Let Me 'Splain

So it's been forever. 

I offer no excuses and make no apologies.

Life has been busy lately.  Busy but good.  And I think after a year of turmoil, we're starting to settle into a routine.  Routine isn't something I ever thought I'd miss and/or look forward to, but after a chaotic year, there's great comfort in routine.  So things are good now and I thought I'd share some good with you.

The Good Stuff: The early garden is planted and has survived the weird Ohio spring.  Greens and onions are ready to be harvested and served with a pot of beans and a pan of cornbread.

The "Very" Good Stuff: My mom is finished with radiation, has a beautiful head-full of hair and only has one step left in her treatment, which ends in October.

The "Divinely" Good Stuff: God has been so good and answered so many prayers lately!  After a traumatic (or maybe dramatic) period of growth, I feel like I'm walking closer with Him everyday.  When you finally, really "get" God's grace and the freedom that only comes through Jesus, what an experience!

The "Finally" Good Stuff: Only 15 more school days til I have my kids to myself for 3 months :)

The "About Time" Good Stuff: We're making huge strides in remodeling our basement (after 8 years of putting it off) and we're adding a ventless fireplace and gas cookstove for something akin to off-grid, emergency cooking and heating.

The "I Can't Believe It!" Good Stuff: I'm about to be an aunt again.  Twice.  A great aunt to boot.

The "B.A." Good Stuff: The Mr. bought a new handgun for me that's made concealment much simpler.

The "Learning" Stuff:  I made my first batch of soap last month and while I'm far from proficient at it, I'm learning more each time.

The "Nerdy" Good Stuff: The Mr. was inducted into the Honor Society at Wittenberg and is the class president.  You think he was hard to live with before.............................; )

The "Least of These" Good Stuff: I finally found a ministry to plug into at church: mission support.  It's fantastic and I literally get to help people all over the world, from orphans to AIDS patients to widows to underground missionaries to single moms and the working poor in my own community. God is so good!

I *think* postings should come at a more regular clip now.  The aforementioned routine definitely makes posting a less daunting task, yes?  Anyway friends, I've wasted too much of the day blogging.  Got thistles to pull and groceries to store.  Take care! 

P.S.  If you *really* want to follow me, you can friend me on FB @Andrea.Lynch.31

Advent Conspiracy 2011

It's getting to be that time of the year again. 

The air is cool, the trees are bare and the pressure is mounting.  Christmas displays are already set up, 3 weeks earlier and more elaborate than last year.  The new, "must-have" items are being flashed across our TV screens.  We're hearing about all the great incentives to shop; layaway, discounts, points, cash back.  And my personal favorite, the commercials telling us how much we deserve a brand new car or an even bigger TV. OR that trip to Europe.  Or a brand new diamond ring (you know, so I'll remember how much the Mr. loves me.)  Already Black Friday is becoming a topic of conversation.  Sales ads are being leaked.  Hours are being extended.  Schedules readied.  Backrooms stocked.

Yikes.  It's only November 4th and I already feel nauseated. 

What the heck happened here?  How did America (and the world?) manage to take a beautiful holiday like Christmas and turn it into a big, ugly, gluttonous mess?  You know, I remember hearing my mom and grandma talk about their Christmases and things were so different.  Mamaw told stories about her brothers cutting pine trees from the hill behind their house and then the little girls would decorate it with paper ornaments.  Mom used to talk about Christmases at home without frantic trips to see every relative north of the Ohio River.  When did this all begin to change into the monstrous consumer-driven, GO-GO-GO holiday we celebrate now?  Who sold us this lie? 

I'll be the first to confess: I bought into the lie.  I believed it, if not in my mind, in my heart.  If I really loved Isaac, he HAD to have this toy.  And what better way to show Mara how much we loved her than by BUYING some must-have gift.   The more we buy, the more we love them!!! And at first, it was exciting, showering our new children with expensive new things.   But 2 weeks later, those gifts were piled into the back of their closets and the kids were playing with empty boxes, tin foil and lengths of string.  Oh, but the bill remained, as did the feeling that someone had just slipped me a mickey.

So, 2 or 3 years ago, things started to change for us. 

The spending didn't make sense. 

The frantic shopping didn't make sense. 

The huge build-up and the frazzled nerves didn't make sense.

Trying to buy love and meaning didn't make sense. 

