We Miss You!

This morning was one of the most touching & heart-rending moments since we came to Orlando. Sandy, Titus, and I were standing in the kitchen. Titus was helping Sandy cook some eggs for breakfast when he began to explain that he had a dream about his friends Makayla and Hayley from back in Wisconsin. Makayla and Hayley are two kids who lived across the street from us and became very precious to our whole family during our time in Sheboygan Falls and.

After sharing about his dream, with a strained voice he said that this just reminded him that we had moved away from them. In a way that only Titus’ precious heart can do he drew his mom in for a hug and they both spent a good deal of time comforting each other.

We are certainly not the first family to move to another town and leave friends and family behind. But sometimes we feel like we were uniquely blessed with our friendships in Sheboygan Falls which makes our sense of loss seem quite great at times.

Of first importance we want you to know how precious each of your friendships have been to us. You have encouraged us in countless ways. You have had an eternal impact in your love for us and for Christ. You have given us great joy as we have grown close to you and alongside of you up into Christ.

Of equal importance we want you to know how important your friendship and partnership continues to be in our present mission. God is blessing us with relationships here, but nothing can replace what our friends in Wisconsin and elsewhere have become to us.

We treasure your continued prayer, your words of encouragement, and your phone calls and cards to our children. We are feeling more and more the reality of Paul’s words to the Philippians,

“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

My our partnership continue for the building up of the body and the glory of our great God!

Sandy and I have decided to devote our Monday afternoons to our search for a location for church planting. Like we did last week in our visit to the Melbourne area we are visiting an area just north of Orlando called, Altamonte Springs. Please pray for our monday adventures. We are praying that God would give us clear discernment not only for an attraction to and burden for a place, but also for a small group of two or three families that will share our vision of bringing the gospel to this new community.