Some fun happenings...

Robert and I have taken to being outside more and more as the days are getting cooler. As we were running the other day around camp, we noticed some mushrooms around a stump and so of course we had to investigate! As we inspected closer, we strangely found two gnomes chilling among the mushrooms as well! The tree beside this stump was gorgeous, not sure what kind it is, but it sure is beautiful! We went running, took pictures, went squirrel hunting, and then came back for a relaxing day.

Robert went hunting again that evening. He killed his first squirrel and he is pictured with his 20 gauge shotgun. He fried the little rodent the next day for lunch.

We are loving our house so much! I am hoping to get pictures up soon(ish) as we get my piano. I am so excited to get my piano to Serenity!!!! I have missed playing SO much...and am looking forward to being able to play again. :)

We also went to a wedding last weekend to see two of our good friends. Austin, the groom, is the son of Peter, the officiator of our wedding. It was special to get to share that memory with Austin and Leah. They had a fall themed wedding, and it was beautiful!! Such a fun time with friends and adopted family. :) Ben and Ruth are close friends of ours and it was fun to hang out with them and we also stayed with them that weekend. It was weird, this was the first weekend we've had in Joplin together since getting married. So we spent the time meeting up with friends and it was really great.

The Greens and Halbachs (Robert lived with them before our wedding).

 My wonderful husband and I!

Ben and Ruth with us...LOVE these two!

So Ben and Austin are cousins. So this is the four of us with the happy couple! 

Serenity

So I've not posted lately, but a quick update on life...it's been busy and crazy, but we are doing super well and God has continued to bless us and show us new things each day.

    We named our house Serenity, and so far, it has totally held up to it's name. :) We love our house and have enjoyed getting to make it our own and feel "at home" when we are here. We have been getting ready for Fall and invested in three mums that took up residence at the front door.  

         

Our Harvest Gnomes; Robert and I saw these and instantly fell in love with them. We are pretty quirky people and so these totally fit with Serenity. haha...our neighbors tell us frequently, "So your gnomes...they're creepy!"

      After living by our door for about a month, we decided they needed to be planted and also decided to do some landscaping out in our front yard. This is the result, and I LOVE it!!

    So since I last posted, we have finished up an awesome summer with DM, gone to Colorado with Discovery Ministries on a scouting trip, gone to Iowa on a support raising trip and to visit family, I started working part-time doing in-home care for a neighbor and part-time with DM as a staff trainee, Robert has been working full-time at the ministry and we have reached around 81% in regular support, and celebrated 6 months of marriage! So much in a short time! We have loved it, and while it's been challenging support raising, God has continued to prove Himself faithful and a true provider. 

One of my gardenias decided to bloom. The house smells beautiful!

I am drinking Chai. :D

    God has been very good to us in our first six months of marriage and we really do enjoy being married and getting to spend time together. We have enjoyed watching some TV shows such as Person of Interest, Psych, Firefly, M*A*S*H, and the occasional Jane Austen (yep, he enjoys them!), playing a video game together, reading the LOTR: Two Towers, playing catch with our baseball caps on, weeding/working in our flower beds, playing games (our lastest obsessions are Munchkin and Rummikub) and cooking together as well as spending time with our friends. God has continued to bless us with working at DM; we love it so much! Even when it is frustrating, we are growing and seeing God moving in this side of the kingdom. 

      I am learning InDesign for our newsletter as that is the primary focus for me this fall as well as programming when available and working on little projects in the office. I have been reading the book and watching some videos on youtube about InDesign and am getting slightly obsessed with it's awesomeness. :) 

  

    Until next time, may God grant you grace and peace this day!

Adventures in Colorado!

       So we went with Discovery Ministries to Colorado on a scouting trip for leading wilderness trips out there with another ministry. It was an awesome trip and we got to do some incredible things!

We went rock climbing one day and that was a blast! Plus I got to see Pike's Peak from a distance!

Hello Pike's Peak!

Here are some shots of us climbing! Beautiful rock!    

