November 2012

Welcome Wesley!

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Joel and Ryan had a whopping 19 events across 5 states in November, but the most exciting news is about the latest addition the the team.

On November 3rd, The Hollidays' new baby finally arrived!  The birth was much anticipated, as Wesley Michael Holliday came a mere 9 days after his due date.  Emily said that the birth was much easier than expected.  Amazing, especially considering that Wes weighed a rather huge 9 lb 6 oz and measured 22 inches!!! 

Emily says that Wes is "an incredible baby."  He only cries when he is hungry or has a wet diaper.  Praise God for a healthy mom and baby!  Please join us in prayer for this new little blessing, for his spiritual and physical health.

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Message From Joel

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Friends,

Ryan's new album has been a great tool for our ministry. Along with the album, we partnered with long our long time collaborator, Nathan Lundquist, to make three music videos.  We use two of the videos at our concerts to lead up to the time when I present the gospel.  Check them out below:

The first song/video we use is called "Blinded." It is all about searching for the Truth in a world that is filled with lies.

The second song/video is called "What We've Done."  The song describes how all of us are guilty and without hope based on our own merits.

Thank you so much for your prayer and support!

God Bless,
Joel

October 2012

Two trips to the State up North?

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Joel made two trips up to Michigan this October.  The atmosphere was actually more welcoming than one might expect.  As a former Ohio State Buckeye, Joel used to be a little nervous to speak in the state of Michigan.  He knows how seriously Buckeye fans take the rivalry and what contempt they seem to have for "that state up North."  You could only imagine what response Joel would get from a full high school student body in Michigan if the feeling is mutual.  However, after several experiences, Joel found that the people of Michigan don't seem to take the rivalry as personally as many do in Ohio.  Michigan residents seem to treat the rivalry more like what it is - just a game.  Joel's association with OSU is actually a huge positive because people are so familiar with the Buckeyes.  In fact, Michigan has become our most frequented state for ministry outside of Ohio.

Joel takes a video of volunteers joining Ryan for a song during an assembly

Joel speaking about the rewards that can come from keeping commitments

On the 2nd trip back from MI Joel noticed that The Moose rolled over the 200,000 mile mark! We purchased the vehicle with 60,000 miles. Though not too luxurious, the large 15 passenger van has been good to us and we hope to get at another 100k out of it!

Until next month,
Bethany

September 2012

Six States in Thirty Days

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September was extremely busy with events in six different states!

The month began with a trip to New York and Pennsylvania followed by a couple of assemblies in Ohio. Next came a long journey to Iowa and Nebraska.  Joel and Ryan found the heartland crowds especially welcoming.  They were even warmly greeted by the media. Both the ABC and NBC affiliates in Sioux City, IA ran a story on their evening news programs about Joel's assemblies in the local schools.  Colby Hill, a 10th grader at West High School in Iowa, commented on Joel in a local television news report, "He's not just someone who's saying something that he's never been through, he's had experiences, just like us in high school."  It's exciting to know that students feel that they can relate to Joel.  You can read the full length transcript here.

The month ended with one final trip to South Carolina. Whew! That was some serious traveling!

Students at the Sioux City West HS Concert

Impacting an Atheist

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A few days after the concert in South Carolina, Joel received an email from a guy named John. John's friend, Lyndsey was had been an atheist. She had even begun to challenge John and ask him questions about why he believed in God. In his email he says,

"We talked and agreed to disagree and not bring it up again. The night of the concert, she came along and listened to you and Ryan, and left with a copy of your book and Ryan's cd. She went home and read some, and listened to the cd, and the next day she called me and told me that she had been changed by the stories mentioned in the book, along with the passages in the Bible. She agreed to come to church that Sunday and left with even more faith. In a couple of weeks, she's getting baptized at my church!"



Wow, will you take a moment with me to just praise the Lord for another sister in Christ! How awesome that we get to be a small part of His work.
 