That's when we stopped.  Stopped the pointless spending, the irrational worries, the huge build-up, the debt, the anxiety.  And the results have been beautiful.  Peaceful.  No-pressure.  Anxiety-free.  Debt-free. Focused.  Centered on Jesus.

And do you know what.....we enjoy the holiday now. 

We decorate (not out of duty, but out of joy!)  We donate to charity.  We bake.  We sing.  We visit.  Mid-December, we pack snacks and drive out to a particular neighborhood, looking at the lights and enjoying a thermos of hot chocolate.  We take the kids to Clifton Mill and see the waterfall lit up with millions of lights (which is admittedly commercial but absolutely stunning.)  We spend snowy Saturday afternoons in footy-jammies and cold Sunday mornings listening to Christmas carols at church.  Then, my favorite part of the season, we attend the Christmas Eve service and listen to a 1000 voices raised in praise to the King.  Slowly, this holiday is unwinding (rewinding?) and returning to it's origins: a celebration of the Word becoming flesh and living with us for a time...and I think it's breath-taking.

Another big change we've made is we've started celebrating Advent.  While I don't know all the ins and outs of Advent, I know this:  the kids focus on the arrival of Jesus, not Santa Claus.  Each Sunday night during Advent, just before bedtime, we read stories.  About the ancient prophecies, God's promises and the birth of the Messiah.  They look forward to lighting that last candle on Christmas morning because that candle means Jesus was born.  Before the presents, we celebrate His Presence.   

We still give a few meaningful gifts each year, but that's the key: meaningful.  Gifts are carefully thought out and many are handmade.  None are given out of a sense of obligation and what a difference that's made.  And for the past 2 years, we've given Jesus a Christmas gift.  2 years ago, my church dug 4 solar-powered wells in Africa.  Last year, we built a boat to deliver medication to people in South America.   Can't wait to see what we'll do this year.

           

Everything

I know this video is nothing new, but I love it.  In fact, I bawl my eyes out each and every time I watch it.  I'm assuming it's a low-budget video, but the symbolism, subtle gestures and facial expressions make it "real" for me. 

It takes me back a year and a half ago, when Jesus redeemed me and Craig baptized me.  One of the first things I remember saying was "it's all gone now"...the burden, the crippling weight was gone.

Take a peek. 

Cry along with me :)  

Eternal Preparedness

Sunday is National 'Back To Church' Sunday!

If you're in our area, we would love to have you!

First Christian Church
3638 Middle Urbana Rd.
Springfield, Ohio 45502
937 399 1000

Services at 8:30am, 9:45am, 11:00am and 6:00pm


Click here for directions


See You Sunday!!!

Overcome



Bebeto Matthews / AP





"I have said these things to you,

that in me you may have peace.

In the world you will have tribulation.

But take heart;

I have overcome the world."

John 16:33

Where Are You Now?

Credits: James R. Tourtellotte

It's so hard to believe it's been 10 years.

News coverage is nearly as constant now as we near the 10th anniversary as it was 10 years ago and to be honest, part of me still feels raw.  The shock is gone, slowly dulled by time, but the tears are still there, just under the surface.  Part of me is still angry.  Part of me still struggles to separate Muslims and extremists and when I hear someone say that Islam is a peaceful religion, I still catch myself rolling my eyes.  I'm not proud of it, but I won't lie to you either. 

Of all the things that happened that week, my most vivid memory is of a little girl named Nikki.  I was working at a daycare, 20 minutes away from Wright-Patterson AFB, teaching 4-year-olds.  This was a small town built upon the outskirts of Wright-Patt and the kids were familiar with and accustomed to the large aircraft, occasional Humvees, uniforms.  We had just finished circle time when one of the parents called to tell us what had happened.  We continued our day as usual, but even the children noticed that there weren't any aircraft flying overhead.

The next day, the kids were noticeably stressed.  Many of them had parents in the Air Force and though 4-year-olds couldn't grasp the magnitude of what happened, they knew it was bad and it was scary.  It was all the talk at circle time.  Mommy cried.  Daddy stayed at work (WPAFB) all night.  The bad guys were getting us.

And then there was Nikki. 