     As we were driving around looking at Rock climbing areas, we also checked out 11 Mile Canyon, but didn't have time to climb. I also enjoyed taking pictures of the interesting flora and fauna! :) The first picture is Indian Paintbrush.We spent a whole day rock climbing and being shown some of the beautiful country. Colorado is gorgeous! we backpacked two days in Lost Creek Wilderness and that was a breath taking adventure! We hiked 17-18 miles in two days with 4 kids 10 years old and under! It was so much fun though!

So this is us right before heading out for a two day backpacking trip covering about 18 miles!

This is one of my absolute favorite shots! Panoramic!

     Robert and I at a beautiful overlook. You could see for miles up the canyon. So Robert's backpack was his dad's that he got when he lived in Alaska. Robert has used it and really likes it. So fun fact: those shorts I am wearing I've had since I was like a sophomore in highschool; they ripped on the trip. Thankfully I had a pair of jeans!

Me and my best friend!

   On the last day in Colorado, we were there a week, we went to Cottonwood Pass. We were going to go picnic at Cottonwood Lake, but due to the cold weather, rain, and the long hike, the kiddos weren't up for it. So we drove up to the pass. The picture of Rob and I was taken about an hour before the next. Storms roll in quick!

So this was at Cottonwood Pass at 12,126 ft! Incredible!
It reminded me of Scotland!

      These are some other pictures from our trip. Good friend Leah and I, some pictures from Bueno Vista, CO, the bike race that we watched in the pouring rain, Jake getting his arm patched, and a fairytale mushroom. This trip was super awesome and I am excited to see what God has in store for the ministry next! It was super good to get back home though after a week of high altitudes and adventure!

This was the highest Robert and I had been on land!

Happy Day!

So exciting to see some of our first wedding pictures. This one is already a favorite. Alathea Photography (http://tabbyodle.zenfolio.com/) did our photos. They were a blast and did such a great job! 

Married, Moved, and Ministry

April 2014

Dear Friends and Family,

     Greetings from Eminence, MO! We are finally here at Discovery Ministries! After our wedding on April 5th and honeymoon in Ponca, AR, we are settling in at our house! This has been a long awaited move and we are excited to finally have some roots and a place to call home.
     Robert began work on the 21st and has enjoyed getting to work and also be in a place he loves. He's adjusting well and is excited to learn more at his job as office manager. He's been encouraged with the staff's love and excitement as they've been anticipating him coming. So far he’s been doing the day-t-day tasks in the office, from answering phones to processing donations and deposits for programming. The ministry has some work for me (Emma), part-time, the first week of May cleaning and prepping the camp for summer. May 18th is the kick-off day of staff training for the internship. I am very excited to join the ministry again this summer, disciple and teach others about Christ and how to meet God on new levels as they are challenged in their faith. It is crazy and exciting that I am back at DM for the summer. I didn’t think I would be here again last summer, even though I definitely hoped and prayed I would be. I think it’s amazing that God knows the plans for us before we can even fathom them coming into existence!

    We love our house and are settling in and love that it feels like our own place. Our house is beautiful, very relaxing and comfortable. It has two bedrooms (master and guestroom), a bathroom, a big living room, a nice sized kitchen and dining area combined, a small screened in porch in front, and a deck on the back. We don’t really know what style to classify our house; it’s just very us: slightly old fashioned, colorful, and fun. In the evenings, we often weed the flower beds and have enjoyed discovering new plants and doing this together. We both find it relaxing after a busy day and enjoy burning the weeds and leaves together right at dark.
  We are also in the process of visiting churches to find a church home and see where God is opening doors for us to become part of the community.
    
    While we are not fully funded, we are excited to say we are getting there! We have raised 38.8% of the regular pledged support we need to raise!! We are thankful for each of you that God has led to partner with us in prayers and in financial support. Support raising has been hard and long for us; often discouraging, but God has been faithful and keeps reminding us that his timing is perfect. God is working in the lives of the staff and preparing the hearts of the interns and campers that are going to be coming this summer. We, along with the Discovery Ministries, believe God has great plans in store for the ministry this summer and year and we are expecting Him to do wonderful and great things. We already anticipate telling you about them!
     We would love to have you visit the ministry and our house if you can, so please don’t hesitate to call (319) 391-3555 or email us, rehalbach@gmail.com, if you have any questions, want to visit or anything! We will be praying for you and ask God to bless your life and those in your families.

