CHANGE OF PLANS 2013

Life sure has some unexpected twists and turns!  Most of you know that we have been preparing to move to Mozambique for the last few months. We are writing to fill you in on a pretty big change in our plans:  We are no longer going to Mozambique!  And we are going somewhere else…

What Happened?

So, what happened? After deciding to move to Mozambique, the iReachAfrica board (whose members all live in Africa) established some vaccination policies.  We made the choice to not vaccinate our kids several years ago when Judah was born, so we had to decide whether our position on vaccines would change in light of moving from a first world nation to a developing nation. After several weeks of intensive research and prayer, we felt that our position was the same as before, and that our conviction to not vaccinate grew even stronger.  This conviction was based mostly on evidence about the harm vaccines cause, and the lack of scientific and empirical evidence that they are truly effective.  We have chosen a more natural route for keeping our family healthy and preventing disease.  We had some dialogue back and forth with the board and in the end we felt that we could not go against our conviction on this and they also felt like they could not make any “exemptions” from their policy.  Our end goal is the same: health and safety, but the way we “get to that place” is different. Regardless of your thoughts on this issue, I’m sure we can all agree on the fact that each family needs to do what they believe is the best for their kids and not violate their peace, no matter how amazing the opportunity is that is at stake. Tracy and her board members who we were processing through this issue with were all amazing! They were honoring and respectful towards us and we honor and respect them as well.  We will continue to stay in touch with them, pray for them and support them however we can.  

But, What do you do When “God Said?”

The most challenging thing to work through for us initially was the fact that we felt like God was so clearly leading us towards Mozambique and specifically this ministry.  We had an amazing visit with Tracy recently where she shared some experiences in her life in which she felt clearly led in one direction and then the doors closed.  Even the apostle Paul had a “not so clear cut” journey… he would feel led to one place and then would be redirected!  The beautiful thing in moments like these is that there ARE some absolutes…  some things that we know for sure, even when other things don’t makes sense.  We know that God always brings good out of every situation.  We know that He has GOOD plans for us to give us a hope and a future! One thing we have experienced without a doubt is that God has been SOOOO incredibly present with us in “the process” and that the things we have learned and gleaned have been invaluable.  We know that in situations where there are “unanswered” questions we have the opportunity to learn to trust God in ways that we wouldn’t if everything made sense and was going according to plan.  We know that we could be disappointed and confused but we feel more “hope filled” and alive than ever before! We still believe that God has spoken to us about serving in Africa at some point, but for the immediate future- some other plans are unfolding...

What Now?. . . .Oregon Here We Come!

Several weeks ago, as we began to realize that the door to serving in Mozambique would likely be closing, we started dreaming of what else the Lord could have in store for us.  We felt that our decision to move overseas got our “ship moving” and the desire of our heart was to still be able to pursue more intentional “ministry” as a family.  As we have said for years, who we partner with is a greater priority to us than what we do or where we do it.  The kingdom of God looks like family!  The Jarvis family (Joben & Mica along with their 3 amazing kids) are a family that we have known and been close to for years.  They have grown up, lived, served and been influential leaders in the Eugene / Springfield area for many years and have a huge heart to see God move in that community!  One of the “options” that has been on the table for quite some time now is to move back to that area (which is actually where Aaron is from) and partner with them and what God is doing!  This was actually something we were seriously considering around the same time we decided to move to Mozambique.  The Jarvis family moved down to Redding a couple of years ago and Joben will soon be graduating from the 2^nd year of the School of Ministry at our church.  They will be returning to Eugene this summer and we have decided to join them on this adventure!  We all have “big vision” for what life and ministry could look like there but are starting by laying a foundation of prayer, asking God for the specific steps to take and the “blueprint” of what He wants to do in that area.  It is likely that this could result in a church plant, school of ministry or equipping center (or all of the above). Our desire is to see a move of God in that region, through the whole church, not just through one group of believers, and we will work and pray towards that end. What we know for sure, is that everything we do will be built from a place of covenant relationship, seeking God through prayer and moving in His timing, enabled by his grace.  

Joben and Mica Jarvis ARE AWESOME!

What About Bethel?

As you know, our desire since coming to Redding was to partner and be “sent out” by Bethel.  Though Bethel is not currently “planting churches” in the USA, we will continue to stay in relationship with staff and friends we have been connected with.  We have kept doors open with the mission’s pastors and other friends in regards to future opportunities to serve overseas as we still believe this is part of our future!  We trust that the right doors will open in God’s perfect timing.  We also believe that when we go we will be better equipped through the experience we will gain in Oregon in this season!  We know that Bethel Church will always be “family” and that our paths will continue to cross with those we have gotten to know from that body. 

Staying in Touch!

Some of you received our Africa support letter- and many of you gave us your address but never received one since we stopped mailing them when our plans became uncertain. For those who felt led to pray for us on our Mozambique adventure, we will still take you up on that for our ministry in Oregon!!!  We are embarking on a journey with a lot of variables and unknowns, so your prayers on our behalf are invaluable.  If you already received our family prayer card feel free to cross off “Mozambique” and write in “Oregon”- ha ha!  A few people have asked us if there is a way of still receiving tax deductions if they want to sow into our lives and ministry in Oregon.  At the moment, we have no way of doing this.  Sorry! We will likely be moving around July or August.  Since our desire is to spend as much time as possible pouring into people and serving the community, we would like to keep our costs low and find flexible, good paying work.  If you are from the Eugene area and know of any low rent situations or trading work for rent, let us know! Or, if you have any job leads (for Aaron) or shops/boutiques that may be able to sell Crystal’s jewelry, baby headbands and other creations let us know!  For all our friends and family in the great state of Oregon- we look forward to being closer!!!  The best way to “follow” our journey is the same as before- to sign up to get our blog updates. We hope that you all are doing well and that you are growing, learning and thriving as you journey through life!  It’s amazing to serve a God who is so trustworthy and good! 

With much love,

Aaron, Crystal, Judah & Ciella

Raw, Healthy Chocolate - Are you Serious???

