Our God is Greater!

Here is the third song we have been working on and its the hardest one yet. But we love it. :)

I spoke with the missionary in the DR today, making some arrangements with her but we had phone connection troubles so I am waiting to hear back from her via email. She is very busy and I'm not sure when I will hear back from her.

We are so close to our goal - God has been so faithful. I am sure He will provide all that we need to do His will.

Please keep me in your prayers for protection from Satan's attacks. I have had relationship issues to deal with lately which has been making it tough. Also the guitar that they were suppose to have at the missionary, was given away for Christmas. So we will have to figure out how to get a guitar to the DR safely.

Also, please ask your dentist for toothbrushes and floss to donate to the orphans if you can. I was also told that the lepers like sunglasses or other glasses to keep bugs out of their eyes. They are blind so the dollar store variety is just fine.

Thank you for praying.

So Excited Today!

Today God doubly blessed!

A large donation came in that blew us away!! This brought great joy to us as we watch God work through His people to accomplish His will. We are now even closer to the DR and what God has in store. :)

The other exciting news is that we received a phone call, that we will be provided with Beautiful hand made cedar crosses. These will go to the orphans and lepers we plan to visit. Lots of love is going into them & here is a photo. :) I pray that the people receiving them realize how much they are loved by Jesus, as they wear them.

This week we are planning to visit an elderly home with caroling and Christmas music, spend time with friends and church family, and also serve the homeless. Pray that we are all healthy. Rylee just had a cold and its trying to catch me. LOL

Merry CHRISTmas to you all!

Love, The Vanterve's

Prayer request 12-13-11

60 days and counting down until we leave for the Dominican Republic. :) We are all getting excited to see what God has in store for us there.

It has been amazing to see that even during the holidays we have seen the generosity of people that support the kingdom of God and missions. :) As of right now we are at $3605 and only have apx. $1000 to go. Praise God!

Today, we were finally able to book our flights. Long story but it is done. Yay!!

The enemy is certainly at work trying to make things difficult for us but it has made me feel even more victorious following Christ when I see the problems arise & Him overcoming. God is building our endurance and teaching us to find joy in the struggles. So God is using what Satan means for harm to do good by developing our faith. :)

I wanted to let you know our current prayer requests:

1. Pray that God would continue to move in our hearts and others towards missions.
2. Pray as Richard is preparing a Bible teaching. For him to be encouraged by others and for the boldness in the DR to publicly tell others the Good News.
3. Pray that the kids and I would be able to learn at least one more song in Spanish for worship.
4. Pray for me as I prepare my testimony.
5. Pray for Rylee and I to be bold when we lead worship in Spanish.
6. Also pray for Noah playing guitar.
7. Pray that all of us would be bold in witnessing & gentle in spirit.
8. Also for God's protection.

Thank you to those of you in the US, Canada, Russia and Germany for coming to this blog and lifting us up in prayer. We are so thankful to any brothers and sisters we have in Christ. I bet those of you in different countries are probably working in missions... Please send us an email. We would love to pray for you. rvanterve@yahoo.com

That's it for now. :)

The Lord's Help

Psalm 71:14 "But I will keep on hoping for Your help; I will praise You more and more."

Count on Him

Psalm 130:5 "I am counting on the LORD; yes, I am counting on Him. I have put my hope in His word."

Leprosy Video

Even though this video is about Leprosy in India & we are headed for the DR, I feel it tells alot about the disease of Leprosy and is worth watching.

1 John 4:16-19 "We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in His love. God is love, and all who live in love live in God, and God lives in them. And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face Him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world. Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced His perfect love. We love each other because He loved us first."

Leprosy

Leprosy
More Facts on Leprosy

I have wanted to look up information on Leprosy since we are going to visit a Leprosy Center in the DR. Above are 2 links to read about it.

Leprosy was around even in the times when Jesus was here on earth and is still present today. In the past 20 years, 15 million people have been cured from it. 100 cases per year are diagnosed in the US. Most cases are in the South, California, Hawaii and the US. Islands. Leprosy or Hansen's disease (HD) is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. There wasn't a good cure for it until as recent as the 1980's when multi-drug therapy became available.

