Trusting in the Silence

One of the classes I'm taking at the seminary is called "Communication in Ministry". Our assignment this week is to give a 5-minute talk on some turning point in our lives. I just wrote my talk tonight, and thought you all might enjoy reading it. Blessings to all of you as you trust the Engineer. --shelley.


Turning Point: Trusting in the Silence


From 1987-1990, I lived and did mission work in Taipei, Taiwan. I was single, and it was such an exciting time in my life. I was teaching English everywhere to children 3 years old to college girls to a lady over 60. I was involved in a ministry to young adults that grew from 15 people to over 100 people in three years. I was leading Bible studies, working in a trading company, sharing Christ with people, learning Chinese, experiencing another culture, and thoroughly enjoying it all.

Everything was going well, but I slowly began to sense that the Lord might be moving me somewhere or making some kind of change. I really hoped to stay in Taiwan longer. I felt like God might want me to go back to America. I applied to be a student in an intensive Chinese language program in Taipei. I prayed, “Lord, if I don’t get into this program, I’m going to take it that You want me to go back home.” I remember the day I got the letter saying that I was not admitted into the program. “Wow,” I thought. “God wants me to go back to America.”

I had no idea why God wanted me to go back home. My pastor in Taipei told me, “Well, maybe God has a man in America for you to marry.” I said, “Maybe, but I’m happy being single.” I wasn’t hoping for marriage. I had no direction from God. But I just felt certain God was leading me back to America.

So, I left Taipei, I shipped boxes of my things back to America, I packed my suitcases and bought my ticket for home. I left so many things I loved in Taipei: my friends, my ministry, my language studies, my Bible studies, the exciting city life, the Chinese culture. And I cried so many tears saying goodbye. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.
And I went back to my home with my parents in America. I had no job. I didn’t even know where to start looking for work. I felt so out of place. Everything around me seemed so trivial and unimportant. I cried easily and often. And the worst thing of all is that God seemed so very far away. He had always seemed so close to me, and now when I needed Him the most, I couldn’t sense His presence. I couldn’t hear His voice. I couldn’t see what He was doing. I prayed and prayed, asking Him to please show me which way to go, but I felt nothing. I saw nothing. I felt like the Lord had brought me back and just dropped me without any explanation.


One night I was talking and crying with my Dad, and he said, “Shelley, sometimes it is darkest right before a corner. Keep trusting. I think there is a corner coming…and then you’ll see more and have more direction. It will be brighter. You have to trust and wait.”

So, I did. I decided to trust God even if I couldn’t see Him, hear Him, or feel Him. I knew I was still in His hands. I just took things one step at a time. I began to look for a job, and I got a job as a news reporter at a radio station. In church, I saw one Asian in our whole church. I quickly noticed him since I had just come back from Asia. His name was Huy Merritt, and he had just moved to our city the same month that I came back. He and I became friends and began leading a Campus Crusade for Christ group at a local college. We also started working with the youth in our church. We started going to a new singles’ group together. We started taking walks and playing tennis together.

We fell in love, and well...that's a whole new talk! But in 1993, we were married.

Corrie Ten Boom says that when you are on a train and it goes through a dark tunnel, you don’t jump up and run all over the train yelling, “Where are we going? What is going on??” No. Instead, you sit quietly in your seat and trust the engineer who is driving the train. He knows where you are going, and He will take you safely to your destination.

That’s exactly what happened to me in 1990. I went through a dark tunnel. I didn’t know where I was going. I couldn’t see out the windows. But I learned to sit quietly and wait for the Great Engineer to drive the train and lead me on in the journey. I came through the dark tunnel and saw that it had been a turning point. Now my life was going in a new direction, with a beautiful view out the window. How thankful I am that He is in control!

Huy's summer adventure

Hello! Shelley and I recently celebrated our one year anniversary in the Philippines. I praise God that He sustained and granted us the grace needed as we transitioned from my engineering job and living in the states to attending seminary full-time and doing ministry here in Manila. It has been all that we prayed it would be and much, much more.

While Shelley and the kids were back to the States for a visit during April and May, I had a team internship with the school here in Manila. One of the requirements of the seminary is that all students attend a team internship between the first and second year. The school groups us into teams of seven and puts us in a situation with people from other countries and cultures in a ministry setting so that we learn how to minister as a team, resolve conflicts and trust God to work through us.