I have been wanting to start a blog specifically for all of my random “domestic” adventures but it hasn’t happened yet, so I am posting this here… if you signed up for our blog to hear about our family adventures and deep, spiritual insights (ha, ha) then you can skip this one.  But, if the title roped you in then keep reading.  You will not be disappointed. 

Several years ago the Lord told me very clearly to fast from refined sugar for a year.  Long story, but I knew it was not a thought I came up with and I didn’t even want to tell Aaron at first because I didn’t want to be held accountable to it.  (Ok, I confessed it!)  But I did, and he joined me on this fast.  I knew that sugar was an “addiction” in my life, and I broke free of it in that year.  It was amazing!  Since then, I have gone back and forth between fasting from it and trying to do moderation.  For me, it’s often easiest to just fast from it and “get it out of my system”.  I feel better and lose my cravings for it after a few days.  BUT, I still LOVE chocolate! Recently, my friend shared her chocolate recipe with me and I have been experimenting with it since then.  It is SO simple and the ingredients all have health benefits! And, get this… there is no sugar or butter in it! So, what IS in it? Raw honey, coconut oil, cocoa and almond flour (or almond butter)! Seriously? Yep.  And it’s DELICIOUS.  Now, don’t get me wrong.  I’m not saying this isn’t fattening and to be eaten in large quantities but it’s an amazing “treat” that you can feel pretty guilt free about. 

Here’s the basic recipe:

½ cup organic coconut oil

½ cup almond flour (or almond butter)

½ cup cocoa powder

¼ cup raw honey (creamy/solid form)

pinch of salt (optional)

Variations:

1-2 drops peppermint essential oil

grated coconut (you decide how much!)

Whatever else you can think of! (Chopped nuts, dried fruit… whatever!)

1)    Mix all ingredients together with a fork till smooth (get all the honey lumps out)

2)    Pour into mini baking cups, candy molds or pour on a piece of parchment paper

3)    Refrigerate! They should be ready in less than half an hour (depending how thick you pour them).  If you just pour it on parchment paper you can break them into pieces.  I always store them and eat them straight from the fridge as they melt quicker than other chocolate… ENJOY!!!

To Possess or be Possessed? That is the Question...

I remember the day I (Crystal) took almost all of my worldly possessions to the thrift store. My family still refers to it as the “great purge.”  It was great! I could fit everything else I owned in my car… plus passengers! At that time, I was in my first year of college. Although I had known God “my whole life” there was a fresh hunger that rose up in me so seek him more intentionally and I began to spend more time in his presence – devouring his word and praying.  I also began to form some new friendships with people that had more radical outward expressions of their faith.  We would read about past mystics and desert fathers who rid themselves of all their worldly possessions, moved out to the desert, sought the face of God and came back full of the spirit.  If it worked for them, it should work for me, right? I also shaved my head and destroyed all of my make up; just to be sure that vanity would not be a distraction!  Of course, I don’t think everyone needs to do these things, and I don’t even believe the Lord required it of me, but it was my simple expression of devotion to the Lord and I think it probably put a smile on His face.  Mostly because He saw my heart and my desire for Him through these actions.  The not so good part of this season was the judgements that can creep in of others in regards to how they handle material things.  I remember at one point a friend of mine could not figure out how a fellow peer (who was a worship leader and devoted Christian) could really love the Lord and have such a nice car!

Fast forward several years and I was in Mozambique, Africa living on a very crowded missions base.  I was living in a simple dorm room with about 35 other women.  We were surrounded by dirt & poverty.  I had been there several days when I caught wind of a rumor that there was internet access down the road at the “Pemba Beach Hotel”.  It didn’t take long before I made my way down the road to check it out! I arrived and what I saw took my breath away.  Marble pillars, water fountains, clear pools overflowing into the ocean, beautiful gardens… only this time instead of responding in anger that someone could spend so much money on a 5 star hotel in the midst of a poor community, I was overcome by the beauty of it all! I walked in and literally began to weep! I felt the Holy Spirit washing over me and refreshing me in deep ways- just by what my eyes were beholding.  Then, He began to speak to me about how He is a God of beauty! He cared about the details of how the temple was made in the Old Testament, and as you know it was no cheaply made structure! He has also created a place for us that would put any 5 star Hotel to shame with its streets of gold and pearl gates!  I began to realize that God is in simplicity and God is in extravagant beauty and even nice things! What matters the most is what is in our hearts… are we simply enjoying what God has blessed us with or is our “desire to acquire” distracting us from the things that are most important in life (God and people!) Do we possess things or do they possess us?  I still prefer to keep my life pretty simple and I do purge or fast from things from time to time to regain focus but it’s refreshing to know that my appreciation for beauty and quality is God given and not something I have to fight or do away with.  As I look around at God’s creation I’m certainly thankful that He made the world and not the ascetics that I studied in college! So while I keep the kingdom first, loving God and those around me, I will enjoy the “good things” that He has given me without apology.  And I will remember that the only treasures really worth pursuing, and the only ones I can “store” are in heaven, where moth and rust cannot destroy and thieves cannot break in and steal.  And that is where my heart is… 

Believing God is who He says he is- A Key to Overcoming Fear

One of the questions I’ve been asked the most since deciding to move our family to Africa is, “How do you feel about taking the kids there? Are you afraid?” I can honestly say that I have complete peace about it.  Having been to Africa 4 times now and knowing plenty of people that live there, I am well aware of the risks, but fear is not something that I feel at all! Having said that, I know that it’s been a process to get to this place and I wanted to share a bit of that with you.  I know that most of you are not in our exact circumstances but there are always things that could tempt us to be fearful, especially when raising kids! I remember as if it were yesterday having to choose whether to go on an already planned missions trip to Mozambique that Aaron and I were leading when I was 7 weeks pregnant with Judah. We found out about a week before we left that I was expecting, and being that the area we were going to was a malaria zone and when you are pregnant you can’t take any form of prophylaxis, I had people telling me I was crazy to go.  I felt the weight for the first time of making a decision that not only affected my life, but the life of my baby! My first instinct was to stay back (which would have been totally fine! I had freedom to do so.) But, as I prayed about it peace filled me and I knew it would be fine! I went and didn’t get a single mosquito bite!  (Having said that, if I hadn’t had peace, I would have stayed.  It’s simply about hearing what God is saying and then following him and the grace he gives us!)  