            Praying with Expectancy,

        Robert and Emma Halbach

·         Pray for us as we learn and grow together as a couple.

·         Pray that God will continue to reveal his plan and will for us at the 
   ministry and in the Eminence community.

·         Pray for the interns that are preparing to join the ministry this 
   summer.

·         Pray that Discovery Ministries will walk in the Spirit and disciple 
   campers this summer to know God deeper and to be challenged to grow.

New Beginnings!

Crazy how last year I had very few posts...I had a crazy summer and a jam packed semester! My apologies to my friends that I dropped off the grid. I hope to do more posting this year however.

So snap shot into this past year...I worked all summer at Discovery Ministries (godm.org CHECK IT OUT!!!) and fell in love with this ministry. It is a recreational outdoors ministry and camp ground that focuses on families, and 5th grade through adulthood. My first day in staff training was learning how to tie knots for rappelling and rock climbing. SUPER uncomfortable as I had never done either. BUT...I fell completely in love with the recreational activities such as rock climbing, caving, rappelling, canoeing, group initiatives, orienteering, etc. in just days of learning. I became a Wilderness Instructor Intern this summer and taught the campers we had come along with the fantastic staff at DM (affectionately Discovery Ministries). God taught me so much at this ministry; it was challenging and the most wonderful place I've ever been.

  While at DM on July 19th, my boyfriend Robert, proposed to me!!!!!! We're getting married April 5! Super close! :) He surprised me because I didn't know when it would be happening. He had a couple, Jo and Jeremy, lure me out to a place called Chalk Bluff that overlooks the Jacks Fork river and there he had set up two camp chairs on a blanket, with a candle and sparkling cider. I was told it was a surprise date for Jo. :) As we were looking at the river, with a light rain sprinkling, I heard a guitar, turned and saw Robert walking down singing "I'd Rather Be with You" by Josh Radin. He sang and played, wonderfully...I LOVE listening to him sing...and then he knelt and asked me to marry him. :) It was PERFECT! So incredibly blessed by my Father with a man that loves Him more than me and that is a good man that reminds and shows me more of God every day.

  Flash forward a couple weeks...Robert left for Grass Valley, CA for four months to work at Christian Encounter Ministries (christianencounter.org) as an intern. The ministry is for at risk teens and college age that are needing to refocus and work through life. It is an incredible ministry that Robert has fallen in love with. They work outdoors around the ranch, go to school on site, and have mentors and counselors available. It is a gorgeous location and the people there are amazing. A lot of good and kingdom work is done through the ranch and I'm excited that Robert got to be part of it! He went on a 14 day back packing trip in the Seirras...seriously, who wouldn't enjoy God's creation??? :)

   Then........... while Robert was in Cali and I was  in Missouri at school, Discovery Ministries contacted Robert about coming on staff as the Office Manager full-time, indefinitely. DREAM come true and ANSWER to prayer!! Robert had told me when we first met that he wanted to work at DM full time and after I had worked there this summer, I wanted to go back desperately. We talked and talked and prayed so much and have continued to do so, but we knew soon after praying that this was where God was leading us. So we told DM yes and thus began our journey of support raising as we are required to raise half of our salary. God has begun blessing our efforts and this has been a new adventure of trusting God and that he is truly leading as it's hard and long with support raising. Robert starts April 20, and I start May 19 as a second year intern. We are beyond excited and looking forward to being back at DM and with the people and community we love.

   Also, I finished up college!! WOOT woot! My last semester was stressful but super great! It's weird to be done but good. :)

 Now we are still support raising and wedding planning and working. It's crazy...but such a good time. Currently, we are at 18% funded for DM! We are trusting that God is wanting us here and if so, he will make it happen. :) We are also doing pre-marital counseling which has provided some extra time with a close friend and officiant of our wedding and also time for Rob and I to step back and focus on different areas within our relationship. We love figuring out life and what it looks like together and are extremely thankful that God is ever with us.

