Have A Little Owl with your New Year!

Merry Christmas!!

We hope you had a wonderful, merry Christmas!

(The kids recite Luke 2:1,3-7 NIV)

Christmas Bells

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world received from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said;
"For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep
"God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!"

-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Future Apartment Update

Update December 17th: Last weekend we visited the apartment at the base that we will be moving into. And it looks great!! Three bedrooms, storage space, a dishwasher! It's clean and modern. I (Renee) know if we'll be living overseas in the future, our living space will probably be very different. But I am relieved that the apartment is clean and neat and has friendly neighbors!
It looks like we'll be moving about Saturday January 18th. (But nothing is for sure yet!)

Please also pray for Joel as he visited the neurosurgeon today: It turns out he has a herniated disc in his lower back. Surgery is an option- we need wisdom on whether that's what God wants or not.

December 4, 2013 Update

SEND US PACKING!

Pike Family Update

December 4^th, 2013

Here's the news!

• Housing at the YWAM base will be available for us after
  Jan 9^th, 2014
• The Lord has provided buyers for our house who are
  flexible with the timing of the sale.
• We are 37% supported, at $1100/mo!

The pieces are falling into place as we wait on God for the next step. We know He's given us a burden for being more fully involved in sharing Him with those who are without Jesus and without hope in this world. Joining the staff of YWAM Minneapolis for at least two years is a step in that direction. YWAM functions on prayer, letting the Spirit place people in specific missions in His timing and way.

“My self-sufficiency is insufficient!”

Now there's a Gospel statement! This reality is being played out in two very tangible ways for us at this time:

1. With a bulged disc between my lowest vertebrae the Lord has made it clear I won't be providing for my family through my own physical strength any longer. I've been off work since Nov 1^st, but it has been good. I need to learn, in a very inescapable way, that God is, and always has been, our only Provider...
2. ...and that His provision for those He sends as missionaries often comes through His people, the Church. While our own financial sufficiency may last for a time, it is the long-term commitment of brothers and sisters in Christ that will enable us to go where He calls.

Our insufficiency is pointing us to Jesus, to more fully find our life in Him. And that's a good thing.

“For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” John 6:33

Thank-you for taking an interest in us and in the ways God is leading us. Sincerely,

Joel and Renee, Joshua, Rachel, Madelynn and Hudson