First day of Camp!

This morning people were buzzing around the house as early as 5am!  We were up and getting ready to set up for camp... Sandwiches were being made, and then the hauling of all the equipment to the hall occurred!     We quickly entered and realized the city had given us the wrong keys for the facility next doors!  God is so good! And, in walked a maintenance person who was able to help us quickly get access to everywhere that was needed.     As kids arrived there was excitement, anticipation, and the room was a buzz! The Kids were so excited to put on their jerseys and cheer uniforms!   WE had four teams... The Joeys, The Skippy's, The Big Reds, and the Boomers!  Everyone was registered and in! It was a success!  And, then we were able to start our program.  Each day we started with a visit from Skeeter... (Chris... dressed up as a crazy kid who knows nothing about much!)   He did a great job breaking the atmosphere each morning and starting to get people to think about the Biblical point that was going to be taught that day!

Although we had 10 people from America and 13 volunteers and a few more from Oz.   There was heaps for everyone to be doing! The teams were between 12-17 kids each!  But, it was fantastic!  We had a bit of rain, and we were really hoping that the rest of the week would become sunny. Because it is winter here, and cold... And, wet and cold can make for some miserable kids! But, God was good and he didn't give us more than we could handle!

We broke for our first devotional time and the bible verse for the week was shared. The kids were encouraged to memorize John 3:16.  

The cheer girls started their banners and started to learn their jumps, and actions... The soccer kids started to rotate stations and learn their skills.  

At the end of the day each coach got to tell each child something they saw that they loved that day! This was a time for the kid to learn to trust them... But, also a time for the child to learn they were important and that they mattered to GOD!  and also to the coach!

DAY 1 was AWESOME!!!!!

warm-ups!

 Stretching!

 Skeeter and Pastor Jeff O'vell

Cheer Leading.. Jump and Actions Station

US TEAMS First Day in OZ

Today was spent building relationships between the Americans and the Australians.  And, doing lot's of last minute preparations.     To get to know each other we spent the morning at an Australian Petting Zoo..   The team got to meet all of our native animals, cute, slimey, furry, and weird! :)

Jeff had the special Jeff T. and Jeff O. had the special opportunity to be chosen and crack the whip! They actually didn't do too bad!    After the team saw sheep rounded up, and a sheep sheared, it was onto petting the kangaroos, and hearing about dingo's!  

After our outing we headed back to the house to put together 110 camp bags with all the goodies and jerseys! Upon sorting the cheer poms we realized that when we opened the package, they didn't automatically poof! Each strand had to be twisted by hand!  And, if we have 60 girls.... That meant we needed to do 120!   With 20 people including the guys.... this work was accomplished... But, not with out making some people EXTREMELY exhausted!!!

Upward Down Under has arrived!

Today the team arrived.  They were exhausted but super excited to be here! To be honest going to the airport was hard for me.  As I stood there and saw a family next to us hug their grandmother and tell her over and over how much they loved her.. It was a bit hard for me! As, I would have loved to have been that family... I would have loved my kids grandmothers to have gotten off that plane... Don't get me wrong.. I am EXCITED to have a team here! And, our first team ever since we came on the field 9 years ago! But, it was hard for me and I had nothing but excitement and joy in my heart the whole way to airport.  I guess you don't realize how much you miss until you see someone else experiencing that moment... But,  I looked at Chris and I saw him tell me to be strong, which made me want to be strong  for our kids.  They had made and laminated signs for the team! And, we only had to wait a  few more minutes and we were  hugging the team and telling them how glad we were they had come to Perth!

We brought them home and delivered them to the billets.   It was a joy for us to see people that are connected to our church step up and host some of the team.  We were getting 4 guys at our place! So, there will be a lot of men in our house this week!   After everyone was showered, we welcomed the team with our Sunday Service and had an Australian feast of food!   It was very YUM! (as an Aussie would say!)

Parsonage picture updates

Upward Soccer and Cheer Camp

Later today a team of 10 will meet at the Orchard Park Wesleyan Church in New York and begin their long journey to the other side of the world.  They will arrive in Perth, Australia on Sunday at noon and will hit the ground running.  Why would they travel all that way?  Because they are stepping out in faith with a willingness to be used by God to share the good news to over 100 kids and families in the Landsdale community.  There has been much planning and praying in preparation for this camp and we can't wait to see what God does through this team. 
Pray for the team as they travel and as they begin their week long ministry here in Landsdale.  Pray also for the local church here that we would be able to minister with the team and reach kids and families with the message of Christ. 

Praises and Prayer Requests

Prayer Requests Pray for the USA team to not get sick while travelling to Australia. They are travelling the 13-14th. to Oz Pray for the brickies as they lay the bricks for the parsonage! Pray God would call children to him and that we would connect with these new children in a way like never before. Pray for the parents of our regular kids club kids to grow in their faith this week. Pray for our current youth to connect with the team a build stronger relationships with Christ this week.

Praises July 5-7th was an AWESOME Women's Retreat! With many women committing to "Fix their eyes on Jesus!" The kids have done well at school as we received their 1/2 year report cards. Praise God we have families who have volunteered to host the USA team. Praise God we have 100 + kids registered for sport camp! Praise God the parsonage construction is under way

Women's Retreat!

"Fix your Eyes on Jesus!"

This was the theme of this year's Women's Retreat.  This was our 4th Women's Retreat in Western Australia.  And, these women are really starting to open up and let God use them to impact their friends and their families and they are really starting to grow a deep trust and a relationship wit God.   The picture to the left was our 2013 WW committee.   We are missing one person, Gem. But, it was Shannon, Myself, Glynis, Pella, and Elaine.  This year God used EACH of them to help with camp and many hands made light work for the first time ever! Each one of these ladies tackled, registrations, worship, decorations, welcome kits, games, you name it, they helped! I had an amazing team that let God use them!    As a result, the weekend  was an amazing weekend with 25 wonderful women. 

Juy 5-7th we went away to some cabins out in the "bush" and it was beautiful!  It was cold! But, beautiful!   God really worked on our hearts, and our minds.  It was a beautiful weekend for ladies to build relationships and Laura and Rachel's Mum,  Jo came away with us for the first time and she had an awesome time!   Last year we had 18 ladies go, so I was really excited to see that we had 7 new ladies this year!   We had 4 sessions where we did Biblical study and heard the Word of God through Annette Dobson, our Wesleyan Women director for all of Australia. And, then we had some game times, and craft times.  We recycled t-shirt scarfs and had an amazing time.  Although I was busy running the weekend and ended up having to cook three of the meals, it was quite relaxing and I felt God replenish my spirit!

Minute to win it games!

