New News

Since our last post, the Lord has answered many prayers.  Thank you to you all who have been praying with us and for us.  Like I mentioned previously, it has been good to be back in Alabama and at my parent's home.  We are so thankful for our present living arrangements. However, these arrangements will be changing as of Tuesday.  David has recently been hired as Student/Education Minister at his home church - Circlewood Baptist - here in Tuscaloosa. Although we are going to miss worshipping with our precious Open Door Baptist Church family, we are so grateful for this opportunity to join the wonderful church body at Circlewood.  Today was David's "first Sunday".  We were overwhelmed with the warm welcome and the encouragement that we received.  We are excited about serving at Circlewood, among these people and in this community.  So, Tuesday is when we move into our home. David and I are so grateful to be living in a house that the church owns...it is actually where we lived when we were first married, before we headed off to Kentucky for seminary.  Therefore, to our delight, we will be moving back into our "Honeymoon pad"!  The house is already a special place to us.  It will be fun moving in with our precious son now.  Speaking of sweet John David, here are a few pictures of him playing in "T" and "Big Daddy's" back yard, when all of the leaves had just fallen.  The other is him enjoying T's reading glasses.

 Also, in regard to John David, the Lord has been allowing many people and resources to be made available to us, to help aid us in our new journey.  Several phone conversations have led me to tears, for the Lord is so graciously answering our prayers.  He is Kind and Wise and Faithful.  We are so glad that God has brought us here, for John David's sake, and for the sake of our family.  We are excited about what all the Lord is doing.  Please keep praying for continued guidance and discernment.  

This past week, David officially graduated from seminary!  Although all of his classes were completed this past May, David went on a mission trip to Peru in July that counted for his last few credit hours.  Due to our IMB orientation, we did not think that we would be able to attend the graduation.  Because we left orientation early, however, we were indeed able to travel to Louisville for my ceremony-loving husband to participate in the formal commencement exercises at Southern Seminary.  I was so proud of him.  He looked so pretty in his cap and gown...

I also wanted to include this picture below.  My son LOVES dogs.  His mother does not.  But, it's amazing what one will do for another who has captured their heart.  Yes, with the encouragement of my husband, I am contemplating allowing a dog to be a part of our little family.  I may even let it live inside.  Oh my!  Yet, seeing the joy and laughter that overcomes my son when he is around dogs - specifically little "Mac" here in the picture (who belongs to Jim and Denise Burcham of Louisville...thanks for the hospitality Burcham family!) - makes having a little animal seem worthwhile.  We will keep you posted.

       

      

Home Again

We are home again, abiding in the lovely, warm (both in the physical and emotional sense) abode of 5804 Harborview Lane.  My parents were kind to welcome us back in their door again, to live under their roof, eat their food, run-up their utility bill...(Thanks Mom & Dad!) until we know what our next step will be.  In all seriousness, we could not be in a more comfortable position. Their house is designed in such a way that we feel like the downstairs is a separate entity all together.  But even if we did not have our own space, I don't think that we could ever grow tired of each other.

 

I don't have long to type, but I did want to share some specific prayer requests.  

Please pray that the Lord will give us wisdom and discernment as we are feeling a bit overwhelmed about the road ahead.  There are specific therapies and other interventions that John David is needing, and there are so many resources available (which is a cause for praise!) But, on the other hand, it can be overwhelming.  Please pray for the Lord to make it abundantly clear which resources to utilize, and out of those resources, which ones will be best for John David.  Also, please pray for even more discernment as treatments, therapies, and other interventions are being prescribed for John David.  Pray for sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and for boldness to speak up if something doesn't sit well in our souls.  We know that we are John David's advocates and know him better than anyone else.  Pray that God will lead each step that we take down this path that He has designed, in His kindness and in His sovereignty.   Thank you to you all who are praying so faithfully for us.  It is so obvious to us that we have many interceding on our behalf.  Please continue, for as souls bought by the blood of Christ, your prayers are powerful and effective (James 5:16). 

A Happy Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving Day. . .