After that trip though, there were a lot of questions and concerns I had about moving our young family overseas: mostly having to do with finances, health and safety.  Tracy (the missionary we’ll be working with) has been wonderful at helping me process many of those things- it seemed like every time I saw her I’d have my list of questions and time and time again, she would point me back to scripture… seek his kingdom first! God will take care of our needs.  Don’t be anxious about anything! God is with us… he’s inside of us… his angels encamp around us… he is GREATER than he who is in the world.  God heals ALL of our diseases. Do we really believe it???  I have been chewing on this for several years now.  The moment I knew it had sunk in was when we met with Tracy just a few months ago… the visit that was instrumental in us deciding to go and I said to her, “I feel like I’ve worked through my fears.  I’m so open right now and don’t feel like I have to have every duck in a row anymore.  I’m just so ready to do what God is calling us to do!”  And I knew deep down that it was true!  If I have any concerns or questions now, it’s things like, “Are we living to the fullness of what God’s called us to? Are we positioning ourselves to see the maximum yield of kingdom fruit from our lives?  Are we thriving or just surviving? Are the lives that we are living going to inspire and challenge our children to live to their fullest?”  These are the types of questions that I want my decisions to be based on.  Not whether my kids could get bitten by a snake or get malaria.  We could stay here in an effort to protect them and they could get shot at their school! Or worse… they could live with parents who never really went after their dreams because they were afraid… or were always preparing for what they are called to but never actually doing it.  I know it’s easy to write these things before having gone, before facing the challenges that Paul says will surely come when you embrace Christ.  But, I look forward to embracing the full gospel.  The gospel that also holds the solution to all our trials and challenges.  The gospel that is full of hope in every situation.  I look forward to pulling on God’s word and his strength like never before.  May this year be a year for all of us, where we move past our fears and truly believe that God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do! 

Christmas Newsletter - 2012

Hello all of you amazing people that we love!

It’s been a BIG year for us, so we thought we’d share some of our highlights with you!

We have a GIRL!

On March 6 we welcomed the most beautiful baby girl to ever grace this planet- Ciella Charis Stevens. She was the most peaceful, sweet, easy newborn- sleeping through the night since pretty much day 1.  Now at 9 months, she is very much on the move, ready to conquer the world and grab everything in sight.   Judah just turned 3 in November and is loving being a “big brother” as he gets to do what he does best with one more person: entertain and make people laugh!  He also got to be in his first wedding in June: uncle Josh married beautiful auntie Katie, whom we all love!

Time to run!

I (Crystal) trained for and ran my first half marathon.  It was a fun challenge and through it I can honestly say I grew to love running! Though I am not speedy Gonzalez I did complete the race without stopping and beat my training time.  I was also able to raise (thanks to some of you)- several hundred dollars to fight human trafficking- a passion that has been on my heart for many years. My parents were even in town (all the way from Canada) that weekend which was an extra special treat.

Shave Ice & Texas!

We helped a wonderful couple from our church start a Hawaiian Shave Ice business this summer! It was a lot of work, but fun to pioneer something new and introduce Redding to the delicacy of authentic shave ice. =) If you’ve been to Hawaii you know what I’m talking about.  As we were wrapping up our season in October, Aaron had the opportunity to do some work in Texas. Obviously being away from each other for weeks at a time would not be our first choice, but it came at a time when we needed the work and he is being paid quite generously, making it a sacrifice that is worth it short term.  He is helping a very brilliant man, Steve who has invented a water filtration system that will be used for natural gas fracking.  He’ll be home the week before Christmas and it will be a very Merry Christmas for us indeed!  After Christmas he will be hired on again to do interviews for the school of ministry at our church – a job he has done off and on for the last few years. 

Mexico!

Aaron will have the opportunity in March to co-lead a ministry trip to Mexico City with his brother Josh.  Josh has led this trip for several years and they have seen INCREDIBLE fruit- hundreds of people saved and healed in radical ways.  He’s excited to be able to be part of this trip and we look forward to what God will do!

Africa at last!!!

For those wondering when we will ever be going back to Africa longer term (as we have talked about for years)- 2013 is THE YEAR! Yep, we have recently decided to join Tracy Evans and her crew in Mozambique.  As some of you may remember, we have been to Tracy’s base in Mozambique twice and have fallen in love with her and her ministry (and the people of Mozambique of course).  God is on the move in that nation and people are so open and ready to know Jesus! As Tracy describes, “The harvest is white.  The fruit is dying on the branches because there are not enough laborers to pick it off”.  We are committing to a year for now and at the end will evaluate where to go from there... our feeling is that it will be more Africa but we are playing it by ear and seeing what God does!  Our goal is to leave around June if all of our support is raised by then.  We are also getting all of our “papers” in order for my US citizenship and both of our kids Canadian citizenships before we leave, so pray for quick processing for all of that!  We will be sending another letter in January with all the juicy details of our journey, how God has led us to this decision, more of what we’ll be doing there and a photo prayer card for your fridge. =) For those who already know you’d like to support us financially and want to take advantage of year end giving, we have provided the information you need to get a tax deductible receipt at the very bottom of this page.  And as a little plug for Tracy, if you are looking for an AMAZING book that will inspire & encourage you, Tracy’s life story just came out in a book called, “Outrageous Courage”- by Kris Vallotton (available on Amazon)- I almost read it in one sitting- it was that good!!!

So, as you can see- it’s been a full and exciting year and we know that next year holds many adventures for us as well.  Let us know how you are doing!!! We love hearing from you. =) Merry Christmas and happy 2013!!!

Aaron, Crystal, Judah and Ciella

 Financial Giving Information for our move to Mozambique!!!

