KEEP Walkin...

What a day! The enemy tried to hinder our progress, but his efforts were futile. Didn't know what to expect when I began the walk today, but quickly found that God was with me all the way. Before I got 3 houses down a guy pulled off the road and began to encourage me to carry the cross in THIS city. I have quickly realized that this place needs an awakening. I know that God has tasked me with carrying a symbol of His omni-presence to this place. Before I got to the end of my street a police officer stopped me and asked me what I was carrying..I said "A Cross"..By the look on his face he was confused and shocked wait til I go down to the police dept. and meet his Chief..they'll all be surprised I used to be a brother in uniform blue just like them...God is so neat!.....hehe :).

Carrying the cross for miles I received hundreds (maybe thousands) of honks and thumbs up to encourage me and to say they approved. Many people stopped and took pictures, many from the road and many got out to meet me. Most asked "Why are you carrying a cross?" I would usually reply "To tell people the story about Jesus". Some new Him and some didn't. Regardless the gospel message was given to many today. Several signed the cross leaving there name and a prayer request. A 15 year old girl named Lindsey sticks out in my mind the most tonight. A sweet young lady that I met as soon as I began to carry the cross on the beach. She is a believer and she asked for sincere prayers for her family. Please pray for her and her family. She left me very encouraged.

There were so many divine appointments today that I cannot share all of them. Thousands upon thousands of people saw me carrying that cross today and it did leave a lasting impression. You see, whether they were encouraged or not, they had to make an immediate decision as to how they would handle the sight of a man carrying a cross. It will be an impression that they will probably remember the rest of their lives.

God is going to do a mighty work here through one family's obedience. Be encouraged to obey Him with your life....God Bless You all!

Somebody have a hot tub for me to use!

Back from a 7-10 mile walk with the cross...took about 5 hours.....Immediately began to receive comments and questions......talked to people all day long about Jesus.....I'll update some more in a little while...going to rest for a while...........Pray for my strength.....tonight and the next two nights following I have voluntered to keep watch over the church's fireworks stand..have to be up all night with it...........plan to carry the cross everyday thru the 4th July weekend......Too many people to witness to.....can't miss the opportunity.........check back later please!

I don't say it enough

Thank all of you SO MUCH for caring about us, for praying for us, for supporting us. So far this journey has overwhelmed our imaginations of how far God has brought us so quickly. God has called us to this mission. He has called us to this place. There is a tremendous burden here for truth and hope. God has called us here to bring that message to these people. God has called all of you to support our efforts here and we are eternally grateful for you answering God's call to your life.

Stay encouraged and move when the Spirit moves you. Your comments mean so much to us. Your prayers are vitally important. Share this mission with others please. The burden can be much lighter if many members of the body of Christ support a particular effort. God has provided so far. HE WILL PROVIDE OUR NEEDS.. Notice i said needs. What ever is provided we are obeying God's command upon our lives...We are here until He tells us to leave...God bless all of you.......P.S please let us know your prayer requests. We want to start praying for you guys specifically.

Trying to post a few pics now

It's Your Ministry too!

Just wanted to thank all of you so much for your encouragement, prayers, and support. We have been here for one week and there has been a lot happen that we have not been able to share with you yet. There has been a lot of time spent settling in, but there has been time to minister to others and I plan to share some of that with you now.

We were immediately welcomed by Christian Life Church here in Orange Beach. We are beginning to make friends there and they have been encouraged and we have been encouraged by them. They have already been able to help us and it appears more help will come from them. Just to name a few, Phillip and Jenny (Missions Pastor), Dr. Steve and Joanne Hankins, Clint and Heather, and others. I am to meet with the Pastor Rick Long this week to fill him in on the vision to carry the cross to the beaches and any other way we can help in their ministry.

We have had many conversations with people about Christ through the campground, KidCraft, and the CrossWalk.

Barry was able to have deep spiritual conversations with our neighbors at the campsite. One man and wife expressed that they had both had addictions to alcohol and that the husband had given his life to Christ 10 months ago at Bradford. Barry spoke to Him about a sovereign God and that God appoints people to be in specific places to guide those people towards a Saviour and fulfill the will of God. This gentleman expressed that he knew that Barry was placed at that site to encourage him to now seek God's will for his next step in life because he believes he should be making a difference in other peoples lives to guide them to the Lord.

