Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Emie Update

Experiences of Life and Death

We have had an eventful few days. Heath recently updated about Asher’s experience with the death of a little lizard. We’ve had a few more incidences of death around here, but life is still springing forth.
One day, Heath asked Judah if we should let his biggest hermit crab go back to the ocean. Judah agreed that the next trip to the beach we’d set him free. Well, the next day, Judah came running to me with his biggest hermit crab half out of his shell and not moving a muscle. Judah was distraught, as we took time to explain the crab was dead. I held him in my arms as he cried over the loss of his first pet. He and Heath then dug a hole in the sand and made a grave.
That night as he lay in bed feeling very sad, I said, “Why don’t you just tell Jesus how you’re feeling about your crab dying?” So he did. And without any prompting to listen in case the Holy Spirit wanted to answer him, he took a few minutes and said, “Jesus said, ‘I know. I am always with you, Judah!’” That was worth the hermit crab’s death! It is evidences of the LIFE of Jesus growing in our Judah!
We have had great fun with new FRIENDS!! Thank you to all who prayed for my children to have friends. There is a 4 year old boy named Joshua in the Holy Given School and a 7 year old girl named Anna. The kids spend as much time with their new friends as they can! This has been so LIFE GIVING to my kids (and to me!!).
Yesterday, Anna was visiting for the day and Heath was cleaning a corner out and found a RAT! The chase was on and the kids were thrilled! I think Heath was having as much fun as the kids! He finally got it cornered in the bathroom, hit it over the head and stunned it. But just when he thought it was dead, with kids shrieking “Don’t kill it!” on my bed, the thing jumped up and ran back into my room. But Heath is GOOD and cornered it behind our wardrobe.
As Heath tried to figure out how to kill it, I was trying to explain to the kids that the rat HAD to die and if they didn’t want to see it, they needed to go to the other room! It only took a few seconds for them to decide the excitement of the moment was more thrilling than feeling sad for the dying rat! So they stayed to cheer Heath on rather than chant for the detestable rodent to live!
Heath conquered and we were all extremely happy to see him throw the dead rat over the fence! I was able to sleep a bit more peacefully knowing the pest was dead and not lurking in some corner in my house.
Some things need to die but they are hard to chase down. Like things we call “our issues.” They aren’t really “our issues,” we’ve just decided to own them. For those who are children of God, transferred out of the Kingdom of Darkness and into the Kingdom of Light, we have been given a new nature. We no longer have to try and make the old “better.” We just have to develop the NEW NATURE through the power of the Holy Spirit within us! (See Colossians) Those things we often call our issues are really strongholds of the prince of darkness we’ve allowed to remain way to long. It’s like rats. If a rat finds food and is allowed to stay . . . . pretty soon, you have a community of rats! It’s one thing to chase down one rat. It’s a whole new game when you’re hunting a community that has set up shop!
Other things will die as we continue to live in the Light and it may be painful, but it will bring more life. The crab was bound to die sooner or later. . . it was yanked out of it’s habitat, thrust into a glass cage and Judah kept forgetting to give it water! But in it’s fairly natural death, we were able to see evidence of true life in Judah. We really have been yanked out of our old environment (prince of darkness) and set in a new place (granted it’s much better than Judah’s hermit crab cage). But in this new environment, things will die.
There are many ways I can see strongholds of the enemy that I have owned as my ”issues” trying to hold me back from LIVING FULL LIFE IN JESUS! Impatience and frustration, especially with my children, I have frequently labeled as my issues. As I was meditating on these ideas of life and death, I decided to call them strongholds and go after them with a stick like Heath went after the rat! I feel as though I’m chasing them around the house of my heart and mind, but I’ve got a couple good hits on them! There have actually been a couple days when I thought maybe they were almost dead and then it got up and ran around again!!
And there are other things that seem to be dying fairly naturally, though I feel at times I’m in a glass cage and someone has forgotten to give me water. The death of my desires, needs, and plans, though sometimes painful to watch die, are being crowded out as I allow the new nature and His plans for me come in fullness. And I know that in these deaths, I am gaining more access to fullness of TRUE LIFE that Jesus died to make available to me TODAY! Amen.

Other things:
** Heath is teaching now in the Pastor’s Bible School and loving it. He’s using all sorts of experiential learning tools to see how they really learn best. Though it took the guys awhile to get used to Heath, they love class now.

** Heath and I have opportunity to help one of the guys who works in the kitchen finish building his first home. This is a guy I befriended while doing dishes for hours and hours when I was here for the school. He invited me to the property in December to pray blessing over it and I was able to do so. Since then, as he has worked and saved money, he now has the frame, bamboo, rocks, and sand. So we have decided to help him finish his house. Next week we will go get him tin for the roof and cement for his floor (which is a luxury) and doors. Then the following week, we will help with the work in finishing it. We’ll send pictures when it’s done. What a joy to see this through with Jildo.

