Category Archives: trip

New Mexico

Yes, another road trip. Lots of time together in our van. Lots of laughter and smiles and memories.

God opened up an opportunity to serve in New Mexico at the 40th anniversary conference/celebration for CHIEF, a Native American ministry that focuses on discipleship. Dad was asked to help with recording, share about The Storyteller, and our family was invited to sing.

So, as is our custom with long road trips, we loaded that van to the ceiling (or almost), piled in, and drove the long three-day trek to New Mexico. We drove to our grandparents’ house in South Dakota for the first night, and the second night landed us in Colorado Springs. We were excited to be able to visit Focus on the Family, especially since we’ve enjoyed many Adventures in Odyssey as a family.

we also enjoyed meeting (a cardboard version of) Dave Stotts from Drive Through History while we were there

the scenery in Colorado Springs in amazing

At the CHIEF conference it was encouraging to hear what God is doing in Native North America. It was a time of celebration for the last forty years, but at the same time looking to the future and being exhorted to press on. We also made some good connections for the work we’re involved with.

each person here represents a different ministry in Native North America

Huron Claus, director of CHIEF

we shared in song

Mr. Vern, one of the speakers, shared an especially powerful message about how we can’t lose when we have Jesus

the Hendersons led the worship for each session

the boys were eager sound-booth help

Dad and Huron

After the conference, we headed to Albuquerque for an outreach concert put on by our friends at Garfield Gospel Chapel – a church that a few of us have visited the last couple of years. We had a great time meeting new people and getting to know our host family.

evening in the pool!

having fun Lego-ing

Mrs. Lennox and Mom

On our way out of Albuquerque we stopped in Old Town for a family morning of touring shops and eating frozen yogurt.

yay yogurt!

we liked the farewell

We saw so much beautiful creation on our trip…mountain ranges, clouds, rays of sunlight, rainbows, flowers, rivers…everything declaring the glory of God.

even the rainy weather was beautiful

On our way home we stopped at our grandparents’ again, where the go-carts are always a hit.

Thank you for all your prayers on this trip. We know God works in ways that we may not even be aware of, and we’re thankful for His faithfulness.

Cooperstown Bible Camp

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First of all, we want to apologize for not keeping you all up to date on what’s been going on around here. Our family has just come through a very busy summer, often with different things happening one right after another. We simply haven’t had time for blogging. But now that we do, keep an eye on the blog because we’ve got lots to share with you about the many opportunities the Lord has given us to serve Him this summer.

In June, we were invited to sing at a Native family camp in Cooperstown, North Dakota. We were once again working alongside of Blue Baptist Church from Oklahoma, as well as a Native church from North Carolina. There were a couple of families that were there, but the majority of campers were kids from various reservations in ND and SD.

Friends from Oklahoma

In the morning after breakfast, everyone was divided into classes according to age. The three of us girls had the opportunity to help with the nursery where we had two very energetic four-year-olds for the week. It worked out to have three of us watching two of them so that we could switch off taking a break to catch our breath! 🙂 Right before lunch, our family also led a time of singing to the Lord for the youth.

A toddler version of carpet ball

The afternoons were full of different activities… zip lines, climbing wall, archery, shooting, swimming, basketball, and various other games. It was a great time for building relationships as we played with the kids all afternoon.

Human Foosball

Octa-ball

Deborah at the top of the climbing wall

Jonathan taking a turn

Ready and waiting for the zip line

Dad climbing up the zip line platform

It was way up there!

Deborah enjoying the ride

One afternoon, the swimming crew had an adventure. Since the camp didn’t have a lake, we would drive into town to use the swimming pool. That particular afternoon was very hot so almost all the kids in camp went along. We had been in the water for about an hour when the lifeguards told everyone to get out of the pool because there was a storm coming.

Time for a cool down

Sure enough a storm was heading our direction very quickly with some very strange and active clouds leading the way. The clouds began to swirl above us and we jumped in the vans as a wall of dirt came blowing down the street. We all thought there was going to be a tornado. The lifeguards were making phone calls to see if the school next door would be open for a shelter, and the Oklahoma people (who are used to tornado threats) were just as worried as the rest of us.

Everyone was taking pictures of the clouds before we realized we needed to get out of there

As the rain poured down in sheets and hail pounded the roof of the van, we began singing songs to the Lord. We pulled off the road at a gas station until the rain slowed down and we were able to drive back to camp safely. It was a scary experience and several of the young children were terrified and crying, but it also was an opportunity to talk about the Lord and reinforce the fact that He was in control of the situation.

