Whew! We were so excited to be able to take 41 guests along to celebrate on our 50th Anniversary Fun & Fellowship tour to Door County, Mackinac Island and Duluth. It was truly a marvelous time!
We began the journey in Sisseton, SD, and ended our evening at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre where we had the delight to see Mary Poppins. We travelled the next day with some fun stops at the Norske Nook and The House on the Rock before arriving in Milwaukee, WI. The next morning we had the privilege to be able to attend my brother, Jerry's, church, Oak Creek Assembly of God. It was so great being there with Jerry and his family. It was a mini family reunion as our sister-in-law, Janice, joined us on this tour and it was fun to all be together. We also enjoyed singing our "Traveling Song" that morning and recalling 50 years of memories.
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The next few days were filled with lighthouses, a museum, an orchard, carriage rides, beautiful scenery and unique and scrumptious meals. A definite favorite experience was the Lake Michigan authentic fish boil…..a fun time and scrumptious meal! The weather was perfect except for one day where it interrupted our plans but we made the best of it and still enjoyed an incredible experience at the Old Rittenhouse Inn. Our last day ended with a scenic train ride in Duluth, MN, and the boarded the bus winding our way back towards home saying goodbye to our dear friends along the way as they returned to their homes.
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All in all, this was just a wonderful tour where we were joined with such precious and dear friends and experienced fun and great memories. This was truly a marvelous way to celebrate 50 years of marriage and ministry and we will cherish these times!
Speaking of celebrating 50 years, we are excited for this upcoming weekend where we will be ministering at our home church in Sisseton, SD….Family Life Assembly of God, Hwy 10, Sisseton, SD at 10:30 AM. We will be sharing memories and there will be a meal following in celebration.
We also have a SPECIAL EVENT OF CELEBRATION taking place Saturday, October 3rd in Elk River, MN. We would love to have you join us and our family for this special 50th Anniversary Celebration! We will have special times of sharing, music, and lots of laughter. There will be a light reception following. If you plan on attending, we would love to hear from you to make sure we have arrangements made correctly!
Gloria
{Quote}
"The wings of hope carry us, soaring high above the driving winds of life."
-Ana Jacob
{Chuckle/Reflection}
{Recipe}
Sour Cream Chili Bake
1 lb. hamburger 1(16 oz.) can kidney beans, drained
¼ c. chopped onion 1 env. taco seasoning mix
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce 1 ¼ c. sour cream
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
3 ½ c. corn chips, crushed
Brown hamburger and onion. Stir in beans, tomato sauce, taco mix, and ¼ cup cheddar cheese. Sprinkle 2 ¼ cups crushed corn chips in bottom of 1 ½ qt. pan. Cover with chili mix. Sprinkle remaining crushed corn chips; add sour cream and cheddar cheese on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
{Household Hint}
To prevent cheese from sticking to a grater, spray the grater with cooking spray before beginning.
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sighed but continued on my mission to destroy the web. I smiled. A few minutes later, I went up to our motorhome for about an hour and a half to work on some inventory. I returned home only to find that spider had completely woven another huge web. It sat there in the middle as if to say, "I'm back! You thought you were rid of me!" Its ugly determination reminds me of satan's devices. John 10:10 states, "The thief cometh not but for to steal, and to kill and to destroy." Like the spider, satan will return when you think you have "whopped" him. He is relentless and attempts to show up again and again in one situation or another. 
through Sisseton for a day on their business trip enroute to Vancouver, Canada. They were also so excited to see Grandma Julie Brooks who will turn 100 years old in November.
One evening last week Larry and I pulled out of the ministry office early as I insisted we take a short drive to view the beautiful golden wheat fields and to see the harvest machines baling wheat and straw. I was truly memorized by the sights. I just kept saying to Larry, "Thank Jesus, for the bountiful blessings here in the Midwest, when we know so many states are in drought and won't have a wheat crop." We have been so blessed to see thousands of bales traveling through Nebraska, Minnesota, South Dakota the past couple of weeks..jpg)
Of course, every time Larry and I see a harvest machine, we thank God for the harvest field He has called to…to win the Lost and encourage the hurting. As in farming - when the farmers see the wheat is ready to harvest, they don't just sit back and ho-hum and comment on how "lush" it looks…they rush to bring in the bountiful crop before a storm could take it out. Larry and I see and think the same thing. When we have an opportunity to go harvest, we go! In these trying times, people need the Lord. We've been thrilled at the marvelous decisions for Christ this year- what an honor.
regroup for our upcoming busy fall schedule. What a delight it is to wake up at home - settle in our favorite chairs for our morning coffee date before the morning winds up! Often, God gives us a treat; like He did yesterday… we looked out the window and saw a mama dear and her two spotted fawns just a few feet from the house (thank God we didn't have a garden it could eat). A few minutes later, up wobbles 7 wild baby turkeys with their ever-watching and protective parents sauntering by. That gift was our wildlife zoo experience of the day - ha!
Altars were built as a monument to remember or commemorate a divine experience as well to symbolize communion with the Lord. They were places to call upon the name of Lord and to remember His glorious promises. As generations would grow up, the altars would still stand, as reminders of what God had done so the goodness of God could be passed down from generation to generation that not one generation would forget what He has done.
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intriguing. We often allow these little sins of hate, jealousy, bitterness and anger grow up and bush out in our lives, until they eat up the good space in our hearts. If not tended to, it keeps growing and snuffs out the seeds of love, joy, peace, gentleness, goodness and kindness, etc. in our lives. But…the good news is…we can always start over. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." If we ask God to prune us, and forgive us, we can allow the blossoms and fragrance of Jesus Christ to pour forth out of our lives. I pray that the green weed will consistently remind me to keep my life clean and not let sins take root.