CAM Interns 2009

For the past 3 summers, Brad and I have worked with CAM International's summer internship program, where college kids from around the US go to our fields to serve alongside of our missionaries and nationals for 6 weeks. This summer the interns were in either: Honduras, Guatemala, Spain, or Uruguay!

The Emerge program this summer was conducted excellently by the Mobilization team at CAM and Karin Rountree gets some incredible props for the success of the summer.

Tuesday to Thursday (today) the interns gathered together in Dallas to debrief their summer and prepare for returning home to see family and friends.

CAMU teammate, Kendra Cervantes, helped compile this video of the summer events. It's about 8 minutes, but has some cool shots of what our interns were involved in. Check it out below.




Are you interested in doing a summer internship? Let us know...we'd love for you to come join US in Uruguay next summer (or another country you'd love to serve in!)

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Partner Profile: Joe and Laura Rule

Joe and Laura are extraordinary people. Let me explain. From the first time we met them we've known that they are caring, encouraging, and welcoming people. I guess you could say, we just clicked. They are a young couple, we are too. Lindsey and Laura grew up in the same church.

While meeting them, they shared about their involvement in many different areas of ministry even as a newly married couple. They've helped to build homes as volunteers for Habitat for Humanity on weekends when not at work. They serve at their church helping to lead the missions efforts locally and globally.

They welcomed us into their Sunday School class to share about our ministry. We enjoyed getting to know everyone there, learning how they are already involved in missions, and sharing even more ways they could get involved.

While meeting with them the first time, Joe zeroed in on one of the biggest struggles missionaries face in preparing to leave for the mission field...how to provide for yourself while raising support to leave for the field. Most missionaries face the dilemma: do I continue to work full-time which will provide for my family and delay our departure by reducing the amount of time to focus on support raising or do I work part-time or resign altogether which reduces the amount of money to live on but also potentially reduces the time required to raise support by enabling you to focus on it full-time. Thanks Joe and Laura for helping us in our pre-field journey so that we can continue stay focused full-time on support raising/partnership development and get to the field sooner.

People like Joe and Laura humble us. We don't deserve their support and encouragement. But it is evident that Christ worked in their hearts to have a passion for what Christ is doing in and through Lindsey and I. Joe and Laura's commitment to us through their friendship, prayers, support, willingness to help us connect to their church, and leadership in many other areas encourages us and motivates us to continue serving faithfully as God uses us both in the United States and abroad once we arrive in Uruguay.

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New Podcast: May in Review by Brad and Lindsey Bridges

May in Review - by Brad and Lindsey Bridges

bradandlindsey's Podcast

Take a couple minutes to enjoy our most recent podcast where Lindsey interviews Brad about our activities, blessings, and more in the month of May.

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CIT: We've Arrived

We've made it to CIT (Center for Intercultural Training). All our things are settled in an apartment on campus, where we will be doing pre-field training this summer. Here's a picture of the patio where four different apartments face. Our door is upstairs...the first one on your right.



There are several different missions organizations represented here and all different countries represented as well! It has been awesome to interact with them already, and we know that we are all going to learn alot from one another in the upcoming weeks.

Our first module is "Equipping for Cross-cultural Life and Ministry" which should be very practical and get us ready for what we should expect and plan on when we make the move.

I'm not going to lie, it's going to be nice to be in one location here in Union Mills, NC, for a bit...and have our own little place for a while; however, we are still working hard at getting our support in, so that we can reach 100% as soon as possible. (As soon as all our pledges/support is in and CIT is complete....we can leave for Uruguay and begin our ministry there.)

Keep checking in here for more posts about CIT and what we are learning!


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Panoramic View of the Grand Canyon

What a way to spend our day off? This past Monday we had a chance to enjoy one of the most remarkable views we've ever seen. Take a minute and enjoy the panoramic video we created of the Grand Canyon.

I was reminded of how thankful I should be for God's creation of the earth as well as all that is in it. As Lindsey and I continue to see God use us to build our team of monthly financial partners, we are encouraged that the same God who created the Grand Canyon also walks with us daily as we serve Him.



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Noah's 1st Birthday - February 13, 2009

Recently Lindsey and I had the chance to not only have lunch with Shannon Barber, her son Noah, and her family, but we also privileged to take part in something special.

Noah invited us to his 1st birthday party (well, maybe it was his mom). Noah's mom Shannon went to high school at TCA with Lindsey. Enjoy a short and fun video of Noah's first birthday party.



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A Loyal Servant: Dr. Harold Hoehner

Dr. Harold Hoehner passed away this morning. So hard to see someone like him go. But we can rejoice that he is now with his Savior.

Dr. Hoehner was a renowned expert in many areas but his immensely resourceful work on the book of Ephesians will impact many for generations to come. Dr. Hoehner also left a legacy on the lives of his students who are spread out all over the world and continue to carry the message he imparted to them during their seminary days.

At Dallas Theological Seminary (http://www.dts.edu) I had the privilege of taking Dr. Hoehner's class on the book of Romans. It was an intensive class that met during the month of May almost every day for a few weeks. Dr. Hoehner exhibited grace, love, wisdom, and above all a passion for the Lord, his family, and his students.

At Grace Bible Church (http://www.gracebiblechurch.org) Dr. Hoehner was a man that demonstrated love and kindness to everyone that was around him. I say this jokingly, but the one notable exception was during ordination exams that he helped with at Grace. Dr. Hoehner demonstrated his passion for training Godly leaders at the seminary and at Grace Bible Church by asking difficult questions during ordination exams in order to ensure that if Grace Bible Church was going to approve someone for pastoral ministry that they really made sure they were prepared.

About a week ago, Lindsey and I ran into Dr. Hoehner and his wife at Fuddruckers where we talked for about 5-10 minutes. He seemed to be doing fine and I think he was. Little did we know that the Lord was going to take him home to heaven today, February 12, 2009.

