Christmas Reflections

Posted on December 25, 2012 by Carl

My dad and I Christmas 1975

Today is a Christmas of firsts. It is the first Christmas in 3 years that we have celebrated in our own home. It is the first Christmas in 3 years that we have been able to put up the Christmas tree. It is also the first Christmas that I have not spent time talking to my dad.

On the corner of my desk is a digital picture frame that my dad gave me for Christmas in 2009. The picture frame is filled with photos from my childhood and life. Many of these pictures are from Christmas celebrations long gone. Pictures of my dad reading the story of Jesus’ birth from the Bible. Pictures of my first snare drum, a toy hook and ladder fire truck and all of us sitting around in our robes on Christmas morning. These cherished memories became the foundation for many of the Christmas traditions that my own family celebrates.

As I spoke of in my previous post, I felt a passing of the mantle when my dad died. For many months the Lord had been speaking to me about my role as a father to the generation that is following me. Although I was receiving this in a spiritual sense, I now see the literal reality of this as well.

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to take a road trip to Dallas with Rodney, my pastor at 4CI. A portion of our discussion dealt with that role of being a mentor to the next generation. Interestingly enough, this past week my daily time in the word took me into Paul’s words in Titus:

Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us.
(Titus 2:7-8 ESV)

On Saturday evening, we had our first Christmas open house in 3 years. During the open house, I was able to share at length about our journey with a handful of people. Once the majority of people had left we found ourselves in conversation with a couple that God had been placing on our hearts and young man who travels as the drummer for a Christian band. During our conversation we learned that God had been prompting each of us to pursue a deeper relationship with the others. We agreed to begin meeting regularly to share our lives and encourage one another.

As I look ahead, I see that I am being given the opportunity to pass on the wisdom and training that I received not only to my family, but to others God is placing in my life. The dynamics of my life and ministry continue to be redefined on a daily basis, but I find great joy in pressing forward.

Going Home

Posted on December 8, 2012 by Carl

I arrived in Wichita on the 20th of May. The next day Rodney and his family, plus another man I had met in April came and helped me unload. Over the next week I spent time getting the house set up. What a joy it was to once again be in a home of our own. Each day I unpacked boxes and left everything so Carol could simply decide where to put it when she arrived.

Carol and the kids arrived on May 27th, my 42nd birthday. They had a surprise for me when they arrived. They had picked up Christopher my oldest son from the airport in Dallas. Christopher had just completed his schooling with the Navy and had some leave time built up. He decided to surprise me for my birthday…what a great surprise it was.

On Sunday I introduced my family to the family at 4CI and over the next few days we spent a great deal of time with my parents settling into our home. My dad was always the project enthusiast I knew him to be. He brought fence repair supplies, air conditioning filters, a futon for Collin and many other items. He and Collin also began working on several projects including a portable solar battery charger and an electric car made out of PVC pipe affectionately known as “Tweety Bird.” Caitlyn spent her days at the local pool and participated in synchronized swimming.

Our house became grand central station as we began to renew old friendships. Over the first several weeks we had the opportunity to reconnect with some of our closest friends and we began to see the opportunities God was laying out before us. I also began a mentoring relationship with Ryan, a young man I had known in Dodge City when he was just a boy. Ryan and I agreed to journey through life together and met weekly during the summer months.

Over the summer we spent time with my parents each week and throughout the week, my dad would show up with bundles of “supplies” under his arm. We also spent time praying about our ministry here in Wichita. We plugged into a home Bible study in our neighborhood and continued to attend 4CI on Sundays. In August the Lord prompted us to begin a home group with 4CI and to make 4CI our church home. I looked forward to this group starting, as I was yearning to teach again. During the latter part of summer I found myself being prompted to pray through the possibility of returning to my overseas work in both Africa and India. I contacted my partnering pastors in those regions and tentative dates were set for the winter and spring of 2013.

As we drew close to the beginning of the school year we prayed for direction for our kids. Caitlyn had asked to be home schooled, but Collin wanted to attend public school so he could try out for football. Ultimately, both kids would get their wish, Collin began attending North high and Caitlyn enrolled in the Andover e-Cademy. Carol was able to bring her job from Corpus Christi with her and she also took on another job a day and half per week to provide some additional income.

When school started we found ourselves busy with football practices and weekly games. Our group unfortunately only lasted a few weeks and then disbanded. My dad was thrilled getting to watch his grandson play football and he recorded every game (even though Collin only played about 4-5 minutes each game).