. . . . which included a feast in the ILC cafeteria (it really was delicious)

. . . . and swinging, of course ~ it was a beautiful day here in VA

. . . . and the evening in the home of Bob and Linda Allen ~ what a 

blessing it was to be in a real home on this special day.

 We are so thankful for how - although we were far away 

from our own families - we felt right at home with our mission family. 

Thank you, Allen's, for your warm hospitality!

  

We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.  I am sure that the contents of the previous post ~ The Smiling Face Behind a Frown of Providence ~ came as a surprise to most of you (unless you got that information in an email, and then I'm sure at that point the news was quite unexpected.)  It came as a complete shock to David and I as well.  Things still seem a bit surreal.  It's hard to believe that we are here, beginning our 7th week now, at our orientation to be missionaries, and we are not going to the destination that we have been headed towards in our hearts and minds for some time now.  However, I want to boldly testify of the overwhelming, incomprehensible grace and peace of our Sovereign, Triune God, who upholds all things by the Word of His power, and Who reigns as our Prince of Peace, our Hope eternal, and Whose grace is completely sufficient to supply all of our needs in Christ Jesus our Lord (Phil. 1:9).  As David said, God is good and wise and sovereign.  We believe this with all that we are.  So, we have known throughout all of the change of our plans and throughout this time of John David's diagnosis, that God has not stepped down from His throne, nor has He taken off His crown.  He reigns, and He is working all things for our greater good and His greatest glory.  Therefore, we know that God is completely trustworthy and ever-faithful. He always has been and always will be.  

To fill you in a bit on John David's diagnosis...

Like David said, John David has been diagnosed with a mild form of autism - the specialist referred to it as "high-functioning autism".  The autism spectrum is vast, as we have come to learn; therefore, John David exhibits none of the "signs" that you naturally are told to look for in a child.  He is so fun, so sweet, and so, as the term states, "high-functioning."  His cognitive and receptive skills are great.  He makes great eye-contact, reads emotions, and - by how he responds to us - understands/comprehends everything we say. However, for John David, his autism is seen in a delay in expressive language, as well as social anxiety.  In other words, he doesn't talk as much as some other "almost 18-month-olds", and he often has a strong preference for personal space.  We have never been concerned about these things before.  I know that children develop at different rates, so I wasn't concerned that he wasn't talking as much as his sweet female cousin who is 9 months older the he. :)  His anxiety shows itself primarily around other young children, not adults or older kids ~ the unpredictability of toddlers can really freak him out.  So in regard to his anxiousness, I justified it in my mind with the fact that, for his whole 17 months of life, his interaction with toddlers has been so minimal. Nevertheless, after several meetings with pediatricians, a neurologist, and an autism specialist, we agree with his diagnosis.  We were told that, with proper intervention, he may fall off the "spectrum" and not meet criteria for autism by the time he is 4 years old. This may not happen for John David - we don't know what God has in store for him - but it sure was an encouraging thing for us to hear the doctors say.  Actually, two of the doctors didn't think that there was any reason to be concerned about John David.  Furthermore, the autism specialist said that, had she not observed him in his preschool classroom, and had she just seen him the way he is with us, she would not have been concerned about him at all.  She said that our goal is to get John David to act around other kids the way he acts at home.  We have received great encouragement from our many conversations with doctors and specialists, and by God's grace, have embraced all of this.  

Praise the Lord, John David is attempting new words every day, especially this week, and his teacher here at ILC said that he has made 100% improvement with his social interactions since getting here 6 weeks ago.  Now, he gives high-fives to other kids (when prompted) and doesn't cry (usually) when they come running at him. He loves to watch other kids play, and even laughs and smiles at them now; you can tell that he wants to join in the fun. But if and when they get "too close", it still often overwhelms him.  And I'm sure his lack of speech, at this point, doesn't make him any more confident.  So, we will be leaving our orientation early - Monday, December 1st - and will be heading back to Alabama.  We will begin looking for good resources for speech/language therapy, as well as behavioral therapy (to help John David better learn to handle those social situations that make him uncomfortable) and possibly some occupational/physical therapy (John David has hypotonia (low muscle tone) just in his arms, that we can tell, which - oddly enough - is common in children with some of these developmental delays and/or autism.)  We will be posting more information on where we will be settling down as all these things - and more - are confirmed. 

