seeing it right...

check this out. i read this the othe day and it rings in my insides with truth.

"missions is less about the transportation of God from one place to another and more about the identification of a God who is already there...   ...you see God where others don't. And then you point Him out." (r. bell)

this is about God being God, right? about Him being past the boundries that we understand... or sometimes try and set up. about Him not fitting in our box.

forget the box!

what is a god that people should be about to get thier minds around?

i think God would blow our minds if we got to know Him more.

past religion, past dogma, past what our parents taught us... past what the church teaches.

i mean, if God is our creator... we can't righteously claim to know Him.

humbling

peacefully humbling.



God, thank You that You are so much bigger, more righteous than our boxes we try and fit You in.
please forgive our ignorance and train our hearts to love like You. please hear my heart.

much love, israel

writing anyway

well.. i was not intending to post anything... in fact, i have no idea what my intentions were by logging in to my blog. but, here i am, unexpected by myself, reading old comments left by dear ones and considering what i had written that at that time, possibly even now, stirred hearts.

where are we now? what does life look like around us.

for me it has been a struggle. i suppose i already imagined myself back in india or berlin by this time.. well.. i did. and as i read about or look at photos from those times there i am left again with heaviness on my heart.

berlin, india, i love you guys. more importantly, God loves you. Jesus died for you, and more and more people come to you in His love wanting to help with the harvest.

God, please send more workers! to the ghats and mountains, fields and cities of india. to the streets, alleys, parks and high-rise neighborhoods of berlin.

i still (want to) believe that the time in those places are far from over... and i choose to because my heart still aches for them. but i am now here in southern germany, i guess.. waiting, to an extent, working (on marriage and my own heart) and praying for His will with us here.

i read rachels comment about God's family being my own. thank You God that You never left me alone. even now, i am surrounded by family (kathys) and know that i am blessed.

i pray to this, Lord, please send more workers here too. may we be part of Your family here, not just our own. and may we be a shining light (picture a really bright shining light in a dark passage way for example) to the family here.

please bless, encourage and sustain those lights in berlin and india. and when it by Your will, may we shine there too, blessing, encouraging and loving those there.

and most of all.... thank You for Your love. though i cannot understand how amazing it is. how amazing You are. thanks for what You are doing right now. please don't let it be useless time waiting...

much love,
israel

freeze and thaw

i can say that i am spending a healthy amount of time in ulm lately. since just before the operation, i spend a day each week up there. it is actually a really neat city.
this last time, yesterday, they removed the stitches from my wrist and hip. and now, hehe.. i am typing with two hands. not the most comfortable but faster and maybe even a form of therapy. i have at least two weeks before the cast is completely gone... then we shall see.

although i lack the words to tell why i am excited, something is just really good and happening right now.
what a blessing to be alive. what a blessing to be so loved by God.

now thawing out from sitting outside for some time, garage voice is filling my with their worship in a neat blues/gospel/normal garage voice style and i am eager again already to go outside to breath the fresh air and maybe pick up some bread.

ok. now back to one hand... ouwi!

i read a couple blogs that i wrote back at the end of 2009. what a leap of joy my heart gets when recollecting those memories. these last years have held many a blessings usually in the form of a surprise. now here i sit, wondering what is goimg on right now and what is yet to come even over the next weeks before 2012 is ended.
who will we see yet, where will we go, what will we hear or smell... with whom will we conversate that will lead our thoughts to new depths or heights...
what is God doing in your heart... has started recently or what might possibly yet happen this year?
are these scary or uneasy thought or rather ones of unhidden joy?
what will the Maker of your soul speak to or through you in the next 5 weeks?

how exciting


then the thoughts are also yet to be considered.... what has He done over this last year?




(silence)



the year has gone quick, but not yet over...

picts of the time in england with sam (finally developed)

much love,
israel

calling out praises

happy thanksgiving to you all, and thank You God!

as i was travelling around back at the end of 2009, sams family showed me something special that we should all seriously consider for ourselves regardless of our present situation. in tribute to what today is, i would enjoy a little conversating interaction from all who read this...

imagine we are all sitting around a table together. each person who reads this should consider what they are thankful for... and then leave it as a comment to this blog. that way i can read what your are thankful for and so can the others...

understand?

neat, regardless, i'll start...

i am thankful that my wrist got operated on!

your turn... (leave a comment by clicking the little link below... something like "kommentar")


much love, israel

the floor was cold on my back

it is punny how God is so true to hear us and even answer our requests and all the while having His own plans...

i'm sitting here drinking another dark coffee from my janosch mug listening to some blues from karli fairbanks thinking of what has been happening over the last week an a half and must admittingly smile at the simple small renounced results of trusting Him.

yesterday i was in ulm and got the new cast for my wrist that now hides a little treasure inside that doesn't peep at airports. today a week ago, fainting once already after trying to go to the bathroom, all bandaged up and accepting the new truth of difficulty for the next three to six months of recovery, i was put back together and laid in a bed to restless nights for the next week, i wonder if God had this all planned or if He just threw it in at the last minute to bless me in a future that is yet to reveal itself. the pain is less everyday, my hip, where they took the bone to replace the gap is more than less only a flesh wound now healing more every second i suppose. typing with one hand is proving faster than once thought and i wonder if when this is all over i can still type with two hands at this speed...