Thank you Dr. Hoehner for your impact on my life, the countless other lives you impacted, your passion for serving your wife, family, and church, and most of all for the example you leave behind for the rest of us to follow as you devoted your life to Jesus Christ and making Him known.

Read Dallas Theological Seminary's tribute to Dr. Harold Hoehner by clicking here.

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The Eberline's Third Week in Montevideo

Our team leaders for Uruguay have now been in the country for 3 weeks! Here is a note from them to get a taste of what their experience has been like so far. . .ENJOY!

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It has been an INCREDIBLE week . . . what a ride ! !! !!!

We have shopped for HOURS looking at furniture and appliances. We searched for the best prices and purchased scratched and dented furniture since it was so much cheaper. We have bought everything on sale. When you pay with cash here we get at least a 10% discount! Yesterday had to get lots of money out of the bank. Yes, it made us nervous to be carrying cash around that day in Jim’s little “safety pouch” he wears on his belt & tucks inside his jeans!

On Tuesday & Wednesday we had the thrill of going across the river to Buenos Aires to see our kids and grandkids!!! What a JOY!!! It is truly a gift from GOD to be able to live so close (relatively speaking). The trip took us 4 hours…2 hour bus ride, transfer time, and 1 hour boat ride! Once we got off the boat we walked about 3 miles to meet them at a specified spot. Have any of you figured out yet that Jim LIKES to walk?!

In preparation for our journey we thought we needed some snacks. On the way home from furniture shopping on Monday evening we stopped in a small grocery store. Jim has eaten mixed nuts for YEARS as we travel so I thought we should buy two bags of peeled walnuts….he did not like the idea but never said why (and they DID cost $4 dollars a SMALL bag). He also bought some peanuts! When I opened one bag of walnuts during the transfer between bus and boat, Jim politely commented, “I don’t care for walnuts!” It reminded me of back 23 years ago in 1982 in Honduras. That was the last time Jim ever told me he did not like something to eat. Back then Jim shared with me he did not care for cantaloupe juice!!! We laughed and I ate the walnuts!

On the boat ride home there was a storm coming in from the southeast Atlantic Ocean and so the bay was really ROUGH!!! Everyone of the 75 or so passengers filled their vomit vouches (puke pouches, barf bags, whatever) EXCEPT Jim and a teenage girl who were laughing together. On the bus ride after the horrible boat ride, they carried on a good conversation. We hope to meet this young lady’s family tomorrow at a concert where she will be singing.

Thursday found us walking all day in the sprinkling rain to do government paper work. In the “Registro Civil” building Jim went to 9 different windows in the 45 minutes we were in their offices. He has been so KIND and to let me sit whenever possible. Oh, by the way…. I used that same “historic” restroom again! Before leaving the “Registro Civil” building we were instructed to walk “ONLY” another 6 blocks to the Interior Affairs office. A very helpful lady in the Interior Affairs office corrected us and sent us “just around the corner” (yeah, right) another 6 blocks to the Immigration. After a lengthy visit, we were given an appointment for Feb 19th for an interview to begin our residency process. HOWEVER, ….before that date we have to gather and compile about 12 different documents, including a doctor’s certificate of our health!!!!

We have been able to talk to our daughter Judi and granddaughter Hayden on Skype quite often---even with the 6 hour time difference. The MOST fun part is when Hayden kisses us by opening her mouth and kissing the camera on Judi’s laptop!!! Jim sings to Hayden and we get to even watch her playing in the living room while Judi and I talk! It is another gift from GOD!

TODAY we signed the contract for one year for the apartment on the Rambla….”our target area.” We met the landlady, a young woman who has moved back to Paraguay with her husband and two children. We are so thankful for the Youngs, missionaries here with Baptist General Conference, who co-signed for us (they own a home here in Montevideo). And our realtor was so helpful. He wants to meet with Jim again next week in order to just talk!!!

After the formal hour and one half signing process, we took Dick and Bev Young to see the apartment and pray. While checking out the apartment Cheryl thought she was going to have a heart attack. Yesterday we purchased a refrigerator which is 1 meter and 70 cm tall. In attempting to measure in the dark, she measured the spot for the refrigerator as only 1 meter and 7 cm. After calling the appliance store, she realized she made a mistake….the spot was 170 cm not 107 cm!!! (Ddaaaaa!).

To show our appreciation to the Youngs, we took them to lunch in a large mall (“Shopping”) just up the hill from our new apartment. While in the mall, we made extra house keys, made photocopies of the contract and changed the telephone line to Jim’s name.

Rather than walking, we took a bus (and then walked some more) to sign contracts to have the Internet and Cable TV connected to the apartment. By the time we had finished talking with the young man who helped us, I got the giggles and had a hard time stopping (I was so tired yet happy)!

We still have to change the contracts for gas, water, electricity, etc as well as gather those documents (and see a doctor) for our residency! But we are definitely feeling more at home here!

We are eager to move into our apartment but will wait until it is livable!!! On Monday with the help of a Biblical Ministries Worldwide family, we hope to haul our various suitcases out of storage and up to the apartment.



On Tuesday we will be receiving a new CAM family (the Parkers...Bill, Linda, and Matthew) at the airport at 5AM and helping them get settled in their home at an SIM camp just outside Montevideo. On Wednesday our furniture and appliances are to be delivered.

We thank God for you all often. We could not be here reaching out to people without you! THANK YOU!!!

Cheryl and Jim



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LAUNCH and LANDING in Uruguay

On Tuesday night our team leaders Jim and Cheryl Eberline entered American Airlines flight #989 from Miami, Fl to Montevideo, Uruguay. On Wednesday morning they arrived at 7:12am Central Time safe and sound into Uruguay.

