News about Miriam!!!

One of the most incredible stories for Indigenous Ministries this year is that Miriam has been found alive!  We thank the  Lord! 

Many of you prayed with us last year as one of our IM Egyptian team members, Miriam, 24, was kidnapped, abused, and weeks later, her family was told she had been beheaded.  

We were heartsick and deeply grieved as her disappearance was just 1 week before her marriage.  She served with our ministry 8 months teaching girls Arabic literary courses, computer and Biblical training. This is all banned in Islam in Egypt. 

Just yesterday, I received word from our team leader in Egypt that Miriam was found in Cairo.  She has been a captive, her head was shaved, she was beaten, brutally abused and was forced to convert to Islam. But she is safe.

She escaped her horrible captors and is being kept in a safe place until her case is heard this week before the civil rights court for these human rights violations.  The court will give her Christian status back to her because of the violations.  Her abductors have been captured and will stand trial.

Miriam is shaken, physically healing and recovering from her ordeal.  She is, however, in another horrible predicament. She cannot return to her family and village for at least a year because of what has happened to her.  She will be challenged with the emotional and physical scars and the stigma on her.  

HELPING MIRIAM:  She will have to live elsewhere until her issues are settled.  I am working with our Middle East Coordinator, Pastor Philip, along with my wife, Dee, the Director of Beautiful International to find a safe country where we can send her.  We will not abandon this precious young woman who loves the Lord and has served with us in ministry.  

I'm asking for an initial $5,000 to help pay for Miriam's human rights attorney and send her to a safe place for at least one year. This will buy a plane ticket, room, board, counseling and livelihood training for her.  This won't cover everything but its a start; it will be an encouragement to her. 

Specifically this is how we can join together to help Miriam:

Pray for Miriam that God would grant her peace of heart.

Pray for a place where we can safely have Miriam healed and ministered to.

Pray for those that abducted her; that they would renounce their sin and trust Christ as their Savior.  The Lord reminds us to pray for those who despitefully use us. 

Would you stand with us and our ministry team in Egypt with prayers and financial support as we reach out to help in this crisis?  We are asking the Lord for $5000 right now to be able to respond to this need.  Thank you and God bless you. 

Blessings,

John & Dee

Dr. John & Dee Cook

CEO, Indigenous Ministries

**If you would like to help contribute to Miriam's healing process, please call the IM office at 719-302-3028 or email info@IndigenousMinistries.org**

Money, Vehicles and other Mysteries

While it is definitely true that God has been providing for us every step of the way, I was telling my Memaw the other day how lately any time we get an unexpected financial gift, my first thought is to thank the Lord for that provision and my second is to ask Him what is coming. Haha!!! The last couple of months it seems like every time we get a large gift, we end up with a large expenditure.

When we left Texas we received three different gifts of $100 each. Wouldn't you know that in New Mexico we had a blow out on the trailer and couldn't put off new tires any longer. We replaced three tires for $95 each. :)
We have had a few experiences like that. We almost always receive the money first and then something happens. I am not complaining, it has been interesting! And we are always provided for!

So yesterday- what a day. It started in the middle of the night when Evan was up sleep walking and thought the floor in their room was the restroom...then Zoey woke up cold and Chase realized we had run out of propane (we hadn't been using the heater here.) He also realized there was a puddle of pee on the floor and scrubbed the carpet. He went back to bed for a couple of hours and then got up to go buy propane.
After he got back he got ready to go drop info packets to churches and pastors, hopped on his bike and was on his way.
We got up, Evan showered and we did some school work before we headed to Memaw's house.

Right before we left I got an email from a college gal pal that lives not too far away but just far enough that I was having a hard time getting together with her. She asked if Chase was up for a job with her husband the next morning. He needed some help with his work and would pay $200! Immediately I told her that Chase would be all over it. I thanked the Lord mentally and then asked Him, "What's up, Lord??? Something is coming..." :)


So sidenote...The night before we had spent at the Gatlin's house for dinner. It was so much fun! During our time there we shared the weird things each of our Expeditions were doing and the fact that we were trying to baby ours for a few more months until tax return time when we could find something that pulls better and will last longer. We have the feeling that our fabulous Expedition is on that downhill slope where we will just be making more and more repairs.

I share that to say that on the drive to Memaw and Pepaw's, Tucker (our Expedition) was acting more strange than usual. It is normal anymore for it to beep randomly (sometimes constantly) and have all the dash lights blink at you simultaneously. It is also normal lately that the blinker does this weird very loud growly, yell-at-you thing when you use it and may or may not actually signal on the outside. (Between the beeping and the growling, I commented to Chase that Tucker is an angry vehicle. Ha!)

What is not normal is for the "ABS" light to come on and stay on.
I made it to my grandparent's house and called Chase to ask him what that ABS light meant and whether it was the new normal. (Haha!) He was on his bike on the other side of the Valley so I wanted to be sure to pick him up if I needed to. He said to turn off the car then restart to see if the light stayed on. I turned it off and there was no more car. Just blinking lights and clicking.
The battery was dead. Dead dead dead. We knew the harness needed to be replaced so Chase rode his bike over to the Ford dealership and ordered it. It is the only place where we can get that part and wouldn't be in until the next day so...then Chase rode his bike all the way to Palm Springs. On the ride, he came around a corner to find the sidewalk being watered and his bike went down and him on it. He was fine, just now sopping wet and being lectured by a random woman who prattled on and on about the fine policemen, paramedics and firemen they have here, (and in NY-just remember 9/11) should he need their assistance. Seriously. She went on forever.

