so long for now

Kristy and I were greatly surprised and saddened to learn of the relatively sudden and untimely passing of Mrs. Carla Gomez, the wife of Pastor Keith Gomez. Pastor Gomez is a friend of my dad and the president of the Bible college my sister attended.

You can read updates on these recent events here.

As followers of Jesus, we believe the sacred writings of Scripture and take comfort in Christ's assurance that Mrs. Gomez is in a better place. At the same time, we grieve for a husband and shepherd who has lost his right hand, and a family facing a tremendous void.

Our sincerest prayers for God's peace are with the Gomez family during this time.

- - -

Hearing of Mrs. Gomez's passing gave me pause to consider the wondrous blessing that God gave me in my beautiful wife. She loves Jesus, she loves our kids, she loves our church people, and she loves me with passion, grace, and sweetness. She keeps a blog here.

Kristy, I love you with all my heart. Thank you for being my wife.

happy birthday, audrey

Our youngest daughter, Audrey, turned two today.

I fought for the name Audrey. Kristy basically agreed to it after trying everything else.

In a house where all the kids are still young, Audrey is the youngest, and the most fun. Her spirit is undeniable, her eyes the sparkliest of all. She does a pretty good Shirley Temple impersonation, too, at the right moment.

Audrey's birth came at a crossroads moment in our lives. After we accepted the call to come to Indianapolis, we postponed the move for three months so Audrey could be born.

I love you with all my heart, Audrey. Happy birthday.

You couldn't dream up curls like this

pulling on her stocking

This is our Christmas decorating picture tradition.
It's not a standard one, as traditions go,
and not even particularly safe,
but it's ours.

The girl will say "cheese" at any moment.

random links, except that they all appear on this post

- I am more and more aware of the power and necessity of great design in print and on the web. During my time at Samaritan Ministries, I was fortunate to become friends and colleagues of some guys who are doing great design work.
- Dan and John at Design Corps did a lot of work for SMI, and then I asked them to design our church's logo, and they did a fantastic job. They also put out a great newsletter.
- Aaron and I worked together at SMI, then Aaron moved to Greenville, SC, where he is now working for Portland Studios. He designed the header and general look of this blog, though it was much more orange before I accidentally erased some HTML.
Aaron also does some awesome photography.

- My friend Dustin lives in the house where we lived before we moved to Indy. In this blog post, he gives a tour of the abode. Brought back a lot of memories. Thanks, Dustin.

- I'm enjoying using Google Reader, and being able to share what I'm reading. I can read what other friends of mine are sharing within the reader, too, which is really cool.

- I told you in the last post about meeting James Owolabi. Here's his blog.

a few holiday memories

The holidays were very busy this year. We were blessed to spend time with both our extended families, with my siblings and parents coming to our home, and us traveling to Missouri to spend time with Kristy's siblings and parents. At our church, our second annual "Caroling and Caring" event was a great success. And there's nothing like the magic of seeing Scripture, manger scenes, lights, gifts, snow, and family through the sparkling eyes of four young children.

Kristy posted some pictures here, but I wanted to list a few of my favorite memories.

- I got to take my siblings and Dad to downtown Indy to see the Soldiers and Sailors Monument for the first time. It's imposing to see in person, and when it's strung with the Christmas lights, it's really beautiful.

- I discovered Gingerbread Eggnog. Yumm.

- We were able to take lots of gifts and supplies to the residents of a local assisted living facility during our "Caroling and Caring" event. But my favorite moment was when I got to talk to Bud, a sharp 92-year-old with a new Colts hat. He held my hand tightly as he told me about the local church where he served for 40-plus years, his wife who had passed recently, and how wonderful it was that we were there. I had to sort of pry my hand away, and I promised I'd be back to talk some more.


- That same afternoon, the Owolabi siblings surprised us by showing up at our home to wish us a Merry Christmas, "Nigerian style" (their term). We immensely enjoyed sharing a few moments with them, and I got to know the oldest, James, a little bit, and discovered a kindred spirit. Thanks, guys.

- I got to take the first picture of Pappy and Granny Baker with all their grandkids gathered around them.


- My brother-in-law Bill received a Bible as a gift. The packaging for said Bible listed as one of its strong points that it was "easy on the eyes." Honest.
An attractive Bible, indeed. 'A tall drink of the Living Water!' Somebody stop me!

- Watching Kristy get into decorating our home, and the wonder in the kids' eyes. Made the frostbite totally worth it.