It's been a while since it was refreshing to be outside. But it is that kind of gorgeous day here today and we are loving it. The Lord gave us a good morning as well. I preached this morning on "The Creator's Birth" from the Luke 2 account with the shepherds. The Lord worked in our hearts. Tonight we are looking at the topic of "Obedience."

I heard this afternoon of a missionary family in Thailand who have lost two children in a car accident. The update I read was dated today. You can read it here.

I know your heart will respond with a desire to take their to the Lord.

As we gear up for the Holidays, life is getting a bit busy. I've been able to put out flyers a few days this week. We have good potential for great attendance at our carol service. We are trusting the Lord for just the right group.

The Lord gave a good witnessing opportunity today as I purchased a Christmas present for Katie. I purchased an item (it's a surprise) off of Ebay and collected it in person. The couple were very nice. They are immigrants from Romania. She was very interested to know what make Baptist different from Catholic. They were very sweet. They know right where our church is located as they used to work in the area. Please pray for God's blessing on the seed that was sown in their hearts.

Tomorrow I am preaching on the Christmas story with the Shepherds. Thanks for your prayers.

I wanted to give you an update on a fellow missionary who has two brain tumors. One tumor that was removed has returned. I know that Jeff, Shellie and their family would appreciate your prayers. If you would like to be updated as to this prayer request, please register for updates on their caringbridge website.

Jeff was home from the hospital for five days but has had to return due to symptoms. Thanks for taking this family's need to the Lord.

Mark Hikin and I were able to put out flyers this morning. It was very cold with temperatures in the middle 20's. The Lord gave Mark an opportunity to talk with an older man about the Lord. Then He gave us a great chat with two young men (early 20's) who were working on a car. Mark was able to share his testimony with them. We were also able to get into the Gospel. One was thoughtful and appeared interested. He said when we left, "I may see you again." We had encouraged him to visit the church. Please pray that he would have the courage to do that.

Mark could have been injured this morning but the Lord kept him safe. His glove was ripped off his hand and through a mail slot by a border collie. In the process his finger was bitten but the skin wasn't broken. His glove was torn pretty well when the owner returned it to him.  (If you're not smiling, go ahead.) We laughed about it and reflected on why we use F.D.T's. (Flyer distribution tools a.k.a. cheese boards.) Yesterday Dane had a tug of war when a large dog grabbed hold of his F.D.T. as he put it through a mail slot. It's all part of the excitement of putting out flyers. :)

Please continue to pray for the Christmas Carol Sing service. I started preparing my power point last night. Thanks for praying.

Thanks for praying for the homeschool Christmas party. It went very well.  I'll put some pictures below.

Missionary Dane Vobelpohl did a charcoal drawing of the Christmas Story.

The Lord gave us great weather and the kids were able to play outside.

This morning we began the Christmas story as I preached on Gabriel coming to Mary. Katie and I realized last night that her Sunday School lesson and my message were on the same passage. Hopefully the kids benefited from a double dose.  Counting our family we had 7 adults and 12 kids present. Tonight it was us and the Hikin family as we studied what the Bible says about "riches."

Tomorrow Katie is hosting a home school Christmas party. We are expecting 10 other children. I'm sure it will be a very fun day for the kids and hopefully the moms as well. I'm sure Katie would appreciate your prayers for that ministry. I'll be seeking to get our carol sing flyers out. I got a good start on Saturday as I put out around 350. Thanks for taking these needs to the Lord.

The day began with a phone call cancelling for tonight. That was our first sign of things to come. Three cancelation were due to illness. One lady couldn't come because of a car breakdown. Others had unexpected things come up. But, we know that the Lord is in control and that He had a perfect night planned.

We had 5 ladies other than Katie and 2 girls attend. The house looked lovely. Katie did a great job decorating and preparing all sorts of goodies. Adele's challenge went very well and was well received. It seems everyone really enjoyed themselves.

A friend, who visited a few weeks ago, came over again this afternoon. We enjoyed a good couple hour discussion about the Bible. His wife and girls came tonight. We are thrilled to have their friendship and look forward to getting to know this family.

God's good. Thanks for praying. (Oh, and the shopping went very well.) I'll put some pics of the decorations/goodies below. Hope you aren't hungry.

Our faithful group was there tonight. Counting us we had 5 adults and 12 kids present. The kids are getting a couple songs ready for the carol sing service on Christmas Eve. 

The Lord gave me a divine appointment this evening. I talked with Stevie for about 20 minutes. Please pray for God to do a good work in this man's heart. He admittedly is an unbeliever. But, God gave us a great discussion. Thanks for praying for these opportunities.

Please remember the ladies ministry at our home tomorrow night. And please pray for me as I take the boys shopping. :) Thanks for your prayers.

We have had a fun day today. We took the bus into Edinburgh and did some Christmas shopping. Logan is 7 years old. He is our missionary barometer. We started deputation 10 days after he was born. I'll put some pics from today below. You'll notice that we had some white stuff stick around! It's been two years since we have had snow on the ground. Sooooo..., we hope it is a sign of good things to come. 

Mom's creation. Logan wanted and owl cake.

(Dad's creation; I just finished this painting and collected it today.)

I love this time of year.  Hopefully soon we will have some snow that stays around.

Yesterday I was able to go with a group of friends to visit Jeff and Shellie Smith. They are in good spirits but need our prayers. Shellie has set up a caring bridge site if you want to pray and follow along. Jeff Smith

God has given a couple divine appointments recently that I didn't mention. Ian fixed our cooker (stove) on Saturday. The Lord gave us a good frank discussion about religion, Scotland and salvation.

And on Sunday as we were walking back from church I talked with a 32 year old young man. It was of the Lord. We talked for about 15 minutes until his bus came. Please pray for fruit to be produced through these opportunities.  

We were able to meet for prayer last night at 9. There were three of us. Praise the Lord. Thanks for praying that nothing would hinder these times. It was a refreshing time in prayer.