This means that our team going to Uruguay has officially LAUNCHED and LANDED. We are very excited to see things happening and be a part of such an historic team. For the first time in CAM International's history we have long-term missionaries in Uruguay. In two weeks we will have another family there. Hopefully soon after Lindsey and I along with Kendra Cervantes and Rebecca Zurbrick will be there.

Enjoy the video we made for Jim and Cheryl to launch them out to Uruguay and encourage them.

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Virginia and DC

For a couple weeks in December, we were able to spend some good time in the Virginia/DC area. Some of our friends from DTS and CAM -- Aaron and Carrie Kraft -- hosted us for a week, as we had opportunities to speak to different pastors, ministries, individuals, and also share about our ministry.



Brad had the chance to preach at Aaron's church twice and we really enjoyed getting to know their congregation and new town.

It was Lindsey's first time in the DC area, so Aaron gave us a drive by tour (it was really chilly and overcast...so Lindsey was perfectly content seeing it all by car.) We did jump out for a couple pictures outside though.



The Krafts were fantastic hosts and really went out of their way to set up opportunities for us to meet with other pastors, ministries, and individuals who wanted to learn more about missions and misisons in Spain/Uruguay. It was a fruitful week and we really enjoyed the area.

For lots more pictures of our time in DC/VA, click here.


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Partner Profile - Aaron and Carrie Kraft

Did you know that one of the best ways to partner with Lindsey and I is to connect us with other people?

I'd like to introduce you to Aaron and Carrie Kraft (and their two little children Jonathan and Jackie [recently adopted from Guatemala, check out the video]). This past week, Aaron and Carrie connected us to all sorts of people from pastors, to Uruguayans who could teach us about Uruguay, to friends of theirs who wanted to learn more about missions.

Another way that they have partnered with us is to allow us to stay in their home and use it as our home base for when we are in Washington, D.C. They held a dessert night at their house one night for us to share about our ministry with the church they are serving in. We also got to know many of their close friends from that area and were encouraged by all of their questions, advice, and prayers.

Aaron and Carrie also welcomed Brad to preach during both of the church services at their church. Not only did this give us an opportunity to meet another church but also gave us an opportunity to serve the congregation. It is so helpful for churches to get to know real-life missionaries :) like ourselves and begin to connect what they read about in the bible with what God is doing in and through people around the world.

We are so lucky to know this couple and deepen our friendship with them. At DTS in Dallas, TX Aaron and I were able to encourage and counsel one another as we not only were classmates at DTS but also served in full-time ministry at CAM International together for the past few years.

If you get a chance, pray for Aaron and Carrie as they serve faithfully in DC. Also if you get a piece of mail with our Year End Letter for 2008 highlighting YOUR IMPACT, thank God for people like the Krafts who spent lots of time helping Lindsey and I to send the mailing out!

Thanks Aaron and Carrie for the impact you are making on so many people (including us!).

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Roommates!

During our time in DC, we both had the opportunity to reconnect with our college roommates. It was a blast to see them again and have a bit of time to catch up!

Gen was Lindsey's roomate for all the 3 semesters she was at Trinity University. Gen was also a bridesmaid at our wedding.




Galdo was Brad's roommate at Davidson. He was who Brad was living with when we first met at Davidson. Now he is working in DC and will be getting married next year to another Davidson Wildcat -- Anne! Too bad the day we met up was the day that Davidson lost horribly to Purdue... :(




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When in Rome...

Actually, we were not in Rome, Italy…but we were fortunately in Rome, Georgia. We just got done with a week long spiritual formation retreat for missionaries and pastors. It was a great opportunity to take a media fast, have some time to ourselves, and strengthen our walk with the Lord. Along with 3 other ministry couples, we had an opportunity to look at our spiritual walk, our relationship, our ministry, and see how the Lord was challenging us to draw closer to Him. We had the best hosts and cooks ever -- Eileen, Cilli, and Bill! They truly loved on us during the week and have the biggest servant hearts!

Here's a picture of the retreat center. It used to be an old dairy farm at Berry College, but it has now been turned into a retreat center with a quaint and comfortable feel to it.

The retreat was held on Berry College’s campus where there is a 12:1 deer to human ration. There were deer all over the place! It was awesome to walk around the mountain campus and see deer all over. You would walk outside your room at night or in the morning and see deer a few feet away. One night we went for a bike ride around dusk and they were everywhere – mama deer,baby deer, and we even saw a few bucks. It was pretty cool. We probably took way more pictures of deer than we needed to, but they were so pretty and neat. There was also a lot of other wildlife that we liked to photo!

The retreat center is kept up by Truett Cathy, who is the founder of Chik-Fil-A. For those of you who have never heard of Chik-Fil-A or eaten at Chik-Fil-A, it has to be the best place to get fast-food chicken and they have awesome waffle fries. Truett and his family are pretty awesome and great business men to model after. They give so much to the community and they are really out serving God through their profession and work.

For us, the week away in Rome was a great chance to get a break from partnership development and have some time together and to rest. We are thankful that we had the opportunity to grow during this time.

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UGA Dogs

My (Lindsey) two cousins are seniors at UGA in Athens, Georgia. We swung through Athens to see them. They are excellent tour guides and showed us around the campus in the "drive-by" tour.



After hanging out over some Chik-Fil-A and chatting, Lauren took us our to a farm where she takes care of the animals. They had some awesome animals for us to see. Among some of them were: camels, zebras, horses, donkeys, dogs, cats, rabbits, chickens, geese, peacocks, etc. It was pretty neat. We basically got a visit to the zoo!







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Birthday in Fairhope, AL

Happy Birthday Brad! We got a chance to celebrate Brad's birthday with Nate, Amy, and Emma Turner in Fairhope, AL. The Turners moved to Fairhope shortly after graduation from seminary to serve in a church here in Fairhope. It was awesome to see them again and see where they are living and serving now. Their church was cool and they serve with some neat people.

