July 2009: year in review

Dear Family, 

 

It is July!  That means it is time for my “year in review.”  I love to write this letter; it commemorates three years on staff as well as a year of God’s goodness.  There have been hard times, but God is providing, and He will always be in control.  So...here are the serious, the quirky, and the amazing things that have happened this year (in no particular order). 

 

1.  In January I was able to join my family in Florida for a week in Orlando: riding the tea-cups, laughing at Goofy, and truly enjoying each other. 

 

2.  Janea, one of the fifth graders attending Highland House, accepted Jesus into her life at Harmony Heart during family camp in May. 

 

3.  My dear friend Alex came to visit in August!  She was able to see my life, and I was able to see how God has been growing her.  She was one of the first junior-highers I ever worked with, and now she is in college.  I am getting old! 

 

4.  The garden at Twelfth and Central has become a gigantic part of my life.  It started out as a whim in the backyard, and well, now it is a lifestyle.  Teenagers in the garden every weekend, harvest parties with our community, and dirt encrusted boots are some of my favorite things. 

 

5.  My family was able to travel to Chester in May to take part in my Religious Missionary Order (RMO) service.  I am now an official card-carrying member of the World Impact missionary community.  Prior to this I was considered a Missionary in Training (MIT). 

 

6.  I finally graduated from Moody Bible Institute with a degree in Urban Ministry.  My diploma is a thing of beauty, and my parents are relieved that I am now using my degree in post-college life.  

 

7.  My sister and her husband are expecting baby number two.  I will have a nephew sometime in October. 

 

8.  Highland House congregation members are growing in numbers and in their relationship with the Lord. Adults and teens are building relationships and encouraging one another. 

 

Please continue to pray for my roommate Rebecca and me, that God will use our home to extend His love to others.  Thank you for all that you do for me with your prayers, encouragement, love, and support!