Most of the teams work alongside churches but our team was the first team ever to work on the college campus for their internship. My team consisted of 3 Filipinos, 1 Malaysian, 1 Vietnamese, 1 Krygstany, and myself. Here is a picture of our team:
For five weeks, we ministered on two college campuses in downtown Manila. Since it was summer, there was not the normal number of students on the campus, but we still had an opportunity to do one-on-one evangelism and classroom evangelism to larger groups. I was able to do a “Success” seminar using my corporate background and used that as a platform to share Christ with the students. We also concentrated on mentoring, training, and encouraging the existing student leaders so that they would be refreshed to start ministering when school started up again. In this picture I am conducting a training session on "Having a Vision for Making Disciples". We really saw God open doors that only he could do. One of the schools was Philippine Christian University. Trust me when I say that the only thing that was “Christian” about the school was its name. The administration wanted to know why we wanted to come to a Christian school to share the Gospel since they were already “Christian”. I later found out that there were professors and deans that were openly gay and professors who taught that the Bible was not to be believed because it is not true. Hey…that reminds me of a number of the universities in the States! God, in His sovereignty, granted us open access to the campus, and we were able to share the Gospel with many students. God is awesome! Some of these students who made decisions are involved in ongoing discipleship and mentoring. Below is a picture of our team on campus with some of the student leaders that we mentored at PCU. Our team really bonded throughout the internship. Yes, we had conflict and miscommunication, but God used it in each of our lives to help refine us and equip us to better serve Him. Overall, it was a great experience working with the college students and getting to know my teammates on a deeper personal level.

After the internship was over, I was ready to have my family back in Manila. The 7 weeks that Shelley, the kids and I were separated were the longest time we had ever been away from each other. Thank you to all of our friends and family back home who made Shelley and the kids’ visit such a great one. I know that they all felt refreshed after the long visit.

Please pray for us as we start our second year of school and ministry. Thanks for all of your prayers and support this past year. Please keep it up! --Huy

HELLO FROM MANILA!! We're back and beginning our second year!

Hello Dear Friends!

Thank you for checking in on our blog. The kids and I have just returned from our two-month visit back in the States. What a WONDERFUL visit we had with family and friends! Huy had to remain in Manila for a 6-week team internship, during which he and a team of other seminary students lived together in another part of Manila and did ministry on two college campuses. He slept on the floor of their small apartment--(he said he felt something on his foot one night, and kicked a big cockroach across the room!), shared a bathroom with four or five guys, lived without air-conditioning during the hottest months of the year here, shared the Gospel, and did student leadership training, and had a great time with his team! (Here's Huy and his team below having some fun.) Our next post will have to be written by Huy about this time!

Since we wouldn't have seen much of Huy during those six weeks, we decided it was a good time for our first visit back home. We had an amazing time too! I have used the word "perfect" so often as I've talked about our visit with Huy, that he laughs everytime I say it. So, I'll try to be more creative with my adjectives here! But seriously, "perfect" seems to just be such a...well....perfect word to define our visit. Our weeks back home couldn't have been scripted any better.

When we arrived at the Denver airport, an instant lifetime memory was made as I watched the kids drop their luggage and run into the arms of "Mamoo and Pampa". We all just silently hugged and cried with joy for several minutes. (And here is my Mom (aka "Mamoo") later with all her grandkids at once, although Drew got buried behind Mom)...

Our weeks were full with all the things you'd expect: time--real, live, face-to-face, unhurried time--with my family, reading out on the deck in the early morning coolness, soaking up the spring sunshine with a cup of hot coffee, eating out with so many friends, the kids seeing their friends and having many sleepovers, games late into the night, family BBQs, visiting relatives, college roomies coming in for the weekend, making special foods, enjoying a great steak at the Outback, movies, cookies, sitting out under the stars, unhurried conversations... ...watching my Dad teach Drew how to shave (no, Drew didn't need to at all!) and how to change a flat tire (yes, we did need that!)...meeting with our church's missions pastor, speaking at my Sunday School class, worship, tears, laughter, favorite restaurants, driving through the Flint Hills and appreciating its glory in a whole new way, stopping to watch Canadian Geese landing on a pond... ...walks out to the El Dorado Lake Dam and sitting in the tall grass counting ladybugs with Karis, holding so many new precious babies, finding out that our children's (our our) precious friends, the Pressnell children actually saved snow for our kids to see!...(Isn't that one of the most thoughtful things you've ever heard of?)...and prayers and hugs....and those are just the first things that pop into my head! It was perfect. Our time was a gift from God.



