We’ve been on the move.
We felt a bit like a ping pong ball as we flew from Spokane, WA, on January 19 (following the Moses Lake Alliance Church ministry trip) directly to Northern Virginia, where we spent the next three days hanging out with Derek and Julie and kids, helping them get settled at their newest address. When they left Uganda four years ago, the last thing they expected was to live in three different states in the next four years, but that has been their journey. They are happily working with International Justice Mission (IJM) now and are hoping this will be a long term call. Nathan and Rachel are adjusting well, aided by the gift of having my youngest sister and her husband, Laura and David, living just 2 miles from them. Built-in family-neighbors. Hard to beat that!!
Some Dunkin’ Donuts donut holes to start the day right for Nathan and Rachel.
We flew home from Virginia late Wednesday night, after painting the remaining rooms in their new house, and flew to California about 12 hours later. I know. I know. Crazy. But it was good to drop by the homestead for a few hours, and even better to arrive in California late Thursday to spend the night with our other grandchildren in Santa Clarita before driving to Visalia to speak at Parkside Chapel’s second annual marriage conference. The Friday night/Saturday conference was well attended and delightful in every way. We love senior pastor Nigel Unruh’s heart and were inspired to be partnering with him again. We taught at both services on Sunday and so enjoyed connecting with many in the congregation.
A bonus of our time in Visalia was being house guests of Kent and Staci Copley, which allowed us good time to reconnect with treasured, long-term friends. We also got to share time with more treasured, long-term friends, Keith and Kristin Hopper and Scott and Kelli Gregerson, so the time was such a lovely blend of “work and play/fellowship.”
Upper left: The Hoppers and the Copleys; upper right: Scott and Kelly Gregerson. Lower left: a delicious “street taco” dinner; lower right: the conference is off and running.
Pastor Nigel Unruh’s deep heart for the Lord was such an encouragement to us.
Back to Santa Clarita for a quick dinner with Gabe and Kari and crew before catching a red-eye back home Sunday night. Red-eye flights take a little more to recover from these days, but sometimes they’re the best option.
It was good to be in and out of Bedford the next two weeks. We did a number of days of counseling and speaking locally. We were honored to speak at Grace Chapel’s Mom to Mom on January 30. It’s always a joy to partner with Connie Lawrence and Linda Anderson who lead this very important ministry.
Connie Lawrence and Linda Anderson have served the Mom to Mom ministry for over two decades.
We then spent Friday and Saturday, Jan 31-Feb 1, speaking at a Pastors’ Conference for the Congregational Churches in New England. How we loved that!! It was so good to be with these very committed, faithful servants of Jesus who are investing in the spiritual lives of their congregations. We were so impressed with their humble, open hearts and their eagerness to be fed.
Most of the pastors and wives who attended the CCC pastors’ conference.
When we’re in town, we take advantage of our availability by fulfilling as many local speaking requests as we can, so we finished out that Saturday (Feb 1) by speaking for a couples’ date night for Hope Community Church in Newburyport. We’ve done several things with this church over the years and it was so good to be back with them. They had a full house for their “dessert bake-off” couples event, and even though energized by copious amounts of sugar, the guests were very enthusiastically engaged in our talk. It was a yummy, productive evening and we were so happy to be a part of it.
The couples at Hope Community Church really enjoyed their sweet date night.
With no “dog in the race,” we actually enjoyed watching the Super Bowl on February 2nd, though we shared our son-in-law Gabe’s disappointment with the final score, as he is a lifelong Niners' fan. It was nice to not have to chew our fingernails off during this game.
In between counseling, hospital visitations, and tying loose ends, the following week was dominated by final prep for our annual marriage conference, February 7–9. Held again at Gurney’s Hotel on Goat Island in Newport, Rhode Island, it was sold out and packed out. We were thrilled to have Derek and Julie attend, made possible by our dear “chosen family” friend Helen Challener, who drove from Glenville, NY, to watch Derek and Julie’s kids for the weekend. A true act of loving service and fun was had by all.
Once again, the Lord met us throughout the weekend in very palpable ways. The presence of God was evident as He worked through all the different facets of the conference, meeting person after person in very personal ways. All praise is His.
The team did an exceptional job in creating an environment in which people could be met by God. From the lovely decorations, done by Kelly Plosker; to worship, led by Dave Bullock and crew; diverse workshops, all led by capable, winsome leaders; an evening with Brant Hansen, who knocked it out of the park as he spoke out of his book Unoffendable; and talks by yours truly, which were very well received. The weather was great, the food was yummy, and the fellowship was sweet. We couldn’t have been more thankful as the weekend wrapped up.
Gabby Warren and Barbara Steele worked tirelessly from a logistics and printed materials standpoint and it goes without saying that the weekend wouldn’t have happened were it not for their competency and hearts of service. Rob Warren emceed again this year and is a natural. Several couples gave testimonies and they gave hope and inspired confidence.
