It was a joy to share with those there through music and testimony. Since we had just been in April, I think some of them remembered us, and we had a good group of about 30 residents, plus some of the staff came too. Joseph, John, Anna, Jesse, and Mary shared a number of Christmas songs, beautifully arranged, interspersed with their testimonies. In addition, it was a great practice run for Saturday evening’s event. A post will be coming soon on that!

Being at care homes frequently reminds me of the frailty of life. Some may live long and experience the affects of aging, but some may live only a short time. As we look forward to this Christmas season, are you prepared to step into eternity? It is not a question to wait to settle. For if you wait until eternity to deal with your sin, it is too late.

“And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Hebrews 9:27-28).

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed” (Romans 10:9-11).

Love,
Sarah

Jesse and Mary

About 4 p.m., Abby came over to help Aunt Anna make the dessert. Abby is an enthusiastic Moody supporter. Her Daddy reads them aloud to her, after Bible time, since she can’t read yet, and it is a daily, looked-forward-to event for Abby. They’re reading Winter (book #3) at the moment.

Our dinner menu consisted of chicken (Dad barbecued it), broccoli in cheese sauce, seasoned roasted potatoes, home-made garlic bread, and then for dessert: cookie dough pizza, a specialty from our friends, the D. family in Idaho.

When dinner dishes were completed, we gathered in the living room for Bible time, following which was a prayer time. Praying gave us sweet moments of lifting up this book and asking that the Lord would use it in the lives of many.

Then, it was time for hide n’ seek. After all, the Moodys play it. For those who haven’t read the books, the hide and seek is done in the dark to make it a bit more challenging. I had no idea how creative my family was on finding good hiding spots. For example, they don’t hide BESIDE the dresser. No, they pull it out and go behind it. Nathan, Abby, and John were never found–pretty amazing! Abby did a great job of not giggling even when the “looker” was in the room where she was.

I am deeply indebted and grateful to my family for all they have invested in each book. They spend countless hours listening to me read the outline and then the book itself, and several help with editing, before it goes to the professional proofreader. They encourage me when I feel it’s too much, or I can’t finish it out.

The mailman delivered a letter yesterday (among other pieces of mail): with three sweet drawings from two Moody book readers. Thank you, Hannah and Sarah!

Love,
Sarah

Uncle John joined the baking duo for a few minutes.

Pushing out the dough.

Abby was a wonderful helper.

The group! (Christopher and Anna Marie weren't able to join us.)

The finished cookie dough pizza! We'll not be sharing the recipe now. It might go in a future Moody book.

Bethany carried a little, word-free book with pictures of puppies around to different members of the family. She would toddle over to them, with book in hand, and want them to "read" it to her.

Mary and Bethany

Bethany and I

Jesse and Bethany.

Cute drawings from two readers.

“… Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:14).

Congratulations, Anna, for a job well done. We love you!

Dessert was a special ice cream cake.

Anna and her A+ Teacher

“Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also” (2 Corinthians 8:7-8).

“As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.” —Psalms 42:1

May this truly be our desire: to have hearts
that long after the Lord Jesus.

Dinner was provided by the coordinator and two other ladies. The tables were decorated in an autumn theme. Baked ziti, salad, bread, and dessert—all were delicious.

We were also given several gifts: the coordinator’s family gave individual gift bags to each of us, including Nathan and Christopher’s family. The items included were so sweet! Another family gave us a “Columbia dinner in a box” (more on that later). The Australian family gifted us with two items from their country, and another family gave us an attractive jar of layered cookie ingredients. A young lady gave Anna, Mary, and I tatted bookmarks–so pretty. You all were very thoughtful.

Once again, it was the perfect size crowd for the facility the Lord gave us. This time, there were two families who drove more the the customary longest distance for each conference. We had a family from Australia and another from California, although they were both on trips, so they didn’t come directly from those places. To make it more interesting, the Australian family told the Californian family about the conference when they happened to meet in Williamsburg. The CA family had not been aware of our ministry before that. Friday night, there were three RVs in the lot: ours and the Australia and California families’.

The young ladies were an attentive group, and several of them gathered around Anna to talk to her after the first session. It was really sweet! Parents seemed especially engaged during the courtship session. I love hearing Dad talk–he shares in such a captivating and practical way.

A number of families had attended at least one other conference. A special joy for Mom was to meet one of her test moms for Sweet Journey.

We are grateful for each one of our coordinators who set up their conference and invested in it with their time. I think of Philippians 4:17. “Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.” The labor of love they have given bears eternal fruit in the lives of those who come.

Love,
Sarah

Set up.

Joseph and John

The contents of my bag.

Jesse and Mom Saturday morning. I love going into a church early, when all is quiet, and putting the finishing touches on set up. One thing I do is hang signs to direct people for where to go.

Eden and Gracie--sweet sisters!

Another set of sweet sisters! Thank y'all for letting me take your picture. We enjoyed seeing you again!

The Australian Family

The Californian Family

We had great pack out help! Thank you to all the young people who lent their aid.

Praying before we left the area.

“And it may be that I will abide, yea, and winter with you, that ye may bring me on my journey whithersoever I go” (1 Corinthians 16:6).

More later!

Love,
Sarah

“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called” (Ephesians 4:1).

After we passed St. Louis, we saw a reader board that said there was an accident on the interstate we would soon be on, and the left lane was closed, west bound.

As traffic slowed to a crawl, we observed a helicopter, and we guessed it was Lifeflight. A little later, an ambulance went by with lights and sirens. We prayed for those affected by the accident. It looked to be a serious one.

We will be home about 8 p.m. tonight, unless we hit another slow down. Thank you for praying!

Love,
Sarah

We’re outside of Nashville at the moment.

Love,
Sarah

“The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” (Psalms 19:1).

Our hearts are full of gratefulness to the Lord for all He has done these past four weeks. It has been a journey, but the fruit in the lives of families has been worth it.

We will likely be home, Lord willing, late Sunday evening.

Thank you all for praying for us. Truly, we have needed each of your prayers and have felt them too!

I’ll leave you with a few pictures from the weekend, but we’ll do a full report later.

Love,
Sarah

Dinner Friday evening.

We parked at a family’s house, who had invited us to stay with them for a few days. It’s been a blessing to fellowship. The L. family has attended many conferences throughout the last few years, and it is a joy to see them each time. In addition, we have been able to catch up on things we’ve needed to do.

We are looking forward to our final conference for this trip: Savannah!

Blessings,
Sarah

Helping in the kitchen.

Bible time

Some of us exercised with their family.

We've had delicious meals and fellowship.

Joseph gave guitar lesson to several of the children.

Another family joined us last night for Bible time and s'mores.

Young and "old" alike enjoy s'mores.