Hello from Tucuman!
I arrived last Wednesday, almost 24 hours after leaving Chicago. Thankfully the three flights went smoothly. :-) It seems very natural to be here with friends that we've known for so many years. This past Friday night our friends Jesus Fernandez and Mercedes Vaca were married. It was so special to be with their families and friends from church. On Saturday Victoria Cilimba and Hernan (his last name is a long Polish name that I don't remember right now :-)) were married in an outdoor noon wedding. Once again it was very special to be with families and friends that we've known for so many years. I wish I could post pictures but I don't have the cord for camera with me or my laptop either to download the pictures..... Maybe I can download some pictures and send them from someone else's computer.
Last night I went to the Zona Oeste church that we helped start 20 years ago. What a blessing it was to see the "younger" generation, who were in the youth group when we first arrived in Tucuman, now leading the various ministries in the church. They miss us and wish we'd return.
I spoke for a few minutes at the end of the service and Walter, the new pastor, read a letter of greeting that Dick wrote to the church. When Walter was reading the letter, I thought of the Apostle Paul's greetings to the New Testament churches. I shared some of what we are doing right now and some of the ministry options that we are praying about. I also said that leaving Tucuman is like uprooting a tree. It's a great change and we miss everyone so much. I asked Walter to read Ephesians 1:11 where Paul writes about God working everything together in conformity with His will. It is so reassuring to know that God is in control and works everything together for His greater purpose!
In the next few days I'll be visiting friends in their homes, at a ladies' tea at church and a citywide ladies' meeting at one of the churches in Tucuman. I'll also be going through our things we have stored to see what I can take back with me on this trip.
We appreciate your prayers for me and our family during my time here. I'll keep you posted on how the rest of my trip goes. Thanks so much for your encouragement and support during this time. Until later....
Monday, September 21, 2009
Saturday, September 12, 2009
September-Preparing to travel to Argentina for two weeks
Next Tuesday, September 15th, I'll be traveling to Tucuman for two weeks. I'm looking forward to attending two weddings, seeing friends and colleagues. Even though I'm going for happy events I'm praying for God's strength because I think it will be difficult to go through some of our things that we've stored at the house we lived in for the 20 years we lived in Tucuman. If you are reading this before I travel I appreciate your prayers. At this point I have not changed the name of this blog because I still plan to write about life and ministry in Argentina up through the end of our home assignment in April 2010. When I return I'll be posting more about my trip and time in Argentina, about our dear friends who we've lived and worked with for so many years. To God be the glory, great things He has done.
Next Tuesday, September 15th, I'll be traveling to Tucuman for two weeks. I'm looking forward to attending two weddings, seeing friends and colleagues. Even though I'm going for happy events I'm praying for God's strength because I think it will be difficult to go through some of our things that we've stored at the house we lived in for the 20 years we lived in Tucuman. If you are reading this before I travel I appreciate your prayers. At this point I have not changed the name of this blog because I still plan to write about life and ministry in Argentina up through the end of our home assignment in April 2010. When I return I'll be posting more about my trip and time in Argentina, about our dear friends who we've lived and worked with for so many years. To God be the glory, great things He has done.
Monday, September 07, 2009
July and August happenings- including trips to Michigan and Colorado :-)
As we celebrate Labor Day today I'm looking back on how God has been faithful during the last few months since I posted on this blog. In July we enjoyed celebrating the 4th on the 3rd with friends. It was fun to see Independence Day fireworks for the first time since 2005. :-)
It was great to celebrate Ben's 22nd birthday on July 8. The last time we were together for his birthday was about 4 years ago.
Mariasol or Sol for short, Andrea's friend from Argentina, arrived at the end of July and stayed with us for three weeks. She and Andrea had fun seeing the sights in Chicago and going with us to Michigan. One of our favorite things to do while we are in Michigan is blueberry picking. We all had fun eating and picking blueberries to take back to Chicago. Stopping by Lake Michigan on our way back to Chicago was a special treat. I always enjoy walking on the beach, watching and listening to the waves crash on shore. :-)
On August 12th we celebrated Andrea's 17th birthday. :-) It was fun to share a meal and birthday cake with Sara Greenman Hopson and family.
We were so happy that my brother Jeremy, my nieces and nephew Alyssa, Micah and Logan drove from South Carolina to Chicago to spend a weekend with us. :-) We visited the Shedd Aquarium, the planetarium, the Bean and Buckingham Fountain. It's so fun to be with family!
The last big event of the month of August was our trip to Colorado. I'll write about what we did there in a seperate post. It was a great trip full of encouraging meetings, outings and a week long Sharpening Your Interpersonal Skills workshop facilitator's training for Dick.
I'll post pictures of the different happenings. Enjoy!
As we celebrate Labor Day today I'm looking back on how God has been faithful during the last few months since I posted on this blog. In July we enjoyed celebrating the 4th on the 3rd with friends. It was fun to see Independence Day fireworks for the first time since 2005. :-)
It was great to celebrate Ben's 22nd birthday on July 8. The last time we were together for his birthday was about 4 years ago.
Mariasol or Sol for short, Andrea's friend from Argentina, arrived at the end of July and stayed with us for three weeks. She and Andrea had fun seeing the sights in Chicago and going with us to Michigan. One of our favorite things to do while we are in Michigan is blueberry picking. We all had fun eating and picking blueberries to take back to Chicago. Stopping by Lake Michigan on our way back to Chicago was a special treat. I always enjoy walking on the beach, watching and listening to the waves crash on shore. :-)
On August 12th we celebrated Andrea's 17th birthday. :-) It was fun to share a meal and birthday cake with Sara Greenman Hopson and family.
We were so happy that my brother Jeremy, my nieces and nephew Alyssa, Micah and Logan drove from South Carolina to Chicago to spend a weekend with us. :-) We visited the Shedd Aquarium, the planetarium, the Bean and Buckingham Fountain. It's so fun to be with family!
The last big event of the month of August was our trip to Colorado. I'll write about what we did there in a seperate post. It was a great trip full of encouraging meetings, outings and a week long Sharpening Your Interpersonal Skills workshop facilitator's training for Dick.
I'll post pictures of the different happenings. Enjoy!