Gustav

Hello All,
So we survived Fay, she turned out to only be a lot of rain. Great news right? Well, today is the 3rd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Weather forecasts predict that Gustav will hit us on Monday or Tuesday. It could be a catergory 3 (which was what Katrina was) and on the hills of Gustav is Hurriane Hannah!

At school, we prepared the building for if we are hit. We also went through our evacuation plan. The base is evacuation planning as well. We will make a decision on Sunday after church as to what we will need to do.

Speaking of Church, it went really well last weekend. We were down a bit due to the weather. We had 300 in Main Service and 80 in Mo Kids. I am attaching pictures of the Kids service and Main service. Check it out!

Shaun will be going on full time in 2 weeks. It is very good news, and we are amazed that it has already happened! It has been quite the roller coaster this church planting adventure.. Shaun is still a little sad because he will miss his new friends from the Base and all the fun times bowling and working out! He loses his base priveledges when he gives his notice, so that means no joining the Squadron bowling team!

Thank you guys for your concern and support... maybe we'll be in Texas soon!!
Love,
Jessica

Go Away Fay!

Welcome back to adventures on the MS Gulfcoast..... today's headline: Tropical Storm Fay to hit around 6 in the morning tomorrow!

Now, I have to admit, I am a little nervous about this. Everyone around here is buying water by the gallon, candles, and everything else. The news keeps doing updates every hour and you can see it coming in.

We on the other hand, are planning on unloading the truck at 7 in the morning in time to have church at 11. I am betting that attendance will be down tomorrow. So we are praying for protection!

This week has been busy, as usual. I spent my first week in the schools. I have old classrooms for offices, so the challenge has been to make the big space seem more comfortable and conducive for counseling. Of course, there was nothing in the classrooms, so that means spending money out of our pocket. I even have to buy my own stapler and paper. I spent the first two days establishing the office as well as attending meetings. The rest of the week, I have been inundated with children! It has been very rewarding, but frustrating because I don't have the supplies I need to help them and really do sessions. It is coming though.... slowly but surely, just like everything else here. :-)

Below are a few pictures of my "offices".

Last weekend was our first in the new building. It was AMAZING! We had 370 in main service and 85 in Mosaic Kids, 22 of those kids all under 4! There are some great pictures of the main service on the Church website: http://www.mosaicchurchgulfcoast.com/. Check it out.





Here are few of the kids area without the kids. I have someone taking pictures this week with the kids. Hopefully they will be there despite the storm!



Quite the improvement!!! We have room now to grow and spread out and the area is totally kid friendly! How awesome is that?!? We are hoping that Shaun will be able to give his two week notice on Monday to the Base and go on full time with the church, we are waiting to see how this weekend goes.

Thank you for your continued encouragement and support!

Love,

Jessica

Taco Casa!!!

I forgot to share our Taca Casa story!

Rick and the family back home have been collecting Taco Casa supplies for the last month. Rick even got the guy from there to give him enough meat seasoning to cook 20 POUNDS worth of meat!

So, the plan was for Rick to ship it here. I would cook the Taco Casa and surprise Shaun with his favorite food ever! Rick even got the sauce, taco wrapping papers, and the newspaper that the Taco Casa has. It was to be the best surprise EVER!!!

Well,,,, as usual: Shaun ruined the surprise! In 7 years, I have not once been able to surprise Shaun. He figures out his birthday gifts, Christmas presents, and even ruined my anniversary surprise for him! I was so excited that this was going to be THE one surprise that would work!

The package arrived a day early when Shaun was off from work and he opened it! He then cooked his own Taco Casa dinner so when I got home from work, I smelled it as I walked up to the front door! So, good news is we now have enough taco casa seasoning and sauce to last at least until Thanksgiving when we can gt the real thing. Bad news is that we couldn't surprise Shaun with it!

Update

Hello All,

I am once again late in posting... sorry to my loyal readers.. all 2 of you!


