Bigger, newer and better smelling

Listening to yet again 'the album leaf' as i bike through a very german village we now call our home... It occurs to me where i am....
But why are we where we are?

Is it just me who continuously gets caught up in his own affairs and frequently must be reminded that he is part of something larger.....?

We moved last weekend to kathys home village. It s a blessing to be out of the old small and somewhat earthly smelling apartment where we were to the newer, larger and better smelling one where we have a bedroom we can move around in, a wc thats in the apartment and a garden where our child can run around and let his imagination and dreams be lived out in fullest form...

But why are we where we are?

Around the middle of october last year, we were approached from different people to consider raising or help to raise the church in kathys home village. With kathy hearing the words of this assignment just minutes before the first person approached her, we took allowed the thoughts to tickle our imagination of what God might be doing.
After somewhat of a long search and wait, we found and now occupy the apartment described above (the bigger, newer and better smelling one). Now, as we start a life that never ended here, we wonder what is to happen here....
We have already experienced opposition throughout the last few months or better said since we started this new path. But as He is faithful, we been shown again and again that something is trying to lead us away from where we are now.

Please keep us in prayer:
That we will hear His voice in chaos.
That we use His strength to overcome evil.
That we stay close together on the battlefield.
That we follow His call on our lives, even here and in "everyday life".

Thank you all for the prayers, encouragement and friendships!!! We don't won't to do this without you!

Much love, israel, kathy and the lil one yet to come (around mid july to cure the curiosity of most)

6 countries to get home

We packed everything together before we went out into the rain. The tent was soaked, and after taking the sleeping bags and mats to the car, we rolled the wet tent together as best and loose as we could.
The trip was over..... and it was only the second day being there.....  
I can't say it was a joyful day of driving back home, buuuuuuuut it was great to see how happy kathy was to see that i was already home. We couldn't stop smiling :)
as for my climbing mate.... i hope we make up soon.
Now my tent is drying in the sun.... Still wet....
Dissappointed at the series of events but at the same time learning hard facts about life and myself, it is good to be home and writing this blog after such a long time of no updated.
I really should be ashamed for taking so long to write again....but with the action lately, there's no wonder that i have had neither time nor a want to take the remaining energy to write.....and our baby isn't even born yet :)

We are moving back to benningen, kathys home town. Both of us are excited for our new home and another new season. There are the obvious difficulties and forsure unseen ones to come... But with His grace we are going to look for the joy in the process.
Kathy is almost done working. One more month. Then somewhere in july, we'll witness the joy of a lifetime :)

Well, surprisingly i am already out of things to say, or at least forgot everything else....

How are you?!

May God, the same God who brings rain and sunshine, the same God who creates life and yet can take it away, may this God cover you with His joy, love and protection wherever you are and whatever you are doing!

Much love,
israel

Not from barbara...

I read from a good author something about memories.

Not like the song from streisand... This is where kathy starts singing the song from cats...

No, more like the things we so often forget but are actually worth remembering.
The things that have made us who we are.. Of course we see the results either way, but they are usually due to a person, a laugh or lots of tears....

The author wrote about a friend who carries a notebook around with him and anytime he remembers something, he writes it down. :)

What if we remembered everything?

I've wondered, what if i remembered my entire childhood? Would i be different? Would those i grew up with be different?

I've considered and even started writing memories down in hope of remembering more... but stopped after the first entry. True be, if i wrote everything i remembered as it submerges to the front... There'd be a lot of work..... and i think a large number of them would bring more than just smiles and giggles.

What if it is a huge way to healing?

What if we should do this?

The pen companies would see an increase im sales... for anyone into stocks, here's an investment!

Maybe we'd all be wholer people. Good at forgiving and remembering all the grace we were shown...




Hmmmm




Much love

New roles

Its always been too long since i wrote last time... Sometimes truer, and sometimes less.

Though there is only a couple of to write as much as i can, i am pleased to write at all.

The best news is that we are now parents!!!! Though the little one is still chillen in the womb, we are already learning to take on our new and exciting rolls as parents. May God help us!

Now i must go back to work but will spill more on the digital sheet again soon.

Much love!

snow storms, cp and burning wishes

it is so neat to read blogs from others that it inspires me to write as well.
i have thought that my/our lives have been rather eventlos in the last weeks or months but realize that that is not true in the slightest! so no more putting off writing but instead sending this invitation to a new season of prayer, work and excitment.

