Wordless? Wednesday

It wasn't 40 days...

...but it was beginning to feel like it! I honestly wondered if the rain was ever going to end, We are so blessed and fortunate to have survived the Flood of 09 - as the media is calling it. We live far enough from Atlanta that we have escaped the worst of the damage. We count our blessings as we still have our home, our belongings and most importantly, our family. We pray for many of the precious families in Atlanta that have no flood insurance, do not sit in a flood plain and have lost ALL their material belongings, and some even lost family members. It has been incredible to see the communities surrounding Atlanta to pull together and help each other out. The Christian radio station has also set up a system on Faceb**k that allows people to post their needs and others to post what they have to give. We serve an awesome God who encourages Christians to serve and sacrifice in times of need. We also survived the dreaded Swine Flu in our household. Oh yes, the scary H1N1 arrived and left quickly. Only three of the family members were sick, the other two escaped it for now. I do think we will all be getting seasonal flu shots this year. As much as I dread the needle, I dread the flu even more! My neice's birthday is this weekend, on the opposite side of Atlanta that we live on. Our usual route to get there is currently shut down and covered in water. So we are praying that we can find alternate routes to make it to her party!

Bon Voyage Benin Team

Our church has adopted a people group in Benin, West Africa. The Mahi people are an unreached people group and with just one missionary couple for the entire country, it is very difficult to reach all the villages. So our church has committed to be missionaries to this country. It is really so exciting to see how God is going to use the ordinary people of our church to reach lives of people in villages that might not otherwise hear about the love of Jesus. Tonight we sent off our second team to Benin. This group is quite special to us as many close friends are on this journey. However, for Gracie, it hits especially close to her heart. Her Sunday School teacher, Mrs. Kathy, is on her way to Africa for the first time. Gracie has heard her talk about this trip for many months and listened to Mrs. Kathy's fears of the bed bugs and huge roaches but also her excitement for getting to tell people about Jesus. We are soooo excited that our church has started a blog to help us follow along and witness the work taking place over there. God willing, when technology is available, they will be able to post pictures and tell us about their experiences as they travel to some of these desolate villages. If you think about it, will you please pray for our "ordinary" missionaries as they embark on a life changing journey to Benin, Africa? And if you want to see missions in action go here!

This wonderful man (in burgandy) is responsible for the incredible mission opportunities our church engages in every year. You'll never meet another man like Bubba Sawyer! He is truly a man after God's own heart!

Many, many people turned out to say Bon Voyage to the Benin Team. Our youth minister is on this trip to Benin so the entire youth group turned out to send Miss. Audra off. These three girls know first hand the joy that Africa holds, they give up a month of their summer to minister at an Orphange in Zambia!

Wordless Wednesday