Who's Agenda Is It?

41 Days Before Departure: 


Are things crazy around here? Of course, but then what family does not say that, especially during the Holidays? I am looking at our family calendar and it is full for the next 41 days! Christmas gatherings, visiting churches, packing for Peru, and oh yeah, work, school, church functions, soccer, and trying to prepare something a little more healthier to eat. You know I love being busy, having my kids and loved ones need me, it gives me purpose and I feel important, but I feel like sometimes I look like a chicken running around with my head cut off. Why are we all sooo busy? Like others I am always searching for ways to de-stress.


Today during my devotion I saw how busy Jesus was with the demands of His life. He was constantly surrounded and bombarded with requests. He always seemed to put others first, serving them, while putting himself last. He was always willing to serve others, but most importantly He was always serving His Father. Think about when Jesus would pray- early in the morning before the rooster crowed. He managed to live with a peace that seems beyond our reach, but yet it is available to all of us. 


I have to confess, among all the daily to-do's and running from here to there, I do feel stressed out. Moments like this, I realize that I am only concerned with my check-list that are awaiting my day.  Selfishly, I have been concerned too much about future things when I should be more concerned about what God is trying to do in my life today. I do not want to miss that. Then I remember all of a sudden that God has a plan for my life and it is not all in the future, but instead He has a plan for me to Glorify Him today if I will just listen to His Spirit. Just think about all the little prompts you have each day to stop and help someone, but we are too busy to stop. So I ask, "Even when we are busy, are we still willing to do the things that please God?"


John 8:29 ... for I always do those things that please Him.

Up-side Down or Right-Side Up?

54 Days to Departure: Happy Thanksgiving!
As we continue to prepare for this new journey as faith missionaries in Peru, everyday we feel like God is turning our world upside down. We are tearing our house down this week as we begin to pack our first bags that are going with us in January. Room by room, we are sorting through and making piles marked for Peru and piles that are going to be donated to My Sister's House (a ministry in town that addresses the needs at a variety of levels of those fleeing family abuse and sexual assault). As we look around at the amount of stuff that we have accumulated over the past 12 years of being married and the amount of stuff that has been boxed, stored, stuffed in the bottom of closets, and unfortunately, items that we never knew we even had...we quickly realized how ashamed we are. All these years, never being used, yet surrounding us all everyday are so many needs and people just struggling to make it by each and every day. As Sean made his way to drop off a mattress at Yolkfellow Ministry, once he arrived, he was greeted in the parking lot by a homeless man, clothes filthy dirty, whose face was covered with damage from an abscess infection with his nostrils stuffed with toilet paper because air going through his nose made it too painful to breath. Once again God is revealing to us and opening our eyes to so many things we chose to ignore and the belief we put in our heads daily that THEY put themselves in that situation and THEY surely can get a job somewhere...as we sort through another pile of clothes, some even with tags that have never even been worn.

Is it that God is turning our world upside down...or is He actually turning it right side up? We are thinking daily and reminded of the life that we are leaving behind. Many trips to Walmart to pick up small items that we need to take to Peru, reminds us of the many times that we would have easily spent $100 here and there on another new decoration for the house. Now we look around and wonder how many months $100 would provide for a family for food in Peru or how many nights $100 would provide the homeless man in town a warm place to lay his head. Seeking to find answers and longing to live and walk as Christ did, we are reminded of so many verses and commands that Jesus teaches us about money and possessions and caring for the needy and poor: 

"Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where  thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be." (Matthew 6:19-21 NLT)

"...Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you? And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'" (Matthew 25:37-40 NLT)

Lord please forgive us where we fail you and continue to open our eyes.

Letter to our Church Family

Dear Church Family- 

We really appreciate having the opportunity this past Sunday to share our testimony and the call we feel God has placed on our hearts to serve as faith missionaries in Cajamarca, Peru. The past five years of our lives have been an amazing journey for us as God continues to bring us on our knees in prayer and open our eyes to a life of following Him. As we mentioned this Sunday, life became more about having more stuff and being really busy focusing on the American Dream, which ultimately blinded us in our obedience and love for our Lord Jesus Christ. God had finally brought us to a place of confession before Him and before our family. 

As we began to seek God’s will for our lives, we started asking ourselves many questions. Did we really LOVE Christ and did we really believe this Bible? Were we willing to come to Him on his terms, not ours? What did sacrificial giving of our lives and finances look like for our family? What did Jesus really mean when he said “whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me”? Ultimately, were we willing to risk it all for the 4.5 Billion people that are lost and going to eternity without CHRIST. As we continue this journey, please pray that God will continue to direct our paths and give us the strength and courage to enter this land. Pray that God will use our lives in a manner that will bring glory to Him and that our family will be faithful and obedient to God’s calling on our lives.

In Christ- 

Sean & Crissy Heath

Follow this journey with us (blog):

http://heathfamilyjustlovejesus.blogspot.com/

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard,

      and no mind has imagined
   what God has prepared
      for those who love him.” - 1 Corinthians 2:9

New Direction...Pathway to Obedience

Well today marks our 12 year wedding anniversary- we are so thankful for our marriage and our family. We wanted to share a letter to all of our family and friends on a blind spot that was so evident in our lives early in our marriage and with our walk with Christ. We want to share this because this has completely changed how we want to live the rest of our lives- no longer following "our paths" but God's direction. We pray that God will continue to lead us and that  our hearts will always be willing to follow...

Dear Family and Friends!