1) Please make checks payable to: “Bethel Church”

2) ***DO NOT WRITE OUR NAMES ANYWHERE ON THE CHECK***

3) Our “missionary number” is “M54” and this should be written in the memo line of the check- You may attach a note to the check with our names but if our names are on the check, they will not be able to process it!

4) Mail checks to: Bethel Church / Attention Katherine Edwards, Accounting  /  933 College View Dr. / Redding, CA / 96003 / USA

The Mama Who Thought She Could

I will never forget those days in high school PE class where we had to “run the mile”.  We would all pile onto the field in our running clothes and start making our rounds around the track.  There were the athletic girls that would bolt out in the front and see how fast they could finish, then the majority who would pace themselves and just try to finish, and then there was me… who decided that running a mile was impossible, so why even try? I stubbornly would walk the mile and take a bad grade in PE, every time.  Year after year.  I’m not saying I’m proud of that- it’s just what I did. Fast forward to years later when I was engaged to Aaron.  One day we were spending time with my brother and sister in law- Luke & Janell.  They decided to go for a run and dragged me along with them, in spite of my protests and excuses.  They convinced me that I could run a whole mile… and what do you know? I DID! From then on I knew I could! I still didn’t like running and over the next few years my attempts to “begin running” were sporadic and never lasted more than a few weeks, but I did try every once in a while.  I’m not sure what shifted but I decided once again to try running after Ciella was born.  My first attempt was when she was 5 weeks old.  My legs felt like lead and I barely made it to the end of the block before I felt like I couldn’t go on.  But, the more I got out and just did it, the easier it got.  During a walk with my friend Danielle one day, we talked about how it would be fun to train for a half marathon.  The rest is history! I am now up to 12 miles and my first 13 mile race is weeks away!  I share my history simply to make the point that I have never been a runner.  I think many people feel like they “can’t” run simply because they’ve never really tried or made the decision that they “can”… this could apply to so many different areas of our lives.  Sometimes when I am doing some of my longer runs I think of the kids story about the little engine who “thought he could” and kept repeating, “I think I can, I think I can”.  It is so true that the person who thinks they can and the person who thinks they can’t are both right.  Running really comes down to putting one foot in front of the other and believing that you can.  Yes, there are aspects of training and preparing yourself- when you are going to go longer distances, but really, I’d say it’s at least 90% mental! So, I hope this “mama who thought she could” will inspire you to go after some of those things that you’ve felt like you can’t do… just change your mind and go for it!

 I’m also excited to announce that I am running for more than the purpose of burning some baby weight off- I am running for a cause!!! Some friends and myself will be running the Turtle Bay half marathon on Oct. 7 to raise money for “Idignify” – a ministry through our church that is “developing a network of people & organizations to ban together in the fight against human trafficking and modern day slavery to bring about global justice.”  For those of you who know me, you know that this type of ministry is very close to my heart.  So, in a season where raising my kiddos is what takes most of my time, and it’s a little harder to run off to another country and rescue girls out of brothels, I am super stoked to use this race to raise funds for others that are devoting their lives to bringing freedom and justice to these girls.  To give, simply go to: idignify.com, click on “ways to give” & follow the instructions.  Super easy! Lastly, (and importantly)- please send me a message and let me know what you’ve given- whether it’s $5 or $500- as I’d like to be able to track and report the total raised.  Feel free to give up till race day- Oct. 7- and by all means, continue to support idignify and other amazing organizations long after that if you feel led. =)

Thanks for reading and sharing in my journey… 

BACK FROM CONGO!!

HEY FRIENDS!!



Thanks so much to those of you who prayed while I was in the Congo! I had a great team and everything went so well! You may know that the Congo is a pretty crazy place, and many have described the atmosphere as “heavy” or “oppressive”, and those descriptions are certainly accurate considering the violence and general instability that has reigned in that area for many years. To be honest the Lord gave us so much grace to be there and to bring the Joy and Peace of heaven that it wasn’t “hard” to be there at all. I know this was largely because we had so many of you guys lifting us up in prayer. We couldn’t have done it without you!


This trip seemed to be all about training. So we partnered with Cassandra Basnett and the Global Children’s Movement in Goma, Congo, and it was really cool to see what the Lord is doing there! We got to be a part of ministering to the children at their school and everyone on my team fell in love with these kids! We also got to do a pastors and leaders conference with people from around that city and region. We actually bussed a bunch of pastors and leaders in from an area that is in the “red-zone” which means it is very dangerous there and getting raped and attacked is part of their daily life. Most have family members who have been murdered by rebels and almost all of the women have been raped at some point. Its almost inconceivable to really connect with what they go through and it was very humbling to be able to speak to them about the goodness and love of God. It was a great time and we learned a lot from being with them. My favorite part was seeing my students get activated to preach and teach, impart what they have been given, and then activate the African leaders to walk in the same things. We got to teach on the father-heart of God, our identity in Him, intimacy with Him, and living a naturally supernatural life of encountering God and being a God encounter to those around us. We were also able to minister and preach at 4 different churches for Sunday services and also got to minister at a military hospital and doing a mini-healing service there. As is with pretty much everywhere we go, we got to see God heal peoples hearts and bodies. One of my favorites is when we prayed for a lady who was a victim of violent rape and she was waiting for surgery along with dozens and dozens of other women. When we prayed for her, she felt something changing, and all the pain going away, and then she got a big smile on her face because I’m not really sure if she expected it to work. So we had her go around with us and pray for a bunch of the other women in the room. It was fun to see how she got a touch from God and was willing to go around and give away what she had just received. Thank You Jesus!


Pouring into leaders in these kinds of settings is one of the biggest things that really excites me, because I know they are going to take what they learn and make it part of their life and teach it to the people they influence. The Lord really spoke a lot to me on this trip about training leaders and also training and raising up the leaders of tomorrow. I know this is an area that I will probably be spending a good chunk of my life involved with, and this trip really inspired me to go after it. Probably one of my favorite parts of the trip was being able to hang out with a couple of the main pastors from the region and get to know their hearts a little and see the sacrifices they have made to be leaders in the body of Christ there in Congo. These guys are so awesome and I truly learned so much from being around them. One of them actually recently raised a woman from the dead. These guys walk in humility but they also really walk in power!


