The border crossing to Canada went very smoothly. I had worked to get all the paperwork done I thought we needed to import our books into Canada. The paperwork was approved, and without an inspection of our trailer, they sent us on our way!

This weekend’s conference was such a blessing. It’s always a job to set up for our music, but Joseph, John, and Jesse had worked diligently Friday afternoon. The boys tried a new technique for setting up the sound for suppressing feedback. We felt the sound quality was the best we’ve had yet.

Saturday’s first sessions involved one for the moms, another for the dads, another for the young ladies, and another for the young men. Christopher and I are excited to be able to share with young people in each city. The group Saturday morning seemed quite attentive. One thing I enjoy at each conference is seeing the mommies with their babies. Truly children are a gift from the Lord!

We talked to several families who had driven up to five hours to come to the conference. We are so grateful to each of you who took your weekend to come to the conference. We pray the Lord blesses your family.

We woke up early yesterday morning to get on the road. Coming back into the US was very smooth. We made it 830 miles to our hotel in Indianapolis!

Thank you to everyone for your prayers. Truly, we have felt them. This past week, we had two close encounters with almost being hit by a semi-truck. In one case, the driver was talking on a cell phone, and the only place for us to have gone was a cement wall. We are grateful for the Lord’s protection.

On a side note, we did notice some differences in being in Canada versus the United States. One that was rather trivial, but stood out, was the black squirrels! YES! They are actually black. After our raising of Chippy and Chester, we have a special interest in squirrels. It was hard to imagine a squirrel could be black, and although they were cute, Chester is cuter .

Five stops down, twelve to go!

Only for Jesus,
Sarah

Little boy in with his parents at one of our conferences!

A group of some of us girls after the Canada Conference.

Breathtaking scenery as we crossed a bridge over Thousand Islands.

The guys loaded up all the books we left at someone’s house in New York, since we only brought a number of books we thought we’d need in Canada.

(This is a summary of Watertown, New York, which was last Thursday. Sarah will be posting on Canada soon.) 

Our MapQuest directions to the church from our hotel told us to go north on a road that runs east and west. We pulled into a parking lot, saw an employee walking out to the mailboxes, and asked her directions. She paused a long time, and finally said, “I’m heading that way in a couple of minutes, if you’d like to follow me.” After she led us through a maze of construction and roads, we realized why she paused trying to figure out how to tell us to get there. God provided just what we needed to help us just when we needed it.

Although Watertown, New York, is a relatively small town compared to some cities in which we speak, the coordinator did a great job of publicity, because we had a very good-sized group. We were also privileged to meet some friends whom we have known long-distance for several years in addition to new friends as well.

Trusting in Jesus,
Teri

Our conferences in Toledo, Ohio and Erie, PA went very well. The ladies at the Erie conference had prepared a dinner for us, which was quite enjoyable after quite a few meals of sandwiches in the van.

We are excited as we see the way the Lord is working. Many tell us that what we are sharing encourages them in the direction the Lord has been taking their family. Others say that what we say challenges them and given them new hope for their families.

Wednesday we were able to take care of a week’s worth of laundry, iron lots of boys’ white shirts, run some errands, catch up on e-mail, and take a family walk on the beach at Presque State Park. The children have also been working hard to complete as much school work on the road as they can so that they will be more available to help with the house.

We are currently in Canada; we’ll comment on that later!

Trusting Jesus,

Teri

Thank you so much for your prayers. This weekend’s conference was such a blessing. We are grateful to all the families who took the time to come. The conference coordinator put much time into the conference and she even blessed us with meals. Thank you . We pray for lasting fruit in the lives of those who attended.

Today we drove to Toledo, Ohio. After devotions and dinner, Dad agreed to “make memories” by driving to the coastline of Lake Erie. We went to a state park and walked out to the water. Christopher decided to go out on some rocks, and he quickly came back from the brush, talking about all these bugs. I thought I’d be brave and go out on the rocks, and as I hurried through the brush, I was very surprised by swarms of some sort of insect. Can you believe they were HUGE mosquitos??? Maybe these mosquitos aren’t biters, as only one person received a bite. We had a nice quiet evening enjoying God’s Creation.

We look forward to the evening conference in Toledo tomorrow night!

Blessings,
Sarah

Out on the rocks after going through the mosquito “territory”! (Joseph and Dad were taking pictures.)

Dad and Mom walking.

A mosquito on the other side of the van window!