Dear Friends of The Father’s Love Int’l Ministries,
All week I have been searching for what to say and how to encourage you in this coming year. Today, as I was unloading groceries, I had the sense to look and see what the Lord said last year in closing out 2019 and going into 2020. I was truly blessed to revisit this encounter with the Lord! What He showed me, as well as what He said, brought me great comfort. I pray it does the same for you.
Blessings,
Judy

Jewels from Judy: Waiting for Orders

As of late, I’ve had to wrestle to “be still” in order to settle my mind when seeking the Lord. Honestly, the distractions have been overwhelming, and I’ve felt that I must be a disappointment to God. A couple of days ago, I asked the Father in prayer how to deal with not only my attitude but the continual disruptions (internally as well as externally) while waiting to receive His direction.

I closed my eyes as I prayed and suddenly got a picture of myself on a beach. No one else was around. I threw a rock into the ocean, then sat down and hung my head in discouragement. I felt the Lord’s comforting arm come around me and He said, “Sometimes waiting for the Father’s orders can be stressful, even vexing.” I sensed His kind, compassionate eyes upon me and knew He wouldn’t try to placate me or say that everything is fine the way it is – because it isn’t! I knew that Jesus, by His Spirit, would tell me what I needed to hear.

The Scriptures tell us that Jesus also had to wait, and I imagine it would have been frustrating for Him too, so I asked, “How did you deal with it, Lord?”
He simply stated, “I had a lot of hidden years. Abba Father will wait for at least these two reasons: His perfect timing and your preparation. The prep work is the most important thing you can do as you wait. If it is not done correctly, then the project fails.”

I thought about prep work for a meal or a home-fix-it project. Preparation usually takes the longest time for either, but it is vital to a successful outcome. I also thought about the five foolish virgins in Matthew 25 that failed to prepare for the anticipated bridegroom. Because they hadn’t invested in what was needed, the door to the kingdom was closed to them! The Lord allows me to ponder these scenarios before continuing.

“You are in a different season in life, so don’t get down on yourself that things are not like they once were. I am not upset or disappointed in you. There were some doors of opportunity that you missed, but I am not disappointed in you. Do not allow yourself to be discouraged by the season you are in now. It has been a season of disjointedness for many, but that is ending. Seasons change, and just like in the natural where there are physical signs of that occurring, there are also signs when there are spiritual shifts.” He then prompts me saying, “Come on, I have something to show you!”

I stand up and brush the sand off my clothes and the Lord points and directs my attention up the beach. He asks, “Do you see that?” I squint and ask Him if He means the birds, but He instructs me to look past them. Unfortunately, I don’t see anything but fog, the beach, and the sandpipers running to avoid the waves. We walk in the direction He pointed and suddenly, the tip of a cargo ship begins to come out of the fog and into view! It looks to be traveling toward a nearby harbor.

The Lord explains, “Be encouraged! The cargo this ship carries is provision for My church (ekklesia). Long-awaited provision is coming in and with it a plan for reformation. The Body is disjointed in many ways. That is what you have been sensing and experiencing. It’s painful! It has been a season of disjointedness, but that season is coming to a close. Often, seasonal changes linger like the warm days in fall and winter and the cold days of spring and summer. Sometimes changes are abrupt, but most times there are subtle changes like the position of the sun as the seasons change or watching the hour hand on a clock move. It can be unperceivable like watching hair grow. In time, you do see a big change, but the change itself is a slow process. You will look back on this season and say, ‘I didn’t realize just how much was going on, but now I see it!’”

The large ship is now in full view, and I see it is moored and workers are bustling around unloading the cargo. I understand that it is the Lord’s good pleasure to give us the provision needed (the tools, the resources, other believers to gather around one another) to complete the tasks He’s given us. ~

I pray this short encounter blesses and encourages you.