Hey, please pray for us for this next season as we are planning on spending more time in Africa in the upcoming years. We are in a season of preparation as well as team building and seeking the Lord for strategies to see real transformation in these nations. We are very excited about the relationships that are developing and our goal is to begin to take apostolic teams over there who would bring the culture of heaven and begin to train leaders and revivalists to start a love revolution! We are in a very strategic season right now, and as the body of Christ we need to be the ones that are aggressively releasing hope to a world who is looking for answers. We have an obligation to throw aside all the distractions and begin to really seek first his kingdom in every area of our lives. The Lord is just looking for people who will believe Him to move and be powerful in their midst. LET’S GO AFTER HIM TOGETHER! HOLY SPIRIT MOVE IN US and THROUGH US!!!!!!!



WE LOVE ALL OF YOU GUYS! THANKS AGAIN FOR PRAYING FOR US!!



Aaron, Crystal and Judah

Aaron's off to Africa tomorrow!

WOW! It's been FOREVER since we've written anything here. We are
alive, well and loving life.  Judah is already almost 16 months- ahh!
It's so true what everyone tells you about kids growing up so fast. A
brief overview of us... Aaron has been working at our church
interviewing applicants to the School of Ministry.  It has been a
blessing and allows him to interact with lots of people (which of
course he loves!) and he's able to set his schedule which is really
great.  I'm loving being a mama, still doing jewelry and always having
new ideas of things I want to make and side businesses.  My latest
kick is refinishing old furniture- we'll see if I'm good enough at it
for it to actually become a side business.  As usual, I have way more
ideas than time. Ha ha. Well, I could write a lot more but mainly
wanted to let you all know that Aaron is leaving on a 2 week trip to
DR Congo TOMORROW! He is leading a team of 10 students from our
churches School of Ministry.  They will be partnering with some
awesome missionaries there and working with youth, pastors and
children doing all kinds of fun kingdom stuff.  Please keep him in
your prayers and for the whole team to be healthy, safe, full of God's
love and power- that people's lives would be radically transformed.
This will be the longest that we've ever been apart and definitely the
longest Judah's been apart from his papa... though I'm wondering if it
will be harder on Judah or on Aaron. Ha! They are pretty cute
together.  He gets back on the 26th. We'll try to get an update up
after he gets back with some good stories and pictures. =)

Pray for Aaron in Nebraska

Hey friends!

Just wanted to let you guys know Aaron is helping lead a team of
school of ministry students to Nebraska. They leave tomorrow and will
be gone for 9 days. Pray for a powerful time, for wisdom and Holy
Spirits annointing on Aaron as he preaches and empowers the team to
release what's on their heart.

Also, this past week Aaron got a pretty nasty case of poison oak... he
even has some on his face! So, please pray for quick healing & until
then that he wouldn't be distracted by it! That would be just as great
of a miracle. Ha ha. Anyways, love you all! I'll get Aaron to post
some testimonies from the trip once he gets back :)

Crystal

Hey There BELOVED!

I hope you are all doing amazing and overflowing with the joy of heaven!  I know we haven't written much lately, but we have been quite preoccupied with our little man Judah, who is pretty much the most amazing person ever!!  We are loving parenthood and enjoying this season!  I wanted to let yall know we are doing a firestorm ministry trip up to Lakeview OR this weekend, and our team of 13 will be leading 3 services, prophesying over the leaders of the church, leading treasure hunts, and doing a service in the prison.  I (Aaron) will be preaching on Saturday night and leading the healing service, and will probably be preaching at the prison also.  Please pray that God will move POWERFULLY!!  LOVE YOU GUYS!!

Hey here is a testimony from my brother Josh (kingdomrevival.wordpress.com) who is in New Zealand right now, I think it will encourage you!!

BE BLESSED WITH PAPPAS CRAZY AMAZING GOODNESS AND LOVE!!

Aaron, Crystal and Judah!


February 20th~ Auckland, New Zealand

-Leading a treasure hunt team here in NZ and we were getting ready to head back after seeing a little breakthrough and one person having an encounter on the street when we were passing a Hindu Temple. One of the guys on our team was like "lets go pray in front of it" When we got to the gate I was like "lets just go in!" so we walked right inside and were greeted by a few Hindu men dressed up and they could tell we definitly did not fit in but after giving us a few hard stares they invited us to look around. After striking up a conversation with a group of older men I asked if any of them had pain in there left knee, to which one of them said yes but didnt really want prayer but they were like "you could pray for that kid, he has a broken finger" So, I did and this boy started to feel power come on his hand and the pain start to leave! Well this got peoples attention and more kids around his age (high school) came over to see what was happening…. We started getting words of knowledge and kids started getting healed all over! One kid had severed a nerve in his arm that caused him to lose feeling throughout his wrist and cause him pain in his arm. After a few moments all the pain was gone and the feeling started to return to his wrist! Kids knees were being healed and legs, neck and backs! Then the kids started grabbing there parents to get prayer and the originally guy that said he had pain in his knee but didn't want prayer asked if i could pray for him and a smile came across his face as he was completely healed! One of the boys mom came over for prayer who had, had pain in her right hip and leg for over 15 years and the doctors didn't know how to treat it and within moments all the pain was completely gone! The husband just looked at me and asked me how I did this as I told him "its the power of Jesus!" He just responded with deep gratitude and thank me over and over. Well after this I asked the kids if they wanted to have this Jesus in there hearts and if they did to put out there hands… all of a sudden 7 to 10 hands go out and they prayed after me to be filled with Gods Spirit and to receive Jesus into their hearts! Some of them started to manifest God's presence and start shaking, some of them started to feel "drunk"… and others were overwhelmed with the power and heat going through their bodies! After this I asked who had back pain and 2 kids responded. I then had 2 kids who had just been healed and just received Jesus into their hearts pray for their friends and instantly the other two kids were totally healed!!! Over the course of 45 mins we saw 7 kids give there hearts to Jesus and 15-20 miralces happen!!! God just showed up in the power of the Spirit right there in this Hindu Temple!!