Pella, Myelf, Laura and Jo

 Caira doing the "elephant walk".

Karen and Bethany working on their picture frames.

Children's Workers Conference June 13th-16h in Melbourne

I had an amazing time connecting with children's workers across our district.  Chris and I boarded a plane and flew to Melbourne so that I could start the ground work for what is to come with Children's ministry in our district.  As I had been in contact with the pastor's and ministry workers it had become evident that we do not offer much for children and that we only "run" something if we need to. This is a big worry and fear for me, because families and children are important for our district to grow in the faith and numbers.   I wasn't really sure what God was wanting me to focus on at first but, then He just let my head RUN with stuff and He impressed on my heart 4 messages to share and IW as just blown away at how God wanted to use me to help minister to these churches that are part of our district.   Many of these people I had never met before and so I knew only one person in the room, but God was able to just open up the atmosphere and it was as if I had knows these partners for the Kingdom for forever.  

I was able to share a message that God laid on my heart about children's ministry. And, it was called, God called someone like you!  and, my sermon was basically me giving a share of the people who had impacted my life growing up and what they had done to bring me to a closer relationship with Jesus, and amazingly... NONE of them had been to Bible College, and NONE of them were pastors! and, I was able to share with them the important people of my past.  For those of you in our home church, these names might ring a bell... Luann (my mother),Dana,  Dot, Gloria, Elaine, Barb, David and Carol, Jan, John, Bill, Matt and Carman, Bob, Carol, and Sam.  There were MANY people who encouraged me in my faith and showed me something that has been important my entire "faith walk".   And, it was amazing to see these workers minds open up to the possibilities of the kind of people that can help them minister to children.  

My second message was on the foundation of our children's ministry. Making sure it is founded on the Bible and God!

My third message was on the circles of volunteers!

My 4th message was on the things we fill our ministry with our goals, desires, and passions, to see it become something that just not affects children, but impacts, families, and the church.

God really blessed me, and made me step out of my comfort zone.. I had never done something like this before, But, God knows that I can do this job, I just need to trust and rely on him, to give me all that I need. May God show me how to help minister to the children of the "Southern District ".

Melissa

Busy weekend- National Superintendent Visit!

Pray for Chris and I as we will have been away in Melbourne from Wednesday to very late Saturday night. But, on Sunday our National superintendent will be speaking at our church. Pray that we would be able to get our families out for the evening that don't normally attend church and that God would speak to their hearts!

Flying to Melbourne for District commitments

Please pray for Chris and I as we head to Melbourne to do ministry with the District.  It is a4 hour flight from Perth to Melbourne.  But, this is our district.  The Southern district covers area the size of 1/2 the united states.   As it is so far to go we are not able to take our children with us.  Pray for   Chris as he will be attending the district DBA meeting.  I will be getting to go with him to Melbourne as I am teaching a children's ministry workshop in Melbourne on Saturday for 4 hours.

1. Please pray that we would have a safe trip and that our children will be alright while we are away.

2. Pay that God would use Melissa to minister to the children's workers and that she would be able to start to cast a vision for the urgency of children's ministries in our district.  Pray that God would give her the words she needs to be speaking.

3. Pray that God would be with the DBA as they meet.

FOUNDATION!

To our surprise this morning by 9:00am  our cement pad was poured today!  That is what they call it in Australia as the foundation is not just around the edge, but it I a solid foundation everywhere, because of the sand.  
 God is working in amazing ways in our church. But, the reality of something permanent happening  is just God at work!    HOW exciting!!!! And the forecast for the week is sunshine! Pray that this would dry quickly and that we would have no rain, so we can go onto the next step in the building process.

As I was watching this foundation being poured, I couldn't help But think of the verse where it says.... God's truth stands firm like a foundation.  May God's truth always be taught out from the people who live on this foundation!    May God's word penetrate the hearts of the people Landsdale... May the families in Landsdale  come to a relationship with Jesus Christ! May this house be God's and all that happens in it, be his!

Soccer and Cheerleading Camp registrations!

Today we had registrations for Soccer and Cheer camp.. We had 24 registrations for Cheer and 29 for Soccer!!!! We are super excited. Continue to pray that God would help us to book another 20 or more for soccer at least.  WE have decided to keep registrations open, but pray that God would show us who to talk with and help us to have conversations with people that would draw them to come to this camp...

Soccer and Cheerleading Camp

This July 16-20th we have a team coming to minister here in Perth Australia from Orchard Park Wesleyan Church in NY. They are going to be running an upward soccer and cheerleading camp. We are asking everyone to pray specifically this week for the students in the Landsdale Primary School because the registration forms are going home this week with all the students.  The actual registration day for the camp is June 7th.   We handed out information on the camp at our Easter Egg Hunt, and we seem to be receiving a good sense of people who would like to attend. Please pray that God would move people to  attend and call people to volunteer to help us run a smooth and effective camp so these children can learn about Jesus Christ!

Shingles.... Prayers Needed...

Over the weekend as we were preparing for the Easter Egg Hunt, Melissa kept saying she was in severe pain in her back.  But, she just thought she had pulled a muscle running around and being so busy. But, Monday came, and although, she would put ice and heat on,  there would be no improvements. By Tuesday she could barely move and then she came up with a rash on her stomach.   She went to the Dr.'s and she has shingles... Shingles is very painful and because it is across her belly and back it is painful to sit, it is painful to stand, it is painful to lie down, so it is very hard for her to get comfortable. They have given her codeine to take away the pain but, when she takes it , she just sleeps all day.  The good news is, it is a public holiday here till Tuesday. So, pray that she can recover and be able to go back to work next week. The bad news is, the kids are home every day as well because it is a public holiday.   Pray that she would get some rest and recover. The Dr. Said it can take up to 7 weeks for pain to go away.  That is an awful long time so, Melissa is a bit nervous and worried.  So, please pray that this would  heal up quickly.  They also gave her an antibiotic to help clear up the spots.

To top it all off the kids and myself have a head cold.  So, everyone in our house is feeling a bit under the weather. Please pray that God would watch over our family and heal us!

Easter Egg Hunt

Bunny Hop!

