Go mulch yourself

June 21, 2018

I’m pretty sure that if I used “weed and feed” on my “lawn,” I wouldn’t have a lawn anymore. Our herb garden, however, is an entirely different matter. I thoroughly weeded the area. I dug down and added planting mix. I weeded again. And then I mulched. I weeded once more, and I added more […]

Why did little Maria die?

June 12, 2018

“It’s pretty cool learning how another culture thinks and acts,” Andrew Ferguson told me. “Until it costs the life of a child.” Maria, like many children in the Tepehuan village where the Fergusons lived, caught a bug that was going around. But unlike others, Maria did not get better. Maria probably would have recovered if […]

Put granny in a bag

May 31, 2018

Wapane wanted to hear God’s Word, but the teaching was too far away. The Moi woman was too old to walk to another village in Asia-Pacific’s rugged Papua Province. Her plight literally became Ginogui’s burden: He put her in a large string bag, slung her over his shoulder, and carried her for hours over narrow, […]

Let’s talk moonshine

May 22, 2018

Julie and I have just returned from our annual visit to a great little retreat center in North Georgia that is free for pastors and missionaries. This year our visit was … well, strange, with highs and lows and a few weird things thrown in. Like moonshine. North Georgia has a lot of attractions, like […]

Struggling to capture the essence of Africa

March 3, 2018

Africa is inspiring and overwhelming. I feel inadequate – incompetent, even – to capture the grandeur, the scope, the beauty, the colors of this land. We spent a little time in Dar Es Salaam, on the east coast of Tanzania. We flew to Mbeya, on the southeast of Tanzania, and drove to Keratu, on the […]

At work in Africa

February 21, 2018

I think that in the days before I left home for Africa, I must have said to Julie at least three times, “I like being overseas. It’s the getting there I’m not fond of.” Suffice it to say, that was even more true this time. But I must say, being rerouted onto Emirates was a […]

Bound for Africa

February 15, 2018

This weekend I leave for more than three weeks in Africa. And as I said before, I’ll be taking on a different role on this trip: photography and video. I’ve taken photos and captured video of our organization’s work before. For instance, I gathered the story and photos when I went to Thailand a year […]

Updates on ministry, son

January 25, 2018

Heading back to Africa At the end of February I’ll be going back to Africa. This time, I’ll be in East Africa to bring back stories of God working through an alliance of missionaries and local churches to begin the long process of making disciples among unreached people groups. Please pray for the details to […]

Son awaiting surgery

January 8, 2018

Thank you so much for your prayers and notes of encouragement. It seems amazing to me that our son Evan is on the (long) road to (apparently) a complete recovery after hitting a rock headfirst while skiing last week. He’s been sitting up, eating, walking, talking clearly and remembering everything. He’s supposed to be transferred […]

I don’t paint fingernails

January 4, 2018

The cry from down the hall chilled me to the bone. “Bapa, do my nails!” my 4-year-old granddaughter called. I don’t do nails. I had already told her that Bapa – what she’s called me since before she could say Grandpa – doesn’t do makeup. That was when she called me into her room and […]