In the Father’s Love
Judy A Bauman

If this ministry has been a blessing to you, please consider us in your giving. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration.
https://thefathersloveim.org/donate

Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”  Amen. ~

~
Other Scriptures to ponder:
Galatians 4:4; Luke 2:42, 49; 3:23; Hebrews 4:15, Romans 5:3-5; 1 Peter 1:6-8; James 1:2-5

~

It just dawned on me that today is the 25th Anniversary of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. I lived in Tulsa at the time of this terrible tragedy, and three weeks after the bombing I went to help at the YMCA across from it.  There was something that I saw which compelled me to write and tell its story (linked below). This is also the first published article I wrote. It seems to speak into what we are going through now in some way.

I do ask that you stop and pray for the families who lost loved ones...particularly those that lost children in the nursery. 

Blessings in the Father's Love, 
Judy A Bauman

http://thefathersloveim.org/jewels_from_judy_blog/view/2137/an_unlikely_monument

Dear Friends of The Father’s Love Int’l Ministries,

As my husband would say, “If it weren’t for the last minute, nothing would get done,” and that is exactly how it’s been to send out this year’s contribution receipts! It didn’t help that I’ve been fighting a hacking cough and had developed a fever. I had put a prayer request out on Facebook last night and was so blessed to see the number of people who wrote to say they were praying. There was good advice as many friends warned not to wait to see a doctor. They had made that mistake and suffered for it!

I decided to sign up for a video doctor’s call through my new Medishare program and had my first online doctor’s appointment. I loved it! I was in and out in minutes! Haha! 😊
No doubt, the prayers and meds are working together, as I was able to sit long enough to get the receipts sent. I’m so thankful to be already feeling better.

If you gave a donation in 2019 and did not get an emailed receipt, or if it is incorrect, please let me know as soon as possible and I will rectify it. It is my hope that we will continue doing the work of the ministry together in 2020. There is something special God is doing in our day, and I believe being prepared for it is going to be essential.

Many blessings to you in the Father’s love,
Judy A Bauman

So rend your heart, and not your garments;

Return to the Lord your God,

For He is gracious and merciful,

Slow to anger, and of great kindness;

And He relents from doing harm.
Joel 2:13

www.thefathersloveim.org

Do You Remember Where You Were On This Date 18 Years Ago?

Judy A Bauman

It was 18 years ago today that I was awoke by a phone call from one of the most vivid and horrific dreams I've ever had. It was of being an eyewitness to a terrible accident of a tanker truck. I can still see the man's face as his truck caught fire and smashed into a gas station! In the dream, I ran across the street to the 4th house (the first three had no chance) and pounded on the door and yelled for them to get out of the house. That's when I woke up to the phone ringing. A very good friend was calling me to chat (she had not turned on the news that day). I didn't know my husband had been trying to call the whole hour we talked. When he finally got through, he said, "Our country is under attack! Turn on the news!" He told me two planes had hit the WTC and I was thinking small airplane not jets. Like everyone else, I watched in complete shock and dismay!

After seeing the disturbing news, I called the high school my children attended and asked if I could come get them. From there we went to church where people had spontaneously gathered. That was where the Lord let me know there were martyrs on the unaccounted-for plane. I fell to the floor and wept. Once I could get back up, I told the others there and we prayed for their families because I knew they had already died.

I watched the news continually for 2 more days and saw something they Lord made clear. I knew I needed to get to NYC but had no clue how or what I would do once I got there. Though my husband was not happy with the prospect, the Lord opened the doors for me to help at the Family Assistance Center and dorm housing was provided. 11 days later, on September 22, 2001, I found myself walking around Ground Zero. The fires were still burning... 😢

I have written both long and short testimonies of my time there. The first link is to the short version I shared last year. I pray it blesses you.
https://thefathersloveim.org/jewels_from_judy_blog/view/2331/where_was_god_on_9_11_


The testimony with more details can be found here:
https://thefathersloveim.org/jewels_from_judy_blog/view/2128/will_we_remember__or_have_we_already_forgotten_

Many Blessings in the Father’s Love,

Judy A Bauman
 

December 2018 Update!

It is my hope that this update finds you well and at peace after the Christmas rush. As a child, I used to feel sad when it was over, but now I feel relieved! Funny how our perspective changes with time.

Though it has been a quiet year for the ministry in many respects, it has not been a year without significance.

