Impressive Idaho

Here are some pictures in and around Boise, and then of western Idaho from my drive up to eastern Washington and then on up to western Montana.

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August 2011 Newsletter

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July 2011 Newsletter

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Pics with friends Summer 2011

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April pictures

Time in Boise is wrapping up to a close. Here are some pics from our last month here:

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April

I had a bunch of pics posted here but I made a Smilebox with them - check post dated 2/23/08 for the updated version.

Adalaya born March 24, 2008

My new little niece, Adalaya Ann Richards, born March 24, 2008 in Meridian, Idaho! 21 inches, 7lb 10 oz.

Here are my parents with her.

March 08

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Time with friends

Many of our evenings not spent presenting in home groups are spent reconnecting with friends here and meeting with new friends. I need to have a better memory about taking pictures every time, but here are some families and friends I've been able to spend some time with. Many of my friends have generously lent or given us baby supplies and clothing for Gretchen's 3rd, soon to be born! Houghton and Gretchen are making final preparations for the new little one so Lord-willing, they'll have everything they need. Due date is March 23 so we are counting down the days.
I was able to stay with a friend, Jen, for a week, which was really nice to have a quiet house to work in during the day and a great single friend to fellowship with in the evening. She's the one in the pic with the little puppy (Bing).

Boise February small groups

We have had some fantastic small groups here in Boise. God again works through the unexpected, many of the groups I expected we would be meeting in didn't work out, but God has brought along other groups and opportunities that were off my radar. He is continually teaching me to trust His provision and His best for who He would have team with us. Here are pictures of the lovely groups we've been able to meet. Unfortunately, I forgot in numerous groups to get a picture, but here are those I remembered.

February newsletter

Please click on the image to have it enlarge. Just one page this time. :) Check out that support chart on my right-hand sidebar towards the bottom. Look at God bring it in - wow!

We made it!

We made it to Boise, fairly uneventfully, praise God! Thursday night Lindsey let us stay at her place in Bozeman, which was a nice break in the long drive. Friday we drove the final 8 or 9 hours to Boise. Gweny was sick and the kids didn't enjoy the long day in the car strapped to their carseats, but they were troopers. The passes and roads before and after them were snowy, but not very packed or icy so we were able to cruise through!

God has blessed us in amazing ways here in Boise. My friends Kara and Travis hooked us up with some great housing for the entire time we are in Boise. We are in a 3 bedroom duplex that is fully furnished and is plenty roomy for all of us. We'll even be able to host some of our home groups here, which will be so nice! Also, my past co-worker, Debi, provided us with a 2nd vehicle to use while we are here. Her husband, Adam, was kind enough to check it all over and get it running smoothly for us. It's a stick shift, so I'm having fun driving stick again! Having another vehicle to use is great. This way I can do things like visit kids and teachers at my old school where I used to work while Houghton and Gretchen can still get around to run errands and head somewhere with internet access to keep up with correspondence. Another awesome provision was a screaming deal on a short-term gym membership. Houghton is able to swim to his heart's delight while we are in town and all of us are able to get our bodies back in shape for heading over to Vanuatu.

Sunday we shared at Columbia Heights Baptist in east Boise. It is a church plant so for them to have such a huge heart and focus on missions was a big blessing. We met some fun new friends. God continues to fill out our schedule for our time here so we are excited about the opportunities. Here's a fun home group we got to attend already this week. We got all kinds of great Asian food.

Just before leaving Miles City, we shared with one last small group. They shared chili and corn bread with us afterward so that was a great treat! :) Here's that group to the left.

Dying...to Idaho

This is amazingly difficult to say goodbye to my current life, essentially. It is hard to permanently say goodbye at work to the kids, teachers and staff, and parents. It is really hard to say goodbye to the prayer group at work that has been such an amazing blessing this last year (what a blessing you are Kim, Teddi, Sara and Merrianne!). It is hard to say goodbye to much of my "stuff". It is hard to say goodbye to my gym and the workout classes and people there that I love. It is hard to say goodbye to my churches where I have great fellowship. It is hard to say goodbye to my cats and to my house where I've loved living the last 4 years. It is hard to say goodbye to a climate I love and to living in Idaho, which I adore. It is hard to say goodbye to hiking trails and walking paths, to access to all the diversity of stores, restaurants, and culture.