Be Blasted By Pappa's Joy Today!

Aaron Stevens

(541) 913-5223

In His Presence is FULLNEsS of JOY!  - Psalm 16:11

My wife and I fell in love this week……with the most beautiful boy you have ever seen! MR. JUDAH HAS ARRIVED!!!

We are proud to announce that our first son, Judah Lake Stevens was born November 17th at 10:28 in the morning after 14 hours of natural drug-free labor from my wife. Crystal took it like a champ! Once again she showed me why she is my hero! He weighed in at 7 lbs 11 oz’s, and thank you Jesus, he is a HEALTHY kid! Crystal is also doing really well with nursing and recovering, and being an AMAZING mother just comes so naturally for her! We are so in love with him, and I am pretty sure we are the happiest people on the planet! He is absolutely the cutest thing you have ever seen. We are constantly beside ourselves in awe of how Pappa would give us such an amazing little person. We love him, We Love Him, WE LOVE HIM!!!!!

It is fun to think about what the Lord has in store for him, especially in light of the circumstances surrounding his conception: He was most likely conceived in Rwanda, Africa on a trip Crystal and I were sent on by Bethel to teach in their Bible Schools in the region. Since then he has already been on another Bethel trip to Africa that we led to Mozambique last April. I figure any kid who has done 2 Bethel trips to Africa before he is even born is destined to see nations TRANSFORMED! We love praying and prophesying over him every day, and dreaming about the greater works Pappa has planned for him to do and how he is going to help shape world history. I now know that raising our little revivalist is a big part of our call.


Looks like he may just be getting another chance to go to Africa again soon. Bethel is planning on sending us back to do a regional leadership school tentatively planned for early next summer in Kenya. This would be a school for all the leaders over the Bible colleges in the region, some of the main regional pastors, and even hopefully some leaders involved in business and government, and we will be doing it with a small team of 3 couples. The school would probably last 3 or 4 weeks, and at this point is kind of experimental as we are trying to figure how to best sow into leadership in Africa and train up revivalists that impact the culture with Kingdom Love. We will be sharing more about this as we figure out the details. This trip is already mostly covered financially so that is a huge blessing! Please keep us in your prayers as we develop the teachings and curriculum of the school and plan all the details.

Please also pray for direction about what to do with our business and how to expand it, and we also need prayer for some extra work for me (Aaron) over the next 5 or 6 months as this is the slow season for our business. We changed the name of our business to ‘Create Freedom’ and we are dreaming for and exploring ways that we can build a business that brings freedom to the needy and helps transform economies that are struggling. We really value your prayer in these things as we have lots of great ideas, but we are wanting direction to know which are the ‘God’ ideas to put our whole hearts into.

We are definitely feeling a season shift, and are very excited about what God is doing and going to do in this next season! We are so blessed to be able to be a part of revival here at Bethel and around the world. Pappa is making His bride beautiful!

Thank you all for continually just being AMAZUNG! WE LOVE EVERY ONE of YOU!!

It Worked! Thanks for Praying!

Hey All You Amazing People!

Can I first just say that you guys totally rock! As I said yesterday, baby Judah was breech and we are excited to share the good news that he is now HEAD DOWN!!! YAY GOD! This morning we went in to the hospital for a
procedure called "version" where the doctor basically manually flips
the baby from the outside... not super pleasant but it WORKED!!!
Thanks for those who were praying.  I felt a lot of peace and grace
during the whole thing and was able to relax and focus on Jesus. =)
So, now we are just praying that he stays in that position until he is
ready to come out. =)

Thanks for your encouragement & prayers.  We love you!!!
Crystal, Aaron & Baby Judah.

Please Pray!!

Hey there amazing friends and Fam!

Alrighty... So, just had a doctors appointment and baby Judah is still breech :( So, we're going in tomorrow morning for the procedure to flip him.  They manually re-position the baby from the outside of her stomach with their hands. It can be painful so pray and declare no pain for Crystal.  We have to be there at 6:00 am... So pray that it works!!! And, that there are no complications... It's rare but they do it close to the operating room since sometimes it can end in a c section, which would be crazy. So, pray for success & safety!!! Thanks. Love you all!!

Crystal

You gotta check this testimonies out!

Hey this is one of the coolest testimonies I have ever heard, and will be a huge encouragement- you gotta read it!  It's from one of my brother Josh's good friends Jason Chin. It's what happens when God shows up at Disneyland!  This is what the normal Christian life looks like.........love u guys, Aaron

