Waycross, GA to Thomasville, GA

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Note: I had a problem with the pictures on the last up-date. In the process of trying to fix it, I accidentally deleted the comments on 2-3 of the first posts. If anyone has a copy of those or if you remember what you wrote, please send those to us or repost. I know that God's hand is in everything, but I was still sad to lose those comments! That's also why there was such a delay on this post...thankfully Wes & Carol's son is a computer wiz (again we see God's provision), so he helped me resolve the issue and figure out another method for us to use as we continue!!!

Wednesday night we went to Hortense, GA to the Salt House Worship Center to speak. Pastor Deryl Daniels and his wife, Elnita, were very kind. Chris and I weren't sure that we were supposed to go that church or not. Then when we where just about to get started all of the youth went to the back room and closed the door. There was a large group, so we were sad that they left. It turns out, however, that the kids were just going back to get their new devotion books. They were making commitments to read each day for the duration of the study!! The service was incredible...the Holy Spirit was making connections that we couldn't even dream of! After we finished speaking, the youth performed for us! Wow...that's about all I can say...most of us were moved to tears by their dramatic interpretation of a song! The body of Christ at its best...everyone using their strenghts to glorify God and to bring others to the foot of the Cross. (The youth of the church also gave us a shirt so that we can show our support!! Thanks so much!! Y'all keep on being "Sold Out" for Jesus.)

So much for our plans to leave on Thursday...that's what we get for trying to make our own plans. We would have missed some incredible things if we had gone ahead of God! We ended up having an interview with the Waycross Herald Journal. That was pretting amazing...the reporter is a strong Christian man, so he included scripture that we quoted and he include verses that he found on his own! Have I said lately how amazing our God is?!! Well, Friday rolled around, and we were supposed to meet with a deacon and youth pastor, but that meeting never worked out because we were supposed to Jim Bennett. The Lord has so impacted his life!! He lived his life for himself--drinking, sleeping around, cussing, etc.--for 60 years, but March 18, 1997 his life changed forever. Ask us sometime, and we'll tell you his story. What you need to know now is that He loves the Lord with all that he has. He ministers in a prison and shares the Gospel every chance he gets. Over 7000 people have accepted Jesus as their Savior as a result of his testimony. Jim is in the business of restoring cars, and now he shares of the one who who restores lives!!! (Jim also has tons of antiques, so Chris insisted that we should put the picture of me riding the hobby horse!! ha, ha, ha!!) God is never done with us...we are to work for Him as long as we have life in our bodies. What we've observed along our journey has been interesting...many of the people who have taken time with us and have taught us a lot are retired people. They share their wisdom with us and teach us about the Lord because they have tons of experience to draw from. Titus 2 talks about the education that different people need and how more mature believers can teach and pour into younger believers. Again, we are seeing the Word lived out! I spent a lot of time on the computer Friday afternoon and evening and Saturday fixing the site, but Chris was able to go to another of Jacob's soccer games. Then they played soccer together and chatted. Through all of our time at Wes, Tami, Jacob, and Victoria's house (Wes & Carol's son and his family) we got to know them pretty well! They are such a sweet family!! We even went to the Fall Fest a Jacob's school (It's a good fundraiser if anyone needs an idea--we can give more details) where Victoria won a cake on the cake walk.





On Sunday we were able to go to First Presbyterian Church of Waycross. We struggled to know where to go last weekend because we wanted to go to the Highsmith's church and to Pastor Jeff's church, but we just felt like we needed to go with the Highsmiths. It ends up of course that we were in the right church at the right time. We would have missed Pastor Bill and Sister Dorothy Jean if we had waited on their church because they have the month of November on sabbatical. And we would have missed an incredible service at First Presbyterian this past Sunday. The Presbyterian church has its roots in Scotland.
The cross with the flowers represents everyone drawing near to the foot of the cross in humble surrender and adoration. Since the tartans (plaid banners) are so colorful, the flowers needed to be as well!!

