An Overdue Update

Hey guys! It's been a little while since we've updated the blog. Forgive us for not being as consistent as we'd like. Things get busy as we work, do awesome ministry, and do great things together as a family. Here's a little update on how things are going.

First and foremost the ministry has been incredible! God is doing great things at Remedy church. This past Sunday we finished out our first month of IGNITE outreaches. God has done AWESOME things with these small efforts to glorify God. We have had several opportunities to share Christ, hand out bibles, and lovingly serve the people of Missoula. Lots of people have seen Jesus through His people as we've completed the first leg of our IGNITE outreaches that will take place all summer long. We have also been VERY encouraged to see lots of new people coming to the church and staying to call Remedy their church home. There are new families, couples, and college students alike coming and being ministered to at Remedy and we've been so blessed to see God at work. It is sweet to see God doing all of these amazing things in spite of us. We are nobody special with no special skills or knowledge. We are just some people who love Jesus and are passionate about serving Him by serving His people. God is being faithful to honor that and we're grateful for that.

On a family note we are continuing to have an incredible time in Montana! This past weekend we packed up with the Wise family and went camping in the Rock Creek area of Montana. We just went for a one night trip, but it was great fun and we can't wait to go again. We set up camp, had some campfire fellowship with s'mores, and had a great night's sleep only to wake up to a BEAUTIFUL Montana morning. It wasn't too hot, and it wasn't too cold. We will definitely do more of that in the weeks to come. This weekend we look forward to seeing a good brother from Albuquerque, (Ken Kestell), who happens to be in town for a few days. We'll barbecue with him on Thursday, and I'll go folfing (Frisbee golfing) with Nate on Friday in the morning and then spend the rest of the day with my kids. We have plans to float the river on Saturday, which we are ALL really looking forward to. One of the things that the kids have been looking forward to since before we moved here is floating the river. I went for about a 5 hour float when I was here in July of last year and it was AMAZING! I had so much fun and can't wait to take my wife and kids this weekend. Then of course we'll rock Remedy services and I'll spend the 4th of July with my family (and probably some friends). I wish you all a good 4th!

So, when are YOU gonna come see us? We would love to have some visitors. We can't wait to show our family and friends beautiful Missoula. You better start planning soon, because the summer is the best time to come so we can get out and have fun. Don't wait till next year! Come soon! We love you and miss you and hope to see you all soon. I have an iPhone 4 on order and it will arrive in about 2 weeks. Once I get it I'll be able to record HD video on my phone and upload it directly to this blog. I really want you all to be able to see the kids and to hear our voices. We miss you all greatly and look forward to seeing you all soon. Love ya and God bless!

~Issac

Thank You, Google!

Some of you know that, for whatever reason, Google shut down both my gmail address and my personal blog that was attached to that gmail address without my knowing. I had no idea this had happened until a friend hit me up and asked where my blog went. When I tried to access my blog it told me that it had been removed by Google. Apparently someone had hacked into my gmail account, so when Google recognized suspicious activity, they shut it down. I emailed Google about getting the issue resolved and roughly 2 weeks later I got a response from Google saying that they had reinstated my gmail account and my blog. So with that being said, I invite you once again to follow my personal blog @ Issaclopez.blogspot.com. What you will find on my personal blog is more devotional type writings to challenge, encourage, and inspire joy in the heart of the Christian. Thank you, Google, for resolving this issue and restoring my platform of communication.

~ Issac

Our First Ignite

Sorry this blog is coming so late. We always get so busy during the week! Anyway, our first Ignite went really well! As I mentioned before, we went out to the nieghborhood around the park and invited people to join us. We had a lot of people come out; many of them being people we invited!
We grilled up burgers and dogs and provided drinks, chips, pasta salad and fruit salad. As people finished eating, we started playing games and painting faces. Courtney and another lady from the church, Sheila, painted faces for the kids. They did a really good job! They were like professional face painters! We had various games for little kids, like ring toss and latter ball, and for the older people we played kickball. Me and Ashley (from our church) headed up the kickball game and we had a pretty good game going! Issac and some of the other men from our church, Peter and Mark, had opportunities to talk to people and share the gospel!
I'm excited for our next Ignite (tomorrow). We are forecasted for rain, so we'd appreciate prayers for good weather. We'll keep you guys posted on how it goes, and hopefully it will be sooner than a week later!
Love you guys!

