mission field: denver

What a great weekend in Denver!  It was great to explore a new city, wonderful to have time with my Dad and the girls, and such a blessing to feel a bit more a part of Lisa and Adam's world!

 Sofie is struggling quite a bit with all the changes (we were just home in Haiti less than 10 days ago, and things have changed so much!) and still pushing a tooth and drippy, but she just stayed close to Mama and Lily was in heaven with her best friend.

 We had a great birthday party for Aunt Lisa, and somewhat unsuccessfully tried making her birthday cake a "Piecaken" which managed to be more like an iced pie since the cake somehow disappeared while baking.  I don't know.  Iced pie is still good, you know?  But ugly.

One of the best things was just getting to know these two better as a couple and in their element.  I know we loved Adam before, but man, after this weekend, I LOVE Adam.  God has given him so many gifts and such special parts of His heart, and I'm just blessed to be on the planet with him...much more related to him!  I'm pumped to see God using them even now, and I know the plans God has for Lisa and Adam's future are SO good and for His glory, and am blessed to know a couple who loves the Lord and is passionately available for His use and glory.

When you fly in, it's so obvious that Denver is in the middle of the desert, but wow, there is so much community effort to make things green and beautiful!

Meanwhile, the girls had their first encounter with squirrels, who either haven't found a way across the ocean to Haiti or have all been eaten :)  These were no ordinary squirrels, however, and they got so close to us that I had to wave sticks at them and shout, "Back! Back!"  and then felt really dumb when Lily and Sofie looked at me like I was nuts.

Lily called these the "toutouni people" (naked people) and encouraged me every time we drove by to get a photo of their "toutouni butts."

The science center was a HUGE hit for both girls.  Lily played with everything, and Sofia sucked on everything (it is no wonder the girl is still sick.)

The best part of the weekend, however, was Sunday.  I've heard so much about their church, and it was WOW-encouraging to see a body of believers so set on being missionaries where they are in Denver and on Biblical preaching and study and transformation.  "It's ok to be where you are," the pastor shared while unpacking the story of David and Bathsheeba and talking about the truth of sin, "and we are ok with where you are, who you are, and what you've done and where you've been.  But it's not ok to stay there."  

I didn't just hear a lot of good truth from The Truth, but SAW a lot of good truth from The Truth in it's body and in where the church is focusing it's time, energy, money and people, and this was just great.  By the end of the morning, I felt surrounded by other missionaries, just in a different part of the world.

If a missionary is someone who spends the best of their time, energy, money and giftings on sharing and living and being the Gospel--sharing, living and being Jesus--then I'm pretty sure we're all called to be missionaries, family!

Praise the Lord for my Denver family and for the chance to love on them!