Love More

Yesterday, Caroline and I celebrated our 42nd anniversary.  I have known Caroline for 59 of the 64 years I have been on this earth, and I can say for sure that those 59 were SO much better than the first 5.   We waited a few years before starting to date, but we only waited 3 weeks after graduating from UGA to get married.  We then waited for 3 days before conceiving our son Michael, and 3 years after that Lizzy.  Now, we are thrilled with this crew of grandchildren that absolutely provide us with more joy than we could possibly have imagined.  Thank you Caroline for putting up with me all of this time.  I look forward to learning how to love more for years to come.  I love you.

Precious Memories

 

I'm up early this morning because something precious was stolen yesterday, and we need to see if we can recover it.  Captain Hook stole a treasure chest full of candy and took it to a deserted island, as he has every summer for the last 10 years.  Together with some friends, we host all of our grandchildren at the lake (without their parents) for three days to help with the search.  The first year we had four pirates.  This year we have twelve, and unless our kids decide to adopt, we believe twelve will be our max number.  We love that our 14 year old pirate still wants to come.  I say this every year: the preparation, execution and clean up from this event is one of the most exhausting things I do every year, but also the most important.  We love making memories with our grandchildren and hope they continue to love being with us, even if it does take a treasure to lure them.  For a video summary of yesterday, check out my facebook page and start from the bottom up.

Reaching The Unreached

 

In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus says, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."  Most of us have heard or read these verses.  Some ignore them.  Many believe it is best for them just to focus on the people they run into on a daily basis, recognizing that there is plenty of work to be done right around us.  A precious few take the words to heart and dedicate their lives to taking Jesus to the people that have never heard his name spoken.  Carole Ward is one such person.  Her parents were missionaries, and she has dedicated her life to spreading the Word of Jesus to the people, beginning in Africa's Sahel region.  The region has extreme climates and is dangerous with more than half of the world's terror-related deaths happening there.  She is now serving in Chad, ripe with residents immersed in ISIS and Al Qaeda.  Why would she choose this area to spread the word of Jesus?  Because so few others would.  Digba Katsala was baptized in the first missionary training school offered there, along with 202 others.  He now travels into towns on his motorcycle sharing the good news of Jesus.

Caroline and I have friends who are leading a ministry that helps young adults figure out if they might want to be long term missionaries by providing training and extended visits to the least reached areas of our world.  While the areas are not generally considered dangerous to Christians, spreading the word of Jesus to the local people is illegal - and if caught, they would be asked to leave the countries where they are serving.   While we have not felt the calling to travel there ourselves, we have felt called to support their ministry, and will continue to do so as long as we are able.  I pray that you will listen for and hear God's voice as we attempt to fulfill The Great Commission.

This post was inspired by this article at CBN.

A World Away

In 2013, 9 year old Sokny Tauk sat patiently in her home in Cambodia with her siblings sharing a half bag of rice, which is all the food they had at the time.  When Mike Meierhoffer visited their town on a medical mission trip, Tauk and her siblings were seen eating the scraps of food off of the missionary's table.  Tauk's parents had passed away, and the primary source of income was from her 16 year old sister.  Meierhoffer was moved with compassion, and partnered with a native, Sokhum Hun, to start the Cambodia Bible School on the campus known as The Jesus Village.  The Jesus Village also includes an orphanage, well-digging ministry and medical services and is planned to serve 240 orphans in 12 houses.  One house has been built so far.  Tauk and her siblings were adopted and became the first members of the orphanage.  Tauk, now 22 years old, works with the ministry and hopes to become a teacher in The Bible School soon.  Praise God for the vision and desire of Meierhoffer and Hun to help these children in the name of Jesus.  For more information about the Jesus Village or to learn how to support the ministry, click here.

This post is a summary of an article written by Audrey Jackson at The Christian Chronicle.