All our adventures as missionaries, past and present.

MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 07-07-2009

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Greetings! We've had some meetings since last I communicated. They went well, and we've picked up one supporting church, up in Michigan. I've been able to use the intervening time to be involved in the ministries of our home church. I've preached multiple times, and seen some souls saved on outreach. One of the primary ministries we've been involved in is the children's ministry in a nearby apartment complex. It's the sort of place that's had problems with crime, drugs, and juvenile delinquency. We were invited in by the management in an effort to deal with these problems through the power of the Gospel. They are renting us a two-bedroom apartment for a $1 a month to use as a meeting place, and we've been holding Bible Clubs on Wednesdays since last fall. This past week, we held our first Vacation Bible School there. It was a tremendous success, with 15 kids saved. The great thing is, we had lots of parents come in and out to see what we were up to, so we got to minister to them too. The overall attitude was very positive, and we are beginning to see some real inroads to the community. I led a team of kids, and Anna handled all the craft times (which went great!). It was a good precursor to the kinds of children's ministry we will need to do in Africa as a part of our ministry in Uganda. It's been great to be involved in our church, and we've been enjoying it tremendously.

I'm lining up meetings for the Fall. If anybody knows of churches which might like us to come visit, give a holler. Also, if you've had us in for a meeting in the past, and would like us to come back, drop me a line. We are at 85% now, and truly would like to wrap this thing up this year so we can be in Uganda in 2010. Please pray to that end.

MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 05-05-2009

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Greetings! We had an interesting meeting last week in Crossroads Baptist Church in Imlay City, MI, with Pastor Ken Renard. We got there on Saturday, having driven through a torrential downpour, only to find that half the town, including the half where our hotel was, was without power. In fact, we had a hard time locating the hotel at first because it was so dark. We were without power 'til the following night. It was kind of cool, making our way up to the room with flashlights, and getting ready the following day. The gang thought it was a great adventure, and I must confess I yielded to the temptation to warn them about the "monsters that lurk in darkened hotel hallways", but they've learned by now how to tell when I'm teasing. 😉

The meetings went great. This was this church's first ever missions conference, and it was such a privilege to get to be in on that. I'm glad we got to come. It was well worth the drive, and should result in some more support, so we are that much closer to being able to go to Uganda. Pray for us as we continue our journeys, and endeavor to get our house ready to sell this summer.

MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 03-16-2009

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Hello again! We had a meeting in my father's church, First Baptist of Bellflower in Bellflower, MO. My father's church has supported us from the beginning, and it was good to go back and see everybody. We only had four children in those days, so folks hadn't gotten a chance to meet him yet. I updated everyone on what we've been doing, and preached. The great news is, a teenager got saved! So it was a very great morning.

On Saturday we'll be shipping out for a missons conference in Nashville, Nolensville Road Baptist Church and Pastor Danny Patterson. Pray for us as we travel, and continue seeking to raise our support.

MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 03-12-2009

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Hello again! Our meeting this past weekend went very well. It's just a five hour drive from where we live up to St. Louis. It was nice to get to travel someplace close for a change. I think we're all a bit travelled out at the moment. We were in Lodi, WI in Fellowship Baptist Church with Pastor Eric Hafeli. It was a great church and the meeting went well. They got what will probably turn out to be the last snow of the season on Sunday, about 8 inches it looked like. Frozen sunshine! Nevertheless, turnout was good Sunday night, and we had a good meeting. This weekend, we'll be in my Dad's church in Belleflower, MO. Pray for us as continue to schedule meetings and try to finish raising our support.

MISSION: Uganda Blog Update 02-19-2009

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Greetings one and all! We are home in St. Louis, and have enjoyed the past few days of being in our own house and our own church, however cold it might be in the Midwest. We had a great meeting with Pastor Larry Obero and National City Baptist Church. We then drove back up to San Leandro for a few more days. While there, we got to go see the Chinese New Year's Parade in San Francisco. It was very cool. I particularly enjoyed the firecrackers – not the pansy American kind, but the hardcore, handmade, nearly-ruptures-your-eardrums Chinese kind. They had a 100 ft. dragon, which was quite a sight to see, weaving back and forth up the road. Another favorite was the delegation from one of the local kung-fu schools. They had all these 8, 9 year old kids, whipping nun-chucks around and doing all these jumping, spin-kicks and what not. I'm happy to report that there was no blunt-force trauma. It was great fun, and the kids enjoyed it tremendously.

We had our Sunday meeting in Merced Baptist Church in Merced, CA, with Pastor Andy Doss. They're a young church plant, but they're doing very well. We had great services, and God blessed.

Then, on Monday, began the journey home. We were doing pretty well until we reached Flagstaff, AZ. If you're taking I40, you cross the mountains in Flagstaff. You gain several thousand feet in elevation, which can lead to some pretty nasty weather. A snowstorm had rolled in and dumped a couple feet of snow in the region. This would not be a problem, except for the obligatory jackknifed semi that always results from this kind of weather. We finally worked our way around the massive traffic jam and were on our way to Holbrook again, when a semi I was passing decided he did not wish to be passed, and proceeded to run us off the road. Having succeeded in sending our van plowing into a snowdrift, he kept right on trucking, leaving us stuck on the top of a mountain in 23 degree weather without so much as slowing down.

Three hours later, we finally managed to get towed. We had to be winched out because we were well and truly stuck. The next day, we were further delayed while the shop put a new radiator fan assembly in to replace the one we burned up sitting there, trying to stay warm. Not how I'd really prefer to spend my birthday.

So, thanks to Mr. Trucker, we arrived in St. Louis around midnight, instead of much earlier in the day as planned, and less 800 dollars in repair bills. It goes without saying that my already strained opinion of interstate trucking has been edged into the regions of outright dislike. Perhaps it's time to trade in the luggage carrier for a roof-mounted missile launcher.

At any rate, we're home, and getting back into the swing of things after being gone since January 1. We had a great time in California, and I think will get some good support out of this trip. Keep praying that new churches will continue to support us, and that churches we've already visited will do the same, so we can remain on track for our hopeful departure in the Fall. We cannot leave under-supported, and would very much like to get to the field before the LORD returns, if possible. Thanks for all your prayers and encouragement!