We got to eat some fresh seafood with them to celebrate (along with the cookie cake above that they surprised Brad with when we got into town! -- cookie cakes are his favorite!) Along with that we got to see a beautiful sunset at Gulf Shores.

We LOVED getting to see the Turners again and get a chance to get to know Emma and play with her as well!

Looking forward to seeing you again soon Amy and Nate!




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Viewing of Grandpa Beebe

Viewings are hard. Today we had the viewing of Grandpa Beebe in Fowler, IN. I couldn't help but hurt for Grandma Beebe, Lindsey's dad Walter, and his brother Kerry. I honestly can't imagine what it is like to attend the viewing of your father after he has passed away. Sadness. Frustration. Hope. Memories. All combined.

We were really encouraged by how much family came from all over the country to be at the viewing tonight and the funeral tomorrow. There was family from TX, MN, IL, and more that wanted to be here to support Grandma Beebe and the rest of the family (The picture you see here is of Lindsey at our hotel this morning sitting beside a window eating breakfast before leaving to join our family).

Lindsey and I really enjoyed getting to spend time with our family that we rarely get to see. They told us about how they go ice fishing, ride snow mobiles, and endure temperatures as low as negative sixty (yes that is -60 degrees F). Hard to believe huh?

On Monday we are going to celebrate the life of Grandpa Beebe and share the message of hope that we have in Jesus Christ that one day we will all not only join Grandpa Beebe in heaven but also be reunited with Jesus Christ.

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A Double Rainbow

Ever heard of a double rainbow? Me either until yesterday. While driving home with my friend John here in Chicago, he looked up and said "Brad, look, there's a double rainbow." I thought, "What is he talking about?." There it was, a double rainbow full of color and we could see the entire arch and we were able to get a picture of it.

If you look closely, you'll see just to the left of the main rainbown that the exact inverse of the colors in the main rainbow appears on the left.

Rainbows remind us of God's faithfulness to His people. The next time you see one, take a moment to reflect on the power and sovereignty of our God who creatively and wonderfully demonstrates His own attributes in His creation.

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Partner Profile - Shannon Barber

Imagine this...raising an infant boy, working a job, and still finding time to partner with us in ministry. Shannon Barber is.

After attending high school with Lindsey at Trinity Christian Academy in Addison, TX, Shannon and Lindsey have continued to stay in touch over the years. Shannon recently came over to visit us and let us hold her little (well, maybe not very little) baby boy.

She asked Lindsey if there was anything she could do to help us out like something administrative that she could do from home for example. We mentioned to Shannon that she could help us out big time by folding our brochures and paperclipping a prayer card to each one. Shannon literally spent hours doing hundreds and hundreds of these.

Then she told us that she was done in less than a couple weeks. This past week she brought them by and gave us a huge box full will everything done. We also got to hold her little son Noah.

If you'd like to partner with us in ministry by serving, praying, or giving, let us know by visiting our partner page.

Thanks Shannon for your service and your prayers. It means more than you know.

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Twitter

Some people have asked me what in the world Twitter is. Well, to be honest before August 27th I had no idea either. We were meeting with a couple who have decided to partner with us in ministry (see Partner Profile: Bill and Karyn Ward) and they couldn't believe that I had never heard of Twitter.

Some people refer to Twitter as microblogging and other people as status updates on steroids. Whichever way you want to refer to it doesn't matter.

What Twitter allows you to do is to maintain relationships across large or small distances with many people simultaneously by alerting them to your thoughts, activities, ideas, or plans. When you post a new 140 character (about 2 sentences) update, the people who are "following" you on Twitter receive an update either to their computer, cell phone, or other device that alerts them to your ideas, activities, or thoughts. You can also share links to interesting articles or other information on the web.

Interested in learning more? Check out Marc Pitman's article about Twitter and its benefits for those working in the non-profit sector. His comments are also quite instructive for anyone in my opinion. Enjoy.

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Grace Bible Church - Women's Retreat

This weekend our home church (Grace Bible Church) had their women's retreat. We went just north of Dallas to Allen, Texas, and had a great time of fellowship and fun.

On Saturday, Mary Howell spoke. She was AWESOME. Mary grew up in Spain serving with CAM International with her family (Gerry, Dina, and Paul Parkerson), so it was really neat to hear her perspective on growing up in Spain. Her journey with the Lord throughout life inspired us all and encouraged us in how we need to always follow Him.

Her 3 big take away points were:

1) God speaks beyond silence.
2) God's NO always opens a path for His YES.
3) God will never abandon us.

What a way to look at how the Lord is guiding our lives. How many times do I want MY yes to be God's yes? Why are we so disturbed by God's silence at points in our lives? Why do we feel like we are alone in this world when God is right beside us?

Thank you for your ministry to me this weekend Mary.
Thanks to the GBC ladies who were there to chat and learn from.

I feel so blessed to have such a great church body to worship with!!!

Globalization - Part I

Globalization impacts all of us.

Whether your shoes, your computer, your fruit, your car, or some other thing is made outside the US, or you watched the news and saw live coverage from other cities around the world, you are impacted by globalization.

Recently I've had the opportunity to interact with some scholars regarding the topic of globalization and the migration of people around the globe. This issue is not altogether new because people have traveled to other countries for centuries, but it is a bit different in that information and people can move quicker to other parts of the world than they ever could in the past.

Globalization impacts our ministry.

As we move towards Uruguay and then Spain, we must track trends. People are moving from everywhere to everywhere. Chinese, Moroccans, Uruguayans, Romanians, and others are moving to Spain. How should we approach ministry in an increasingly diverse mixture of people? Do we plant homogenous or heterogenous churches? Can we even speak with any degree of confidence about who Spaniards are and what makes them distinct amongst so much diversity?

As you can see I have many more questions than answers. They need to be asked. I'd like input of others and more research done in terms of how to answer them though.