 Please pray for us as we continue to support raise and follow what God is has put on our hearts! Until next time, may God grant you grace and peace!

Jesus Affirms His Deity—John 10:22-39

  This is a blog I wrote for my church for an up coming Sunday. I had Megan, the Women's Minister and who I work for, check it out and critique it for me and then I made some changes. Then I thought to go ahead and post it here as some food for thought. :)

     

   During the Feast of Dedication, which was observed during the winter, Jesus was in the temple and the Jews asked Jesus to tell them if he was the Christ. Jesus has already tried doing this by healings, miracles, and sermons, which had been met with skepticism, accusation and unbelief from the Jews. The Jews mentioned here are most likely the Jewish Leaders, Pharisees. Imagine trying over and over to prove to someone that you are who you say you are, but the person keeps saying, “Nope, your actions are not good enough. Tell me again who you are.” Jesus explains that his sheep, meaning believers, know his voice and follow Him and they know his identity. Jesus protects his sheep. This is linked back to the first section of this chapter where Jesus describes himself as the “Good Shepherd” (John 10:1-21). Jesus has an identity, as God’s Son, and his sheep know that and understand his identity as God’s Son and that he and God are one. 

   Because Jesus said that he was God’s Son and that he and God were one, the Jews wanted to kill him because he was speaking blasphemy (slander, denigration) by saying he was “God”. Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6, which called the Israelites “gods” and they received the word from the Father, and asked why they were accusing him of blaspheming as he was blessed and sent from God. The Jews were correct in not believing him if his works are not God’s; however, if he does works of the Father, Jesus encourages them to believe the miracles even though they do not believe him. By doing this, the Jews will know and understand that the Father and Jesus are the same. 

What is the Message about God? 

   The message of God is stunning. He will never allow someone to take you from his hand. Jesus and the Father are one. God will never let us…never let me, go. Because Jesus was sent from God, he ended up telling the Jews to believe his works because they were God’s, even if they did not believe Jesus himself. Satan wants to steal a hope we have that God cares and loves us. In chapter 10, Jesus calls himself the Shepherd and Satan the thief that wants to kill and steal the sheep. Satan wants to take us out of God’s hand, yet Jesus says because the sheep hear his voice and follow and he knows them, Jesus gives them eternal life and says no one will take them from his hand or the Father’s hand! We are in Him, and Satan cannot take us from his hand! 

What is the Message about Me? 

  The message about me is to the point; do I have faith and believe that Jesus is God’s Son and that he and the Father are one? “Never perish or taken out of his hand” what thought provoking words. The Good Shepherd and God’s Son, Jesus has me in his hand and because he and God are one, God also has me in his hand and He will never let anyone take us from his hand. Sheep are known as being “dumb animals” but really they pose as such wonderful examples. A sheep really does know his master’s voice. A sheep will run away at the sight and sound of anyone other than his master, he will not follow anyone else and when a ewe or ram is missing from the flock, the shepherd will go searching for it. Sheep trust their Shepherd. Am I sheep or like the Jews, just waiting to find out who Jesus really is? Do I hear the shepherd’s voice? Do I trust and follow him, like sheep would follow his shepherd? 

What is the Message about our World? 

   There are so many around us on a daily basis that do not know or hear the Shepherd’s voice. Some of them are waiting for a huge revelation that Jesus was God’s son and all he said he was, and still are lost or confused in unbelief. Others have stopped listening and following Jesus as life and priorities or circumstances pull us from Jesus and we want to be in control. Others are waiting for more proof to counter their disbelief. Others are striving to follow Christ and listen. The message to the world that needs to be communicated is that Jesus is real and that in a world that does not make sense, his voice is one that can be trusted, believed, and counted on. Jesus offers eternal life and a promise that no one will take us from his very own palm because he loves and cares for us and we are his sheep. A flock wants a shepherd. Without a shepherd, the sheep get into crevices, thorns, and wire, predators attack, they drink bad water or plants, they will die without the loving care and attention of a Shepherd. The world, like the flock, want a shepherd. Ask God today to speak to you, and then listen to his voice.

May the Lord richly bless you and keep you.