for your viewing pleasure...

If you want to laugh, here you go.

Stake in the Ground from Antioch Community Church on Vimeo.

Enjoy.

Abigail

Greetings from sunny Dallas, TX!

Ever heard of a babymoon? It's a magical vacation. A wonderland of fun. You can sleep in, eat really good food, play mini-golf, and imagine how your life will change in just a short time. The only thing that differs about this trip is that one person must be pregnant. I want to tell you all minute by minute how awesome this vacay has been, but I think pictures will do it more justice. You're welcome :)

This is how our vacation started. Sitting in the hallway and listening to hail pound my parent's house. No damage and no tornadoes, so it wasn't too bad.

Paciugo: gelato or heaven, whatever you want to call it

33 weeks

picnic at the park

batting cages

Lifesize Jenga! It was so fun... even though I lost both games.

mini golfing. We both made holes-in-one. Thanks for all those golf lessons, dad!

No trip to Dallas would be complete without Sprinkles!

In-n-Out. Enough said.

Oddfellows for brunch. This is Jake's meal, Duck Hash. So yummy. Not pictured is my incredible red velvet pancake. We will be returning as soon as possible. If you live in Dallas, check it out. It's in the Bishop Arts District.

Planetarium. We ate freeze-dried ice cream and watched a movie about the cosmic colors. And became astronauts, of course.

So there you have it. A physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually refreshing week. We would really recommend this to anyone about to have a baby. I mean, we can't wait to have another baby just for the trip.

Just kidding. Sort of.

Abigail

Control Freak

I have some callouses on my hands. Not the callouses of hard and long-term training, like a gymnast or a guitarist. I wish these callouses said something about my work ethic. No, these are new. These callouses are that of a control freak.

See, here's the deal. I'm having a baby in a couple of months and when I walk my dog, Ruby, she really walks me. I decided that this would not do when I'm trying to push a stroller and "walk" my dog. My plan: retrain my dog to act properly on a leash. The only problem is that Ruby is a bit stronger than I am. But I have a will. On our walks, I would hold the leash so tightly that my hands were rubbed raw. Thus the callouses. If you can't see where this is going, I'll spell it out for you. My dog was winning. My attempt at retraining my dog was failing miserably. I can only hold the leash so tightly. I'm weak(er than my dog).

No, really, I am just weak. And this led me to a conclusion. This situation happens probably daily in my life. I decide that something is not the way it should be and then I try to man-handle it until I'm satisfied with the results. And I usually end up failing miserably. I'll try again and again to make it work, but my heart just gets calloused. Why? Because I am weak.

Sounds like a vicious cycle. Thankfully, I've discovered an exit ramp. Are you ready for this?

Let go.

But it's not really that easy is it? I couldn't just let go of Ruby's leash. She would run away, especially if she saw a cat. So, we got a training collar and then I let go. It's amazing the difference the proper equipment can make. I mean, Ruby is practically training herself and my hands are becoming soft again! In my case, the proper equipment can be something as simple as a mindset to getting outside perspective and help. When a situation arises that I think won't do and my insides scream, "control, don't let go," I turn to a thankfulness mindset. I thank God that he has prepared me for such a time as this. Or I thank Him that He will provide what I lack. He will give strength where I'm weak. And He will give counsel where my wisdom falls short. This is what makes it possible for me to let go. Because, really, my hands are just trying to wrestle control from His. When I let go, I get to see God move.

So, I'm still a recovering control freak, but one day at a time I'm seeing that letting go is far superior to getting callouses.

Abigail

Days like Today

Cloudy, gray, misty, and hopeful.

Or maybe your day is defeating and boring.

Or monotonous, lonely and uninspired.

Days like today look a certain way. Dreary. Mundane. Foggy.

But what if our eyes are lying to us? The saying goes that what we see is what we get, but what if that's really just having tunnel vision? The saying should go that what we choose to see is what we get. This is perspective, not just what is in front of our face. It's overcast today, but does that mean the sun isn't shining? You're feeling defeated today, but does that mean you aren't victorious?

Hope. This should be our perspective. Hope is an anchor. It's our North Star in a storm. Hope helps us see our reality through God's lens. It is a greater truth. Your days may be mundane, but the greater truth is that you are created for abundance. Today is cloudy, but above those clouds is the sun.