i just got home and i wanted to share how my L.A. adventure went. i went down to see my best friend Jason Tax in L.A. just to visit for a week and hang out..and who knows what adventure the  Holy Spirit might lead us into:) me and Jay love to do street evangelism together..on the way down i saw a disneyland sign and i remembered the times of laying on my bed dreaming with the Holy Ghost of revival inside the theme park....i thought "wow that would be cool if that ever happened for real" so i get the priviledge of speaking at my friends church on wednesday nite and after the service a lady asks me if i wanted a free ticket to disneyland for the following day! yippie Jesus.. i thought wow those tickets are $94! so me and jason Tax and Hanna Ford go to Disneyland to have a great day in the sun with the Son...and God sets us up through one key miracle of a young mans shoulder that was in a sling...We approach him and ask if we can pray for healing.. Jesus instantly completely heals his shoulder and he removes his sling and begins to test it out..he starts crying from Gods goodness and he tells us how he could not raise it at all because of a fresh torn rotatory cuff injury. he is now raising his arm over his head and moving it as freely as the other one!!! hahaha..his friends explain how he is the star football player at their school and he would have to take the entire year off from football after his scheduled surgery! so we explain the gospel of Jesus Christ and miracles to the group of 8 or so and they all get saved and filled with the Holy Spirit and 2 of them get healed. one of scolosis and another has Jesus grow out his leg as his friends all look on. They all start freaking out! haha and heavenly momentum hits and it erupts into an all out Holy Ghost healing miracle service in the disneyland food court for 4 1/2 hours as groups of young youth go get their friends and bring them back to us for healing..they would come to us and say  "can you heal this?" as they would point to a lump on their knee or a bad ankle...we would answer something like "we can not heal anything but ...Jesus can heal everything and that same Jesus is in you now so everyone put your hand on this person and say...be healed in Jesus name!..now test it out"...really thats how we prayed.."be healed!..now test it out"" hahaha almost every miracle was instant as the looks of shock and awe are captured on everyones faces then praise and cheers to Jesus would erupt from the crowd of youth!!! flat feet are healed as arches are grown in front of everyone to witness..one girl is so scared as her friends drag her up to us..she is almost crying from fear..we tell her "hun you have nothing to be afraid of ...this is Jesus and he loves you very much" she had extreme scoliosis and a dislocated thumb that was in a hand brace. she was still very much afraid so we tell her "we wont even need to touch you because the Glory is here..just remove your brace and move your thumb around" she does and her thumb is instantly  healed..haha so we ask her "touch her toes and then check your back out" she does and her friends lift up the back of her shirt to check out her spine...they all scream because it is now perfectly straight..Jesus!! we ask her if she knows Jesus ..she says "no" we tell her "it is Jesus who just healed you would you like to know that Jesus?" she said "yes" so she gets saved and then we explain to her about being filled with the Holy Spirit and she says she wants Him too! haha..so we ask her to put her hands out in front of her and say "Holy Spirit come and fill me up i give my life to you"...she starts shaking under the power of God and blurts out..  "holy  #$%$#...oh my God" God is sooo good!!..we witnessed bone knots dissolve from knees..asthma healed..crooked knees were straightend out..eyes were healed..some protruding rib cages were pulled back into their chest, even gold dust shows up on many and 3 youth get supernatural weight loss as their once tight pants get looser and looser..and screams urupt as one young man grows around an inch taller as everyone looks on. a super cool thing was how each kid got saved and then we prayed for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit and almost every kid felt a strong manifestation of the Holy Ghost  like electricity, heat , tingling over their bodies, heavy weighty presence:) they would then ask us questions like"can you make the saddness i feel leave the inside of me" all their friends would say "i feel that way too" so we started praying in large groups commanding depression to leave them and joy to come...kids were crying, laughing, yelling Jesus! saying things like.."i cant believe this!"... "this is way better than any ride here!" these kids were getting free..Jesus!! we prayed healing for the first few kids only then we taught the youth that the same Spirit dwells in each of them and then we watched Jesus heal through their hands! we witnessed around 120-140 miracles most were instant and about 100 or so decesions for Christ..of which 50 or so were first time decisions asking Jesus to forgive them of their sins...Yay Jesus!! one young man came up to me and said "i never knew that Jesus died for me" and he yelled at the top of his lungs "J e s u s !" haha Papa loves his little children..hahaha thank you for all your prayers and being a part of my life, you have no idea how much that means to me! love you jason chin

Sent from my iPhone

BACK FROM MOZAMBIQUE!!

Hey There our AMAZING Family,

Once again, thanks for your prayers and support of us on this last trip to Africa. We just arrived back from Mozambique last week. It was a powerful, fun time! On a personal note, it was a huge blessing for us to be able to spend some time with Tracy and process some things with her as we pray about our future in missions. There are few people that have the kind of experience and wisdom that she does when it comes to missions and ministry. In terms of our ministry there, it felt like the trip had a lot to do with the ministry of encouragement, as several of the settings we ministered in were very much in need of hope and life. We also saw physical healings and salvation. Tracy sent us a copy of an email that she sent Eric, the missions director, thanking him for sending us and reporting on our time there. We thought it would be fun for you all to hear a report from her perspective so we’ve posted it below.
“In 10 days time they ministered in three churches, spent four days working in the prison population, worked with 430 orphan infants, did an outreach in a Muslim village (about 200 people attended) and helped us paint and move our entire base to a new location. Some of them ministered in a Zionist church that has accepted Christ. Many people were introduced to Jesus.

They fed the hungry, most of whom were actually starving. They prayed in the market place and preached at every opportunity. Many were healed, many saved, and about 60 were baptized. They both declared and demonstrated the kingdom of God with power, grace and love. We spent the first couple of days at an Iris Ministry base. They blessed the orphans, staff and Bible School students in a powerful way. Their ministry brought comfort, affirmation and empowerment in a season of great difficulty and transition. The team also blessed our staff over and over again. There seemed no end to the ways they thought of to support and encourage us.
What blessed me the most was their team dynamic. Jesus said that “they’ll know you’re my disciples by your love, one for another. The team’s prophesies and power were great, but “love is the greatest of all.” - Tracy

Most of you have heard by now that our next big life event will be having a baby!!! We are expecting our little one around mid November. We are planning on staying in Redding for the summer, working and saving and preparing for baby’s arrival. We are excited and praying about some possibilities in Africa in 2010, but details are still up in the air (we’re waiting to get more information from the Bethel missions department) and we haven’t made any final decisions yet. Please continue to pray for wisdom and that we would hear clearly from the Lord in this season. We love all that God is doing in us and our families and the favor He has given us and we are super pumped about what He is going to do this next year!

Love you all lots and lots. Thanks for being part of our lives. =)

Aaron & Crystal Stevens

Africa her we come!

Hey loved ones!

Well we are now on the road heading to San Fran on the first leg of
our our two-day journey to Mozambique! Please pray for our bodies
that we would be able to sleep when we need to, and we would not be
worn out by traveling but rather be energized.