“Auntie Helen” came up for the weekend to babysit Nathan (aka Spider Man) and Rachel while their parents attended the marriage conference.
We had a great team, all of whom contributed to the impact on the 182 couples, who left encouraged and hopeful.
What a joy to have our daughter Julie and her husband Derek (far left) at the conference, along with Brant and Carolyn Hansen and Ben and Cindy Warf.
These are some of the couples who represent the many years of HIM/Berea family camps!!
The “married for under six years” gang was again well represented . . . 40 of the 182 couples in attendance fell in this category!!
Brant Hansen was well loved as he spoke out of his book Unoffendable. Brant is both funny and profound in both his plenary session talk and his “after hours” talks Saturday night.
Sunday morning breakfast with the pastors and ministry leaders from local churches. Love this time for sharing ideas and giving encouragement.
Harold and Dalia Arnold joined our workshop leaders team this year and spoke powerfully on the vows of marriage. Having served with them the past two years at their annual “Eusebia 2000” conference, it was our joy to have them partner with our conference.
In the midst of our joy and gratitude for a wonderful marriage conference, we were deeply saddened to receive word during our closing session that our dear friend and HIM Board member, Kit Hendricks, had passed into glory. Kit was diagnosed with breast cancer fifteen years ago, and after ten years of being cancer free, her cancer returned and the last few years of her life she fought it with everything she had. On January 30 she entered the hospital for some “tests” to readjust her medications, as her blood sugar numbers were going crazy because of the drugs she was on, and truly, no one expected that she would pass away eleven days later.
There really aren’t words that would adequately capture the essence of Kit, but a few on the list would be godly, servant-hearted, behind the scenes, an engineer with a warm heart, a prayer warrior, a loyal friend, a devoted wife, and a loving mother and grandmother. She will be deeply missed, for though all of us who loved her rejoice that she is free from the physical battles cancer visited upon her, we all feel she “left the party too soon.” But how grateful we are that she left her fingerprints all over those of us who knew her and her legacy of Christlikeness lives on.
Paul and I had the privilege of eulogizing her at her funeral service on February 13 and were so grateful to be able to honor her beautiful, devoted-to-Jesus life. Kit lived out, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21).
During our last visit with her prior to heading to Newport for the marriage conference, through labored breathing and words barely above a whisper, she said, “I have been so blessed to have had these extra fifteen years. God is good. My trust is in Him.”
Senior Pastor Steve Weibley (Carlisle Congregational church) conducted Kit’s service and did a masterful job.
Powerful.
The Hendricks’ family: Richard, daughter Beth holding Charlotte, son Rick with fiancée Christina, and Beth’s husband Matt holding their son, Carter.
Kit, far left, in Trinidad in 2003, with Carolyn Miele, signing a Bible they brought to present to Preema, who had accepted Jesus with these women on our previous missions trip. Kit was all about sharing Christ.
Besides counseling and Kit’s service, we squeezed in one more “local” event prior to leaving Feb. 15 on a 3.5-week-long trip. Palermo Christian Church, situated in the little town of Palermo, Maine, invited us to speak for their Valentine’s event and we accepted. It turned out to be quite the adventure!! Since it was three hours north, we rented a car to make the journey, believing that driving a much newer car than either of ours (a 2007 Honda and a 2009 Jetta) was safer and wiser. Fifteen miles from our destination in Waterville ME, the rental car’s back left tire flatted . . . and there we were, in 10-degree weather, at nightfall, on the shoulder of 95 north. Yikes!! Paul momentarily considered changing it himself, hoping to minimize the lateness of our arrival, but I reminded him that’s why we have AAA. Fortunately, the dispatcher was aware of the danger level of where we were stranded in darkness and within 15 minutes, the truck arrived, the tire was changed, and we were on our way. Thank you Jesus and AAA! We arrived just after everyone had gone through the buffet line, thankfully, so the program went on in a timely fashion.
We were thankful for the connection with this rural group of Mainers, but the highlight of the evening was our interaction with the waitress who was in charge of the banquet. When her job was done, she hung around to hear our talk, and grabbed us as we were leaving to let us know how much it had touched her. So much so that she “Facetimed" her boyfriend in so he could also listen. We were so encouraged!! It certainly made the six hours of driving, the flat tire, and the return in 0-degree weather well worth it!!
The Valentines banquet in Waterville, ME, was full of surprises!
Yes, we’ve been on the move, but we’re very aware it’s not “our moves” that change people or their marriages. Our commitment is to be faithful, trusting Him to move in the hearts of those hearing. We’ve been blessed and encouraged to hear from many that exactly that is happening. What an honor and privilege it is to be serving out of our passion for God’s good design for marriage, driven by our even deeper passion for Jesus. We’ll be “on the move” for as long as He gives us opportunities and health.
(Part two will cover the 3.5-week-long trip we’ve just completed.)
Full moon rising over Newport during the marriage conference.