DEPLOYMENT! DEPLOYMENT! DEPLOYMENT!

THANK YOU
Thank you for the role you played in helping send Josiah & Haley Neeley to Ukraine last week! Your gifts to us and prayers for us made each of you part of training, coaching, and encouraging this young couple through support development and beyond!

Josiah & Haley Neeley

Neeley's Deploy to Ukraine
After the Neeley's acceptance by GOM the end of September, I had the pleasure of shepherding Josiah & Haley through discovering the team of financial partners God had already assembled to transform their ministry vision into a Harvest Field reality.

Leaving on a jet plane...

Josiah & Haley were quick learners. They rapidly embraced the concept of "giving God the glory, through telling His story, and inviting others to join in." In only three and a half months, God revealed their financial partners for His work, and they received the Global "green light" to deploy!

We're not in California, anymore Toto!

The Neeleys have joined a missionary team already in Ukraine as part of an outreach to families impacted by disability, and are involved in a local church-plant.

Ukrainian Flag

New Year Visitors from the East, North, and Southwest

As bird visitors brought 2016 to a close, a flock of human visitors opened our 2017!

From the East: Andy Swanson 
Andy finished apprenticeship at MMS Aviation in 2013 and is currently stationed with Mission Aviation Fellowship in Uganda, Andy was Stateside with his family to enjoy Christmas. Andy and I were able to get together for lunch, eat some BBQ, tour GOMEX, and chat about some of the things God has been teaching both of us.

Andy and me in the GOMEX office.

From the North: Dwight Jarboe, Phil Maddux, Bob Schwartz, and Dan Pottner
I met Dwight, Phil, Bob, and Dan at Stavro's Grill in Burlington for breakfast as they prepared for their return to MMS Aviation in Ohio. They were in town for a meeting with Missionary Air Group. Dwight and I had the standard "brains-n-eggs with grits and a side of bacon" breakfast. Dwight was born and raised in Kentucky.

Midway through a brains-n-eggs, grits, and bacon breakfast.

Phil, Bob, and Dan stayed a bit more "northern" in their breakfast orders. After breakfast the guys swung by for a tour of GOMEX led by my beautiful assistant, Karen! It was good to have the chance to share our work with Global Outreach Mission with them.

Karen, me, Dwight, Dan, and Bob.

Not in the picture (because he was taking the picture above) is Phil. Here's a file photo we have of Phil, the new CEO of MMS Aviation.

Phil is an interesting guy.

From the Southwest: David Langford
David arrived at MMS shortly after I did, completed his apprenticeship in 2001, served several years in Africa, then resettled his family in the desert Southwest. A lot of the River of Life had passed under the bridge since we last saw each other 16 years ago. Last week we were blessed to break bread together as he traveled through the region. We're both older and, I'm pleased to say, just a bit wiser than we were when this photograph was taken of us working in the hangar at MMS.

David and me: 1999

Me and David: 2017

Thank you for making it possible for these relationships to be possible. Thank you for allowing God to weave our lives together with so many other lives in mission service. Thank you for being part of all God is doing in us, through us, and in spite of us!

End of Year Backyard Visitors

We hope you enjoy meeting several of the feathered friends who helped us close out 2016 here in Graham, NC.

 House Finch

 Downy Woodpecker

 Eastern Bluebird 

 Carolina Chickadee

 Titmouse

Goldfinch 

Cardinal