On Saturday, November 3rd, we set out—once again—for an eight-hour drive, this time to Green Valley Baptist Church in Middletown, Virginia. Though we were dreading another long journey in the car, the Lord blessed our travels with beautiful mountain views and bright fall foliage. I don’t remember ever enjoying a car ride as much as we did that day, and we arrived at our hotel room (purchased by Green Valley Baptist Church) in good spirits.

The Meetings

Though this was the first official missions conference for the church, it was one of the best we’ve attended. There was such a sweet, sweet spirit during each service. There were only two missionary families present, which allowed each family a couple of opportunities to present their ministry and each of the men two chances to preach. Jason spoke and preached in the Sunday afternoon service as well as the Tuesday evening service. Every moment of each service was special, and for the first time since beginning the deputation journey, we felt like we were in our home church. That’s not to say we haven’t enjoyed our time in other churches; it’s just that this one felt the most like home to us.

The People

Before and after each service and during a meal on the grounds, we had the chance to fellowship with the members of the church. We were amazed at how many showed a genuine interest in our mission work and even more amazed by how many people gave us the “green handshake.” One of the members even presented me with a “green flower,” which he described as being very beneficial. Very beneficial indeed! But even more precious to us were the many smiles and hugs we received. God’s love poured out from these members, and it was joyous!

The “Down Time”

There were no meetings scheduled during the day on Monday and Tuesday, so the pastor invited us to spend time with his family. On Monday, he treated us to breakfast at Denny’s. We enjoyed getting to know a little more about him and his daughter, Lindsay, who was able to join us for breakfast. That afternoon, we—along with the other missionary family—met up at the pastor’s house for some time of fun and fellowship. Some of the girls (myself included) enjoyed spending time with the mini horses while the boys (and a few of the girls) rode four-wheelers. It was a cold, rainy day, but we had a blast! We ended the fun with a dinner of grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. Then, it was off to service.

On Tuesday, we had the morning free, so we stayed in our hotel room and caught up on a few things. After that, we joined the Kirchoff family (the pastor’s family) and the other missionary family for another day of fun, beginning with duck pin bowling and ending with pizza at the Kirchoff house. I can’t remember the last time we laughed so hard or had so much fun. It was such a blessing to have the time among kindred spirits.

The Next Stop

After the service Tuesday evening, we said our goodbyes and headed off toward our next stop, Delmar, DE. I have family there, so we had a nice place to stay for the night. The three-hour drive was relatively pleasant, and it was an awesome experience to witness Washington D.C. in the late hours of election day. After arriving at my aunt and uncle’s home, we crashed for a few hours of much-needed rest.

We spent Wednesday with my family, catching up on the happenings in our lives. It was relaxing and enjoyable and beneficial after our many days of nearly constant motion. I felt so blessed to have the time with family I rarely get to see anymore.

On Wednesday evening, we were privileged to attend Faith Baptist Church in Delmar, MD. Faith was the church my grandmother attended before she passed away a few years back. Her pastor—who has remained a dear friend of ours—gave Jason the opportunity to preach and present our burden for Wales. I admit, it felt a bit odd to be at that church without my grandmother there, but at the same time, I was exhilarated to see how well the church was doing and how it was growing. It was a wonderful service, full of friendly faces and sweet fellowship. It was also such a joy to have a chance to speak with Pastor Johnson again and catch up on old times and new.

At the close of our fellowship time, we packed up our display, loaded up in the car and headed off for the ten-hour ride home. Jason and I took turns driving and were able to drive through the night, arriving home around 8:00 Thursday morning. Our intentions were to get a few hours of sleep and then run a couple of errands, but we found we couldn’t sleep during the day, so we decided to just take it easy after getting done the few things that had to be done. By Thursday night, we were ready to drop!

On Friday, Jason was back at work, and I—well, I was feeling pretty worthless. I admit, it took me the whole day to catch up on laundry and sleep. Then, it was on to the weekend and more meetings!