Nora & I want to wish all of you a very Christ filled holiday celebration of our dear Saviors birth with your family & friends. As we all know, "Jesus is the reason for this season"! It is HIM we celebrate and the gift HE has provided to all of us who have accepted Jesus as our personal Lord & Savior.To HIM be the glory, both now, and forever!
We have been experiencing some wonderful opportunities this past week as we have seen Jesus continue to be faithful to us over & over again in so many different wonderful ways.Today, we were blessed to attend the wedding ceremony of a precious couple from our fellowship at CCMB, Jeremiah Cheatum and Angela Park who have been in our fellowship for about 2 - 3 years. We have seen our Lord bring them together to become one flesh in Jesus Christ and they made their covenant with each other for the rest of their lives to love & cherish each other, forsaking all others,& making Jesus Christ the center of their lives and marriage. The ceremony was absolutely outstanding, a most beautiful bride and a very handsome groom, but most of all seeing first hand their love for each other and their total commitment to Jesus Christ. My good friend and former Senior Pastor, Bill Holdridge, performed the ceremony and as usual did a masterful presentation of the sanctity of a marriage commitment, as they made their vows before God and the witnesses in attendance.
New news, we have now booked our flight to Africa and will be leaving from San Francisco on Monday January 26, 2009, flying to South Africa to visit our friends and fellow colleagues there, before traveling on to Malawi.The time is rapidly passing us by, with the holidays before us, then to the Missions Conference at the CC Bible College, visiting additional churches and friends in Southern California before returning to Monterey to wrap up the last of the details necessary to allow us to depart on 1-26-09.
Our fund raising is going well as we are approximately 75% completed for 2009, so please keep praying for God's provision for us. We desire to focus entirely on the ministry duties prior to departure. We are also waiting for the Malawi Embassy in Washington D.C. to respond to our inquiry regarding obtaining all the required documentation to allow us to obtain an extended multiple entry visa's. As Americans, we are allow to go and stay up to six months without any visa, but our plans are for us to live there and to come home every 12-18 months over the next 3-5 years, so this presents a different need for the visa's.
We wish to thank each of you who have already given sacrificially to our ministry efforts for Malawi, words cannot possibly express properly how much your love & support has meant to us as we have stepped out in faith to follow HIS call on our lives! You are are a vital part of this work to be done in Malawi,as you hold the rope on this side of the world as we become your eyes, hands, legs,& ears, as we listen to God's sweet voice as to what HE desires us to do upon our arrival. We think we have a handle, but we also know we know very little, so we desire to be led by HIS Holy Spirit in all we attempt to accomplish in HIS name.
May our Lord bless you all real good and always remember, HE is God and we are not!! Let us be the Ephesians 3:20 Christians who truly believe HIM to do "exceedingly, abundantly above all we can ask, think, or imagine, by the spirit that dwells in us."
Steve & Nora
Steve & Nora
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Update as of 12-9-08
It has been a very full two weeks since we last updated all of you, and there is still so much be be accomplished. Our support continues to come in and we are about 74% funded at this time and our goal is to be fully funded by 12-20-08. So please continue to pray for us in this arena as well as getting all the rest of the details accomplished before 1-15-09.
Nora & I both have been extremely blessed by the warm responses we have received, both from those at our local church(CCMB), as well as many other churches we have had the honor of sharing about our ministry to Malawi Africa. God is just blowing our minds as HE opens doors no man can open and HE keeps reassuring us that we are in the center of HIS will! God is so good to us and we truly are blessed by all of HIS people.
The Compassion Pregnancy of the Monterey Peninsula, where Nora has served the past 25years, gave her a going away celebration this past week. It was so good to see and fellowship with so many people who have served at the CPC over the past years as well as those serving today. It seems to very hard to realize that Nora will not be an active part of this ministry since she has been involved since its inception.... but God! Thank you Debbie Jones, Terrie Bennett, and the entire volunteer staff for your love and support all these many years. We will miss you a lot, but plan on keeping in touch by e-mail & skype.
We want to wish all of you a very blessed Merry Christ mas and an extremely Happy New Year. We will be in our prayers and please keep us in yours.
Steve & Nora Braselton
Nora & I both have been extremely blessed by the warm responses we have received, both from those at our local church(CCMB), as well as many other churches we have had the honor of sharing about our ministry to Malawi Africa. God is just blowing our minds as HE opens doors no man can open and HE keeps reassuring us that we are in the center of HIS will! God is so good to us and we truly are blessed by all of HIS people.