Colouring Contest

Toddler Easter Egg Hunt

The Easter Egg Hunt was a huge success.   We had 87 kids on registration forms. And, there were another few groups of kids we saw wandering and participating that hadn't fill out forms. So, I think we probably had about 100+ kids and then their parents!  So, it was a massive group.  The day went wonderfully! Melissa shared a sermon with the kids on the verse Jesus came to seek and save the lost.   She then finished with the story of Jesus Christ raising from the dead and gave an opportunity for the kids to accept Jesus Christ as their saviour. Then we handed out "crystal" plastic crosses that were on necklaces and we bought 150 and only 30 were left! So, almost every kid took one.  We had craft stations. They made butterflies that said He has risen, Crosses and decorated them, and they made animal eggs.  We then gave out chocolate bunnies for the best colouring pictures, we had 4 different age groups, and prizes to the kids who won the bunny hop and also the egg toss.  The afternoon was fantastic and we had ordered these awesome bags from oriental and we were able to send information home this year on our church and also on the soccer/cheerleading camp we are holding in July. It was a fantastic day!   We also have seen kids wearing the crosses we gave out

 around town.. So, we feel that God did use this day to work and move in people's lives.

After the Easter Egg Hunt we had quite a few families stay for church. So, it was fantastic

Colouring Contest

Egg Hunt

Praises and Prayer Requests

Prayer Requests Pray for new families to come to our church over the next three sundays as we do a big bring a friend to church each week! Pray for Our churches Sausage Sizzle on April 6th. Pray for our Youth Camp May 1st-3rd. Pray for the churches Outreach event, the Easter Egg Hunt on 24th of March Pray for the church as we start the next phase of the house bulding and we do prestart. Where we pick colours etc.

Praises Praise God the Wesleyan Women's Italian Cooking night was a success and we have been able to secure a guest speaker for our retreat in July. Praise God we had two new families in church last week. Praise God everyone who went to family camp this year has ALREADY booked for family camp 2014!!! Praise God two new families from Landsale came on the family camp. Praise God family camp was a huge success with just over 80 of us attending

Brayden's Monkey Luau and Machine Pitch finale

Today Brayden turned 4! Can't believe time has flown by. He had his first party where he invited friends from school. The weather was fantastic and almost everyone he invited could make it. He picked a monkey luau. So, we made monkey ears and played surfing music and the kids LOVED playing musical bobs. Which is where the kids listen to music and when it stops you sit down really quick.  It was a great morning.. Then we had a family barbecue for lunch. and we ate lot's of  really yummy chunky monkey cupcakes!!  This weekend is crazy busy as we have a lot on... But, we wanted to make sure we took time out to celebrate Brayden.  He is such a hard working, fun loving, easy going kids who has lot's of friends.  He loves God with all his heart and we can't wait to see what God is going to do with this beautiful cheeky monkey!

  After the party was over we headed out to our machine pitch baseball team season  finale.  Chris has been the coach for the last 6 months and has worked really hard as well as our team manager and umpires. So, we went to a park and had a massive pizza party to celebrate the kids who play and learnt a new game really well and all the staff.  It was a fantastic day!!!

Bring a Friend to church Sunday

The next three weeks we are taking a break from the Story and focusing on Easter. Tonight we had bring a friend to church Sunday and our goal is for everyone to bring someone new each week, the next three weeks.  Tonight we had a fantastic turn out. Not one person came without bringing someone.  There were 32 people in church and they all came just for church.  In the past people come because their kids are singing or their kids are getting their kids club badges. But, tonight people purely came to hear the word of God. It was a wonderful evening of God moving in hearts and lives and we can't wait to see what God is going to do next week!

Wesleyan Women

Tonight we had a Wesleyan Women Fundraiser.  Our goal was to have 20 ladies come together and experience an Italian cooking show.  It was a fantastic night of laughing, eating, and most importantly thanking God for all the ways he has blessed us. But, the food was so delicious and we learnt soo much fantastic information. We got to make our own noodles and everything.  We also raised enough money to fly a guest speaker in for our Women's Retreat this year!  I am super excited and REALLY hope all these ladies will join us on our women's retreat this year!  It was a fantastic evening.

Family Camp

What an awesome weekend!  Family camp was an incredible time.  We had two new families come this year and we just had an amazing time.  We all packed up our cars and drove north.
All together there were almost 80 of us that came together to worship God on the weekend.  The Landsdale families had such a great time.  We had 18 kids in the kids program and 8 teenagers that went. The rest was adults and young adults.  The speaker did a fantastic job. Thank you Brookside Wesleyan church for supplying the "Adventures on Promise Island material" The kids thought camp was AWESOME! They made treasure boxes, and prayer journals, and t-shirts, and had an awesome time learning about God. The theme was God is with us, God care's about us, God will give us what we need, God will save us and God will answer us!  It was a fantastic trip of building relationships with each other and for some their first time starting to build a relationship with God.   We gave an opportunity for kids to accept Jesus or make commitments. Two boys accepted Jesus for the first time, and a few kids made commitment to make sure they tell others about Jesus and invite them to church!  One of the fun things we did on the weekend was played 44 home at the pinnacles.   It was really spooking everyone would hide and the desert would look empty, then people would be running everywhere to get home.  It was alot of fun, but incredibly spooky to watch everyone entirely disappear!

Family Camp 2013

Today Family Camp starts. We are loading up our car and trailer and car top carrier and heading North a few 100 km's  to a town called Jurien.   WE have 30 people attending camp from Landsdale! I am super excited!  We have brought in a guest speaker and I will be doing 5 Kids lessons over the weekend.  Chris will be running all the family games and activities as well as a youth session. We are super excited.  The Kids will be doing a theme on Luke 3:19  He came to seek and save the lost!  The kids are excited and so are all the adults.. I can't wait to see what God is going to do in our lives!
Please pray for our camp that God would use us as a light and that He would speak to the hearts of our families and especially the parents.  That they would sense an urgency to come to Him and except Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives!

First Day of Kids Club

Today was our first day of kids Club! We had 25 kids come the first day, which is fantastic!  We walked from school all the way to our house! It was 40 degreees out which is really hot!  We are doing a theme on conversation hearts. The first one is love God.  And, then we talked about Elijah and Elisha and how God sent a drought for a few years and then he sent rain. And, God showed the people how he was God and they must love him first!   We then celebrated with our own water party! We ran hoses across the street and played in the park lot's of water games! It was a great first day back! And, the parents are so excited that Kids Club is back on as well.

First Day of School

Today was the kids first day of School. Tomorrow all three kids go for their first time! Life has been really crazy even on school holidays.   It's hard to believe today we go back to our even crazier busy schedule. Makayla is starting year 4 in a 4/5 class and Dawson will be in a year 2 class.  Brayden is in kindy and will go to school 5 days every two weeks!   Hard to believe that a three year old goes to school in Australia. But, before we know it, March will be here and Brayden will be turning 4. 

Just as our family is starting back to school, all of our ministries are starting back up to full bore.   Friday we will have afterschool Kids Club again!  We still don't have a facility as they are still working on putting in the air conditioning in the hall.   So, we will be walking all the children to our house for kids club.  

