I hope and trust that this blog finds you well and cozy and enjoying some nice cool temperatures and a heart ready for the joy of the Holydays!
So much has happened since I last wrote... let's start with this video recap of our F.O.R.T. camp this year. We went to a brand new location and enjoyed one of our best camps ever. I co-taught with my amazing colleague, Nad, some lessons that I had prepared back in 2014. This group had never heard them and with a few touch ups, they were ready to go. The camp was so fun, with dancing in the rain, laughter and great connections to put a nice bow on our new camp spot (hopefully) for years to come!
Last year I missed her 40th birthday because I was in Malawi doing Trauma Healing... this year we tried to make up for it with a much deserved birthday weekend away with friends. It was so nice to get away and celebrate my amazing wife!
Speaking of amazing women in my life... here is the incredible Serenity! She finally got to have her birthday party in September... just 5 months after her real birthday. Kind of cool to get two birthdays in a year :).
October is the birthday month to end all birthday months... especially when you celebrate birthdays late :). Liam got to go see his favorite band (Owl City) with one of his favorite people (Diane) for his birthday. What a cool kid... he's like a son to me... very very much like one!
I was sad to miss his actual birthday as I was headed back overseas on my last trip of the year! It is so hard to keep saying goodbye, especially to this sweet Bella girl. She takes it the hardest of all my kids and it was so sweet of her to come to the airport and see me off.
Getting to Tanzania was a miracle, especially since all our luggage also made it. We had so many tight connections, but the tightest one was in Doha where our next flight was already boarding as we were getting off the plane. That was a bit stressful! But God is so faithful and got us and our luggage there! That was nice since after we landed we immediately got on a 7 hour bus ride. There was no way to wait for and recover lost bags.
While I was gone, Diane got to run Ragnar again, her third year going! She did great and had a blast! It made our time away fly by!
Tanzania was so fun! I love Africa and I love being able to server PBT there. It's my first time since 2016 doing an overseas trip for my own organization and it was such a treat to get to know the missionaries and their families better.
We had some fun on zip lines and I loved being able to give a mini sermon (if you can believe that I can even do that) out on these rocks. We had a great group and went through some lessons that Nad and I developed together and tested out on our youth group here first. There are four lessons that go from recognizing and articulating what you believe to creating a training program for your soul and then letting go of all the things that get in the way of you knowing God. It was so good!
We spent a lot of time traveling on a bus. In fact we spent more time traveling to and from than actually enjoying being there. The location was great, the group was so fun to be with and I treasure the relationships that were built with the youth! I look forward to seeing them again and to have the joy of continuing to serve more and more PBT families overseas. A fun bonus was getting to see giraffe, elephant, baboon, and zebra while driving through the game park.
I got back and immediately was reminded that I'm in concert season with my wife and family. Diane and Creed and I got to go see one of Creed's favs, Judah and the Lion... who were opening for one of my favs, Needtobreathe.
The day after that was a karaoke birthday party for a good friend Bri. It was so much fun being able to sing my heart out! All these events helped me stay awake and get over jet lag quick!
After all this travel it's been really nice to be home! Another friend, Rodney, came and gave his testimony at youth group the Monday after I got back. He knocked it out of the park! He's a teacher and really knows how to connect with our kids well. I really enjoyed getting to know him better through what he shared.
We love costumes! Diane just likes to dress this way and kiss her muscles in public, so this photo is unrelated. Isn't she strong!
It happened... my girls won some goldfish! They are now dead... the goldfish, not the girls. They were fun for the week that they were here, probably the best week of their lives.
The Fall Festival at my church got cancelled for the first time since I've been going to it. Too much rain! But we still had the MKs over for a fun movie afternoon and watched "Meet the Robinsons" One of my favorites!
We have finally started doing lunches with the kids again! Schools are harder to get into, but since we have some home schoolers we can do lunch in the dining hall here on campus. It's great to see MKs present and past join us! Once an MK, always an MK!
