Bozeman, MT

Another beautiful day! Big sky country for sure. God's amazing handy-work!

Casper, WY

802 miles completed so far. Really beautiful day. Amazing countryside. Very windy and warm - 88 degrees.

On our Way

After many hours of sorting, selling, giving away and packing, we are finally on our way! Our first stop is Kearney, NE where we are visiting with Cody and Aurelie. We pulled out of Pella around 9 am after stopping to weigh at the scale. 7000 lbs of "stuff" loaded! 7, a very good number! We said good-bye to many special friends and family - thank you all again. We will miss you very much! Here are a few pictures I took along the way today.

Alive with Christ

At the end of Ephesians chapter 3 Paul gives a doxology to his people or a prayer of praise to God.
     4:20-21   " Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is AT WORK within us, to him be the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
 Also Jesus speaks to us in John 15:5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing."

It says in my NIV study bible that many people try to be good, honest people who do what is right. But Jesus says that the only way to live a truly good life is to stay close to him, like a branch attached to a vine. Apart from Christ our efforts are unfruitful.

Are you receiving the nourishment and life offered by Christ, the vine. If not, are you missing a special gift he has for you!

As we pack up our few belongings and step out in faith we must trust and obey and stay attached to the vine.  We would certainly shrivel up and die without being feed with his word. The gospel is our daily bread. We need not fear. We do not have to know the future to have faith in God; we have to have faith in God to be secure about the future.

So please be prayer warriors with and for us not worriers about the journey we are on. This journey began when God formed us in our mother's womb. It is with great joy that we are being sent out to plant many more seeds that will "bear much fruit."

Sending Us Out!

Our church family is just that - family! We praise God for all of them! This picture is from Sunday May 19th, 2013 at Trinity Reformed Church - Pella, Iowa.

210 Franklin to 64741 S Victory Road

It is official - our moving date is June 1st. We know this is NOT the last leg of our support raising journey because support raising is NOT about money. It is about building relationships with everyone you have a chance to meet each day. It is about giving God the glory for the results. God has given us work to do and when we do His work we give Him the credit.

John 15:1-27

New International Version (NIV)

The Vine and the Branches

15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes^[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.
⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. ¹¹ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. ¹² My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. ¹⁴ You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵ I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. ¹⁷ This is my command: Love each other.

This will be our new home. Its name is Parmenter.

210 Franklin

Our home for the past 8 1/2 years is for sale. It is shiny and clean even though she is over 120 years old. We are thankful for the shelter and warmth our home has provided us. It is crazy how much "stuff" a family can accumulate! Much has been sold or given away. Yes, we will certainly miss our bungalow, however God is also certainly leading us onward! His trusting hands are supporting our mortal bodies as we take one step at a time to follow after Him. There are moments when the "what ifs" stop by to visit, but we quickly usher them out the door, calmly telling them they are not welcome today - or any day!

Chris and I want to again thank all of you who have given us words of encouragement over the past year. God has grown us and stretched us in ways we thought were not possible. We know we will never stop learning and experiencing what God has to teach us. Each day as we step out of bed let us all remember -  This is the day that the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in it! Amen