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A Weekend to Remember

We’re not falling apart or on the brink of divorce, but some there were. Ellen initiated it and I decided that our relationship was important enough to get uncomfortable. We’ve been married for nearly three years and this was our first marriage conference. We met 350 other couples in San Antonio for A Weekend to Remember, a weekend to rejuvenate and inspire our relationship.

In a culture where marriages are replaced like an old pair of shoes, it’s not easy to hold on to what you have and keep it healthy. We heard comments from some of our acquaintances like, “My husband would never do something like that.” Fact is, not too many husbands, even the good ones, would get excited about sharing feelings, communicating, and being challenged over the course of three days . . . I’m one of them. I can tell you though, this side of things I am thankful and proud that we did this. Our relationship is immensely important to us and it was the least we could do for each other and God who brought us together.

Great Outdoors

Our team, save the very special Deanna, was able to spend some time together recently at our nearby state park. It was good to fellowship and rough it for while. We went all out! Grilled chicken and zucchini with baked beans for dinner. Bacon, Sausage, Eggs, Pancakes, more bacon, and more sausage for breakfast. We also enjoyed the tastiness of camping favorites like smores and jiffy pop. We didn't go hungry!

QWERTY

Do you know what QWERTY refers to? It is the first six letters on the upper row of your keyboard. Have you ever wondered why the keys on your keyboard are placed where they are? Probably not, it's a pretty random thought. Well, I have, and I discovered the answer the other day. The inventor of today's modern keyboard fashioned the keys very intentionally in order to slow the keyer's typing speed. Strange, huh?

Did you know there's a more efficient keyboard out there that actually locates the keys in position according to the frequency of their use in order to increase efficiency?

This keyboard was designed more than seventy years ago but the QWERTY still dominates. It reminds me of the difficulty we all have with accepting new ideas.

Monster Triathlon

This weekend Ellen participated in the Monster Triathlon held in Denton, 250 meters of swimming, a 16 mile bike ride, and topped it off with a 3 mile run. She did great!

Divine Appointment I

Wes refers to "Divine Appointments" as special encounters with people that are unplanned. In other words, a meeting that only God orchestrated. While in Concepcion, God scheduled 2 "Divine Appointments" for me.

The first occured as our team was walking the streets of a neighborhood called Collao. At the end of one street was a gated community that caught mine and Meriden's eye. Frances, Miss Go-Getter, approached the gate entrance and opened it. Spontaneously, Frances, Meriden, Reid, Wes and I ran through the gate into an unknown community. Thankfully, curiousity didn't kill the cat this time! We quickly learned that we were approaching a nursing home, one of only 2 in Concepcion. Two elderly ladies, Lily and Rose, eagerly invited us into their homes and offered us a tour.

Lily and Rose showed us all over, even into Lily's room. The nursing home was exceptionally nice and offered 27 single bedrooms. It reminded me very much of the current nursing home I work in, Wesley Court. We were able to speak with a nurse about rehabilitation services that are offered. Unfortunately, services for the elderly are only offered in the hospital. For example, if a resident has a swallowing disorder, they send them to the hospital to be treated. Meriden and I were beginning to tangibly see how our current profession and passions could be useful in Concepcion.

Lily and Rose ended the tour in the Catholic chapel. Lily shared how she used to sing with the choir during services. Frances asked Lily to sing us a song, which she did beautifully. We then reciprocated the singing (in 4 part harmony!) for Lily and Rose. As we were leaving the nursing home, Lily followed us out the door, singing a Spanish blessing over us. Every one of us knew that it was only God who orchestrated this "Divine Appointment."

Divine Appointment II

The second "Divine Appointment" occured the same day, but was being orchestrated beforehand. A few nights eariler, the girls were walking downtown and Meriden spotted a hearing aid clinic called "Gaes." Frances, again, took the initiative to walk right in. Meriden was able to learn about the field of audiology, which is fairly limited. The technician proposed we meet with an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT**) doctor because they pracitce more of what Meriden is trained to do. He also thought the ENT would provide helpful information for me in regards to speech pathology.

Kelley and Frances took Meriden and I to the ENT clinic to schedule an appointment. The ENT we were referred to was out of the office for the rest of the week; however, there was another ENT we could meet with the next day. We excitedly scheduled the appointment and planned on Kelley attending with us to translate. We had no idea that God had something so special in store for us.

Well, doctor offices in Chile are the same to those here in terms of having to wait for a long, long time after your scheduled appointment to actually see the doctor. We didn't care though - our nervous energy made time fly. Doctor Pablo Roja invited us in, fortunately speaking English. Meriden shared with him our future plans of moving to Chile and our desire to learn about compensated or volunteer opportunities for our professions in Concepcion. Doctor Roja professionally explained the current profession of audiology and what opportunities he could envision. He emphasized that Meriden's doctorate will be eagerly accepted and respected.

Dr. Roja then turned to me, and asked that I explain my profession and credentials. He immediately refered to patient cards that he had seen previously. One patient was diagnosed with a swallowing disorder. He had referred that patient to the hospital to see a speech pathologist. He emphasized that my skills in swallowing and interpreting x-ray swallow studies would be valued, as well as in voice disorders. Dr. Roja welcomed the idea of Meriden and me working alongside this clinic to gain experience and/or through compensation (he was careful to add that we would need to investigate mal-practice and licensure for us in Chile).