Guys group is working on making some great items for our fundraiser coming up! The Talent show and Silent Auction! Yay! I'm so grateful that my volunteer Jeremy is so good at making things... good enough that we can actually auction them.
Asher decided he wanted to go to a concert too! We took him to see ARIZONA... on the night the Rangers won the World Series! It was so fun seeing how the band responded... kinda ironic given the team the Rangers beat was from Arizona :). They stopped the show and made a toast to the team and walking back to the car through downtown Dallas after the concert was so fun. People were definitely out celebrating!
When the Rangers won the game someone from the crowd threw a jersey to the lead singer signaling the victory. He put it on and kept it on the rest of the concert. It was so cool!
I still love getting in costume... especially when the costume is close to what I would wear any way.
I can't tell you how many anniversaries I've celebrated overseas with my wife, or sadly without her. This year we celebrated apart - I was in Thailand and she was in Duncanville. But we finally got away together for a couple of days and got to enjoy a Serenity birthdayesque celebration, 4 months after our actual anniversary.
We went to Frederiksberg for 3 nights and did the things. What a joy to have 20 years with this beauty, and hoping for at least 20 more! Diane, you are truly my best friend and it's a great privilege to do life with you!
There you have it... you are all caught up on what's going on... Next week I will celebrate my birthday and Thanksgiving and then we will start the final countdown until Christmas! I'm so thankful that I'm here until February! I just got my tickets to Cameroon yesterday. Please be praying for that trip with me. I go first to Boston to do a retreat (hoping Diane can come too) and then I fly from there to Cameroon to do a Men's retreat and then speak at my high school retreat. I did that in 2014 when I last did the relationship lessons we shared at camp this year.
Pray for good connection with my family and an ability to feel rooted here while I'm here. Pray for me as I plan these future lessons, that God would speak His words through me to others. Pray for my support that seems to ebb and flow. I trust that God will continue to provide...Pray that he would continue to bring in the money for the trips I take and for all the other day to day things. I have lost some support since COVID and with the changing economy.
If you are interested in one time opportunities to join my team or regular ones please let me know. My trip to Cameroon will cost $1,100 for the tickets and visa.
I praise God for you and all the ways your prayers transform my life in many ways that I may never know. Thanks for being there for my family as I'm traveling and while I'm here! Thanks for your encouragement and for being such a big part of all the things that God is doing in my life! I can't do this job without your backing and as a result you are such a big partner in all the good work that God is doing! Thank you so much! Ten years at this and hoping and trusting God for many many more!
My final thoughts...
God is teaching me about storms as I prepare my lessons on the topic "Through the Storm." Jesus tells us that putting his words into practice is how we build our house on the rock and remain through the storm. I'm trying to be faithful to not just read, but learn how to practice what I read as I go through the Bible. One thing that I've been trying to figure out is how to determine what kind of storm I'm in while I'm in it. Some storms Jesus quiets miraculously, and expects his followers to learn how to do the same. Other storms are opportunities for God to be glorified and for us to grow. They can't be avoided, they are a part of following. I hope that when you find yourself in a storm you are able to see what kind of storm it is and respond in a way that grows your faith, glorifies God, and prepares you to thrive and help others thrive in the next one!
Blessings,
Caleb
If you want to support what I do a little or a lot, on a one time basis or with recurring gifts, the easiest was is to use Zelle. You can follow this link zellepay or scan the code below. That will start the process of getting you set up to use Zelle with your bank or If you already use Zelle it will direct you to the banking app you use and give you instructions from there. To send me money use my email caleb_robbins@sil.org. If you would like any help setting that up feel free to contact me directly! 214 558 8431.
Another way to donate to the ministry if Zelle isn't an option is via check. If you write a check to "Holy Cross Lutheran Church" and put "Caleb Robbins Ministry" in the memo line, it will get deposited into my ministry account. If you would rather set up a bill pay or have any other questions you can call the Church at 817-451-7561. Let them know you want to Support Caleb Robbins and his ministry serving Missionary Kids.
