Sharing our first meal in our new home!! Yes, Randy and I closed on our first home last Wednesday just before Thanksgiving. We are moving in slowly in the midst of very busy lives but we are SO excited. We are still living in Fort Worth and moving less than a mile from the home we have been renting.

Thanksgiving for our family was spent in Baird with the Jeffrey/Cardwell clan. We always enjoy time at the ranch but being here to celebrate Thanksgiving this year was extra special. As we drove out Wednesday night the traffic was thick and you could see the stacks of cars for as far as your eyes could see. My sweet husband said, "Isn't this great? We live in a country where everyone in the nation is trying to get home to family and spend time with people they love?" For years we have spent this day alone as a family and we do have many special memories from these times and yet our hearts truly overflow with joy at the experience of being in the same room with friends and family sharing great food and taking the time to reflect on goodness of God in 2007. We all felt a special blessing when the snowflakes began to fall and stick to the ground...the morning had started out cold but none of us expected the snow!!! The kids were beside themselves and had so much fun playing and building a snowman!







Friday afternoon we left Baird and drove straight into Fort Worth for the Parade of Lights and the Lighting of the Christmas tree. We were freezing cold and my arms were shaking from holding Jonathan and Lael for almost the entire time...and to be truthful little Lael was not enjoying herself, she was so cold. We did have fun being with Donny and Kendra and their precious boys, as well as the Yowell family!
The Christmas season has officially arrived!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2007 ! !

Most of you know that Randy and I returned with our family to Fort Worth Texas this summer after over 8 years in Benin, West Africa. We are so thankful for the experiences that the Lord gave us in Benin and for our many dear friends who remain there. When we left, there were 9 churches that had been planted. The last two churches planted were planted solely by the Aja Christians! We give praise to God for this great work! Randy and I have told many people since our return that our departure from Benin was somewhat like a storybook ending. We are thankful to be home, yet our hearts are very tender towards Benin. We all enjoy opportunities to speak about our life there. The Lord is good and we witnessed him do amazing things in our lives and in the Aja people.

We have been generously welcomed home by the Richland Hills Church of Christ! Their love and support has been needed and greatly treasured. Many dear friends poured their hearts and lives into assuring that we were cared for from the minute we stepped off of the plane. Our adjustment has been more difficult than we anticipated so we have been extremely grateful for the continual grace and encouragement given.

We’re also grateful for this unique window in our lives when Randy can launch his own marketing/advertising/graphic design company. This has been a lifelong dream and it seems there’s no better time to do it! Started alongside a silent partner (we’ll keep his name anonymous until he quits his job and goes full-time), the company name is "1429." An unusual name, yes, but one with important meaning behind it. Ask and I’m sure Randy will love telling you about it! Randy graduated from ACU with a degree in Marketing. He is exceptionally gifted in graphic design. When you see his work and how much he enjoys doing it, you can not help but think, this is what Randy was made to do!!!

Just a few weeks ago, I received a phone call presenting me with a job opportunity that I am very excited about. I am now presently working for Christian Homes and Family Services as their Metroplex Adoption Case Worker. I will be working with families in the DFW area who desire to adopt through Christian Homes. I worked for CHFS before leaving for Benin and absolutely loved this work. Now being a mother who has adopted a precious baby girl, I am even more excited about the occasion to be involved in bringing families together. I will be working from our home. This job is a very timely and specific answer to prayers for our family.

You are probably wondering about how our four children are transitioning into to this new life. They love being with friends and family and they love eating at fast food restaurants with playgrounds. They love going to Bible classes and playing at parks. We believe they are all transitioning well. At the same time, they greatly miss their friends in Benin, our home, and our Superdog Booker.

We are so thankful for the prayers prayed for our family. Because of your prayers we were sustained and delivered, more patient and encouraged, and never alone. Because of your prayers we were able to leave for Benin with one child and return to Texas with four. Because of your prayers we are all adjusting and our eyes are being opened to the Lord’s provision. Our hearts are filled with thanksgiving!

