The World I've Seen...

7%... that's it! I've only seen 7% of the World... There's so much more to see, so many more people to meet...

Hopefully, this summer I can add one more country to this list!


States I've Visited...




Countries I've Visited...

Answered prayers and more to pray about...

I know that I've been completely absent from this blog for quite some time now. Once we returned from our trip down to Texas earlier this month, the pace of life went into "turbo" drive... at least for a little while around here. Some serious deadlines faced us, but these deadlines have brought with them serious excitement about what God has been doing in our lives and in the lives of the young adults that we love and serve.

First up... Passion:DC coming at the end of February. We've pressed hard to encourage as many young adults as possible to attend, and I think we now have about 10 people going. There are still more we would like to see commit to this "you-just-better-not-pass-it-up" opportunity, but I know that God will stir those whom He wants to go. I, personally, am still praying that God will work a little miracle for me so that I can go... but I'm good with whatever. Our last minute need to change our plans from attending Passion:Atlanta to attending Passion:DC is really working out better for the young adults, but it has now left Brian and I without anyone to care the kids. Brian will bring the young adults, and if it works out, then I will join them. If not, the kids and I might just get another chance to explore only my favorite city in the country!

Next up... Uganda this summer. An opportunity to travel with WorldHelp to Uganda on a short-term mission trip presented itself to us just before Christmas, and we've been in a whirlwind ever since. This trip is targeted especially toward young adults, and what started as a mere "Hey... this would be a really great trip for Resonate" has taken root in the hearts of several of the young adults. God has infused these plans with his special energy, and we now have a team of 12 young adults signed up to make the trip to Uganda. We will join another 17 or so young adults from around the country and serve in several capacities. Brian and I are also hoping that the chance to meet Joan, the young girl we sponsor, would present itself, but it's too early to know if our paths will even intersect during the trip.

The journey to get to Uganda will be one full of hard work for the team... the trip will cost each member about $3500... or $42,000 for the team! To a college student that might as well be a billion dollars! We're in the process of lining up several fundraisers including a Parent's Night Out for the young families of our church and a "Band Aid" concert featuring Station 2, One Life Lost, and Jared Mahone. These fundraisers are in their infancy, and we are working hard to see that they happen, but ultimately, these are just our plans. We are leaning on the provisions that God will raise up that we are completely unaware of at this time.

And last up... and possibly my favorite... a friend I've been praying for for many, many months made a decision this weekend to trust in Christ. He has struggled with theological "stuff" for a while now, but this weekend he made a decision to simply trust... with faith like a child.

There's really too much to say in just this one post, so stay tuned... more to come on the trip to Uganda!

Conversations with Dylan: That's not Chris Tomlin...

My kid knows his music and artists... seriously, he does :). Yesterday, Dylan came into the worship service with me, and the worship leader started to play "Made to Worship." Dylan peered as high as he could to see the band on stage, and with a very puzzled look he said (not too quietly, either), "Mom, that is not Chris Tomlin!" It caused quite a little stir on our row.

Later, he followed up that astute observation with "Mom, I have to go poopoo!" That wasn't quiet either... but to his credit, he really did have to go!

Oh, bringing kids into the church service is always an adventure!

Some things do satisfy...

You'll have to peer very closely to see that this Fleur de Lis tablecloth very subtly says "This gal's far from home." Oh, how it satisfies my love of the Fleur de Lis.

Photo courtesy of Dillards.com - Artimino "Fleur de Lis" Table Linens