My Kind of Church

Cowboy Church!  A Texas must see!

I am in love with the cowboy church. We attended Wood County Cowboy Church twice now and will be returning this Sunday.

The people have been incredibly warm and welcoming, including the pastor.  The pastor's speaking style is reminiscent of the pastor from our home church.  He has great passion for the Word of God.   And the Worship Team - hallelujah!!  It was like George Straight singing right to me...

We finished off the Gateway classes, which included some great interactive activities.  In addition, our kids on boarding program also finished up.  There are eight kids who will be new to the ship, and they have been learning about life onboard and the country of Benin, our outreach destination.  Below, you can see the Africa Mercy pictured along with self-made pin-up dolls with which they have used to explore the ship.

Last week, for the fourth of July, we celebrated by watching fireworks.  I have not done this in many years for two reasons.  First, the shows that I had been to in the last decade have been somewhat disappointing.  The shows did not last long nor were the fireworks as brilliant or numerous as when I was a child.  Second, the fireworks' magnificence was greatly dimmed by the incredible distance from which one was supposed to watch.  However, Fatherheart, an organization that assists single pregnant women, put on an amazing show.  And the fireworks were so close.

This week, I participated in the Basic Safety Training, which Joe completed during week one.  My training was abbreviated, and we did not complete the practicum aspects of fire safety and personal (water) safety which means I am not maritime certified.  However, I did still practice the ring toss.  I even tried on the immersion suit, which is the tele-tubby looking outfit.

We have a final project due on Tuesday.  I do not want to ruin the surprise, but I will post pictures afterwards.  Joe and I have wrenched every possible creative drop from our blood to produce our final product.  The project is supposed to convey something we learned during our four weeks in class.  And then, next Wednesday, we leave for Haiti.  We will be there for two weeks, working with Nehemiah Vision Ministries.  We will not be posting to the blog at that time as the internet band-width is limited.  We will send an update Tuesday, before we leave, and will post again upon our return.