News, Updates, Photos: COSHOCTON FLYER

As we work our way through the second week of the new Christian Year (Advent Week of Peace) we're pleased to share how the Lord's been working in our lives these past couple of months and how we believe He's currently leading as we look ahead.

We're thankful as we look back, expectant as we live each day, and excited as we look forward to what God might be doing to shape our new season of live, ministry, and missionary service.

Here's our December 2014 Coshocton Flyer: North Carolina Advent Edition!

 Click on the image to open the file. Then "right click" on the image to choose to "print" OR choose the "open in new tab" option. Once it's opened in a new tab, you can "zoom in" to enlarge the print!

We hope this answers most of your questions, that the newsletter encourages you as you read it as much as it did as we wrote it, and that you feel totally involved as an integral part of God's work in our lives. May this issue be a blessing to you as you are a blessing to us.

Thank you for being part of this amazing faith journey as we learn better how to walk hand in hand with God.

Thank you for your prayers, your gifts, your love, and your encouragement. Without the birth of that "Babe In A Manger" 2000 years ago, we wouldn't have any means through which to enjoy true Hope, Peace, Joy, or Love! May God's love wrap you like a warm blanket this winter; may the celebration of Christ's birth remind you of the new life available only through faith in His life, death, and resurrection; and may this be the year the Holy Spirit reveals God's glory deep in your soul.

Fall Walk and Short Missions Talk

Fall Walk
Last year we posted "Tucker & Tanner On The Trail". Yesterday, Tucker & Tanner took us out on another walk and told us to take the camera. Being good humans we obeyed our dogs.

Warm sun, cool air.

Tucker: "Can we take a short break?"

Tanner: "Come on, Tucker...KEEP UP!"

Karen and Tucker take a break by the pond.

Life simply overflows with God's blessings.

"But I don't want to go home yet..."

Missions Talk
We hope to soon have a newsletter out bringing you up to speed on The Spirit's work in our lives, the mission agencies we're talking with, and about a local volunteer opportunity we're exploring as we wait on and pray for the Lord's direction!

Fall Feathers, and Fall Colors

Here are snapshots of backyard birds and some of the fall colors from last week!

Eastern Bluebirds

Backyard 1

Northern Cardinal

Backyard 2

 

 Northern Flicker

East of Biscuitville, South Church Street. Burlington

Pine Siskin, Purple Finch, Tufted Titmouse

North of Biscuitville, South Church Street, Burlington

Fall feathers, fall colors, and fall food. Ya gotta love biscuits down here in the South!

Thanks for your continued prayers as we communicate with mission agencies about full-time service!

Dad & Jane Visit Graham, NC

Laguna Woods, CA to Graham, NC
Dad and Jane dropped in from California for their annual visit last week. It was nice to take a break and do some touristy things while they were here: eat out, take a nap, sit and watch airplanes, nap, eat some more and then watch birds, take a nap, visit a grist mill, visit the Burlington Royals Stadium, eat out, whale on some Apple Fritters, and did I say...take a nap? Nice. We needed some fun. Yes, at our age naps ARE FUN! Ha. Here are some snapshots of our time together:

Here we are outside "The Old Mill of Guilford" which is a working grist mill dating back to 1767!

One of the mill workers mixes a grain recipe for grinding.

Two other mill workers bag and package finished products.

Dad & Jane in the mill's store.

Some of the scenery near the mill.

Two of the wild birds we watched in our back yard.

Two old birds watching airplanes at Burlington Regional Airport.

One Hot Chick I spent some time watching.

Jane & Karen worked a jigsaw puzzle in the afternoons.

Me and my Dad.

THANK YOU!

Thank you for all your phone calls, cards, blog comments, Facebook posts, and emails of encouragement as we transition between ministries! Your outpouring of love, concern, and care has been, and continues to be a tremendous blessing as we focus on looking ahead.

So what DOES lie ahead? Lots of prayer, research, communication, regional travel, questions and, Lord willing, an answer leading to paperwork, interviews, and a narrowing of opportunities by the beginning of the new year.