Had we not come to Virginia for this orientation with the IMB, we would have not discovered all of this. . . at least, not at this time.  For, I'm sure, John David would have continued being at home with me, living life as normal, with minimal interaction with other toddlers and hardly any uncomfortable situations.  On this Thanksgiving, we especially thankful for John David's dear teacher who loved and cared for him enough to express her concern when she needed to most.  We have been told that it is crucial to intervene as early as possible; the most intervention that can take place before 5 and 6 years old is a huge blessing.  One of our fellow "quad" mates said that she has a friend who's son is autistic, and it took their family years to get the help for him that we have gotten in the span of 2 weeks time.  Therefore, we cannot praise the Lord enough for His provision, through the resources of the IMB, and for His providence in bringing us here to Virginia, for such a time as this.  We do not see any moment of these 6 weeks, nor any moment leading up to our getting here, as being for naught.  We are so thankful that we serve the One in Whose book were written all "the days fashioned for [each of us], when as yet there were none of them" (Psalm 139:16).  I am so grateful to the Lord God Almighty who has "fearfully and wonderfully made" our precious child; Who formed John David's inward parts and knows his thoughts, before a word is on his tongue (Psalm 139:4, 13&14) - even when those words may come later for him than for most.  

Oh, it has been hard to know where and how to bring to a close all that I have wanted to share in this post.  However, I did want you to know that we are doing so well - by the sufficient grace of God - and that we desire to inform you so that you may glorify the Lord with us, for all that He has done thus far.  David and I see it as a most glorious privilege to be John David's mommy and daddy.  We love him so, and are so thankful for all that the Lord has made him and is making him to be.  As stewards of our son, we simply desire to aid in the molding and shaping and forming of John David's heart and life in a way that is most pleasing and honoring to the Lord.  Please pray that God will grant us grace and mercy and wisdom and discernment to be the parents that we need to be for our most precious little gift.  If you haven't read it yet, the poem Thankful (a few posts below) expresses a little more clearly - although words cannot articulate - our love and prayers for our son.  We will be keeping you posted, and I would hope to guarantee that no future post will ever be this long!          

Just for fun, I had to include this picture...

John David getting pumped up for THE BIG GAME today . . .  

Roll Tide Roll!!

The Smiling Face behind the Frown of Providence

Here is an update we sent out to our prayer partners a few days ago. It explains our situation pretty well. We rejoice in our everlasting God who blankets us daily with His never ending care.

"Our God is definitely the God of all circumstances. There are times in our lives when we really just do not know what He is up to. In those times it is important to cling to the tri-fold truth that God is good, God is sovereign, and God is wise. Indeed His goodness, power , and wisdom are our sure anchors in all the storms of life.

I (David) write this in a prayer update because Katie and I feel as if we have just encountered one of those confounding times in which we were totally surprised.  The bottom line is that we will not be going to the field at this time. What!?!!?

I know, I know. We know, we know.  All of the inertia of the last year has led us to the point of serving with the International Mission Board as missionaries to Zambia. Indeed that is why you are receiving this email. You are our prayer partners for this mission endeavor. Many of you have given to us, prayed over us, and committed to partner with us in the work. The last time most of you heard from us it was at the beginning of our 8 week orientation in Rockville, VA. Now we are a few weeks from finishing that orientation and you are reading that we are NOT going to the field. Why?!!

Without taking up too much room in your inbox I will try to explain.  Ever since we have been at this orientation we have had to leave John David in day care every day.  This was very hard but we simply chalked the difficulty up to first time parents leaving a child for the first time in a pre-school environment.  After a few weeks had passed and John David was still not warming up to his peers at day-care his teachers raised concern. This concern sent us on a two week process of meeting with various medical professionals as we attempted to find out what this issue was.  

It has been determined that John David has a mild form of autism. At first we balked at such an assessment.  That was before we rightly understood how wide a spectrum the autism spectrum was. After talking with a few specialist, however, we concluded that this diagnosis is legitimate. 