For this reason, they were celebrating their spiritual heritage at a service called Kirkin' o' the Tartans. It is a time for families to come together and renew their commitment to the Lord. Pastor Jeff spoke to the church about enlarging their tents--reaching out to the community to lead others to Christ. (Isaiah 54:1-4) He warned of telling the Lord to stop doing what He was doing or telling Him "that's enough." That's not for us to decide...it's up to Him! He also encouraged people to not be complacent--instead "attempt great things for God, expect great things from God." (William Carey) He also pointed out that Is 54:1 points to the fact that God likes to do something new, something impossible, and something beyond our imagination. (There's more to this story too if you are interested in knowing about it.) We were also able to hang out with the youth group that night...we chatted and watched a movie. On Monday, the article about us came out in the paper and we were able to get a couple of copies. Jacob and Victoria came over because they only had to go to school 1/2 of the day, so we went to Saddleup Therapeutic Riding Center, Inc. It's a ministry for Autistic children that Boykin (pictured with Rachel below) and Ann Clarke started about 3 months ago. Mr Clarke told us that he asked God how he could still be useful because he felt like he and his wife weren't doing anything for the Lord. Out of his desire to serve, God gave him this vision and people to help it materialize. We were amazed to see how excited the kids were who were going to ride. Allison (pictured in the green), Tajla (pictured with her hands lifted up in joy), and Shane were some of the really sweet kids that we met that afternoon! Tajla especially stole our hearts because there was a marked difference in her when she got on "her horse." The students are learning skills through horseback riding that help them in their everyday life--telling their left from right, focusing on a task, being able to sit up without support, etc. It was wonderful to witness and to know that those who were running the program prayed for each of those children before they even arrived. They are trying to raise money now for lights (daylight savings time cuts them off early) and for a shelter (so that rain won't stop the lessons). Before dinner we stopped at Florenz and Betty Carol's house to see the racoons. We couldn't believe that there were so many at their house! The racoons even ate cookies our of my hand!! We had dinner with Wes, Carol, Wes, Tami, Jacob, and Victoria!! Tuesday was a day of mixed emotions because the time had finally come to move on. We were sad to say bye to Wes and Carol, but at the same time we were really happy to see some old friends from Girls' Black Mountain FCA camp--Kim Boyce (on my right) and Frances Herndon (between Chris and me). Kim arranged for us to stay with the Herndons, so we met Frances' husband, Joey, and her son, Nick. Nick took us out to his tree house and showed us his zip-line. (I even took a little ride on it myself!!) Frances invited Kim to stay for dinner, and she invited their pastor, Randy and his wife, Lindy. They are planting a church here in Thomasville with a primary focus on unchurched people. We enjoyed fellowshipping with them and hearing about what God is doing in Thomasville. After supper, we talked and sang several praise songs. (Randy played on Nick's little guitar. See the picture below.) I'll post part two soon...just trying to up-date you. We love you! God bless!