Let us shout God’s name with a praising song!
Let us tell his greatness with thanksgiving!
Psalms 69:30

Randy & Kelly
Tori, Timothy, Jonathan & Lael

This morning was much anticipated and every moment was thoroughly enjoyed. We were invited by our dear friend Peggy to come and spend the morning at her ranch. We each took a turn riding "Peppy Lee Bueno" and we learned some special lessons about caring for horses from Peggy. This was definitely a day for making sweet memories!












You will notice that we are starting to get into the holiday spirit! (the Christmas music on the side of this blog) Tori has the entire week off next week. Yea!! We will be spending the Thanksgiving Holiday in Baird. We have so much to be thankful for and we look forward to sharing more of the exciting things that the Lord is doing in the life of our family in coming posts! This is a wonderful time of year. We are missing our friends in Benin and the traditions that we have shared with them there. Even so, we are excited to participate in the joys of the season right here in Texas!

Tori's High School Musical Birthday Party

Tori had been dreaming of this day for months and it finally came! The sun was shining and the HSM Soundtrack was playing loud! My parents helped to host this party in their wonderful backyard. We invited friends and cousins and most everyone was able to come. Tori had 3 uncles there, her Aunt Becky, all DFW cousins, and all of her grandparents present. What a blessing to share this day with them. We were sure missing those of you in our family who could not be with us.

My sister had given Tori the HSM party planner and one of the ideas was to have a concession stand and serve popcorn, nachos, and hotdogs. After playing some fun games like Twister, attempting to get 3 Baskets in a row, and HSM Name That Tune, we passed out tickets and everyone went to the concession stand for food and drinks! This was a big hit! Randy made another awesome cake this year for Tori. Tori was pretty specific in what she wanted and her words when she saw the cake for the first time were, "Oh Dad this is even better than I thought!!"

We had a wonderful day celebrating her life and it was a JOY to share this time with our family and special friends. We thank God because Tori is the WORK OF HIS HANDS!! He has created her with love for a purpose and we are so thankful to be her parents.
My heart was so full as I watched her interact with these girl friends, most of whom she did not even know 4 months ago. Another very specific answer to prayer! God is so good.

Praying for the Aja People: 3rd of 4

Rule #1: never start a series of blog posting by titling the first one “Week #1”…this places the author into a nonsensical predicament of having to actually follow through on a weekly basis with Weeks #2, #3, etc. So I apologize for all of you who have been sitting on the edge of your seat ( ha ) waiting for this next installment.

After a brief overview in the first post, a few weeks ago I encouraged you to pray for the BELIEVERS in Benin West Africa. In a few weeks, I’ll focus on the present/future African Christian leaders. These guys are amazing men of faith and will need your prayers for perseverance (and yet don’t take that as a signal of weakness…these brothers and sisters will often usurp me in the faith department!)

Today I want to encourage you to pray for the non-believing populace. As Christians, the Bible teaches us that, before we were “in Christ”, we were deceived, enslaved, blinded and basically incarcerated to whatever our own selfish desires dictated. But when we surrender ourselves to the Lord Jesus, we ask God to forgive us for all of our failings, trust Jesus to have paid the appropriate sacrificial price for our errors, and we begin to learn to allow the Spirit of God to give us the strength to be as God intended and bear the fruit He had in mind when He created us.

My friend Murphy Crowson has some excellent insights into West African religion as he works with a specific people group in Togo. His website is so cool and an excellent resource for understanding the role God’s missionaries have in communicating His love. I have drawn much of the descriptions below from his site. (Thanks MC for doing all the work!)

Like so many similar people groups in West Africa, the Aja people of Benin are animistic in their beliefs. God is Creator (powerful but distant), but aided by a host of lesser spiritual beings (powerful and close). Alongside this pantheon of power are departed ancestors (influential and close).
- Pray that as God demonstrates His intimacy with His created people, that these non-believers will have the blinders lifted to witness it!