1. Early in February, my second book was published, remarkably, on the anniversary of my dad’s passing. It was a wonderful and victorious gift of God because I submitted it in November 2017!

Jewels from the Harvest - Sound the Trumpet the Fields are Ripe is now available through my website, Xulon, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iBook.

2. Though I had continued taking mission trips at the Lord’s leading, in 2008 I began experiencing increasingly painful arthritic issues in multiple joints. This made travel in ministry difficult, but not impossible. By 2012, the pain levels had become much worse. In 2014, a doctor tried to convince me that I needed a three-level back fusion, but I did not have peace about this option. (A second opinion confirmed it would not have helped because it was not actually the primary area of pain.)

This past June, after years of prayer, chiropractic care, physical therapy, and other treatments, I had a dream that led me to an orthopedic doctor with Regenexx. I did a lot of research before my husband and I agreed this was the specific route I was to take. In October, I had multiple areas treated with my own PRP (plasma rich platelets) as well as stem cells taken from my hipbone marrow. Areas treated included my neck (C-5 to C-7), right shoulder, my low back (L-4 to L-5 to Sacrum) and SI Joint (the sacroiliac joint connects the back of the hip to the spine); both knees (my left actually had bruising in the bone), and both ankles. After two and a half months of recovery, I am pleased to report that this has been an effective treatment. It is not that I am totally out of pain, but I am in much less pain and can do things I haven’t been able to do in years. The doctor reports that most patients see the greatest improvement after 3 months, so I am looking forward to that!

3. Two weeks after my treatments, my husband and I laid eyes on our first grandchild, Anthony Dean! Our daughter, her husband, and the baby stayed with us two weeks while mommy recovered. It was a very special time to bond with this baby boy, and it is such a blessing that he knows his grandparents! Now that I am a bit more mobile, I hope to be able to do many things in the days to come, both with him and in the ministry.

THE FATHER’S LOVE IS DEVELOPING THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT!

I believe 2019 is a year that the Father is focusing on developing the FRUIT of the Spirit in His Body. There is more to share on this, but I know it is a year to ASK the Father and not give up asking, seek and keep seeking, knock and be relentless! I pray we allow God to train us so that we may reap the peaceable fruit of righteousness as well as reaping a harvest. Amen!

Lastly, I need your help. Not only in prayer for direction and clarity, but it is my hope that five of you will stand with me in 2019 with a monthly donation of $10. That is the small amount needed to keep the website and 501c3 (tax-deductible credentials) current.  If you feel you are to help me, please click the donate button at the top of the home page at www.thefathersloveim.org. Thank you for your kind consideration in this matter.

I pray this 2019 New Year will prove to be one that the Lord develops lasting fruit in you and that we will be able to share the Good News of God’s love to the nations!
 

In the Father’s love,

Judy A Bauman

(To find me on Facebook, where I share many short exhortations, look for me through the email thefatherslove@yahoo.com. Thank you! )

Mission News August 2016

It has been a long time since I have written you all. Sometimes when we wait to see what God will say, He will test our resolve! Habakkuk 2:3 comes to mind:
 

“For the vision is yet for the appointed time;
It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
For it will certainly come, it will not delay.” (NASV)

Recently, I told a friend that I feel like I am just coming out of a very long, cold winter. It’s so hot in Atlanta right now, it seems a strange analogy, but often things in the spirit are not at all like they are in the natural.

One big change for the ministry that I want to bring to your attention is that we have updated our website. So please check it out. www.thefathersloveim.org
My posts will be in blog form now. In fact, Make It Loud Web Designs, the company that built the site in 2005, have converted all my posts into blog form. (This was a little scary for me...) There are still some edits to be made here and there, but I will have to do that in time. Some of the photos and links are ‘broken’ and I will fix those as I come across them. This is ‘blog-thing’ is new to me so please be patient.

One things I do want to report (on the Mission side of things) is that the water well we raised funds in partnership with Riverstone Church has been built in India! Thank you so much for your part in it. Can you imagine? I am so excited that a whole village has water this summer because we linked arms and made it happen! You can find its location here: 

Please keep this ministry in mind in your prayers. Thanks

In the Father’s love,

Judy A Bauman