She was 4 or 5, with long blond hair and had had a difficult childhood.  And Nikki was terrified to go outside.  She hid in the playground equipment all during recess and ran to the door as quickly as possible, covering her head, when time was up.  To her, Enon Ohio was as big as New York City and it was just as likely for a plane to crash in Enon as it was in New York.  There was no telling her she was safe; she was convinced it was only a matter of time before a hijacked plane would crash in Enon.  I was so angry; not only had they murdered thousands, they had stolen the innocence of millions more.

During circle time that day, we said prayers.  For New York.  For ourselves.  For our soldiers and firemen.  Some of us cried.  Okay, I cried.  Then we made a card to send to Mayor Guilliani and all the kids signed it with a scrawled picture or the traced outline of a hand.  I don't know what I was trying to accomplish with that card, but it was the only thing I could do.   A few weeks later, we got a postcard from the Mayor, thanking the children for their prayers and their reaction was priceless.  I think everyone wanted to feel helpful and feel like they could give something and for this class, their prayers, thoughts and well-wishes were their gift to New York.

I still have that postcard.

I'm older now and hopefully a bit wiser.  I've birthed 2 children and been reborn myself, but I still ache inside.  Part of me still wants to lash out.  Part of me is bitter and distrusting of my own government.  I still feel resentment.  And part of me wants to hate; wants to hate so so badly.  (Again, I'm not proud of this, but honesty is vital, right?)   Maybe that part of me is the 26-year-old me; the one who spent days on end comforting 4-year-olds and trying to make sense of the tragedy myself.  

But the 36-year-old me feels different.  And as badly as part of me wants to be angry, I feel sympathy.  We've all fallen.  We've all been lost.  Confused.  Deceived.  And if not for the hope we have in Jesus, we'd still be lost, confused, deceived.  When I feel that anger rising, I remind myself that I can boast of Jesus and His redeeming work.  I have a promise to depend on and no matter what happens, that never changes.  The people who inflicted this terrible tragedy on us didn't have that hope. 

With all love and humility,  I tell you that I don't want to be angry at those without hope.  Oh, I know that isn't politically correct, but I don't strive to be politically correct.  I strive to be genuine with you and honest with myself.  10 years ago, I could have pushed the nuke button myself.  But now, now things are different.

When we watch coverage of 9/11, 'Where were you?' inevitably comes up.  And unless you were living under a rock, you probably remember exactly where you were and what you were doing when you heard the news.  And that's important.  We can't forget the ones we lost.  But I think it's more important to discuss where we are now.  How far we've come.  How we've changed.  How we've grown.  How we've forgiven.     

10 years later.  Where are you now?                                       

Can't Wait!

FFH will be in concert at my church in 2 weeks!

So excited!  Can't wait!

Beautiful

I received this email from a friend tonight and thought it was just beautiful.  Thought-provoking as well.

If you never felt pain, then how would you know I am a Healer?

If you never had to pray, How would you know that I am a Deliverer?

 

If you never had a trial, how could you call yourself an overcomer?

If you never felt sadness, How would you know that I am a Comforter?

 

If you never made a mistake, How would you know that I am a forgiver?

 

If you knew all, How would you know that I will answer your questions?

If you never were in trouble, How would you know that I will come to your rescue?

 

If you never were broken, Then how would you know that I can make you whole?

 

If you never had a problem, How would you know that I can solve them?

 

If you never had any suffering, Then how would you know what I went through?

If you never went through the fire, Then how would you become pure?

If I gave you all things, How would you appreciate them?

If I never corrected you, How would you know that I love you?

 

If you had all power, Then how would you learn to depend on me?

 

If your life was perfect, Then what would you need me for?

Regrettably, NBC

Oh, the sweet, sweet irony. 

We just enjoyed a sermon on Sunday about the Liberal, anti-Christian bend of media and Hollywood, when what should pop up?

This.

NBC has taken it upon themselves to edit our Pledge of Allegiance.   Last time I checked, it was the job of Congress to modify and adopt the Pledge, not the execs and editors at NBC.

But it's okay. 

According to host Dan Hicks:  "Regrettably, a portion of the Pledge of Allegiance that was in that feature was edited out. It was not done to upset anyone and we'd like to apologize to those of you who were offended by it."

Regrettably Dan, it wasn't "a portion".  It was "UNDER GOD".

And regrettably Dan, I won't be watching anymore NBC.

If you believe America is still "One Nation Under God", I encourage you to email NBC here.

Elect Your Sticker---Vote For The "G" Word!

