Ray
and Patience Gifford
Update - November 2006
Have you ever gone to a retreat with that anticipation in your
heart that something wonderful was going to happen? Well,
when I got
up to begin the retreat in Bend 3 weeks ago I had the feeling
that if
I had said, "Mary had a little lamb..." the women would
have fallen
on their faces in response to God. When we are hungry
God feeds
us. Since their theme was "Extreme Make-over: The
Christ Edition" we
could have gone just about anywhere but the word the Lord gave me
was
our remaking as we respond to the trials in our lives
. All 4
sessions had a spontaneous time of public declaration of God's
transforming power, or the need for it. All 59 of us may never
recover
from that short weekend.
Our Thursday evenings at the women's prison have been so
full as
about 35 ladies in the minimum security section continue to come to
grow. Last week I got to share with the ladies about being a
dispenser
of grace instead of a moral exterminator. Wow! What a
gigantic
difference! This week is our last class on "Grace" but we
will keep
going to help with the small groups, listen to women who really need a
mature Christian friend to talk to, pray for them, rejoice in their
victories, and help with small groups where ever needed. If you'd
like
to pray about maybe joining us let me know and I'll get you on the path
to your badge. You don't have to teach, just love the people God
puts
in your path.
Only 2 weeks remain in the class I'm teaching at our
church on How
to Hear God's Voice. We have been using the small group
format and
this week I had them in their groups first. I could hardly
get them
to stop talking about all the things God has been saying to them in
order to give the lesson. Sad is an understatement about
how I'll
feel when this is over.
But YWAM is calling again. November
20-24 we'll be teaching in
Victoria on spiritual warfare. This director is quite the
pioneer
(he's the one who started the snowboard, skateboard, surfboarders DTS)
and now wants to try, with my week, videoing to do a cyber
DTS.
Eventually it will be on their website for anyone to access. The
we
head to Vancouver,
B.C.,
for the Urban DTS Nov. 27 - Dec 1. During that week we will
also be in
a reunion with our Bike For Bibles people to look at pictures, catch
up, and get the route for next year's ride. Yea!!!!!
Ray is moving dirt and stacking
wood. He installed an insert in
our fireplace and we have enjoyed the lovely heat it is putting
out. But it does require wood so when our
brother-in-law drops some
in our driveway he then had to cut it up and stack it for future
use.
He still takes me for tandem rides nearly every Saturday and now
starts a fire every morning. Did I mention I love
him? I do!
Hugs,
Ray and Patience
Gifford
