Coffee Time 0530 (2)

We continue to meet on Tuesday mornings in my office.  Lately, the guys have been showing up later and later.  We start at six, and I had told them that if they wanted coffee to come at 5:30.  One stumbled in at 6:30 with swollen eyes as if he had just woken up and walked in the door.  It was kinda funny.  The point is, they are still coming to be fed from the Word and they are continuing to enjoy what the Lord is showing us from the book of Mark.  So, I'm excited that they aren't coming "for the coffee" as the reason to come.  They're coming "for the food."

We are just about finished with Mark 3, but I am one study short of finishing chapter two on the blogsite.  The two reasons for doing this are:

1. In order that their hunger for God and reading His Word would grow.
2. In order that they would have an anxiousness to share about God and His Word to others.

I'm seeing this happen.  Their hunger has grown and one of them has been teaching another student in the youth group what he's been learning during this time.  We've got a little ways to go still, but I'm having fun...and the coffee is good too!

Here's a link to the blog.

Homeschool Whirlwind

We are in the middle of our Homeschool Whirlwind.  It's been four weeks since we began to do 2 lessons a day in order to finish by the time teams start to show up.  It has been pretty crazy and sometimes testing to keep sane.  Rebecka has been doing an awesome job and her reading skills have improved quite a bit.  We have three more weeks (including this one) of 10 "school days" per week to do.  Then, the final week will be regular in order to finish on June 19; the day before our first team.  We'd appreciate your prayers.

Church Roof Progress

The main part of the roof is up.  Just a few more details and it will be done!

Church Roof

Amazing...in four days, this is what they've been able to do!

What In The World Is Going On?

"What In The World Is Going On?" by David Jeremiah

This is a pretty interesting book.  I'm kind of weird when it comes to people's interpretation of the Bible about eschatological events.  Part of me gets real excited and says, "Oh, wow, yeah, that makes sense" or sometimes it's just the mysterious curiosity of "what's going to happen" in the end of all time.  The other part of me is pretty cautious.

I liked the book, but I didn't quite understand some of the conclusions as I read the Bible along side what he was saying.  Most everything he says is in the Bible, but I'm still left with a couple of questions about his "timeline" of the eschatological events.  It makes sense, but it wasn't thorough...maybe that was intended??

He starts the book explaining what's going on in the world at large with crude oil, where most of it is coming from, how the financing is changing, and who's most dependent on it.  As it appears that this is a major factor in the events that are leading up to the Second Coming of Christ.  

It's interesting, it's confusing, it's important.  He writes, "Scholars count 1,845 biblical references to the Second Coming...The Lord Himself referred to His return 21 times.  The Second Coming is second only to faith as the most dominant subject in the New Testament."

First Tooth

Rebecka lost her first tooth today!

Mark Chapter One

I've just finished updating our "Coffee Time 0530" meetings of Mark Chapter One.  We've had a great time meeting on Tuesday mornings.  Last weed we finally finished Chapter Two, so I'll be updating that as well in the near future.

Oaxaca RETO Video

In our recent youth missions trip to Oaxaca, our outreach in the evenings consisted of a CHALLENGE event that we have here every year.  You can see the video on You Tube here.

Thanks Jeffrey!

Discerning the Truth

I receive a devotional by Neil Anderson each day via email.  They are very good.  I thought today's was especially good since there is so much confusion with so many different religions in the world today.  Some may think they're following the true gospel when in fact, it's something that has part of the truth, but not the whole truth.  That is Satanic; meaning that's what Satan did in the garden to deceive Eve.  He used the truth, but twisted it a little bit.  He is still doing that today.

Here is Neil Anderson's devotional today...

DISCERNING THE TRUTH 

1 Thessalonians 5:19-21

Do not quench the Spirit; do not despise prophetic utterances. But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good 

If you accept prophetic utterances as valid for today, I would encourage you to test them in the following ways. 

First, is the person giving the prophetic utterance living a balanced and righteous lifestyle? You must carefully evaluate the person announcing, "Thus saith the Lord." Also, be on guard for the person who wants to bring a "new thing." If it is true, it's not new. If it is new, it's not true. 