Here is our schedule

Thurs Apr 2 - we will arive at the Dondo Iris Min. Base and we will be
ministering to 27 Mozambican Iris staff for an evening service

Friday 4/3 - (Iris) we will be ministering to 50 school of Ministry
students during the day and then in the evening we will be minister to
half a dozen missionaries

Sat 4/4 - working w/ 30 orphan boys at iris then traveling to Gondola
to Tracy Evans and her team.

Sun 4/5-4/11 We will be teaching at a Zionist used-to-be witchdoctor
type church, now saved and on fire. We will be doing kindof a
conference for them. We will also be doing a bunch off teaching at the
prison at the Bible-school there. We also may be going into an
unreached muslim villiage and working with the kids to start being
able to serve and bless families.

Please pray in all these places that God would pour out His amazing
Love and Healing Power!

Thanks for blessing us and partnering with your prayer! We love you!

Aaron and Crystal and team

The team:Kate, Lydia, Evan, Jonah, Tony, Rebecca, Cassie, Gina, and
Leslie

Sent from my iPhone

A New Revivalist is Coming Soon!

Hey there wonderful friends! We are proud to announce that WE ARE JOINING THE PARENT CLUB! Above is our First Baby Picture! Isn't our kid amazingly good looking!?! We just found out officially last week and the doc said we were six weeks along, which means that we probably conceived in Rwanda! We always wanted an African baby! We are excited out of our minds, and we know that the Lord has some amazing stuff in store for this kid. This child will have had 2 trips to Africa before even being born so you know he or she is destined to transform nations! Come On Jesus!

Speaking of Africa, we are leaving on Tuesday for Mozabique. We will be leading a team of 11 to work with Tracy Evans and we will also ministering at an Iris Ministries base for several days. We've got a great team and we'll spend a large amount of time teaching and preaching, but also doing drama, kids ministry, practicle stuff, and oureach in a Muslim villiage. Please pray for divine inspiration and that God would confirm His Word by healing, saving, and delivering tons of people. Pray that God would give us lots of words of knowledge for healing, lots of powerful prophetic words, and most of all that people would have radical encounters with the love of God!

We get back on April 13, so we're away for about 2 weeks. We may not get a chance to update our blog while we're there but we'll definitely send you a report when we get back.

Love you all!!!

Aaron and Crystal

Home Sweet Home!

Hey Everybody! Thanks for Praying! We are home and now busily getting ready for our trip to Mozambique in just a few short weeks. Thank You all so much for praying for us and making our trip a very powerful time. We love every one of you and are so blessed that you are on our team. GOD BLESS YOU WITH AN OVERFLOW OF HIS AMAZING JOY AND GOODNESS!!! Check out this video testimony --> It was amazing!

The Long trek to Rwanda

From Uganda, we got on a bus to Rwanda. From the time we left the
retreat center till our arrival at our guest house here we travelled
for about 14 hours!!! Let me say that the seats on the bus are about
"10 minute seats" so we were pretty happy to arrive!

A random fact about Rwanda- plastic bags are not allowed in the
country!!! They take them away at the border. This is to keep the city
cleaner... and by far, Kigali is the cleanest African city we have
been to. It's beautiful!

The Bible school here meets in the evenings so we've been hanging out
with Camarande (school principal) and some other pastors during the
day and then teaching at night. It's a really neat group of pastors
and they're really hungry for the Lord so it's been fun!

Tonight I was preaching and a woman got healed as I was preaching- no
one prayed for her and I wasn't even teaching on healing! She had a
hard time even coming to the meeting and was pretty sure she had
malaria but God totally touched her in the middle of the meeting.
Yesterday as Aaron was preaching the same thing happened! A womans
back got healed without anyone even praying for her! She got up at
the end and shared what had happened!

Aaron had some words of knowledge at the end of the meeting tonight
and a man who's back had been hurt in an accident got healed. He was
up at the front of the room doing push ups. We had a line of people at
the front giving testimonies of their healings. The people here are
very encouraged that God is moving.

Please pray with us that each student here and in other schools would
know that the kingdom of God is within THEM and they can bring revival
everywhere they go and that it's not just for a select few. That's
really what we've been trying to teach- it's not about the
"superstars" but about the whole body of Christ being raised up to be
powerful. This is somewhat of a new concept for many here. We want to
see lasting fruit from this trip and we know if students really get
this, they will continue to see God do great things through them!

Tomorrow is our LAST day of ministry here! It really feels like we've
been in Africa forever since we've experienced so much in a month!!!
We've had an incredible time here yet are excited to get back to the
people we love, our amazing church and our city. Every time we leave
we become more grateful for all we have at home. We are blessed! We
will post more pics and maybe some short videos once we get back- it's
a little hard to do it here! Love you all and thanks for sharing this
journey with us!

Uganda was AMAZING!

After Nambale we travelled to Uganda- the bus drive was a little less
crazy this time and very scenic! Uganda is a beautiful country. The
village we were in was lush and peaceful. We felt like we were in
paradise! More than anything we loved the people. I think Ugandans may
just be the most friendly, joyful people we've ever met. This is
definitely a place we could come back to and spend more time. Because
our time there fell on a weekend, we actually only had a day and a
half to teach in the Bible School and then we preached on Sunday at a
church. The students were so interactive and encouraging to be with
because they clap and shout amens after every good point. They are
really hungry for the Lord. The school principal, Patrick is one of
the sweetest, most humble men ever and we totally loved him! He is in
the process of building a new house so we got to go there and pray and
prophesy over it- it was a sweet time just being with him and his wife
and his beautiful family.

This was also the first time we were not staying at peoples homes. We
stayed at a beautiful retreat center surrounded by trees and natural
beauty. After being with people non stop- day and night it was a
refreshing change just to have a bit more privacy and time with the
Lord. The family that manages the retreat center treated us like
royalty and prepared amazing meals for us. We totally fell in love
with them. The mother, Eva was struggling with asthma and was having a
hard time sleeping but after we prayed for her she got healed! It was
sweet!

So, in conclusion, our time in Uganda just felt like a family reunion,
with a family we'd never met before but now can't wait to see again!
We believe God has many great plans for Uganda and the people there
are truly that nations greatest treasure!!!