When crisis happens, unbelievers rush to the witchdoctor to divine the cause of the tragedy. These persons divine the source of the problem, which often has little to do with what we might determine as non-personal impacts (such as diagnosing a near-death child with some sort of medical verdict). More often than not, someone in the family has committed a grievous action against someone else, thus invoking the “effects” of their actions onto the present situation. I know many of our brothers and sisters in Christ who have been targeted as the reason other family members died or their crops failed. All because these familiy members rejected the traditional family religion to follow after this “apostate named Jesus”. In addition to the power of sorcery and the muscle of all those gods, the pagan world wrestles with one another in intense jealousy and envy. Curses can be placed upon others, even loved ones or family members, who might possibly be interfering with their lives.

- Pray God will speak clearly His sovereignty in the midst of a seemingly perpetual state of crisis (so many sicknesses, pains, troubles, deaths, and other calamities that visit these people almost every day!) Without reducing it too simplistically, I might say that fear is the prevailing barrier to coming to Christ. Not just a “fear of what my friends might say” (for those of in the West, we value our reputation), but a “fear of what my friends might do”. They live in a state of fear that their actions will have a domino-like effect on the lives of others and fear being blamed for it all.

The people’s concern for spiritual security and safety from evil are primary. Their ideas of God do not include viewing him as a particularly loving God or one who expects his creatures to love him. The relationship between father and child is more often one of distance and severity based in obedience rather than closeness and forgiveness based in love. The emphasis is upon proper behavior rather than upon right thoughts and motives.

- May the minds of the unbelievers be opened to the freedom we have in Christ, when we realize that it is not because of any righteous thing that we have done that we are saved, but we are rescued and redeemed because of the intimate love of our brother and friend, Jesus.

These nonbelievers are more immediately concerned about power over evil spirits and protection from sorcery than pardon from sin or right relationship with God. Their ideas of morality are centered around outward prohibitions and have very little to do with inward attitudes. In general, they fear magic which is a body of techniques used to control the universe. This body of belief and methodology is based on the assumption that if certain procedures are followed minutely, certain results are inevitable. They also fear specifically imitative (homeopathic) magic which refers to the belief that one can be harmed by destroying something that belonged to the victim such as nail clippings, hair clippings or clothing.

- Pray that the love embodied throughout the writings of our God would penetrate their hearts and bring them to a strong conviction that reconciliation with God is foremost and the key to finding peace and hope. Pray that they may have opportunities of various kinds to see, hear and experience the tangible love of God.

OK – so I’ve oversimplified West Africa religion way too much, reducing it to a single blog post. Volumes have been written and there are numerous places to go on the web to learn more details. Honestly, it can be overwhelming to think how these barriers can be overcome. But having lived there for almost a decade, I can say that God DOES show up in the lives of non-believers and he DOES arrest their minds with His power and compassion. God is able and in spite of an overwhelming battle in the minds of unbelievers, our Lord is faithful so that none should perish but that all should enjoy abundant and everlasting life!
-Randy

Thanks to David Ker for encouraging us to thinking globally and praying for the world! Thanks DK for encouraging us to voice these perspectives so the Christian world can pray!

Seriously . . .

OK, first of all, you might not take the rest of this post seriously after this picture. Seriously, this is what happens when you are Daddy-ing it alone (Mommy's out of town) and you step away for 5 minutes after letting the kids enjoy a leftover BD cupcake from yesterday! This picture hardly does the mess justice! I'm sure some of you guys out there would never have been so candid - - usually these are moments that a Dad DOESN'T want captured on film! But hey, this is life (occasionally) in our household! Ha Ha! Obviously, for Kelly's sake, I would agree that she probably would have never given them the cupcakes to begin with, or at least done it with supervision!

OK - now to the serious side of the post. This week my heart is turned in a unique way to the global impact the church of Jesus can make. Not every believer will make a trip overseas, nor will every believer have the thrilling experience of cross-cultural Christian friendships. But through the power of praying and the gift of generously giving, we all can play a role in seeing ALL the nations of the world presented with the Gospel of Christ.