I will start teaching preschool this week for our local community playgroup. It is a great job and I love meeting all the wonderful families. And, the next year they are potential families for our kids club. This year I have two classes and so far 20 families. But, we have room for up to 30.  

The kids were happy to smile this morning even though, we had gotten them up so early!  Here is a new picture of them in their uniforms. 

Thank you Brookside Wesleyan Kids  for your continuous support in our children's education.

Church

Today we had church. We have been meeting in our house because the community hall is getting air conditioning. It was a special time of us looking at the story of David and the reconciliation that God offered him after he realized he has sinned.

Pray for our teens. Tonight we offered them the opportunity for us to take them ton Influencers Conference. Pray that they would be willing to come. I really think that it would be great for them to experience a big room of christians and great speakers! And, I believe that they all have hearts that are ready listen and hear God right now. Please continue to pray that they would commit to coming and that God would work in their hearts! 

 Afterwards we all sat around and shared life together. It was a very special evening. Brayden was so tired that he fell asleep 5 minutes into church! He has been exhausted recently! 

Sausage Sizzle- AGAIN!

Today we had another sausage sizzle. It was a great opportunity for our church families and our kids club families to pull together and work side by side.  We had 14 volunteers. Chris stayed all day running the BBQ. I had to jet out for 2 hrs. for our "Australian Cousins" bday party,  but I then returned. :)   It was 38 degrees and everyone worked so hard!  When we got home 12 hours later, we could barely move.  But, we successfully sold atleast 800 sausages.  During the day the work doesn't seem so hard because we had great company and people to chat with and catch up with and to share Jesus with! A bunch of the parents have not become Christians yet, so it was neat to share the special conversations that we did have.   What I think is most evident about the Landsdale Community Wesleyan Methodist Church is that we are hard workers willing to do anything to reach the community! Pray with us that this year 2013 will be a YEAR of people coming to Christ like we haven't seen before!   God has so much in store for us and is blessing us financially with these fundraisers so that we can build a foundation for the WEsleyan Methodist Church in LAndsdale. So, that we can have a permanent place to say "THIS" is the church!   And, through our church, kids club, and youth group, we are going to reach this community!

ANNIVERSARY

December 30th was our anniversary.We spent the day preparing for our Sunday night church service.  We are still working through "The Story" .   It was a lovely service ! Then after church we all stuck around and chatted and had biscuits and tea. 

Don't worry.. we did do something special for our anniversary. The next day we rode the train into town and went to the Hopman Cup with is professional tennis. The seats were cheap and it was airconditioned and it was a beatiful day inside the new "Perth Arena". Outside the temperature was 40 degrees and rising! So, we were very thankful it was inside! :)

Boxing Day

In Australia we have added an Australia family as our own.  They came to perth over 15 years ago with a vision for the Wesleyan Methodist Churst to be started in the state of Western Australia.    They are the couple we came to Australia to partner with. The Hotchkin family is truly special and important to us. We couldnt' survive living so far away without them.  But, Boxing day was spent having our "family" Christmas. It was alot of fun and they are all Christians so it is just beautiful to sit and enjoy one another's company and rejoice in the fact that Jesus came for us! Jesus came to earth to save us! And, he was the greatest gift ever given to us. What a special, special, day! and, they had TURKEY!!!!!  We rarely ever eat turkey in Australia because it is too expensive. But, it was so good.. and had gravy too!!!   We swam in the pool and it was a beautiful day.

Christmas Day

Christmas Day is always a little interesting when you are a missionary overseas.   It is the big holidays when you miss your family most.   However, with Skype our kids were able to open their prezzies with grandma and grandpa and say hello to everyone. Each year our kids just get one present from us. Makayla desperately wanted a new baseball glove. So, she got a pink one. Dawson wanted a blue scooter and Brayden wanted a bike. They were all pretty easy things to obtain, but the excitement on their faces when they opened them was endless.  Luckily we were invited to our friends house to spend Christmas with their family.  This family is one of the newest families to our church and Melissa and Debbie have been friends for quite a while.  But, it was a beautiful time with them. The temperature was warm. Melissa made yummy ice cream cakes.  She made a violet crumble one and a strawberry mars bar one. They were yum! We headed to our friends house with our bathers  and food to share in a wonderful morning.   Afterwards we headed to another friends house to share dinner.  It was a lovely day. I have posted some pictures below. The thing we loved most about this day. Was that we were able to share with them the true meaning of Christmas. Both the families we had lunch with, the husband is not a believer yet. But, we pray every day that God will grab a hold of their lives and that they would be changed.  Their children all believe in Jesus and have asked Jesus to be their Lord and Saviour. Pray with us that 2013 would be the year God grabs a hold of their hearts.

Christmas Eve Service

Today Chris and I did all of our last minute christmas shopping and prepared for a special Christmas Eve Service. We had two new families come tonight and it was a sepcial evening of focusing on the true meaning of Christmas.   Was really special. melissa sang a special song and you could just tell that god's presence was in the room and everyone's hearts were in the right place. Was a very special evening.

Sunday Service with a Christmas Dinner

Today I got up bright and early and started cleaning our house.  Because the community hall is currently under construction work, church has to meet at our house.  So, I spent most of the day cleaning and we celebrated Chris's Birthday with a big lunch and some friends over from 12:00-4:00 and then we had church from 5:30-6:30 and then we had the church Christmas party and dinner after that.  It was alot of fun and we did a white elephant christmas gift exchange. It was alot of fun. And, we also have a fun tradition of a steering wheel device that comes back every year. So, it was really funny! The kids all got things that they loved and one of the most loved used gifts was a box full of bunnies.  The kids went nuts when they saw it.  So, it was a great day and we had a new family come tonight to church that had only come once before so that was very exciting.  Pray for Amanda and her husband scott and their three children!  

Chris's Birthday and the Bunnings Sausage Sizzle

Today was Chris's Birthday and we also had  the Bunnings Sausage sizzle.  It wasn't too warm... But, it was hot enough. We got up and started hauling a whole trailer full of food to the shop.  WE set up our display and everything and away we started cooking. We had people buying sausages befor it was even 8:00am.   By noon we we had run out of drinks and ice and onions and were sending people out to pick up more stuff!   WE then ran out of sausages and were able to get more.  But, amazingly we never ran out of rolls!  We sold just over 1200 sausages.  This is a good step in the right direction towards  helping our churches building fund!   We had many parents from the church who came and helped and it was a wonderful day.  Chris and I pulled in the drive way at 7:30 ran and got changed and went to our friends house to share "Christmas" with them and pick up our kids.  We had a lovely dinner with them and were very spoilt.  God has truly blessed us with some amazing people in our church!  Thank you for all your prayers today!