The kids reconnected with friends, and the friendships were all just as solid and close as when they had left. What a blessing that was for the kids. And I think that really helped them in returning to Manila. Below is Drew sharing about our life in Manila with his old AWANA class.

Corrie and Karis baking cookies with cousin Anna, a vacation tradition!
We returned to Manila on May 30. The trip was long and tiring 24-hour, three flight affair, but went very smoothly...amazingly smooth for a Mom alone with four children, 10 pieces of luggage on an international trip. That was definitely an answer to many prayers.
During our visits with everyone back home, many of you told me that you read this blog on a regular basis. That just amazed and blessed me!! Thank you! While back in America, I was obviously busy and felt very connected to loved ones. Being back in Manila, I once again realize our need for prayer support and emotional connection. This blog helps us connect with you all and helps us pray for you and you for us. The Lord is our lifeline, and you all help us "hold the line" through your prayers.

On our first flight (of three) back to Manila, I wrote the following in my journal:

"There have been so many treasures, so many gifts from God, so many countless blessings on this trip. I've tried to stop and savor the moments. I've tried to memorize the scenes, faces, laughter...and I've tried to capture the days here in this journal. I've tried to store these treasures in my heart to take back with me that I might take them out in days and weeks to come...and look them over with a smile or maybe a tear, but always with a full heart of gratitude to my Heavenly Father for His amazing love and goodness to me. It's so rich, and I know I do not deserve an ounce of it. But I thank Him."

Our last week in America was spent in a vacation home my Dad and his brother recently bought in Colorado Springs, something they've wanted to do for probably 30 years. They just bought the house; it had practically no furniture, but my folks, my sister and her kids, and our kids, and I all went there and "camped out" in the new home for the last part of our visit before heading back to Manila.

What a GIFT those last five days were! The busyness of being in Kansas was over, all our special goodbyes and hugs were said, and our family had this wonderful buffer time to relax with family, play volleyball, hike, play games, and sit on the deck breathing in the cool pine air, hear the wind gently whisper through the pines, and gaze upon Pike's Peak.

The day we arrived was a stormy day, and the clouds obstructed the view of Pike's Peak. It was as if it were not there at all...only a plain horizon. It was really amazing to look out and know that the huge, majestic Rocky Mountains were actually there, but to see nothing. Nothing.

"What a great metaphor for life," I thought. There are two realities, aren't there? But one reality is greater, if I may put it that way. One reality is that there are cloudy days when my faith is certainly faith, not sight. It seems there is nothing there. Not even God. It's just bland, colorless, shapeless, empty, hard. But the reality is that there are Rocky Mountains behind those clouds! They are there, and the new morning will reveal them in all their glory. And they are huge. And they are there, no matter what my situation tells me, my feelings tell me, or my eyes tell me. They are there. And they are beautiful.

A homeschool field trip with eternal fruit!

Wow! I honestly thought it had been only two weeks since my last post...and then I just now discover that it's actually been one month already!

The days have been very full and fulfilling. We had company from America (via Taiwan)--our dear friends, the Millers! May and I have been friends since my time in Taiwan, back in the late 80's. Her four children and ours have been friends since birth. We had a great week together! (I put photos of our visit on my Facebook page.)

Now both Huy and I are busy wrapping up our third term at IGSL. Huy is MUCH busier than I because my PIM class is nearly over, and the TESL class I teach concluded last week. Huy, however, has papers, tests, meetings, etc. up to finals week the first week of April. This afternoon he blew in the house, dumped his school books, changed clothes, grabbed a snack, downloaded some info for his Bible study with the Globe engineers, kissed the wife, and flew back out the door, headed to the Globe office. When he gets home after 9 p.m. tonight, he'll have homework until well after midnight. But he never complains about the busyness because he is truly loving everything!

Last week two friends, their children, and my kids and I packed into a vehicle and headed to Manila Harbor where the MV Doulos ship is anchored for the month of March. The MV Doulos is a missions ship, which has traveled the globe since 1977. They have a bookstore on board, and seek to promote intercultural understanding, literacy, peace, and Christianity.

