Travel Ahead

We are nearing the end of our time in California. We have visited 15 churches and will visit our 16th, Tujunga Open Bible, on Sunday morning. We plan to hit the road following lunch on Sunday. Please pray for our final service and for safe travel for the next few days.

Where's the Cool Car?

Our son and his wife loaned us the use of their car while we are in the US traveling from church to church. Thank you Mark and Nadine!

Their son Nate calls it his "cool car," so from time to time we send pictures to him showing where his "cool car" is. Here are some pictures from our travels in California.

These pictures show the "cool car" (and the cool Grandpa) in front of In-N-Out burger, at Donner Pass, the Bonneville Salt flats, and the Pacific Ocean.

Tijuana Fun

We are enjoying our time in Tijuana, tagging along with the team from the Open Bible Church in Spirit Lake, Iowa. We have visited orphanages and helped the kids with crafts. We have fed the homeless downtown.

We have visited men's rehab centers and watched men respond to the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We have enjoyed watching the reactions of audiences as they watch the drama and puppet shows put on by the Spirit Lake team. We have prayed over the lots where the "Love Tijuana" events will be put on next week.

We have also enjoyed being with missionaries Mike and Cathy Brandt and Lawrence and Bertha Kelly. The food (including authentic Mexican tacos and ice cream) and fellowship have been great. Thanks for letting us stay with you this week!

(See our previous post for pictures of the house the team from Iowa Falls built last spring.)

Iowa Falls House

This week during our stay in Tijuana, Mexico, we were able to visit a house that a group from Iowa Falls built for a family here last spring. This tiny, two-bedroom house has become a much-loved home for this family and they gladly showed us around.

The Iowa Falls team left some extra money for the family and they used it to buy kitchen cabinets that they installed themselves. The family also bought and installed floor tiles.

It was wonderful to visit a home that was provided by the kindness and hard work of some of our friends from Iowa Falls, Iowa. God bless you, Iowa Falls!

Puente de Amistad

We are in Mexico! Since we were so close to Mexico, we accepted an invitation from Mike and Cathy Brandt to join them and Lawrence and Bertha Kelly at the Puente de Amistad base in Tijuana. This afternoon Cathy met us in San Diego and took us into Mexico. We will be spending this week working with a group from the Spirit Lake, Iowa Open Bible Church. We look forward to a great week! Hopefully pictures will follow.

Southern California

We are itinerating in southern California (that is, going from church to church reporting what God is doing and asking for funds for Hungarian INSTE). We are seeing a lot of this part of the country including a lot of freeways! But we are seeing awesome beauty, too, including this picture we took in Palm Desert. Gorgeous!

Continue to Pray for Hungary

It has been nine days since a wall of a toxic waste reservoir burst in western Hungary, causing a flood of toxic red mud to flood two towns, killing 7 people, injuring over 150 more, making a tributary of the Danube River lifeless and causing the towns to become uninhabitable. Clean-up efforts are still in progress, but it will be a very long time, if ever, before life can return to normal in that part of Hungary.

Thankfully, none of our Open Bible or INSTE people have been directly affected by the spill, but it is undoubtedly indirectly affecting the entire country. Thank you to all of you who have been praying for Hungary at this time. Please join with us as we continue to pray for our second home.

Sunrise, Sunset

Traveling from church to church sharing what God is doing in Hungary and meeting wonderful friends, both old and new is a lot of fun. But that is not all the fun we are having. We get to see some fun things, too, like when we stopped at this intersection--the intersection of Sunrise and Sunset in Fair Oaks, California.

Here's a little closer view of the street signs: Sunset Avenue ...

and Sunrise Blvd.

There have been days in my life when I was so busy that I felt like my sunrise and sunset intersected. And yes, that song is going through my mind, too!

Levi at home!

Our grandson Levi was allowed to go home with his parents yesterday! Praise the Lord! His next surgery is scheduled for the end of the month, but until then, his parents can care for him at home! We are all so very thankful for what the Lord is doing for him.

On a sad note, Paul and Kate's beloved dachshund, Plumper, died yesterday before they were able to get home. The little dog had chewed off and swallowed a piece of his leash. The piece was lodged in his intestine and had to be removed surgically. He did not recover from the surgery.

Paul and Kate have been on an emotional rollercoaster the past week. Thank you to all of you who have been praying for them.

The Latest on Levi

Thanks for praying for our new grandson Levi. His first surgery was a success! He still has three or more surgeries ahead of him, but they will be at about four weeks and about three months. As soon as Levi is eating well, he will be allowed to go home with his parents until his next surgery. We thank the Lord for Levi's progress. Please keep praying for him.