Preparing for the Sausage Sizzle

Today Chris and I ran all over Perth picking up sausages, and onions, ketchup, mustard, barbecue sauce, serviettes, and about 600 cans of soda.   We were preparing for the Sausage Sizzle that will be tomorrow. We spent lots of time sorting eskies and putting drinks in order and loading it all into our trailer so that we would be ready at 6:00am  tomorrow morning to go sell sausages.  This is one of the biggest fundraisers our church does. And, this afternoon Bunnings called and told us we really needed to bulk up what we were brining because they felt we needed 1200 sausages. So, we upped our orders and bought more supplies so that we would not run out. We sign a contract with the Store that we will sell sausages until 4:00pm no matter what.  But, with it being so close to Christmas and I know how stores are in Perth, They run out all the time of basic needs.  And, I am really worried that if we run out of rolls we will not have any way of getting more.   So, we are praying and ask you to pray with us that we have enough rolls, no matter what!!!

Also this afternoon Chris and I were able to sneak off for 2 hours and go see a movie for his birthday! Was very special!

Brayden Still complaining of a tummy ache!

This morning I took Brayden back down to the doctor's as he is still complaining of a tummy ache and we were up all night again with him tossing and turning.   The doctor still insists he is fine and there is nothing wrong with him. Please pray that Brayden would get over whatever this is and be all better! Especially the sleeping through the night again would be nice.

Landsdale's Got Talent

Today Kids Club was invited to come to school and sing in the talent show .  Today is also the VERY last day of school this year!  They did a great job and sang a song by Hillsong called "Born is the King". It was beautiful and Makayla played a CHristmas carol on the piano.  They did VERY well!  I was so proud of them!!! I am trying to download the video but, it seems to be too large. I will keep trying though.

REPORT CARDS

Just have to take a momen here and tell you how proud of our kids we are...   They work very hard and love attending school. But, they did very well on their report cards.  In australia reporting is differnt.  an
A= 18 months ahead
B= 6 months ahead
C= right where you need to be and ready to go to next grade

Makayla received an A in Math and English and Drama.  She got B's in Social and Economic, Music, Gym, and C's in Italian and Science.
Dawson received an A in Gym, B in Drama and Music and Art, and C's in Math, English, Science, Social and Economic. Very proud of them.

Pray for Makayla as she has been put into a 4/5 grade  class next year and with that will come a 1 to 1 computer program. So, she will need to be right on her game to keep up next year.  Dawson has been given a lovely 2nd grade  strict teacher for next year which will be fantastic! So, we now are officially on school holidays starting tomorrow till February 1st.

Can't believe another year is over....

Playgroup Christmas Party

Today was another crazy busy day. We got up at 6:00am and headed down to the community hall to start setting up for the Playgroup Christmas party.  The coordinator had quit back in September and I thought it couldn't be that hard to organize so we pick this responsibility up this year as well. I was already on the committee and teach preschool on Monday morning for playgroup and I didn't want our 200 families to miss out this year on their christmas party.  So, Chris made sausages and worked really hard all day. The church was represented and sold sausages to provide a service. We didn't make heaps of money off of it, but it was more the fact of us being there to serve.  The Party was fantastic and had no hickups. I had moved it back to the community hall from a different location and people raved about how great it was.  The kids did really well watching after themselves. And, Brayden only spent half the day laying in the shade tent resting because his tummy still hurts. But, all in all it was a wonderful morning. By 2:00 we were home and getting ready for church. 

At 4:00 we were back out the door and headed to church for our Kids Club finale!  The Kids Club sang and performed for their parents and said their memory verses and shared what they had learnt on the kids camp and really shined! I was SOOO proud of them. They received certificated for participating  this year in Kids Club. And, I was really spoilt by a gift they gave chris and I for all we had done for the year! We were truly blessed!!!  What a great night.  Unfortunately I couldnt' find my camera. So, I don;t have any photos! After church we had a dinner and then the community hall we meet in is getting air conditioning so we had to empty our storage closet. So, Chris and I then spent the next three hours hauling everything home to our garage!   Hopefully in the next two weeks we can find a place fr it to all go.

Celebrating Dawson's Birthday

 Yesterday was Dawson's 7th birthday but with the Carols on we promised him we wouldn't miss it and we would celebrate on Saturday.   So, we got up at 7:00am to take him to his tball game.  Dawson hit two home runs and had a few outs and some great snags and tags. He played really well and then went home to get ready for his party that was at 2:00 an hour south of where we live. We went to a Perth Heat game which is the professional team for perth. But, baseball is not super big yet so the stadium is quite small and the stadium seats about 700.  The lady who was in charge of group bookings was an American intern and she gave us all the party perks for free!    With us always doing church functions and throwing parties for everyone else. We have always committed and with Dawson's birthday  being so near to Christmas we have always committed that we would STILL always celebrate his birthday on or as close to on as we could. We don't want him to miss out and feel that church or missions work always comes first and that he is unimportant. So, this year we invited 8 friends from his tball team to meet us at a game with their families if they would like. It was alot of fun and Dawson had  a great time. Funny thing is, the tball club handed out tickets to the same game we had invited everyone to, so the game was free!!! God was definitely watching over us.  And, everyone had a great time.   We cooked sausages on a barbecue and were able to take drinks and chips into the game. So, it was a really fun afternoon and we got home about 9:00pm.
 Dawson was also able to go down on the field and do the dizzy run as well as doa  few different things.

Carols in the Park

It is now 11:30pm and Chris and I have just sat down for the first time today!  The Carols went really well. If we were to critique it from our point of view we are going to need a stage next year and a bigger sound system.  We had at one point counted over 800 people sitting. But, believe that there were well over 1000 that came and attended because there were people everywhere. The Kids Club did a skit of the nativity and sang "It's Christmas" and "Joy to the World.  We had minute to win it games, dance troops, hip hop troops, school choir, community soloist, vendors, jumpy castle, amusement rides, fairy floss, ice cream, sausages, drinks, all kind of fun stuff for people to participate in.  On our feed back forms everyone rated it between an 8 and a 10. But, we really struggled with the wind and it affected our sound. But, also it was such a big crowd that we will have to have a bigger sound system next year.  It went REALLY well. And, it was an awesome evening for everyone to know how much our church cares about families, and individuals, and the community, and most importantly how much we love God! We had three singing sets for the evening where we sang Christmas Carols and had such a fantastic time.  The church people worked tirelessly to pull the evening off as well as a few community groups helped as well such as playgroup and the Landsdale Residents Association.  Praise God that we were able to share and celebrate the birth of our King! What a way to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas!!!   Thank you to everyone who prayed God was definitely present and working in peoples hearts and lives. Thank you for your continuous prayers for our family.