This weekend was our last weekend in the Mirrored Hall. We held two services and the 11:00 service ran out of space both in the main service and in Mo Kids! Technically, I had over 50 kids in the 11:00. I thought that it would be good to show some before pictures of Mo Kids and after.


I posted these before pictures a while back, but here they are again.

Here are the after pictures from last weekend....

We are looking forward to only having 1 service at 11 this weekend. Shaun's youth ministry is going really well too. Last weekend was the last weekend that we held it in our home. This weekend it will move to In the Zone. Last weekend we had over 20 teens! Shaun is doing a series called Poser. This is the logo that he is using. The teens loved it!

This is my second week at work. It is going really well. Everyone is very friendly and I think that it will be a very good opportunity. There seems to be a huge need for counselors in the schools. I will actually be in my school starting on Monday.

Jan and Gary and the Boys came to visit this week. Shaun got to go with them on an airboat ride and a gator adventure. Gary has officially eaten way too much cajun food! I think that the final count was that he ate 5 oyster poorboys! The boys went fishing and it rained all day on them! We were so glad that they came and got to see everything. Gary and the boys even helped as we took down the church. I am so lucky to have such an awesome family!

Danielle and her mom came to visit this weekend too. It was great to get to meet her sister. I hope to get to spend some time with her soon. Danielle's mom is Preston's original mommy, so it was good to let her see the pup!

Thank you for the prayer! Please continue to pray for us and for Mosaic!
Love,
Jessica

Grand Opening Update

Hello Amigos y Familia!

I got totally wrapped up with everything this past weekend and I didn't get any cool photos! No worries... we will be making a video this weekend to promote Mosaic Kids (aka Mo Kids) and recruit volunteers.

So, here is the amazing story about the Grand Opening. We were up and at the church by 5 for set up. People started arriving by 8:45! We had 350 in the Main services between the 9:30 and the 11:00 services. And in Mo Kids, we have 35 and 39. In the Little Mosaics (birth-3), we had 8 and 10. Crazy good times!

The local news even came out and did a remote during the services. To check out Pastor Dustin's spot on the news, go to www. wlox.com. Search for Mosaic Church. Dustin also got to do a radio spot this week to promote this weekend.

Now the big news. We had 12 salvations that we know of this weekend! We also have now outgrown our current space and as of next week, will be meeting at In the Zone. This location is cheaper, bigger, and is a daycare/ skating rink so it is safer and we get the place all day!!

Shaun kicked off his student ministry(Cross Culture) Sunday night. We had 20 kids, not to shabby! The kids all seemed to like it and were very accepting of each other, that is huge! We also have some rock solid leaders to help with Cross Culture.

I started my paying gig on Monday with Biloxi schools. Yes, school started today here and teachers returned to school last week. We start earlier than in Texas, but we get off earlier. Did I mention that we get the week off for Mardi Gras as well as a week in April for Spring break.... and are off last of May.... sweet!!!

I am REALLY excited about this job. I will be housed at an elementary school and will service another elementary on Tuesday and Thursdays. This position is brand new and there are 3 others hired just like me. We are Elementary Mental Health Counselors. This week we are designing the protocols and procedures and next week, I will be placed in the school. I will work 8-4. Yeah, no early morning!!!

The Biloxi school district is one of the best districts in the state of Mississippi. They also are considered fairly progressive. I actually got to sit down and talk with the Superintendent and several other top administrators yesterday. I just can not get over how personable and down to earth they are, unlike most of the districts in which I have been involved with! Some districts, I never even got to meet the school Principals, much less the Superintendent!

Interesting thing about the schools here too is that they do not have guidance counselors or social workers in the elementary schools. So, the teachers have had to deal with extremely hurting children all on their own. They are so grateful to have us and I am glad to help! My Principals seem to be really sweet too. I can't wait to get started. As part of my benefits, I get a blackberry and a laptop. Fancy Fancy!!

Did I mention that I got an iphone last week? So now I have two fancy phones, neither of which I know how to operate fully! The only reason that I got the iphone was because the motorola razor finally died.. I am sorry to say that she died a long, slow painful death.