** Asher brings us lots of laughter as he is talking up a storm! Last night as we put the kids to bed, we all had him repeat words and we laughed and laughed (not at him, WITH him!!). He loves to take a hower (shower), he hates stepping in the hicken poop (chicken poop), and he always wants me to hing (sing) at bedtime. We’re trying to get him to break the yaciyiar habit. And anytime is a good time for chocolate nilk.

Love you all, Emie for the Locke Fam

Heath Update

From start to finish our faith is dependent on Jesus. We all had a start and we will all have a finish; it’s the middle that will be completely different.
In Matthew 11, John the Baptist sends his disciples to Jesus to verify that he really is the Messiah. He has had time to contemplate while sitting in prison whether he wants to be martyred as a fraud or not. Jesus reassures John he is the Messiah by reminding him of all the miracles they were experiencing. Which I guess if we are experiencing the blind seeing, the lame walking, lepers being healed, the dead raised and the Good News preached to the poor, then it is a pretty good indication that the Messiah is in our midst. If these things were not happening then I may have some doubts about being martyred also.

I have an amazing opportunity to teach in the Pastors Bible School twice a week. I have needed to make a few adjustments, but for the most part, I believe we are connecting well. It occurred to me the other day that many of them don’t believe they can do amazing things for God. I guess that is what colonization does to mans self-worth. Many of these men (and us, mind you) look at “giants” of the faith and have already determined they could never do the same. It’s a sad reality because God has no favorites.

Of all the men that have ever lived throughout history, Jesus said John the Baptist was the greatest. He is greater than Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Joseph and yes, even Habakkuk. Yet, that is not where Jesus finishes. He then says that the most insignificant person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than John was! WOW, John is the greatest up until the Kingdom had come; now you and I are considered greater.

One unfortunate aspect of ministry is that the “giants” are given higher and higher levels of pedestals and looked upon as having something no other has. The opposite is true in the Kingdom of God. When we hear or see “giants” of the faith it should always cause us to believe we can accomplish that or more through the power of Holy Spirit.
Hebrews 12 says, “Since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith get rid of everything that is slowing us down and run after Jesus.” Maybe what the writer of Hebrews is saying is, “since we are cheered on by guys and gals who have received promises late into life (Abraham), never died (Enoch), saw oceans part (Moses), overthrew kingdoms, shut the mouths of lions, quenched flames of fire, escaped swinging swords, saw armies flee in their presence, received loved ones back to life, or preferred resurrection to temporal freedom, we should never believe that we could not experience the same. We must look at the crowd of witnesses and say, “ I can do that too!” I don’t believe it is cockiness but rather confidence in what has already been given to us.

What has occurred in the body of Christ is that many pastors, elders, leaders, etc. are so concerned about themselves and title that anyone who experiences greater things with God is a threat to their position. So the “church” has done a wonderful job over many decades developing doctrinal statements and policies and procedures to keep its members in check. I have great news!! Things are busting out and for the first time in years, men and women are realizing they have “the same power that raised Christ from the dead alive within them. So if your pastors, elders or church have never experienced Hebrews 11, it doesn’t mean that you cannot!

Most of us have never experienced raising the dead, casting out demons or healing the sick but that doesn’t mean these things don’t happen. For many, it is easier to just dismiss it all and conclude they don’t happen today. As a result we (and theologians) have decided to bring the Word of God down to our experiences and explain away the supernatural, instead of taking our experiences up to the Word and believe for the miraculous. Our experiences never validate the Word of God. The Word of God is true whether we experience those things or not. Let us stop trying to give excuses for our lack of experience or faith and determine to keep our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish.

So the next time we hear an amazing God story, let’s take the attitude that we will also believe for the same results in our own sphere of influence, and know that if Jesus is really in our midst then the blind will see, the lame will walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf will hear, the dead will be raised and the poor will hear the Good News. But most of all remember that, “God blesses those who are not offended by Jesus.”