What this means is that John David is going to need certain services that were not going to be available in our place of service in Zambia. That initial news flash was a blow to the gut. To hear, “you are probably not going to be able to go to Mporokoso” really knocked the wind out of us. The folks here at the IMB have been so gracious and accommodating to us. They tried to find other options for us but in the end it  was jointly determined that the best decision for us at this time, at least, would be to not go to the field right now.  It just did not seem wise, or kingdom profitable, to try and learn a new culture with little support structures as we try to simultaneously learn the “culture” of autism.

After much counsel and many tears the Lord has truly drawn near to us in this time. He has given us a peace about our decision and a grace to not only be okay with our situation but even be excited about what he has for our family. We think about those in the word who were faced with trying circumstances for reasons they could not understand. Paul told Philemon that “perhaps” his servant had left him so that their reunion would be sweeter. Mordecai told Esther that “who knows whether you have come into the kingdom for such a time as this.” Behind these and many other Scriptural statements is the firm belief that our God engineers all events that ever come about for His glory and our good!  It might be difficult to always see exactly how that works itself out, but it always does.

Sorry for the length of this. We just feel like you all, as our covenant prayer partners should know the scoop. We still covet your prayers as we seek what the Lord has for us in our next chapter. Nothing has changed in our hearts. Our prayer is still the same: “God, take the wet wood that we call the sacrifice of our lives, light it on fire with a passion to know You, and let all who are around us simply watch us burn for Your GLORY!!” All that has changed is geography. We love you all and look forward to keeping you posted. Thanks to all of those who have already responded in prayer to God and encouragement to us.

 

Knees to the earth,

 

David , Katie, and John David

Trust not the Lord with feeble sense

But trust Him for His grace.

Behind a frowning providence

There hides a smiling face."

 

Thankful

John David, 

You were a surprise to us, no doubt;

but I can't even try to figure out

what life would be like without you here.

I'd rather not. I'll spare the tears

and ponder instead, this Thanksgiving Day,

all the joy that you've brought our way.

There are tears as I think on this -

but hardly those of any sadness -

but rather these tears are tears of joy

that God gave us YOU as our little boy.

I would not trade you for all others in the world - 

I would not even trade you for a little girl!

I cannot even begin to describe

all of the joy that I feel inside

when you wake each morning and I come to you

and look into your eyes of blue 

and see the joy on your own face

as I pick you up to embrace

and kiss your warm, soft, precious cheek

and imagine how our day will be 

filled with new memories and fun. . . 

Oh, I count my blessings one by one!

And this I do on Thanksgiving Day,

though we are very far away 

from family and loved ones dear,

I give thanks that you and your daddy are near.

And as long as God wills us on this earth to be

I'll make it may aim to try to see

His hand of providence and grace 

as I intently seek His smiling face

in whatever circumstances come our way, 

I'll pray for grace to trust each day.

And in those that we now face,

God is pouring out his grace 

and is holding us in a place of rest

as we lean upon His providence.

John David, your Daddy and I want to be

good stewards of our little boy, you see,

for one day you will grow up tall 

and we desire for you to be all 

that God made you to be from the start.

We pray that He will capture your heart

and grow you into a godly man,

to fear His name and trust His hand.

So, as your parents, we are thankful

for all you are and all you'll be for

we know God has great plans in store.

We pray for grace to see each door

that His hand closes and those He opens wide; 

we pray that in His presence we will abide

and walk intimately with Him.

In His hands we place you once again

and ask Him to have His will

as we watch and wait and are still,

knowing that He is sovereign God

and wherever He wills, our feet will trod.  

We want to do what's best for you 

and trust God's hand to see us through

whatever our next steps may be,

we will watch expectantly,

knowing that God is in control - 

may we rejoice and His name extol. 

So on this Thanksgiving Day

we will thank God for His sufficient grace

and for giving us the gift of YOU

and the assurance that He will see you through

and make you into who He wants you to be

as He quiets our hearts, as He whispers "Trust Me." 

I'm so privileged to be YOUR mother.  I love you.

Precious Moments in Quad #4

We are so very thankful for those whom we have been privileged to share our lives with these past 6 weeks.  What a joy it has been to truly feel like we have become a family.  Our lives converged so quickly, and just as quickly, so have our hearts.  Here are a few more pictures from the past week of fun in the quad.  

