Football is back!!!! Of course that is old news, but here I had the privilege of catching the first game of the season with some real Chiefs fans! What an awesome time and amazing group of people!
My cousin not only gave of his time to build this fence, but he also came back and made sure it would last by staining it! I feel the incredible support of my community in so many special ways. Here is a man truly giving his talents to serve and love the people around him!
Here is a cool story of God's grace in my life. A new coffee house opened up near us called Kingsmen. I absent mindedly scheduled an event for thirty minutes before they closed. They are owned by people who love Jesus and had such great mercy on my mistake! They not only let us stay well after it closed but also gave us pastries that were left over. They treated us just the way I imagine Jesus would have if he had been a coffee shop owner! It turned into a great time of fellowship AND a great testimony!
My amazing girls are now going to American Heritage Girls! I love the opportunities God gives them to grow. My sister-in-law Claire is graciously driving them so that it doesn't impact our already busy schedules. So thankful for her kindness in making this possible for them. She went through the program herself and is in her final few months. With an awesome project looming ahead, pray for her if you think about it!
I found a 20-foot inflatable screen! I got it for one of our favorite MK fundraisers... Movie on the Lawn. It's so fun to have people come out and spend time with us. We are just one big family after all. We watched "Silly Songs with Larry" until it got dark enough to start the movie Inside Out 2 with the group.
This is during one of our favorite evenings at the F.O.R.T. group, Community Monday, led by a really awesome volunteer Jeremy Humiston. Who else would bring a giant pink duck?! It was so fun!
It's always bittersweet living in this community! You meet the best people, but so many of them are highly mobile. Here I'm helping good friends Michael and Tiana move out of their apartment before heading to Africa. They are missed.
My sister is such a baller... but with paint. She got this awesome painting in a gallery, and it was so special to go and celebrate with her! What a gem!
Speaking of gems! Diane celebrated her 42nd birthday with a dance party! It was epic! We also watched Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy... because you know... 42. ☺
After watching a marriage that I had officiated fall apart, I felt convicted to do a better job keeping up with the couples that I have married. I love these two amazing couples and have really enjoyed doing marriage counseling with them for the past year. They are incredible and we really enjoy getting together, and finally a nice weather day that let us get outside in the front garden!
The new building at PBT is finished and here is my wife's new office its glory. It's even better now! Eventually I'll move over to that side of the street too! So exciting.
Here is my burgeoning Soccer star! Bella played in her second season and did great. She gets better every game!
Creed and Asher did great at District for Cross Country. Creed is an amazing captain, and Asher got his first individual medal for finishing 9th overall. Village Tech almost swept the medals!
Almost immediately after regionals was over ,there was another race that Diane does every year (sometimes twice) called Ragnar. I haven't been traveling as much and was so glad that I could go and help. Creed ran for the second time and Asher for his first. I have such an athletic family! It was a great time with friends, old and new! Diane captained a first-place team! What a hero!
Here is one of the more fun things I get to do during the week; have lunch with the amazing MKs!
Asher's team went undefeated in flag football and then came up short in overtime in the second game of the play offs. It was especially sad since he didn't get to play in the loss at all. I'm sure he would have made a big impact. Oh well... that is sports for you and gives the opportunity to learn more eternal lessons.
Here Diane is celebrating with her team after receiving their medals!
Another teenager entered my house this year! Liam is now 13. What a great joy it is to parent that amazing Liam! He made his party super fun; he invited some of his older friends, and he had all of us do a very silly walk... yeeehaawwwww! I'm so grateful for his love for the Lord, his sense of humor and his joy in making friends. He's a great addition to the other teens in the family!
I always enjoy visitors to my pumpkin patch. It's fun to get the yard decorated for fall!
I was enjoying a cup of coffee and then noticed that a giant branch had been saved from crashing into our cars by this amazing superhero crepe myrtle tree. It took some doing but we finally got the branch out of the tree and no damage was done! God is so kind!
The last 2 years my church hasn't done their fall festival. That leaves me with the joy of hosting this event. It's always fun having the costumed MKs over and playing games and watching movies together!
I got to play pickle ball for the first time recently at a friends' themed birthday party. Can you guess the theme? I love my crazy fun friends that get me out there doing stuff I would never do on my own!