Shaun is still working at the base and enjoying it. Several people out there have recognized him from the flyer and He is forming some pretty cool friendships. His job ends in January, but we have hopes that he will go on full time at Mosaic by then.

Shaun and I are both trying to finish up our summer classes in school. This is the area that has been the hardest to balance. I just can't seem to keep caught up! And fall classes start the 18th...yuck! But we are both nearing the finish line, so it will be worth it!

I will send picts of this weekend next week. Danielle and her family are coming to visit this weekend and she is bringing me shoes!! Love her! My family is also coming to visit. I can't wait or them to see the Church and eat at Phoenicia! Lucky Shaun gets to hang out with them all day on Monday.. I'm so jealous!

I also am getting ready to teach the Women's Bible Study tomorrow on Joy.. boy is that a tough crowd! And we are doing our home group and Cross Culture this weekend.

Please continue to pray for the people of the Coast and for our staff here at Mosaic. Seems like each of us is being attacked in some way shape or form!

We love you guys!

Jessica

Ordination

Hello All,

This weekend was amazingly wonderful and busy all at the same time. Shaun, myself, Casey, and Jeremy were all ordained Sunday morning during the service. It was very surreal. As our first responsibility, we handed out the elements for communion, after that I went into Mo Kids and finished up our series. Shaun has been helping me in there A LOT! And, I owe him big time! We were talking about No Need for Greed and Shaun helped me with the lesson. There was a chocolate pie and let's just say....... Shaun really took one for the team! The kids of course loved it!

Here are a couple of the pictures of Shaun and I from during the prayer that Dustin led the church in for our Ordination. I look so serious and mad, but I swear I was just trying to keep it all together!

More pictures will be coming soon...

Sunday evening was our baptisms, I think that we baptized 10, including Maddie and Alec, our kiddos from Texas. Visit the church's website to see all of the photos: http://www.mosaicchurchgulfcoast.com/ It is under events. Here are a few photos...

Alec After...

The Mosaic Crew...

It was a very busy weekend. Pete and the kids leave tomorrow, we pray for safe passage back home to Texas. We love them and are so blessed to have been a part of this with them.

Grand Opening Weekend is upon us!! We are getting everything lined up. 56000 people received the mailer last week and we had several new families attend because of that. Very Cool! Dustin was also on tv this week to talk about the church, how awesome is that?!?! To view the interview go to: http://www.wlox.com

Thank you for your continued support and prayer. We love you and miss you!

Jessica

J-O-B, that spells job...

Hello All;

I got a job!! I got a job!! And it is a good one... and it is a good one!!!

I accepted the position in the Biloxi school district as their new mental health counselor! This position is brand new and was created in response to the need in the elementary level. After the storm, there has been an increase in post traumatic stress, anxiety, abuse, etc. So, there is now a team of 4 mental health counselors. We will be designing the protocols and choosing the assessment methods, etc.

My first day is August 4rth. I will be stationed in one of the schools, but I won't find out which school until the end of August.

Thank you all for your prayer and encouragement!

I wanted to share with you that the mailer went out and the response has already been overwhelming.. in a good way! We have had several people already call and they will be attending this weekend. The continued pattern from the calls is that they have been praying for a church like Mosaic since the storm. God is so amazing! Please continue to pray for our church and the people that are hurting here on the coast.

Love,
Jessica

July 22

Hello Everyone!

What a week! I interviewed at Biloxi ISD on Friday, I should hear something tomorrow. This job would be right up my alley and would really work with the church schedule. So, I will keep you posted.

This weekend our friend Steph came to visit. The trip wasn't too relaxing however. All of my nursery furniture came in, so Steph spent half a day putting the stuff together. She also helped with the set up and take down for the service on Sunday. We were so glad to have her here and hope that she comes back soon... maybe before school starts?!??

Yesterday, our Worship Pastor and his wife arrived from Texas. We spent the evening unpacking them. It was so great to have our church there to help. It is also great to have Casey and Chavon here.