and though the surgery was such a success, we lacked to look at the time table and how it should work with our hopes of getting america this christmas...  God hooked up the funds to get there..  haha and yet we are unable to come. being both sad and understanding that there will be a better time in the near future, we say sorry that we won't be able to see you all this year afterall. but who are we to claim to know the plans of God. we can truly rely on Him to continue to lead us. and til then enjoying where we now are using the time wisely.

the waters have been stirring of the sea of the thoughts and dreams of what is to come and i suspect our ship will be ever more prepared to set sail as we keep on keeping on. waiting in eager peace...

thank you all for the prayers and emails. so cool of those who have written. still hoping from others as well..
and i am praying for you all really thanking God of each individual and personal way our paths have crossed. and you Z, i still know what you asked prayer for and i am praying. everyone else, please pray too!

much love, israel

good news and good news

tomorrow brings the time that has knocked on my door for so long.
kathys uncle and i drive up to ulm early where a dr. franken... something will take me apart and put me back together. (ironic twist.. or rather a joke.)
this all describing the wrist surgery for those who are reading this wondering what on earth am i talking about.
i am talking about the surgery, for my wrist, the one that has hurt off and on for the last 9 years.
it is both exciting and nerveracking.
but! God totally hooked it up! and it shall be a great thing. work, pain and probably frustration won't compare to the joys that are to come!

the other good news, we now have a good portion of the sum for the flights to america for christmas. the flights run at about € 1400 or about $2000 something, and we now have € 1000. Wohoa!
we are still trusting Him for the rest as well as the funds while being there to be able to travel a little bit and visit friends and family as well as eat and what not.
thank you all for the prayers thus far and hopefully we shall see you all soon!
oh, also, i still have to work this all out with the unemployment office so that i am allowed to leave the country... it's like, who takes a vacation while getting unemployment... but i will be unable to work with the surgery and all (being in the cast for about 10 weeks and unable to work for 3 months) and there should really be no reason why they would want to keep me from visiting my family over christmas. but we shall see! either way, God is super good and full of hope and good things for those who trust Him and are called according to His purpose... meaning, to love as He has loved us and through that, introduce people to the God they have unrightfully denied.

much much love, thank you again sam and beth for the wonderful time at your place, keep your hearts and don't lose hope!

israel

harpenden

it really neat to be here. still somewhat an unreal experience...
over the last years, God has really blessed me to be able to meet up with my best friend over and over again and always somewhere else on the globe than before.
right now, i am visiting him and his wife here in harpenden as they await her green card to head back stateside.
it has already been a joy being here, as well as a struggle (i.e. missing kathy) and the days are ticking away rather fast. in one week is my surgery and til then i will enjoy the usage of my left wrist.
through the time here and over the last little while, God has been teaching me that He is faithful. what a thought... as if we haven't seen enough to know that already. but it is indeed a war that we are in to live in these truths. well.. He is faithful and is doing something much much huger that than what we can comprehend. Praise Him for that!!!

so.. i thank God for His love and commitment to us. for all the mercy He continually shows us. and for the infinite hope we have as long as we have Him.
and i pray that you would too give this hope, mercy and commitment to those around you.

much love, israel

28 hours there.. another 26 here... all worth it!

This is a blog that I wrote in Northern India but didn't post it for some reason.. probably due to the many power outages at the internet cafés. None-the-less, here is my birthday present to you all, a reminder of how good God is!... or maybe it is one of His presents for me....?!

Much love, israel
enjoy!


over the past few days i have been more than blessed in many ways.

my friend and i left varanasi and spent 28 hrs on a train to kalka.. where we met a couple of travelers headed to shimla.. so we hopped on a toy train with them shortly after arriving and spend the next 6 hours traveling through famous 103 tunnel railway... making friends with a few indians. we stayed that night in the beautiful shimla... which reminded me of europe and took my breath away.. mostly because of the chilly weather and amazing mountainous scernery.. not to mention we were about 2400 meters high.

the next morning.. early.. we boarded a bus to kullu and sat uncomfortably for about 8 hours. it was a much pleasurable ride regardless of comfort. in kullu we met up with kamal, an amazing man with an amazing family i met at the conference. we met together and talked about a lot. it was a blessing having my friend with to witness what he had to say about how God has done some amazing feats in their lives. around midday, we left on another bus to manali, where we are now. i met with two people from the base here and look to join them tomorrow for worship. it will be an amazing opportunity to meet the others from around manali and hear their hearts as well as share mine with them.

God has been opening doors and lining things up with much grace and i am sure it is all with reason. i remember recalling a week or two back saying and asking God why i was here. that i didn't feel i was doing anything of worth. since then... God has unstoppingly taken me along a path of reason. meaning, when i was first invited, i felt Him say that it was an opportunity with reason. He has been showing me that He is more than close to me and doing more than i could possibly imagine right now. He is doing something big.... remember that?