Around the start of school, something else took place. Rodney contacted me about another local church planter, named Scott Parks who had a heart for Uganda. This church planter had been to Uganda before, but his contacts had fallen through. Rodney put us in contact with one another. Scott and I began meeting and quickly found a kindred spirit. I told him that I was planning on returning to the region in early January and invited him to go. Scott not only agreed, but offered to cover my airfare as well. Within a few weeks our team grew as we added Nathanael Parks, a college student who is looking to spend a year in West Africa doing mission work. The three of us will be returning traveling to Kenya and Uganda January 2-21, 2013 where we will be working alongside my partner pastor Apostle Adams.

As we entered into October football season ended and it was time to celebrate the kids birthdays and get Collin’s learner’s permit. Caitlyn turned 11 on the 11th and Collin turned 15 on the 29th. The week before Collin’s birthday, I felt the Lord calling me to a day of prayer. During that time the Lord spoke to me extensively about a changing of season in my life and an elevating of my work. The weekend of Collin’s birthday, my aunt also came to visit. We celebrated their birthdays with my parents, little did I know that Collin’s birthday would be the last time I would talk to my dad or see him alive.

On Wednesday October 31, 2 days after Collin’s birthday, my dad had gone down to the county Emergency Operations Center that morning to do his weekly volunteer work. Caitlyn had finished her school work early, so she went over to their house to spend time with my mom around 1:30. About 2:15, I heard a frantic knock at the front door and I opened it to find Caitlyn visibly shaken and out of breath. She told me that grandpa had collapsed and that mom couldn’t get him to respond. I jumped in the car with Caitlyn and arrived at their house as the ambulance was pulling up. I entered the house to find my dad laid out on the floor, with a crew of paramedics performing CPR and using a defibrillator on my dad. I looked at his eyes and knew he was gone. I ushered Caitlyn outside where a pastor friend was in the yard and I left her with him. I watched as my mother screamed and cried, begging my dad not to go, but he was already gone. My mom’s worst fears had become reality and I now felt the weight of the mantle of being the patriarch of the Willis family coming to rest on my shoulders.

The questions about my ministry in Wichita were now clear. My ministry here is to care for my mother. Over the next few hours, I began to realize how God’s hand had been so powerfully at work. My dad had gone to the bank after leaving the Emergency Operations Center and cleared out his safe deposit box. He had made it safely home, placed the contents of the box on the couch and had gone downstairs and died. Everything needed to put his affairs in order, he had brought home. Dad had been allowed to spend the prior weekend with his sister and he had spent the entire summer with his grandchildren. Dad had shattered my mom’s peace by talking of preparation and yet that shattering of peace had prepared her to let go. God had called my family back to Wichita and placed us two blocks away from my parents. Dad had begun to talk to me about his passing a year earlier. As I reflected backward on these things, I was struck by the way God had been preparing us for this day….in spite of my pain, I knew God was in control.

The following Tuesday, I preached my dad’s funeral. I have preached many funerals in my lifetime, but this was by far the most difficult. I knew that dad would want me to tell those in attendance about Jesus and that is what I did. Over the past 5 weeks, many who would never talk to my mom about the things of faith have shared their continued touch from this message. Some have a new openness towards Christ, but one has also firmly shut the door.

In the week that my dad died I found myself speaking twice at 4CI and also at his funeral. I had been yearning to speak again and in his passing those opportunities came forth. I believe there was a great spiritual significance to his passing, that I may never fully understand. 2 weeks after he was buried, I returned to the cemetery and wept. I paced around the grave site and said the things that I wish I could have said before he left. I then began to hear the Lord speaking into my spirit about the mantle that had been passed and the example that had been set. It was now my turn to be a father to the next generation.

In the 5 weeks since my dad went home, I have seen the Lord holding my mom closely to Him. I have seen a strength in her that is not her own and I have also seen the Lord bring forth a new depth in relationship between she and I. My mom and I have shared many laughs and shed many tears, but we find an unspeakable joy even in our sorrow.

As we approach Christmas I find myself reflecting on the years I had with my dad and looking ahead to my time in Africa. The Lord has blessed me with many sons, both physical and spiritual. He has also given me a great example to follow as I now take the lead.

