Update

Wow, I am sorry that it has taken me this long to finally write. America, I must say I do enjoy being back, and yes I miss Germany too :) There are always pro's and con's to living there and living here, but having my wife and two boys on my side, we could live anywhere and it would always be HOME!
God continues to teach me to wait upon Him, that I must admit is the hardest thing, but He has given us those promises that He will never leave us nor forsake us, that though it get's hard He is there, and that knowledge alone should bring my life peace and it does.

Since the last blog, somethings have changed, Anja has a part time job, I am working at Calvary Chapel South Bay helping out in their maintenance department, and in the process of trying to get hired on with the LAPD. Levi and Luca are doing great here, and God is protecting them. Just today Levi was on His bike coming home with a friend, Levi looked right,was getting ready to go, His friend goes on before him, Levi looks left as His friend is already in front of him on the street, when Levi sees a car, yells at his friend to stop but it was too late the car hits his friend. This friend of Levi's was ok, was not  taken by the ambulance but I am sure that he is sore. God had his hand upon my boy and my prayers go out to this friend of Levi's
Luca is also doing very well, He got an A+ in school and was so excited and kept saying an "A+ my first one in my whole entire life"
We also have found a little house to rent on the same street as my parents, God is so good we were praying for a place to find in the same area as the boys school as to prevent too many changes. God hooked us up and Anja has done a wonderful job making it home.
Thank you so much for all your prayers as things change and God opens doors I will write,
Until then Redeem the Time, For His return is soon :)
Josiah, Anja, Levi and Luca

A New Season in Our Life

Here we are, back now in the United States. Sunny California :)

Now I was hoping by now to be able to say that we have a place to live, a new job, and that we are settling in just fine. Well we are settling in just fine but I still do not have a job nor do we have a place of our own yet. We find ourselves in a place right now where God has us waiting and trusting. I know that He will come through He always has and just in the perfect timing.
There are job opportunities lined up just waiting back to hear from them. Anja and the boys are doing well, and we are all looking forward to Yosemite this coming Sunday for one whole week. I will make sure to post some pictures. We have been spending a lot of time with each other and catching up on old friendships, this has been such a blessing.
The boys will be starting school here soon, so that is what we will also be concentrating on, making sure that the adjustment for them is as smooth as it can be.

I just wanted to write shortly to give an update, and to thank you all for your prayers, and words of encouragment. May God Bless you all.
As soon as I hear more about a job, and a place of our own I will let you all know.

Staying focussed on His Plan, and His Will

Harts4

Jesus in the center

And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, where the crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center.

Luke 19:17-18

Is Jesus Christ in the center of your life? Is Jesus Christ in the center of your marrige? Is Jesus Christ the center of your family? Is Jesus Christ in the center of your job? Is He? that is exactly where He needs to be the center of everything you do. He has called us to the narrow road to follow Him and the only way to remain on that road is to have Him in the center of our sight, To stay strong and encouraged when it get's difficult on that road we need to have Him the center of our sight. To Find the way we need to have Him center in our sight. I am so thankful that on that Day Jesus was in the center. And I am so thankful that He is in the center of my life today! Is He in Yours?

 He is the way, the truth, the life no one comes to the Father but through Him!
John 14:6

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.!
John 3:16-17

Choose Him to be the center of your life and Live!

GOING BACK TO CALI

 Anja, the Boys, and I will be calling California  Home once agian! For many of you this is new news for some you old news.
     With most change in life there comes with this move joy and sadness. I mean picking up the tent pegs once again after six years being in Germany and saying Good Bye is not easy, on the other hand we are as a family very excited to see what God has in store for us in Cali. Many of you might be asking 'what is it that you will be doing?' That is a very good question and one that I can not at this moment answer. The Lord has placed some things on my heart that at the moment I would like to keep there as we prayerfully follow His lead. Some of you reading this know the direction we are going and as the doors keep opening up we will let you know. It is with the Words that the Lord spoke to the Israelites through the prophet Isaiah in Chapter 43 that we move out " But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, For I have redeemed you; I have called you y your name; You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire,you shall not e burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Isreal, your Savior; I gave Egypt for your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place. Since you were precious in My sight, You have been honred, And I have loved you; Therefore I will give men for you, And people for your life. Fear not, for I am with you;..." These verses have brought us so much comfort as we step out in Faith to follow what we feel the Lord has placed on our heart to know that He is with us and has commanded us not to Fear. Levi and Luca are very excited to be going to Cali and they are sad to have to say goodbye to Anja's family as well we all are. Please keep this part of the move in your prayers as I am sure many of you know how it is. I am in my last week of work and that is bittersweet, serving here for the last 3 years has been wonderful and God has used it in so many ways in my life City Chapel has been home and will always be home for us in Germany, We are very excited to see what God is going to do here and is doing as we move on, New people stepping up to fill in the gaps, New direction for certain ministries Praise God! Roland and City Chapel Thank you for allowing me to serve the King with you it has been an honor.
Just two minutes ago someone came by my office and gave me a peice of Chocalte with a verse attached to it just another WOW moment withGod! I will close with the verse I recieved and will blog again soon! Thank you for your prayers

 " Fear Not, For I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10

a poem

on Nov. 15th at 7:15 am, the day of my heart surgery, the Lord woke me up early (it was actually through a nurse giving me my pre-meds) and laid a poem on my heart. It was inspired through a good friend who told me that "The One above will watch out for me", so it's titled "The ONE above":

The ONE above
The ONE above, He is my shepherd.
The One above, I shall not want.
The One above, He goes before me.
The One above, He calms my heart.

