Bethany and I just walked back in to the house tonight after being a part of the Josiah Venture 20th anniversary celebration. It was an amazing night, filled with stories of changed lives, testimonies of God’s faithfulness, and a whole lot of praise about what God has done in Central and Eastern Europe. There was more than one time that I had tears in my eyes. Even though I was part of creating the visuals for tonight’s event, and I’ve seen the videos numerous times, they still brought tears to my eyes. It’s especially moving to see video of young people in very difficult countries talk about how much Jesus has done for them in saving them from their sin. The whole event at the conference tonight was a big story of what God has done in the lives of many different people both here and in the States and we left very encouraged. Praise God for His faithfulness!
As exhilarating and amazing the celebration was, we also had some other excitement today. We had the privilege and joy of spending an extended time with some of our favorite people in the world, Scott and Patty Ardavanis. They had arrived yesterday but we weren’t able to go out with them until tonight, a few hours before the 20th celebration event. By God’s grace we were able to find a babysitter today! We had been looking for days but everyone was either out of town or couldn’t do it. Thankfully our friend Misa came watched our little ones for almost seven hours.
We had such a fun time with Scott and Patty. We went to dinner at a local place which was pretty hilarious because trying to understand a Czech menu is impossible, but I digress. They were asking us so many great questions about ministry here, our marriage, our kids, and how we’re adjusting. We laughed a lot and just shared how we’re doing. At the end of our dinner we took them back to where they’re staying because they said that Grace Church of the Valley in Kingsburg sent along some gifts to us. In fact, Patty told Bethany, “Bring a suitcase!” At first I though the suitcase was going to be overkill until Scott and Patty started unloading all of the amazing things that were sent to us from the church. Here’s a picture of what the suitcase looked like tonight.
That suitcase is full of some amazing things. I would list out my favorites, but it’s all favorites! We are so thankful to Grace Church in Kingsburg for overwhelming us with these goodies and especially for sharing Scott and Patty with us this week. They have encouraged our hearts, especially in such a busy season of ministry. Thank you so much!
My heart is full to the brim tonight. Today was just an absolute amazing day. Spending time with dear friends and enjoying a celebration of God’s faithfulness is really overwhelming. More than anything, I think at this moment I’m humbled. Humbled by God’s incredible power to transform the lives of thousands of young people and humbled that He has called my family to be part of a movement He’s doing in this part of the world. I’m humbled by the generosity of the saints in sending us gifts and for sharing with us wonderful friends. We are so undeserving of such kindness. Praise be to the King for how He loves us. Praise to Jesus for His wonderful grace.
One response to “Full To The Brim”
Will those videos be up on Vimeo soon? I’m so anxious to see them! So wish I could’ve been there to celebrate this momentous occasion. Praising God from across the ocean!