I am hanging out in Ensenada with Micah and Tiana Kemp, the youngest of 6 and the adopted children of my friends and co-workers, Tym and Sam Kemp.  We were watching a version of Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer, since its Christmas and everything.  It got me thinking about the song and the version that I used to watch as a child and one of my favorite Christmas Classics to watch each year.  I was thinking and realizing how this whole story talks about being different.  

If you have never had the privilege of seeing this amazing movie, let me tell you a bit of the story.  Rudolph is born and even his dad is embarrassed by him, covering up his bright red nose.  Imagine the sadness he must have felt when his father even rejected him because he was different.  So he grows up and goes to school with the other reindeer his age and of course they make fun of him and his nose as well as his teacher, one of Santa's famous reindeer - Comet.  They all reject him simply because he is different, he has a red nose, something they have never seen before. I mean, even Santa rejects him!  WHAT?!?!  I have compiled a clip with these scenes below.  

Let me start by saying that The Lord’s Prayer is not a magical incantation for you to repeat and all your dreams and wishes will come true.  The Lord’s Prayer is simply a guide on how to pray.  Jesus was teaching this prayer to his followers.  As part of the Inductive Bible Study Method we must first understand who Jesus was talking to when He introduced the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 (also found in Luke 11).  Jesus was talking to traditional Jews.  They would have had an understanding of prayer.  

Our Father who are in Heaven: We can go directly to the Lord where before, in the OT, they had to go to a priest and the priest went before the Lord once a year during the Day of Atonement.  The Jews knew their fathers Abraham and Jacob but we are to pray to Our Father who art in heaven (God).  You don’t need a mediator. This also suggests an intimate knowledge of God, He isn’t just some being but He is our Father.  Jesus also uses the pronoun Our, not my but Our.  He is inviting us into this intimate relationship alongside of Him.  

Hallowed be Your Name: God’s name in the Old Testament couldn’t be spoken aloud or written out because it was considered extremely Holy.  Why is His name Holy??  He created us, He brought all around us into existence.  Hallowed means sacred, regarded with reverence, it involves love, respect and longing to please Him in all we say or do. God should be honored in everything, one of the commandments is do not take the Lord’s name in vain. 

The end of the year is upon us and many are trying to finish out their Christmas shopping.  This time of year is also big on the tax-deductible contributions to many organizations around the world.  We tend to give more around the holidays and I am asking you to add me to your christmas list.  Below are some benefits to donating some of your set aside tax-deductible contributions to me:

By Supporting Me ... 

• You actually know the person who is receiving the money, it isn't going to someone you've never met.
  
• You are supporting many missionaries from around the world in need.  I am able to bless others when you bless me. 
• You are able to bless the people of Mexico because I am able to buy groceries for a family or provide clothing for a child.
  
• You are a missionary as well and will reap all the full rewards for the work being done here.
  
• You can have the child you always wanted, one who doesn't eat all your food & run up your phone bill but still keeps in touch once in a while. 

So what do you say???  Remember to get your donations in by December 31, 2010 so that you can deduct them from your 2010 Tax Return.  Click the button below and fill out the form.  Please note that it is for Staff Support of Sheril Brasher.  Don't have a credit card??  Good for you!!  You can mail a check made payable to YWAM San Diego/Baja to the following address:

Sheril Brasher, San Diego Office
YWAM San Diego/Baja
100 West 35th Street, Suite C
National City, CA  91950

This year, for the first time in 5 years, I was able to be home for Thanksgiving!!  OH how I have missed my mom's Turkey and Dressing, Green Bean Casserole, Broccoli and Rice Casserole and even the straight out of and still shaped like a can cranberries (that almost didn't make the dinner table this year).  I must admit, I ate so much on Thanksgiving day between my grandparents house in Haleyville, AL and my mom's that evening, I literally made myself sick.  My stomach hurt so bad and then I got a migraine and almost lost it all, but it was SO WORTH IT!!!  I then proceeded to eat left overs for the next several days even though my family wanted to make something new each night.  I even planned on bringing some of it home with me but forgot to pack it in my carry-on when we left the house oh so early (but not early enough cause I almost missed my flight).  

