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.

It is still cold here. Although we don't get much above 70 in the summer, we also don't normally spend much time below freezing. We've had about an inch of ice on the ornamental pond out back for several days. If you've noticed the sunrise and sunset times on the homepage, you are aware that our days are getting very short. That means when the sun comes up, it is very low sunlight. Tonight we are excited because there is a chance of snow.

We are getting in the Christmas Spirit. This morning we enjoyed singing Christmas carols. The Lord gave us a very good day. I preached on, "The Sure Word" from II Peter 1:16-21. Tonight we had our Bible study and enjoyed the Lord's Supper.

Please remember Katie's Ladies Christmas Tea at our home this Friday. There is a very good group of ladies coming. Katie and Kay Lee are really looking forward to it. We enjoyed decorating our home this past Friday. I'll include some pictures below. Thanks for praying for our ministry today.

The view from our back garden. (Sadly, no one can see our back garden. But we get to enjoy it.)

Alec's wife, Elizabeth, gave each of the children an advent calendar. As you would imagine, the kids are enjoying their daily surprises.

Please pray for Jeff and Shellie Smith who are missionaries in Scotland. Jeff has a couple brain tumors. One has put him back in the hospital today. Please pray that God would make Himself known to them as they go through this trial and that His healing hand would touch Jeff's body. Thanks for taking their need to the Lord.

Yesterday afternoon the Lord gave me the opportunity to put out flyers in Edinburgh. I enjoy going down to a large park near Edinburgh University. Over half of those to whom you speak appear to be students or at least college age.

The first young lady I witnessed to was from Spain. She believes that all religions are worshipping the "same" God. 

John is agnostic. He grew up Catholic but turned away from organized religion. We had a good 10-15 minute conversation.

Another John was in his mid 60's. He is almost homeless and seemed tender to our conversation. He had a good sense of humor. He has grown up in Edinburgh and when I invited him to our church, he said, "Loanhead, I'd have to get my passport out."  (Our church is about a mile outside the city limits of Edinburgh and about 5 miles from where we were talking.)

Mark was the best opportunity. He is Canadian. Interestingly he is taking a class on the "Evolution of Language." His studies focus on pathology and philosophy. We talked for about 45 minutes. It was a very obvious divine appointment. Someone else had talked to him about the Lord earlier in the day. He thought I was with that guy. Thanks for praying for divine appointments.

The Hikin family is still ill. Please pray for the Lord to strengthen them. About a month ago Mark and I decided to meet for prayer on Monday nights at 9. The first meeting was cancelled because my children were sick. We met the following week and then have had to cancel two more due to illness. (There is a lot of sickness going around just now.) We appreciate your prayers that illness would not hurt our ministry. Thanks for praying.