Brayden Still sick

The last 24 hours have been insane.  Brayden has still been un able to sit or lay still and is constantly complaining of a tummy ache.   Last night we had band practice for the carols from 6-11pm. and, then Brayden and I hopped in the car and headed to the emergency room.   We were seen by a few doctors who felt that it was probably lymph nodes in his tummy. He doesn't have a fever and has not other symptoms other than an unbearable tummy ache. So, the observed him till morning and then we drove back home.  When I got home it was Dawson's Birthday! So, I made 24 cupcakes as quickly as I could and threw icing on them and took the kids to school! Needless to say I got no sleep and tonight will be the Carols. So, adrenaline will just have to kick in and keep me busy today!

BRAYDEN SICK!!!! PRAY!!!!

Of course on a week when everything is crazy and insane in our house add to the top of the list a three year old with the flu! Poor boy is tossing and turning and rolling around because his tummy hurts and nothing helps.  And, I am asking everyone to pray that NO ONE else gets it!   That would be horrible... Please pray... this is when living far from family is impossible. We were already totally extended this week with everything and now a sick boy. Please pray he sleeps, and gets better immediately and that he is in nooo more pain!

Carols in the Park

This week is probably the busiest week of the year for Chris and I.  I am actually going to literally write down what we are doing and when so you can be praying. Because only God can pull all this off!!!

YEsterday was insane.. We had playgroup graduation party fr brayden and then I had piano lessons, and friends over for dinner, and then we packed the PMH bags, and then Makayla and I went to deliver them and our dear friends needed help. So, we didn't get to bed till 2AM!  So, pray that we can handle all the overloading and staying up late we will get between now and then!

Friday 3-9 Carols in the Park  Chris and I are running around like crazying trying to finalize all the loose ends..   We are having to pick up jumpy castles, fairy flss machines, organize prizes, and minute to winit games, music, and then acts that our kid are participating in. We are expecting about 500-700 people!    Pray we get a guitarist.. Our guitarist has been called out to work!!! So, we need a guitarist and atleast a drummer by Friday.  Santa cancelled too! But, God provided another one.  

Saturday Tball- 8-11
Saturday Dawson's Bday party 4:00pm

Sunday -  7-12   Playgroup Christmas Party- Melissa has been organizing the community Playgroup Christmas party.  And, they will be providing christmas for 150 kids and their families.  The church is running a sausage sizzle at it. So, pray that we sell sausages but that also we get people to show up and help.

Sunday 4:00- Kids Club awards night at church. 

Monday Morning- Final Preschool Class for the year! So, lot's of planning has gone into that!

Tuesday-   Kids Club is performing for the public school!!!

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL for our children in 2012!!!

Pray for our children.   They help us do sooo much.

Princess Margaret Children's Hospital - Cancer Ward.

Dear Prayer Partners,
Be praying today for the Children on the Cancer ward in 3B at Princess Margaret Children's Hospital.  Today is their Christmas party.  Some of these children may not even make Christmas day. But, Kids Club participated in helping throw them a Christmas party.  They have been making christmas cards for weeks and it was the thought of us giving something that we really wanted the kids club children to experience.  We weren't able to go and participate  because the kids are so sick that they cannot have germs etc. We did however make Activity bags that will be given to the children at their Christmas party.  God was so good to us and we were able to put in a playdoh, pencil, eraser, balloon, stickers, candy cane, bubbles, and a handmade Christmas card from the Kids Club kids. They looked fantastic. We had 7 adults come last night and we put on the face masks and we put on gloves and made the bags up so hopefully they are pretty germ free. But, pray today that as the kids receive these bags, that they would feel God's presence and be at peace. 

Soul Survivor Kids Camp

This past weekend was Soul Survivor Kids Camp!
Chris and I took 11 kids and we drove an hour out into the Australian Bush!   We went to a campground owned by the DEC called the Perth Hills Discovery Centre.   For most of the kids this was the first time they ever put up a tent or went out and camped.  It was REALLY alot of fun and God has blessed us with an amazing group of kids.   The theme for the camp was

ROMANS 10:9

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.



God looked out and provided for us in so many ways.  One of those ways was it had rained earlier on in the week.  And, so we were actually allowed to have a campfire!   So, we did hotdogs and smores. The kids were split into two teams.   They were allowed to name themselves make a song, and a skit. The kids did a fantsatic job and we had SO much fun! They also heard three Bible lessons, hiked, made para survival bracelets, and did some various crafts.   All in all the camp was a huge success. MOST IMPORTANTLY though.  Two of our kids gave their hearts to Jesus on the weekend! Reanna and Holly accepted Jesus into their hearts! What an amazing weekend it was.  Thank you for your prayers! You're prayers made a difference and we believe that your prayers have changed two beautiful lives!   Attached are some pictures from the camp.

Sold! Parsonage on the way for the LCWMC!!!

The official Sold sign has gone up on the block of land the Church will be building a parsonage on.  It is very excitin and house will probably not be finished till atleast August 2013. Pray that the final plans would come together as the house plans are being drawn up!

Working Hard!

The past three weeks to be honest we haven't been updating because we have been on our knees praying, and on the phones calling!   God has just blessed us beyond measure and has proven to us that this is WHERE he wants us to be. God has DEFINITELY called us to Perth, Australia.   For the 2nd time in our 9 years of service with Global Partners we have found our financial account to be in "distress!  But, through pray, and God's might hand.  We were given the date of Thanksgiving to have and extra above and beyond our monthly amount of $15,000 in to Global Partners! Our account was so financially hungry there wasn't anything in it!!! It was actually negative... this was Huge. And, SERIOUSLY we have never seen God move in such a strong way in our lives.   But, as we started to call and share our hearts with pastors and our burdens God spoke to people's hearts! And, the willingness of God's people to pull together was amazing! The Australians are just amazed at how God works miracles and will bring the harvest in when we pray and seek him.   The long hours took a toll on us.   Everyone in our house got pink eye, the flu, and a really bad cold. But, God kept us on those phone and he kept softening people's hearts as we spoke to them over the phone. I also wanted to share with you that the Australians have been giving towards Global Partners to help with this financial drama. So, God is moving in their hearts just as strongly! This is very special! This is the first time they have pulled together and wanted to financially responsible to help.    So, with a very bold voice. I would like to announce that God is the king of our lives and the King of Australia and the King of this world and there is NOTHING, nothing.... that is impossible to Him. And, this truth has been shown, proven and lived to the Australian's that live here in Perth, Australia.