Peripheral nerves and mucosa of the respiratory tract are affected, as well as the occurring of skin lesions. The incubation period (time between catching it and symptoms) can be a few weeks to 30 years. On average it is 3-5 years. If not treated, it can cause permanent damage to skin (numbness), nerves, limbs and eyes.

Early detection is important but some people don't want the stigma that goes with getting Leprosy. Colonies are not needed but still exsist. Leprosy reminds me of AIDS regarding the stigma & lack of information that we sometimes have regarding these diseases.

With Leprosy, a person untreated can be contagious in close physical contact. People that have been on long term treated are not contagious. We are visiting people that have been treated for Leprosy.

Lord, I pray for your eyes to see past any deformity and into a person's heart, to see them for who they really are. My hope is to be used by You and to serve those you love.

YAY! Update

Hey Everyone! :)

Guess what? Today (Nov 14th) we met our first goal of $2500 by Nov 15th. Yay!!!!!! In fact, we are at $2562. God is so faithful. We are praising Him and His goodness.

This week we are planning to start looking at the airfare prices to be good stewards of the funds He has given us.

Thank you for your continued prayers!!! :)

The Bazaar

Today was the Bazaar and God was so good. There were a hand full of people who couldn't come but donated items. We had a couple of people help out like my Mom and Mishele with set up and helping people. The flow of customers was slow but steady. We shared hot chocolate and prayed with a few people. :) It was great to get the opportunity to share about this mission trip with others.

Overall, we feel we did good with this fund raiser. We were able to pay for our craft material expenses and still clear a profit of $262 towards mission work.

In the last 3 months that we have prepared for this, our time has been filled with lots of life lessons for us and the kids. I have been teaching Rylee crocheting, sewing and also baking. Noah is getting more and more ready with his guitar playing. Richard has been getting tables, moving furniture, setting up signs, getting the house ready and filling in for me when I was sewing. We have also been learning thru experience to "keep the faith" & "trust in the Lords timing & plan". There was many labors of love done by our family and many of you. So we thank you who have helped out in different ways.

As a side note, we sold something else on Ebay today and have recieved a few more donations so our total amount of money raised is $2218.84. Yay! Our 1st goal of $2500 by Nov 15th is almost met. :) Next comes the goal of the second half ($2000) during the Christmas season. :)

We are thanking God for all He is accomplishing in this.

Thanks to those that came out to show their support! :-)

Bazaar Helpers :)

Thanks Mom & Mishele for helping with the Bazaar.

Our latest song to learn. Wheee!!

"Here I Am to Worship"

I think Rylee and I (Singers) have it harder then Noah (Guitar Player) on this one. LOL

Just a few days until the Holiday Bazaar! :)

These are just a few more samples of what we have been working on for the Holiday Bazaar/Boutique that is coming up on Sat. Nov 12th 10-2pm. Hope you can make it and bring a friend. :)

Pray for Provisions & His Will

Our prayer requests for today:

1) Please join us in praying for God's provisions & His will to be done. :)

2) Please pray that others would be interested in being part of what will happen in the Dominican Republic. Will people still feel like participating in raising funds with us during the holidays?

3) Pray that we keep our eyes towards Jesus and eternal things. Being content and keeping the faith as we wait on Him.

I am starting to realize that the task God gave us to go on this mission trip is working in our hearts before we go. I feel like God is checking my heart for "Are you focused on the task, or faithfulness to God in the task?" Also, He is not concerned about the task right now as much as us giving up our will for His. He will make what He wants happen.

Richard just got booklets in Spanish from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for us to hand out as we share the Good News of Jesus. It would be great to get these materials in the hands of the people of the Dominican Republic.

Matthew 5:16 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

2 Corinthians 2:14 "But thank God! He has made us His captives and continues to lead us along in Christ's triumphal procession. Now He uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume."

Holiday Bazaar

We are having our Holiday Bazaar!

Sat. Nov 12th 2011
10-2pm

Come out and have some hot chocolate and do some shopping. We will be selling yummy baked goodies, jams, breads, crafts, crocheted items, jewelry, paintings, and much more. There will be Harvest and Christmas items. Please come out to help support missions and invite a friend!

