Summarizing the NAUMS 2011 Father’s House Israel Trip, despite the fact that it was the most informative and enlightening trip I have ever been on, has been a surprisingly difficult task.  As one might imagine,

I have been asked by numerous friends and family members, and members of our congregation, to share what the most influential or to isolate what my favorite part, of the trip was, but I have to admit that there wasn’t a most influential or favorite part of the trip for me.  Each and every day there were multiple parts that I was very fond of and that were quite influential,  The entire trip, from beginning to end, was packed full of information and spiritual depth. I honestly wish the trip hadn’t ended, and I have been suffering from feelings of … homesickness???  Kind of strange, but it is true.  I want to return with the The Father’s House each and every time they go to Israel.  Perhaps the Lord will open a door for that to happen. I have come down to one simple statement that sums up my feelings about the trip, or maybe a better way to say this is to say that this statement sums up my feelings toward God since experiencing the NAUMS 2011 Father’s House Trip to Israel, and that is this … I have a lot more “Want To” where it comes to serving the Lord.  Having experienced Him on such a real and personal level, I don’t want to do anything that would displease him.  The experience has deepened my relationship with The Lord and has made me a better minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Dear Byron, I can’t believe we have been back in the states for one week already. To say we wish we were still in Israel would be an understatement. Also, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for the investment you made in our lives. Though we have never met (hope that changes on our next trip to Texas), you have provided Ruth and I the opportunity for our love for Israel to grow deeper. Your generosity and investment allowed us to explore the possibilities of hosting trips and observe what it would take to be effective leaders in that way. Having the chance to observe and assist John and Roxie as a primary task gave us a whole different view than being participants on the trip our first time. (As you know, John and Roxie represent the Lord and your foundation with love, wisdom, and grace. It was and is a huge blessing to have them as mentors.) One other benefit of being on the trip (which was not something I was looking for but had heard from my dad and John) was gaining a clearer understanding of your passion for bringing pastors home to Israel. I can’t yet quantify the deeper connection of the obvious but I have a richer appreciation and connection to the importance of seeing the vision fulfilled. I am looking forward to seeing what the Lord has in store regarding my/our involvement making your vision a reality for more and more pastors. Again I thank you for believing in and investing in our lives. This trip drove home to me the truth that God is able to and will accomplish His purposes in our lives and the world. For He is faithful. Many blessings to you. I look forward to meeting you in person possibly as soon as this summer. Blessings, Mike Harrison. From Byron Stinson, Founder, Fathers House Educational Foundation: The work and journey of the Fathers House is very fulfilling and it is with great joy we hear testimonies like this. After 8 years we are blessed to have hundreds of reports from so many of you and we cherish each note. However, I want to say, if we never receive a note like this we plan to move forward. If Satan himself sticks a knife in our eye we will continue to follow the bread crumbs of the Lord! What motivates us is giving Glory to God. Our path is sometimes hard and crossing the barrier of Jew and Gentile is tough! This walk is not for sissy’s, but compared to those who worked the land before us it is a cake walk. Often I stop and think about those that answered the call of God. Men and women like Abraham, Sarah Jacob, Rachel, Moses, Joshua, Caleb, King David, Deborah, Gideon and more. 12 spies went out and only 2 answered the call to go in. Why? This journey is scary, confusing perplexing financially and even life threatening, work. Now we at Fathers House Foundation are taking more steps of faith. We recognize the times are here and we get to play a small part in the birth of one Covenant Nation. Jew and Gentile will become an inheritance to the Lord as the veil is lifted from our eyes. We must not allow the rocks to cry out louder than his people. Please pray for us and ask the Lord to guide us. Our primary source of funding went dry and we need Him to open financial doors for us and close those doors HE wants to close. Thank you to all the pastors that faithfully have stayed in touch, lifted us up in prayer and continue to support us in so many ways. Thank you, Mike, for taking time to write this testimony, giving thanks and encouragement to our ministry. For those that have traveled with us in the past but now feel separated or have been led to take a different path we bless you and hope you are well. We know that often our part in your life and ministry was to help the spark ignite. If the trip we helped you take led your spirit to begin a new work, we praise the Lord with joy and love to see those works succeed. If you desire to re-connect you will always be welcome in our Fathers House. (Heart) We pray for blessings and love on the entire body of Christ. Thank you, Mike, for taking time to write this testimony, giving thanks and encouragement to our ministry. For those that have traveled with us in the past but now feel separated or have been led to take a different path we bless you and hope you are well. We know that often our part in your life and ministry was to help the spark ignite. If the trip we helped you take led your spirit to begin a new work, we praise the Lord with joy and love to see those works succeed. If you desire to re-connect you will always be welcome in our Fathers House. (Heart) We pray for blessings and love on the entire body of Christ. ~ Byron Stinson