He is doing something... right now! egal wo ich bin. Er ist immer gut und macht Gute!

as that was a mouth full... i would love to go into detail about how the mountain peaks covered in snow that are in view from the porch of our guest house make a perfect place to reflect on what He has recently been doing and jot it all in a note book for further blessings in the future... or how there is a bakery just a minute from us that serve nutella croissants... which i am sure are far from a germany version... or that i enjoyed indian made german bread for breakfast this morning... all this and more have been just small but huge signs of His love in the past couple days.

so.... thank you all! your prayers have been continually heard.

right now.. i could use prayer for finances and health. the norm, but still a consistant need.

ja. not worried but not comfortable. which is just fine!

4 weeks, i should be in moscow waiting for my plane to berlin. wow!

my heal hurts a bit, and i am excited to join worship tomorrow.

Daddy, You have rocked my socks. thank You! in this, please complete all that You have planned. i love You and am amazed by You.

may all i have met with be left with this blessing and those i will meet be prepared.

You are my shepard, i have all i need.... i have You!

viel Liebe, israel

deeper

after a weekend of snow, a friday of goodbyes and a monday of a feeling of unfinished business... the sun slowly drives it's heat mobile across the sky as i think of the so uncertain thoughts running around in this bearded head.

friday was the last day of work. my wrist is hurting today so after stopping at the unemployment office and furthering the process i stopped at the doctors office. what is with this ridged body of miracles that, when demanded, works like a charm but reminds be regardless of the hard years behind us. last week left me with a crummy cold that is now just kleenexes and coughing.
i can't help but be outside in this crisp moist early winter. my heart, as my body and this relationship yurns for some sort of confirmation of His grace. i suppose just looking around in the present and the past would surely satisfy it all. there is a sense of anxiety or better said unrest in my heart as i wait for the operation, for my flight to sam, for the money for kathy and i to america, for the loans to be paid off, for more of Him right now, here!
again and again i have the deep feeling that we are here for a reason. that makes sense... and undoubtably goes deeper that we really understand. i am really not used to living a life of steady hours at work, coming home to a family (wife) and spending other time chillin with others or relaxing. not that it's bad.. but for me a bit off track in my feelings.. maybe it is that good sense with every payment towards the loans, or the hope as i read an update or email from india or elsewhere, or the memories of sitting somewhere in a city that had trapped me for a period of time before going somewhere else struggling with the goodbyes, new hellos and the question, why am i here? not, why am i living... more what should i be doing here, now? what should we be doing here, now? are we doing it? are we doing it partially?
i don't want to be partially, but maybe the wholeness only comes when all else is given up and real pursuit is taken...
then again, maybe that is the quitters way out... stopping what is hard or where it is hard to apply living in truth and living the normal radical way..
put to plainer words... i enjoy taking pictures, climbing, spending time outdoors and traveling, building relationships and being alone. can and should these things be used for Him, for living for Him? and how?
but i suppose in a relationship, when communication is fluent, both sides speak.
God, how might You want to use these desires, mixed with the longing for going back to india and other parts of the world and teaching and exercising Your love everywhere? and how might You desire to use kathys desire too mixed with mine?
oh the great mystery of a greater love, or of a Father who knows how to raise His sons and daughters.

i know You will answer me, for You are greater than good, better than great and You desire us. bring us to You. bring those, whom You have called to Yourself, to You. this world is full of trouble, but we shall take heart, for You have overcome the world!

fight for truth with purity, with excellence, on purpose.

love, israel

what a neat cup

crisp coldness, a warm thick coffee from my neat janosch mug and a lazy cat almost laying on her back...
a whistling stove trying hard to heat the 4 small rooms and 1 hallway...
the album leaf doing there stuff to make any day a chill day..
one week of work left before being unemployed and the need to fill out the paperwork and get it back to the unemployment office before heading to my wrist appointment on wednesday...
yet another new season... the yellow, brown and red leaves of our lives dropping to the ground, making way for new chlorophyll filled beauty of the new year...
the coffee is really thick today, but i think i like it that way the best...
kathy would probably add more milk than normal to it if she weren't working at the cake stand for the flea market for the german ymca...
tomorrow is my dads birthday and today kathys mom celebrates her birthday which was on tuesday...
my wrist...   oh my wrist.... what will they do with you... i have enjoyed using you for lots of neat things and now they will lock you away for some months before allowing you to glee and bask in the glory of fullness...
i think kathy likes porcelain... in two weeks i will be in england again.... sam and i will hug.... multiple times... the album leaf reminds me often on eugene and spokane...  hi eugene... hi spokane... still no money for the flights.... i am not too certain that it will work out, but thoughts have wandered my mind about first paying the loans off before taking some time to come back relaxed and ready... i wish ryanair flew to rapid city... or even to the states in general... we saw a flea circus at the fair... never again...    our basilika grew hair, i will send him to the brown bin later today....   curtis comes from baltimore and is super chill...  we spoke shortly yesterday...  3 bollywood films are now awaiting our attention, my attention in on the chores today and the mountains...   they are already snowy...  
i wish i were snowy too...
my coffee is getting colder though i drink it regularly...  but the mug is still neat...
the cat snores sometimes... i call her tommy.... kathy calls her mizi...      but i still call her tommy...
i like recorded rain, or recorded vehicles driving through the rain... or recorded airplanes...
i like this coffee, it is so thick...   the album leaf is still playing...    good.... the chores are still waiting...
the neat mug is almost empty...    whistle stove, whistle yet a while...  sleep tommy, sleep yet a while..
hang clothing, for you might not yet be dry... play album leaf, play for i am not yet done...
the flowers are so beautiful...   my toes are still chilled.... the coffee is finished, but thick to the end...
there is still more for this neat cup.

