Connect the Dots

The life of a missionary on furlough is one of traveling from place to place.  Let me take you on my latest trip to the Dakotas.  The picture at left shows the spots I visited on the trip.  Can you connect the dots?  Thankfully the majority of the trip was done by airplane.  Airport stops took me from Tampa to Minneapolis to Sioux Falls to Denver to Salt Lake City and then home.

During the trip I had the privilege of visiting with a total of 12 congregations of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.  On the Sunday of the week long trip I preached and gave a presentation on the work in Haiti at Bethlehem Reformed Church (OPC) in Freeman, SD.  This was my former pastorate where I had the delight of seeing lots of old friends.  They were disappointed that Heather and the kids could not come along.

12 churches in 7 days.  7 flight segments to 5 different cities.  It is lots of traveling but I get to see lots of great scenery, tour some interesting places and meet new people.  The weather of this particular trip was great.  Warm days, cool nights and the leaves were changing in many of the locales.  Pheasant season was in full swing in SD and even at night there were farmers out harvesting corn and beans.  The mountains of Colorado had some snow on them.  Pike's Peak outside Colorado Springs is always a great sight.

The last stop was a 12-hour stay in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Did you know we had three OPC works in Utah.  It is a very challenging place to minister and has a lot in common with foreign fields like Haiti.  The area where the Provo work is just beginning is 98 percent Mormon.  Pastor Jason Wallace and his daughter took me on a tour of Temple Square.  The city is laid out with street names all going north, south, east and west from the Mormon Temple here.  A very interesting place and a reminder of why we preach the gospel to the lost of the world.

After the evening presentation in Salt Lake City, it was off to the airport for a 12:55AM departure for Atlanta and home.  The red-eye flight is not very fun, but it did mean I got to see my family earlier.  I am thankful for the opportunity to visit many churchesbut always glad to get home.  Presbytery meeting in Louisiana is next and then a family tour through Georgia, North and South Carolina.  Thanks for continuing to pray for us.