Weekend Update

Posted on April 5, 2009 by Carl

Yesterday Mike and I met up at the church with my friend William, who leads a local intercessory prayer ministry here in Corpus Christi. William and his wife had been at our house warming last week and heard some of the spiritual warfare things Mike and I were encountering. He had asked us to meet with him, so that he could encourage us and provide some basic principles for us to utilize in this area of our faith walk.

Within a matter of hours I found it necessary to deploy some of these suggestions, especially those dealing with expanding my prayer covering. Before the day was over, we would see Christopher encounter a serious blowout on a Houston freeway with a car full of Navy cadets, our daughter would crash her bicycle into our pool and the ignition switch went out on our van.

Christopher's car after the blowout

After the Loop 610 incident

Yet through it all, God showed Himself faithful. Christopher and the other cadets were not hurt. Caitlyn was scared, but also unhurt (although her CD player didn’t survive 4ft of water) and a tap from a rubber handle on a socket wrench got the key to turn in the van.

During the afternoon we called on those that God impressed upon us to surround us in a covering of prayer. By 4PM, the spirit of peace within me was overwhelming…those prayers could be felt within and without. We did however call my friend William and asked him to bring a group of intercessors to our home to pray over us and the home.

This morning, I woke up with a heaviness looming over me that seemed very unshakeable. Even as I prayed before service this morning, I just couldn’t seem to shake it. Even Mike’s wife, Kim, could see it on my face. When I got done praying, I opened the door of the church and sat back down. I watched out the window as a woman walked past and then made a button hook into the door.

She declared that she was tired of living on the streets and asked if we could help. At first it was the normal request: “A few dollars for bus fare to Flour Bluff and something to eat at Whataburger.” I asked her if we could pray for her, but she didn’t answer me. She went on to elaborate that she had not slept, that she needed to wash her clothes and that she wanted to get off the streets.

I told her that we did not give out money, but that I would make sure she was fed and we would give her a ride to Flour Bluff if needed. I also offered to let her do laundry and share lunch with our family and Mike’s family. She balked and said she just needed money. I asked her how a few dollars was going to get her off the street?

After a few moments of silence, she asked if she could just have some coffee and said she was going to leave. I reminded her that she had not answered my question about praying for her. She told me I could pray for her, but she saw my bottle of annointing oil and told me that I could not annoint her with oil. I told her that was fair.

I prayed for her deliverance from the streets and the bondage that kept her there. She sat for several minutes, got some coffee and sat down. I started into the service and she kept staring at me. Then all of the sudden, shen leaned over and asked me if we would really help her out as I had indicated before. I reiterated what I had said and then the Lord gave me a word of deliverance that went straight to her heart. Immediately the tears began to flow and we bathed her in prayer.

The Lord had already been impressing upon my wife and I that part of the reason He moved us to Padre Island was to create a safe haven for people He was delivering from the streets. Out here there is no city bus, no red light district, no street culture…a place of safety. Carol and I both felt compelled without speaking that she was to be the first to find the healing and deliverance of God’s kingdom in our home.

As we drove to Mike and Kim’s for lunch, the tears continued to flow…but they were tears of joy and laughter that burst forth from within. She also indicated that she has smoked her last cigarette, so I prayed over her cravings, yearnings and desires. Our new house guest said she had not laughed in years. While lunch was being prepared, our guest showered and was given a new change of clothes. The woman who shared a meal with our families was not the same woman who had entered our door a few hours before.

As the afternoon wore on, the pain of years on the street was released in tears as Carol held tightly to her. I found myself weeping in the adjacent room as I listened to God releasing the pain from within. Several times she exclaimed..”I can’t believe I’m not craving a cigarette.”

This evening the days of hard living had ended in an early bedtime. Carol has already had to comfort her once, because of the nightmares she was having. Our guest’s greatest fear is that we were going to dump her back on the streets. The mess the enemy makes out of people’s lives….truly the earth groans for the touch of Jesus.

Also this evening the intercessory team spent time in our home. The Lord spoke to the group collectively about the testing that Carol and I have been under, saying: “They passed.” Of course that word was proceeded with the word “patience.”

My friend spoke a valuable word to me as well. My role in the kingdom is parental in nature…when the time is right the “fatherly” blessing I give as those restored spread their wings and fly will become monumental.

Christmas Eve Reflections

Posted on December 25, 2008 by Carl

For the past decade, I have always conducted a candlelight Christmas Eve service at the church. This services were usually filled with church members and their families. Christmas carols were sung and the account of Jesus’ birth was told.