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Support Team Update

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This month our goal is to find four new individuals or families to partner with us by donating $30 a month to Stand For Truth.

If you haven't already, would you consider joining our support team with a monthly gift $30?

You can quickly and securely join our monthly support team or give a one-time gift online HERE.

Message From Joel

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Friends,

You may recall a post a few months ago about Ryan working on a new CD.  For several months he has been working hard to write a full-length album that complements my book that we give away to students. Well, last month he officially released his new album called, "Blinded."  Just like my book, it is all about the search for truth and finding the Truth in Jesus through the Bible.  You can listen to the album online here.  You can also purchase the music online through itunes or here.

God bless!

-Joel

August 2012

Back At It!

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August started off a little slow but quickly sped up as the new school year got underway.

Joel had the rare privilege in August of speaking at a couple college campuses in Ohio.  First, he was the guest speaker at the OSU Athletes in Action kick-off meeting.  More than 100 athletes came out to hear what AIA is all about.  Joel was excited to head back to his old "stomping grounds" where we both grew so much in our walk with Christ.  Joel and I actually met at an AIA meeting and Joel was able to recount that story to the student-athletes.  The primary focus of Joel's talk was "spiritual procrastination."  He challenged the students to avoid the common pitfall of putting of spiritual matters by adopting an eternal perspective and seeing Jesus for who he is.  

Joel was encouraged not only by the reception of his speech but also by someone he met at the meeting. A girl approached Joel at the AIA meeting and told him that she began her relationship with Christ at a camp where Joel had spoken several years ago.  She said to Joel that he was a part of her story in coming to know Him!  And now she is coaching at a Central Ohio University and actively leading Bible studies on her college campus.  How awesome!! We were reminded of Jesus parable in Matthew 13 about the seed being scattered.  Only one fourth of the seed resulted in strong growth and solid roots but that seed brought forth fruit 30, 60, and 100-fold.  God was so gracious to show Joel some of the fruit of the seed he has sown in preaching the gospel.  I cannot begin to tell you how much encouragement it gave Joel.

Joel's second opportunity to speak at a college was at Hocking College in South East Ohio.  Our long-time partnering church, Ebenezer Baptist, has been given a wonderful open door to start a campus church at Hocking.  They invited Joel to speak at their first meeting.  He shared the gospel and encouraged students to invest in their spiritual lives this school year.  The response was great and again Joel met someone who had been impacted by the ministry in the past.  When Joel arrived there was a student wearing a Stand Your Ground shirt, purchased at one of our outreaches a few years ago.  How cool!

We can't thank you enough for all your prayers and support!

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Support Team Update

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This month our goal is to find six new individuals or families to partner with us by donating $30 a month to Stand For Truth.

If you haven't already, would you consider joining our support team with a monthly gift $30?

You can quickly and securely join our monthly support team or give a one-time gift online HERE.

July 2012

The Summer Season

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When Joel entered full-time ministry in 2007, he frequently spoke to a wide range of audiences.   Youth groups, golf-outings, prayer breakfasts, awards banquets...you name it and Joel spoke at it.  Over the past few years we have intentionally and strategically focused our ministry on public high schools and middle schools.  During the school year, Joel stays so busy speaking in public schools, that he is rarely able to accept other engagements.  Over the summer, however, Joel gets a refreshing change of pace.  Below are a few of the engagements he had this season.

Northwest Bible Church VBS: Joel had the privilege of sharing his testimony at our home church's vacation Bible school this year. VBS is always one of the perennial highlights at our church as more than 1,000 kids from the area come and hear the gospel all week long.  Joel told me afterward that he had fun speaking to mass of enthusiastic 4 to 12-year-olds but it isn't something he is looking to do everyday. :)

The Way Football Camp: For the second year in a row, Joel was a guest coach and speaker at The Way Football Camp in Chillicothe, OH. Before speaking, Joel spent an afternoon with the campers, teaching them defensive line drills.  Joel finished his instructional time by coordinating d-line speed drill tournament.  Joel then raced the winner himself.  When he returned home, he was very proud to tell me that beating the fastest high school kid at the camp proves that he's "still got it." 