much love, israel

fotofever or is it hopeful eyes...

due to the nature of being home and having time and somehow getting a new sight of memmingen with His help, my camera has been chillin with me and i finally developed a roll of film that i have been working on since 2009. i put up a couple of picture on my flickr and hope to keep up with it more regular. the link is below and i will send it out with my blog update emails too from now on... unless i don't want to or forget or something of the such... word!

enjoy, hopefully your eyes feel better after the looking... maybe even the heart....
oh.. one more thing... it has been on my heart to pray for memmingen... we live in the city.. literally, with the city wall as our back wall and my heart has been aching for more of God, more of Jesus and more of His spirit here.

pray with! you'll be seeing photos of the area so maybe God will hook you up with some cool prayers too!

much love, israel

www.flickr.com/photos/translatelove/

OPs, flights and one year today!

the rain kept me home, better said brought me back home from work today. caught some extra sleep (well needed), cleaned and put things away in the new apartment that we call home now for the last 2 months, went to the bank to see if there was enough funds for london and then made yummy fat filled american grilled cheese sandwiches with a touch of german meat.

one year ago today, crazy but yeah, today, we were joined by friends from europe to celebrate our wedding here in memmingen, germany. i suppose the time has indeed gone by super fast. already celebrating one wedding from us (to explain, we married in the US in July and in germany for each of our families), this one is the more realizing one for Kathy since her family was our family. i thank God for today, for the last year and for the umbrella He has put us under through all the rain and storms. but, as the analogy goes, the rain will bring growth, and growth usually has growth-pains linked to it. i really thank you all and God again for the prayers, support in conversation and that He has heard and answered your prayers. tis true, the year has been hard... but... it has been worth it.

a couple things to mention as i try to compact thing blog with several months of events during no time or laziness or other priorities.

our heart is to be back in the states for Christmas. it will be the first time being back since we came last year in august. we look to fly out around the 7-9th of dec and stay til the 30th. Kathy has the time off and i will be out of work due to the wrist surgery. during the first couple weeks we have talked about getting to nebraska to visit my dad and friends there, and hitting up the northwest to visit dear ones there. as neat and fun as it all sounds, we are struggling with the means of getting it done. technically, from our jobs, it is not possible to come up with the funds to fly, and i have decided not to fly without kathy. i also have to get some others things straightened out with unemployment (again due to the surgery) and physical therapy before hand. the funds for the flights look to be around $2,000 and i can't really say how it looks with funds for traveling around the u.s. when getting there.
but...  i, or we, have been challenged to give this to God. what that means is... if He provides the money to do this then we will be there, if not, then all we can do is trust that He has something even better in hand for us. our hearts, naturally, is to come back and see our new nephew and everyone else... but my heart trusts God. He has the best for us, for you!

next, my wrist surgery is to be on the 13th of Nov. i will be in recovery for about 3 months and after, starting at a café here when it be His will. i do not expect it to be a very easy time but i really believe it will be full of maybe unexpected neatness and wonders. i will have lots of time on my hands. we shall see!

kathy and her health need prayer. it is really hard to sit or stand and watch her being sick so often or having physical problems... her health is, however, from God. and i pray for strength to get through all things regardless of health stuff or apathy or whatev...

another loan is officially paid off!!!! the last one is up to bat and with His grace, will be off the base in no time. thank you endlessly for any and all support towards those!

my job ends soon. my wrist can't take it anymore... to be honest, my whole body needs a break :)
shortly after my bday (31st of oct.) i hope to fly to sam and beth in harpenden, england to visit. although, due to work and stress, kathy can not join with, i really feel this visit has something deeper attached... again like an opportunity with purpose. it is always a joy and pleasure to visit my best friend sam and his wife... yep, shall see.

other than that... i miss all of you. the leaves here are joining the others in piles on the ground, jackets are coming into style and i am starting a little with tutoring english. :) our hearts smile and hope at the opportunity to see you all. please pray with us.

i attached some random photos of the area. please enjoy and i hope to hear from lots of you soon!
keep in touch, regardless of the time in between!

much love, israel and kathy (well.. written by israel but supported by kathy:)

punless yet clever?

Sometimes, the busyness that comes in the time of waiting is really really full!
I suppose that makes sense...

There has been so much going on the in the last couple of months... I'll try and cover the gist of it all without writing any novellas. We all know how I go on and on and on and on....

At the end of june, we joined and freizeit from our church and spent the weekend with others under 30 at starnberger see (a big lake). It was a fast but really good weekend where we all got to know each other better and played some neat worship.

The following weekend was a family roadtrip to Hungary to visit Kathys relatives. I had never been there before, just warned of how much they like to eat and drink. The family was such a blessing, and though I was politely forced to eat loads, I managed to keep my stomache and my weight. :) We swam in the Donau every day and suceeded at swimming over half a km, living to tell about it. The ac stopped working on the way back and the auto, being smaller than what we had originally booked, became very damp from a warm day.

