06.15.11
Hello! Wow, if you keep up with my blog you know that I'm way behind. I skipped over the entire month of June and half of July! I apologize, I'm just not that great at this! lol I hope you had a wonderful 4th of July weekend! We had a fun weekend! We had two interesting things happen to us on the bus on our way to Appomattox VA that weekend of the 4th. As we were traveling on Saturday evening our wonderful GPS had us turn off on a side road that lead to an underpass that wasn't quite tall enough for the bus to fit under! So here we are, it's getting dark and Mike is outside of the bus with a huge flashlight pointing it at the top of the bus cause we can't remember how tall the bus is! As we inch up to the underpass and got as close as we could, we realized that we were not going to fit through! We had to back the bus up and find a wide enough spot to turn around. Gotta love the GPS!!! Once we got back on course again we came to a sobriety check point which was our first time with the bus! I was afraid dad wasn't going to pass! lol Just kidding! We survived but what a night that was!
This past Monday of the 11th we sang at CFC youth camp in Selbyville WV! We had a great time and it was great to see so many young people worshiping God! Dad even broke out the electric guitar on a couple songs which was a lot of fun! He hasn't played the electric guitar out since he played in a rock n' roll band back years ago before he got saved! He did a great job! It's always fun when you get to crank up the music and sing with lights and all!! Makes me feel like I'm a teen again! lol We are looking forward to this weekend! We will be traveling to Stafford and Spotsylvania Virginia! Hope to see you there! Check out our tour page for more information!
Have a great weekend!
05.27.11
Hello! Can you believe we are going in to the last weekend in May? This month has gone by so fast! We've been busy this month not only with singing but with birthdays, Mothers Day, my close friends wedding, and Mike and I have been remodeling our kitchen,well mostly Mike! haha Plus it's that time of year to start working in the yard, but the weather hasn't been very cooperative!
We had the opportunity to sing at Senior Sermon at Buckhannon Upshur High this past Wednesday and it was a wonderful time! We heard a great message and there were about 6 to 8 hands that went up for salvation! That's the best graduation gift one could ever receive!
I want to correct a mistake I made in my last blog! I had stated that our current single "God Will Deliver Me" hit #69 for the month of May however it hit #69 for the month of June! I apologize for any confusion. Please continue to call and request it!
Hope you have a Happy Memorial Day weekend! We are going to be in Stafford VA and Henderson NC over the weekend! Looking forward to some great services! Thank you to the men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice fighting for our freedom! They will never be forgotten! Let's continue to pray for those who are currently still serving! Also remember the victims of the many tornadoes that have hit recently in your prayers!
Have a great weekend!
05.02.11
Hello! Welcome to our new website! We are excited for the new design and hope that you will find it very enjoyable and easy to navigate! Thanks to Jeremiah at 924design for being so great to work with! Also, I hope you and your family had a Blessed Easter! We had a great Easter and can you believe that I'm still getting an Easter basket! Kind of crazy I know, but I never want to grow old! haha
We were in some great services in April and looking forward to seeing what God has in store for the month of May. By the way, I want to say a special thanks to you who have been requesting our current single "God Will Deliver Me". It hit #69 on the Top 80 Singing News Chart for the month of May! Continue to call and request it!
Momma Trish is having a birthday May 5th! I'm not allowed to tell you how old she's gonna be because I will get in big trouble! I'm trying to decide on what to get her! Then I have to turn right around and try to figure out something for Mothers Day! Yikes!
Let's not forget to keep all the victims in our prayers that were affected by the tornadoes and storms last week. I know we have been having crazy weather around here, even a couple tornado warnings which never happen in our area! Just another sign of the times that we are living in. That's why it's so important to be in right relationship with Jesus Christ! So thankful that He Is Mighty To Save and our Hope is in the Lord!
Have A Great Week!
03.31.11
Hello! Thought
it was probably time to post a blog! I apologize for dragging my
feet here lately! Sometimes it get's so busy around here that I
fail to stay on top of things! Could it be I'm getting impatient on
warm weather to get here and it's starting to affect my brain?? I
guess it's possible! lol
Anyways, things have been going good. Last week we were in some great services! It's awesome when you've been praying for answers and direction and then God lays it all out right in front of you! He is awesome. We just have to learn that it's in His time and not ours, which is easier said than done! I've learned to trust him through it all!
This weekend we
will be in Kentucky! We are looking forward to seeing what God has
in store! We hope to see you there if you live near by! Also be
listening for our current radio single,"God Will Deliver Me" and
call your local radio stations and request it! Have a Great
Weekend!
02.11.11
Bogota, Columbia: Day 3
First, I apologize for being late on this post but I was having trouble with the internet service there at our hotel. Then yesterday we were traveling back home. So our last day in Colombia was incredible. We visited a third project at a local church. This project had been established for a while and it was great! We were welcomed once again like we were kings and queens. It reminded me of a huge Fiesta! We were escorted again and there was confetti and bubbles coming from every direction. They had each of our names hanging on the wall, and we were greeted with flowers!
The worship team
did a fantastic job and so did the dancers. Once again we had our
share of dancing too! I felt like I had just ran 2 miles but a fun
2 miles! We toured the project and visited their life skill
classes. These are skills that they can apply to their everyday
life and some children are benefiting from these skills financially
even now! Then we played a 20 minute soccer game. We were split up
in teams and our team was the best and I can say that cause we WON!