Circleville Church of the Nazarene Service:  When the Circleville Nazarene Church staff planned weekend trip out of town, Joel and Ryan were given the opportunity to lead one of their Sunday morning worship services.  We have partnered with Circleville Naz in the past and Joel was touched that they would entrust him and Ryan with such an important responsibility.  Joel loved the opportunity to preach a full sermon and Ryan was able to lead worship.  We were also blessed to have several new families from the church join our support team after the service!

Thank you for your prayers and support!

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Support Team Update

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This month our goal is to find four new individuals or families to partner with us by donating $30 a month to Stand For Truth.

If you haven't already, would you consider joining our support team with a monthly gift $30?

You can quickly and securely join our monthly support team or give a one-time gift online HERE.

From left to right: Joel, Judah, Bethany, Luther, Joel III, Emily, Whitney & Ryan

Message From Joel

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Friends,

If you support our ministry, you will soon be receiving a new magnet with an updated photo (picture above)which includes our newest son, Luther, in our growing team.  However, you will be excited to learn that the new magnet you receive will soon be outdated because the Hollidays are expecting their second child! Their new baby boy is due in October!  Please join us in thanking God for His kindness toward both our families in giving us precious children. Join us also in praying for the healthy pregnancy and wisdom in coordinating a busy Fall travel schedule with the upcoming birth.

God bless!

-Joel

June 2012

School Year Highlights

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June is always a time for us to step back and celebrate all that God has accomplished through our ministry during the previous school year as well as prepare for the future.  This past school year we accomplished many goals, including:

• 96 school assemblies
• 50 outreach concerts
• 10,000 students heard the gospel
• Our new non-profit ministry "Stand for Truth" was launched!

In addition, those 10,000 students actually walked away from the concert with a copy of Joel's book, "Seven Lies Almost Every Teen Believes." This is huge as the students now have something tangible to take away from the concert. More importantly, the gospel is presented in the book in clear teen language to hammer home the truth that they heard at the concert even more.  Praise God!

However, feedback from students is perhaps even more exciting:

"Dude, your book, 7 lies, is life changing. I admit when I got home from Ryan's concert and your speech that night, that I was like, "I am not going to read." But, as I was laying down I picked it up.  I read the introduction, and it pulled me in. I got to thinking about the big question. I asked myself where was I; "I am I going to go to heaven when it is my time or hell." I am still reading; in fact I can't put it down.  I intend to finish it and change my life. Thank you!

-Anthony from Manila, AR

"I really loved the concert yesterday. I'm already roughly halfway through your book "Seven lies Almost Every Teen Believes" and I have to say I LOVE it!  I usually don't buy into "motivational speakers" or "self help books" but the fact that you didn't try to act as if you were perfect and therefore could make us perfect has changed my mind. I love the fact that you're trying to help teens find a relationship with God.  I just wanted to thank you for the message and the opportunity to improve my relationship with God!"

-Helen from Advance, MO

Um, yeah.  That's what it is all about!!  Praise the Lord.

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Support Team Update

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This month our goal is to find eight new individuals or families to partner with us by donating $30 a month to Stand For Truth.

If you haven't already, would you consider joining our support team with a monthly gift $30?

You can quickly and securely join our monthly support team or give a one-time gift online HERE.

May 2012

A Unique Summer Project

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For those of you who have read Joel's latest book, Seven Lies Almost Every Teen Believes, you understand the journey the reader takes from the beginning to the end.  The book covers everything from relativism to church membership in about 200 pages.  We worked especially hard to make this book easy to understand and written in 'teen lingo.' By God's grace, we were able to give away about 10,000 copies of the book this past school year and the feedback has been incredible (see the message from Joel). 