At this point we fully expect God to keep us in faith-supported ministry. He's just cleared the easel, prepared fresh paint, a new color pallet, and a brand new canvas on which to create the hues of Heaven. Karen and I are simply the brushes in His hand. We believe there's a few more paintings to be completed before our bristles finally all fall out! HA!

Keep watching the blog for updates. We'll post them as we have them so you can continue to pray for us and walk with us on this pilgrimage deeper into God's heart!

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3: 5-6 (NASB)

"The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives." Psalm 37:23 (NLT)

"The Lord says, 'I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.'" Psalm 32:8 (NLT)

"Show me the right path, O LORD, point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me." Psalm 25:4-5 (NLT)

Fresh colors on a new canvas...

October Coshocton Flyer

Hello Blog Followers!

Here's a .jpg of our latest Coshocton Flyer announcing that our time within mission aviation has come to a close, inviting you to pray for us, and to participate with us as we seek the Lord's leading regarding our next season of missions ministry! Exciting times for everyone, though Tanner's not too sure about it.

October 2014 Coshocton Flyer

Tanner: "Wake me up when it's all over."

A Blog of Blessings

It's a privilege to share some of God's recent blessings!

• Our morning devotional material is perfectly connecting God's word with our spiritual needs.
• God is answering our prayers for greater dependence on Him, greater intimacy with Him, and greater trust in Him.
• We're very excited to be two weeks into a 32-week Bible study/discipleship group which builds on the 28-week study we completed earlier this spring.
• Personal ministry opportunities are opening for us in the local community.

But there's more!

Helicopter Ride
One never knows what's going to be happening up at the local airport. An earlier post reported on our discovery of the Met Life blimp "Snoopy 2" tethered at Burlington Regional Airport. On another visit to the airport we started a conversation with mechanics working on UNC Medical Center's helicopter and ended up having "Pilot Dan" take us along as part of the helicopter's "return to service" process. WooHoo! That was a dream come true for Karen and for me.

Karen inspects the helicopter while the mechanics finished their work.

Pilot Dan and Karen strapped in the cockpit.

Karen waves as the helicopter rises in a hover.

And off they go!

That's me giving the "thumbs up" as we landed after my flight.

Personal Retreat
We were blessed to go on an all-too-brief spiritual retreat as husband and wife to a bed & breakfast in Tennessee geared toward ministering to those in ministry.

Homestead House, Ooltewah, TN.

Visitors From Grass Valley, CA
And then two of our dear friends from our sending church in California, Calvary Bible Church, stopped by for an overnight visit! Darrell and Pam have been with us since the earliest days of my return to Christ in 1994 and my calling to ministry in 1996. It was so fun to finally welcome them to "the field" and spend some focused time in prayer, conversation, and fellowship.

Pam & Karen

Darrell & me

 Family Photo

Darrell and Pam were kind enough to take a family portrait before they left! That's Tanner on the left and Tucker on the right.

THANK YOU

Thank you for loving us and caring for us through your friendship, prayers, gifts, and encouragement. We praise God for each of you as each of you are part of every blessing God so graciously bestows on us.

"I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong." Ephesians 3:16-17 (NLT)

Coshocton, OH: Appalachian Bacon Nation

While our newly adopted region of North Carolina (Burlington/Graham) does have its share of cultural events...sometimes something comes along back in Coshocton, Ohio that makes us fondly remember our years "up north." We thought we'd share this web link for your enjoyment...and to enable you to clear your calendar should you wish to make arrangements to be in Coshocton for the 2014 APPALACHIAN BACON NATION Festival!

Don't miss the "Bacon and Legs" 5K race!

12 Years As Husband & Wife!

God blessed us with a special evening at The Village Grill to celebrate our 12th wedding anniversary Monday. The daytime staff was fantastic at helping me organize the evening (thanks Vivian and friends), the food was excellent, and the meal service was memorable and masterful in the best ways possible. Thank you for making our meal so wonderful Fonya, and for taking our picture to comemorate the event!