The following weekend was Kathy and my official 1 year anniversary. The year went so fast! Thank you all for your support in this. We couldn't have made it this far without it.... wow... listen to me, I make it sound like it is something bad.... bad.- no way, hard, oh yeah! So again, thank you all for the prayers, words and hugs.

The following week, Sam came and visited from England. He was here a week and though that officially consists of 7days, it went way too fast. The time together consisted of some well spend time regardless of spending the days at work. We enjoyed a döner (turkish speciality), Bavarian breakfast, endless talks of deep wonderful things such as marriage, recalling good memories and climbing mountains. (the photos are from that!) He is now back in London with his wife helping with the Olympic minitries with ywam. Wohoa!

We have also spend the last week getting our new apartment ready to move in to. It is in the city and creates access to much much more time there. I pray that it is super good and we are excited to see how God will use it. We are looking at moving in in a week or so... but probably won't get all our little dedads there til the end of August.

Other news:

My brother is a dad! I am sure that I already wrote this, but it is just so good that it deserves more moments of attention! Woah!

Kathy's debt is, as of the end of June, paid off!
My debt stand at roughly $2000. Wow, from 11 to 2. That is a huge step that, again, moves me to thank you all again for the help, prayers and support! Really, thank you!
I am praying and hoping that I can pay this off in the next few months. The apartment is cheaper, but over winter I get paid less too.... figures. :)

In august, my friend Volker and I are making a climbing tour. It will only be a week, roughly, and we are looking at traveling around the area here since there is so much to climb but not nearly enough time to see and climb it all. We had originally planned on going to spain, but it is cheaper to stay here and Germany and Austria really has a lot to offer. Plus, not as hot. I am very excited and pray that it all works out well!

In november my wrist will be operated on. EEK! It sounds drastic, or intense.... or maybe boring... either way, it should be done and I am excited to have it get done. My wrist has been hurting for the last 9 years due from a fracture that no one noticed from skateboarding. Oh well... can't turn back time, but can get an operation, and I am doing exactly that! In the last week, it has been hurting more from the work... so endurance and a really good recovery are both wished greatly by me in prayer. That also means that I will not be able to work for 3 months. How that all works out, not so sure yet. But, God is super good and provides all that I need..... so for 3 months I will be reading a lot! Good that we will be living in the city.

And finally, the neatest news yet...
Over Christmas, if work works with as well as weather and finances, we are wanting to come back to rapid to visit.
It has been our wish for some time now and I really hope that it works out because I miss all of you (not just those in rapid). It would be more than wonderful to go a couple places to see others too, but we will have to see how finances provide and how long we will be there. Unfortunately I will be recovering from the operation, but! you don't need two hands to visit, just to climb. Looks like the boyce winter trek will have to retain to only using feet.... next year matt... next year!
So, please pray that it all works out because I think that it is very important to come back and see everyone, speak english and be home again. I have not even started looking at plane tickets yet because I have no funds for it, but I know that if it is to be, then He will provide!

So... wow, looking back on the language that I used, I would say my puns are lacking... what exactly.... probably spice or frequency... oh well... what I lack now will be made up in person! hehehehe!

I love you all and thank you all for taking time to read our updates. We wanted to do a newsletter together, but we still have no time and having taken it either... so... maybe next time?????

Oh, as for future plans... when the loans are finally settled, we are not too sure what the next step will be. We do, for sure!!!! want to continue with missions. Whether we stay in germany at a ywam base before heading back to india, or going straight back there... we will need to focus some on building contacts and friendraising (having support to do all this work wherever we will be). This may be in 6 months... maybe longer, but I look forward to being somewhere, anywhere, without any weight on my heart of oweing money... heheh! FREEDOM!

Please write back, I like hearing from all of you!

Much much love, israel

expecting the unexpected

it really fun to read what was written in the past.
and when i read things that i wrote... it is really like joining another persons journey.
some... well, most of the things that has happened in the past have been crazy and really amazing things that i could never have wished for myself.
to say that least and yet the most common thing... i am very thankful to God.

a quick run down of what the last couple weeks have thrown at us and how we responded:

health has been a topic for kathy over the last... while. mainly with digestion things. sunday evening, we invited some people, or as i would prefer to call them, friends from church including the pastor to our place to pray for Kathy. it was an amazing time and i personally am excited to see His healing for her in that area.
thank you for your prayers for her.

my health has never really been an issue. it has been a blessing... not catching colds, getting fevers or any other sickness, large or small. not get seriously injured at work, though it is rather tough stuff. and though many a years of hard fun, including rock and ice climbing, hiking where people don't go with family, biking, skateboarding... maybe the list is small.. but each was and is filled with years of sweat, pain and victory. and none of them with serious injuries. not even a broken bone... well... i thought.

over the last 8 years, my left wrist has had pain from a skateboard injury. i remember exactly how and where it happened, what time of day it was and who i was with. what i didn't know is that me falling on my wrist at the speed i was going fractured it. the doctor who took the x-ray at that time must not have seen it. the doctors today at the clinic did.. and because it was overlooked years ago.. it has caused years of pain, though not paralysing, annoying to say the least.
it is actually a relief to me to finally know why it hurts and what happens next is yet to be determined. of course i heard what the doctor had said, but i am waiting to hear what my Papa says.