The Compassion Pregnancy of the Monterey Peninsula, where Nora has served the past 25years, gave her a going away celebration this past week. It was so good to see and fellowship with so many people who have served at the CPC over the past years as well as those serving today. It seems to very hard to realize that Nora will not be an active part of this ministry since she has been involved since its inception.... but God! Thank you Debbie Jones, Terrie Bennett, and the entire volunteer staff for your love and support all these many years. We will miss you a lot, but plan on keeping in touch by e-mail & skype.
We want to wish all of you a very blessed Merry Christ mas and an extremely Happy New Year. We will be in our prayers and please keep us in yours.
Steve & Nora Braselton
Friday, November 28, 2008
How To Be involved
The work in Malawi Africa is an on-going ministry that will not be completed in our lifetime, but we all can be a part of what our Lord desires to accomplish to bless the saints there in a poverty stricken society. Each day there are so many people dying out of starvation, Aids/HIV. Malaria, lack of clothing, proper health care, education, and find themselves dealing with hopelessness due to no apparent hope for the future.
We can do our part by reaching out to assist in the process of sharing God's love to them, teaching more in depth the work of God with & to local Pastors & church leaders, so they may instruct their fellowships for the work of the ministry, along with meeting some of the physical needs of daily living necessities like food, blankets, wood to cook with and in some cases, providing a literacy program to widows and orphans who find themselves without the ability to compete in the limited business market place found in so many villages and communities
If you would like more information on specifics, please contact us at http://www.roadtomalawi.blogspot.com/ or snb097@aol.com and our telephone numbers are (831) 422-8579 & (831) 277-2244. These telephone numbers are good through January 2009 as we will departing for Malawi. Your love gifts and all tax deductible donations can be forwarded to Calvary Chapel Monterey Bay located at 3001 Monterey-Salinas Highway, Monterey, Ca. 93940 with a notation funds are for the Malawi Outreach. The telephone number at Calvary Chapel is (831) 649-1158
We also have a short video presentation (2 minutes 12 seconds) that can be viewed on www.GodTube.com for those who would like to see a brief overview of our ministry in & around Lilongwe, Malawi Africa.Thank you for your prayers & financial support as we team together to reach more for the kingdom of God.
We can do our part by reaching out to assist in the process of sharing God's love to them, teaching more in depth the work of God with & to local Pastors & church leaders, so they may instruct their fellowships for the work of the ministry, along with meeting some of the physical needs of daily living necessities like food, blankets, wood to cook with and in some cases, providing a literacy program to widows and orphans who find themselves without the ability to compete in the limited business market place found in so many villages and communities
If you would like more information on specifics, please contact us at http://www.roadtomalawi.blogspot.com/ or snb097@aol.com and our telephone numbers are (831) 422-8579 & (831) 277-2244. These telephone numbers are good through January 2009 as we will departing for Malawi. Your love gifts and all tax deductible donations can be forwarded to Calvary Chapel Monterey Bay located at 3001 Monterey-Salinas Highway, Monterey, Ca. 93940 with a notation funds are for the Malawi Outreach. The telephone number at Calvary Chapel is (831) 649-1158
We also have a short video presentation (2 minutes 12 seconds) that can be viewed on www.GodTube.com for those who would like to see a brief overview of our ministry in & around Lilongwe, Malawi Africa.Thank you for your prayers & financial support as we team together to reach more for the kingdom of God.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
On the road update from San Diego, Ca.
11-20-08
Nora & I have been on the road this whole week visiting churches & friends. From Salinas, Ca. to Riverside with Pastor Jeff Lassiegne of Harvest Fellowship; to Costa Mesa Ca. with Pastor Brian Broderson of CC Costa Mesa & our dear friends the Boyer's; to El Cajon, Ca. with Craig Caster of Family Support Foundation; to Mission Valley Fellowship with Pastor Skip Joannes; to Horizon Fellowship with Pastor Mickey. We also had the joy of being with our nephew Ross Grano & his family in Rancho Bernardo, Ca.
We leave today to attempt to visit with Dan Finfrock of Intensive Care Ministries in Redlands along with our very good friends Clarence & Nylinda Taylor. Then to CC Modesto and following going home for Nora to attend the Ruth's Shawl retreat for the their Board of Directors. Please continue to hold us in prayer as we prepare for our departure to Malawi by mid- January.