Sunday, June 17, 2007

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Sunday, June 10, 2007

Emie Update


Hello Everyone,
This is just a quick (laugh now) update to let you know that we are super, crazy busy with big teams coming in. We are getting our 3rd big team in 3 weeks today. This one of 43 people! Heath is doing outstanding with airport runs sometimes all day back and forth, shopping runs for water, putting beds together, organizing projects, answering a bazillion questions, praying for people and doing it all with amazing patience, love and grace! He is being molded in new ways and it is so amazing to watch God depositing more Christ like characteristics in him. I’m just so thankful to be married to him!
I really miss side by side ministry with him. I long to be with him in relating with the teams but the Lord has been very clear that this is a season for Heath to grow in new ways relationally (and it is definitely happening). So I have been more content the last two weeks to be at home, have teams over to our house when we can, pray for them while they are here, and occasionally meet them on the other base when all the kids and I are in a good place to be out for a whole morning! My primary responsibility with the hospitality department is emails (20-40 a day), getting people here and then taking care of all the room reservations making sure we have beds for all the people I say yes to! It’s a lot but it feels like a little compared to all the running around and relational stuff Heath has to do.
I cannot get any of my personal emails right now. They aren’t downloading onto Entourage and I don’t get to the other base often enough to check them online. So if you have emailed me personally in the last week and a half, I haven’t received it yet. I’m not ignoring any of you on purpose! Though I had been reading them throughout the week, I only have time to respond to personal emails on the weekends. Thank you all for loving and encouraging us! We do not feel like we’re forgotten!

Bullet point info:
• Judah is now the proud owner of several chameleons and hermit crabs!
• We now are the owners (and Heath is the PROUD owner) of a 6 week old German Shepherd Puppy named Jehu (Yahweh is God).
• We saw our first faces from home last weekend when Josh and Jess Clark came all the way from Oregon to visit us!! (Well, they came for the Holy Given School!) It is such a gift to have them here! And they came bearing gifts from many of you!! THANK YOU!
• Two weeks ago I got an ultrasound. Things looked good (or so she said in her quick overview). By the measurements, the due date is November 17 and I predicted November 15, so that’s good.
• I got sick shortly after the ultrasound and had some symptoms with the pregnancy that were a bit nerve racking. But I know the Lord has said everything will be ok. It was the battle of trusting Him before I know medically what is going on. This is a different level of trust for me. It’s easy to say I’m trusting when I can find out what the issue is. It’s hard to trust when I have to be in the dark for awhile until I can know the details of what is happening with the baby and my body
• The Lockes have issues with the locks on our doors! The locks are such that when you shut the door, you need a key to get back in! A couple weeks ago, all the Lockes but Asher Locke were locked out! Asher couldn’t figure out why we were all staring through the windows at him! Fortunately (or unfortunately) it is fairly easy to pick the lock when it isn’t triple locked (which we do at night). We are learning to grab the key EVERY time we go out the door!
• We are loving our role as hospitality host/hostess when we hear all the amazing things the Lord is doing in people even in a short period of time here. Being face to face with the orphans, the poor, the desperately ill, the poverty and the Presence of God in it all does something to every person that comes. I wish I could relay all the stories we get to hear of how God has worked in the lives of those we host. They tell us with tears in their eyes of the person they prayed for in the village or the stretching experience when they saw Jesus in the poor or the heartbreaking moments of holding a toddler that rarely gets one on one attention, or the way the Holy Spirit has led them to Scriptures at the right moment, or how the Lord has allowed circumstances to break down Western ideas and comforts (losing luggage, no running water at the base for days, sleeping on sketchy mattresses, having personal items stolen, eating an overload of rice and beans!, riding for 9 ½ hours in the back of a flat bed truck, etc). And the craziest part is that we feel like we’ve known many of them for years! The fellowship of the Spirit is real and amazing! These people are part of our lives for 2, sometimes 3 weeks, but we feel like we’ll never forget them and we are bonded for eternity (because we are!!). Our love for the Body of Christ is growing by leaps and bounds! I wish you could all experience this with us. New Zealanders, Americans, Europeans, Koreans, Australians, South Americans, Africans . . . we are experiencing the NATIONS! What an unbelievable honor! The truths of Ephesians are coming alive.
• Judah turned 5 last weekend!! We had a private party on a BEAUTIFUL beach! We bought beef, barbequed, had delicious chocolate cake (I discovered how to make YUMMY choc. Cake here!), and lots of fun in the sand and water. He said it was his best birthday ever! (Good thing he only has one or two to compare it to!)
• Abiel met her first friend here! Just about when she thought she was going to die of loneliness, a couple came for only 4 days bringing their children. Eliana was 7 and they were inseperable for the entire 4 days! Eli was a God send for many reasons. If our baby is a girl (which I think it may be) her name will be Elianna meaning “God has answered me!” Eli came the day after I started having some questionable symptoms with the pregnancy. As I talked to Eli’s mom, she shared that she experienced the SAME symptoms with her pregnancy with her Eliana!! The Lord was giving me a tangible picture of TRUSTING HIM and confirmation that He answers me through many avenues! I do not take this meeting as a chance encounter or the timing of it to be happenstance. I know the Lord was answering!
• Now that the mission school is underway, there are other little girls Abiel’s age. But since she played so hard with Eli, she has been feeling under the weather for almost a week. Hopefully today we will go meet her new friends! I am so excited for her.