Now we know that for many teens, the idea of reading a book from cover to cover can be daunting.  So we have an exciting idea for next year to help students understand and internalize the theological concepts Joel communicates in Seven Lies.  Ryan is working on a brand new, full-length album. But this one is unique. The CD parallels Joel's book and each song correlates specifically with one lie (i.e. one chapter of the book!).  Ryan and Joel worked very hard all Spring and the album is now undergoing the finishing touches so that it can be ready for Fall 2012 school year.  If you think of it, would you pray for this special project? Pray that the words of the Bible reach the ears of thousands of teens and convict them of their need for Christ.  Pray that they would use Joel's "Seven Lies" book and Ryan's CD as just a stepping stone to their new relationship with Christ, time in God's Word and prayer, and a real connection to the church.

Until Next Month,

Bethany 

Support Team Update

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During our transition from FCA to our new ministry, Stand For Truth, we have been encouraged by the number of supporters who have continued to partner with us. So far, about 90% of our support team has remained intact!

If you haven't already, would you consider joining our support team with a monthly gift of $100, $50, or $30? You can quickly and securely join our monthly support team or give a one-time gift online HERE.

Message From Joel

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Friends,

It is exciting to think about the thousands of students who heard the gospel through our ministry this past school year.  It is perhaps even more exciting to think about some of the anecdotal feedback from students.  Below is a conversation I had with a couple students on my facebook wall after Ryan and I visited their school.  

Jenny: Joel, I just read your whole book within 24 hours. While my classes were going on I found it very hard to not open it and read it. I turned to God that night at the high school and I can't wait to grow more spiritually!

Joel: Wow...I'm glad you like the book so much... I'm even more excited that you have turned to Jesus.

Laura: I want to say something as well. I know you as a one of my close friends Jenny, and I am really proud of you. I also turned to Jesus that night at the concert. I read the entire book as well and it really made me think about the way I was living and looking at things. Now I'm ready to have him in my life forever.

Jenny: That’s good Laura, we can do this together!

Laura: For sure!

Praise God for the work he does in students' hearts and thank you for your prayers and support!

-Joel

March and April 2012

Since the birth of our newest son, Luther, came in mid-April (scroll to "Message from Joel" to read birth announcement) when I typically send out the Pentons' Progress, I decided to combine  March and April into one blog post.

A Busy Spring!

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Joel and Ryan's concert setup before the doors open

March was perhaps the busiest month this school year with 28 speaking engagements including eleven outreach concerts!  By the end of the month, Joel and Ryan were ready for a break from the road.  I was also ready for a little help with my two crazy sons, since I was nine months pregnant!

Some of Joel's most cherished experiences in ministry are not just speaking in front of large groups of people, but also interacting with individuals after the events. Joel shared with me an interesting interaction that took place at last concert in March.  A girl named Jessica asked him to sign her free copy of Joel's book, "Seven Lies." As Joel was signing, the following conversation took place:

Jessica: The only thing I got our of tonight was this free book. (yeah, students can be a little too honest sometimes!)
Joel: You didn't like what I had to say about Jesus?
Jessica: No, I'm an atheist. I believe in scientific explanations for everything.
Joel: Even Jesus rising from the dead?
Jessica: I mean about how the world was created.
Joel: Yeah, but what about Jesus rising from the dead?  That's kind of big deal isn't it?
Jessica: I think there must be some other explanation for that.
Joel: I wish I could talk more with you about this but I need to keep signing books for these people.  Will you promise me to read my book and send me an email so we can continue our conversation?
Jessica: Sure.

By the time Joel got home that night he had received an email from from Jessica.  She said that she had read two chapters of Joel's book and that she was already becoming more "open-minded."  After finishing the book and a few emails back and forth with Joel, Jessica confessed that she now believes that Jesus rose from the dead!