Thanks also to Keith Phillips, the florist, who blew us away with the magnificent arrangement of 12 yellow roses! 

And thank you to each one of you who love and care for us and partner with us in ministry here in North Carolina. Without you there, we couldn't be doing God's work here.

12th Wedding Anniversary: Village Grill; Burlington, NC

Blimping Around????

Despite a beautiful day and a morning out with my hubby for various appointments and shining smiles after a cleaning at the dentist, my heart was still feeling just a bit low. As we drove home via the back roads we found a new roadside stand and bought some local corn and fruit. The road also took us by the airport. Now, it's not unusual for us to drive by the airport but today my heart lifted as I looked over and saw a HUGE Snoopy!!!!! Really! Maybe you don't know it but I am a total Snoopy fan. There at our little airport was parked the Met Life Blimp, aka, "Snoopy 2"!

The "Snoopy 2" parked at our little airport.

Needless to say, we decided to stop and take a closer look. We are privileged to have the pass code for the airport gate since our MAG hangar is there. This allowed us to park the car and walk right up to the team vehicles. There we met Ryan who is part of the team for the Snoopy 2. It takes a team of 13 to manage this blimp. Four ride in the gondola and fly it. The rest travel in the vehicles with all of the landing equipment and various odd things one needs for traveling 11 months out of the year. They carry 2 of everything they need for the blimp to land because if something doesn't work.....well, let's just say you can't land a blimp without the very specific gear it needs. As you can see in the photo, the nose of the blimp is tethered to the red and white pole. That is all that is attached! As the breeze blows it simply floats, or "kites", and can rotate 360 degrees around as well as up and down. There are weights placed in the gondola to keep it balanced but not touching the ground. Lots of physics go into the working of this aircraft! It was absolutely fascinating.

Much to our surprise and delight, Ryan offered to allow us to sit in the gondola of the blimp, gave us the tour and let us float around in it!!!! Way cool!!! He took off weights to allow us to float higher and explained all of the joys of being part of a blimp team....a "Blimpie" as he called himself.

Keith takes his turn at the controls.

Karen enjoying the ride.

Me and Snoopy...one happy girl. :oD

Keith waits for Ryan to add weights to bring him back to ground level.

Sometimes we just need a lift and today God gave us a very special, literal, lift! What a blessing to just see and be close to the blimp! But to get to get in it and kite around and hear all of the details from one of the team members? That was over the top blessing. God didn't have to give us that opportunity but He did and it encouraged my heart. God gives us good things that we would never even think to ask for!

If you watch the golf match this week and see the Snoopy 2 Blimp in the air, we saw it up close and personal!!!

Snapshot Update

Hello faithful blog followers. Here are some quick pics to update you on some recent events:

There's nothing like having lunch with the Mayor of Graham, Jerry Peterman. I was blessed to enjoy a fantastic meal with him at Mex-Am Restaurant downtown, just off the court square, as part of a community development research project.

Here we are (4 &5 from left) inside The Burlington Royals' clubhouse after assembling player "goodie bags" for an upcoming road trip. Karen and I joined the Royals' Booster Club to help support the young men (17-22 years old) starting their professional baseball careers far from home as part of Kansas City's rookie level Appalachian League affiliate.

On the home front, my nephew, Dean, and his brand new bride, Ali, made the move from Southern California to our home in central North Carolina last week. We're blessed to have them with us as Dean starts a new job, they adjust to southern living, and look for their first home.

And we had our second Salsa Harvest. This time Ali and our neighbor from across the street, Maureen, took part in the experience. Neither of them had made salsa before. Karen is a good teacher and Ali and Maureen were excellent students.

Karen blanched as Ali and Maureen chopped enough raw materials to make 16 more pints of finished salsa! WooHoo!

Thanks for your friendship, gifts, love and prayers that enable us to minister in North Carolina. We're enjoying taking our faith into the local community and reflecting Christ's light wherever and however He leads.