It is hard to say goodbye to ministries and people I've ministered with and to. Here is the junior high Bible study girls group from Heritage Bible Church on the left. Also pictured are my young friends Melissa on the left (going to be a junior - wow!) and Bridgette (going into 7th grade) on the right.

On the right is Lorna, who, with her husband, leads missions prayer for Calvary Chapel. The group shot is one evening at Missions Prayer. Pictured are Natalie (a missionary to Romania!), Nancy, Gary, Julie, John, Jan, Lorna, Jessica, and Larry in the back. In the front are Nadine and me. Several of the "regulars" aren't pictured here. I'll miss praying with all of you in body anyway! There are so many other groups of kids whose pictures I don't have digitally to post here from youth group and Bible studies at Calvary, sorry guys!

It is especially hard to say goodbye to fantastic friends. To the left is Mindy, who did accountability and verse memorization for a long time with me. Here is Liz, my Argentinian amiga who I loved being able to not only hang out with a lot and share fellowship with as a Christian, but also be literal neighbors with!

Here is Kara, my friend who challenges me to growth and depth. Next is Melanie, a fellow missionary. She is heading back to Africa, Lord-willing! I wish I could have gotten a picture of the prayer group I have enjoyed over the years with Melanie, Jonie, Tara, Teresa, Jenn and others!

Here are some of my other lovely friends from work. To the left is Christie, my great friend who will be taking my school counseling position since I'm leaving! To the right is Melinda, who I was so privileged to work with at my school this last year as she completed her counseling practicum for grad school.

In the center here is Jennifer, a new friend sent pretty randomly as a gift from the Lord! To the right is Amy, who I went to grad school with and am so grateful to continue a friendship with even after graduation in 2003! Pictured next is a great group of friends who came to a goodbye barbeque last week. It is a mix of friends from all areas in my life but from left to right starting in the back is me, then James and wife Casey and baby Lydia, then Kathleen and husband Travis and daughter Elise, behind them the tall one is Dave, then is Bonnie and baby Ethan and husband Brian and daughter Jasmine, next is Christie, then Scott, then Kevin, Tyson, and Ryan. In the front are Mindy, Teresa, Kara and husband Travis. Most of these pictured are some of my longest known friends in Idaho who I get together with often to play games with and do other activities with.

There are so many others I'm sorry to say I didn't get pictures with. I love you all and you will be so missed!!

It is hard to say goodbye to some hopes and plans. Another huge loss is my independence. The Lord has been teaching me so much through this process and I am so excited to see how He grows me and where He leads. However, there are so many losses, so much grief with all of this. I really feel a part of me is dying but that is what the Christian walk is all about, isn't it! Death to self and alive to Christ. I pray He uses these griefs to grow me and bring Him glory and that the gospel may be preached and Ni-Vanuatu and others may come to know Jesus Christ, and Him crucified!

This was a great message to read from "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, which has devotionals for each day. This is from May 30. It is entitled: "Yes - but...!" and has the verse Luke 9:61 "Lord, I will follow Thee; but..."

"Supposing God tells you to do something which is an enormous test to your common sense, what are you going to do? Hang back? If you get into the habit of doing a thing in the physical domain, you will do it every time until you break the habit determinedly; and the same is true spiritually. Again and again you will get up to what Jesus Christ wants, and every time you will turn back resolutely. "Yes, but - supposing I do obey God in this matter, what about...?" "Yes, I will obey God if He will let me use my common sense, but don't ask me to take a step in the dark." Jesus Christ demands of the man who trusts Him the same reckless sporting spirit that the natural man exhibits. If a man is going to do anything worth while, there are times when he has to risk everything on his leap, and in the spiritual domain Jesus Christ demands that you risk everything you hold by common sense and leap into what He says, and immediately you do, you find that what He says fits on as solidly as common sense. At the bar of common sense Jesus Christ's statements may seem mad; but bring them to the bar of faith, and you begin to find with awestruck spirit that they are the words of God. Trust entirely in God, and when He brings you to the venture, see that you take it. We act like pagans in a crisis, only one out of a crowd is daring enough to bank his faith in the character of God."

Here's a picture near the Boise foothills and one at sunset at the Boise River. Thanks for your Creation, God! Goodbye, my home state of 8 years. I loved Idaho! Montana, here I come! (I'm driving all day Saturday, June 16, 2007 to Miles City, MT to start sharing with churches about the ministry in Vanuatu.)