Nora & I have been on the road this whole week visiting churches & friends. From Salinas, Ca. to Riverside with Pastor Jeff Lassiegne of Harvest Fellowship; to Costa Mesa Ca. with Pastor Brian Broderson of CC Costa Mesa & our dear friends the Boyer's; to El Cajon, Ca. with Craig Caster of Family Support Foundation; to Mission Valley Fellowship with Pastor Skip Joannes; to Horizon Fellowship with Pastor Mickey. We also had the joy of being with our nephew Ross Grano & his family in Rancho Bernardo, Ca.
We leave today to attempt to visit with Dan Finfrock of Intensive Care Ministries in Redlands along with our very good friends Clarence & Nylinda Taylor. Then to CC Modesto and following going home for Nora to attend the Ruth's Shawl retreat for the their Board of Directors. Please continue to hold us in prayer as we prepare for our departure to Malawi by mid- January.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
11-6-08 update
Nora & I just wanted to take a few moments to update where we are on our preparations to leave for Malawi. We have been busily getting our support letters ready to be sent out to family & friends, getting this blog spot location up & running, as well as visiting a number of churches sharing about the Malawi Outreach Ministry to raise prayer & financial support. We have been truly blessed by the reception we have been receiving and the encouragement that we are on the right track as we follow the Holy Spirit's leading.
With the holidays just around the corner, and time seems to be rapidly fleeting by us, please continue to pray that the Lord will give the time & energy to complete all that needs to be done before we depart in mid- January 2009. We are still attempting to sell both of our vehicles and our Timeshare in Newport Beach, Ca. along with wrapping up all the details with visa's, what do we take with us, and of course, having our son Tom & his family moving into our home so they are able to take over the care of Nora's 90 year old mother. I never fully realized all that is involved in making a transition such as this!
With that being stated, we are both getting more excited about this new chapter in our lives, and we cannot wait until we are on the ground in Lilongwe, Malawi, Africa. Our brothers & sisters in Malawi are likewise excited about our arrival and are eager to be able to get started in the Pastoral Training & Discipleship School along with continuing the work already in place working with the widows & orphans in area 44.
We will be trying to keep this blog more current over the next few weeks, so all of you can be praying for us with specific prayer requests. If any of you have any thoughts, suggestions, or revelations from the Lord, plaese contact us on this blog spot or call us at (831) 422-8579 and our e-mail address is snb097@aol.com May our Lord bless you all as you serve HIM.
Steve & Nora
With the holidays just around the corner, and time seems to be rapidly fleeting by us, please continue to pray that the Lord will give the time & energy to complete all that needs to be done before we depart in mid- January 2009. We are still attempting to sell both of our vehicles and our Timeshare in Newport Beach, Ca. along with wrapping up all the details with visa's, what do we take with us, and of course, having our son Tom & his family moving into our home so they are able to take over the care of Nora's 90 year old mother. I never fully realized all that is involved in making a transition such as this!
With that being stated, we are both getting more excited about this new chapter in our lives, and we cannot wait until we are on the ground in Lilongwe, Malawi, Africa. Our brothers & sisters in Malawi are likewise excited about our arrival and are eager to be able to get started in the Pastoral Training & Discipleship School along with continuing the work already in place working with the widows & orphans in area 44.
We will be trying to keep this blog more current over the next few weeks, so all of you can be praying for us with specific prayer requests. If any of you have any thoughts, suggestions, or revelations from the Lord, plaese contact us on this blog spot or call us at (831) 422-8579 and our e-mail address is snb097@aol.com May our Lord bless you all as you serve HIM.
Steve & Nora
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Welcome
We are still working on getting things set up for this blog, but as I know that Pastor Steve is giving out this address I thought I should go ahead and post the first entry. The purpose of this blog is to provide a convenient way of keeping everyone updated on what is going on with Steve and Nora and their call to Malawi. At this time they are planning on leaving mid January.
Please do keep them in your prayers. Here are a few things you can pray about:
1. Getting things in order for leaving - so much to do!
2. Finances - God's provision of needed financial support
3. Good health
4. Sale of Condo
3. Safety as they travel visiting Calvary Chapel's
4. Preparation of Steve and Nora for the ministry in the culture of Malawi
5. Prepare the hearts in Malawi for the training
In Christ,
Laurie Bliss
Please do keep them in your prayers. Here are a few things you can pray about:
1. Getting things in order for leaving - so much to do!
2. Finances - God's provision of needed financial support
3. Good health
4. Sale of Condo
3. Safety as they travel visiting Calvary Chapel's
4. Preparation of Steve and Nora for the ministry in the culture of Malawi
5. Prepare the hearts in Malawi for the training
In Christ,
Laurie Bliss
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