Nature Center

Yesterday, we went to the nature center in LBL. Check out the hawk, lots of fun with the animals. Saw a purple martin sanctuary and wished we could pack it up and take it to Africa with us! It was proven that Michael can talk to animals because barely had the words "Hey Coyote, come over here" made it out of his mouth when the 100 yard away coyote walked straight up to him. Did you know that the Red Wolf is actually a very friendly animal? Poor guy is misunderstood thanks to that Little Red Riding Hood.

Swahili word of the day is ndege, which means bird.

(ndege is the same word in Swahili for airplane interestingly enough)

KY Lake

We're visiting Joe Joe's family now, having a good time in Western KY. This morning we sat out by the lake and dreamt/thought/prayed about what's coming. Because I (Michael) don't do so well with things like sympathy and empathy, I'm a little worried about what I'll say and do when faced with extreme suffering and issues like AIDS and severe malaria. We read a story from the book of Job this morning which helped to prepare us a bit... Job was a godly man that was brutally attacked and stripped of everything (family, possessions, health) but his life. When everything went down and he began grieving, his friends came and for 7 days wept and mourned with him (way to go friends). But then they failed as friends and told him that he'd better shape up because he had obviously done something wrong. Job basically told his friends what he needed from them, and this is where we can learn how to talk to people in suffering (if we feel the need to talk at all). He asked them to share hope, kindness, and not to presume guilt (job 6:11-30)... for me, that's a great start, thanks Job!!

Did we mention the lake is beautiful?


Swahili word for the day is ziwa which means lake.
Pretty ziwa!

Cedar Point

Yesterday, we took a trip to Sandusky Ohio to visit Cedar Point. Great fun, rode many rides, wore some sweet goggles to protect our new eyes from the 120 mph wind whipped up by some crazy coasters.

Happy 50th Daddy H!


Swahili word of the day is upesi which means fast.
I wanna go upesi!!

Thank you for your prayers

We can in no way say or do enough to thank each of you that are praying for us as we prepare for the next step of our journey, but we do want to note and thank the churches that have partnered to support us and covenanted to pray for us.

The River, Lexington, KY: To each of you that are a part of the River, you know the special place you hold in our lives and you know that in no way would we be where we are today without you. Your prayers keep us going daily, the memories of the times we’ve shared inspire us when we need it most. Thank you for jumping to meet every need we have. Thank you for investing in us as we have walked with you.

Church at Tatesbrook, Lexington, KY: Each of you at Tatesbrook has had a part in forming us and reshaping our lives and our thinking. Your generosity has blessed us along the way and we are thankful for the people of the body of Christ at Tatesbrook that have taught us, worshipped with us, cried with us, fed us, and now pray for us. You are a wonderful body, keep doing what you do in preparing and sending others out as you have us!

Aurora Baptist Church, Aurora, KY: Thank you for loving us as your own and for taking such a deep and die-hard interest in the work of Christ across the globe. We covet your prayers and know that not a single need will arise that you have not already covered in prayer. We know that with you we will never be forgotten. Thank you for loving us as you do!

Far Hills Community Church, Dayton, OH: Thank you for caring about the world and every aspect of it, thank you for your brokenness in prayer, thank you for proactively seeking to meet our needs before they arise. It is a true gift to consider ourselves a part of your body and to receive the love and support of such a dear group of people. Thank you for believing in us as we believe in you!

Immanuel Baptist Church, Lexington, KY: To Nick, Ashlee, Jeremy, and Karissa, thank you to each of you for the role you have played in getting us to where we are. It is in large part because of the lives that you have led that we seek to serve a world that needs much more than we can give. Each of you has inspired us, our conversations have humbled us, and your commitment to prayer with and for us energizes us, thank you!

First Leg of the Journey

Today was a little bit of a sad day... we left our home. Today was our last day in the home we have been in for our first two years of marriage. It is a little bittersweet. We feel like this is a marker of the life we are leaving behind, but also the beginning of this new great calling. We have made many wonderful memories here and shared many special times with family and friends, but we are overjoyed at the opportunity to share the gospel, to reach the nations, and minister to students halfway around the globe. We just have a little traveling to do first.

Michael's mother came to Lexington to pick us up to take us back to Springboro as we now have no cars. We will be here until July 28th. We are very excited about spending time with family before we leave. We are also very excited about our lasik surgery on Thursday. Please be in prayer for us as we recover from that. From here we will be going down to W. KY to stay with Joe Joe's family for a week. They will be bringing us up to Lexington for a commissioning service on August 5th. (If anyone is interested it will be at the Church @ Tatesbrook on Appian Way at 10:30 am.) Then on August 7th we will be flying to Virginia for our orientation. This will last two months before we leave for Tanzania.

We have a lot to anticipate over the next few weeks, but we have many questions. It's weird how okay with it that we are. It just seems to be getting easier to have many questions but live in faith that we don't have to have the answers. I know this is only a taste of how life is like in Tanzania. We are trying to learn to be flexible and uncomfortable but find peace and solace in the unexpected. Pray for our transition that we will be flexible and teachable!

Swahili word for the day is Duma which means cheetah!