Last Thursday we spent the afternoon on board the ship for a "student day" they were having. We learned about the ship and also the countries of a few of the crew. Here is a man from Tanzania telling the children about his country.
And here is a couple from Brazil sharing about their country's flag, and what each color on the flag represents, and sharing about what life is like for many Brazilian children. After this group time, we were able to browse through the bookstore on deck; then, we really enjoyed a tour of the boat. Our tour guide (on the left) is from Germany. She guided us through very narrow hallways and showed the main parts of the ship to us. Very interesting!The day we were there was extremely HOT. After our tour, we had to wait for one of our friend's tour to conclude (since tours had to be done in small groups). As we waited on the top deck, I walked over to the railing, hoping to find some air movement. I had just walked over there, when a young Filipina girl came over to me. "May I ask you a question?" she smiled. "Where are you from?" Her English was wonderful! She enjoyed making friends with English speakers, and somehow guessed correctly that I was from America! She said that I looked like Celine Dion...which I have heard before. (Not a bad thing at all! Just wished I could sing like her!)

As we talked, I learned that her name was Jannina. She's a 13 year old student with dreams of studying in America. (A dream of so many here.) As we talked, I asked her if she was a Christian, if she had Jesus in her heart. She quickly said, "Yes!" but just as quickly added, "Well, I'm not sure. Sometimes I think I do, but other times I don't." Wow. What an open invitation for sharing with someone! I said, "Hey, I have a little booklet here with me...in English...about being a Christian...how to know if you are a Christian. Would you like to read through it with me?" She was very excited to do so. As we read through the booklet, right there on deck, she would just read it out loud on her own. As we went through the booklet, Jannina said that she had never heard John 3:16 in her life! That amazed me. I don't think I've ever talked with anyone who has said that.

When we got to the part of personal decision and prayer, Jannina happily said that she wanted to pray and give her life to Christ. She was very enthusiastic and happy to pray with me. We had a wonderful visit. Drew snapped these pictures as I exchanged information with her. The kids had been complaining about being so hot and tired...and bored. Afterwards, I asked them wasn't it all worth it just to have that opportunity to share with Jannina ? They had to agree. What an incredible blessing for me! I'm so thankful. I find it difficult whenever we have times of going to public places and sharing with strangers. But after my wonderful time with Jannina, I'm honestly praying, "Let me do that again, Lord! Bring someone else to me!" And I'm looking for natural opportunities to share.

Thanks for praying for us!! Below are some specific requests we have right now. (Please send us your requests! We love to hear from you and pray for you too.)

• Pray for Jannina...for the Lord to be very real to her now...for her to grow in her faith.
• Pray for more sharing opportunities for both Huy and I!
• Pray for Huy and his ministry team as they get ready for their 6-week ministry internship in April and May.
• Pray for Huy as he finishes his third term, with all the papers and tests coming up.
• Pray for the kids and I as we prepare for our coming visit back to America!! :-)

love from all of us to each of you,

shelley for the fam.

Friends and Ministry

One morning when I showed up for one of my classes in the wives' "Partners In Ministry" program, Lusi, a friend from Bangladesh in this photo with me, came over and handed me a package. I was so surprised and touched to open it and find that she had given me one of her traditional Bangladeshi outfits, which I am wearing in the picture!

I asked her what this outfit is called in Bengali, their language. She said, "We call it 'Three Piece'." I had her repeat this a couple of times before I realized that it was really "Three Piece" because the outfit is made up of three pieces. That just made me laugh! Here I was expecting some exotic name! :-) So, here I am wearing the traditional "Three Piece"! What a sweet gift from a very sweet sister in Christ!

We are continually feeling tighter bonds of love with all the students here at IGSL. Just a week or two ago the entire IGSL family went on a three-day retreat together. We went to a Christian camp in Laguna, in the mountains a bit about three hours drive from Manila. It was a wonderful time!

Last year, they went to the same camp, and everyone said it was quite cold. Well, this year was extremely HOT! The temps were easily around 100 degrees. We were sweltering with just a few fans keeping the heat at bay. Thankfully there was a swimming pool, which the kids LOVED, of course!

Here is Huy with James during the retreat, a friend from Thailand. James has been a huge blessing to our family, esp for Drew! James is very gifted musically...and for about a month now, while I'm teaching my TESL class, Drew pops over to James and his wife's dorm room, and James teaches him guitar for over an hour! Drew is loving it!

