Let's Try This Again!

Where, oh, where do I begin? The past month has been jam-packed with heartbreak and loss, blessings and bounty, love and prayers, and lots of activity. For those of you who are not yet aware, in the middle of February, we were involved in an accident in Illinois after getting caught up in the blizzard that swept through much of the midwest region. Our motorhome, Libby, was totaled. After a few days of dealing with the insurance company, we packed up what we could, loaded it into a U-haul trailer, and made our way to our next meeting (a missions conference in Alabama) via our tow car, which fortunately suffered only cosmetic damage in the crash. The bad news, of course, is that we lost our home and were very out of sorts during the entire conference. The good news is neither of us was injured in the crash, and the outpouring of love and offerings from family, friends, and some people we didn’t even know was unbelievable. It was amazing to watch God work through His children to be an encouragement to us during a time we truly needed it.

The missions conference in Alabama was such a blessing. Despite our frazzled state of mind and emotion, we enjoyed every minute of our time with Sweet Springs Baptist Church. They treated us like royalty and took care of every need we had. It was a joy to fellowship and worship with the church members and also the other missionaries present. The preaching was wonderful. The spirit was precious. And the entire event was unforgettable. We left there feeling refreshed and renewed.

After that meeting, we stopped briefly by our hometown in Easley, SC to drop off the majority of our belongings at Jason’s parents’ home, return the U-haul trailer we had rented, and get some much-needed love from our family. I even got a chocolate cake out of the deal! After that short stop, we loaded up a few suitcases, hopped into our tired Xterra, and headed out for Tampa, FL.

On Sunday, February 28th, we were blessed to have two meetings in the Tampa area. Both meetings were a real blessing as we had the opportunity to share our burden for Wales and Jason had the opportunity to preach. As always, we enjoyed the fellowship with God’s people.

On Monday, we made our way to Ocala, FL, making a few stops along the way. We had seen advertisements for some motorhomes in route and had made arrangements to stop and look at them. Our first stop was promising, as it was a dealer with a few options to look at. Only one of the coaches was the right fit, and we were tempted by it, but we both felt unsettled. There was no peace, so we told the rep we would pray about it and get back with him.

After leaving there, we continued our path toward Ocala, planning to stop about an hour out to look at another promising lead. This time, when we stepped into the motorhome, we both felt a sense of peace. While the RV was older and a bit smaller than our previous one, it seemed to have everything we needed. The owner had taken good care of it and had even done some remodeling to make it the right fit for a family of two. (Coincidence? I think not.). The coach was missing a few bells and whistles (like a tankless hot water heater and a washer/dryer), but with the asking price, we knew we could make the modifications ourselves to make things work best for our needs. After telling the owner we were interested, we made arrangements to take possession of it the following day. With that settled, we made our way to Ocala where the church had made arrangements for us to stay with a wonderful family.

Monday evening was a joy as we had dinner with the Ross family and talked long into the evening. That night, though thoroughly exhausted, we both found it difficult to sleep as our thoughts were focused on how God had blessed us with another wonderful motorhome. But finally, sleep won out.

On Tuesday, just as planned, we purchased our new “home.” The process was straightforward, and when all the paperwork was done, the previous owner offered to take us out to lunch. We were amazed by this generous offer and gladly took him up on it. This gave us more time to witness to him. He was very receptive to all we told him, and before parting ways, we gave him a couple of tracts and one of my books. We’re praying God will use them to bring this dear man to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We left there and returned to Ocala, where another precious church family hosted us and allowed us to park in their yard for the remainder of the week.

Wednesday through Sunday was a blur of activity. We were there in Ocala for a missions conference, and the church kept us hopping. It was a blast! We taught classes (which is always a highlight for me), spoke at various meetings to all different age groups, attended services, had meals with church staff and other missionaries, and even went on a shopping spree paid for by the church. When we weren’t in a meeting of some sort, we were trying to organize our new motorhome as much as possible.

The church in Ocala, like so many others, loved on us so much we didn’t know what to say. Not only were they friendly, but they showed such interest in us and our mission field. It was such a blessing to have so many people lining up to speak with us and asking us questions about Wales. They showered us with love and prayers and offerings. Once again, God gave us the encouragement we needed—both with a new home and with another great church with a heart for missions.

When we left Ocala, we went back to Tampa for another meeting on Wednesday night. Once again, we had a wonderful time. The church was so good to us and showed a real love for missions and missionaries. We even enjoyed dinner with the pastor and his wife after the service.

A couple of days later, we had the opportunity to stop by and see Jason’s great aunt and uncle, who live in Lake Placid, FL. We had a great time catching up with them and were able to stay overnight in their church parking lot. We even had another first in our deputation journey in that we were driven to dinner by a 98-year-old man. (If I said I wasn’t nervous, I’d be lying, but as it turned out, he was an excellent driver.)

After leaving Lake Placid, we drove down to Jason’s hometown, Belle Glade, and his first church, Lakeside Baptist. The church had arranged for us to park at the local marina, so we enjoyed nice views across Lake Okeechobee and lovely evening breezes.

On Sunday morning, we were in a meeting in Homestead, FL with a friend of Jason’s from Lakeside. We had a joyous time worshiping with them. Not only was Jason given the opportunity to preach and present, but I was also asked to sing and play the piano. It was a wonderful occasion of reuniting with old friends and making new ones.

Sunday evening, we were at Lakeside in Pahokee, FL. This was a sweet time of reunion, and the people were very interested in our mission field of Wales. We had a blessed time and enjoyed a wonderful spell of catching up at dinner after the service.

Today, we’re heading toward SC to spend a few days seeing family and packing up the rest of our belonging into our new home. It will be nice to have all of our things again and to finally be able to put everything in its place. It will also be a blessing to have a few days to see family and maybe even visit our home church.

As you can see, we’ve been going non-stop for the past several weeks, and there’s a lot of meetings on the schedule coming up. We’re so very grateful for all God’s blessings and how He has worked and is working in our lives. We’re also grateful for all of you and your many prayers, emails, cards, and offerings. We are truly overwhelmed by your kindness and generosity and don’t know how to thank you enough. We love you all and pray God will bless you according to your goodness toward us!

———————— IMPORTANT UPDATE—————————

Before I could actually send out this post, our new motorhome experienced some issues. Just an hour and a half from our home base, the compressor seized up and caused the serpentine belt to snap. We’re currently at a repair shop, waiting to see what can be done and how soon it can be accomplished. At times like this, I think either we’re so far outside of God’s will that He’s throwing everything at us to get us back on track or we’re so in tune with His will that the enemy is throwing everything he can at us to make us give up. I admit, it’s tempting to quit, but we’ve come too far to turn back now. God wants us in Wales. I believe that! We’re needed in Wales. I believe that too. So, by God’s grace, we’ll keep on keeping on. Thanks again for your prayers!