John David giving Uncle Truitt a "head butt" - his preferred way of showing male affection.                                         

John David and Evie - they love to play together. 

John David's friend Tyler (Evie's brother) - Tyler always knows how to make John David laugh. They definitely have a special bond! 

John David has discovered the little pleasure of a tri-sectioned can of holiday popcorn (Thank you, Uncle Truitt and Aunt Cindy!)  which he fondly refers to as "pop"! 

My boys in their matching shirts, having a great time together as usual!  Hearing them laugh and play is one of my favorite things in the world!

  

     John David: so precious. . . so grown-up.

For the sake of the grandparents :)

More pictures from the past weeks...

The other day I had my back turned, and John David 

grabbed this plum off of the table.  I had no idea that he

could reach it.  Before I knew it, he had taken a huge bite.  

I had to get a picture...more evidence of our ever-growing boy.  

He is getting so tall and is reaching new heights!

John David in the kitchen of our quad

Our New Family

For the record, let me start by saying that David, John David and I feel that our families are completely irreplaceable! However, one of the joys of being a missionary with the IMB is that “aunt” and “uncle” are the titles you inherit when you are approved for service.  Our fellow missionaries are not replacements for our families,  just extensions.  For example, we have been so thankful for those with whom we have been sharing our quad.  The quads are set up with a large living room in the middle and four aparments attached to it, one off of each corner of the living room.   John David has fallen in love with our quad family.  Aunt Amy and Aunt Kelli are first-time aunts, and Uncle Truitt and Aunt Cindy…well, they do not have grandchildren yet; it as if they are first-time grandparents.  Within our quad, John David has inherited 2 new cousins, Tyler (age 10) and Evie (7), whom he adores!  Praise the Lord for this familial extention!

“So Jesus answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time – houses and brohers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecustions – and in the age to come, eternal life.’”  Mark 10:29-30

Uncle Truitt, John David and Aunt Cindy 

Enjoying God's Gift of a Beautiful Day

Sunshine and Dandelions

We have been enjoying some beautiful weather the past few days.   The cold temporarily left us and we are enjoying delightful weather with refreshing breezes, sunshine, and even short sleeves.  We were taking our time walking back to our “quad” yesterday, when an elderly man asked, “Where is your camera?”  He was right ~ a wonderful opportunity for some pictures!  I hurried to get the camera and met back up with the boys.  John David still loves the outdoors, and has recently discovered the joy of playing in the rocks, as well as picking dandelions.  We have a bed of rocks beside our quad, as well as rocks and dandelions along the sidewalks.  He stops as often as possible to pick up either of these new found favorites and often brings them to me.  He brought me a rock the other day, and I was reminded of my younger brother, Kameron.  My mother still has a container filled with rocks that Kameron brought to her as a young boy…rocks instead of flowers.  My heart melted at the first rock that I received.  However, it wasn’t long until John David did start bringing me dandelions.  He brought me a bouquet of them last night.  Greatly denying my sentimental desires, I knew that keeping this most thoughtful bouquet would not aid in the decluttering of our lives.  Therefore, I decided to take a picture so that I would never forget this precious gesture of my little boy.  Thank you, John David.

The Importance of Your Prayers

Things are going well for us at our orientation in Virginia.  Thank you all for your prayers on our behalf.   We are so grateful for faithful intercessors and can clearly see God’s ever faithful, kind, sovereign hand at work in our family.  Please do not cease praying for us.  The Lord is doing a number of things in our hearts and lives to prepare us for what He has in store for our family overseas.  I am learning more and more about the importance of daily, intense and specific intercession on behalf of others, especially those who are taking the Gospel to people who have never heard, where our enemy does not want The Truth to go.  We know that we face great opposition, but our God is infinitely Greater.  Of course our family is not “taking God” to the Bemba people; God is already at work there, as He is all over the world.  The nations belong to Him.  We just pray the He will allow our hearts to burn with the same passion as His…to see all nations worship before Him.  We are so grateful to be able to be a small part of what God is already doing in Zambia.  We are also so thankful to have you play such a special role in what He is doing in our lives and in the lives of the those whom we will be serving.  