Please join us in thanking God for Him working in Jessica.  Pray also that she will grasp the full gospel message and be born again into a new life with Christ.

Much of April was spent catching up on ministry projects while waiting for Penton boy #3 to arrive.  Joel focused on the administrative aspects of our new non-profit Stand for Truth.  Finally, on April 19th, Luther Joseph Penton was born!  Praise the Lord!

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Message From Joel

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Friends,

We are so grateful to announce the birth of our third son, Luther Joseph Penton.  Thank you so much for all of your prayers for our family.  It was very hard for us to wait a full 10 days past the due date, but of course, totally worth it!  Luther is a very good baby so far. He is a champ at sleeping and eating much like his brothers...and father.  Joel 3 is very helpful with "baby Woo-fur" and often asks about him.  He is very affectionate and always wants to hug and kiss him.  Judah, at first, didn't even acknowledge baby Luther.  But now he likes to run up to the bassinet and say "Hi, baby!" with a wave.  His version of "Luther" sounds like "ruff-ruff" like a dog. Here's a video of the boys saying Hi to Luther.

We named Luther after the great church reformer, Martin Luther. Before meeting Jesus, Martin Luther devoted his life to earning God's approval through good deeds and keeping God's moral law.  However, he could never shake the conviction that before God, he was a rebel sinner deserving eternal judgement.  It wasn't until meditating on the book of Romans, that Luther saw that Christ offers the gift of righteousness to all who simply trust in him by faith. Luther believed this good news and was born again.  He spent the rest of his life proclaiming the gospel of God's free grace in Christ to all who would listen, even when it nearly cost him his life.  We love Martin Luther because he loved the gospel.  Please join us in praying that Luther Penton will love the gospel too.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

God Bless,

Joel

February 2012

The Return To Northwest Ohio

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Joel & Ryan with Kenton students earlier this school year.

Five years ago, Joel spent much of his first year of full-time ministry speaking in Northwest Ohio. Since Joel is from Van Wert, many requests came from the NW Ohio area.  Since then, we expanded his reach to many other states.  The amount of out of state engagements has increased every year.  For example, last year, Joel flew out to California (twice), North Dakota, and even drove to Texas!

Expanding our reach has its pros and cons.  The ability hold successful assemblies and outreaches outside Ohio increases our potential for filling our calendar and reaching more students. However, speaking and holding concerts far away requires many more days on the road and away from family.  Thank goodness a full four years has passed since Joel's first year of speaking in Northwest Ohio! This year he has been able to return to some of those schools and speak to a new group of students...in Ohio! How great! Joel and Ryan visited five Northwest Ohio schools in February alone.  They reached just as many students, but spent less time on the road.  What a blessing!

Ryan performs at Crestview HS

In early February, Emily Holliday and I were both able to attend the Crestview High School concert which was only about 40 minutes away from Van Wert.  We attended as complete spectators and gave feedback later on.  The guys definitely put on an entertaining event but also brought the full-force truth of the gospel. This was very encouraging for us, and we were thankful to have this experience.

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Message From Joel

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Friends,

Our transition from FCA to Stand For Truth is going very well.  As I mentioned last month, our greatest challenge is transitioning our automatic monthly donors to the new ministry.  We are so excited that more than 70% of those donors have already agreed to continue supporting our us.  Just over 5% have decided to stop their donations.  We will have to work hard to make up for that loss of funds, but it is definitely manageable.  There are, however, still more than 20% of our automatic donors who we haven't heard from.  Please join us in praying that we will be able to reach these supporters and they will remain committed to partnering with us in the work of the Gospel.

The most exciting part of the transition is that we have been able to maintain our heavy travel schedule.  We also plan to keep it up for the rest of the school year (minus a short break for the birth of our third son).  In fact, just this week we reached our booking goals through May.  We still need to hit the road to fulfill those engagements, but as we do, we can put a lot of effort into finishing the move over to Stand For Truth and even looking ahead to next school year.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

God Bless,
Joel

January 2012

A NEW ERA!

