Leavin' on a Jet Plane...Again!

So here's the deal...

God has provided an incredible
opportunity for our family to
share our gifts with an
amazing group of people
overseas!

In May, my daughter and I
are going on a missions trip
to the Dominican Republic
with a goal of seeing thousands
of people make a real connection
to the living Christ through
community outreach and partnership with church planters on the island. The result will be a festival that
shares the Gospel of Jesus with thousands of people who need to know that Jesus cares about them!

Zion and I are preparing for ministry in the capital city of Santo Domingo with several others
from my church, but this is very much a family effort on our part! I have prayerfully
set this time aside because I believe that God can use us dynamically to change
lives through the power of the Gospel alive in us...

...Can you believe with us?

If you have a connection to me personally, I am asking you to
consider partnering with us in two ways.

First, I am asking all of you to pray for us from now until we embark as we are gearing up for
this intense time of ministry. Pray that many would have their lives transformed through God's
grace at work in our team and that we would be safe, strengthened by the Holy Spirit to do
every good thing we are called to accomplish. I would also ask you to pray that God would do
something huge in OUR lives as we go. This will be Zion’s first missions experience!

We are excited for all that God will do IN us and THROUGH us!

Secondly, I believe that many of you would be willing to partner financially with
us to reach our goal of $3,000.00 to pay for our travel expenses.
My family and I want to bear a large portion of
this cost, but I know that some of you understand that when you sow seed into
another person's ministry, you receive a harvest from their work as well.

That is why I am asking each of you reading to
consider a gift of $10, $100 or $1,000 to invest in God's work
for the people of the Dominican Republic.

If you feel led to give to our work in the DR, you can simply send
a check (payable to the Intersection) to me and I will deposit it into an account
at the Intersection. Be sure to write "Missions-DR" in the memo,
but do not write my name directly on the check if you want the gift to
remain tax-deductible. Simply add a post-it with my name with the check
to make sure it gets to me.

You can hand the check directly to me or mail it to the church (address below) with my name
on the front of the envelope or you can give online at intersection.church and click on GIVE.
Then choose “DR Missions” in the drop down options to give securely. It's that simple.

If you give online, please send me a message to let me know you gave to us
so that I can make sure it gets credited to the cost for our trip.

Please consider giving any size donation to help us get there so we can share the love of Christ with people in Santo Domingo!!

Blessings to all of You!!
jeremiah, zion and the whole Herbert Family

The Intersection
c/o Jeremiah Herbert
1980 Baltimore Pike
Gettysburg PA, 17325

Here Comes November!

November brings thankfulness to the forefront as we head into the Holiday season discovering ways to share God’s love with those around us throughout the Holiday season. Regardless of the trials or troubles that may be affecting our lives, we have much to be thankful for. 

I want to encourage you to do 30 days of thankfulness throughout the month of November and beyond. Post pictures on social media and share God’s goodness in your life with others. Spend time with a friend over coffee and express the amazing things God continues to do for you. Let’s create value in every opportunity where we can share God’s love with family, friends or even a stranger. 

We allow God to create connection with others when we create paths for the Holy Spirit to operate and work through us. Let’s be a blessing to everyone we meet this season! From the Walmart worker to the grocery attendant and even those we know and call family, tell them how important they are to God.  

Let God give you an attitude of gratitude this Holiday season!

jeremiah

What God CAN'T do.

FAITH.

It's a mysterious thing for so many. For others, it is a well studied language that seems to move their lives forward in ways they never imagined even for themselves.

I move and live in faith...MOST of the time. I believe God for things I can't see because I believe HE sees them for me. I have to. It's part of the gig, right? What good is a pastor without faith?

I have believed God for things that seemed unreasonably unattainable at the time and have seen Him come through for me, my family and my church time and time again. In fact, I am starting a 7-week sermon series on FAITH this Sunday at church! I am always working to grow in my faith just like I want to grow in my ability to love or forgive.

But, want to know a secret? I still have doubts. I wrestle with faith. Just like you, I feel my faith waver from time to time. 

Why? Because like ANYONE who believes God repeatedly for healing, miracles and vision for the future, there have been times when I have believed God...in faith...for something, but He didn't answer me.

He didn't show up like I expected Him to.

This leaves any reasonable person with a shadow of doubt. In time, several of these experiences pile up on our faith and leave our confidence in our prayer life or ability to hear God...well, shaken.

For many people, too many faith failures lead to a lack of confidence in God, not just their faith.

So what do you do with that?

In Isaiah 7 there is the story of Ahaz, king of Judah. He ruled in a time of great distress for God's people and the account in chapter 7 tells us that Judah had a pretty good reason for distress. The kings of neighboring countries had taken up arms against them and were on there way to blow Judah away for good. The king and all the people had been asking God for help, but they hadn't seen it the way they expected it to come. So naturally when he got the news, King Ahaz flipped out (along with ALL of Jerusalem) over this bad news.

God tells the prophet Isaiah to find King Ahaz and deliver the message that God would fight their battle and destroy the enemy that had mobilized against them, so don't worry about it!

He also says something that completely rocked me...to. the. core. Isaiah says,

"Unless your faith is firm, I cannot make you stand firm." (Isaiah ch.7 vs. 9)

WHAT?!? Did you catch that?

However you read that, Isaiah is saying that neither the prophet or God Himself could help Ahaz stand firm if his faith was firm.

So did Isaiah just answer the question about God making a rock so big even HE can't lift it?

More importantly, what are we to do when our faith is well...shaken?

To be honest, I know the religious answers or the pat answers that Peter Pan faith people will fling around to bolster their faith when they don't get the job they want or they can't find a parking spot close to the door after they asked God for one.

Honestly, I've thrown those verses around too. I won't offer glossy throw pillow scriptures or theological-blanket-fortress kinds of responses to great questions of faith and doubt.

What I will do is offer what God is showing me about faith because, well...my faith has been shaken. Not a while back, either. I have led people to faith while my own faith was under attack. I want to be transparent. I want to be honest because I believe you deserve that honesty.

I also believe that the only way to help others is to be honest about my own experiences. God has shown me so much and I can't wait to share it with you!

Until I do,

I wonder if any of you have had your faith shaken?

What did it do to your prayer life or relationship with God?

Are you talking to God about it or have you written Him off?

Do you believe that your faith can ever stand firm again?
Leave a comment and share your story! You never know how others might benefit from knowing that they are not alone with matters of faith and doubt!

jeremiah