Victory!

"Victory. Victory is a main theme, if not the main theme of the Bible. Victory over sin. Victory over death. Victory over sickness and infirmity. Victory given to us by way of the Cross and the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our family has been called to bring victory—to raise a banner of victory—over the hurting and oppressed in the island nation of Vanuatu."

Thus began our first full-length church service during our time of fundraising and the closest thing to an out of body experience I have ever had.

Several weeks ago Merissa and I decided to take the kids out to Chili's after church. As we waited for a table, a couple we used to attend Lifepointe (the "e" is silent) Church with walked in behind us. Chuck and Pam Ray had served alongside us on the Worship team. After common pleasantries were exchanged, Chuck asked us what was new in our lives. We seized the opportunity and filled him in on our missionary plans.

Now, if I can take just a second to "esplain" a little bit about how we have grown in the fundraising endeavor. OK. When I say, "seized", it was more of exchanging glances with my wife, feeling out what to say, how much to say, and almost apologizing as I said it.

"Well, uh, we have this opportunity...to, uh, you know, go to a foreign land...and...we feel called..."

Oye. Where is the conviction?! The passion?! We KNOW we are called. God has removed all doubt! So where does the weirdness come in? Askin' fo' da dough. Our funding is an inevitable part of the missions conversation. As more and more financial supporters join our team, it has become so very apparent that the Spirit is working in ways we never could fathom! As we walk in faithfulness to proclaim what He is doing/ has done in our hearts the money issue will be taken care of. It is not up to us to give the greatest sales pitch of all time. The Spirit has convicted our hearts to go to a foreign land and this same Spirit is at work in the lives of others—calling them to a very important facet of our ministry. I would love to say this is a lesson we have only had to learn once. It's more of an hourly thing, but we're getting better.

Meanwhile, back at Chili's:

As it turns out, Chuck and Pam planted a church in Prescott Valley a couple of years back and asked us to contact them at a later date to discuss more about our venture to Vanuatu. After meeting with Pastor Chuck one-on-one, he invited us to be a part of a Sunday evening service. That service was last night. Here comes the out of body thing.

"We are so fortunate to have a special family with us tonight. Now I have known them for years and I can't wait to get behind their ministry. These, folks, are the real deal. I want to introduce to you..."

"Wow," I think to myself, "the 'real deal'. The 'real deal' sounds like a lot to live up to!"

"...The Brinkerhoff Family," Pastor Chuck finishes.

"Victory. Victory is a main theme...

'What are you doing?,' I ask myself. 'I don't know. I think I'm preaching. Can you preach? I don't know. I have a microphone. I am speaking into it. The emergency exits are locked so I have a captive audience...I guess I'm preaching!'

...over the hurting and oppressed in the island nation of Vanuatu."

Crazy. Crazy!, but awesome. To be used like this is overwhelming. What can I really do apart from Him?! All at once I felt humbled and encouraged. How phenomenal is it that even though we truly can offer God nothing of significance he utilizes our obedience to incredible ends. Shucks, even my obedience is sometimes tainted with doubt, reluctance, and yuck. To me, what is equally overwhelming is this: He not only uses us but brings about the fulfillment of our desires!

The rest of the service was simply brilliant. The 50 or so people that gathered were warm and generous with their words and actions. The presence of the Lord was such that our kids sat through the 2.5 hours with no complaints and actually stated, "that is the best church service we've been to!," as they climbed in the car.

Foodie Issues

Desserts have just not been doing it for me lately.  I want to like them.  Whether I mow it down or attempt to savor each bite, I am left with a palate in want.  Mint chocolate chip ice cream, a usual favorite, leaves me unsatisfied.  Pie, nah. The all time pinnacle of confectionery delight—Reese's Peanut Butter Cups? Nyeh...so, so.  But, now, what is this?  My wife, Merissa, is going to make something new from Bon Appetite? Something they claim to be the, "best brownie we have ever tasted,"?  Hmmm...I'm skeptical.

Bon Appetite has been leaving me high and dry of late.  For a season it seemed like they were coming up with tasty but practical recipes for food lovers.  In the past 6 months their concoctions have been more elaborate. With insane prep times and ingredients needing to be flown in from East Namib, I half expect to see, "1 tsp. ground horn of a unicorn," included among the glossy pages.  I glance over Mer's shoulder to peek at the list of rather unimpressive ingredients: butter, cocoa, eggs, sugar, and trace amounts of flour and vanilla extract.

"Harumph," I scowl. Nothing like a quick word of encouragement and thanks to make a cook/wife feel appreciated.

The aroma of butter being browned grabs my interest enough to draw me from the couch into the kitchen.  "Hmmm.  I don't think I've ever seen that before. Cool."  The butter foams and begins to roll back into itself off the polished metal sides of the saucepan she is using.  As it roils, deep brown burbles up from the center and the foam begins to subside.  The chemistry of cooking fascinates me.  Soon the butter is uniformly brown and the other ingredients added in their proper order.  Fudgey black tar-like goodness creeps lazily into the 8x8 glass dish and into the oven it goes.

Glory.

25min has never seemed longer—and I am never prone to exaggeration.

Somehow we manage to be good little monkeys and wait until our guests arrive and dinner complete before jumping right to dessert.  The main course? A formality. I really want to try those brownies.

Remember the movie, Ratatouille? There is a part where the main character (a rat) tries to describe how a mixture of flavors creates something greater than the sum of the parts.  I know now, more than ever before, exactly what he was driving at.  My first bite floors me.  Initially a hint of the burned butter, followed by deep chocolate, then a nutty undertone mixed with the other two. Mmmm.

If there were not young impressionable minds around—and our duty was not to fill those minds with light and goodness—I might have just grabbed a fork, pushed past our guests whilst using the fork as a weapon, and downed the whole razzin' frazzin' pan.

My taste buds blissfully sigh, lean against each other, and rest with complete satisfaction.

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2011/02/cocoa_brownies_with_browned_butter_and_walnuts