Our local congregation has an amazing history of giving so that people in this part of the world, as well in nations all over the world can hear about Jesus. I'm proud to not only be associated with them, but Kelly and I were recipients of such generosity for over a decade!

God is eager to grant believers access to the nations - access to planting seeds of the Kingdom, access to establishing churches, access to demonstrating His compassionate care to hurting people, and access to making friends in all the nations...friends who are bonded together through a single commonality: JESUS.

God is SO FULL OF LOVE for every person on this earth. His heart cheers for the seeker and runs after those who have turned from God - or more likely, have been turned away from God by the actions of "well-meaning Christians." The Bible does remind us that He sent Jesus for ALL of us and that He doesn't want ANYONE to miss Christ.

The vast majority of people reading this are, by the world's standards, extremely wealthy. Yes, you. Yes, me. If I also belong to Christ, what enormous responsibility I have to give of my resources generously so that message of Christ can go forth! Not that American or Western wealth should fund worldwide evangelism exclusively (for many missionaries, including myself, rightfully teach poorer Christians to give just as cheerfully to see the gospel message advanced), but we wealthy Christians do have a significant opportunity to use our wealth for something close to the heart of God.

If you are a part of our RHCC family, then this week I pray you are feeling the call to give generously. If you are not a part of our local church family, I pray that these thoughts still stir you to examine your giving to global missions. It is not a competition as if to say "well, I give my money locally where there are just as many lost people." To say so would split the commissioned task of Christ into a unbiblical battle between believers over WHERE to spend our money. Sounds like local politics! Our task as disciples is to spend our money over all the earth so that ALL the nations hear the Great News of Christ. God has given this opportunity as a gift if we ask for it and are willing to accept the challenge: Give Generously!

-Randy

We have had a wonderful DAY of celebrating Tori!! We started out early with a few presents and taking cupcakes to school. My mom and I were able to join Tori for lunch and then join her in the classroom when she shared the cupcakes. After school we opened some more presents and played a fun Twister game to the songs of High School Musical...see if you can find the picture of that game going on below!!! Tonight we were with the Jeffrey side of our family at one of our family favorite restaurants...Lubys!!! We had a blast being together and watching Tori's reaction to her presents. My mind has been reflecting on one of the absolute best days of my life all day today!! I love being the mother of Tori Vaughn! She is such a precious girl. My heart truly overflows with enthusiastic LOVE for this girl! The Lord's plans for her are GOOD!

Happy Birthday TORI !! #9 !!

Happy Birthday to our beautiful daughter, Tori! She's 9 years old today and it's going to be a week long celebration for sure!! We're so proud of her and thank God for this wonderful young woman! I loved being there in the room when Tori was born and taking a thousand pictures. Oh - those early lights certainly must have prepared our girl for a lifetime of photo ops. I am thankful for her laughter, her leadership, her love of her grandparents/aunts/uncles/cousins...and even as a Dad, I "appreciate" her latest infatuation for "High School Musical". I love listening to her sweet voice singing along with the CD as she sings Lael to sleep every night (meanwhile of course, the brothers in the other room yell out, "TORI STOP SINGING SO LOUD!!!") I love her kindness to her siblings, her inquisitive questions about life, her growing understanding of God's good grace, and for the fun she can have with so many "best friends". I love you Tori - have a great happy birthday!!

Love,
Dad

An Evening with Amy Grant

Last night was a special time and I am so thankful to have shared it with 3 of my most favorite people in the world!

Amy Grant was completely herself ... real ... sincere ... authentic ... sharing intimately about her faith and her family. I was amazed to be sitting at the Bass Hall with thousands of others who apparently share the same relationship with her that I do...this was a tad bit dissappointing as I have felt that our friendship was uniquely special and I found myself surprisingly shocked that she was sharing so intimately with everyone else! I hope you are smiling with me!!! I was blessed and so thankful to be in Fort Worth last night. There have been many evenings over the last 10 years when I would love to have come to DFW for 24 hours to enjoy an evening like this with my dear friend Amy Grant! Maybe someday our paths will cross again and we can actually have dinner together. That would be nice!

