Part two of our November/December trip: North Carolina and Florida.
Driving through the Smoky Mountains is a sight to behold, especially since we rarely get to do it! Last year we drove through North Carolina, but it had been a number of years since we stayed in North Carolina, so it was amazing to be able to be there for a number of days again.
The mountains were “smoky” because of wild fires
and where we live, Walmart looks a lot less interesting and certainly isn’t back-dropped by mountains
We apparently didn’t get many good pictures in NC that featured people. So you can just use your imagination if you’d like.
It was good to go back to a church in Cherokee that we had sang at before. We saw some old friends and made some new ones! One night we got to go with the church to the house of a man Dad recorded last time we stayed here. This man is not well physically, and the group came to encourage him with a meal and singing, but he was an encouragement and challenge to us! His faith is so strong and he is joyful. All the believers we fellowshipped with in North Carolina were a blessing to us.
Dad got to record the testimonies of a couple of people for The Storyteller radio program.
We were staying at a Christian camp and enjoyed spending time there with some new friends. Among other things we had fun playing football in the rain and extreme spoons.
yes, quite extreme
result of playing football in the rain
A beautiful place, wonderful people, encouraging times…then it was time to pack up and head for Florida.
the camp at Cherokee
We were really looking forward to Florida…not because of the amazing winter weather (although we certainly enjoyed that!), but because we were going to participate in a prison outreach. God worked it out for us to be able to be a part of the Gospel Express prison crusade this year, and we were excited!
Every prison we’ve been to is different, each experience is different, but at each one we see things that are precious. This time was no exception. We saw tears flowing. Hands raised in worship. Men singing along to songs they may have never heard before. We sang “Away in a Manger” with them—a roomful of men who have probably known that song since childhood, now in prison, lifting their voices in song about the One who came to save them. When it was time for the message one night, an inmate moved the pulpit to the stage. At the Sunday morning service a group of inmates gathered in the back of the room before we started…they joined hands and prayed. We could also hear them singing in a back room and were told it was the worship team practicing. We would have loved for them to sing in the service but we were told there wasn’t enough time. Over the four-day prison crusade, we saw people coming forward, unashamed, to receive Christ. We saw Christians coming to “un-kink their water hose” in response to the message that was preached about our relationship with God. On Sunday morning we sang hymns with the inmates, like “Victory in Jesus”…and they are not afraid to sing. Our family is so blessed to be able to be a part of ministering in prisons.
The prison services took place in the afternoon, so in the evenings all the volunteers and singers regrouped for worship, testimonies, singing, fellowship, games, and a jam session (not all those happened in one night). Here’s a few pictures of some of it.
the Gospel Express choir
our friends the Bechtolds
we shared a few songs
On the last night of fellowship as we were about to leave, our van decided it was time to give us some technical difficulties. Thankfully, we were in the right place with lots of willing hands and bus mechanics! Whatever the problem was, it was soon solved and we were good to go.
With this prison crusade one evangelist traveled with us for all the services. It was so good getting to know Phil and his wife who have a heart for seeing the lost inmates saved and the believing inmates challenged and encouraged in their walk with God.
sharing a meal with the Stutzmans
Thanks to everyone who took pictures for us/shared pictures with us that we used in this post! As we look back on our week in Florida, it all falls under the category of, “Wow! What an amazing time.”
selfie!
And so we began our trek back to the north-land. Going from Florida to Minnesota in December means basically going from spring to winter. To add to that, when we left home it was beautifully warm autumn weather, but when we got home…let’s just say we had missed the first snow.
Running board-deep snow really isn’t a lot for us, but it is a lot when you have to plow through it uphill, without four-wheel drive, without snow tires, pulling a trailer. We took a running start and made it up the driveway to a good spot for unloading before we couldn’t go any farther.
time to shovel!
Thus ended our November/December trip. We were home for a few weeks before we hit the road again…next up is our January/February travels… including our first visit to Pickle Lake since the plane crash.
Thank you for praying for us!
Bless the LORD, all His works, in all places of His dominion. Bless the LORD, O my soul! Psalm 103:22