We would also like to thank the amazing team of supporters behind us.  It is such a blessing to know that there are people who believe in us and believe in the mission of what God has called us to and are willing to give beyond imagine when called upon.  We want to say “thank you” so much from the bottom of our hearts for your willingness to invest in the great commission. 

God has blessed us in such a way that we want to inform you that we have met our “crazy” goal of $15,000 and we are advancing on the road toward full funding.   There are two steps really left. So, don't stop praying yet!  Continue to pray.. Because  we still need a few thousand to come in so we are not below the red line.  The Red line is the amount we are to have in our account every month. We also  need to get our faith promise up to 100% this is one major reason our account had been suffering. so, pray with us that Churches and individuals would increase or  come on board and join us in this adventure of reaching Perth for Christ!

 

 

Women's Christmas Card Making Day

Today we had 9 ladies come and get together to make some Christmas cards. We also raised some money for the Women's camp next year. But, it was a fantastic time as we worked together and shared life with one another.  I was really excited because for the first time Laura's Mum Joanne came and participated and she had a fantastic time. Pray that God would give me an opportunity to share Jesus with Joanne. Even, maybe this Christmas! 

Mens Retreat

This past weekend was the Men's Retreat. 11 Men went away and relaxed, ate food, played sports, went car racing, and most important shared God's word.   Chris had the privilege of bringing a series  of  messages about "Being true Disciples" and what that looks like in our lives.  They all came back and had just a little extra inspiration in everything they have been doing!

Pray for the teens...

The teens that we minister to here in our church have been VERY heavy on my heart this last week.    We deal with bi-polar, broken homes, neglect, abuse, anxiety, depression, these all seem to be the "normal" for what teens are dealing with these days. But, would you pray to God would give us the guidance and the words to say to these teenagers.   Some days it feels like we are overwhelmed and we are not sure what God has gotten us into!  But, I know that he has a plan and I know that He has a way. Pray that Chris and I would have the ears to listen and the wisdom, guidance and words to offer them peace.

DBA & Chris away

This weekend, Chris travelled to Melbourne for his first District Board meeting.  It was a two day meeting held at the Kingsley College Facility.  The meetings were very positive and encouraging even though they handled some difficult topics.  Chris was also able to see Dr. Mike Walters once more before he headed back to NY.  It is great to be a part of a district here in Australia that is looking forward to where God is leading them in the coming years.  Chris enjoyed getting to see some of those over east that we normally only see at District Conference once a year.  Thank you so much for your prayers as Chris travelled across the country for these meetings.   While Chris was away I still lead our weekly kids club meeting as well as youth group.   On Saturday Melissa led a children's training session in the City Church.  Pastor Phil led a part on "risk Management" which was necessary for our insurance liscence, but then I was given the opportunity to share with the team of kids workers we have  the steps to leading a child to Christ, and we talked about safety precautions, signing kids in and out, behaviour issues, and lot's of other topics. It was a great afternoon.   Laura one of our teen helpers couldn't believe how much she was responsible for. And, if there was one REALLY good thing that came out of the afternoon she really that God has blessed her with the opporutnity to share Him with the kids and that she DID have the gifts and abilities to do it.   God is really calling up the next generation of kids, teens and young adults to follow him and lead other to Him!  We are just vessels God is using here in Australia to help draw people to Him!   What an honour!

Fun in the Sun

This afternoon we had church in the Park.  It was a wonderful afternoon of family games and activities. But, the whole afternoon was brought together when we gathered together and Chris challenged us as individuals and as the church to Trust in God through the story of Joseph.   There were 4 adults there who had never heard the message before and from speaking to them afterwards it was evident that God is working on their hearts. Pray that their hearts would continue to be softened and that God's word would penetrate their hearts and they would want to accept Jesus Christ as their saviour.   What a wonderful church service!

Mother/Daughter Princess Party

The Mother/Daughter Princess sleepover was a huge success.  We all came together and shared dinner and a craft and watched the Veggie Tales Movie Princess and the Popstar and played games and sat around chatting about the importance of being who God created us to be. It was a lovely  evening that was ended by us all sleeping in our sleeping bags and waking up at 5:30 in the morning to girls running "crazy!".   The Mums were definitely tired, but it was well worth it.  It was a great evening for us to show our girls how much fun they can have being exactly who God created them to be.

The Dad's went bowling and had a fantastic time as well.   As a side note I would like to post that the winners of the Dad and Son's bowling night was Brayden..... a three year old.... :)

Current Praises

Praises

• Praise God that Dawson does not have a dental anaesthetic allergy. Pray that we would find out what he IS allergic too, though
• Praise God district Conference was fantastic. God was there and he was working on our hearts and our lives.
• Praise God the Bunnings sausage sizzle was a huge success! Therefore we are now caught up on our church bills through December! This is huge. We have ALWAYS been behind. So, join us in thanking God!!!
• Praise God we have been able to get together with 8 families so far on the school holidays to share a meal and our lives. Pray that God would bless us with conversations that will open the door to talk about coming to church.
• Praise God the parsonage has been approved by the DBA in principal. Now to get the final show together of plans and ideas and prices and costs

Current Prayer Requests

Prayer Requests

• Pray for the church as we have started the study "The story" Pray that it would penetrate people heart and lives and become a reality to them. Pray that they would be interested in learning and studying and finding out who God and Jesus Christ are.
• Pray for our mum/daughter sleepover and boys bowling night this friday night, October 12th at 6:00pm.
• Pray for our family fun day on October 21st.
• Pray for God to give Chris wisdom and guidance as he was elected onto the DBA for the district. Pray that God would use Him to help forward the ministry of the Southern Australia District
• Pray that Chris and I will build bridges to the parents of the kids club kids.
• Pray that our faith promise would increase IMMEDIATELY. This is serious as last month there wasn't even enough in the account for us to get fully paid. This is a serious problem. We need our support to increase immediately.
• Pray that the one time gifts we receive would increase incredibly. Our account is very low. We need to bring in 21,000 immediately.
• Pray for the church and district board as they are making final decision on putting a parsonage in landsdale.

Dawson's PMH Visit

Today Dawson was a trooper! He had his 3 scrapes, 4 pricks, and 5 needles. And amazingly no reaction.. Therefore, he is NOT allergic to the two most commonly used anaesthetics in the dentist offices here in Australia. So, the good news is, now we can go back to the dentist and get the rest of his work done. :) Bad news is... we don't know what caused the reaction...   But, we were so thankful for your prayes. God was watching over him and especially for him to be so calm and patient.  He had to have each item done 30 minutes apart.  So, he literally sat from 7:00-1:30 and was such a good boy!   I am very proud of him.  