And that's why I love days like today. It reminds me that there is something greater that maybe I just can't see. It reminds me to check my perspective at hope. It challenges me to believe in the unseen. What will you choose to see today?

And now a short life update for those wondering...

Third trimester life has begun. We have registered. I'm beginning to think about the birthing plan (I'll just inform Jake, mostly, because he gets a little woozy at the thought...) and baby girl is most definitely a mover and a shaker. Speaking of "baby girl," she actually does have a name and it is....

This is a picture from 23 weeks, so I look (and feel!) a bit bigger now.

Jake and I are continuing the process of building a team of people to support us financially and prayerfully as we prepare to move to Baton Rouge this summer. If you want to be part of our update list, please send me your email and physical mailing address! We would love to hear from you. My email address is at the top of this page.

One last thing, as I was writing this post, the sun came out. The greater truth prevailed again!

Abigail

A Traditional Post

(husband putting the star on our Christmas tree)

I have always loved traditions. Christmas, college, camp... give me a tradition and I am one happy person. My family for instance has some special Christmas traditions. Here is a small sampling.

1) baking day.

2) putting our Baby's First ornament on the tree.

3) watching Christmas movies together (namely White Christmas and It's a Wonderful Life).

I look forward to these every year, no matter how old I am! And now that I have started my own family, we are beginning our own traditions like Jake putting the star on top of the Christmas tree. I can't wait to add to the list for my kids.

Growing up, we looked forward to summer camp for a lot of reasons. No parents, the Blob, bunking with best friends. But most of all we looked forward to the annual pillow fight. It was usually the highlight of camp. In my love for traditions, I stumbled upon the following quote the other day that so accurately describes why traditions are awesome:

"We don't keep traditions, they keep us together."

Yes. Togetherness. Family. Friends that are like family. Something on top of our love for one another to keep us coming back year after year. More than presents or anything else, I look forward to keeping traditions. Not for the sake of tradition, but for the building of memories.

This is (rightly so) reminiscent of our relationship with God and his church. There is everything right about sharing life and traditions with the body of Christ. Not meaningless ritual, because that is religion. But the building of monuments for our remembrance and the next generation's acknowledgement of Someone greater than us. Our need and enjoyment of each other is clearly divine. So don't forget who brought us together in the beginning.

So, go make some new traditions this year. Not just because it's Christmas, but because we are meant to be together. Our hearts are completed in togetherness. And because traditions make that togetherness even more special and fun. Remember Jesus. His birth, life, and death changed the course of history. He makes this season worth celebrating and he makes being together the best way to live.

Merry Christmas!

Abigail

worth a thousand words.

Welcome home for a month!

the old biscuit mill with friends

our view from the University of Cape Town

found on side of road

scarborough beach

the waterfront

african penguins

my heart will go on and on

chapman's peak

Merry Christmas from London! (it's ok because they don't have Thanksgiving)

In line with the spirit of the season, we are so grateful to have experienced all that we did in South Africa. Thank you for all your prayers and support!

Up next on the blog... regular life. Hopefully you will all still want to read it.

Thankful,

Abigail

One Week's Time

In one week's time, I will be back on American soil. I will be jet-lagged. I will have a dynamic month of church planting (and my first trimester!) behind me. I will be in search of the nearest Starbucks. I will have many "should haves" or "what ifs" and "wows" under my belt. I will be craving turkey and dressing and anticipating listening to my first Christmas song of the season.

But until that day, I am still living the dream. Sharing the greatest news with people who have never heard, with some of the greatest people on the planet in maybe the most beautiful place I've ever been. Our team has seen more than 30 people give their lives to Jesus! We have seen people healed of things like a dislocated ankle to a busted lip and one of our own teammates was healed of a soccer injury (that was inflicted by someone on our team...). It has been an amazing three weeks and we are believing for even more in the last few days. God doesn't just own cattle. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. And Jesus said we would do even greater things than He did. We believe we can stand on those promises and believe for more. Will you believe with us for these last few days?

Tonight I am going with two of my teammates to disciple 5-6 freshman girls in spending time with Jesus. These girls are so fun and desperately want more of God. I'll let you know how it goes!

Catch you on the flipside,

Abigail