From Hinesville, GA, to Waycross, GA and beyond

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On last Wednesday afternoon, Peter called and told us that it didn't look like it would work to go to his church, but there was another church that was really great. We dropped his workers off and went to his house to meet his wife, Marie, and to drop off our stuff. Then we headed out to church...when we got there, it was Trunk or Treat night, and so we didn't stay. We drove around looking for another church, but we weren't able to find anything until around 7. It was a Baptist Church...we were about to leave because it started at 6:30, but as we were walking away, 2 ladies who were just getting there invited us to come in. (God uses everyone, so the next time you are stressed about being late, look around to see who's on your path...God put them there!) We walked in just in time for prayer and Bible study. Everyone was really friendly and they told us that they would be praying for us. Peter and Marie were waiting for us when it was over. We went to the grocery store...everyone knew them because of their friendliness. Thursday morning, Peter had a flat, so we stopped at a neighbor's house to use the air compressor. "It just so happened" that she and her family are from Costa Rica. So she gave us contact info for 2 of her aunts and 2 of her daughters who are still in Costa Rica! Amazing...our God is just amazing...working through a flat tire. Sometimes we don't get the privilege of seeing the good that He is working out through the bad (Genesis 50:20; Romans 8:28), but today we saw it and so did Peter! Wow!! After that was all taken care of we went to help a friend of his unload some pickets for a fence. Then we picked up his guys, and we were on our way. Peter wanted to get us down the road a bit so he dropped us off at a gas station about 9 miles down the road. From there we walked 10-11 miles to Hinesville, GA. The guys at KFC told us how to get to the library, so we headed in that direction, but ran into the Chamber of Commerce along the way. We went in to ask about a campground, and they ended up putting us in touch with Father Carter at St. Philip's Episcopal Church. He brought us supper after checking out our story with Chris's dad and let us stay in the Educational Center, part of their church. Pretty exciting...no worries about being too cold outside tonight! Friday morning, we went to a Korean mass at the St. Philip’s. Jennifer saw that we didn’t have a clue about what was going on, so she came over and showed us the songs and readings in English. She is such a servant. The priest who was doing the service speaks very little English, but he tried to say a few sentences for us during the homily. After the service, we met Ken and Sue. They invited us to stay with them (God had different plans), and we chatted for quite some time. Ken is just now beginning to understand God’s love for us, and he says that it’s like seeing the world through completely new eyes…what an encouragement! Next, we met with Father Carter and he shared about the Holy Spirit and church history. He also told us that God kept telling him Waycross, GA, which was interesting to us because Chris picked that out on the map when we were in KFC on Thursday. Father Carter brought us to his house and introduced us to his wife, Judy. (and their dogs!!) They shared with us about their experience with the Holy Spirit’s moving in their lives…such great testimonies of His presence throughout their lives. Not only did Father Carter tell us that he was supposed to take us to Waycross, but there was a Presbyterian pastor there that we had to meet. After we met Pastor Jeff (Martin), we learned that they had only met once for about 10 minutes several months ago. Why did God lay Waycross and Jeff Martin on Father Carter’s heart? Well we were about to find out. Pastor Jeff has also experienced a powerful move of the Holy Spirit in his life!! (I’m amazed to find such movement of the Holy Spirit and such power…we’re talking about Acts being lived out here across denominational lines!! It’s awesome…It’s the body of Christ as God intended it to be!!!) He’s been anointed to pray for people’s healing. So he prayed for Chris’s knee (old soccer injury) and his jaw and my hip (old running injury). After walking so much we were hurting. I was even struggling to walk especially after sitting for a time. We are both fine now! God’s power is so real!!! Pastor Jeff had arranged for us to stay with a good friend of his who lives about 2 miles down the road. As soon as we met Wes and Carol Highsmith, we knew that they were so in love with God! The Holy Spirit is so strong on them! They let us stay in their guesthouse and have just taken us in as family. They talk of nothing other than what God has done in their lives and in the lives of those around them. It’s amazing to hear of how God has used them. We think that the Holy Spirit has crossed our paths now because of something else He wants to do in the future…pray about that! On Saturday, we went to their grandson's soccer game. He's the one on the right with black and red shingards. On Sunday, they took us to their church, Christian Renewal, in Brunswick (near St. Simon’s and Jekyll Islands).
(The picture is of Wes and several of our new friends at church!)
Pastor Bill called us up at the end of the service and everyone prayed over us. We talked to several people after the service to share with them about what we are doing. It was such a blessing to be in that service. Pastor Bill and Sister Dorothy Jean took us all out to eat along with several other folks from the church. They both shared their story about the Holy Spirit…wow! They were Southern Baptist missionaries in Spain at the time. Sister Dorothy Jean received the Holy Spirit first and the gift of tongues. God used one of Pastor Bill’s professors to reveal the truth about the Holy Spirit to him. When Pastor Bill received the Holy Spirit, he spoke in Spanish initially and later developed a prayer language in the Spirit. Their testimony hits pretty close to home! We were so grateful that they shared and took so much time with us. Our schooling continues…God keeps reminding me of Mark 9:38-41 " 'Teacher,' said John, 'we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.' 'Do not stop him,' Jesus said. 'No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us. I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward.' " In other words, which denomination you belong to or what church you are a member of isn’t that important. The focus should be on God as our father and provider, His Son Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and the Holy Spirit as our guide, comforter, and teacher. We are meant to work together for our Lord for His Kingdom purposes instead of being divided!! Sunday night we were able to speak to what we thought was going to be 1 small group of girls but ended up being 3-4 groups! We shared our testimony and what God is doing right now too! I was so excited because I love working with teenage girls!! They are at such a special time in their lives! We prayed for them, and they gathered around us, laid their hands on us, and prayed for us too! It was humbling! Those girls are really sweet and love the Lord! (It made me miss those SSS girls!! (and the guys) Please know we are praying for all of you too!) Christian Renewal Church also has a school, so on Monday we spoke at their chapel service to the middle and high school students! They were our first school group! We again shared our testimony and how God is proving scripture true in our lives daily! It’s exciting to witness. After the students were dismissed, a 6th grader named Abby came running us to us. She told us not to leave because she had to get something for us. Her mom came up while she was gone and told us that Abby had some birthday money. She had been making her list of what she wanted to buy with it. Well, she decided that she wanted to give it to us instead. Chris and I didn’t know what to say! It’s just like I said…the scripture is being lived out…God’s Word is alive! We are praying that God will bless Abby 100 fold and that we will all be moved to give like her. We as Christians need to take care of others. We are just account managers because all we have belongs to God. We need to give back to Him and be good managers of his money. Here we were at Abby’s school to share with her. Instead, she became our teacher! Carol showed us around Georgia’s sea islands after our time at the school, and we came back to their house. Tonight we’ll be going to The Salt House a church in a nearby town. We’re preparing to head out again tomorrow (Thursday) southwest across GA on 84W. This time we will be hiking with a staff. Wes made a staff (with a cross and the Ten Commandments on it) for Chris to carry to ward off animals along the way. Chris is extremely excited about it!! We’re continually excited to see what God is doing…please be in touch to let us know what’s going on with you! We love you! God bless!

