Updates

What will you spend your time praying for?

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

About 4 weeks ago our lead pastor at Ridge Church, Chris Brown, encouraged us to really get serious about praying for the spiritually blind. For all of you old school folks that means the “lost”. I thought to my self while he was talking that he is not speaking to me. I’m a missionary. If anyone has a passion for the lost it would be me. What an idiot I can be. About that time the Lord laid a huge dose of conviction on my heart.

Chris then asked us what is the biggest thing that we spend time praying for. He confessed that he had been spending more time praying for his staff’s paycheck than those in his life and church that are spiritually blind. I knew immediately what I have been praying for the most and it was not non-Christians. I knew that I had been spending the majority of my prayer time praying about other unimportant things. Money! Some missionary huh.

I had let support raising, money and budgets become my first priority. Even though those things are needed in life that can not be what is most important. I know that He wants me to pray about other things but I also know that He will provide my daily bread. I quickly knew those people that God was wanting me to be passionately pleading for on a daily basis. I could see them in my mind. I started making those people and their need for the Lord’s salvation the focus in prayer. I had not even been praying for the countries and people groups that I feel God has so strongly called me to as much as I had been praying about this other stuff. After a little rearranging my time in prayer and calling out these people by name in prayer multiple times a day I actually began seeing God change their lives. Like I should be surprised.

This reminded me of a story Lara and I were reading in Deuteronomy 9 during our devotions. Moses is retelling the story of when he went on top of the mountain for 40 days and nights to plead to God for His mercy on the tribes. Moses went to ask God to please spare his people and even bless them. They did not deserve it and I am sure that there were other things that Moses would have loved to have spent time talking to God about. He was in the presence of the Almighty and he did not ask for anything for himself. Wow, I think I would have at least ask for something. Maybe a good meal, new sandals or something. Moses knew what was important. The relationship between God and His people. As a friend and ministry partner said to me the other day while we were eating lunch and talking about life and the economy, “What is more important than telling others today the good news and seeing them come in to a new and exciting relationship with Christ. NOTHING!”

I want to encourage you believers to ask God to show you 5 spiritually blind people that He wants you to be praying for. This could be the turning point in their spiritual journey and God could actually use you to be apart of it. What will you spend your time praying for?

Mercy

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

I have just come to some what realize what God’s mercy is all about. I am not saying that I have got it completely figured out. I have learned that all of life’s blessings come by the way of God showing me His mercy. I deserve the worst of the worst but God chooses to bless me beyond my wildest dream because He is that merciful. So now I am praying that He would continuously pour out His mercy and be glorified in my life. Try asking for mercy. It is pretty cool!

“…never truly experienced until now”

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

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I was blown away this week when I received the newsletter of a missions trip participant that went with us to Uganda in February. It left me crying on my computer and praising God for allowing me to be apart of His work even in the smallest ways. Lara and I have always known that one of the biggest reasons we wanted to be apart of e3 Partners ministry is the joy of taking people to the mission field. We have the privilege of engaging the local church in missions. It doesn’t matter where one is in the journey or even if they have started down the path with Christ. We know that when they go and see the glory of God displayed on a mission trip and they are personally used for an eternal difference. Lives will be for ever changed! I am reminded ever time too that God can and wants to use this non qualified knucklehead to be His hands and feet. How cool and powerful that is when we realize that truth.

What is even better than being used by God is knowing what we have in Jesus and who we really are in Him. This tripper participant had no idea of what was to come. Not just for the next 12 days but for the rest of her life. I have know her for about 10 years and have been diligently praying for God to work in her life. I was never sure about where she stood on church, Jesus, and salvation but I knew that she didn’t go or didn’t talk about it very much. If I had to guess I would have had to say that there was no relationship with Christ.

When we began planning our last trip to Uganda we had no idea how life changing this trip would be for us. This lady said that she was interested and that in it self was exciting for us. Then when she went with us we were in shock to see how God used her and how Christ drew her near. I don’t think that I could tell you all of the ways we saw her grow in a relationship with Christ on a daily basis. Even today we still see God answering our prayer by working in her life.

People ask us all the time “when will you move over seas and be real missionaries?” If God wants us to we will go tomorrow but for now we are apart of one of the greatest mission opportunities here today. This lady’s story is why we do what we do. We love seeing God’s church in America go to the missions field and then come back home with a renewed fire for worshiping Him. “…I never truly experienced Him until now.” This was one of her closing statements in her newsletter, and that is a HUGE win for us and for the Kingdom. That makes it all worthy especially when she is my mother in law, Lara’s mom!

I think that you would really enjoy reading her news letter. It is powerful, so please take the time to read! Copy and paste this link. Then click download.  http://drop.io/momsnewsletter

A week worthy of praise

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

This is a week worthy of our praise. During this Holy week we find ourselves worshiping our savior for all that he has done for us. We know that we are not worthy of His love and compassion but we are reminded of what He went through for us. The coolest part of it all is that Jesus had “Spanky” on His mind the entire time. He really loves and values me? That in it self is amazing.

Then He not only died for me but super naturally came back to life and arose out of the tomb for me. WOW!!! I don’t know if you have actually thought of this other than in the sweet little Sunday school way but that is crazy, awesome, and amazing! Jesus, the one that carries us as His children (Deut. 1:31) is all powerful and able to concur everything in our lives. He concurred it all including death! How cool is it that we get to call Him Father and we have the privilege to serve Him.