This year the Lord led me in a different direction. During our first visit to South Bluff Park, I saw so many who had no family to call their own; no place that they could truly call home; no one who took an interest in their life. Mike and I talked, both feeling that we should be in the park once again on Christmas Eve, bringing the tangible love of Christ through the body of Christ.

This afternoon we fired up two barbecue pits in the center of the park and commenced to cooking 64 hamburgers and 56 hot dogs. Over a two hour period we fed men, women and children, even making deliveries to a few nearby shut-ins. Some of those we fed had not eaten yet today and possibly even yesterday. For those who have been hidden from the light of Christ’s love, there is a magnetic quality to their encounters with His presence. Mike and I see that we are beginning to earn the trust of those around the neighborhood and we believe it is only a matter of time before we are allowed to begin quenching the spiritual hunger as well.

Tonight about 10:15, my phone rang. It was one of the men I had ministered to last Thursday. He was not able to get lodging at one of the shelters, because he didn’t have any identification. He had arranged to stay with a co-worker in Flour Bluff, but needed a ride there. I was the only person he could think of and he still had my business card. As he and I drove, the evidence of God’s love for him was evident. He had already found new work and had been able to work three days this week. He asked if after he got back on his feet, he could hitch a ride with me to church…I told him that he didn’t even need to be back on his feet for that to happen.

As I left him at his co-worker’s home, I found myself overcome by two deep seated emotions. One was sadness. It saddens me in a nation of opportunity, that so many are in such bondage. Make no mistake, many are there because of their own decisions.; yet, I know that Jesus came to seek and save those who are lost. I grieved tonight to see so many without hope, without life, without the fullness of Christ. On the other hand, I was equally moved by joy and gratefulness. As I cooked hamburgers and hot dogs today, I was surrounded by my wife and children. I was joined by Mike, Kim and their daughter Brooke. I knew I would leave the park and return to a familiar place of residence, sleep in my own bed, eat when I was hungry and spend the evening laughing as I relished the company of those I am closest to.

Tomorrow we will be opening our home to the young man I took fishing last week. Tonight we made his stocking (and Elishba’s too) and wrapped his presents. For him this will be his first ever family celebration of Christmas. He grew up not knowing the love, support and joy of family. I hope that what he will truly see is the family of God in all of its fullness.

I hope you have a Christ filled Christmas.

Simply a vessel

Posted on December 19, 2008 by Carl

Today I have watched as the Lord reached into His toolbox and chose me as His vessel of choice. What a thrill it is to be used of the Master as He goes about the work of the Kingdom.

This morning, Carol and I were talking and she mentioned that she really felt as though the Lord wanted me to spend some time in prayer at the building today. I felt much the same, as I have been wrestling through my own uncertainties over the past few days.

After having lunch with a friend I went to the building and began praying. The Lord led me to deal with some things in my life, most notably my “attitude” this Christmas. This is the first year in my life, that I have not had a Christmas tree up in my home (it is buried in a stack of storage boxes in the garage). This is the first year my wife and I have not trekked out to joyfully purchase presents for our children (finances have not allowed for it). Needless to say, I was having a bit of a pity party. The Lord; however, is always good about bringing me back to reality and today was no exception. He reminded me that I have been ministering to people this week with no roof over their heads and no source of food and no bathroom and no family and no….you get the picture. I spent time in repentance over the “importance” I have placed upon the “traditions” of our family. In reality having our family and having our Savior are simply enough.

As I finished working through that, I went into a time of silent listening. As I was listening, I heard the door open and looked up to see two men entering, removing their hats and looking down at the floor. I learned that they had been living out of a truck at one of the parks while they were doing framing work on the island. Unfortunately, the man who they were working for skipped out with their money and the Marina Patrol was threatening to tow their truck if it wasn’t moved. I offered to put gas in the truck to help them get down the road. Unfortunately, when we got to the parking area, the truck had already been towed.

Both men were horribly distraught and so we returned to the church and prayed. They asked me to take them to a co-worker’s apartment and as I was driving there, the Lord prompted me to ask a simple question: “Have you guys eaten?” I learned that it had been a number of days since each man had eaten, and so I immediately found the nearest Whataburger and ordered these men their first hot meal in days. As we were driving one of the men reminded me of this passage of scripture:

Hebrews 13:2 (NASB)

2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.