Thanks for all your prayers, emails, support and love. We are more thankful for you than we are able to communicate.

Colossians 1:9-14 have been the verses we are camped on this past week! May you also be strengthened with power so you will have all the patience and endurance you need for every crazy moment in your life!

Blessings from Africa,
Emie for the Lockes


Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Your Replies

Thanks to all those who leave responses to our Blog updates. I just want to tell you that we are UNABLE to reply to them. Know that we love and read them and are thankful.


AFTER MY LAST UPDATE I WAS REMINDED OF THE VIDEO WE HAVE LINKED ON THIS BLOG BY SARAH M. "WORLD ON FIRE"
IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED IT PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO REMEMBER WHY WE ARE HERE AND HOW MUCH DIFFERENCE WE REALLY CAN MAKE.

BLESSINGS
HEATH

Die until you Laugh

Die until you laugh!

Our little man, Asher loves Africa life, he especially loves African lizards (notice his hand in the picture). He is constantly asking to hold one. He wants me to roam our “vast” yard and find a helpless little lizard and catch him. So over the past days we have done just that.
Today he asked again, so we went hunting. After a few short minutes we caught one. I always have to tell him to be gentle with the little guy, who measures smaller than his little pinky finger.
Well about an hour later the lizard had met his maker, Asher had accidentally squeezed him to death. I told him “the lizard is dead, you killed him, Asher” Then it dawned on me; he has no concept of death. He has never had to deal with it. His innocence and his world have never been introduced to death. So he kept playing with it believing it was only asleep. It was hard not to laugh!

Then the Holy Spirit fell on me with the revelation that Adam and Eve had no concept of what death was either. To them it was all just words. What is death? Why wouldn’t Adam and Eve sin when death had no context? Maybe they didn’t fear death because life was all they knew. Many believe they are alive when they actually live from a place of death. The Israelites thought they were alive when the whole nation was a valley of dry bones.

In the beginning the enemy told us we wouldn’t die. It was a lie that contrasted life we were experiencing. He has come only to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus brought life back to us and the enemy changed his tactic, “You’re not really alive!” All he wants is for us to either remain dead or to believe we are not really alive. For those who are alive in Christ, the first doesn’t apply and the latter is a joke.

I wonder if Cain and Abel could grasp what Life was. Did they understand that behind the Angel with the flaming sword, Life once inhabited The Garden?

In Matthew 10 Jesus gives us one of the most amazing insights for those who are alive. We don’t have to worry about money, clothes, shoes, sticks (for walking), luggage, speaking in front of governors and Kings or that our family may hate us. These things dwell in a world of death; so, it is a good thing we are seated in the Heavenly realms. We also “don’t worry about those who want to kill us. They can only kill our body; they cannot touch our soul.” Jesus never worried about death, he had come to do away with it.

If we have nothing to worry about, then we can spend our time, “healing the sick, raising the dead, curing those with leprosy and casting out demons. We can focus on being a Bride that has a context of being raised with Christ and no longer one of death. We are more alive than the enemy wants us to believe. Adam and Eve were alive in their nakedness and they felt no shame. We being “clothed in Christ” should LIVE and not feel shame for doing so.

I feel sad that I will one day have to explain to Asher what death really means. My only prayer is that it moves him to realize what LIFE Jesus has offered.

Jesus knows that death has been conquered. This is why everyone he raised from the dead, he spoke of as actually only sleeping and everyone laughed. Jesus lived from a place of Life and they from one of death. Hebrews 2:14-15 “Because God’s children are human beings – made of flesh and blood – Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the Devil, who HAD the power of death. Only in this way could he deliver those who have lived all their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.” Hallelujah!

The enemy preys upon our confidence and when he breaks us we become another crown for him (Lifehouse).

So I tell you Bride of Christ, arise and be ALIVE. Be free as Son and Daughters are called to be. Live out the passion Holy Spirit is burning in you, live in abundance, live in faith, live in hope and expectation. You will NEVER die again! You will NEVER die again! YOU WILL NEVER DIE AGAIN! YOU WILL NEVER DIE AGAIN! Never go back, it’s a BIG FAT JOKE!
So, LAUGH, LAUGH until it hurts, LAUGH until you cry, LAUGH until you see Jesus laughing on the floor with you! Laugh!

O’ death where is your victory?
O’ grave where is your sting?

Heath