Pray for Dawosn

It was  a year ago Dawson had to be put to sleep and have 5 teeth removed because he had an allergic reaction to a filling in the dentist office at our local school. His reaction was so bad that he had to be taken to an emergency room. And because they could not fix the teeth. The hospital felt it was best to remove them.  And, when he went in we were told, 1 tooth at the hospital and when he came out... They had taken 5....  In January we met with an allergy specialist who felt Dawson had, had a severe allergiv reaction. So, finally they have come up with an appointment slot for him to have his local anaesthetic challenge at the children's hospital in Perth. Please keep him in your prayers Sunday night your time at 8:00pm.

Sausage Sizzle a Success!!!!

The Sausage Sizzle we had on Sunday was a sucess! We were able to sell just over 800 sausages as well as quite  a few drinks. The church had their best fundraiser yet and raised just over $1900.00... Thank you to everyone who prayed for us! We were a little concerned because it was on a public holiday weekend therefore we struggled to get workers. But, we had a steady stream all day of customers and it went really well!  Thank you for all your prayers. This fundraiser will assist the church with paying our Hall Hire fees as well as our Insurance and the district united stewardship fund.  Thank you so much for your prayers.

Sausage Sizzle

Please pray for our church tomorrow as we have a sausage sizzle outside our community Bunnings store.  Bunnings would be the equivalent of lowe's in America. But, at our annual general meeting in August this year we prayed that God would open doors for us to serve the community as well as offer us ways to make some extra income to meet our needs as we grow. And, God brought this event to us.   Bunnings actually called and asked us to fill in for a cancellation the first week in September, and we had families away and had to decline and really felt that they may never call us back. But, a few days later they called and gave us this opportunity. Pray that we would have meaningful conversations with the people who come. Pray that we would be able to sell all of our sausages and drinks.   Pray that we would see this as a way to build a connection to the community through serving food and meeting a need.  Pray that Chris and I will have the energy and strength to work for 16 hrs. straight selling sausages! :)    Thank you so much for your prayers! They are changing lives, here in Australia.

District Conference was wonderful!

Sunday night we arrived safely back in Perth.  District Conference is always kind of a whirl-wind trip. We get on a plane and fly 4-5 hrs. on a red eye flight.  This means that we don't get to sleep on Thursday night! Then we drove 2.5 hrs.  to an island that was REALLY windy and REALLY cold!   After we arrived we were greeted with faces we see once a year.  But, it is WONDERFUL! This is the only contact Chris and I have with the rest of the district.  We soak up the 72 hrs. we are in Melbourne because it is a time for us to catch up, connect and meet, and greet people who share a passion, calling, and a desire to ministers in the Wesleyan Methodist Church of Australia.    We were truly blessed as Rev. Mike Walters from Houghton College was our guest speaker! And, it was extra special because he married Chris and I almost 13 years ago! So, it was extra special.   The weekend was all business meeting except for, in the evenings we would have rallies!    The days were very long! One day we got up at 6:00am and didn't finish until 1:30am!   The week was wonderful and we weren't sure what God was laying on our hearts. But, he has called Chris and I to step forward this year and help with some leadership responsibilities in the district.  With a unanimous vote Chris was elected to the DBMD, and I was elected as the Children's Ministry Director for the district.   This is good because eventually over the next few years, Western Australia will become its own district and we want to make sure we know how effectively run and give leadership and guidance to these positions. So, it will be excellent this year for us to get our feet wet.   Pray though, this will mean extra trips to Melbourne for Chris. he already will have to go in October for a meeting. Pray that the two of us would follow God's direction and that we would successfully do what it is that God wants us to do this year!   The weekend was awesome, and we were truly blessed.   When we returned our kids were a bit stressed out, and worried, and crying over silly things. But, pray that God will strengthen them and show them they do not, need mummy and daddy every second of every day! 

On the weekend we had a memorial service to remember Rev. Ridgeway.   He was an amazing man and at one point the D.S. asked everyone who had been touched by his life to stand, and there was not one person in their chair! He was truly a remarkable follower of Christ who had such a calling to meet people where they were and bring them to a connection and relationship with Christ!   It was truly a remarkable weekend!

District conference

Please pray for The kids we just left them in Perth and they were sobbing when we left. Pray that we will have safe travels and the kids will settle in. Pray that they would be a witness to the families they are staying with. There are 6 people from Perth that have flown to Melbourne for conference. We will be flying Thursday night at 9:00 and flying back to Perth Sunday at 5:30pm.

Dear prayer partners please pray for the Australian church. This morning we heard news that Dr. Jim Ridgeway has past away in the night in his sleep and gone to be with the Lord. he is a very historical Wesleyan Methodist in Australia that has held almost every position. You can read more about him on the wesleyan.org page. He has been a strong leader in the Australian church. He is Karen hotchkin's father. Karen and Phil are our dear friends and our family is part of theirs. Pray for Karen, Phil, Luke, Josh and Dana during this time.

This weekend is also district conference and we will be flying to Melbourne without the kids. Please pray that we will be able to farm our kids out to new families while we are away and originally they were staying with Dana.

Influenza

While we were travelling in the States everyone in perth was down with many different winter flus. We thought we had missed it all, but apparently not. Brayden, Makayla and Myself have had temperatures of 103 above for the past 5 days! We are REALLY unwell, and Makayla has now missed another 5 days of school after missing 4 weeks! So, please pray that we get better! The Dr.s are not giving any medicine, just suggesting rest. So, please pray that we would get over this and that we would start to feel better.

Cowan Volunteer

Tonight Melissa was awared a "Cowan Volunteer" certificate and medal.  This is a medal given by our Member of Parliament and he gives them to people who volunteer in the community and make a difference. Melissa was given it for helping further the local playgroup and children in our local community.   Melissa was not told she was receiving the award. And, so she "rocked" up to her meeting last night not feeling so well, only to be given this award!  And, they took a picture to put in the local paper.  Melissa is hoping it does not "actually"  make the paper as she has been very unwell!  And, was not prepared for such a "glamorous" shot. :)

Rev. Mike Walters

We are truly blessed to have Rev. Mike Walters and his wife Nancy staying with us for the following week.   Rev. Mike actually married Chris and I and baptized me when he was my pastor at the Higgins Wesleyan Church.  But, he has come to perth to teach spiritual formations to all of our churches in Perth. he will be teaching tuesday night, thursday night, and then all day on saturday.  Pray that we would be able to get some people from Landsdale to attend and that God would speak to their hearts.  Pray that Mike and Nancy would stay well while stay with us as we are all sick with influenza.  Pastor Mike will also be preaching at our church on Sunday night the 9th. Pray that we would have a good attendance and that people would come to hear him preach.