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NEW: 5911 Keeneland Parkway,
Dallas, TX 75211
Dan Cell 972-955-8816
Laura cell 972-955-8820
dgkachikis@gmail.com
/ lakachikis@gmail.com
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Dear Friends and Family,
Greetings from Water World
(formerly Texas)! The last time they had this much rain in May was in 1982, my
first full May in Texas. I think it would be to the advantage of the civic
fathers of Dallas to pay me to leave. If my mojo is still working, none of
Dallas' sport teams will win any title while I'm here. So again, if the price
is right, I'll leave!
You'll notice from our
address that we have changed residences. The house we were in is going to be
"updated," and good friends from Faith are graciously letting us live
in the house her parents used to live in until it is ready for sale. Of course,
the moving was somewhat affected by the Texas monsoon season. First was the
water in the front 3 bedrooms. That's been remedied. Then came the flooding of
the most direct route to the new house. Not that the expressways are smoother,
but driving the 24 ft. U-haul down city streets was an experience. It was like
driving an 8.3 earthquake, sitting on an un-padded Richter scale ©. Yet on the
very morning when May became the wettest May on record, the rain stopped just
at the right time.
Laura and I feel blessed
by the Lord not just because of the provision of places to live, but because of
the friendship we have been shown by all the right people at all the right
times. He has kept us on our knees, but after this last month of reading about
David in the One-Year Bible, I would be afraid not to have to live on my knees. So, the pressures, the challenges
that make us have to use all our creativity, the waiting for the Lord to show
the next steps, are all from the Lord to keep us safe. Disciples are supposed
to be pruned and in a constant state of asking, seeking and knocking as they
follow Jesus into the harvest, making disciples who make disciples.
The work at Faith Bible is
wrapping up. It has been an education and I think the Lord has given us some
great insights, most of which are nothing new. Everything needed to become a
disciple who makes disciples is sitting on the surface of the pages of the
Gospels. I'm seeing more and more that it isn't just the simplicity that eludes
us, it is the time needed and the method that seems impossible for the 21st
century, western mind. The faster our internet connections and the more
multi-tasked our attention, the less able we might be in making disciples. That's
kind of ironic. And then I found a definition of a being a disciple right out
of the mouth of Jesus that I would say is the key to what we are as disciples
and how we make disciples. Matthew 11:29 - "Take My yoke upon you and learn from
Me…" The word "learn" is the same word that means
"disciple." What if a disciple is to learn directly from Jesus
through the Spirit via the Word? What if "from" means from? What if
people rely so heavily on our teaching, sermons, books, blogs, etc…for
information that they feel no need to go to the Word? What if our teaching and resources
are creating biblical illiteracy? What if the only way they can grow as
disciples is to be in the Word with the Lord every day? What if Psalm 1:2
really means what it says? Lots of questions and lots of growing convictions.
At the same time it is
rewarding to see people enjoying reading their one-year Bibles, discussing
together and getting excited about what they are finding. A man told me last
week that his son has now begun reading a one-year Bible. That's pretty cool.
Laura and I would
appreciate your prayers for a church. We are asking the Lord to lead us to a
place where we can put this into practice. Nothing on this planet is simple,
but we'll continue to ask, seek and knock until we are brought to a place where
we can work with other disciples, reaching the lost and making disciples who
make disciples.
And too, please pray for
all of our family-- Gary, Helena and kids, Alisa, Greg & Katy, and Janae--
all of whom are going through major transitions.
In Christ,
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Dan and Laura
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