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Well, the time has finally come. We have talked about the possibility of starting our own non-profit for years and this January we actually did it. We are excited to announce that "Stand For Truth" is the new official ministry of the Pentons and the Hollidays!

So why the change?  Over the past couple years, our parent organization, The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, has become more and more focused on reaching primarily student-athletes and coaches.  At the same time, our specific ministry within FCA has become more and more committed to reaching all types of teens with the gospel.  The difference in focus isn’t a major problem, but we have begun to feel that working as official FCA representatives probably isn’t the best fit.  So after much thought, prayer and counsel we decided to transition out of FCA and into our new non-profit ministry, Stand For Truth.  

The mission of our ministry has not changed at all.  We will continue to reach unchurched teens with the Gospel of Jesus through school assemblies and outreach events across the nation.  We will also continue to work closely with the local FCA staff and partner with FCA groups around the country.  The only change will be organizational but it should enable us to be more efficient and effective at reaching teens.

January was Joel's last month on staff with FCA.  He served for exactly five years to the day. We are so grateful to FCA for all their support over the years, and freedom to achieve our own ministry goals.  Please pray for us an we begin this new phase of life and ministry.

Until Next Month,

Bethany

Message From Joel

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Friends,

The transition into the new ministry is very exciting but it is also a bit challenging.  We are in the midst of a pretty busy travel schedule which doesn't leave a lot of extra time for getting a new non-profit up and running.  I thank God that Bethany and Ryan's wife, Emily, are so committed to the ministry.  They are bearing much of the administrative burden of this transition.  Please pray for them to have the time and energy necessary for this task while also caring for young children at home.

Perhaps the greatest challenge right now is transitioning all our financial supporters over to the new ministry.  We have many supporters who donate through automatic monthly donations and it is difficult to get in touch with so many people in such a short period of time to get their donations switched from FCA to Stand For Truth.  We are also seeing a trend of some people taking this change as an opportunity to reevaluate their decision to support us at all. Please pray that our emails, letters and phone calls will get through right away and that our supporters will remain committed to our ministry so we can continue our work of reaching teens with the Gospel. 

Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

God Bless,
Joel

December 2011

Family Update Edition

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This past Fall season was the busiest we have had in five years of ministry.  The further distances meant longer hours on the road and in the air.  The increased amount of outreaches (to meet our new goals) meant really late nights and additional travel days for Joel and Ryan. 

Early in December, Joel spoke in New York and New Jersey.  But, thankfully, most of December was spent catching up on much needed family time. 

JOEL III

At almost 3 years old, Joel talks our ears off all day long.  His favorite game this Winter was running around the house in circles (going from room to room) while holding a football and shouting "I'm a football player, tackle me, tackle me!"  This sometimes results in falling and smashing his face or head against something as you can see in the video below.  Around Christmas time, He loved making 'manger scenes' with his toy people.  He would arrange them in a circle and put a small one in the middle and say "Mommy look! It's a manger scene!" Very cute.

Joel has had some intensive training from Daddy in Bible memorization and a Biblical doctrine Q & A that we call "The Penton Catechism."  Here's a great video of a training session.

JUDAH

Judah is making the transition from baby to toddler very well, and it is fun to watch.  He does not have many words for 15 months, but he is incredibly coordinated, and great on his feet. He still finds a way to turn everything into a game.  He loves rythmic grunting to music and flailing his arms singing and dancing.  He is very mellow and even-tempered, though he has an intense passion for eating. He is incredibly resilient and will often laugh when his brother tackles him to the floor or pushes him down.  He follows simple commands, points at things, and raises his arms when he wants to be held.  He loves to crawl up the stairs especially when someone chasing him.  He is a joy.

Thank you so much for being a part of our team.  Please continue to pray for us (see requests on right sidebar). God bless you guys!

Until next month,
Bethany