There's a huge stink going on in Ohio right now.

Over this sticker:

And this sticker:

Not allowed to use the "G" word on anything anymore, including I Voted stickers.  Despite the fact that "With God All Things Are Possible" is our state motto.

Can't use it. 

It's politically incorrect. 

It might offend.

Good thing I don't care about being politically correct. 

If you're an Ohio state resident, click on the Elect Your Sticker button and show your support for our state motto. 

Vote For The "G" Word! 

There's no registration required and the whole process takes about 3 seconds.   

When I Get To Paradise---And Other Conversations With Mara

After working in the garden a few days ago, Mara sat down at the supper table to color before lunch. She was in deep concentration when she whipped her head up and says:

"When I get to Paradise, I won't know who God is."

Me: What???

"How will I know who God is? I don't know what He looks like."

I told her I didn't think she'd have trouble recognizing God; that God is bright and radiant and His face will light the place up. I told her how Moses had only seen God's backside and that it was so awesome that it turned his hair white and he glowed like a light bulb for days!

"Okay," she says, "I'm going there. When I'm an adult."

---------------------------------------------------------------

"Mommy, what's a soul?"

It's the part of you that lives forever and goes to Heaven when you die. Your body gets buried and your soul goes to be with God.

"I don't want to be buried!  What if Jesus can't find me?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------

"Mommy, did God make bones? Grown up bones and little girl bones?"

Yes, he made bones. He made everything.

"How? How did he make bones?"

He just spoke the word.

"What word?"

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"When I go to Heaven, I'm taking apples."

Me-Why are you taking apples to Heaven?

"To feed the horses. Do they give free pony rides in Heaven?"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Mommy, does Grandma have to wait in line to see God?"

I don't think there are in lines in Heaven. That would be too much like going to the BMV.

Ready For Some Good News???

My mom is EARLY stage 1.

From all appearances, the cancer hasn't left the tumor.  It doesn't seem to have moved into the lymph nodes.  There is no apparent cancer in the surrounding tissue.   We'll know more in about a week or 10 days when the pathology test results come in, but for now, things look really, really, very good.  The doctor is extremely optimistic about her prognosis.

Thank you God!

Defeated

I'm so tired. 

I woke up about 3 this morning and couldn't go back to sleep.  So much going through my head.

We lost power last night during a big, big storm (possible smallish tornado?) and when you're just laying there in the pitch black, not sure what time it is because the power is down, all you can do is think.

My mom's surgery is front and foremost on my mind.  After losing a grandma and aunt to breast cancer, the knee-jerk reaction to hearing that diagnosis is fear.  Fear of the unknown.  Fear of the known.  You start hearing phrases like invasive carcinoma, estrogen/progesterone/HER2 positive.  Radiation.  Chemotherapy.  Hair loss.  Mestasis.   

Who wouldn't be fear-stricken at hearing those words?

Jesus.

I just keep telling myself over and over and over:  Jesus has already beaten this cancer.  He defeated fear.  He defeated sin.  He defeated death.  He knew this cancer was coming.  It was no surprise to him.  And he's already defeated it.

I'm not deluding myself with wishful thinking.  I'm telling you, the cancer is defeated. 

My mom's work here isn't finished.

It's not her time yet.

She has people to lead to God and work to do for the Kingdom.

Jesus has already beaten this.

Mamaw. Superhero.

My pastor is a clever guy.  He likes to use word-picture associations that you can take-away from the sermon and remember later on.  At Easter time, he put the most horrific picture of a possum up on the big screen.  The reason: possums won't enter a lair if there aren't tracks coming out.  A single set of tracks leading into a lair means death could be waiting for them.  He tied it in beautifully with the fact that there were tracks coming out of the Grave on the morning Jesus rose.  He said it much better than I can.

Well, this weekend, I had to explain to Isaac that his Mamaw has cancer. 

And I was so afraid.

I remember back around 1980, when my favorite aunt was battling leukemia, I was so scared.  Not because I understood cancer, but because there was a lot of whispering going on.  About bones and marrow drives and donors and matches.  Whispers about her hair falling out and that really scared me.  I wanted Isaac to know right up front what was going on.  He's a smart kid and I knew he'd put 2 and 2 together and figure something was amiss.   But I was afraid to tell him.  After having just lost his Grandma to cancer, I was worried about scaring him.  So I tried the word-picture association, in terms I knew he'd appreciate: Lego Hero Factory, Heroes and Villains. 