To have such a gift like a Torah Scroll Parchment is very precious to us, to have one that speaks of the release of the captives from Egypt by the power of our God and King is truly priceless for us.  I suppose the one that has Exodus 13:14 through 14:28 contains the portion that speaks so greatly to us.  I know it is easy to write wonderful words in an email expressing our gratefulness and gratitude for this gift but, I wish you and your team could really see into my heart and see how precious this is to us.  To write anymore would be less impacting than I desire so I send you Peace and love in the name of Jesus.

I knew a year ago that I wanted to go on the Israel trip. I saw the transformation in Roxie that I knew that I wanted to go if the opportunity came about. When we arrived in Israel we were greeted with welcome home. This is really appropriate since Israel is the birthplace of Christianity. Our family roots are there. My heart seems tied to Israel in a way I can’t really describe. For me the trip has really created more of a hunger to understand God’s Word and pay attention to every jot and tittle. I’m having fun seeing connections that I’ve never seen before. I loved seeing the covenant signs Israel having fun seeing passages about covenants. We stood at the gate where Boaz gave his right sandal to redeem Ruth. We learned that right is right and left is wrong. Right is clean and left is unclean. Then in Gilgal where the children of Israel had their camp when they crossed in to the Promised Land there is a huge outline of a “right” foot/sandal in boulders in the midst of the camp. What a reminder that they were in a conditional covenant with the Lord. If they obeyed they would be blessed if they disobeyed they would be cursed. Now go with me to The Cave of John the Baptist. You go into the cave and then descend steps that lead into the water. Before you get to the water you find a deep impression of a foot. Those coming to be baptized would put their foot in the depressions cleanse and anoint it and then go into the water to be baptized. Afterwards, they would come out of the water and break the jar against the wall of the cave. What a picture of no longer being a slave to sin that would have been for them. They have entered into a new covenant written on their hearts. Now picture us at the wailing wall. What a visual of Israel breaking covenant with the Lord. They are standing on the outside of a broken wall to worship. I was so moved standing at the wall, touching it, and praying for Israel and the Jews. What a privilege to be a Gentile believer and to be in a covenant relationship with the Lord. Our sign of being in covenant is the seal of the Holy Spirit that was given to us when we believed in Christ.

Father’s House, Thank you so much for the time, energy and care you put into our Israel trip. I am so grateful for the loving attention you gave to our group from Pedernales River Fellowship. May the Lord continue to bless you as you serve Him. In Christ, Greg

So many wonderful memories of a beautiful country with an amazing history. So special

Our trip to Israel with the Father’s House was truly heart changing. I had heard from people who have been to Israel before and how God seemed to speak to them in the Holy Land. I wondered deep down, would he speak to me, what would it be like, what if he didn’t? With all those thoughts swirling around my head, my prayer was God speak to my heart. As a man, pastor, husband, and dad, I struggle with pride. I did not want to come back and be a know it all about Israel, I wanted to come back with a changed heart. And that’s exactly what happened. Sure, I learned, experienced, and gained tons of knowledge and I will never read the bible the same or preach the same again, but God’s greatest gift to me was a more loving heart. I tell people that Israel made me a better LOVER. I love my wife, my kids, others, and my God more and it’s easier to show it. The second to the last day of the trip John gave us the opportunity to be baptized in the Sea of Galilee. Inside I thought, I’m a pastor, I’ve already been baptized, I baptize others, I don’t need to be baptized. But then at the same time I felt our Father say, Do this for me, humble yourself, who cares what others think or say, do this for me, humble yourself for me. The wrestling match continued until the spirit won out and I got dunked. It was awesome. Humbling but awesome. It just felt right. Thank you for that opportunity. It was one of my highlights.