Our mailer went out in the mail today. So, it should arrive in people's homes tomorrow and the next day. Please be praying for that it reaches those that need a church to love them. Mosaic Kids is growing, although we had a lot of our kiddos out last week. The nursery will be up this weekend. I don't' have any photos this update, but will next one.

This weekend is our ordination, as well as communion and baptism. We are baptizing 12 people!!! Including Maddie and Alec. Pete and the kids come in on Friday and we can't wait to have them here. Maddie and Alec will be the first people that Shaun gets to baptize, that is so amazing!

More to come soon.
Love,
Jessica

Closer to completion

Happy Wednesday!

I am a few days behind in updating the blog. We have had a couple of crazy days. We are getting closer and closer to being completely ready for the Grand Opening. I am still awaiting the arrival of my nursery equipment and then we are good. Our Worship Pastor and his wife arrive on Tuesday, we are looking forward to having them here and getting them settled in.

Good news on the job front. I had an interview last week at the local mental health center and I have a good chance of working there in the Children's program. The neat thing about that is that I can complete my counseling hours there for my degree..

I also have an interview THIS Friday at 8:00 at the Biloxi ISD for a Crisis Counselor position. This position is new and they are hiring 4 Counselors. This job would be awesome too because of the hours and Summer off to really focus on Mosaic Kids! Thank you for your prayers regarding my job. I hope to know something by Tuesday.

Shaun is still loving his job. He actually joined the bowling team that the guys he works with have there at the Base. The hours are a little weird, but it is nice the weeks that he has 3 days off.

Thanks to Stella's encouragement and generosity (Thanks Mom!), Shaun is going to have the surgery on his tooth that he needed. Mom always knows what to do to make the stubborn son listen! He will be having the surgery after the grand opening.

Shaun has started his student ministry. We held our first leaders meeting Sunday night. It officially kicks off on August 3rd. We are both in desperate need of volunteers to help with the continued growth in kids. This is a GREAT problem to have!

I don't have any pictures from the past Sunday. It was our first Sunday morning service and it went really well. I had 7 new kids! I do have a picture of the mailer that will be going out this week to 55,000 homes here on the Coast to encourage them to attend our grand opening. Now, this isn't the final draft, but it is close. We are hoping that 1 percent attend, at that rate, that would be 550 people in addition to our usual 100!

The dogs actually got new haircuts yesterday. There is a mobile dog groomer named Doug who comes to your house and grooms them in his van. He is a total dog lover and he did a great job on the boys. They got the short hair cut due to the heat. They went to the vet today and got their shots. Preston is on some antibiotic due to being bitten by several ants. The bugs here are insane! I just had to share their pictures, too.

Jackson is still pouting about everything!

We have several friends from Texas coming in over the next couple of weeks. I can't wait to see everyone!

Have a good week!

Jessica

First 4rth of July

Hello All,

I hope that you all had a wonderful 4rth of July. Shaun and I had the opportunity to go to one of the islands here off the coast all say on Saturday. One of the members of Mosaic has a boat, so we all went out for the day. It was a lot of fun and very relaxing. The neatest thing is that on this island, you can walk across it and on one side is the bay and the other side is ocean. Pretty cool. We did get SUPER sun burned, but it was fun. Shaun looks like a lobster still. :-)

The fire works that the Casinos and the City of Ocean Springs had were over the top! The show lasted an hour and since there were 3 different locations, the entire region was glowing, and smoking after the show! It was a redneck Paradise!

I have been busy this week ordering all the supplies for Mosaic Kids. Children's ministry is SO expensive! We are so blessed to have the resources to make it the best that it can be. Our friend, Brad, from back home was kind enough to design the Mosaic Kids logo. Check it out.. how awesome is that?!?!

We have moved our services to Sunday mornings. So this weekend will be our first Sunday Morning service. Fun! Our grand opening is set for August 3rd, where we will have 2 morning services and possibly and evening service.

