As I type this entry, we’re rolling down the road on our way to a Preacher’s Prayer Fellowship in Georgia. We’ll spend the day and night, then plan to leave out first thing in the morning for Fernandina Beach, FL, where we’ll be starting another missions conference Wednesday evening. We’re looking forward to meeting more new friends and possibly reacquainting with some missionaries we’ve met along the way.

One thing I’m quickly discovering about deputation is that it’s easy to lose track of what day it is and even what state you’re in. Since our home is always with us, I sometimes forget we’re not parked at our church. I’m so thankful for calendars and our wall clock that not only tells the time but also the day and date. That is valuable information these days!

The past couple of weeks have been full of fun and activity. On August 2nd, we were privileged to visit a couple of churches in Florida. The church we were at for the morning service gave us the unique opportunity to take part in a drive-in service. Yes, because of the COVID restrictions, the church was not able to meet indoors because they did not want to limit their capacity to 50%, so instead, they’ve been holding services outside via loudspeakers and an FM transmitter. Let me tell you, there’s nothing like trying to play the piano when your hands are dripping with sweat or trying to sing and not be distracted by the salty flavor of perspiration. I can’t even imagine what it was like for Jason preaching out there because when I was finished with my part of the service, I went to the motorhome and hung out inside, listening to the service on the radio. (Have I told you lately how much I appreciate Libby?)

Seriously, it was a new and interesting experience, but we were blessed by the great turnout. After the service, a lot of people got out of their cars to pick up one of our prayer cards and tell us how happy they were to have us. Additionally, we had a wonderful time of fellowship with the pastor and his wife. So, despite the heat, it was an awesome meeting.

That night, we were with a church whose pastor went to the same school Jason did. What are the odds, right? We had a great time of fellowship with them and enjoyed the opportunity to share our burden for Wales. The church was kind enough to let us park in their parking lot overnight. Before we left the next morning, I took some pictures of these awesome trees. God’s creation amazes me!

On Wednesday night, we were back in South Carolina, this time in the Columbia area, where we had the blessing of reuniting with some old friends of mine. This church hosts a fantastic ladies’ meeting every year, and I’ve been privileged to attend—and even be a vendor— several times. There are also some members there I’ve known since I was a little girl, so it was exciting to see familiar faces. I can’t count how many little children from that church came up to give us hugs when we arrived. It was precious. One little girl even came and held onto me during the invitation time. So, so sweet! It was a remarkable evening, and the pastor invited us to come back again to give a more thorough presentation of our burden, so we’re looking forward to that.

Thursday, we began a missions conference in Lexington, SC. Again, we saw some familiar faces, but we also had the opportunity to meet many new friends. We were overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity of this church. They took such good care of us, allowing us to park in their drive for nearly a week and feeding the missionaries every night. And let me tell you, the food was fantastic!

The meeting was a real blessing and was the introduction of Faith Promise Missions Giving for this church. We were so excited to be a part of it, and the people definitely got ahold of what God can do with faithful giving. We can’t wait to see how God will bless this precious church in the coming months! We also made a couple of new buddies during the week. When we first met these little boys, they weren’t sure what to think of us, but by the end of the week, we were all fast friends. I’m certainly going to miss their sweet smiles.

So, that’s it for now. As I said, we’re heading to Georgia now, then Florida for a conference that lasts through Saturday, then we need to be back in South Carolina for a Sunday meeting. If all goes to plan, this will be the last time we’re in our home area until November, so it will be a bittersweet few days. But, I must say, God has been so good. We’ve had three churches (and one group) take us on for support during this pandemic. Not to mention, God has filled out our schedule, to the point we only have ten empty slots between now and the end of the year. That’s amazing! Yes, God has been so, so good!

Thank you so much for your prayers, comments, letters, emails, and faithful support. You are such an encouragement to us, and knowing we have so many prayers being offered on our behalf gives us the strength to keep going. God bless you! And if you would, please send up prayers for our health. in the next few weeks, we’ll be in some states with the highest number of COVID cases in the country. Please help us pray that God will keep us safe and healthy, give us the rest we need, and guard us against anything that will hinder us from reaching our support goals. Thank you! We know God is able.