Evening snack and fellowship

The rest of the week ran smoothly. Each evening there was a time of singing and God’s Word was shared, and our family had the opportunity to share a few songs each night. On the last night, a number of young people indicated that they wanted to make a decision for Christ. How exciting! Please pray for them as they face the pressure to follow the world, that they would be discipled by Christians on their home reservations, and that they would go on for the Lord.

Singing as a family

The youth singing a song in evening chapel

Singing “Homesick” with Larry and Joanne Hawkins… the people who taught it to us!

Friday morning we packed up and headed home. As we said our good-byes, many of our new friends crowded around the van joking about going home with us. We were so blessed to be able to participate in the ministry of this camp. It was a wonderful week of building relationships and seeing the Lord work in the lives of these precious young people.

Final goodbyes

New (and old) friends!

Trip to the Southwest

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Last week, Dad and I (Sara) returned from a 2-week ministry trip to the southwest. We traveled over 5,000 miles through Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and Colorado (and all those states in between). It was a blessed time of meeting new people, taking in God’s amazing creation, recording for the radio program, and enjoying some father/daughter time.

Enjoying an afternoon at Old Town in Albuquerque

As far as the eye can see…

You know you’re away from home without the whole family when you find notes buried in your suitcase

Our first stop was San Antonio, TX. Yes, we actually made a trip back after our eventful stay there last September (read about our crazy adventure here)! The new host of the Storyteller, Soapy Dollar, has been recording from his studio in TX while Dad coaches him over the phone from home in MN. While its been working out well, there were some technical issues that prompted our return to San Antonio.

We’re pretty sure that this gas station has to be the biggest in the world… everything’s bigger in Texas

Soapy and Dad testing microphones

Next we drove to Albuquerque, NM. There, Dad recorded a number of testimonies in the area while I took in a conference at Garfield Gospel Chapel. The speaker was teaching on the Old Testament feasts and how they were a picture of what Christ would do when He came to earth. Part of the conference included a Messianic Passover Seder which was a very interesting experience. We were greatly encouraged by the fellowship at the chapel there.

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The Sedar meal at the conference

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A group picture at Garfield Gospel Chapel

Phoenix, AZ, was our next stop. The night we arrived, there was a number of Native believers gathered together for a teaching/training session where we had opportunity to share about The Storyteller ministry. The next day, Dad did some more recording and we also learned more about the Native American conference/camp that we will be singing at in Santa Fe this summer. We also got to visit a dear Native friend in the hospital down there, and enjoyed dinner with some MN friends in their snowbird estate in Apache Junction.

Just one of Arizona’s many landscapes

After leaving Phoenix, we traveled out to Lake Havasu City to visit a radio station out there. Since we were so close to California (and neither of us have been to that state before), we drove across the river and got out just to say we had! 🙂 That same day we also headed up to the Grand Canyon and got to see the results of a worldwide flood, before heading to Tuba City on the Navajo reservation.

So close to California… the palm tree is a nice touch!

At the Grand Canyon

The pictures simply don’t do it justice – learn more about the Grand Canyon from a Biblical perspective here

In Tuba City, we got to participate in a prayer meeting with a small gathering of Native believers who love the Lord. It was so encouraging to hear their hearts for their families, church, and the unsaved. We stayed with missionaries there that night and enjoyed fellowship with them in the morning.

The Tuba City Discipleship center on the Navajo reservation

Our Subaru Forester was thrilled to drive on this

We had planned to leave and drive through the Rockies, but a huge snowstorm over the mountains redirected us to Vanderwagon, NM. Along the way, we stopped in Window Rock/Sabenito at the radio station at Western Indian Ministries. We ended up visiting for several hours before continuing on to Vanderwagon where we stayed at a Bible camp and got to hear about the ministry going on with some of the Zuni youth.

A Navajo hogan

At Window Rock

The Storyteller has aired on this station for many years

The next day we headed up to Greeley, CO, where we stayed with a sweet couple. We enjoyed fellowship with them over the weekend and gave an update at the chapel there.

We could see the snow storm hanging over the Rockies off to the west as we traveled through eastern Colorado

On Monday we headed north again, stopping to take in the Black Hills and Wall Drug before landing in Mansfield, SD, to spend the night on the farm with Mom’s parents. The next morning, Grandma fed us a yummy breakfast and Grandpa took us on a tour of his latest farming operations. Then we were off for home where the family was eagerly waiting for our return.

Over 5,000 miles of safety!

We actually enjoyed stopping for this roadblock!

We saw just about every kind of “crossing” sign there is to see

We have so much to be grateful for: safety as we traveled thousands of miles, seeing the Lord work out the details of the trip, and sweet fellowship along the way. Thank you for praying for us! Lord willing, we are looking forward to traveling back down to New Mexico this summer with the whole family as we sing at the Native conference in Santa Fe.

Beautiful country