work has hit us both with left and right swings, but nothing really that has knocked us down. we are thankful for our jobs, though for kathy, the hours are very low, and for me the hard work is very high (though kathys work is also very hard work). we are taking steps knowing that He will guide us and will let you know what becomes of them.

family has been a blessing. it seems that many here have birthdays close to each other. that means, with holidays too, we have been spending some good time with the family here. however, kathy and i still don't get as much time with each other that we would really like. i suppose it is mainly due to the work stuff from my side.. being gone all the time. we are thankful for the time and learning to make the most of it together.
family in rapid.. or stateside is i suppose going. though blood related, there has been some communication failures in the last months. one due to lack of time and  money from my end to write letters or to call... and the other is from tension in the relationship between some of us. please pray for this... it has always been a rough surface to slide across over the course of our family's life.. but God can bring peace. He will. in this life or afterwards.

friends are hard to make... at least in south germany. i am thankful for a couple that i have. God continues to bring more people into our lives and we are excited to see where He takes us in that area.
this weekend i plan to head into the mountains with a friend and climb if the snow is not too deep. i am more than excited. we shall see how it goes. just to get into the mountains is causing my heart to quicken it's pace.
kathy is blessed to have some friends from younger days here. they are moving on too, and the ones that stay have been a huge blessing to us both.
all my/our friends from the usa are missed. i think of you often and thank God for the time we had, hoping that the time comes again soon when we can laugh and share our adventures again over a cup of starbucks, or crows peak. of course those in the u.s. are not the only ones in our lives.. we miss bunches who we have lacked contact with, even here in germany and in india. thank God for email and the autobahn. haha... i suppose the season is that of patience in many areas.. not just one or two... or seven.

debt is being paid. it is sooo good. my loan with wellsfargo is down to 989 $ and kathys around 500 €. there is yet one more after this for me. i think around 2000 $. i still have to get the lost details. thank you all for prayers.

the course is geting done. 17 finished today... only 3 left.. then the extra course on top of that. i am not yet sure which course i will choose, though it is rather already choosen in my heart between teaching children or business english... which do you think???

home sweet home is only true of that where home is home. so, may we plant spiritual roots wherever we are.. not afraid of staying and not fearful of going either. as i have said in the past, the hardest and worst part of loving people is having to say goodbye. but we don't have to know, instead more hellos and servus.

that concludes this update. i had hoped to do this in german too.. but i would be sitting here yet an hour just to translate. we do hope to do a newsletter together in both english and german soon.

we love you and thank you again for the support in this life. God hears you indeed and we hope to hear from you too!!! :)

much love, israel and kathy (written by israel while kathy is working... i really gotta wait til she gets home more often.. ugh.)

progress is a heave

i am not completely sure what a heave is.. but i suppose i mean that it is sometimes hardwork. like heaving something into place... usually taking most if not all the energy you have at that time.

work has been taking all my energy for the last month and a half.

wake up at 5:30, take off at 6:20, get off and 6:45 (if not later) and get home at 7:30. we eat, chat a little, then i am tired and have got to sleep.

it is especially hard because that leaves little time for anything. spending time with kathy has been, from my part, not as often as we wish. then on the weekends, the only real time to do anything... i have little or no time for working on the english course... it is almost done, only 5 units to go. then comes a complimentary course afterwards, and that is 10 more units. but, i have a few months to get it all done.

i am paying on the loans, gladly, and each time i make a payment i have to smile and thank God. i am really thankful that i can work right now, remember that it won't be forever that we are here, that i earn so much money and that we have debt.

hence that last part... we won't have debt forever.

of the debt that i can now access, i only have roughly 1250 left. and then another loan around 2000. that is barely anything compared with the amount at the beginning of last year... somewhere around 11000.

God deserves so much praise for all of this!

so, though the job is killing me... ugh.. no time for relaxing, no strength for climbing... and so on... i will work until we are free. it is worth it, and i know it is right!

sam and beth are heading back to india. packing their toilette paper...

i know the excitement and will wait until our time.

Kathy's papa is letting me us the moped. hehehe. though it is not too fast, and i don't like wearing the helmet, it is rad!!!! and old vespa piaggio.

i may start riding my bike to work too. round trip, 20 miles.

kathy and i visited the hurlach ywam base a couple weeks ago. there is a missing link school, which is like the sbs (school of Biblical studies) but covering only the old testament and is not so intense. depending on when the debt is done, we would like to do it. there is no set date for the school yet, so that may be God buying us some time...

easter was great. i ate too much though. sometimes i think i eat way too much but when i eat less, then i get hungry an hour later. and that doesn't roll over well at work. lot's of physical work. but i think i will watch it a little more. sam told me once that he was trying to only eat til he was satisfied.. and not til he was stuffed. it sounds right to me. :)

God has also hooked me up with a man who i have been able to meet with more regularly to talk. whether about marriage, family, past and so on, the time has been, i think, a step towards healing and wisdom. i have been praying for a mentor for the last few years. we must be here on purpose...

i would like to head up to berlin again soon. i have no idea how that is suppose to work. no time and etc... but if it is to be, it shall be.

kathy and i would like to start doing a newsletter together. german and english... sent around the world possibly. how cool. God has blessed us with many dear friends in some really random places.

so... thank you all for your prayers, reading the updates, more prayers and your emails/letters.

i don't know if i said this last time, but my brother is going to be a dad! HEHEHEH!

way to go bro!

kathys cousin is pregnant too! congrats!

other news...