KidCraft (our little campsite meeting for kids to have craft time, learn about God, and to be given love) was kicked off Satuday night. We had 4 kids show up (Only invited a small number of kids). We were able to present the message of salvation and 3 stated they were already saved. One little boy named Scott (9) was inquisitive about salvation but was not willing to ask Jesus into his heart yet. Please pray for Scott. He was very close to asking Jesus into his heart. We pray that the seeds planted will begin to grow. They were all given a bracelet that reminded them about Christ.

There are countless Christians that we have been able to inspire by simply sharing our story with them. Many have expressed that they are inspired to obey God more and trust Him in deeper ways by witnessing our steps of faith.

The building of the cross in now underway, and we can hardly wait to witness how God will use this avenue to present the gospel.

Again, we have been encouraged beyond words by all of you. We ask that you keep us in your prayers to constantly seek and obey God's commands in our lives. We ask that you will fervently pray for the souls that we will come into contact with through this ministry. Lastly we are excited to see how God begins to grow the base of this ministry geographically, financially, relationally, and spiritually.

As you can see we have been busy. Please know and remember that your prayers, contributions of materials and donations to help with finances have and will continue to be used to build God's Kingdom. We are praying that God continues to provide the resources needed to continue these ministry opportunities. Not only do your contributions help, but everyone else that you are able to share our story with will also be used to further the glorification of God.

Been a good day, but it's LATE!!

RJ and BJ write.....We had a really productive day....started building the cross to be carried....and held our first "KidCraft" tonight. KidCraft is where we invite kids inside the campground to come to our campsite and do a craft, eat a snack, receive a gift, hear the gospel, have fun, and recieve lots of love from us. We have lots to share with everyone, but we are exhausted tonight and it is late. We even have lots of pictures (got the camera and memory card working finally.....just another answer to prayer!!!!). We hope to have lots of pictures and updates for all of you tomorrow. Thank you all for being patient with us.

One other quick note....We know people are following our blog, but we have know idea how many. We only show seven followers on the blog page itself.

We would really like to know how many are actually reading the blog. That way we can get a true sense of how many are following and to clue us in if we need to be expanding our communication efforts. Please email us or note it on facebook if you do not wish to comment on the blog, we would really be encouraged by one quick line to let us know you are following our ministry. So, email us at barryandrachel@hotmail.com or visit our Facebook. On Facebook, look for Rachel Washburn Jones and Barry Lynn Jones. We do have a myspace page. We will work on that this week.

Blessed by God and seeing it more everyday,
RJ and BJ

Waiting on the Lord!

Barry writes....Just a quick note to fill all of you in....Some wonder why we are attempting this mission while living in a tent. I had a few reasons for the tent living. 1) Thought it would be less expensive and wanted to use every resource we could toward other living and ministry expenses. 2) To back away from the hustle and bustle of life so we could focus on a more simple life (I know that is possible in other ways but this way we would not have a choice but to simplify out lives in order to serve the Lord better). 3) I thought it would be an interesting way to break free from the bondage of a life too busy to serve the Lord fully. Our plans are to journal all of this and put a book together defining the process of taking these steps of faith. Many have suggested we document what we do so that it can serve as encouragement to others. As you have probably noticed that all of these reasons involved "my" thoughts and my plans. I just had the idea of the tent life and thought it was a good way to have our family grow through it. God sent us here and I know that. We are determined to follow God's commands upon our lives regardless of the difficulties it may cause in our lives.

I just want to set some of you guys at ease because there has been some concerns expressed as to the health of our children while in this tent. We, I, am seriously considering all aspects, opinions and circumstances concerning our living conditions. Turns out it will probably be cheaper to live in an apartment here. The missions pastor of the church we are attending expressed he might be able to find us a cheaper more comfortable place. If support comes in for us to live inside a house, apartment, or otherwise and it is more beneficial to do so, then that is what we will do. I am supposed to hear from the missions pastor early next week and he will give us more info. Last word, if the Lord opens the door there and I am confident that He is directing us to move into that residence then we will do so without question. It does appear that He may be pointing us that direction, but I am waiting the Lord to open those doors.