What a joy it is going to be to see the current realities play out and the upcoming changes that we don't even realize are coming yet.

Incredible Iowa - Part I

We were really blown away this past weekend by all the encouragement we received while in Iowa. The people of DeWitt were amazing.



Have you ever had a time in life where although you went to serve others they ended up serving you way more than you could have ever served them? That was the type of weekend that we had. We were given almost complete access to the church, their activities (men's bible study, small groups, sunday school, youth group, spoke in both sunday am services), and were able to give away lots of prayer cards so that we could build our prayer team.



In short, the three days we spent in Iowa affirmed that this stage in our lives is a powerful ministry called partnership development. We saw true partnership at work between the local church and missionaries. We served and they served back.



For more pictures, check out our Facebook Album.

Chicago

Last week, we arrived in Illinois for some time in Chicago. We have had a busy, but great week! Kendra Cervantes one of our teammates for both Uruguay and Spain) lives in Aurora - just outside of Chicago. Lindsey has had a great chance to spend time with her, as we work on support raising together, preparing for leaving the field (aka - sorting through belongings: purging, giving away, and selling!), and continuing to build out friendship. We have also been able to spend time with lots of Kendra's family, which has been awesome to learn more about the people she always talks about!

Last Wednesday our Uruguay team leaders - Jim and Cheryl Eberline - were coming through Chicago on their way from Wisconsin to Indiana. They joined Kendra and us for some time together chatting over coffee and a yummy dinner at Cracker Barrel. It was awesome to touch base with one another, discuss future ministry and Uruguay, and continue to build our team together. You can't beat the fried okra and veggies from this place!


Cheryl and Lindsey - Rocking on the porch at Cracker Barrel


Jim and Brad - what a duo!


Jim, Brad, Lindsey, Cheryl, and Kendra

Missions Pizza Dinner Night!

Sunday night we had a great time with some friends from church. Ben and Anne Britt, as well as Dick and Ina Ericson, organized a dinner for us at the Britt's house. Several members of the Britt's Sunday School class at our church - Grace Bible Church - were invited and we had a fun evening of dinner, fellowship, and sharing about missions. We were able to meet some great couples from our church that we had never met before, as well as reconnect with some couples that we have known for a while. They had some great questions about missions, Spain, and ministry in Europe. It was a blast to share the evening with them!





Thank you to the Britts and Ericson's for making it possible!!!


Would you like to support our ministry by hosting and event like this one? It could be at your house, your church, a park...anywhere really! We'd love to talk with you about getting it organized...please email or facebook us!

Last Days and First Days - Part II

This post is the second part of posts entitled "Last Days and First Days." Don't forget to read part I after reading this post.

Friday entailed a couple First Days that are particularly memorable for us:

Welcome Home Jackie - Our friends Aaron and Carrie Kraft welcomed home their little daughter Jackie Kraft from Guatemala. (http://www.bradandlindsey.com/blog/2008/08/welcome-home-jackie.html for the complete report).

When it comes to bringing your baby daughter home for the first time after many, many months of wading through government paperwork, there aren't many better feelings in this world, I am sure. We are all excited for the Kraft family as they are enjoying getting to know, hold, and play with their daughter Jackie (as well as get up in the middle of the night when she's crying :).

Partnership Development Ministry - Friday was our official LAUNCH into our ministry of partnership development. Some of you have asked what in the world we are talking about when we say the words "partnership development."

Our ministry from now until we leave for the mission field is focused on providing opportunities for other people to get involved in missions. We've outlined some of the ways that you can become involved on our website (www.bradandlindsey.com/partner.htm). Check it out!



We have the privilege of welcoming you onto our prayer team, our financial team, or our service team. Some of you want to pray for us and those we'll be serving and serving with. Others of you want to contribute towards our monthly financial support that we'll live on as missionaries (it is our only means of support). Yet others want to use their talent of encouragement, crafts, video editing, writing, or some other gift to serve on our team. We've already gotten to know a few of you who are serving in all three ways. THANK YOU!


Join the journey. Be on our team. See God work!

Learn more at http://www.bradandlindsey.com.

Last Days and First Days - Part I

Friday was a pretty significant day for Brad and I as well as our family.

Brad's Last Day - A couple months ago Brad notified his boss at CAM that we were going to apply to become missionaries with CAM. This meant that Brad would soon be resigning his position at CAM to begin our ministry of partnership development before leaving for the mission field. Well all of that became a reality this summer when we accepted as new missionaries and then a few weeks ago when Brad turned in his official resignation. Finally on August 29th, Brad worked his last day at CAM International's Dallas Headquarters.


As much as it was a bit of an emotional day to be leaving a place that we had come to love, it was an exciting day to see God moving us forward as a couple towards what He has in store for us in the future. It is mind boggling how much God has done in our lives and in the lives of others to confirm his direction for our lives. From some close friends of ours who have five kids sending us a handwritten letter of encouragement from each member of the family, to some family friends taking us out to dinner and donating an old laptop to us for Brad to use, to a friend of ours allowing us to serve them by walking them through the issue of deciding about infant or believer's baptism, we've seen God at work each step of the way.

Enjoy the video of my last day on the job!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYW2xfcECY8



Bill's Last Day - On Friday August 29, my father Bill Bridges finished his last day of work for Bank of America after 37 years of work. Imagine beginning your career at 22 and finishing it with the same company (after a few name changes) just before turning the big 60. We are proud of Brad's dad and encouraged by his example to us of a loving father willing to work hard to provide for his family.



We found out that Sidney and Wesley along with their families all went and celebrated Bill's last day with the bank of Friday. Also many of Bill's current or previous boss's as well as others that he had trained or worked with came to visit him from various locations North Carolina. Imagine leaving an imprint on your organization or field in general big enough to; A. work there for 37 years, B. have old and current bosses come visit, and C. finish your career as the top performing Bank of America branch in NC. AWESOME!

