At home in Pioche

Well, it's been some time since our last post. Some of this is due to the time spent in traveling, unpacking, and settling in but most of the delay is because, until now, we have not had internet service.

Thank you for your prayers for our travel. The Lord was gracious in that we saw no snow or rain to speak of as we traveled. We were thrilled to take a little of Fort Worth with us by way of grafitti on the back of the rental truck. Can you see "boom" written on the back of the truck in the picture below?

Our feisty cat, Callie, traveled like a trooper. We debated whether to keep her inside the small cat carrier while traveling or let her roam about the vehicle while in route. Thankfully, she handled the freedom of being outside the carrier well and even seemed to enjoy sitting inside it while the car was moving.

To our surprise, she seemed to understand the routine of entering the carrier so she could be brought inside each night we stopped! As we stopped for breaks here and there we were cautious to open the doors carefully so she wouldn't escape. However, at one point on a remote piece of I-40, Callie lunged out of the car as we stopped for a break. We thought we'd never see her again but, by the Lord's grace, Callie simply froze where she landed and we scooped her up and put her back inside.

The first Sunday we were here was Easter Sunday. Mitch preached from 1 Cor. 15:1-19 to explain the importance of Christ's resurrection. Last Sunday was a service of installation for the new pastor with the Director of Missions from the Southern Nevada Baptist Association bringing the message.

There was a community Easter egg hunt at the school on the morning before Easter. Pioche Fire Department volunteers picked up kiddos in the department's fire trucks. The church's deacon is a volunteer fireman and arranged for the old Mack truck to pick Nicole up. Nicole thought this was cool and she earned $3 by discovering money inside some of the plastic eggs.


One of our prayers for our move was for Nicole's transition in her new school. Saturday night before the first Monday of school we ate dinner at the local pizza place & deli in Pioche. That same night one of Nicole's classmates had come to eat pizza, too. We got acquainted, ate dinner together, exchanged phone numbers, and saw the Lord at work in helping Nicole become familiar with a classmate before school began. The picture at left is Nicole with her new friend just after Nicole's first day of school.

Nicole also started girls' softball the first week of school. This has created more opportunities to get to know people in the community. Mom has also been drafted to help during a couple of practices. We're sure this will not be the last you'll hear about Nicole and softball, especially since the games go into May. Keep watching the blog for updates and pictures.

This past Saturday Nicole had an opportunity to ride a horse at the home of one of our church members. She's only been on a horse one other time several years ago and, in her opinion, she was long overdue. Now if she could just figure out a way to own one of these, she'd be happy!

Thank you for your continued prayers for us and for the ministry at Berean Baptist Church. Pray for our church to grow--both qualitatively and quantitatively. Pray for Berean potentials--community members we meet. Pray for our witness in the community--as a family and as a church. Pray for open doors to speak the truth of Christ to a largely Mormon community.

We love you all and we'll keep you posted.

Nevada or Bust

We've finalized the details of our moving plans. Next week, we'll begin filling all those boxes we've been collecting (see our post of February 7). Jane's final day at work will be Friday, March 14. On Saturday, March 15 we'll fill a 24 ft. moving truck with everything we own. We'll go to church that next morning and head out for Nevada just after lunch on Sunday the 16th. After 1,378 miles or so on the road, countless stops for food and other necessities, and a couple of nights in cheap motels, we hope to arrive in Pioche. We hope to begin settling in before Easter Sunday, March 23. Mitch is excited to be able to bring the Easter message that Sunday. Our Pioche address will be: P.O. Box 308, 1 Baptist Drive, Pioche, NV 89043. The church/parsonage phone is 775-962-5886. We'll have Pioche local cell phone numbers soon.

Would you pray for us? Pray for our mobile home to sell before we depart. Pray for safety as we travel (Mitch will drive the moving van, Jane will follow in our vehicle, and Nicole and Callie the cat will be in one vehicle or the other). Pray for our wonderful new church home and family. We are excited to be able to begin what the Lord has called us to do.

We'll keep you posted.