On the road again from Ridgeland, SC to Richmond Hill, GA

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Be sure to check out the new map section and the links section...So the adventure continues...On Friday, we met several of the staff members-Abiel & Chad-from the Institute who had been away on a conference. Eric Blair shared with us that there are 52 churches in a 9 mile radius from the school. They are working to unite the churches so that they can work together to meet the needs of the community. After the work day was over, Pastor Jimmy gave us a ride to Ridgeland, SC. On our way, we stopped to eat at a Mennonite Diner and met the owner, Ray. He shared his vision to begin a children’s ministry using a life-size version of Noah's Ark. We also had our last class with Pastor Jimmy for awhile. This time I was prepared though...I had a pencil and paper and took notes rapidly as he shared and answered our questions. We arrived in Ridgeland where our good friend Eric Hensley, the residence director of the men's shelter, greeted us. We hadn't seen him since we left Biloxi last December. He and Chris are so alike that I would almost say they were twins separated at birth! Eric began our tour of the mansion in the garage where we met Ermes (in English it would be Hermes...the messenger) and Omar. Chris started to talk to Ermes, and we learned that he was from Nicaragua (the last country along the path where we were still in need of some contacts!!). As Pastor Jimmy was leaving, another car pulled up. Esmeralda and Pastor Ramiro wanted to walk around outside and pray over the mission and for the outreach that would take place on Saturday. We had an amazing time of prayer with them, and then they kept praying after we went inside! Saturday we woke up to help prepare for the "Ride for the Homeless." Bikers paid an entry fee to ride and get a shirt. All of the money would go to support the mission. We met tons of people that day!! James from Missouri, who believes that his ministry is teaching and baptizing disciples, taught me a new lesson in folding paper...I can't wait to share it with some kids!! James had been working all week at the mission ministering and teaching. As a result, 5 of the men made decisions for Christ for the first time or to recommit their lives to the Lord. Then Saturday afternoon they were baptized. What?! Yes...it was awesome to witness. (See pictures below.) Please pray for Brian, Darin, Ermes, Omar, and Eddie. Brian is an aspiring and talented musician who is really seeking God. Darin humbly shared his heart and God's protection on his life...that he should have died a long time ago, but he's here now for a reason. Ermes has been hurt by the church and was mistreated by his boss when he was injured on the job a few years ago, but he has a lot of wisdom about the Bible. Omar is from Texas and made an open profession of his faith on Sunday at church. Eddie is Pastor Jackie's brother who is hoping to get into a rehab center in Florida. He is struggling to overcome many addictions and the guilt he feels for making choices that he knew were wrong. Evans was the only other man in the house when we arrived...please pray for him, he doesn't know the Lord yet and isn't interested right now. We also met Dee (in the middle...pictured with a friend and her son) and Gwen (pictured in the hat and bright sun)...wow...such awesome women of God. Both of them have been through so much, but they will quickly tell you that God is their sustainer, Jesus is their Lord, and the Holy Spirit is their "honey." They are married to God and want nothing more than just to serve Him and please Him. They both tell stories of God's deliverance from sin and addiction (not to drugs but to men). Women so often put other people in God's spot of #1 in their lives, so it was amazing to learn from them and soak up their wisdom! Angie just came out to ride but had been looking for a church for a year, so she found a new family!! Pastor Jackie and Sister Donna, the pastor of Gospel Lighthouse and his wife, shared testimony with us and took us out to eat for Sunday lunch. They were the ones who originally started the mission. Pastor Jackie was one of the biggest drug dealers in South Carolina before he came to the Lord. He has such a story...it would have been terrifying to live his life of drugs, gambling, alcohol, and violence. Yet Donna clung to the Lord and stood by her husband. I don't know if I've ever heard of such commitment! I was amazed!! Now the Lord has transformed Pastor Jackie and they are serving God together!! Amazing! Casey, the associate pastor, also has an amazing testimony of deliverance from drugs and alcohol. The community sometimes looks at the church and says they are nothing but addicts and alcoholics, but I say...Jesus came to seek and save the LOST. A Doctor doesn't come to heal the healthy! They are reaching out to people who others ignore...it's great! Mr. Bob and Mrs. Christine are also members of that church...let me tell you...Mrs. Christine just speaks scripture constantly and Mr. Bob is so sold out to the Lord. We met so many others who have just been transformed for the Lord! On Saturday night, the women invited me to go to the movies with them (the ones mentioned above and Teresa and Jessica as well). We saw One Night with the King based on the story of Esther. Chris was able to hang out with the guys at the shelter as well as Eric and James. They celebrated the 5 new birthdays with cake and ice cream! On the way to church on Sunday, Eric asked us if we would give the devotion on Monday night. We agreed but had no idea what to talk about since we were giving our testimony at church that morning. Church was wonderful...Will and Pat can play virtually every stringed instrument that there is...They played the piano and steel guitar during the service and there was a bass player and 2 guitar players as well...not to mention the 4 other vocalists. Wow!!! After we shared the pastor took up a love offering. The message was a powerful one from Isaiah 43. We learned of a 4 year-old little girl who was supposed to be blind by the age of 5. She had the coke-bottle glasses times 10. Her vision was terrible. Her family and the church wouldn't accept the doctor's diagnosis and began to pray...well, Olivia has 20/20 vision in one eye and 20/70 vision in the other and it's still improving! What a mighty God we serve! He's concerned about spiritual, emotional, and physical healing!! Sunday night Eddie shared with us that he had given his last $2 in church, but that God had already given it back to him over 100 times that afternoon and he just wanted to give us testimony of God's provision! Brian told us that sometimes people give things other than money and he wanted to give us his testimony. Oh, I almost cried...that he would trust us with something so obviously private for him. On Monday, I volunteered to cook supper (with a little help from my friends especially Chef Eric). Chris also helped me. Another man moved into the house named Chris (from Kenly, NC whose dad was also a FWB minister) while I was preparing dinner, so I put him to work too! John also came right before dinner. He had been falsely imprisoned in Savannah, GA and was trying to start his life over. During the devotion, Chris and I shared from Ephesians 2:1-10 on the assurance of salvation, pressing on to the goal of eternal life in Christ Jesus, and surrendering to God's plan for our lives. After devotion was over Ermes, Eddie and Brian all shared with us. It was a great night! Please pray for Shawn, a man who's leaving the house; Kelley, his girlfriend; Reggie, another man in the house; and the new guys-Chris and John. They also need new members on the Board of Directors for the mission...there are only 3 directors right now, and there should be 7-12 to help with the operation of the mission. On Tuesday, I cut Chris Embler's hair, and then John asked if I could cut his because he thought it would help him get a job. After a quick prayer, I gave my first real hair cut with a pair of clippers! I think it turned out okay, praise the Lord! Then we got ready to leave. Eric (pictured with Chris) gave us a ride to the outskirts of Savannah where we prayed together and said a teary good-bye. Then Chris and I started walking...almost 10 miles yesterday! As we were coming into the town, we were planning to stay the night in, we came to The Upper Crust Italian Restaurant.