The One above, He knows the valleys.
The One above, He leads me through.
The One above, He lifts my burdens.
The One above, He calms my heart.

The One above now holds and heals me.
The One above now fills me up:
with peace that passes understanding.
The One above, He calms my heart.

The One above, He answers prayers,
The One above, He is my rock.
The One above, a mighty fortress,
The One above, He calms my heart.

So Lord please take this day now,
please guide my every breath.
Please fill me with your joy now.
My Lord and Saviour, my One above, YOU calm my heart.

back home

Hello Hello,

i've been home since Saturday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was so nice getting picked up from my men, getting home and being welcomed by the family and good friends, enjoying GOOD food and the wonderful feeling of "arriving home". You guys are the best and i love you all so much. I don't have words to describe what I found at home, a million of Christmas cookies, gifts, cards, mails... only tears (happy tears) can describe that.
The rehab time was very good, i would say i'm at 80% health right now. My blood pressure is still too low, so i get dizzy quite a bit. I try to go on walks to stabilize that, but i have to say that it's getting better already. Today i helped a bit in the house, i'm allowed to lift 10lbs, not more. 2 weeks ago i still had some liquid in the heart sac but it's all gone now. My mitral valve is tight, there is no more insufficiency. God also helped me to process the last 4 weeks, i wrote down everything in my journal so it's out of my mind. When i feel a little better i will try to watch my surgery on DVD, ... interested???
Tomorrow morning i go to the doctors to keep working on my blood count, hopefully i'm done with giving myself the tummy shots (there is no more room on my belly), but we need a better INR (that's the blood thinning rate i have to be on for 3-6 months)
My cardiologist wants to see me too this week to take a look at my "new look". after that i should only have to go once or twice a year. I'm kind of done with doctors and needles. Trust me.

Thank you again for everything!!!! God is so good, He helped us through.

Merry Christmas to all of you. "Jesus is the season for the season"

Love, Anja & 3 very happy boys

Her Voice

photo by Powerhouse Museum Collection	via PhotoRee

We so often take the simple things in life for granted, I was confronted with this yesterday. It was a Great Day even though the weather outside was rainy,cold,dark the Lord brought Sunshine into my day. I was nervous like I was getting ready for my first date, Got the boys off to school was getting ready and could not wait till 2pm came around, I was going to go visit My wife in the hospital. The nervousness I felt was also because I can't stand hospitals but also nervous because I did not know how I was going to handle seeing my wife laying there in pain hooked up to the monitors and such. I was praying the whole way there "Lord give me the strength to be her support"
 I arrive at the hospital met by the friendly faces of all the nurses and doctors on their shift and I ask Where my wife is, they inform me she is upstairs so I take the elevator and arrive on the top floor to face a huge crowd of people all dressed up in suits and dresses mixed within the crowd a lot of doctors someone is speaking threw a microphone welcoming all the guest. The hospital is under construction and the top floor that I was on is the new addition they are having a party. I could not get through the crowd everyone was looking at me I don't fit in so I found a stair case to the back and ended up where I started. Their must be another way to get to my wife, I stop a nurse and ask How can I get to my wife another way I can't get through the crowd she tells me I can go the back way by using the emergency exit, I arrive finally to the floor where my wife was the nurses were waiting for me I knocked on the door and they came wondering why I didn't use the front door so I explained and they laughed knowing exactly what I meant. They led me into the room where my wife laid, her eyes closed hooked up to monitors, It was still in the room just the sound of the monitor monitoring her heart, I got closer to her bed my heart pounding, Anja moved a little open her eyes, she gave me a smile the best that she could and the very thing that I so often take for granted but in that moment was so precious and fulfilling her voice soft and quiet said "Hallo Shatz"  translated "Hello Treasure" those words still ring in my head as I write this a Gift from God. I was able to spend the next 2 hours with her talking with her, the nurse informed me that she had not eaten anything yet it was 2pm about half way into my visit she asked if she could have something to eat and ate a yogurt and drank a cup of tee and asked for another:  I left shortly after with a huge smile on my face and skip in my step of the faithfulness of Our God who answers prayers. That night God Blessed us again after dinner was over I took the trash out to return to Luca opening the door with a smile from ear to ear Mommy is on the phone, What Mommy is on the phone? walking into the living room to hear Levi and Luca talking with Anja a day after her surgery, her voice which I often to often took for granted hearing stronger then when I was there, listening to her telling the boys how proud she was of them, telling them she was ok and that she loved them, telling them that she had eaten more and was getting ready for bed and told them good night!
I got to thinking what else have I been taking for granted, Have I been taking the Voice of God for granted as well? Have I been taking for granted all that He has done for me and given me. God gave His only begotten Son that whoever would believe on Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Have I taken that for granted and am trying to have that and live in the world as well?  I read of How when Adam and Eve hid in the garden it says there in Genesis 3:8 "And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day,..." Have I taken for granted that He the LORD God wants to spend time with me?
Oh that we all would come back to enjoy the simple things in life, as the voice of a loved one, the smiles on their faces the gentleness of their touch, Oh that we would come back to appreciate and cherish and await with anticipation the times we have with the Lord as He comes to walk with us in the garden in the cool of day He has given everything to have that time with you, He has made it possible through the blood of His Son that He can walk and talk with you forever, He has promised to be with you, to lead and instruct and guide you along your way here in life. Don't take it for granted.