God is teaching me something very important... read the last blog if you don't know yet.

much love, israel

work, and then..

i should be working on that english course right now... but if i do, then my time will again be dissolved before i get to write again.

thoughts have been filling my mind in the last weeks of now, the future and the past.

work has started back up around month ago... maybe longer. the time goes so fast when the days are spent working and the evenings are short.

i forgot how hard it is to grow when one is not surrounded by quiet time, meditation and prayer. worship plays a huge role as well. but i have been so hungry lately for something so much more... and unfortunately comparing my life quite a bit too. ...oh man, that job was so much better... ...oh i wanna head back there too.... ...why are we doing that?... and so on.

when it really comes down to it, if i really trust God, i can trust that this time is important, being used massively for even our benefits and that this is really only the beginning.

God has been blessings us a lot. it just takes new eyes to see how in this season of working, paying and praying.

each day i ride to work with a moped which takes about 30mins. though the rest of the day is filled with either thoughtless shoveling, or thoughtful tasks, that ride to and from work is one of two situations... brainless vegging time.... or time filled with conversation in my heart and mind.

from healing, to pleading for patience and guidance, God has been with us in the last months of being here in germany. it has been some of the hardest time in our lives, but possibly some of the most growthful too. learning to unlearn selfishness, learning to take initiation and kill passivity, learning to drop expectations and learning to love.

learning to love.

love.

with a thousand meanings and discriptions, love is indeed the worse way to describe love.

maybe it is better put like this...

learning God. learning Jesus.

i pray that these thoughts that i type come alive for those who read this. that we would wake up from this empty dream we have been living... wake up and learn what we are made of. learn who made us. i pray for all of you who read this and bless us with prayers. that your wishes, dreams and hearts would come even more alive, that they would break through the walls of doubt. that we would really know that nothing is impossible for He who loves us.

you know who you are

"i'm gonna hope for you

i'm gonna pray for you

amongst the reckless in the black...

salvation lies within.

i'm gonna hope for you

i'm gonna pray for you

amongst the reckless in the black...

my time is yours my friend."

may His love carry you when you can't walk.

may it change you from hurt to healed.

may it allow you to open up again, as a child, untouched and unbeaten by the world.

may it save you again and again from who you have been.

happy birthday my dear ...!

-israel boyce

(beginning text taken from the song: Hey John, what's your name again?; The Devil Wears Prada.)

have I ever given you anything but the best

who can really say this?

who has lived this....

kathy and i just got back from our second trip to northern great britain for my best friend's wedding.

at the beginning of january, i flew to manchester, barely landing, missing my train and having to spend the night at the airport waiting for the next train headed to the lake district.

after being calmed by God that we would land, the solution to the missed train, i admit, frustrated me. it is now no wonder why i was easily stressed. but for that moment, i realized the adventure in this and found a bench to sleep on.

i found out later that the whole family was under stress due to the unknowing of whether or not sam would make it for the wedding just a few days later.

we found out a day later that it would not happen this time around because he was not granted the visa for marriage nor received his passport back from the embassy. the trip, however, was not wasted. not at all!

kathy flew the next day and we were able to bring a little humor and fresh air in the light of the misery.

some weeks later, sam got his visa.

oh what a sweet sweet song.

we re-booked flights and i got there, this time, just nearly making the train. (i had 5 minutes to reach the train from the terminal.)

sam had apparently been facing a flu bug that was to keep him from all that is good.

with prayer, forced-fasting (ha ha) and lots of rest, the bug was gone and his stomach was feeling much better. good enough for a wedding celebration!

kathy got there again on thursday night, complication-free.

and on saturday, we celebrated the most beautiful wedding in england ever!

sam and i wore penguin suits (i was honored to be the best-man.)

it was sooo good to see sam and beth come together. to be joined to which they will never be separated again. because what God unites, no man can split!

i encourage all who read this to give a thanks to God for this amazing thing He did... and to ask God to bless and use these two for His will forever more.

thank You Jesus for this blessing. this true love. may You always be with them. may they continue down Your path, choosing to live for the Kingdom of Heaven and not these bodies or this world we now live in. please protect them, and unite them ever so nearer. we Praise You!!!!

in other news...

i have started the english course. i am now on unit 3 of 20 and hope to get it done in a couple weeks. i hope to get it done before starting to work again. that hangs on the weather.

there has been a couple of unexpected expenses in the last weeks which leaves us with minimal money. please pray that we would not be stressed but at peace instead. that we would come to that place of knowing, He is our God. that all we need, He will provide.

i do believe this, for i have experienced it again and again... but somehow, it is always difficult at first glance. may we see past our own expectancies and look to Him first!

kathy and i are really looking forward to what is coming up.

we don't really know what is to come.... there is prayers about what is happening after the loans are paid off... and that the loans are soon paid off. i think that when i start working again, that i can put much more money towards them and claim that freedom from debt! thank You Jesus!

kathy still desires to finish the bible school that she had started and ran out of money for. we are also considering where and how we will work further with ywam.

but, first things first.

thank you all for the prayers and keeping in touch.

things are still slow before work picks up. but i will do my best to keep updating even when i am working a lot.