This Easter weekend I encourage you to worship the risen king who is able and all powerful in your life. How worthy is He!!! We have victory all ready because of Jesus. Psalm 47:1-2

He is already at work!

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

IMG_0312Talk about the pressure being on! Our first time in Africa Lara and I worked in an all Muslim city. We were a little nerves the first day of evangelism but our morning devotion was from Acts 10. It gave us a little more hope for the day. God went before Peter to prepare hearts and so I prayed but not fully believed that God would go before us.

Later that day a lady walked up to me on the streets and she looked right in my eyes. She did not look to friendly and she began to speak loudly and I knew she was talking about me. My translator said that she had a dream about a big, white man coming to her city and he was coming to tell her something that was going to save her life. She believed that this dream the night before was from Allah and she said I had better tell her this story that I was telling everyone else on the street. I looked around and realized that I was the only big, white guy in this city so I pulled out my EvangeCube and shared the story of Jesus with her. She asked accepted Christ right there and went away smiling. I know now that it is His work and He is just letting me be apart of it. God is at work in hearts all around this world and He gives us the privilege to introduce the spiritually blind to Him so they can too have sight.

Praying for Spiderman PJ’s

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

DSC0369 copy-2We have been talking a lot about prayer with Mac and Grey and I think that Mac is actually starting to get it. He normally prays that God will bless all of his friends, family and all of the people at Ridge church and on special occasions he will throw in all the people of the world. But, the other day at Target it became a little more personal. He saw some Spider Man PJ’s and he asked if he could have them but his mommy said not today. When she turned back to see where he was he had his head buried in the PJ’s. Lara fully thought that he was pouting because he was not getting his way and said “Come on”. Little did she know, he was being more spiritual than that. Mac picks his head up and proceeds to break his mothers heart while he says,”but mommy I was praying for these Spider Man PJ’s”.

While it wasn’t the most spiritual or selfless prayer it was still a blessing to us. He is at least understanding that when he has a need the best options is to ask Jesus. My prayer is that when I am in need I would have the immediate, child like faith that my son had when he was praying for those Spider Man PJ’s. When we don’t hold back and we get just as honest as we can with God in prayer I think that He is most pleased.

Traveling the River

Posted on by Spanky Rouse
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I just returned home from a 9 day trip in the Panama jungle. You will probably hear a lot form the Rouse House regarding Panama because this country has a special place in our heart. I often look at life and compare it to our time spent in the jungles. There are many similarities and lessons that can be learned from life and the jungles.
This past time in Panama was the most extreme time that I have ever had. After a 12 hour drive from one end of the country to the other end near the Costa Rican border we finally reached the city of Changuinola. We continued our journey up the Teribe River for almost 2 hours. This area of Panama just received what they call the 50 year flood so passing through this area of the jungle was difficult to say the least. Hundred year old trees were uprooted and washed down stream while entire villages were demolished. The power of this unusual and unpredictable amount of water was almost unbelievable. The worst part of the flood is that it is suppose to be the dry season therefore it really is unexpected.
I remember that the only thing that I could think of as we went farther up river was how content and satisfied I felt. Talk about the peace of God! Philippians 4:6-7 talks about no matter what we face or go through we can always count on God to give us the peace to make it. That kind of peace that He gives is really indescribable. It is one of those things that you have to experience first hand. In life there are so many unexpected and unplanned for “floods” that can really destroy us and wipe us out in just a moment. But we don’t have to live in fear of those things that are to come. Praise God! Nothing is ever unexpected or unplanned for the Almighty!
I have to say that most people including me probably wouldn’t think of contentment when seeing the banks of this river bed. Then I began to think about where I really was and any fear that might have been there vanished. I saw that I was looking at the finger print of God the Creator. I looked up and saw the sun setting behind a mountain and at that moment I believe that the Holy Spirit brought to my mind Psalms 63:3-8. I had just read it before I left home and how cool it was to see God put His word in to practice. I really felt like He had answered my hearts prayer and satisfied my soul abundantly and lead me to praise Him with my lips and hands. I knew that He was absolutely better than life. I knew that I was in the shadow of His wings, His hand was holding me, and that my soul was following close behind Him. That is a great place to be!!!
When Jesus is the focus, priority, and desire of your heart and life then you will always be abundantly satisfied! John Piper says in the book “Stand”, “When we are so satisfied in Christ that we are enabled to willingly die for Him, we are freed to love the lost like never before and Christ becomes our great Treasure” I was not about to die at that moment by any means but with the spirit and mind that He gave me, that of Him being what I live and die for, I was able to love the Nasso people so much more.

To begin with…

Posted on by Spanky Rouse

Rouse House Happenings is going to be compiled stories and pictures updating you on our life and ministry. We hope to bring some comical stories along with some heart warming events. We are the Rouses. Spanky, Lara, Mac, and Grey. We often have some hilarious times and we believe that you will find these times funny too.
We are currently church planting missionaries with e3 Partners ministry. We love what we do more than anything else and when we are asked what would be your dream job we gladly say that we are doing it. We get to see God uses us to help indigenous people start new churches through evangelizing and discipleship. God is working in mighty ways and we have the privilege to be apart it. We have been apart of some amazing stories that will bless your heart so we want to start sharing them with you.
Stay tuned for many laughs and exciting stories.