Thursday morning

Hi Everyone,

Sim and I will be doing a prayer walk at Arched
Casings this coming Thursday from 5-6:00 a.m.

Please pray that God would give us insight as we walk
and pray for the company and it's people.

Pray for insights into spiritual strongholds and that
they would be broken.

Thanks,

John

Future Hunting

Future-Hunting

As C.S. Lewis says, most people act as though the future is something that only favored heroes attain, forgetting that all of us achieve it at the precise rate of 60 minutes per hour. Nonetheless, the future seems to have been holding still for Debbi and I, in the sense that we have felt over the last several months a distinct absence of God's leading towards our next steps--after Debbi's degree, after Columbus, etc.

You have been with us during this time--and we have appreciated your support and prayers as we deal with "no small amount" (same as a large amount, I think) of perplexity--and, ocassionally, some weeping and gnashing of teeth.

I'm un/fortunately not here to announce any changes to that stance, but since we missed the last "big meeting," wanted to update you all on what is going on. We spent last weekend with Debbi's grandparents in Archbold, and her aunt and uncle were there. (They work with Dove Fellowship in a developing country--oversee about 70 churches and a number of other ministries)

We were explaining our predicament to them and it didn't take them long to suggest maybe God was calling us to their location (I remember Henry Helmuth--peace be upon him--having similarly convenient inspirations about my calling).

To make a long story no more dramatic than it needs to be, we talked a bit with them about how we might be able to fit in in with their work, and some of the possibilities look fairly attractive--actually, some of the possibilities are uncannily similar to what Debbi and I have described as our ideal jobs or 20-40 year goals--things like expanding their theological education program, running a guest house/conference center, starting an orphanage, doing famine relief and development work, etc.

So this has put us to thinking and praying--we have as yet no sense of conviction that this is what we should do, but enough spiritual movement to make us sit up and pay attention. Ok, so we're even excited--but we're always excited the first week after we hear about something cool.

In any case, we'd appreciate if you could do some thinking and praying as well, and when we get chances to talk--or if you feel like posting a comment, we'd appreciate no small amount of counsel on whether this is something we should pursue further.

CNM Happenings

We had a wonderful waffle brunch together on Sunday morning, followed by a brief (yeah, right) icebreaker (none of us will ever be able to hear the word “monkey” without thinking of Dion and praying for his marriage), then a great time of worship. Dave Sharp (RMM missionary/Regional Director from Latin America) shared some insights from the gospels. He asked three key questions (at least this is how I remember them):

• Who is your target?
• Sow seeds to the multitudes, but disciple a few
• What are you willing to give up to do what needs to be done?
• John 3:16 “God loved the world so much that he gave…”
• How will you know when you’ve been successful?
• John 17 “I have completed the work you sent me to do”

We heard reports from each group concerning disciple-making and cultivation work we’re doing. We spent time praying for each other. We might be learning slowly, but we’re learning!

We had planned to discuss the proposed CNM Charter that I’d sent out late last week, but we were seriously out of time. We agreed to talk about it on May 7 when we meet next.

So, between now and then, why don’t you look over the charter document and send me your suggestions, questions, and/or observations. That way we may be able to have a final copy there to sign next time.

As you know, Collin has been doing some groundwork on getting us set up financially. I’d like to officially appoint him as our Network Treasurer (he says he’s willing to serve). I don’t think we need to formally vote on this, but I’d welcome your feedback if you’d like to give me any.

Hope your week is going well!
Joe Showalter

PTL

Well folks, miracles still happen! PTL!

Here is the latest. At noon yesterday I had a call from my realtor who said the seller's realtor called her the night before, (after Joni showed me two other condos) and asked what I was thinking. Joni told her I still preferred the condo she was representing. She said "give the seller a bit more time - I think he will come your way". Said he said he needs to pull himself together and get on with his life.

Sure enough, last night at five I received a fax with his counter offer which I am planning to accept. If all goes well, settlement will be on May 3 and I get the condo at 5:00 PM on May 10th! I am very excited and at peace. My friends tell me buyers remorse will hit at some point, but for now I am enjoying the process. J Thank you so much for your prayers.

Have a good day,

Mim

Mim's continued condo hunting

Good morning,

The plot thickens. J Last night at 5:50 Joni called and said that she is up against a most unusual situation. The seller received my contract Monday night, but didn't know if he would have time to read it before six last night?! Late yesterday afternoon she received a note saying "Seller appreciates offer from buyer but is unable to accept at this time".

Joni was very puzzled, but said that one of the places I looked at on Saturday had dropped 3K because the owner had just purchased a house and wanted to get rid of his condo quickly! She thought I should take another look at it. So I met her there at seven. Joe offered to come as well (thanks, Joe).

