Friday, August 03, 2007

A fun trip to Searcy Arkansas!

We just returned from a wonderful 2 day trip to Searcy. Our main reason for going involved eye exams with Dr. Bailey, however, there was much more to the trip! It was a great family get away in our new car...we loved the smooth roads and the gas stations with clean restrooms and fountain drinks and fun snacks! We loved the beautiful trees and opportunities to see cows and horses grazing in the fields. We absolutely loved staying with Dr. Bailey and Ms.Betty! They also happen to be my sister in-law's (Emille) parents which makes them extra special!!! They treated to us great food, slip and slide fun for the kids and Ms.Betty treated Tori and I to a tour of the best places to go shopping in Searcy! We had a blast! Last night after dinner we all went to walk around the Harding University campus. It has changed a lot since the last time we were there and is even more beautiful than before! Our dear friends Monte and Beth Cox live close to the campus so we took a chance and knocked on their door, wondering if they might be in town. They were!!! We were able to have a great visit and introduce them to our entire crew! The picture at the bottom of this post is of me and Beth. This is a dear dear friend who has been used by God to impact my life in big ways! I love her so much and her wonderful husband Monte too! Walking around the Harding campus
Sweet fun at the Baileys' house...
also includes a picture of Lael wearing her DVD headphones in the car!


Beth Cox and Kelly

Beth and her husband Monte are former missionaries to Kenya.

I had the opportunity to intern under them in 1990.

My life was forever changed after that summer.

The Lord's plans are good! His ways are beyond tracing out! I had no idea what the Lord was orchestrating when I agreed to go to Kenya that summer. I love being able to look back and see the trace of his hand, especially during a time of my life when I tended to think that the decisions of my future were up to me and anxiety often filled my soul. The Lord was there, leading me into the lives of people who were equipping me and encouraging me about the days to come. Thank you Lord!


2 comments:

laura said...

You just have got to love Beth and Monte! I was able to "housesit" for them my last semester at Harding while they were overseas at the Greece program and so it was fun to envision you standing on the front porch where we actually took some of our engagement pictures before we got married :) So glad you guys had a safe trip and got to have some fun family time! And I keep praising God daily for the transition that your children are having... I'm sure there have been moments, but they truly look so happy and still their fun loving, adventure seeking :) selves anf for that i'm so grateful! God bless you guys!

sj said...

I love Beth Cox!