We have been so busy with so much it seems. One Sunday we just took some time to be a family and worship together and ended up going on a walk. It was so fun exploring this nature path near our house that my cousin Lynda has been working so hard to keep beautiful!
Our one picture from trick or treating. What a fun night. We ended in our neighborhood this year. It was fun getting out with the kids!
Here is my beautiful bride dressed up like we were on our wedding day... no, not really but see if you can guess who we are. Diane put this together and it turned out really well!
One of the amazing things I get to do as a youth pastor is baptisms. I hadn't done one in a long time but then this awesome Ben guy called me up and asked if I would. It was such a joy and honor to be able to do this for such a great guy. I was touched to hear the impact I've made in his life; he certainly has made a hugely positive impact in mine. It was also a gift of God that at the next service, we knew another person getting baptized and got to stay for that. We then drove home in an unbelievable rainstorm. It's like God wanted to baptize everybody!
I still got it! That's what I thought when I came outside to this. What a wonderful way to give me toilet paper. I'm glad that I could use it for fire starter at my birthday party. Man, I feel the love!
Diane and her mom had some adventures on their way to a women's retreat with the church. They got to apply all their awesome creativity and car tricks from living years and years overseas. I'm glad they and the car were okay and that it turned into a joyful adventure!
It's been a very busy season for the amazing Jeremy Humiston! With the new PBT building setup, he's been working nonstop, so I got to step in on a Community Monday and come up with some games. I did a relay race and had a blast doing things I used to do long before I had these great volunteers to help! My boys coincidentally all got elected to be captains of their teams, I was very proud. Asher's team won! It was a fun night talking about Grit and the joy of being members in a Body.
I think this is the first time I've made it do this event - the setting up of the Christmas trees. The youth group sends some kids to help set trees up for people who need one in the community. I also got decorated some. I love having my sister-in-law Claire in the group. This is her last year... sniff sniff.
My parents got us a fire table for Christmas! We are already putting it to great use.
I got sick just before my birthday party and trip to Indiana. Here I am trying to get some zs before Bellas's playoff game.
That night was my party! I too am now 42! Abby and Mark did a great job leading worship. We had over 50 amazing people come and celebrate with me, including my friend Michelle who lives in Washington. I felt so blessed by the time of encouragement and prayer. I was up late with my friends and then had a day to recover before we left for Indiana on our Thanksgiving adventure!
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| Here I am toasting the amazing people who came out to celebrate me. |
If you want the full story of the adventure, you'll need to catch me for coffee or lunch. Needless to say, it was incredibly special to show my kids where I grew up some and went to college and to introduce them to my mom's side of the family. Jordan and Tirza are some of our favorite people and it was so special to get our families together and have my kids meet someone they have heard so many stories about. They said this was their favorite family vacation. The girls cried so much when we had to leave all the cousins. We had some amazing deer meat and many precious moments with some of the best people you will ever meet. It was great to get away and hard to leave and yet still good to get home. We did the trip in one day both times. Lots of driving and so thankful for God's protection on the journey!
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| Finally home! |
We went caroling for the first time as an MK group. Here we are serenading my parents! It was a unique experience that needs some work, but a memory for sure!
I took this picture last night; my entire family can do this simple thing that I just cannot even get close to doing!
It reminds me of a lesson that is so special to me about the body of Christ. God puts us together the way He wants us to be and invites us to love each other as a way to bring life and unity to something that couldn't exist any other way. I couldn't do what you all do, and I need you for sure to be a part of what God is doing in my life that perhaps you can't do. When we live in harmony, when we choose to love, we see things come to life that destroy darkness and advance a wondrous kingdom. Light truly has come into the world and is shining from the children of the light! Your support, financial and spiritual, is advancing Gods kingdom in my life and in the ministry He is giving me, from Jeremiah to Ben to F.O.R.T. to this amazing flexible family and beyond. Thank you so much for giving and praying. I am learning that as we walk together and comfort each other and rejoice together, we create incredible resilience and grit that will one day, perhaps 1000 years from now, invite us all to continue to sing God's praises together as we still celebrate the season where His Son became one of us and saved us all! How amazing and great is our God!
Praise God, he has raised up another supporter and that is helping with my $400 a month deficit. It's now less than $350. I praise and trust God as he leads me on this journey with you!
Blessings,
The address is:
