was more worth it to love on that little girl and let her know she's loved then to let her die. She did not die, she lived. And once she was up and going and little more healthier she saw the "tiny, little girl" weeping. Beatrice took Constacia in her arms and held her and rocked her. Heidi was touched and blessed to see what Love was doing. (So was I.) One day they were having water baptisms and there was no clean water. Many people were very dirty b/c there was no clean water. They used a bin of old washing water that was green to baptize them. The people didn't care. Tiny, little, Constacia, weeping came up for her turn, Heidi asked God, "Is it okay for her to be baptized she doesn't talk Lord and has not confessed you..." Silence and then Constacia stepped into the dirty water and was asked by Heidi if she knew what the baptism was for? Heidi explained and after she came up from her old life, Constacia smiled and said: "I want to lead the children's choir." WOW!

I look up to this woman and her family. They are living out the gospel in ways I've not seen here in the US. It's not taught here. You really have to be schooled by the Holy Spirit as promised by Jesus in John chapters 14-16. When we look to the God of heaven and earth who loved us so much He gave us His only begotten Son... we look at Love. My heart is to comfort those who mourn, you know; really live out the Sermon on the Mount and walk in the Spirit. Because in Galations chapter 5 verses 22-23 there's no law against the fruit of the Spirit. How can you go wrong if that's what you are living and breathing out everyday?

"Prayer builds faith, faith builds love, love leads you to love the poor." Mother Teresa

With much love,
Brad, Leslie, & Elisha

P.S. Heidi's husband Rolland is in a rehabilitation clinic in Germany. He had become quite weak and ill. They are at this clinic doing prayer soaking, holistic supplements, nutrition and diet, trying to get him healthy and asking Abba Father for complete healing. Rolland suffered some episodes of malaria and it was very severe one time he almost died. Over time it has affected his brain and his nervous system. The doctors believe he's suffered very minor strokes. Please keep this man and his family in your prayers. :)

What a Cutie pie. With her lovie, "Puppy."

Awe. Their faces look a like when they scrunch up. :)

Mommy's girl.
(She really does like to smile for the camera.)

Daddy and Elisha going down the big slide at the free petting zoo.
(Daddy's underside got wet from the ground. :) )