Shaun kicks off his youth ministry this Sunday night. One of the members here works for the big paper on the Coast and he designed Shaun's logo, it is awesome.

We have also started having home groups through out the church. Shaun and I will host our first home group on July the 29th.

On the job front, I am still unemployed! I have an interview with the local mental health hospital tomorrow at 3. And I have been in talks with the CAC here, but have yet to confirm. I am kind of thankful for this time due to the fact that I have been so busy with the church stuff, but we really need that additional income. Please continue to pray for us.

On another note, thank you for the prayers for my Jidi. He is recovering well, although he is in a lot pain. We hope to hear the results of the testing sometime next week. For those of you who didn't hear... the only hospital in Wichita Falls, where my family lives, had over 1800 patients become infected with a serious bacteria due to the fact that the hospital was not sanitizing the tools used for operations! Sadly, Jidi was one of those 1800. The worst part of all of this is now, Jidi has to live the rest of his life in severe pain due to the hospital's negligence. I feel so sorry for all of the other families that this has affected as well.

I am attaching a few pictures from this week's Mosaic Kids. This week, we learned how to make fear disappear. As part of that, the kids had to make the worms disappear out of the whip cream pies! Note to self, next time have baby wipes ready for this game. The funniest part was the little boy who stuck his entire face into the pie! Kids are so funny!

Thanks for your continued encouragement and support. We miss you guys!

Love,
Jessica

Official:1 month in MS

Hey there!

I hope that everyone is looking forward to July 4rth weekend! We are looking forward to some rest and some sun!! We have officially been in MS for 1 month! Can you believe it? It still doesn't feel like home, but it is getting easier.

We went to New Orleans on Monday to fly Maddie and Alec back home to Texas. We had such a wonderful week with them here.....Minus Shaun's face and tooth incident. He is off of the antibiotic and his face, eye swelling and for the most part pain is under control. He still needs to have a minor surgery on his sinus to fix the problem... but he is being stubborn and putting it off! Ugghhh Boys! So please email or call Shaun and give him a hard time about this. He needs to get it over with!!!

Sunday night, God did the MOST amazing thing! We had the privilege of praying with Maddie and Alec as they prayed the prayer of salvation. We were on the beach Sunday night looking for crabs after church and they started asking us a bunch of questions about God and what it felt like to have Jesus living inside you. Kids are so smart!

This kiddos are like our own and now they are our family forever through Christ. They will be coming back on the 27th of July for our ordination and that night they will be baptized on the beach. They will be the first people that we get to baptize. How amazing is that?!?! Another awesome part: this happened on their dad's birthday!

Shaun is getting adjusted to his job at the base. As part of his job he gets to work out at the Rec Center where he works. He even went bowling for 2 hours one day! I am still anxiously looking, but it will come.

I have to share with you some pictures... Jackson and Preston have discovered how to climb our tree in our backyard! I told Shaun about it the other morning, and he didn't believe me, so I had to get some photographic evidence...

How crazy is that?!?! Tree climbing dogs!??!

I also wanted to give you an update on Mosaic Kids. I have 20 kids ages 1 and 1/2- 12 right now. They all got their very own First Edition Mosaic Kids Worship CD this past Sunday and they were so excited! I am still working on purchasing supplies and developing a logo, but I wanted to show before pictures so that when the room is done, you can see the transformation. I also included a couple pf pictures of the kids during one of our activities. We are doing a series on the ups and downs of life and the feelings they bring, last week we focused on joy. This week the message was Hide from Pride. So, the game was to hide their team mate in the crepe paper. They LOVED it and really caught the message. It is amazing to see them catching on and actually learning and worshiping! Too cute!

The winning group....

Main Room for Mosaic Kids

Soon to be nursery, ages birth to 3.

Entrance to Mosaic Kids.

The other team... it was a close game!

Thank you for your continued encouragement and prayer. We are are so blessed to have you in our lives and to be a part of this amazing journey!

Blessings,

Jessica