Thank all of you for your concern, support, and prayer.
Christ hung for you, so you would stand for Him! God Bless.

Barry writes....Just a quick note to update...We met with the missions pastor today from Christian Life Church here in Orange Beach. God has orchestrated us attending this church even before we got here. We have been praying for someone to help us with our "not for profit" status. Phillip, the missions pastor, is experienced in setting up ministries and people for the "not for profit" excemptions. He was more than willing to help us get that accomplished. He knows all the ins and outs. Just another answer to prayer.

As you have now heard that I intend to build a cross and carry it on the beach, interestingly enough, the pastor of the church has built a cross that he carries on good friday every year through the streets of this area. Just another little connecting point for us to praise God for.

Phillip, the missions pastor, expressed that this church would be interested in helping us in many ways. I can't express all of the areas they might be able to help, but I will update as those prayers and needs are met. As we conversed, it did seem that they would be able to help in ways beyond our initial expectations.

Our thoughts and prayers are with all of you. Please pass on our mission and internet information to as many people as you possibly can. Our desire is that this step of faith will build a large community of followers that lead people to Christ. God Bless all of you.

What you've all been waiting for...

Barry writes.......Many have asked the very important question "What will we be doing while we are at the beach to minister?" That was a great question that deserved an answer. Before we left on the trip I was not able to answer that with specific details, primarily because I did not know. In fact, I had many ideas, but the Lord had not given me any specific direction except to go to the areas of the beach and things will be revealed. The last 4 months has been a process of seeking God's direction for our lives and He has consistently revealed things, but only a step or two at a time. I was confident that once we arrived the Lord would show us what to do, and that is exactly what He has done. Just a few days before we left God gave me the idea of carrying a cross on the beaches in this area. As I walk with this cross it will pass by people on the beach and on the street. Through that it will express the need for a Saviour and reveal that blessed hope we all need. Over the last few days God has confirmed in me that we are to develop and grow this ministry of walking the cross on the beaches in the south eastern United States. We are to seek support in Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. We are meeting with the missions pastor of Christian Life Church in just a few minutes to see if we can help in any other way. We thank you all for your prayer, interest, and support. God Bless.

Rachel writes......Pictures coming very soon......we are having trouble with camera and transferring it to the internet...

Finally Here!!!!

We finally made it!!! It seemed as if we were never going to be able to get on the road and to the Gulf. Our plan was to leave Monday, June 1st, but the enemy threw up many obstacles to slow us down. In the last two weeks before heading out to the Gulf a list of events occurred that were not only emotional and tiring, but were obvious attempts by the enemy to slow us down. It all started when a lady that was living with us attempted suicide, then Bradley got a spider bite that made his ankle swell and produce hives all over. Barry and Brodie then spent a full night in the ER because Brodie split open his forehead by running into the corner of a wall. Five stitches later, an ambulance ride and one ct scan later we were able to leave at 4:30 in the morning. Got to church Sunday morning and Brock had an acute asthma attach and we had to leave church to give him a breathing treatment. Barry then had to work non stop in the rain to finish a deck he had promised to build for someone. Wednesday night Barry's truck was hit and it is now not drivable and probably totalled. Thursday night Barry was attempting to help someone down the street with a broken down car at 1:00 in the morning and was held at gun point by a man for 5-10 minutes, frisked by 7 Montgomery PD Officers, and then had to convince the police officers that he was trying to help the man with the broken down car and not breaking into cars (we will expound on that story more some other time :). So to say the least, we had an extremely eventful two weeks which slowed our progress some but did not deter us from answering God's call for us to come to the beach to minister. Some people would see this as God closing doors, but we see it as the enemy trying to stop us. The doors were still wide open, the money was there, we had a church to get things started with and several contacts from there, and we still had that peace that passes all understanding! So, we saw God all in this mission still and that He obviously had something big for us because the enemy sure did not want us here....but God is good and faithful!!! Having trouble getting pics posted and finding areas with WIFI to hook up to.

coming soon

Barry will update soon. We are trying to get the tent and everything ready. Can't wait to share God's blessings so far!