20 December 2017
Dear Friends and Family,
Greetings,
from sunny South Carolina. As we enter
this Christmas season we are enjoying a mild winter so far. The drizzling rain has finally taken the last of the leaves off the trees but
the temperatures are hovering in the low seventies today. We don’t miss the cold of Maryland that’s for
sure.
This
year has been one of changes for us. At
the end of last year we were presented with an opportunity to purchase a home
that is located in our same neighborhood.
It is a single floor open concept design and, with the milestone of my
turning 65 this year, made a perfect home for us to spend our aging days
in. We went to settlement on December 22
of last year and left for Florida in the beginning of January to serve at a
Sower Project for the month.
We
returned in February and headed north to help the family clean out Jane’s Dad’s
home so it could be sold. The sorting
through Pop’s earthly belongings was bittersweet but went well. As we write this Christmas letter our
thoughts go back to memories of Christmases past. Jane’s parents had a tradition of having “Santa”
decorate the Christmas tree.
Consequently, on Christmas morning there was a fully decorated Christmas
tree, adorned with tinsel, lights, ornaments, and presents.
Thinking back, it must have been
quite an undertaking for the two of them to wrap presents, bring in the tree,
decorate it, and fall into bed exhausted, only to have seven children waking
them up to come see the miracle in the living room! It was during one of those Christmases, way
back in 1973, that Jane and I were engaged.
I wonder if Pop and Ms. Dorothy were as excited for that event? J
Bringing all of the fond recollections of the blessings that
Jane’s Mom and Dad had on our lives, we returned to Summerville to begin the
work on our new ”house of memories”.
The home
was owned by a couple who was in the process of a total remodel and decided to
relocate to Ohio. The major painting was
done and cabinetry installed, but flooring and countertops had not been
installed. We were excited, since it
left somewhat of a blank slate for us.
Jane loves to watch the house flipping shows and had plenty of ideas for
us to implement.
We renovated the master
bathroom and removed the brick fireplace and chimney, the roof
shingles needed to be replaced so it was an excellent time to remove the
fabricated chimney, and we replaced it with a two sided gas fireplace.
We installed recessed lighting in the living
room, kitchen, and dining area, and a host of other “ideas” that came up along
the way. It was a big undertaking and
when completed cured us of wanting to “flip” in the future.
We
completed the renovations and moved in at the end of May. We are enjoying the home very much. The setting is beautiful as the back yard
opens to a large pond with woods as a backdrop.
It has an enclosed porch and we really enjoy the view as we spend the
mornings contemplating God’s magnificent creation.
The pond is teaming with wild life, mallard ducks, geese,
white herons, fish, turtles, and there are an abundance of songbirds of every
kind calling out to their mates. It is a
real blessing to be able to muse on the greatness of our creator God as we watch
the setting of the sun in the evenings
The home has plenty of space for
entertaining and works well for the gathering of our growing family. We had the whole family here for Thanksgiving
and were joined by Jane’s sisters Sally and Amy and their husbands as well as
our long- time friends from Maryland, Cathy and Jeff Shields. We had twenty nine for dinner and the new
home proved very functional for entertaining a large group.
Speaking
of a growing family, we added two new members this year. In January, Rachel gave birth to our tenth
grandchild. Conrad was born on January
21st and we were blessed to be in Florida at the time on the Sower
Project. On March 1st Julie
gave birth to Jachin in Wake Forest.
Rebecca is expecting number twelve
this coming March! Ella Mae, our oldest,
turned six this year. Needless to say,
family gatherings are filled with activity.
We were able to gather together for a week in July at the facilities of
one of the Sower Projects we have served at a number of times. It was a great time with all of the “cuzzies”
playing together and getting to know one another. All of the cousins especially love Jason, whom
they call “Uncle Buddy”.
Here’s
the current count, Rebecca has three girls, Ella Mae (6), Isabel (4), and
Victoria (1 11/12). Julie has two boys,
Micah (4), Jachin (9 mos), and a sweet daughter Veda (2). Micah calls her Sugar. Maribeth has Olivia (5), Wren (3), and Jasper
(1). Rachel has two boys, Bowen (3) and
Conrad (11 mos).
Bowen, Ella Mae,
Victoria, Wren, Conrad, Jachin, Veda, Micah, Olivia, Isabel, and Jasper in Jane’s
arms
This year
brought some changes in ministry focus.
Our Pastor announced his retirement in June and we were challenged to
consider taking a sabbatical from traveling with Sowers to be more available to
serve on the leadership committee along with facilitating our weekly prayer
meeting and leading Sunday worship. As
a result we only did one Sower project this year in January. We hope to resume serving with Sowers this
coming year.
As we
enter this Christmas season we wish each of you a blessed time as you
contemplate the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. In the fullness of time God sent forth His
only begotten Son, born in the most humble of circumstances in a stable in
Bethlehem. He would lead a sinless life
and give that life on Calvary’s cross for our atonement.
And the Angel said unto them, Fear Not; for behold,
I bring you good tidings of great Joy!
Which shall be to all people Luke 2;10
The
greatest gift that God could give us is an opportunity to be reconciled to Him
through the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf.
This perfect gift is ours when we by faith put our trust in Jesus. I encourage you to read through the book of
John with an eye toward knowing Jesus personally. It will be the greatest investment of time
you could ever make.
We wish
you a Merry Christmas and a terrific New Year!
Remember, wise men still seek Him!
Godspeed, Glenn and Jane