              

This is Mamaw, Easter 2009.  



Mamaw has a villain growing in her chest.  He's a nasty fella.  Ugly, mean, but very small.  He's gotta go, but he won't go without a fight.  Typical villain. 

Lego Villain

Tomorrow Mamaw goes to the hospital and a Hero-Doctor is going to take that villain out because that's what Heroes do.  Mamaw will be taking medicine to make sure that villain won't come back, and she may be tired for a while.  Isaac said he could help.  He could make her a bologna sandwich for lunch.    

 

Lego Hero

After we talked about Lego Hero Factory toys and how awesome they are, we talked about Jesus when he was in the boat with the Apostles and a huge storm blew up.  And how afraid all the Apostles were.  And how big that storm was.  And all Jesus had to say was "Quiet" and it stopped.  That storm was WAY bigger than cancer and Jesus stopped it, no problem. 

"Yeah," Isaac said, "because Jesus controls everything."  

What IS That---Washed Away?

My little Miss Mara is amazing.  She's cute, meaner than a striped snake and wired completely differently than Isaac.  Only recently have I begun to understand her wiring. 

Isaac tries to understand how things work. 

Mara tries to understand why.

Isaac makes statements.

Mara asks questions.

Lately, the questions she's been asking have left me without the words to answer her.  At least for a moment.  She is fascinated with God and everything God-related, and yesterday while listening to the radio in the car, she asked "What is that?  Washed away?"  When I didn't respond in 2.3 seconds she asked again, a little more loudly..."WHAT IS WASHED AWAY?  WHAT IS THAT?"

I'm embarrassed to say that I couldn't answer her for a second.  I was choking back tears. Trying to catch my breath.  Sometimes it's her simplest questions that cause the deepest introspection. 

What IS that- washed away?

How do you explain that concept--- that we're separated from God by sin, then washed clean of our stains by the blood of Jesus--- to a 5 year old?  How can you explain the gift of redemption that we're given through the atoning death of Jesus?  I'm only beginning to understand, so how do you break that down into terms that a child can grasp? 

I fought the lump in my throat and told her that mankind is naughty.  She knows that term---naughty.  I told her that we're ALL naughty and when we disobey God, it upsets Him.  And eventually, we ALL have to make a choice:  To join God's team or to join the World's team by default.  I asked her if she remembered when Mommy was baptized----"yep, she said, in the 'big room'"----I told her that was the day I joined God's team and that day my wickedness was washed away.  That day Jesus washed away my naughtiness and God wasn't upset any longer. 

She was quiet for just a second.   

"Oh" she said.  "So that's why Daddy got baptized.  He joined God's team and got washed away."

The Lord Is Risen!

Our pastor told a great story this morning, about early Christians greeting each other with the phrase:

The Lord is Risen! 

to which the response was given:

He is Risen Indeed! 

I love that. 

Let's try it.

The Lord is Risen!

Redemption Pt. 2

Okay, now for the really good news.

And oh is it good news.

On Thursday my husband repented and was baptized.

God is good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


..........................................................


I've been staring at those 4 lines for nearly an hour, thinking to myself that there has to be more I can say.  That I should add more to that post.  But really, what else can I say?
  
I could say that all I could do was cry. 

I could say that the Spirit lead me to pray for Jeff in the hours before I found out that he was meeting with our pastor.

I could tell you Mara's remark, that one day Daddy would have a brand new body.

But none of that really matters, does it?

All that matters is God drew Jeff to Himself and that Jeff accepted Jesus and serves the Living God.

I reiterate:  God is so Good!

Quick Update

This is going to be a quick one, no time to blog this morning.  I have a whole trunk-full of clothes in the back of the car that need to be dropped off for the Outreach center, as well as some food that is in danger of expiring.  I know it will be put to good use before the expiration date if I get it into the Outreach center's hands!

Anyway, I did horrible dieting this week.  Let me rephrase that.  I did great 4-5 days out of the week and then a splurge at the Dairy Queen and an after-church dinner with my brother and his family last Sunday really threw a kink into my plan.  That aside, I squeaked by with a .4lb loss, so no complaints here!  I did manage to exercise via gardening this week and I did MUCH better snacking between meals, so it's a win in those departments.

