Knock Us Over with a Feather!

God continues to give us wonderful surprise gifts of grace. Today we were walking home from taking a baby gift to a Korean family whom we are close to, and a car stopped right beside us. Puzzled as to what was going on, we stopped too, and a young woman jumped out of the front passenger seat and came rushing over to us. Lo and behold it was Julie Lane, a long-lost friend of ours from 25 years ago. Jeff and Julie were the pastoral family at the Mountville UMC when Nancy and I were at Stripling Chapel UMC, all back in the early 80s. Jeff and I were in a Teaching Parish group together, and our families had several occasions to share in joyous times. Julie is in Wilmore visiting with a friend whose husband has been ill. What makes this even more amazing is that she and Jeff have been following our blog and keeping up with us, and we didn't even know it! So Jeff, if you're out there and reading this, we hope you've kept your good looks as well as Julie has kept hers, and we wish y'all continued joy as you serve Christ together. To all our friends, this is a reminder of how precious your friendship is to us, and how thankful we are to God for bringing you into our lives. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Insight from Luke 8

As part of my devotional time this morning I read the story of the Gerasene demoniac in Luke 8. I was particularly intrigued when the man who had been delivered from demon oppression asked Jesus for permission to travel with Him. Jesus refused permission, but instead "sent him away, saying, 'Return home and tell how much God has done for you.' So the man went away and told all over town how much Jesus had done for him." At first glance we might find this strange. The man wanted to go with Jesus and be one of His traveling disciples. He wanted to spend more time with the One who had delivered/saved him. But Jesus had a different idea. More important than "soaking up" more of Jesus was the man's responsibility to share what God had done for him with those who knew him best: the people in his own town. Spending time with Jesus is of course not wrong: in fact too many of us spend far too little time with Him. Conversely, however, this incident reminds us that our time spent with Christ has a dual purpose: it grows us up in Him, AND it prepares us to share Him with others. We are not called to be sponges only. We are also called to be salt and light. We are called to be sharers of the good news, not hoarders of the good news. I invite you today to tell someone how much God has done for you. Many Blessings, Dan

Great Weekend in Atlanta

We had a great time in Atlanta this past weekend. Dan taught for two days in the Lay Missionary Training program of the North Georgia Conference, and was blessed to be with such passionate and gifted brothers and sisters in Christ. He taught on The Mission of the Church, and also on Personal Evangelism. Nancy ran some much-needed ministry errands, and also got to visit a little bit with a first cousin with whom she has recently reconnected (after 30 years!). We also got to visit with some of our ministry partners. We are reminded of how thankful we are for the support that so many of you offer us through your prayers and your financial giving. Please ask God to continue His provision in our lives as we seek to serve His Kingdom in the Americas. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Hosted a missionary pastor from India

We had the privilege last night of hosting an Indian missionary pastor in our home. He is in the States to pursue his Master of Divinity degree, after which he will return to India and continue his missionary outreach to an indigenous tribe in a jungle region. He has been working with these tribal people for 15 years. They have no Bible in their language. A couple of Psalms have been translated and a few New Testament passages, but that is all. Even if the whole Bible were available in their language, they wouldn't be able to read it, because they are not a literate community. What a valuable reminder this is there are still many people in the world who have little or no access to the gospel message. This is hard for us to comprehend because the Bible is so readily available to us. We don't always use it, :) :) :), but it is readily available. I pray that God will help each of us be sensitive to and obedient to Jesus' command to pray for laborers for God's harvest. We all need to pray for laborers, and some of us need to become those laborers. What is God calling you to do? Have you been ignoring God's call? Evading it? Or answering it? Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Global Outreach Seminar

We are delighted to report that the Global Outreach Seminar which Dan facilitated this past weekend went very well. The attendees were quite enthusiastic about being involved in what God is up to among the nations, and there was a good spirit of learning and joy. We are grateful for these kinds of opportunities to help Christians embrace the clear Biblical portrayal of our Global God. Thank you for your prayers and your financial support that provide these opportunities to us. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Global Outreach Seminar and a Birthday

We had a great weekend celebrating Nancy's birthday, which was Saturday. We went with friends to Renfroe Valley for a bluegrass concert on Saturday, and then on Sunday we had a birthday dinner with John and Tara. Nancy was led on a short follow-the-clues journey to receive her gift and we had some fun laughs about that. This coming weekend Dan will be leading a Global Outreach Seminar at Nicholasville UMC. Please pray for for the Seminar participants to gain a stronger understanding of God's passion for reaching the nations. Thank you for your continued support as we seek to serve Christ's Kingdom in the Americas. Much Love, Dan and Nancy