Tonight I picked up a man who we met on Saturday during our breakfast at the park. Sunday we were able to find him housing and Tuesday he joined us for Organic Group. When I watched him Tuesday I noticed a conflict going on in his spirit as the Holy Spirit began to move through our time together. Tonight, I asked him about the conflict and he shared a raging battle within, one side calling him the enemy of God and the other calling him a child of God. I told him that at some point in the evening I wanted to lay hands on him and pray.

As we were getting started Mike all of the sudden changed gears. He later shared with me that God told him to go no further with the Bible discussion he had planned, but instead directed him to focus us on the God’s love. As we began to talk about what God was showing us through the Holy Spirit, I again noticed the conflict welling up within this man and the Lord prompted me that I needed to pray over him. I asked him if he could tell me who Jesus was to him? He responded by giving me a historical account of Jesus, so I asked him again, “who is He to you?” He began to stammer and shift, at which point I asked him, “Are you able to say these words: ‘Jesus is Lord of my life?'” He immediately began laughing and said its hard for me to say that. He then laughed again and I asked if I could pray, to which he responded, “Do you what you have to.” As I began to speak the name of Jesus over him, he began to sigh deeply and then he began to weep. Once I had finished praying we sat in silence for a few moments, when he asked if he could pray. I said yes, but I’m going to let you pray from your heart. As he began to pray tears were still visible in his eyes and he made this profession, “Jesus you are the Lord of my life, my Savior and King.” Mike told me later that at this point his countenance had changed. We both sensed that the bondage of this man’s soul was broken this evening.

One of the things I am learning about this man is that he has never had a true friend or even a family. We will be opening our home to him this Christmas and tomorrow I am taking him fishing for the first time in his life. God could have used anyone, but today He chose me. Glory unto His name!

Taking my foot off of the gas

Posted on December 11, 2008 by Carl

This week I have done some evaluation of the landscape of my life and allowed others to speak into life. Out of this has come an awareness that Simplicity is growing fast, but the foundation is not complete. I find myself needing to put the brakes on Simplicity for the moment to get the foundation shored up.

My greatest issue is the monthly provision for my own family and our needs. I do not yet have a sufficient source of income established to effectively provide for our family. If I continue at this pace, Simplicity may grow, but it will not be on solid footing.

I will be holding off on adding any further to Simplicity until I get my family’s needs completely covered. God has given me a business model that will allow me to not only further the ministry, but also support others in the future. As with any new business venture it takes some time to get up and running. I am beginning to see some income generated, but the start up expenses are still out pacing the flow of income.

God has given me an entrepreneurial spirit and He has impressed upon me to maximize that spirit. I look forward to getting the foundation shored up, so that I can continue on with the greater work of the Kingdom of God.

Knowing God

Posted on November 13, 2008 by Carl

Right now I am working through the book of Hosea in my personal Bible study times. Today I was dealing with the 6 chapter and was drawn to focus on these words from the 3rd verse:

3 “So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD…(NASB)

Those words rang in my spirit most of the day. Getting to know the Lord…what does that truly mean?
As I was talking with a friend today, he made a statement something like this: “I want to have such a relationship with the Father, that I can ask to watch Him as He goes about His work. To ask Him, Father why when you move you hand in this direction do these things take place?” My friend likened the knowledge to the example of a child watching their father working on projects around the house.

I really liked this thought. I too want to know the Lord in such intimate ways. To know His ways, to hear His heartbeat, to feel His breath upon me as I cling tightly to Him.

Tonight was a real highlight for me. Our Organic Group at the coffee shop ended up being myself, Elishba (our intern from India) and my 7 year old daughter Caitlyn, who had asked if she could join us. Since we had gone over the passage for the week from Mark 5 on Tuesday night, we prayed and asked the Lord to guide us. After we prayed, Caitlyn said she wanted to discuss the Great Commandment from Matthew 22:

34 But when the Pharisees heard that He had put the Sadducees to silence, they gathered themselves together.
35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him,
36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
37 And He said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
38 “This is the great and foremost commandment.
39 “The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’
40 “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.

What a treat it was listening to this 7 year old as she leaned into the Holy Spirit’s understanding and began to glean the truth of God’s Word. Our discussion was once again wonderful as the Lord led the three of us through a journey of His heart for us.

For me the greatest part of the day, was having my daughter hold my hand and pray for my prayer request. That one will be treasured all the days of my life.

Journey To Simplicity