Second, is the person committed to building God's kingdom or his own? Is Christ being lifted up or is he? 

Third, does the prophetic utterance establish confidence in the Word of God and is it consistent with a balanced presentation of it? Are people going to have a greater dependency on God's revelation or man's inspiration? Are prophetic utterances a substitute for the serious, personal study of God's Word? 

Fourth, does the use of the spiritual gift bring unity to the church and build up the body? Be careful in this test because those who hold to a form of godliness but deny its power are not in balance either. They will quench the Spirit through censorship and very little will be accomplished in the church. They can cause disunity as well. 

Last, do the spiritual manifestations bypass the mind? God operates through our mind; Satan bypasses it. If a person takes on a medium-like trance, be assured it is occultic. God renews our mind and brings back to our mind all that He has taught us. We are to think so as to have sound judgment. 

All of us receive input from a myriad of sources today. With Satan still using false prophets in his battle for your mind, determine to discern the truth God wants you to know to set you free and keep you free. 

Prayer: 

Lord, I want to be so in tune with your Word that I can discern error and darkness even when it appears as truth and light. 

APRIL UPDATE

Greetings everyone!  It’s May and the sun is out!!!  A big THANK YOU to all of you who have been following our ministry as you cover us in your prayers.  We really appreciate it!!

Last month, we asked you to pray for…

• Oaxaca Missions Trip We had a great time!  The traveling went really smooth; the Holy Spirit protected us; not only were the hearts of the youth open to the Gospel, but the adults and children as well; our Student Leaders did a phenominal job leading a Sunday Home group, a leadership workshop during the week and the evening outreach called, “EL RETO.”  This was our first missions trip as a youth ministry and we all came home with something to ponder on and help us grow spiritually.  Thank You for keeping us in your prayers!  I have put together a full report here.
  

Other things that have happened this past month were

• Emma’s third birthday
• a visit from Geña’s family from California
• all four of us getting sick at the same time (we’re better now)
• a Guy’s Campout led by one of our Student Leaders
• Since joining Facebook in March, I have enjoyed keeping in touch with many of you and reconnecting with many other friends.  If you’re on Facebook, click on my profile to the right and let me know.
  

The invitation will always be available for those of you who would like to come down with a team or just for a visit and experience the Real Mexico.

Links to something extra...
José Luís' Newsletter
Tuesday mornings' “Coffee Time 0530”

This month, would you please pray for...

• Mother’s Day...just because we love them!
• A trip to La Cruz, Sinaloa...to visit Pastor Héctor Robles and speak to the congregation.  Pray for safety in travel and the ability to connect with the people.
• Church roof construction...Dave Elias will be working all month on covering of the roof with a few guys helping him.  Please pray for safety as he will be really high up in the air on top of the scaffolding just underneath the cool 100 degree sun!  You can see a report here about the rafters being set in place back in January.
• A Worship Leader...I am praying for someone responsible and dependable to work along side me in the area of Worship.
• Student Ministry...our student ministry is completely awesome!  We have some great leaders and will be making a decision soon on whom to invite to join us for the next "round" (July '09-June '10).
  

Thank you very much for your prayers and continued support.  
See how to donate here

Blessings,
Steve, Geña, Rebecka and Emma Rose Silberman
Missionaries to Mexico

Neil Anderson Quote

"What you do doesn't determine who you are; who you are determines what you do."

Lousy T-Shirt

"I became a Christian and all I got was this lousy t-shirt" by Vince Antonucci.

Pretty interesting book.  Each chapter talks about something different; a lot of ideas on our attitudes as Christians and our character.  He gives a simple perspective that many of us learn the hard way sometimes.  The title suggests a disappointed Christian.  Someone who was expecting something really cool, but didn't get what they were expecting.  It has to do with our perspective on life.  

He sums his book up on the last page this way,

"I believe the ideas in this book are at the core of Christianity and of life.  Being a Christian is about living life with Jesus--really abiding in him.  And it's about living the Jesus life--really abounding in him.  But even closer to the core are the facts that I am enough for God, and God is enough for me."

Vince is a very down-to-earth kinda guy and his ability to connect with non-Christians or people who don't like church is encouraging to me.

http://www.lousytshirtbook.com/