Now In Montana

I'm up in Malta, Montana now visiting my sister Sandy and her family. It was quite a trip to get here. On Tuesday I had to wait seven hours at the airport in Boise as the first plane with Big Sky airlines had problems with the radio that they couldn't fix. At first, they said there weren't many options as they had no extra planes so they tried to charter a bus to take us up. But later they got another plane so at about 7:10 pm we were on our way arriving at 8:15.

Once I got to Bozeman I had to hitch a ride with a young guy going to Malta that night but first had to wait for him to get done with some things. We left for Malta around 11:00 pm and got to Malta at 4:30 am.

I was pretty wasted the next day but today I feel much better. The trip was quite the ordeal, kind of like some of the trips I have taken in Romania. So I guess it was a way of making me feel like I was back home in Romania:)

Tonight I am going to go watch my nephew Jake play basketball. He is a sophomore and plays on the junior varsity team. He is a lot taller than the last time I saw him four and a half years ago!

I'll be here in Malta till December 26th then I will go to Bozeman for a week and after that I'll go to southern Cal to attend two conferences.

Hope you all have a blessed Christmas and holiday season.

Enjoying My Time in Boise

I have really been enjoying my time so far in Boise. Everyone at the church has been so helpful and gracious to me. I have been keeping very busy so far. Last Saturday was the only day I didn't share or attend some function. But that evening I did go up to Garden Valley to share the next day.

The day after I got here (Tuesday) I shared with the missions prayer group and this past Sunday I went up to the Calvary Chapel in Garden Valley and had the whole service to share about Romania, my ministry and some things I have learned on the mission field.

On Monday I shared at a home group in Nampa and on Wednesday I went over to Mountain Home to the "Open Door Fellowship" in the evening and had a potluck and shared about Romania and my ministry there. The pastor is a very good friend of mine and the church has been a faithful supporter over my years in Romania. Yesterday (Thursday) I went to a monthly meeting of the Calvary Pastors from this area and shared a bit about Romania. Last night I shared with the senior high youth group here at Calvary Boise. It was fun and I was surprised when one of the boys asked me "How can we help you?".

Tomorrow night (Saturday) I will get together with some of those who were in the college group I did years ago when I was in the Cole intern program. I am really looking forward to seeing them again.

Since being back I have run into a young lady in the college age group who use to be in my class when I taught gymnastics at Wings. She was in the fourth grade back then but now is all grown up. I also ran into a young man, Jared, who was in my junior high boys Bible study when he was in 7th and 8th grade. He is married to a young lady from the Czech Republic and has two kids. They are planning on going to the Czech Republic as missionaries next summer. I was so filled with joy when I saw him and found out about his life.

This week I also went to the dentist and had some serious deep teeth cleaning done. It took two visits to get it done. I need to have a few fillings replaced and will have it done after I get back from my trip to Montana and California. Next Monday I will go and have an eye exam. I would really love to get the surgery done so I wouldn't need glasses but we shall see.

Thanks for all your prayers. I have been blessed so much since I arrived back from Romania.

Got My Driver's License

Tuesday I took the written exam and today I took my driver's skills test. So now I finally have a driver's license for the first time in three and a half years. It is good for 8 years so I won't have to worry about it again for a long time. Watch out Boise I'm on the loose again!

Have A Phone Now & Good News On Laptop

I found out that my laptop is under extended warranty so it looks like I won't have to pay to have it fixed. So that is a big praise. It will hopefully go out tomorrow (Friday) and be back later next week.

The church was gracious to me and gave me a cell phone to use while I am here. I have a limited number of minutes and whether I call someone or someone calls me the minutes are subtracted. This is different than Romania. In Romania you only pay if you call. Please don't leave voicemail as I won't check it cause it uses up too much time. The number is 208-891-5148.

I am still trying to figure out if I can get my driver's license renewed. Please pray that I will be able to get it soon. Once I get my license I will need to find a car to borrow.

Now in Boise

I made it to Boise safe and sound last night. I had a good trip- no delays and the flights were all smooth. I got to bed at 10:00 last night and this morning I got up at 6:00 which surprised me since I didn't get much sleep the last four nights in Romania. Especially the last night, I only got two hours of sleep cause I had to be at the airport at 4:00 in the morning for my flight out at 6:00.

When I got here I was surprised to find that it is colder here than in Brasov. Last night I stayed at Doug Case's house and tonight I should be staying at a duplex that they set up for me to stay at for the first two weeks. There isn't a phone there so I hope to borrow a cell phone or something so I can contact people.

Tonight I will be sharing at the missions prayer meeting and hopefully tomorrow I will see if I can renew my drivers license.

It's nice to be back for a visit but it feels weird that Brasov is no longer my home. It will take some time getting use to living in Bucharest as I am not a big city boy.

Thanks for your prayers.

Last Days in Brasov

Since last Thursday I have been up and down emotionally. I thought I would have a hard time on Sunday when I taught, being that I started the church and now was saying goodbye, but it wasn't too bad though I did have a few "moments".

I had a real special time on Friday with the students at the study as we said our goodbyes. On Sunday I shared some of the things God has taught me while being on the mission field in Romania. I focused mostly on fear and dealing with it, on brokenness, humility and meekness and on love.

One major bummer was my laptop fell down at church and probably broke the bulb that lights the screen. I called today here in Boise and they said if it is broke it will cost around $300 for the labor and parts. But thankfully that was the only problem- could have been worse.

Rick took over my apartment Sunday when I left and I got my clothes, computer stuff and bathroom stuff down to Bucharest. Jamie was kind enough to come up from Bucharest and get the stuff on Friday.

One chapter in my life has closed and now a new chapter has begun. The adventure continues.