Me:

i have now been at exxpozed for a month and a half already. the unemployment days ended finally at the end of september and life started moving rapidly since then. exxpozed is a mountain sport store a half hour south of memmingen where we live. i get to take the train everyday and spend loads of time just thinking, praying and reading. i am almost done reading a german book i started a couple years ago. haha.

at the end of october was my birthday and thus my birthday trek!!! we were 9 people on the first day, 6 camped the first night then we were 2 for the second day and night til sunday when we went back to civilisation. the entire action was a blessing in disguise. a couple weeks before it, God spoke to my heart that we are to pray for Allgäu (the region of southern germany where we live.) So the second day, the two of us (a new friend and i) climbed up two different glorious peaks and praise God up there as well as prayed for Allgäu. it was amazing. the day started out rainy as the others hiked back down and we dressed up for the occassion and started off! by the time we were on the first peak the sun was smiling down on us and upon reaching the second one we were basking in His glorious sun rays.

sunday morning around 2 a.m. it rained and didn't let up. it stopped again as we got up around 7 and started again as we finished breakfast around 8. then the rain turned to ice and the ice turned to snow and the wind got stronger and stronger.

we were in a snow storm.

as we considered our options and packed our bags we filmed our adventure and eventually took down our inner tent before exposing ourselves to the extremities and hiked back down. praise God for getting us down but more so for the amazing time it was up there!

in the last couple weeks i have been teaching more english conversation. that has been a blessing as i have been able to build relationships and help others learn my mother language. fun stuff!

other than that, i have been working a lot and the season has been changing into the cold and wet one we have all been silently waiting for (and maybe regretting too.)

kathy:

about the same time that God told me about the prayer trekking (better said, reminded), Kathy was told about investing in the sister church located in her home village. it was so strong on her heart and after the church service, a man came to her and asked if she would be interest in coming to a service there.

this church was, as she was a child, full of life and cram packed with people celebrating a living God. now, there is a total of around 8 older people who attend it.

since that sunday, this wish to build the church up again has been burning on her heart and we invited you all to pray with us as to how it is to come about.

other than that, please keep her health in prayer too. she is doing well, but health problems keep creeping up and we believe it is more spiritual than just physical.


thank you for taking part in this life with us and are excited to see what is yet to come.
stand strong with faith and love and keep us posted on your life adventures as well!

much love,
israel and kathy

waves waves waves

at the moment only a few pictures or songs can explain what i am wanting to write.

last week i lived a dream. dream number 12.1 to be exact.

gimpel.

the new picture above is one from midway up the giant bulge of rock.
below are some more of the time spent with chris there.

there is something significant about such things. living something that you have hoped for. like a mile stone. or gaining a mountain of experience.

i am curious and thrilled to hopefully someday learn how this part of my heart will please Him by blessing and helping and loving.


last monday i also started a trial week at a mountain goods store down in kempten. i can't say whether it will be my job just yet but can share with you that it has already been a blessing in the first week.
the job starts at 10a.m. so i take the train at 9:00 from here. i have a 25-30 min. ride before my 20 min walk from the station to the store. i walk by a couple different schools and a mosk before reaching the actual inner city where i walk an avenue of trees. just the time alone to get to and from comes to about 2 hours.... 2 wonderful thought filled enjoyable hours to sit, think, pray, read, walk and reflect.
like i said, i don't know if i will actually be working there. i think i'll be finding that out this next week. but the last week with it was a blessing and i thank God for it.

it has been a dream to do more with mountain stuff... i.e. climbing them, hike them, celebrate God on them with others who love Him and have experienced His love. and most of all, leave that area with either a blessing or the beginning of a victory in another realm.
but of course, where one area of life starts to grow and joy is due, another area struggles and experiences attacks.
so please keep us in your prayers. for health. love. unity and wisdom. that we can go these life tours together. and that we can go them with others along our sides, following those before us and bringing up those yet to come.

much love,
israel

dance mountains, dance!

the bitter buffalo heart

its crazy how little things can bring back huge memories of once-upon-a-times.

stepping on my skateboard and rolling around after not doing so for the last 5 years felt as if i never really stepped off.

or hearing a song takes me back in front of the old norwest bank on mt view when i was trying to roll away from my second hand rail. damion filming with his ginormous antique vhs video camera. the sun shining in the late morning.

it blows me away everything that i have already lived at 26.

i think it would be disrespectful and truly sad not to just take some time and remember. remember the lessons learned. the times laughing. the stairs i used to kickflip down. the music that brought a rhythem to our day. im thinking at least 10 years ago.
the people we knew then. the people we didn't know yet. not a clue that our decisions then would bring us here now.

thinking on then...

thinking on now...


makes me appreciate my beard a bit more.

brings a smile to my face.

i didn't read much then. only attended school when i absolutely had to. first started liking subarus. didn't think so much on mountains. didn't like snow so much. and i could only speak english... and a slang of it it was.

now i don't swear as much. don't skate and much either. try to take more care of my body. and my pants. spend evening more at home then out ravaging the streets with tricks. the music i listen to is also a bit different.

im still really active. like sweets. still listen to loads of music. can still land just as much if not more on my skateboard as then. still love being outside. like shoes. like unique or colored shoes.

i hope you don't forget your past. even if just to learn from it. our Father was still our Father back then. i know that i see Him much different now. its true that things have changed a lot. like getting on the plane in new york and getting out in dehli. that different. but just like then, we are still who we are. and still becoming who were meant to.

we are now here. we are now living where we are. not there, or somewhere else. and i encourage you, as i encourage myself, to be here now. but don't forget where you've been and where you are going.

and don't forget we are here for something much bigger than ourselves.

much love,
israel