Next (Last and First Days - Part II)

We Need a New Laptop

August 31 is my last day at my job. I'm required to turn in my laptop at the same time. I need a laptop. Hmmm. What do you think I should do? Pray!

The basic need is for a laptop that isn't outdated that we can use for email, some graphics stuff, and other basic things like internet. We are going to be sending out many emails, designing handouts for churches when we are there speaking, and also creating presentations that we'll need a laptop to run.

The difficulty is that we don't have the money to purchase a laptop. Would you join us in prayer for either a very inexpensive or preferably free option where someone is trying to get rid of their laptop anyway or someone who sells them is willing to give one away as a promotion?

Our ministry of partnership development before leaving to go to the mission field entails building a prayer and financial support team. In order to do this, we need to be able to communicate in person but also in many other ways such as email, facebook, and much more.

The other exciting thing is that when we arrive on the field in Uruguay and then ultimately in Spain, we will need the laptop for creating announcements for evangelistic outreaches, church bulletins, etc as well as for communicating to those who are back home in the US who have partnered with us in ministry. Its amazing how many uses a simple laptop can have for ministry.

Next Step - July 20-23, 2008

July 20-23 was CAM's Next Step event, where our summer interns spent 2 days debriefing and sharing about their experiences this summer. The summer internship program is a large portion of our ministry with the Mobilization Team, so we love it when we get to see all the interns come together and share how the Lord changed and challenged them during the summer.

We had five countries represented this summer - Guatemala, Canada, Mexico, Honduras, and Spain. Each of our interns had unique experiences and a great time with our missionaries. This video tells it all:



We also had the opportunity to have missionaries from Honduras, Dallas, and Guatemala with us, which is always a treat to have time with them. They helped lead small group discussion times (along with the Mobie Team from CAM Dallas) and just spent time with the interns.

This year, Next Step was held in Denton, Texas, at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church. St. Andrew was kind to host our group for the event and provide the facilities and host families for our group to stay with! After their church took a mission trip this Spring with CAM, they decided they wanted to stay involved in missions and supporting what's going on around the world. So...they helped our interns who have been serving to have a nice place to spend two days begining their acclimation back to America.

In our two days together, we had a lot of activity and a lot of fun. During the days we had opportunities to share and learn about what has been going on in other countries, explore how their summer experience has changed them and the way they view the world, and consider how missions might fit in their future -- whether that means praying, giving, going, or learning more. As a fun break and relaxation, we went out to Water Works in Denton, TX, one evening. Getting a chance to float down a lazy river, go on water slides, and play sand volleyball was a great way to bond and relax.

All in all, it was a great time to be with people who have a shared passion for missions and serving across the world! We are looking forward to the opportunity to impact the interns to come in the future, as interns come to serve with us in Uruguay and in Spain!

Moving Out...Moving On

Done! No more packing, cleaning, organizing. Our stuff is in about 25 boxes + our bed. That is all we own, period. Enjoy the video.

Candidate Orientation...Missionary Appointees

Candidate Orientation in the secular world would be considered a week of interviews and then a week of job training once you got the job. For us Candidate Orientation with CAM International was an encouraging time of building relationships with other missionaries, planning for the future, and also learning more about how we can best serve CAM as we serve the people of Uruguay and Spain. Check out some more pictures...

At the end of the first week, we were formally given the title Missionary Appointee (some people would call that missionary wannabe :). As appointees our ministry with CAM begins NOW as we meet with individuals, families, small groups, churches, foundations and anyone else that is interested to offer them a chance to PARTNER with us in ministry through: prayer, financial support, encouragement, serving alongside of us as missionaries, and a whole slew of other ways. Our partnership development phase of our ministry with CAM will find its greatest focus in the next few months as we invite others to partner with us before launching out to the mission field. We are looking for many teammates who will commit to prayer and financial support as CAM does not allow us to leave for the field before the entirety of our support has been pledged.

Would you consider praying for us or partnering with us by pledging a monthly gift of 25, 50, 100, 250, or 500? Our goal is to be at 25% by the end of August and we can't do that without your help. We look forward to having you on our team and serving you as well.

Mesquite Rodeo - July 4th

On July the fourth, we went to the Mesquite Rodeo in Dallas, TX. Enjoy the video that we created that tells the story of our memorable night in 2 minutes.

Candidate Orientation - Day 2 and 3

Tuesday and Wednesday were great days!!! We continued to have interviews with CAM staff regarding personalities, marriage, teams, etc. Tuesday, we had 3 awesome sessions, which were sort of counseling sessions regarding our marriage. It was so encouraging to have someone walk alongside of us and help us look at things in our marriage that we can build upon and strengthen together. We are so grateful for the individuals who have devoted this week to us and the other candidates, as they use the gifts that the Lord has given them to come alongside of us to help us thrive on the field!

Today, we met with CAM personnel and talked about our future ministry in Spain and how we can use our time in Uruguay as an incubator to prepare to lead a new team into Spain. It is nice to have individuals to consult with and get advice from as we enter into serving in missions. The stewardship department also spoke with us about CAM's philosophy on stewardship and giving. As they seek to help us understand the Biblical foundations for stewardship, we can apply those principles to our lives and also encourage those who are choosing to partner with us -- not only financially, but through their time and talents! We want you to join with us however you are able -- WE ARE EXCITED ABOUT SERVING WITH YOU!!!!

The other candidates have been a blast to be with. When we aren't in meetings, we have the opportunity to hang out, chat, play games, etc. We had an intense game of Apples to Apples going on before lunch today and are looking forward to more times together in the next couple weeks.

Candidate Orientation - Day 1

Today was the first day of Candidate Orientation. It's soooo good to finally be at this point in our move to the field! For the next two weeks, we will be meeting with CAM staff and missionaries as we get closer to going to the mission field!