We want to thank you all for your prayers, love, and support as we prepare for the mission field in Cajamarca, Peru. This journey began for our family back in February of 2010 when Sean went to Cajamarca, Peru on a two week mission trip instead of his usual ski trip to Colorado. When he came back he was not the same. God had radically changed his heart. 

We began to recognize a blind spot in our lives- an area of disobedience to our Lord Jesus Christ. Like many of us, we were living the American Dream. A life that had became more about having everything bigger and trying to succeed in acquiring more “STUFF”. When it was convenient or if life threw us a curveball, we would pull God out of a “box” and ask Him to help us. All the “stuff” got in the way of seeing the truth. Looking back- we found ourselves living for this world and not for God. We had many excuses like...God, I’ll do it later when this gets done, or when I am in college, or after that promotion or the kids get done with school. We had to ask ourselves one question- did we really LOVE God? God had finally brought us to a place of confession before Him and before our family. 

In the fall of 2010, Sean began attending Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary to gain a deeper understanding of biblical truths. We had been praying and seeking the Lord’s will for our lives and God continues to lay a huge burden on our hearts for the lost.  We think many times about the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). He was begging for one more chance to tell his brothers about the place of torment...and begging Abraham for ONE MORE CHANCE to repent.  

God started to reveal to us what His plan was for our lives. After a trip to Cuba and two more trips to Peru we felt God calling us to missions, specifically to where it all started, Cajamarca, Peru. We are so thankful that God continues to answer prayers and open many doors for discipleship and evangelism for our family as we prepare to serve our Peruvian brothers in sisters in sharing the love of Jesus Christ.  

Please pray that God will continue to direct our paths and give us the strength and courage to enter this land. God willing, we will be leaving in January 2012 and our goal is to stay in Villa Milagro for 11 months and then return to the states to continue to raise support for the ministry. Pray that God will use our lives in a manner that will bring glory to Him and that our family will be faithful and obedient to God’s calling on our lives. To God be the Glory Forever and Ever, Amen.

“Be strong! Be courageous! Do not be afraid of them! For the Lord your God will be with you. He will neither fail you nor forsake you.” - Deuteronomy 31:6

‎"In our world, where hundreds of things distract us from God,

we have to intentionally and consistently remind ourselves of Him."

- Francis Chan, Crazy Love

A letter from a missionary's wife named Samantha Jeffcoat

Recently I had the opportunity to spend four and a half months on the other side of the world.  My heart was blessed as scriptures came to mind filled with the promises of God, to face every challenge that came my way.

The aromas, the tastes, the textures, the scenes, the animals, and the people are all vivid, scenery memories that I relive often.  There is one particular awareness that gripped my attention early in my journey.  The realization that many, perhaps even the majority of people, on that side of the world, live in a day by day mentality.  One small example of the simplicity of a day by day life style is the daily trips to market and the daily milk deliveries.

As I would show up at the market to do my weekly shopping, I realized very quickly this was not the norm.  I tried very hard to go to the store at odd times so as not to frustrate the customers behind me, with their daily rations.  Some would take matters into their own hands and push their items in the clerk's face ahead of my things, insisting they pay first.  I never took this hardly as I truly sympathized with their plight.

It is human nature to mathematically calculate, in an effort to avoid uncertainty in life.  In western culture we are literally obsessed with preparedness plans.  We dictate to God what we want our futures to look like.  But I have to ask myself often, where is the childlike trust?  Imagine that little infant who never doubts that the mommy will bring milk.  A baby does not worry; a baby just trusts that the milk will come when they are hungry.  They do not calculate all of the hurdles and hardships, they simply leave it to mommy.  When we trust God we are walking in humility.  I love the passage found in Psalm 131 and remind myself of those truths related to humble, childlike trust quite often.

If I remain loyal to Jesus there will be a sense of calm in my life.  See 2 Corinthians 1:3-4.  This calm is not a result of having everything figured out, but because I know with certainty that HE does.  He is the only one that can speak peace to my heart.  My eternity is secure because of God's gift of salvation that I have received.  But I can also know that I am safe and secure today because He is with me and promised that He would never leave me. (Hebrews 13:5) He fills my life with his hope, true purpose, and joy!

"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us." - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

May 2011- Lima, Peru

Playing soccer with local children

Using the EvangeCube in a local school

Playing with the orphans

Discussing what the Gospel means to the children

January-February 2011

Little girl attending Vacation Bible School

Orphanage- abandoned by mother at 20 days old

Inside a local Peruvian home

Sharing the love of Christ as our Lord and Savior

Orphanage- providing milk and ice-cream

Meet Norman and his sister- they both accepted Christ as their Savior

Orphanage- so many needs...typical meals everyday consist of lettuce and rice

November 2010- CUBA

Ministering in Batabano, Cuba

Sean's room for the week

Communist Country- Government Controlled

Catholic Church in Havana, Cuba

February 2010- Cajamarca, Peru

Local child playing with a soccer ball at the school

View of Cajamarca, Peru

Fellowshipping with Alex- Villa Milagro helps support his education

Teaching about Jesus in Bible School

Playing with kids at the Aldea Orphange

Following God is not always easy, but never complicated

"But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”  - Romans 10:14-15

Today is Sean's 34th birthday...it is hard to imagine what all has happened and how our life has changed over this past year. Sean was in Peru for the first time last year for his birthday. What an incredible year 2010 was for our family. Our journey for missions started with this trip in Peru - it's amazing how taking the small steps of obedience can lead to incredible blessings. So as we continue to take the next steps- we would like to take you on this journey with us...both in past years and in the future moments that are yet to come. We love you all and look forward to many, many more days ahead as we follow our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.