Also, please pray that the Lord's hand would be upon us as we greet people and share about what the Lord is doing in our lives. :)

Love, Tawnya

Casa De Luz

Casa De Luz- House of Lights

Please pray for these little guys. This is one of the orphanages that we plan to visit in Feb. We want to bring them the Good News, Love and supplies. :-)

Mission Update - Oct 10

We are leaning into God for His provision and strength while we wait patiently for what He makes happen with this mission trip. As of today we have 140 travel size tubes of toothpaste and 75 toothbrushes for 100 orphans. We still need dental floss. We have $1539 in support funds out of the $4634 we will need. $2500 is our goal by the middle of November so that we can get the airfare taken care of at a decent price.

We have learned one Spanish worship song so far and are working on the puppet show.

Please keep covering us in your prayers for all of the prep work and as God is strengthening our faith.

Philippians 4:6 "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done."

Philippians 4:19 "And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from His glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus."

Thanks for your prayers. :-)

Here is an update of where we are at today. Thank you to those of you who have contributed so far. Thank you to those of you who are praying for us. We are being stretched in our faith as we wait on the Lord. Today we needed to remember Whose will we are following, and Whom we are depending on. God will be faithful to complete the work He has set out to do.

Here is a painting I did to raise funds towards missions. I love painting. Please email me if you are interested. I will be putting this in the Holiday Bazaar if its not sold before Nov 12th. rvanterve@yahoo.com- SOLD

Photos from the Garage Sale

Garage Sale Outcome

Well today we got up at 6am and started the garage sale at 8am. It started out slow and after about an hour we started getting thunder and lightening. Luckily we had 2 tarps to throw over the electronics when it started to pour down rain. Even the neighborhood dog hung out with us in our garage while we waited for the rain to stop.

Next we had the job of towel drying and salvaging what we could. Most things were ok to get wet like dishes and clothes. Then the sun was out for a good while until about 1:30. We were going to end at noon but people were starting to come at the end. After that we ate lunch and went back out to put everything back in the garage when it started raining again. One of our wonderful neighbors helped us get things back in the garage.

Our sales were pretty low and the rain was discouraging but we don't hope in circumstances, just our Heavenly Father to provide. Thanks to all who helped donate items to sell, loaned us a truck to pick up items, lent us tables to display everything, and helped move stuff back in the garage. We could not have done all of this without your help.

Love you all, Tawnya

Garage Sale Items

Crocheting

Making Earrings

Garage Sale this coming Sat. 9-24

Thank you to those of you who have so graciously given us things to put in our garage sale. :-) This week we have been doing a lot to prepare for the garage sale. We have the items we need, we have made signs and borrowed tables from a neighbor and my parents. I will be advertizing on Craigslist and the homeschool e-loop this week.

Rylee and I have been working on crocheting head bands for our Holiday Bizarre in November and we have also been making earrings with Mishele Smoak. She is the expert and helped us this week. Thanks Mishele.

We have all been learning "Open the Eyes of My Heart" in Spanish (check out the video). We have it down except one verse, the hardest one. :-p

One thing that I thought about this week is how God likes people to work together for His plans and it takes many people working to make things happen.

Please pray for the success of the garage sale. This is one of the ways we are hoping to make a large portion of our funds. Tell your friends to come out and support us. :-)

Mission Update

Hey Everyone,

Its been about 3 weeks since we wrote you about our desire to go to the Dominican Republic (DR).

As of today, we have made arrangements with YWAM in the DR for Feb 2012. We have been collecting things to sell at our fund raiser garage sale that takes place on Sept. 24th from 8-12pm. Btw, Thank you to all who have given us items to sell at the garage sale and on Ebay. We sold a couple of magnetos online. I didn't even know what these were before now. LOL (They are like little generators for antique phones.) What a blessing you have been to help us out. :-) Please let people know about this event and pray for its success.

Rylee and I have been crocheting for our Holiday Bizarre. On Friday we will start making earrings and ornaments with a friend. We also have some blankets I crocheted to sell. The Bizarre is tentatively set for Nov 12th 10-2pm. If anyone would like to bake some cookies for us to sell, please let me know.