:Kristi:

A Great Weekend!

This weekend has been amazing! We've been having some beautiful weather and we've been trying to take advantage of that. Yesterday, we started the day by going to the Elk Country Vistor Center. We walked around the trail and read the interesting facts about Elk. The trail was near a stream, so we hung out next to the water and threw rocks in. The stream was moving pretty fast and had a lot of water in it. There was a spot with a cool little waterfall too! We also spotted a doe! We went inside the Visitor Center and read more about different animals and checked out all the Elk heads they had on the wall. It was a really cool place!
Next, we went to a car show at a dealership next to our house. There were lots of cool looking cars! After that, Issac and I went to a barbeque that Big Sky Brewery put on. It was held to benefit Montana Food Bank. There were bands that played some cool music and awesome food from places like Outback and Famous Daves. It was really fun!
Service at Remedy was sweet and after service we went to the Wise's house and played frisbee. I love playing frisbee!! The kids had fun too and they throw a frisbee better than I do sometimes!
Today is our first Ignite outreach. After service this morning we went out to the nieghborhood that surrounds the park and invited people to come tonight. With the gorgeous weather, I'm sure we'll have a great turn out. We're going to grill some burgers and dogs, throw the frisbee around, play some kickball, and share the Gospel and love of Christ to people. I can't wait! We'll let you know how everything went. If you read this soon, pray for us!

:Kristi:

To My Calvary Santa Fe Family

Dear Calvary Santa Fe,

I wanted to take the time to write to you and give you an update on
how I am doing as you have all been SO SUPPORTIVE of me! First off I
want to thank you all for the prayerful and financial support that you
all provided before I left. The LORD used you in great ways to provide
for our move to Montana! If it were not for all of you, as well as our
immediate family, we would not have been able to make this move. I
want to extend a big THANK YOU! I can't express my gratitude. Since we
arrived here, in Missioula, MT, the LORD has provided for all of our
needs. My wife and I both found jobs, and our kids have been enrolled
in school for the last month. God has been so gracious to us! In
addition, we have been encouraged as we have transitioned into Remedy
Church, in Montana. We have had the opportunity to participate in
several inreach/outreach events and had the privilege of launching
R:COMMUNITY groups at our place. R:COMMUNITY is Remedy's version of
the "home fellowships". These have been very successful! People are
coming on Wednesday nights and sharing a meal, singing to the LORD,
and worshipping and fellowshipping for His glory. We are very excited
at what the LORD is doing! This Sunday we will put on the first of
nine park outreaches that we will do over the summer. These outreaches
are called "Ignite" and the goal is to ignite a passion for Jesus
through serving our community. We will go to parks and bless families
with a free barbeque dinner, and some games and fun for the kids. Most
importantly, we will be engaging people and preaching the gospel. We
would appreciate your prayers for our "Ignite" outreaches this summer.
I miss all of you so much and I'm really excited to hear that God
continues to do great things at Calvary Santa Fe. I am encouraged to
hear of your steadfastness and love as you serve Jesus! Keep that up!
If you would like to keep up with what God is doing at Remedy, I would
encourage you to check out Remedymissoula.org for the latest news on
events and ministry. You can also check back here at issacandkristi.blogspot.com
to find out what is new with our family. We update this blog so that
our family and friends can keep up to date with us personaly. I also
started a personal blog recently at issaclopez.blogspot.com where I
will be posting more devotional, spiritually edifying and challenging
blogs to bless the believer. So once again, thank you! I have been so
blessed to know and serve with you all over the past 4 years. Thank
you for all that you have taught me and the many ways you have blessed
and encouraged me. Calvary Santa Fe is greatly missed in our home and
will never be forgotten. My family and I love you all more than we can
say. God bless you all!
Grace and peace,

Issac

Sent from my iPhone