Karis with friends from Nepal and Myanmar (formerly known as Burma). These three girls are so sweet. Everytime they spot me on campus, they yell at the top of their voices: "ATE!!!" (Auntie) and run and practically attack me with hugs! I sooo love them!!

Elizabeth from Myanmar, one of "my girls"!

Drew has become good friends with Ivan, Elizabeth's older brother. They often play soccer together every week after Drew's guitar lesson.

It's a family affair! This is C-Te, Elizabeth and Ivan's mom! She was one of my ESL students for a while last fall, and is one of my classmates in the wives' program. She could hardly say two words in English when she and her family arrived, but she has learned so much and is doing wonderfully! They are such a sweet family. Her husband is classmates with Huy, and he's helping Huy with a new Bible study (see below).

Every good retreat has lots of good worship and teaching times . . .

. . . and game times! Here's our man, Huy, up on a chair with a bull-horn, leading us in a 10-group activity of "photo scavenger hunt". Here are just a couple of fun photos my team took:

(Soon I'll put more photos on Facebook, for those who are interested.)

Some of the families we've gotten to know are wrapping up their studies here, since they've been here for one or two years already. It'll be sad to say goodbye to them.

It's hard to believe one school year is already nearing an end. We feel as if we're still "new" here...I find myself saying out of habit, "Yes, we're new. We recently moved here..." but then I realize that this May marks ONE YEAR for us living here. We're not new anymore!

But, something that is NEW...and EXCITING....is a study that Huy has started to lead. For about six weeks now, he's been leading a Bible study with 7-10 businessmen at Globe Telecom in Manila. They meet each Wednesday night. These men are electronic engineers, something Huy understands well! Huy is enjoying getting to know the men in this group. Roughly half are Christians already, and the other half are either new believers or young in their faith.

Here's Huy at the study this past Wednesday. They are going through a book--Good to Great by Chip Ingram, studying, and discussing related Scriptures. Huy's prayer is that those who aren't believers will come to faith in Christ, and those who are believers will grow in their faith and begin to reach out and begin their own ministries of sharing and discipling others around them. Thanks for praying for Huy and this study!

We are always so encouraged by all your comments and emails! It's great to know that so many of you are praying for us and checking in on us. We love and miss you all. God is blessing us, and we are thankful to be here. It's truly a privilege.

Three Simple Truths

Recently I was writing to a lady who is had just arrived in another country for mission work. She was struggling with many things—cultural frustrations, difficulties, griefs. I was sharing with her some thoughts that helped me when we were new here and going through those first difficult months. At the end of my email to her, three thoughts quickly came to my mind. I closed with those thoughts: “You are loved. He sees you. You are exactly where you are supposed to be.”

A day later…on my knees in prayer…silent before the Lord…He brought those three thoughts back to my mind. Now they were for me. He loves me. He sees me. I am exactly where I am supposed to be. Very simple. But they become very profound as I take time to think on them. How thankful I am for these truths. Since that day in prayer, these three thoughts have been constantly on my mind. And now I’m passing them onto you. May you know that these are true for you. I pray that God blesses you with these three sentences as He has me. May you sense the presence of your Heavenly Father.

He loves you.

The Lord says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” Jeremiah 31:3

The living God, the Almighty Creator who flings burning stars and unseen galaxies into space, knows me…and loves me. He has drawn me with His cords of lovingkindness. All that He has allowed, all that He has brought, withheld, ordained…even His very Son…all are His cords to draw me to Himself. Draw me nearer, Lord.

He sees you.

Hagar gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me…" Genesis 16:13

This just captivates my mind and heart. He sees me! He sees me on my knees. He is watching me. He knows me. He is the God who sees me. This humbles me to silence… and soon I’m brought to confession and repentance. Then I can only bow in worship. “Oh God Who Sees Me, I praise and thank You!”

I am exactly where I am supposed to be.

From one man God made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. Acts 17:26

No accident, luck or happenstance determined that I am sitting here in this country, in this house, in this century. We are exactly where we are supposed to be. Our sovereign God is in control. I might not be here tomorrow or next year. I cannot say. But I can say that it is His will that I am here now. How thankful I am to be in His hands.

I immediately think of what Jim Elliot, the missionary who was speared to death in South America, said: “Wherever you are, be all there.”

May I be all here. Now. Today.

Celebrating Corrie Elisabeth...our first TEENAGER in the home!!