While Chase got lectured about our civil service workers, (and to be clear we totally love our civil service workers!) I was reading his health report that came in the mail from his life insurance company. Honestly, it totally freaked me out. We have some serious health issues looming if we do not get ahold of them now. Granted I am pregnant and emotional but we also have lost both his Grandpa's fairly early and it was already worrying me. This was just confirmation that we REALLY need to make some changes. I may have freaked out on him over the phone. Because you know, that really helps on already crazy stressful days. :P

My wet, battered Husband got to the house and tried to get the car to start again but nothing. Long story short, we had the battery charged but found it had no problems. The harness is not connecting lots of stuff I don't understand but it also appears now we have a problem with the starter.
So the question came up how we were going to get back to the trailer for the night and then how Chase was going to get to this paying job first thing in the morning. ????

My grandparents very graciously changed their schedule and let us use their van for the night and this morning! They are too sweet! And it is too handy that they have a van that seats us and then some!
It annoys me to no end that we have seemingly vehicle trouble every single time we come visit. It is rather humiliating. But on the other hand, maybe it is that way on Purpose, because they are able to help us get it sorted out? I don't know. Honestly I don't like it though. Like I said, it is humiliating and I hate having to depend on their help when it happens. I am sure there is some sort of lesson in there somewhere but I don't know what it is...Yet. ;) Perspective, anyone?

So anyways, here we are. Chase is at work, the kids are doing school and when Chase gets back we will go pick up the parts for our car, (which by the way will probably total $200! LOL!) and pray pray pray it fixes the problems. If not...I just don't know, I am sure it will work out one way or another! It always does. He is good and is so amazing to provide for us at every bump in the road. He always does. And sometimes it comes before we need it and lets us prep ourselves. That is pretty gracious, isn't it??? I think so.

:)

Faith and Answered Prayers

It has been so funny to me to hear myself praying over smaller and smaller needs.
I pray for there to be great and inexpensive maternity clothes at the thrift store. And black church shoes for Harmony. And a big pot. Yogurt on sale. A water hook up when we stop for the night so we can shower...

What is even better though is when the Lord answers these little prayers!

For a while I had been praying for fall/winter styles dresses for the girl's to wear to church and also some black church shoes for them both. There is nothing really wrong with their sundress style church clothes and white strappy shoes except that I want us to look our best when we are in church and especially when we are presenting Indigenous Ministries there. So...I was praying.
And honestly it feels kind of silly, asking the God of the Universe to please hear my concerns about dresses and shoes for vanity's sake.
Yet...one Sunday after church we got back to Mom and Dad's house while we were in Houston and found a bag of girl clothes on the porch. A neighbor had some fabulous hand-me-downs from their granddaughter and thought of us.

Wouldn't you know that inside the bag were some beautiful church dresses, in both girl's sizes, perfect for the season! Also some black church shoes and tennis shoes for Chastity. (She did also need some tennis shoes!) Thank you, Jesus!

He also provided some really great maternity clothes at my favorite thrift store for next to nothing! It is always so nice to not have to go naked. ;)

I almost always go into the grocery store praying to find good deals and asking the Lord to help me only buy what we really really need. And one day I went into Whole Foods just going to hit the bulk bins so I can get oatmeal and quinoa for cheap. (It IS possible to shop at Whole Foods for cheap.) Of course, a certain son of mine needed to use the restroom as soon as we walked in the door so my little troop all caravanned over to the restrooms. While we were in there a woman walked by to the sink and without even making eye contact with me and in a low whisper said, "They have a Spectrum Naturals coupon at the front of the store on the coupon kiosk." I looked around to see if she was talking to me or if she mistook me for a spy she was meeting in the Whole Foods restroom and she went on, "also there is a coupon on the Spectrum organic mayonnaise and it is on sale! Unless it was a mistake, I got my mayonnaise for free!!!"
I decided that whether or not that information was for me, I was taking it! "Thank you SO much!!! That is so great!" And she walked on out like we had never spoken.
I got five jars of free organic mayo that day. ;)

I have so many more examples of tiny prayers that were answered, but preggo brain is not working with me.

I was sharing all of that anyway to say that it has surprised me how it has been the little answered prayers that have been growing my faith. Of course Chase is going to India and of course we will get all our funding at some point-I serve a big God!
But the little answered prayers reveal to me the God of the Universe that knows the silly concerns in my heart and actually cares about them.

We have never made great amounts of money at any ministry we have been in but even at our "poorest" I can't remember praying over things this small so consistently. And really, I am enjoying the experience of seeing God work this way and learning to trust Him more.
My Lord is just amazing. :)

Psalm 66:20

   Blessed be God,

because he has not rejected my prayer

or removed his steadfast love from me!