By the end of our appointment, Dr. Roja felt connected with our desire to help those in need. He shared with us, "I can relate to wanting to help people. When I was in school, I lived in small villages among the poor and gave them what they could not give. I feel very special about what you are coming here to do."

Kelley transitioned the conversation to learn about Concepcion. Dr. Roja explained that he did not have enough time to discuss these things, due to his next and last appointment. Then, truly uncharacteristic of Chileans, he invited Meriden and me, along with Wes and Reid, over to his home to meet his wife and discuss Concepcion over coffee. We were taken back! Chileans aren't this trusting and welcoming after one visit. In the 10 years Kelley has lived in Chile, he has not seen a Chilean open his or her home this quickly before. We left the appointment knowing that God was at work. We were so giddy!

That evening, Kelley, Meriden, Reid, Wes, and I went to Dr. Roja's home. We drank coffee and discussed the life of Concepcion, good and bad places to live, and discussed nothing professionally. It was as if we were already good friends. We were able to connect so easily with Pablo (now on a 1st name basis) and his wife, Maria Jose. As we were leaving, Maria Jose repeated over and over that her home was ours, that we could call on her for anything. She genuinely anticipated our arrival...and taking Meriden and me to the mall! Pablo walked us out and gave such a sentimental good-bye. He told Kelley, "The pleasure was mine in hosting this group tonight. There is something special about you, something radiates from your faces. I was the one to be thankful."

God was the only one who orchestrated this "Divine Appointment." Our time with Pablo and his wife affirmed God's guiding to Concepcion and the unique ways he has gifted us to help advance His Kingdom. This was a precious gift from God, one that I didn't deserve, but that he knew would bless me and ultimately draw me closer to Him.

**Side note: the Spanish word for Ear, Nose and Throat doctor is this: otorrinolaringologo. This is extremely difficult to say! There is an intense tongue rolling 'r' in the word! Dr. Roja had to break the word into segments for us several times until we could say it perfectly. He kindly suggested to us that it would be helpful for us to learn Spanish before moving to Concepcion. Good thing we have language school in the plans!

Home Sweet Home

We pulled into town not long ago. We're worn out! We will do our best to catch you up on the things we experienced with some photo blogs and reflection over the next week or so. Please be praying for our team over the coming weeks as we sort through the things we learned during our trip.

Here's a shot of our team on the campus of the University of Concepcion.


L:R Wes, Ellen, Sara, Chad, Deanna, Meriden, and Reid.

Leap, Frog!

In less than 72 hours we'll be "hopping" on plane bound for Chile. We are ecstatic! Hopefully you'll see a post or two from us while we're there.



I almost made frog legs out of this guy. I stepped on him last night as I was cutting the grass. No worries frog lovers, he's just fine.

One Step Closer

We are less than two weeks from returning to Chile. It is a very important trip for us for a number of reasons. For nearly four years now I have been working my way back to South America. It was four years ago in Buenos Aires that this dream took root in my heart. It was four years ago in Schaffhausen that this dream took root in Ellen's heart.

In a number of days we will return to Concepcion with our full team to further investigate the city and it's spiritual climate. Part of us fears we have misheard the call and part of us feels like we don't have what it takes either way. There is this other part though that presses on, a part that would rather be faithful and adventurous than faithless and timid.

We could use your prayers during our time there.

-For unity among our team.
-For the Spirit to guide us and impress the Father's will on our heart's.
-For safety.
-For courage.
-For compassion.
-For vision.
-For clarity.
-For open ears.
-For divine appointments.

I'll leave you with a shot from our last visit when we were just four (Reid, Deanna, Ellen, and Wes).

Kingdom Leadership

This past weekend our mission team traveled an hour south of Abilene for a weekend of training. Teams to Thailand, Australia, and various locations in North America joined us there. The theme for the retreat was Kingdom Leadership. It was an incredibly unique and refreshing approach to the topic of leadership.

Instead of spending the weekend being prepared for public speaking or other spotlight positions in the church, the focus was on seeking intamacy with the Father and letting our relationship with him form our identity. From there, an intimate relationship with the Father and a healthy understanding of who we are, we are lead into ministry, the grace by which we are called, or our vocation. It is also from a healthy identity that we seek to live in Christian community.

We had opportunity for self disclosure, confession, worship, prayer, solitude, study, fellowship, discussion, play, and more. It was a spectacular weekend! I have never felt more blessed by the team that God has assembled and partnered me with.

Here are some photos from the weekend:

A Light

About two months ago I (Wes) made the decision to change jobs. I had been employed at a local Christian nonprofit organization for over two years. Many factors were considered during the decision process. High on the list of items in consideration was a desire to be rubbing shoulders with non Christians on a daily basis.

For the last half dozen weeks I’ve been doing just that. I had forgotten the challenge of being a light in dark places on such a day in and day out basis. The transition I’ve made isn’t an easy one for this very reason. To be different, yet someone that isn’t out of reach or self righteous is one of the Christian life’s greatest challenges.

I’ll tell you though, it has revitalized my spirit. To be living the life I am called to without being so insulated has made it all so much more real.

Our Day in Snyder

It's been a long time, I know, but I figured, what better way to get back in the groove than posting a picture of our recent trip to Snyder.

Our team meet up for lunch, coffee, and visiting yesterday. With Reid and Meriden living in Lubbock for a couple more months and the rest of us here in Abilene, it was really special to get together.

You can experience Deanna's account of the reunion here.