Now I know that I have talked alot about food (and that is a HUGE part of Thanksgiving for my family so why not give it its due) but seriously, I have so much to be thankful for this year.  I have a wonderful job that I love, an amazing place to live with incredible housemates.  I grow more passionately in love with Jesus every day.  I was able to go home for Thanksgiving and see some family members that I haven't seen in at least 5 years.  I was able to see some friends that I haven't seen in at least 7 years.  I have been given so much this past year, so much so that I have been able to bless others as well.  That fills my heart with joy and gladness to overflowing.  You each are a huge blessing to me just by being you.  I am so thankful for the gift of each of you in my life!!  What a wonderful feeling to be surrounded by such incredible supporters.  I wish that I could truly show my gratitude to each of you in person, face-to-face.  

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for being a part of my life and part of my support system this past year!! You guys have made it possible to continue on when I didn't have the strength to carry on, you were my Aaron and Hur, holding me up when I needed it.  Through your prayers and financial blessings I have been able to live out the calling God placed on my life.  I don't know that I will ever be able to thoroughly thank you.     

So the month of November has flow past and we are already into the second week of December.  Where has this year gone??  The month of November was my busiest yet as I had 3 conferences, visited home and taught in Ensenada all in just a few short weeks.  

The month started off with the NOC (National Outreach Convention) in San Diego.  Teresa and I spent 3 extremely long days hanging out, talking to people and sharing our passion for ministry with anyone who would listen.  We got to know our fellow exhibitors really well and Teresa even won a rather large fishing pole from the christianoutdoorsmen.org booth next to us.  We had tons of fun but it was rather tiring.  One day we worked from about 6:30 am until after midnight and then had to be back up and at the conference again the next morning.  There was some slow times and some where I looked up as I was talking with someone and saw that there were people waiting in line to talk to us.  We also got to see a sneak peak of the movie Soul Surfer, the movie about Bethany Hamilton, the teenage surfer that lost her arm to a shark attack.  It was such a great movie and I highly recommend that you go see it when it comes to theaters Spring of 2011.  

The very next weekend we headed up to Irvine, CA which is about an hour and half north of San Diego for something a bit different. This conference, instead of hanging out talking to a bunch of pastors, we got to hang out with a bunch of junior high kids.  We were thrilled to have the opportunity to be the ONLY exhibitor for Stuck in the Middle's Identity Tour.  Stuck in the Middle is an organization for JUNIOR HIGH ONLY!!!  The founder, Sean Meade, went on a Mission Adventures trip to Tijuana and built a house with YWAM San Diego/Baja when he was in high school.  When he graduated he realized that there was a huge need for ministry resources and conferences specifically targeted toward junior high/middle school students.  There were plenty that included that age group but non just for them.  So he and his wife sold everything and started this ministry.  Now they host several conferences each year across the country (they are looking for someone to partner with to host them on the east coast) and even in Canada.  They are amazing!!  We had so much fun, got so many wonderful ideas and let me tell you, they really know Junior High/Middle School Ministry!!!  It reminded me alot of being at Metro and having the large Root Beer Float in the toilet or the Rain Gutter Ice Cream Sunday parties we used to have!!  

We were extremely exhausted but not time to sleep as we got everything ready to travel for real this time.  A few days after we returned from Irvine we headed out again but this time all the way across the country to the Music Capital of the WORLD, Nashville, TN.  We got to be a part of the Youth Specialties NYWC (National Youth Workers Convention) again and were blessed to see some familiar faces as we shared the Mission Adventures booth.  Youth Specialties, YS, is an amazing source of materials for anything and everything to do with Youth Ministry.  I have owned several of their books from drama sketches, to marketing tools to teaching with movies and everything in between.  I LOVE YS and i LOVE working the exhibit hall at NYWC. This year was no exception.  We talked to so many people I practically lost my voice.  I met with TONS of people from the great state of Alabama as well as people from Belize.  I talked to this one couple and shared my wisdom on random topics all throughout the weekend.  They would come around and ask me for an idea about something and I would immediately spout off a few that came to mind.  They loved the ideas and even asked me if they could sign up for what we were offering.  It was awesome!!  I also got to meet up again with my friends from Believer Bands.  If you have kids you know the craze that is Silly Bands, well some youth pastors from Alabama decided to use this idea to teach people about Jesus.  Check out their website, read their stories, watch their videos.  These guys are amazing and their product has gone CRAZY!!!  This is going to replace the salvation bracelet of old.  I'll write more about these guys later!!