I liked the condo, but told her I can't quickly move from feeling so confident that the condo on Messner was the one for me to taking another that isn't as close to Renner Road as I want to be, and doesn't have the club house, and extra parking space within walking distance.

She was understanding and said she had talked to the Messner realtor again who said that the owner (a single man who lived there since it was built in 1994) got so worked up when he received the contract because he doesn't have a place to move yet. It sounds like he went into a panic mode and couldn’t deal with it. He felt bad for the realtor and for me. Joni told the realtor that she might be hearing from us again.

We then looked at another condo which did not appeal to me at all. Joni is leaving today for a seminar and won't be back until Sunday. I leave Monday for Ecuador and won't be back until Sunday so we agreed to let things rest until I get back.

Joe and I drove to the Messner condo then and he got to see it from the outside, also the clubhouse, swimming pool, volleyball courts, and playground. We walked on the walking trail. These weren't his exact words, but the idea was that he believes this is the place for me and that we just have to pray it into being. That was exactly what I was feeling. Either God has given me the faith to believe that this is the one for me, or else I am pretty bull-headed (and that is a possibility). J

At any rate, please pray with me about this because this condo isn’t just about me having a place to live. It includes you. J It is the perfect place for the network to have a place to meet w/ plenty of parking, play some volleyball, have a baptism in the pool, do some retreat time on a wooded trail, etc.

So that’s where it’s at - pray with me. Ask God to work in the heart of the seller. Pray that God will provide a wonderful place for him to move to. And yes, pray that God will also change my heart if this isn’t the one for me. I do want Him to be glorified in all of this.

Thanks,

Mim

p.s.

Here are some pictures from our vacation. This is Aram and Priska hiking in Missouri, and the other one is Priska and me swimming in the ocean.

Thank you

Aram and I want to thank you all for your kind and generous gift to help us buy a new car. We found a VW Passat that we really liked--it is older and has real high mileage, but is in excellent condition otherwise. So we are happy to be on the road again, and very, very thankful that Aram came through his accident without major injuries.

I went to visit my parents in Florida two weeks ago, and then all the DiGennaros of Columbus went to the original DiGennaroville in Missouri the following weekend. Sorry we missed the thing at the SEND house. Hope to catch you all again soon. Things are going well here. We are enjoying wonderful fellowship with Dion and Naty, and have also started meeting with a family who are young, hungry believers.

Thank you for your friendship,
Debbi

Mim's house hunting

Just wanted to update you on my condo-search. Thanks for praying. Things are moving quickly!

• Saturday – Went with my realtor to look at five condos. One of them “just happened” to be the very first condo I looked at even before I know I was seriously looking for one. I liked it, but was pretty sure I couldn’t afford it. It is on 1800 Messner in Hillard Village (behind Sams Club and Meijers). My realtor was eager to see it because she thought there must be something wrong that it hasn’t sold for six months. Well, she couldn’t find anything wrong with it – turns out a number of people were ready to buy and then found something they liked better. Its not a mansion, but I could be very comfortable living there. A HUGE plus for me is a wonderful walking trail through a wooded area and field just minutes from my front door.
• Sunday – Elizabeth, Janice and I went for a walk on the walking trail and got a better feel of the place outside the condo.
• Monday – I took Bob Stauffer with me to look at the condo. He saw it with a much different set of eyes than I did. Why hadn’t I thought to look at pipes, and windows, and furnaces? J He gave the green light to keep moving. I also spent time with Nathan Miller who looked at my finances – he suggested that possibly the condo had been kept on the market for me.
• Monday night – Called the realtor and said I was ready to make an offer. Tonight by six I will know what the owner said!

So there you have it. I am very excited and grateful for the people God has put in my life who are helping with details of which I don’t have a clue. Thanks for your prayers. I will try to keep you updated.

Blessings,
Mim

It was a busy Sunday . . . .

Looks like another active Sunday for CNOM/CNM. We met at our house, formally inducted a new member by introducing her halfway through the meeting, and enjoyed more shared food, including some unexpected blessings I was happy to distribute.

Tonight will be a meeting at Chad and Deborah's, and it looked like some people were heading to Cup-O-Joes. Ang and my wife are sitting downstairs discussing travel to a country whose name remarkably resembles a favorite food. A big day!

BTW, I was looking at the verse from Acts that Joe shared, where the new Christians were devoted to
Apostle's teaching
the Fellowship
The Breaking of Bread
Prayer

"The Fellowship," being in Greek "koinonia," means "having in common." In verse 44 they go on to explain how they had stuff "in common." So in this case "fellowship" probably has more to do with dumpster diving than with chatting in the foyer. I'm excited about what we'll be able to do in sharing with each other and others once we start a fund. And I'm excited about Chad and Deborah's freezer :-)

Look forward to reading more posts soon!
Aram