We're currently back in FL. When we came home for a short visit between CHRISTmas and New Year's, we discovered that a pipe had been leaking in the wall behind our shower. It flooded our kitchen cabinets and walls, bathroom walls, and living room laminate flooring! We didn't have time to do much more than tear out a bunch of stuff to keep mold from spreading before we had to head back to TX. We hired Todd Stoltzfus (one of the guys who taught me how to do remediation) to finish the remediation so it would be dry and ready for reconstruction when we had a chance to return. It worked out that we did not have any volunteers to help us from mid-February till the end of March, so we decided to head back to do the reconstruction. I'm now fighting our own insurance battle! We reported the issue at the end of the year and have yet to get one document, let alone a check from them, even though they keep promising. Then once there is a check, it will go to our bank and we'll be fighting them to get our money!!
We're also helping Roxanne, the wife of our good friend Greg who unexpectedly went to be with Jesus a couple weeks ago, get through some business issues as I used to be involved in his business before we went on the road full time. Please keep Roxanne and Sierra, their 11 year old daughter, and the rest of their family in your prayers.
We'll be attending the SE Calvary Chapel Pastor's Conference this week, so if you're going to be there, please find us and say hi! We plan on being back in TX by mid-March as we have another team from Lyons, CO joining us.
Otherwise, if you're in the Sarasota area and want to hang out for dinner, coffee, or come help with our remodel, or have us speak at your church, small group, etc, please let us know. Currently our main bathroom and kitchen are torn up and everything is full of dust, so we can't have others over for fellowship. We'd appreciate anyone wishing to invite us over for meals and fellowship!
In January, we had several folks from OH, FL, TX, and CO come to TX and help us! We were able to paint the new soffit and fascia on two homes where we were able to put new roofs on at the end of last year. We also finished the rest of the tear out at Don's and got his roof installed! It's the first time in almost 5 months that Don hasn't had a flood in the back of his house when it rained! Don continues to come to church with us when he's not working. We had some flooding and electrical issues with our trailer and he was helping me the other day before we left. At the end of the day I thanked him for the help, and he replied, "No. Thank you for taking me to church!" I've been working tirelessly on Don's insurance claim to help get him the money he is due. They've agreed to some of it, so we're fighting some more! I probably have at least 100 hours into paperwork, phone calls, meetings, emails, etc between the insurance company and the bank! After over 5 months, he finally got his first partial check! It's insane the way the insurance companies and banks treat these folks!
We also spent a day helping tarp some of Bill and Rita's home as well as doing some mold remediation. We've begin hanging out with them a little and inviting them to church. So far they haven't come, but we're not giving up! Bill has been helping us at Don's and Don is helping us at Bill's!! Bill is retired Air Force and then he worked for them as a civilian. Recently Rita was diagnosed with Parkinson's, so they both decided to fully retire and spend as much quality time together as they can. Shortly before that they purchased their current home and then their mortgage was sold to another mortgage company last year. They pay their insurance via escrow. Shortly after the mortgage company switch, Bill received a letter from his windstorm insurance company saying they were cancelling him for not paying his bill. He contacted his new mortgage company and they apologized and said it was being taken care of. After Harvey did around $50k or more of damage (I haven't done my assessment yet so a guess), they found out the mortgage company failed to pay their premium and they have no insurance. Now they have to hire a lawyer and sue the bank for not paying. Who knows how long that will take and how much it will cost them to get money that they should already have. We're planning on moving forward and starting with their roof when we get back, and we're trusting The LORD to supply their needs!
Anyone who joins us soon learns that discipleship is our number one priority, and we always encourage our team members to do their own devotions in addition to our team devotions. Surprisingly, many people struggle with this and several "Christians" (It's interesting to note that this complaint has never come from non-believers who attend!) have told me that we spend "too much time" in the Bible and that we could "get so much more done" if we cut the Bible time short, but we have continued to keep our 1 1/2 hour devo, coffee, breakfast time sacred, and we see it making a difference in the lives of those who make the Word their first priority.
The first group that came to TX in January was a family from CC Cleveland, OH. Their high school daughter wanted to help with Harvey relief for a school service project, so the family decided to take vacation time and spend it with us! As usual, we encouraged the Browns to be in the Word and they decided to do family devos before they came over and did them with us. We just go verse by verse through The Word and I prepare nothing for our studies. I lead the study, ask questions, allow comments, and let The LORD lead us. It seemed as if everything The Holy Spirit led me to talk about was spot on with either things going on in their personal lives, and/or it was exactly what they had talked about during their own devotional time! Here's an exert from an email that Eric sent me after their return home:
"This is something that I am very excited to share with you. The week that we spent in Ingleside has had a major and lasting impact on our family. There is no doubt in my mind that God moved Jenna's heart to direct our family to be exactly where He wanted us on "vacation" this winter. Our time serving along side of you has been a catalyst for the spiritual growth of our entire family and I don't see it waning one bit yet. We are getting incredible family devotions at minimum of 4-5 days per week. I am noticing an obvious shift in my desire to be in His Word and away from the TV and the news. Dana has been on a mission in regard to waking up early, applying to colleges, looking for volunteer work and also a job. Robin and I are on the verge of starting to read His word together. Jenna is maintaining her disciplined daily quiet time. The kids have expressed how much they love dinner time devotions. We are just becoming a more Kingdom-minded family.
I know well that this has everything to do with Jesus. However, we all must recognize the fact that by you saying yes to the Lord to go full time for Him, we have now been blessed to an incalculable measure through your obedience and sacrifice. So, may we just say thank you for your willingness to say yes to His call.
I am not sure what God has in store for our future. This is my favorite prayer to Him:
I am willing: To receive what You give, to lack what You withhold, to relinquish what You take, to suffer what You require. Thus, I/we will hold everything we possess in an open palm, as best that we can. You never know how He may move one day down the road.
What if Abraham said no?
Love to you both from the Brown Family!"
There's much to do which means much for you to pray about! When we return to Texas, we will be working on Don's and Bill's, and also assessing three other houses to see what we can do there. Physically, we're both getting older and have back issues and I also have a hernia that rears it's ugly head often. Spiritually, it seems that we are being hit with demonic activity against us more and more in what we do. We tire and wear out a lot these days! Nonetheless, we press on to what God would have us do knowing that heaven is just around the corner and we can't wait!! As a prayer partner, you are intimately involved in our service to The LORD and we are so appreciative of you! We also appreciate those of you who financially support Calvary Relief, enabling us to be Jesus' Hands and Feet to Those Affected by Disaster!
As Christians we are called to disciple others as we're being discipled ourselves. When we were home full-time we loved investing in other's lives helping them to grow in The LORD. Discipleship has always been the heart of our ministry, drawing others to Christ and helping them to become more like Him! Now while in the field we love the opportunity to disciple others. If you or someone you know could use some intense discipleship coupled with serving Jesus by serving others, please contact us to discuss the situation! We'd love to find a few of you who want to join us full-time. If you or someone you know is interested in joining our team, please let us know!
If you're interested in donating to Calvary Relief, you can click this link, Donate Now. If you are interested in learning more about giving to us and/or just more about us, then please visit our website at CalvaryRelief.com (which has just been revamped by our good friend Jason Etheredge, and is up and running but still under construction. Let us know if you find any glitches).
LORD Bless,
Curt & Mary Jo
PS-we've included some pics of the work going on below!
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