I have asked a local Orthodontist if he could donate tooth brushes and floss. Please pray we could get these for the orphans.

Here are our prayer requests for today:

Pray:

1. That God would continue to grow & equip us spiritually for the trip.
2. That others would get excited & partner with us as we follow the Lords call &
tell all the nations about Him.
3. Pray that we would trust God's timing.
4. That we would be able to learn Spanish worship songs.
5. Also that God would make a way financially for us to get to the DR.
That the Lord would get all credit for every good thing.

We will keep you posted. Love, T

Lamentations 3:25 "The LORD is good to those who depend on Him, to those who search for Him."

Today was a day of hope being met. A few people have given some things for the garage sale, and we received our first financial support! :-)

Another thing that happened today was we got our craft supply shipment in the mail to start making things for a Holiday Bizarre. That will be our second fund raiser we are planning to have around mid November. Rylee is very excited about making crafts to sell and has already made 2 hats! :-)

Matthew 28:19 "Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."

Time & Prayer

Well we went to the beach this weekend and got some quiet time with God. Richard and I were able to spend some time reading scripture and a portion of some other good books. One book was called "The Power of a Praying Parent" and the other was "Daring to Live on the Edge: The Adventure of Faith and Finances". We also got some time to play with the kids and chat with my parents in the evenings.

After what I read, it made me aware of how important it is to pray and ask God about everything. It also showed us to examine ourselves in the small things.

Richard and I prayed and had some sweet time together. We prayed that God's will would be done regarding the mission trip plans.

As a side note, we were given some antique telephones to sell & put towards our mission funds. Thank you Lord! :-)

Yesterday's Blessing

Thanks for your prayers guys, they are helping! :-)

Yesterday God was so good to us! We were able to get lots of things donated for a garage sale from asking a few people having garage sales if we could have what they don't sell. We are still gathering items.

Psalm 31:14 "But I am trusting You, O LORD, saying, "You are my God!"

Our goal

Our hope is that we will be going to the Dominican Republic this coming Feb 11-20th 2012, God willing. Our aim is to love people for Jesus, help people in need, work with orphans, people with leprosy. Our son Noah is excited about sharing worship music and bringing joy to others through his gift of music. I also want to do dental hygiene education with puppets, handing out tooth brushes & floss to 100 kids. We are currently doing a Spanish immersion class in home school to help us be able to communicate better, but will also have a translator. We hope to learn a few songs in Spanish before we leave too.

We need to raise $4634 for airfare, lodging, food, transportation, visas and supplies in order to go to the Dominican Republic in Feb 2012.

1) Please help us get there by donating a few garage sale items for us to sell as a fund raiser. 2) Pray for us. or 3) We could certainly use the help financially with whatever God leads you to give. If you would like to help us share the Good News of Jesus, please send an email and we will give you our contact info.

rvanterve@yahoo.com

2 Corinthians 3:5 “It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God.”

Psalm 146:5 "But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the LORD their God."

Our Prayer Requests

1. Please pray for God to work out all the details for our family to go with Youth With a Mission to the Dominican Republic.

2. Pray that the enemy would not discourage us. There have been some bumps in the road this week with planning.

3. Pray that we would be patient and wait on Him as He provides the means. The amount we need to raise seems so overwhelming.

Thank you in advance for being our prayer warriors with this endeavor. We know that the Lord will do a work in His perfect timing. Just knowing you are there to pray and spur us on, means so much.

Any words of encouragement are appreciated.

With Love, Tawnya

Tawnya's thoughts about going....

"My hope is that we can go and be part of God's work. I would love to share dental hygiene instruction and supplies with others through a puppet show. I want to be used by God to encourage people and see the bigger picture along side my family. It would be great to go help out at an orphanage or love on the outcast of society." :-)

Rylee says that she wants to go to, "Help and serve people. To show the love of Jesus."

When asked what gifts Noah wants to give of himself when he goes on a mission trip, he replied; "I want to share my music with people and help serve those in need."

When asked why he wants to go on a short term mission trip, Richard responded with; "I want to serve and be part of spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who don't know Him."