A man (Stan Parker) was walking in and he asked what we were doing and where we were headed. After chatting a bit, he invited us in for dinner with him and his wife (Ruth). So we learned that they were traveling from their home in Canada to their home in Florida. They were just stopping in for supper and to stay the night in town. After supper, they told us if we didn't mind walking to the hotel, (Their car was packed full.) they would love to put us up for the night. What?...yes, we stayed in a hotel last night and had a hot shower!! When we got in, we talked a little more and then prayed with them! They've had some health issues and their daughter, Janet, is going through a hard time. So be in prayer for them too. Chris called Ross last night and we learned that he and Molly are expecting their 1st child on June 25th! We're sooooo excited! Please be in prayer for them too!!! Today (Wednesday) we went to McDonald's for lunch. We were pretty amazed about how empty it was, but when we were trying to decide where to go, Peter asked us what we were doing and where we were coming from/going to. We shared a little of our story, and he invited us to his church. He also shared his testimony...yet again of deliverance from addiction, drugs, and prison! Wow! What a great God! He gave us a ride to the library, so we'll have to see what happens from here! As always, we love you and would love to hear from you! God bless!


James baptized from (left to right) Eddie, Omar, Darin, Brian, and Ermes!!!




This one is actually from earlier in the day...Ermes and Chris talked a lot about the Lord. The tent in the background was used in Biloxi as one of the worship tents...they are planning some tent revivals with it while it's at Ridgeland!!