So -.4 lbs it is! 

Before I sign off......I have some huge, huge news to share with you in a couple days.  Ginormous, fantabulous, thrilling, exciting, wonderful news.  Well, at the very least it's ginormous, fantabulous, thrilling, exciting, wonderful news for my little family.  I can't tell you today.....maybe tomorrow or Sunday.  I'll leave you in anticipation until then :)

Have a great day!!!    

Preparing To Share

I'm so excited.

Today is the first meeting of the season for the 'Growing In The Son' garden project at church. 

Yay!

Last year was our first year working on the project and oy was it a tough year.  I'm thinking we went for a month or better without rain and had issues with deer and other vermin, but we still managed to grow several hundred pounds of food for the Second Harvest pantry and Outreach center as well as the elderly and low income in our community. 

The biggest issue we ran into last year was food distribution. 

Second Harvest could use very little of what we grew.  They simply didn't have the time and labor available to clean, string, core, dice, cook the food we grew.  They needed food ready to be eaten to best serve their clientele. 

The Outreach center could use very little of what we grew.  They deal with families who are desperate, who are homeless or living in shelters/hotels, who often don't have access to a kitchen or the utilities to cook fresh produce.  They scarfed up the tomatoes and peppers because the tomatoes and peppers could be eaten raw, but had little use for corn or green beans.

While the elderly knew what to do with fresh beans and corn, many of the younger families had no idea how to prepare fresh veggies.  They had kitchens, they had utilities;  they didn't have the knowledge of what to do with a pound of green beans or a bag full of corn on the cob.  It was a sad reflection on the state of our culture as well as a huge waste of food. 

This year, we're going to try a different route. 

Upon doing some research, I learned that the greatest time of need for underprivileged families is in summertime; when there are no free breakfasts or lunches for school children; when we don't feel the Christmastime tugs at our heart to donate food to various charities. 

I learned that in my community, 30% of the children are living at or under poverty level.  30%!!!  That astounds me.  1 in 3 children.  Doesn't that amaze you?

And I also learned the the majority of the people coming in to the local pantries and soup kitchens are children.  It's not homeless, drug-addicted alcoholics.  It's families with young children.  And last year, according to the information at Feedingamerica.org, need was way, way up and donations were way, way down. 

You can see what's driving me.

Children in my community are going without. 

And 30 years ago, I was one of those kids. 

My mom worked her fingers to the bone to provide for us, with no support from my deadbeat dad.  We lived at poverty level, with barely enough cash flow to make it month by month, but we never went hungry.  Never.  And it's because we had knowledge to garden and preserve that food.  What a blessing!

This year, I'm going to pitch the idea that we adopt local families for the season. 

We can't do much about homelessness. 

We can't do much about families living in shelters or hotels. 

We CAN feed families on the brink; the ones who have to choose between fresh food and paying the electric bill; those who have to choose between food and rent. 

And possibly, by dealing with these families directly on a weekly basis, we'll be able to establish a relationship and teach them what to do with those fresh veggies. 

And possibly, through involvement with our community garden, we may be able to teach these young families how to grow their own food in their own garden. 

And possibly, if we can get the children involved, we can stop the cycle of hunger through knowledge.  It's that whole 'give a man a fish, teach a man to fish' thing.  Maybe we can teach these children to "fish"?

And possibly, hopefully, through this project, eyes, minds and hearts may be opened to Christ.  Or as my dear pastor put it: "someone is going to be saved because of this garden!" 

There's a good deal of hope hanging on this garden project.     

Life Interrupted

Definition of Interrupt;
transitive verb
"to break the uniformity or continuity of"

I just wanted to let my readers, confidants and friends know that I'm going to be taking a short leave of absence from the Blogosphere.  There's so much going on in my family's life, so much up in the air that I feel much too scatterbrained to blog.  Or think clearly.  Or string together words into a coherent sentence. 

I'd love for my brothers and sisters in Christ to lift up my husband's family in prayer as they prepare for the crossing of their beloved wife, mother and grandmother.

Pray for peace and comfort for Juanita as her journey comes to an end.

Pray for strength for the family as they navigate the coming days. 

Pray for patience as the necessary arrangements are made. 

Pray that this will be an awakening for the lost, that they'll come to know the true peace that comes only through the Saviour.   

Andrea