Lol
After that we had
lunch with the staff and pastors and then we had the opportunity to
purchase some of the items that these children make in their life
skill classes. I bought jewelry! Late afternoon we went on another
home visit but this time it was a college student's home. She had
gone through the Child Sponsorship Program with Compassion and had
been accepted into the Leadership Development Program which allows
children to go to college. It was a great experience!
When we left we
had to move quickly back to the bus because there were signs of
possible danger. On the way back we visited downtown Bogota
Colombia and went to a market to do some shopping. Bogota is huge,
people everywhere!!! I don't think I would prefer to live there.
That evening we had dinner with four LDP students. They each gave
their personal testimonies of their childhood and where God has
brought them from, through the help of Compassion International.
They were amazing and their testimonies were so touching. These
students are very intelligent and I believe that God has amazing
plans for their lives. I don't think there was a dry eye in that
conference room.
So in conclusion,
our time in Bogota Colombia was an amazing experience! I would do
it again in a heartbeat! Praise God for our translators that we had
during our trip! They were fantastic! We learned so much of what
Compassion International is all about and we want to become a part
of what they are doing. Compassion is a very trustworthy
organzation and everything is accounted for down to even the
smallest detail. To see how Compassion is so organized and operated
is simply awesome. We are so thankful that we were given this
opportunity and looking forward to our work with
Compassion!
02.09.11
Bogota,
Colombia: Day 2
Hello again! Well today was another great experience for Dad and me. Once again we visited another children's project in a local church. When we arrived we received a grand welcome by the children. We were escorted by a child to our seats and then they sang songs of worship and danced. Unexpectedly, the children came and pulled us up front to dance with them. All I can say is you should've been there to see my dad and I. It was a must see, I'm hoping the photographer captured some pictures that I can share eventually.
We had a guided
tour of the facility and how each area of the project was run and
operated. What an awesome job the staff and volunteers do with
these children! They have so little to work with but yet accomplish
so much! It's amazing. The children gave each of us gifts that they
had made. I was very humbled!
In the afternoon
we visited two children's homes. This was my WOW moment. Visiting
the projects was definitely an eye opener but when I walked in
those homes and seen the poverty it really struck me. These houses
were not what we call a structure back home. It was so sad to see
huge holes in the roof that when it rains everything gets soaked,
concrete uneven floors, foundations giving away and no heat. But
yet they were so thankful that we were there to visit them and they
were unashamed to show us their home. I thought wow! What a lesson
that I can take with me. Even though they are in poverty, I believe
that they may be spiritually richer than us in the United State.
They are rich in God's love and the smiles on their faces said it
all. I heard no complaining or asking anything of us. They were
just happy that we were there.
The one home we
visited was the home of a little frail grandmother who was 68 that
took care of her 5 grandchildren by herself. She was a huge
blessing. She wanted to pray for us and let me tell you she was a
prayer warrior. When she prayed you could just feel the presence of
God! It was an awesome experience. I just cried and cried. Here I'm
thinking we were there to pray and bless her and then she, who has
nothing in our eyes, wanted to pray for us. Definitely a WOW
moment!
We experienced so much more
but honestly I'm emotionally drained. I'm still trying to process
everything that I've seen and taken part of. Hope you find this
blog to be a blessing to you!
02.08.11
Greetings from Bogota, Colombia! So as you probably know, Dad and I are here in Bogota for a few days on a trip with Compassion International. I said that I would try to post everyday so here is an overview of day one:
This morning we visited a project that is located in a church about
an hour out of the city of Bogota. This child development center
serves 229 children. When we arrived the children had a special
welcome for us. They sang songs, put on a skit and danced to a
couple of songs. The children were ages 5 to 17 years old. They
were so loving and approachable. We received lots of hugs and
smiles!!!
Then our group sat in on the 12yr to 17yr class. We had the
opportunity to interact, of course with the help of a translator,
with the kids. We took part in skits, games and the actual lesson.
It was a great experience to work with the teens. We then served
lunch to the children and we were lucky enough to where these
awesome chef hats!!!! I have pictures of dad that I'll post later!
(It's a must see!!lol)
Afterwards we enjoyed lunch together with the pastor and his wife
of the church. We rode the bus way up on the hillside and seen the
poverty of the community. Wow, what an eye opener. This area is
considered very dangerous. As a matter of fact, they let us get off
the bus and take pictures for only a minute because they were
concerned for our safety.
Late afternoon we visited the Compassion Colombia office and
learned more of the operations of Compassion and what each employee
is assigned to do. This evening we enjoyed dinner at a well known
restaurant here in Bogota called Crepes & Waffles. It was a
cool place to eat and great ice cream!
In conclusion of day one, I have a lot of feelings and emotions
going on right now. I kind of feel a little overwhelmed. It's a lot
to take in and experience. Sometimes it's easy to get caught up
in our
own little world and forget that there are children out there who
are dying because of poverty or
who are headed down the wrong road because of lack of education
because of theirpoverty. I believe that this is going to be a life
changing experience for us, it already has! Compassion is doing a
great
work here in Colombia. More to come tomorrow.