Corrie- "A handmaiden"

Elisabeth- "Dedicated to the Lord"

Corrie Elisabeth Merritt--a gift from God, a handmaiden dedicated to the Lord

Corrie- June 2008

Corrie-January 2009

The above two pictures amaze me! Look at the difference in Corrie. She has changed and matured so much in the eight months we have been here. She is turning into a beautiful young woman literally right before our very eyes!

Earlier this month, Corrie turned 13 years old. We have our first teenager in the home! And we're not scared at all. We are enjoying this "Age of Opportunity" as the pastor and author Paul Tripp describes the teen years. (The book by that title is very good!) It is our privilege to lead, guide, train, and enjoy Corrie. She is a joy to all of us...most of the time! :-) She is human, she has very human parents, and she has siblings...so, of course, there are times that are certainly not joyful. But overall, we have really appreciated Corrie--her unique personality, gifts, and willing attitude.

So, I thought I'd take this opportunity to celebrate our firstborn and ask for some special prayers for her. Corrie Elisabeth came into the world with very inquisitive, searching eyes. She seemed to study things from the start. Friends would comment that she has "such a serious expression!" And that is part of Corrie's personality. She is a thinker, an amazing writer, and a very gifted artist. Her favorite things consist of: her laptop, email, a sketchpad, several notebooks, pens and pencils, a good eraser, and at least two big fat novels to devour. She is also completely in love with music, which seems to happen to most at her age, doesn't it? She loves groups like Relient K, David Crowder Band, Switchfoot, Falling Up, and movie soundtracks to Narnia and HSM3.

Moving to the Philippines was especially difficult for Corrie. Our hearts broke as she grieved leaving her three close girlfriends along with extended family in America. Our first two months here were very tough for her. Now, she has adjusted very well. She said some of the different foods here are "growing on her". She's no longer sad or upset about being here and knows that the Lord has a purpose in it. I know that one of the things He has done is bond her and her sister and brothers even closer together. They are all truly best friends.

Corrie has met some neat girls her age, but they don't see each other very often. She has been praying specifically for a really close American friend here. We are praying for that as well, and trust God to give her the right friends in His time.

We would appreciate your prayers for that. In addition, we are praying about sending Corrie to a wonderful MK (missionary kid) school here. Faith Academy has around 500 students and has been educating MKs for over 50 years. It has a very respected reputation. At FA, Corrie would have lots of opportunities for such classes such as orchestra, drama (which she loves), and computer. She also would meet some really neat girls her age, many of whom are Americans.

Three other positives: Corrie would be challenged more academically than I am doing so at present with homeschool. She would be forced off her bed and away from her computer, which is her most common position. And she would be pushed out of her comfort zone and off onto her own adventure--her and the Lord. We honestly never thought we'd send any of our kids to school. But we've always said we'd take it "a year at a time, a kid at a time" and see how God led. Being here is brought up a lot of additional factors to consider.

So, these are some very big PRAYER REQUESTS for us and Corrie right now. We just want to do what is best for Corrie. We want the Lord's will above all.

Faith Academy offers a bit lower price to missionaries, but the cost is still very high...nearly as high as private Christian schools back in the States. So, that is something we need to look at and pray about as well.

Huy takes the kids one-by-one on a date each Saturday morning. I love seeing him have that special alone time with each one of the kids. And I've noticed that more and more that Corrie kind of "hangs" onto her Daddy, hugs him, leans back against him, or drapes her arms around his neck. She seems to need his affection even more lately, and I think that is wonderful.

And as for her and I, I cherish the walks, talks, and times I have alone with her. Often in the evenings, Corrie will peek her head into my room, "Wanna read, Mom?" and she'll bring her current novel into my room, we'll lie on the bed together, and she'll read out loud to me, practically acting out all the characters in the book with such wonderful voices! I love those times together. I also absolutely cherish the times that she shares her fears and thoughts with me and asks me to pray with her.

Thanks for celebrating Corrie with us! Thanks for praying for her! Above all, please pray that she will have a heart for God. That, of course, is our most fervent prayer for all our children.

We are so thankful to have this girl/young woman. Corrie is such a gift to us.

I'll post just a few of her recent sketches here below.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CORRIE, WE LOVE YOU!

(Corrie put the final stroke on the picture above at the stroke of midnight on December 31, 2008-January 1, 2009!)