Our morning started with a great time meeting with Larry and Jaime Hower talking about many facets of ministry and life on the field. They are a great couple who has served in Honduras, Mexico, and, most recently, Canada. Our time with them is so precious, and they are such an encouragement to us as a couple! Throughout the day, we also had a chance to spend some good time with the other candidates -- Joel and Vivian Lara, Jon and Libby White, Kendra Cervantes, Rebecca Zurbrick, Tom and Ann Withers, and Joe and Jenna Blakey. We ended the evening with a game of Rummy Cube.

Indiana Brad and Pepita...

I know what it feels like to be a cartoon now (see the picture).

Samuel and Luis are amazing. Two incredibly humble and fun men from Mexico.

They do art and they do it well. The only thing is that Lindsey says my biceps are too small in the picture (well, I just wish she said that).

How about that Olive Oil? Awesome huh. If you have never tried it, try toasting a piece of bread and pouring olive oil over it for breakfast. YUM!

Thank you Samuel. Thank you Luis. Thanks Frys. Thanks Anna. Thanks Miguel and Isaias and everyone else. Thank you for the memories of Spain.

My only question though: When will we see Pepita? (Lindsey's Spanish nickname).

Ordination Exam: I passed

Today I experienced my first and last ordination exam. Whew! Here's how I'd describe it.

Challenging. Encouraging. Affirming. Humbling. All Good things.

Imagine being asked questions such as the following:

Could you give us the outline for the book of Romans?
What is preterism and why does it matter that you know?
How would you handle a situation where a visitor to your church is causing a church split?
What is the Gospel?
What is the difference between eternal security and assurance of salvation?
How would you characterize the debates between Hodges and McArthur?
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
Describe your beliefs on the Trinity?
After your interaction with various denominations in the U.S.A. and abroad, why is it you now believe what you believe?
Is eschatology found only in Revelation? If in other places, where is the first place in the Bible we find eschatological references?

I don't remember all the questions, but Shirley Bryan asked the best one of the night: Brad based on your understanding of prophecy, could you tell us when the Texas Rangers baseball team will have their next winning season if ever? :)

She was joking of course. I'm not a prophet and the Rangers will never have a winning season. :)

Tonight Lindsey and I are very thankful.

Thanks goes out to: Grace Bible Church, Lindsey, Andy Wileman (see picture below), Jason Wiesepape, Zach Gautier, and any others who helped me prepare for this HUGE day.

Sunday is the ordination service at Grace Bible Church. Would you consider coming?

Brad

Uruguay

Lindsey and I are moving to Uruguay. Yes that's right. Uruguay. Why? Good Question.

Mentoring. Training. Team. Fellowship. Business. ESL. Church Planting.

Jim and Cheryl Eberline. Brent and Le'Ann Downs. Bill and Linda Parker. Mike and Nancy Blake.

Why not Spain? Spain is still coming...just later. Would you want a doctor that skipped his/her residency and just jumped into surgery?

Departure is set for January! Is the Lord working in your heart to pledge monthly financial support? If so, we need you!

Pray for us as we navigate many transitions right now. Pray for our marriage. Pray for our walk with the Lord. Tell us how we can pray for you.

Email us with how you'd like to partner with us. Prayer. Serving. Giving. Connecting.

Brad

Granada and Malaga

The morning today began with our van getting backed into at our hotel in Guadix. It was confusing for me to see him angry since we sat and watched him back into a parked car. A bit humorous actually.

Then we spent the morning in Policar where Connie Clark is serving in a very remote pueblo. She literally is the only Christian there which is amazing since she is serving by herself. I had the privilege of getting to know her and her deceased husband Ricardo about 5 years ago when he came to Sevilla, Spain to lead up a conference on Grupos Pequenos (Small Groups).

We had a great time of fellowship there with Connie, Amanda Roller (a Cedarville Student who I met when speaking at a conference at Cedarville and who is studying in Sevilla this semester), Nate and Mary Saxe and their kids, and our team. It was a motley crew but we had lots of fun.



Our day finished with a drive to Malaga where we had a great lunch and relaxing afternoon with Benjamin Martin of Evangelism in Action. He graciously gave us lots of his time and shared about his ministry in Spain.

We finished the night with a Kabob from a Turkish restaurant. VERY GOOD.

Please pray for our team, for Rod as he preaches tomorrow, and for the people of Spain as this week (Semana Santa, ie Holy Week) is a great opportunity for our missionaries in Spain and many others to share and impact many lives.

We Hit the Ground Sprinting

It would be safe to say that we hit the ground sprinting in Spain. Things have gone very well our first few days in Spain with lots of visits with missionaries in Madrid, some unique opportunities to serve, and lots of great times of mutual encouragement as each of us learn more not only about the Spaniards but about one another and ourselves.

We are now in Ubeda, Spain where we were warmly received today with a HUGE dinner full of Tortilla Espanola, Ensalada Mixta, and lots of other typical Spanish food. Two members of our team who flew in from Mexico did an artistic presentation in Baeza (a nearby town) where they had a crowd of kids watching them. We'll post some pictures soon but lets just say that they did an amazing job.

We are all quite tired so please pray for our energy levels, unity, and also that we would be a blessing to those that we serve and interact with.

For those of you that pray and/or support, thanks for partnering with us in ministry.

Surprised by Grace

Should any of us be surprised by grace? If we base our answer on what we see in the world today, probably so. However if we based it on the grace of God that He has shown to all of us, then probably not.

Today Lindsey and I experienced grace. We finished an exhausting day of two speaking engagements at Dallas Theological Seminary, multiple meetings, Lindsey's last day of work at DTS, running to buy a new battery charger for our camera, and picking up a salad at McDonalds (yum) with a surprise that we found at our home.

Some of our friends left a note on our door. We walked into our home, opened the card, and in it we found a message that some of our friends in seminary called and donated $400 towards our ministry in Spain. WOW!