The next chapter begins...

Like we stated in a previous post, we are so grateful to my parents for allowing us to live with them during our time of transition from one chapter of our lives to another.  David officially completed his Masters of Divinity at Southern Seminary in Louisville in August, and he resigned as pastor from New Hope Baptist Church in Springfield, KY in May. We were so thankful that he finished seminary in such a timely manner, but the time to leave New Hope came all too soon, proving to be very hard to say good-bye to our dear church family.  We love them so, and we were so grateful for how they took care of us while David was in school.  What a blessing they were and continue to be in our lives.  

So, that chapter closed, and we proceeded to move to Alabama to spend precious time with family before heading for our training with the IMB.  Our brief ~ yet memorable ~ Alabama chapter was also completed so quickly, and we have now begun our Field Personnel Orientation in Richmond, VA.   Training officially started on Wednesday, Oct. 22nd.  However, we were given permission to arrive by noon on Monday to start moving into our "quads" and getting settled.  I will post pictures in the future about our living arrangements, which have proven to be quite comfortable (I hope that this is encouragement to you, Hannah Attaway! :)  We were very thankful for being allowed to arrive early, for it gave John David some time to get comfortable with his new surroundings.  (He has been such a trooper through all of this transition, and thankfully, has been sleeping well despite many new settings.  Praise the Lord ~ this was a huge answer to prayer!)  As of Wednesday, David and I have been attending various training classes from around 8 am to 3 pm.  Because we are in classes the majority of the day, John David has had to be in day care (well, we call it "school"; it sounds a little better :)  This was what I have been most concerned about in regard to us coming to this time of training.  But, of course, God has proven to be so faithful in allowing John David (and his Mom & Dad!) to transition well to this seperation.  Everything that we do - eat, sleep, and learn - is located on the International Learning Center campus, so, thankfully, the building where John David is during the day is very near.  They also gave all the parents beepers if they ever need to reach us.  The child care workers could not be more precious or accommodating! Each day when we pick him up, we receive a "daily report" which tells us what he ate, how long he napped, etc., along with a little "teacher note" at the bottom.  His teacher is so dear and encouraging.  We are so thankful that John David is a good eater, so that has not been a problem.  Praise the Lord he has been napping so well, going to sleep easily in a new place with other children around. (Aunt Lynn, they did end up putting him in a crib instead of on a mat ~ that made the transition much easier for him.)  Anyway, more to come about specifics of our orientation as we continue to figure out the new routine for ourselves.

 

David and I wanted to have access to a car while training in Virginia, so we chose to drive instead of fly.  Therefore, we decided to break up the trip so that it would not be so long for our little man!  Thankfully, we have some dear friends who live in Lexington, South Carolina, which proved to be a perfect half-way point to stop for a few nights of rest and refreshment.  We truly were refreshed, as we always are when privileged to spend time with Shane and Lydia Parker, and their son, Wiley (who, although only a few months over 2, shows unbelievable athletic ability and amazing potential...I've already given Nick Saban his number...well, not yet anyway.)  They are also expecting another little Parker in mid-March.  (I may have two names to give you, Nick!)  They suggested a trip to the zoo there in Lexington.  John David LOVES animals, so we definitely wanted to be a part of this outing.  Also, we thought it best to visit the zoo prior to going to Zambia, for after that, a zoo may just look like someone's back yard to John David! Here are a few pictures from our day. 

 

               Thank you, Parker family, for such a fun visit!  

After we left the Parker home to complete the other half of the journey to Richmond, we stopped at Cracker Barrel for lunch.  You know your child is growing up when you can order him his own meal from the menu.  With our "not-so-little-anymore" John David, it seems that every situation is a good opportunity for a photo opp... 

This is not a good picture of me, but

I loved the arms around the shoulders.

It's so much fun being a mom! :)

My boys enjoying some good home cookin'!

More Alaska Pics

We did not see any Moose but we were ready....

We were in Gov. Palin's ole stomping grounds....we had to get some proof.

OH yeah, it was a wee chilly so some good hot chocolate and chia tea kept our bodies warm!

