On Monday, we made the long drive all the way to Green Bay, Wisconsin, and a gracious family invited us to stay with them while we were in the area. Ari and I were able to see my oldest son Malachi (who is up there working for the summer) and visit with some of our other good friends as well. I was invited to give the message for the Bible study Tuesday night at The Barn Fellowship. It had been a long time since we were able to make it to The Barn; we had a wonderful time of fellowship there.
We got up at four the next morning and made the long drive back to Minneapolis to get on our flight home. In all, we traveled over 2600 miles by plane, and 995 miles by car over six days. God was faithful to provide every step of the way! What an amazing blessing! In addition to seeing many of our old friends, we were able to connect with new ones. We are so grateful for every one of you!
When we arrived home, we found out that Cheri wasn't feeling well, and I ended up taking her to the emergency room the next day. God had given her enough strength to get through taking care of the family while I was gone. She ended up spending the night in the hospital for observation. We decided to take her to the same healthcare system that took care of me and my bad gallbladder (which is a different hospital from the one that has treated Cheri in the past). These new doctors came up with a completely different diagnosis than we have heard before, and now through their care, Cheri seems to be doing much better! Please pray that we can finally leave these health struggles behind. It is so hard to see your best friend/wife feeling so badly.
In that week's time, we had such high highs and low lows. I can't imagine going through things like this without Jesus. Times like this teach us that if we base our happiness on what happens in this life, then we are setting ourselves up for discouragement and disappointment. We need to recognize Jesus as the root of our joy and happiness; otherwise we will be easily swayed by life's ups and downs. Jesus promised to never leave us nor forsake us, and that is something worth clinging to whether you're happy or sad!
Thank you so much to everyone who has been supporting us either by prayer or financially! Without you guys, trips like this wouldn't be possible!