He really has only given us the best.

congrats sam and beth!

much love, israel

a light in opportunity

i suppose i never expected to see a sunny day in england... one where everything glows of

a sunny orange warmness and the occasion being, simple 'ol life.

that was, however, not the only thing to be unexpected... the main man was held up due to the opposition of the embassy.

his visa was not granted and his passport was never returned to him.

this, naturally, set a bit of a halt on things.

and as this week should have been gloomy and dark just as it should have been bright and full of joy with the wedding taking place, it was neither of these... but yet mixture of the both.

with the tension in the air of not knowing for so long, the answer that he is not going to make it was actually a relief, i think, for beth and her entire family. no one wanted to hear the news, nor

believe it was true but in this unexpected result, God will, is and has been lighting the situation with opportunity.

the largest being the opportunity to grow deeper in trust with Him. that one being of course the hardest too. as for the embassy

stuff, they are starting again from scratch and doing everything they can to show it is legit... the rest if literally up to God.

though this was the news no one wanted, the time was filled with laughter, english sarcasm, sunny and rainy days and unending memories and blessings.

it was a great joy to meet beths family as well as see sams family again. and then to top that, kathy was finally introduced too and we all shared some good experiences.

among these were the following:

scaling walls and fences to get over flooded roads.

seeing the ocean for the first time with kathy.

much walking.

seeing stan laurels home town.

laughing.

more english sarcasm.

having time at an english pub.

tea time.

praying.

trusting.

so, what this let down means for me is that i get to visit england again which is actually no let down. plus, we are believing that a greater victory will become of this.

i know that my trip there was filled with opposition and it would have been easy to be sour because of the flight delay, extremely bumpy

landing, missing of the train, overnight at the airport and so on... and i am sure if the devil had his way, this trip would have been a disaster for everyone...

but..

it wasn't.

It was refreshing and a blessing for all.

(at least i hope for all.)

whats next:

tomorrow i am spending the whole day taking a test (german B1)

in order that i may extend my visa. it just isn't as easy as it all seems with the visas and marrying.

(quick explanation: in order to get a permanent residence visa, though we are married, i have to have a certificate proving that i can speak, read and understand german as well as one from an integration course. this only means that i have to take a couple tests... it isn't really hard and comparing to what some must do, i am exceedingly grateful.)

in a couple weeks is the integrations test.

and Lord willing in a few days i will receive the material to start on the english course. (i have enrolled in an internet course to learn to teach english. it has been on my heart for some

time and who knows what will come of it.)

thank You God for leading and guiding us, for

blessing us in times of uncertainty with peace and providing for all our needs. we lay this entire pickle of events at Your feet and ask that You would help us in every decision.

thank You again for blessing us that last week so much and what is yet to come. and for all those reading this, may they too be filled with peace and rest and may they see what cannot be seen, hear what You hear do as You would do.

in Jesus name, amen!

for all those who emailed me, i do still plan on writing back... thought it appropriate to first write a blog of updates. thank you all for your prayers.

blessings and much love,

israel

ich bin mir sicher ich kann Dir vertrauen!

only a few more hours yet and my flight takes off...

my arrival will be in faith as we all eagerly await to hear what the embassy decides...

my best friend sam is getting married. over the last month and weeks, i have had the privilege of joining him, his soon to be bride and others in his network of friends in praying for the appropriate paperwork to get him to his wedding in england.

his ticket bought,

family already there,

today the decision is to be made.

we are all waiting and trusting the only one who can give us the peace we really need...

God, please hear us in this plea for grace. and thank You for the strength, the hope and the peace that You continually given sam and beth during this time of trusting, believing and walking in faith. may Your name be completely praised through this!!!

You really are all we need.

in other news:

-I am enrolling in an online course to teach english. It has been something that has been stirring in my heart for the last year and the next step is to pay for it when we get back from sams wedding.

-Kathy is flying on thursday because she has to work. Please pray for her safety in arrival.

-God has been whispering to us about the future.. possibly near future and to pray about the direction of where He wants to take us. We both know that this time now is a time of transition and growing with each other and with God. A time of becoming a team. But we also know that this time is not forever... and that we should start praying about what is next as well as how we can be useful now where we are. Praise Him for His wisdom, grace and love.

-Christmas was a very good experience with the new in-laws :) and new years we spend with the youth group from our church.

-2011 is officially over, but the effects of it and all that has happened in that year will echo through our lives as God has really blessed us in the time apart as well as the time together.

This month we have been married for 6 months already and the time together has been the longest we have been literally together since we have entered the relationship together.

-One of the student loans is officially paid off! Praise God soooooo much!

Thank you all soooo much for the prayers and support through this time of repayment and in this entire life. The loans remaining are: two at about $2000 each. One at a time... little steps making big steps!

I wish you all back in the states the greatest joy this year. As 2011 was a huge year of change for us, 2012, without any clichés, will be even bigger as we trust in Him who saved us from death.

He is God, He is good, He is Jesus!

much much love and hope!

israel

(listening to: Will Reagan & United Pursuit)