This is me standing in front of Mt. Mckinley....well sort of in front. It is still about 300 miles away. Its the thing that looks like clouds in the background.

Missions Mobilization

The past few weeks have been filled with Mobilization efforts on our part. In other words, we have had two wonderful opportunities to work with local church bodies in spurring each other on to a more intentional and passionate desire of fulfilling the Great Commission. 

   A few weeks ago we were blessed to take part in the first commissioning service of the Alaska Baptist Convention. Katie and I, along with 14 others, were commissioned by the baptist churches of Alaska to the various tasks that God has called us to in the various lands He is leading us to.  During the service we were able to give testimony as to how God had led us to this point.  We also heard from the president of our board and joined in corporate worship with our Alaskan brethren. It was such a humbling time as we were impressed again with the fact that we are unworthy of the Savior of whom we go to proclaim.  It was also a rich time of forming new partnerships and relationships with believers who are just as much a part of our work as our home churches are.  Indeed, the weekend was so packed that we did not get much time to "sight-see". Even if we had days to sight-see, however, none of what we saw could surpass the beauty we saw in our Alaskan brethren. We are grateful to know them and count it an honor to be sent out by these churches. 

(Above Katie and I are pictured with Pastor Tom Hoffman and his wife Linda. Tom pastors Fairview Loop Baptist Church in Wasilla, Alaska. We were privileged to worship with this church and share there Sunday)

As soon as we got back from Alaska we headed to Athens, Alabama. We are again honored to be a part of Lindsey Lane Baptist Church's Global Impact Conference. Here we gathered with missionaries from all over the country and all over the world that LLBC is seeking to partner with. It was a joy to be around so many mission minded people, both the missionaries and the Great Commission driven church that Lindsey Lane is. Here is a picture of me and one of the home missionaries that LLBC partners with, Chief Reynard of the Apache  Nation. He lives in New Mexico and represents his people while also serving with the Samaritan's Purse ministry.

Fall...my favorite

I love Fall...it is definitely my favorite season. David, John David and I have been enjoying some of these cooler days (or not-SO-hot days for us Alabama folks) outdoors - in our backyard, as well as at some local parks. I thought I'd share a few pictures from these fun-filled outings...in random order.

The look of concentration...

....and other classic JD, jr. expressions

A good game of chase
How great is this?!

Happiness is...John David outside with a golf ball in his hand (preferably plastic)

Our handsome son

I love my athletic men! :)

Swinging smiles ... short-lived though - I think John David

has his mother's motion sickness - sorry babe!

John David with his favorite thing - he

even holds this blue ball in his lap while

in the car...oh the contentment when

the big blue ball is near! (Thanks Burrages!)

John David looks so grown up to me in this picture - he

really has turned into such a big boy...no baby anymore, Mom!

We have been so thankful to my parents to allow us to live in the downstairs of their home for these 5 months - my, how they've flown! We have been here ~ in Tuscaloosa, AL ~ since May 18th. What a blessing to be near family (VERY near to Big Daddy and Sweet T), and David's parents are just down the road in Brookwood. We have kept quite busy with traveling, visiting other family across Alabama and Florida. Dave's been preaching and speaking at various churches/events, along with some on-the-side grass cutting. Should I mention, a few days at Disney World - second honeymoon for Dave and I! Oh, and how John David has grown! Before we came to Alabama, he wasn't even crawling yet! He began "army crawling" when we first got here (traditional crawling came later...uh, way later!) and celebrated his first birthday May 31st. He began walking a week after his birthday and has been running ever since. His vocabulary is expanding: "mom", "dada", "ball" (of course), "bible", "duck", and more... and he is impressing us with his ever-increasing intelligence! (Maybe we are just biased :) Despite mixed emotions, we are looking forward to the next chapter in our lives, which begins October 17th, the day we leave for Richmond, VA. We will spend 2 months at the International Mission Board's International Learning Center for our Field Personnel Orientation (or as it's referred to by "insiders" ... the IMB's ILC for FPO... so many abbreviations!) Please be praying for us as we prepare for the transition. More to come as these things take place! Until then, we will be making the most of time with our family...and enjoying Fall.