Monday, October 09, 2006

Still in Lexington...

back to Our Walk of Faith

Well, believe it or not we are still in Lexington, NC! It’s been a wonderful visit…we really feel like we’ve found missing family members. Chris and I have been helping around the Cuthrell’s house, showing them how to use the computer, and reformatting a book on prayer that Mrs. Cuthrell wrote many years ago. We are sad to leave, and they are sad to see us leave. I guess you may be wondering why we’ve stayed so long…well, we have been praying daily for God’s guidance and direction and it seems that God has used the clouds to guide us…Chris was reading about the children of Israel and how they moved when the Cloud of God moved. Friday morning when we woke up it was cold, rainy, and cloudy, so we stayed. It was the same way Saturday and Sunday, so we stayed…In the mean time…Chris went on Friday to Fayetteville with Mr. Cuthrell, Brandon, and Nick (two of the boys from church that Mr. Cuthrell is mentoring) to visit several museums. On Saturday, we went to a fundraising dinner for an organization called Christ Bible Conference.

Jerry and Pam Lambeth, the founders, have helped raise money to build 40+ churches all over the world. He has also written several books that are being used for discipleship around the world. Pretty incredible…

We also met Mrs. Bowen, a preacher’s wife and host of Mrs. Cuthrell’s Monday morning prayer group. Chris and I read the book Enjoying the Journey by Mrs. Bowen’s husband the night before. It’s a short summary of their life together in ministry. It was amazing…the peace and joy that she has in the Lord just exuded from her face. Both she and her son, David, couldn’t stop talking about how blessed they are. As I was reading the book, I learned that Mrs. Bowen had been taken by a Christian foster family when she was really little, and they gave her a new name. When she got older and had to make legal changes to her name, the lawyer told her that she could pick any name in the world that she wanted. Well, she chose the name her foster family had given her. There’s an interesting parallel here with our Christian walk. God does the same thing for us…He adopts us into His family and gives us His name, but we have to choose Him first. He doesn’t force us to be in His family, but I wouldn’t have it any other way…there is no life outside of Him!! As we were leaving, Mr. Cuthrell commented, “It’s easy to be a Christian when you are around people like that!” (Chris and I could say the same thing about them…they have such a sweet spirit about them!) Sunday morning, we went to Heath Church with the Cuthrells. Have I said AMAZING yet in this journal?! The Sunday school class is studying The Purpose Driven Life, and they were talking about why spiritual growth takes time. One of the reasons is because it takes time to unlearn what we’ve already learned and to replace the old habits with new habits…forming habits takes time. I thought about how I constantly try to make my plans and figure things out for myself and then tell God about it. I want to unlearn that and that’s part of my reason for wanting to take this trip--to learn to rely on God and to choose His plan above my own. What a neat opportunity this trip is…time to learn this new habit of relying on God for everything and following Him…not running ahead! Then the message was on the Great Commission…going out in God’s power to do His plan with His presence!! I don’t think that ya’ll know this, but we don’t have any contacts past Honduras. We’re not worried because it’ll be a little while before we get there. Chris also just got an e-mail in which we learned that you can’t walk across the Panama Canal (I’m sure many of you already knew that, but neither of us took geography, so this was news to us.) BUT God is a big God…we met a lady at church yesterday who is from PANAMA (a country where we had no contacts) and most of her family still lives there…that’s not all…her sister works on the Panama Canal…and her other sister is a doctor in Costa Rica (another country where we didn’t have contacts). After such an unbelievable morning, could there be more? Yes! The Cuthrells invited Pastor Downing and his family over for a delicious lunch and good fellowship. Then we went back to church for a youth directed service where Amber and Jacob shared their testimonies and the youth sang. The message by Jason Vreeke was just as pertinent from Philippians 3:12-14...Don’t be content just to compete, don’t get caught up in the chaos, but be a person of 1 thing--the pursuit of God, Don’t be paralyzed by the past instead look forward to the future, and stay focused until you’ve finished! After church we chatted with several people and then went out to eat with Marilyn, Mary, Danelle & Lexi, Joe, Delinda, Mr. and Mrs. Cuthrell, Connie, and Dana. It was a great time of fellowship and sharing as well. We found a connection as well…Dana was in the same group with my cousin Clare in the Miss NC Pageant in 2002. (Which reminds me…I forgot to say that Jay Love the pastor who gave us a ride last Tuesday used to work with my friend from several trips to Mexico--Jan (Jernigan) Stewart…the family of God is so small and interconnected! I’m in awe!) Well, the clouds appeared to have lifted and the temperature is rising, so we are planning to head on some time today…of course, we’re not sure where we’ll end up tonight…I guess you’ll just have to check in to see what God is doing in a day or so…We pray that He is using you to do exceedingly great things for His kingdom! Come join us on the journey…God bless!

Apparently Embler is such a popular name in Davidson Co. we even have a road named after us!!



This is one example of the mind-boggling collections that Mr. Cuthrell has--buttons from presidential campaigns dating back to Lincoln's election!!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ah,so you guys went to La Carreta to eat(3rd pic from bottom)? They are so awesome,when you get done with your trip,you'l have to eat more of their food(oh,it is so good) and I'd be glad to see you guys again at Heath. Good luck and I love you guys! You are such an inspiration!

-Rachel (a.k.a. 'Shark' or that-kid-with-the-skateboard)

Anonymous said...

Rachel and Chris,
Even though our interaction was brief, your sweet spirits and total reliance on God has touched my soul to the core. I have thought so much in the last few days after learning of your journey about the importance of seeking God's face and direction for every single day that we are blessed to breath. That is a lesson so easily forgotten in today's day and time. Thank you for allowing God to work in your lives to touch others.

My prayers are with you all, and you always have a place to stay if you are coming through High Point, NC (that is where David and I live)

Love,
Dana

Lawrence said...

Hey guys... I love seeing where ya'll are and how everythings going with your walk... funny how there is a connection in every place you go and how ironic it is that the connections to me were at the BEGINNNING of your journey, as I was at the BEGINNING of your journey.. haha.. thought it was cool... but I pray for you guys all the time and I still cant believe God let me play a small part in all this... Keep the faith guys, and keep on walking making each step a praise to God...

"Dont let your hearts be troubled, trust in God, trust also in me!"
-John 14:1

Love you guys,
In Christ,
-Lawrence P.

Anonymous said...

Hey!! That Picture of the sign is less than a mile down the road from my house. ;) Haha. I hope everything is going well with you and Chris and I hope to hear from you both soon enough! I love reading your journal and being updated on whats going on. God will guide you through it I know!

Hope to see you again soon!

Love,
Amber Dawn

Anonymous said...

Hello Rachel and Chris,

Rhonda Whitfield sent this site to me, and I have felt touched by your journey. You are both very courageous individuals, touched deeply by Gods love. I have prayed he will keep you safe and that he will guide you to your destinations without harm. The lives you will touch and encounter along the way will be a significant part of your life, from here forward. With Gods torch for your path and with your unwavering love and devotion for God, you will accomplish much.

I will continue to track your journey, pray for you both, and enjoy learning more.

If I can help in any way, please let me know.

Sincerely,
Wanda Hudgins