At this point our need for our trip to Spain is down just below $600 due to another gift today as well. We appreciate all of your prayers not only for us but for our team.

Samuel and Luis are on a plane right now as I type this on their way from Mexico City to London en route to Madrid. Pray for them. Pray for us as well as Lindsey's mother picks us up to go to the airport at 7am.

As we sit here tonight in our home though, it is safe to say that we were surprisingly encouraged by God's grace today. We invite you to await and anticipate his grace tomorrow as well.

You can go to www.caminternational.org/give to donate to CAM's work that we are serving with in Spain during the 2 week trip coming up (or call 1800-366-2264 to contribute by phone). Remember to include our name and account number 060288.

Thank You, Commissioning Party, & Remaining Support Needed

Lindsey works with cool people (she just shook her head no). Hmmmm. Let me correct that, really cool people (now she shakes her head yes). Since her last day of work at Dallas Theological Seminary is Wednesday, they decided to celebrate her four years working there with a thank you and commissioning party as Lindsey and I move towards serving in Spain as missionaries.



Lindsey and I were greeted with an incredible LEI from GUAM. Fun, you might think. Then you take a look at it more closely and realize that our leis were made out of chocolate and Lindsey's was full of $5, $10, and $20 bills. Thank You Team Admissions.

Their Donations got us even closer to what we need for our trip we are taking to Spain in 2 Days. We still need right at about $1000 and can't wait to see how God will provide by working through YOU!~~~ Thanks for your prayers and your donations.

You can go to www.caminternational.org/give to donate to CAM's work that we are serving with in Spain during the 2 week trip coming up. Remember to include our name and account number 060288.

New CAM Mexico Internship Video

Below is the new CAM Mexico internship video for this summer. The animators of this clip are two very talented artists that will be going on our trip to Spain with us these next couple weeks. The voice over is of Rod Fry, who is the coordinator of the Mexico Internship along with his wife Mayra. We are excited to have an innovative way to share what goes on through the internship program in Mexico each summer. Kudos to Rod, Samuel, and Luis for a job well done!

Spain in March + Israel in May

Spain Team: March 13-25 (Total Need Left $3100)

Lindsey and I are leading a team from CAM International to Spain in March. This team is composed of Mexican believers, CAM Missionaries from Mexico, and some Americans that are also committed to learning about Spain, serving there for 2 weeks, and getting some great plans made regarding future church planting efforts in Spain that Lindsey and I would like to be a part of.

With the following conversion rate: 1 Euro = $1.48 US, our financial need for this trip has gone up. Our total need now for Spain is $3100.

Please consider making a contribution by sending checks to:

CAM International
8625 La Prada Drive
Dallas, TX 75228
PLEASE PUT IN THE MEMO LINE: Account #060288

Israel Team: May 12-June 3 (Total Remaining Need: $3990)

As the capstone of our seminary studies and an opportunity to further prepare for ministry, Lindsey and I are going to Israel with Dallas Theological Seminary. We hope to come away closer to our Lord, with a better understanding of Biblical lands, and also more prepared to describe the Bible to those we serve in ministry now and in the future.

Currently our financial need is: $1495 (Brad) + $2495 (Lindsey). Many of you have already given and we simply ask that those that are able and feel called would consider this opportunity to join us in ministry. Our total need for Israel is: $3990 which is less than the total because we've already paid some and also received a scholarship that brought the price down.

Would you consider helping us with the cost of this time in Israel? Your donation is not tax-deductible but know that we promise to be good stewards of our time there by studying, taking pictures, growing closer to Christ, and also planning ways that we can take what we learn and apply it to ministry. You can send a check directly to:

Brad and Lindsey Bridges
3909 Swiss Ave. #228
Dallas, TX 75204

Thanks for your support and know that even if you are not able to give financially, we'd ask that you keep us in your prayers as we seek the Lord's provision!

Brad and Lindsey

Nine to five is the worst time to fish

I heard a presentation this morning that started with, "Nine to five is the worst time to fish." I sat and tried to figure out what in the world was his point. But then it clicked when I read the next line "Adapt your schedule to reach the lost."

Just like in fishing we must adapt our schedule to the best times to catch fish, when we are involved in ministry we must also take an in depth look at what type of schedule we live. Most of the people that we are trying to serve are at work from 9-5. Am I willing to get up early and stay up late in order to spend time with people when they are available? Is a typical work schedule always the best thing for a person in full-time ministry?

Thoughts anyone?

Extreme Cold

Have you ever experienced an 83 degree temperature change in one day? Today I did. It was 80 degrees in Dallas today and by the time I got to Moody in Chicago today it was -3 degrees! -3 degrees!

It was a wonderful day in Dallas with perfect weather to go out to a park and have a picnic with Lindsey or play sports. Now here in Chicago (where I'll be until Friday) it is freeeeeezing cold. It is so cold that your fingers start to get numb after just a couple minutes. Let's just say that I will be spending lots of time inside this week rather than outside.

Brad

DTS is Done (well, almost)

This past week I finished up all my final exams for this semester. That means that seminary is done except for two things: (1) complete my masters thesis and (2) take 1 more hr of class in the Spring (I had to leave 1 hour so we can have the option of staying in the on campus apartments through May).

Sometimes it is easy to take life too seriously. So I decided I'd post an encouraging little video for everyone to watch that is sure to make your Christmas a little merrier.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OBlgSz8sSM

Great Times

Have you ever spent time with a group of people and wondered if you could just do something to make it last a little longer? That was tonight for Lindsey and I.

Tonight we hosted 5 couples at CAM's headquarters for dinner. Each couple was just formerly appointed with CAM which means they now start their time of support raising before leaving the country to be missionaries. After lots of pizza and watching the movie Cars, we all sat around a table and played Catch Phrase. If you haven't played it before, you should.