Howdy once again! Much has happened since our last communique´. Our trip up to Maryland went great. The conference was tremendous. Dr. Pat Creed was the speaker. Nathan Kinoshita and his family were there (missionaries to Tokyo, Japan), as well as the Stanley family to England. Bro. Creed did a great job, and ministered to me greatly. On Saturday, Pastor Corbett and his family took us to D.C. It was windy and cold. We did get to the Natural History to let the kids see the dinosaur bones again. However, they had just opened a new exhibit, the Tiffany Diamond, up in the "Rock Section" of the museum, so the place was a madhouse. We thought after that that we'd head over to the American History museum close by, but it was closed for renovations. We thought of going to the Spy Museum, but it was too far away. Naturally by this time, our children were too bored, cold and crabby to enjoy anything, so we decided to head home. We figure we'll bring them back when we're on furlough and by then they should enjoy it a bit more.

My conference in South Carolina was canceled, so Bro. Corbett went above and beyond the call of duty and arranged some meetings in MD for me. His conference finished up on Sunday early enough for us to get to another church in the evening service, so he arranged a meeting for us in Corner Stone Baptist Church in Owings, MD with Pastor Ronald Titus. I showed the slides and gave our testimonies and answered questions in the six o'clock hour, normally training time for them, and preached in the seven o'clock hour. So, all told, I was in five services on Sunday (Sunday School, Junior Church, Morning Service, Afternoon Service, Training Hour, Evening Service). We were tired, but it was a good tired. Pastor Titus led the church to vote to support us on the spot, which was a tremendous blessing to us.

On Tuesday, I found out that my Sunday meeting in Madison, WV had been flooded out by the heavy rainfall they had received there. Pray for West Madison Baptist Church and Pastor John Browning as they handle the cleanup. Their prophet's chamber was ruined, and the Pastor lost his entire library. We were slated to be in Mountain Lake Independent Baptist Church in Oakland, MD (up in the panhandle) with Pastor Dennis Leatherman on Wednesday. I let him know what was happening, and he invited us to come out, attend church Wednesday night, and present our work on Sunday in the evening service. In the meantime, we can stay in their prophet's house until next Wednesday, when we'll be heading to our conference with Albermarle Baptist Church in Charlottesville, VA (they haven't canceled yet.). 

Yesterday, I gave a devotional in a luncheon they had for their seniors. I went with the Pastor and his deacon to Frostburg, MD, a college town where they have a state university, and between the three of us we handed out 554 tracts in an hour-and-a-half. We got back in time for soulwinning that evening, and I got to go give the gospel out to some folks. On Saturday, James and John and I are going with them up to Pittsburgh, PA to paper an area near to a church plant that's just been birthed up there. Pray we'll see souls saved, and new members added to the church.

It's been a refreshing and profitable week-and-a-half. We have seen God clearly direct our steps to help us get into churches and get support from places that we had not originally planned on visiting, but are glad we did. At the moment, we're up in the beautiful mountains that run along the border of Maryland and West Virginia. The folk here love the LORD and have ministered to us. We're very glad we got the chance to come over here. Next week, we'll be heading down to VA for our meeting with ABC, so pray for that conference.

These are busy days, but God is raising up the support and is on track to getting our deputation finished so we can go to language school in August.

Hello folks from sunny Florida! We've just wrapped up our conference in Gospel Baptist Church in Bonita Springs, FL. What a week! Bro. Hal Hightower preached the conference. He used to be the pastor at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Lebanon, MO for fifteen years (Don Ball is pastor there now. We were in their missions conference last year), before God called him to be a full-time evangelist. The services were tremendous. We are ever more fired up about reaching souls with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God has just showered us with blessings here as well. Each night, the folks brought gifts for the different groups of missionaries. Monday was Tool Night for the guys. We were loaded, and I mean LOADED up with tools to take with us to the field. God moved some of the folks to get me a chainsaw. It's a 45.4 cc , 3.0 bhp Stihl chainsaw. I had been praying about a Stihl, about this size, and God supplied the exact one I was wanting. I'll be using it to clear trees and brush over in Uganda when we have building projects to do, which will be often. Tuesday night was for the ladies, and Anna got all manner of lotions, bath stuff, and what not. The biggest thing, though, was the 25 or so full bolts of cloth that were brought in, not counting the laundry hamper full of "fat quarters" of varied colors and patterns. She and the other missionary wife who sew divvied it up, and we are well set on cloth and such to take with us to Africa to make clothes and things. Wednesday night, tonight, was for the kids, and I tell you, it was Christmas in March. We have truly been heaped with blessings, pressed down, shaken together and running over (literally in this case!). We got a sizable love offering, which is going to help pay a few bills, as well as swell our savings account to help pay for passage when the time comes to go to Uganda. Frankly, I'm a little overwhelmed. We have just been welcomed and loved here, and made to feel like family. I'm so glad God supplied the opportunity to come. Hugh Fisher up in Narragansett Bay Baptist Church (one of our supporting churches, and very dear friends and family really) recommended this church way back when, and it went so well. We have been in conference after conference lately where God has just blessed, knit our hearts together with these churches, and where they have been moved to support us. It really feels like we're reaching an end, after going so long with what felt like little progress. God is doing it. He plainly intends to wrap things up by this summer, or shortly thereafter, so we can go to language school in the Fall. Keep praying!

Tomorrow, we'll be driving up to Chattanooga, TN to stay at BIMI, and finishing up the drive back to St. Louis on Friday. This weekend we have a meeting with Pastor Daryl Tharp in Washington, MO in Tri-County Baptist Church. Pray that the services will go well, and for me as I preach in both services on Sunday. Pray that I will be able to minister to this church and pastor, and be an encouragement to them.