Tonight, Tori and I, together with my Mom and Sister are going to hear Amy Grant at the Bass Hall. We are all excited! Today I am posting the last of the stories that were shared with me about Amy. Thanks so much for sharing in this time of reflection. I know I have had fun!

Tami Weaver

I was in college when her album first came out. Several of my friends had a connection to her through Nashville r and brought the album back after Christmas break. It was a little daring for me to listen at first, since it was instumental Christian music. But, I like you loved her songs instantly, even the ones that weren't big hits. I felt such a connection with her, what she was going through and loved to hear any thing about her life. Her sister's inlaws go to church with my parents, and I would always make my mom pump them for information about her. I got to go back stage one time, although I kinda talked my way back there. She was still married at the time and she and her husband were so personable and real. I always read about her, got her albums/cd's and went to see her in concert. I agree with you, she sang about a realationship with God that was something I wanted. It was also a connection that she had church of Christ roots and was singing this way about her faith. ( singing with a guitar no less)
I can so identify with you feeling she was your friend. I loved reading the album notes seeing what was going on in her life/ reading between the lines. I always thought that if we met on an airplane we would have so much fun taking. I've been know to go to Mardels and listen to all her old albums and read the album notes because it gave a little more insight into her life.
I was so saddened by her marriage break up and disappointed by her remarriage to Vince Gill. I kinda would like to know the whole story, wouldn't you?
I went to her last concert about 2 years ago here in Ft Worth at Bass Hall. Sorry you had to miss that one. She played a bunch of old songs and it was a treat. Vince was there and they did seem to really have a sweet relationship. I thought the concert was going to be what it seems the book is like-telling what was going on in her life when she wrote those songs.
You know she always seemed so real and down to earth despite her super stardom. I'd love to read her thoughts about songs she wrote. Even now when I hear her older songs it takes me back to where and when I was when they came out. I remember the first time I heard her on the radio, I thought Christian music had arrived and I was so proud for her

Courtney Critz

My memories of Amy Grant go back as far as I can remember. When my parents first returned to church when I was a baby, they went to church with the Bannister family. One Sunday, Brown brought "a brand new singer" to church with him. My mom described her as a shy, teenage girl. She was Amy and apparently played with me in the pews during church. My parents were horrified because I wouldn't stop crying that day. : ) Maybe I was just trying to sing to her!

One of her early concerts was my first concert, and I can probably sing every word to every one of her early songs. "Father's Eyes"

would have to be my favorite, though. I have always identified with God as Father in a special way because of the precious relationship He has given me with my earthly daddy. I remember being a tiny girl and wishing that someday someone would say those things about me as I tried to become more like my Heavenly Father. I identified with Amy so much in that song.

I also have many special memories with Amy's Christmas albums. They

come out every year the day after Thanksgiving and are my favorites!

I've sung those many times for Christmas events, and it's not Christmas until you hear "Breath of Heaven" and "Tennessee Christmas"

at least once!

Judy Vaughn

Kelly, my personal favorites by Amy are Breath of Heaven ( as illustrated by requesting Beth Plemmons to sing it at both yours and Randy's and Donny's and Kendra's Christmas weddings...which by the way if you can't get Amy...Beth is the next best thing! ) and El Shaddai because of the words AND sounds. Both are beautiful to me.

The other song of hers that made an impact on me was because of an experience I had in my classroom. I had a second grader (Keely) with emotional problems stemming from a turbulent family life with a nasty divorce going on. She reached out to me a lot and I grew really attached. During the last few days of school I allowed the children to bring music they wanted to hear from home. I got a real kick out of some of the things they brought including the Macarama (sp?) that we tried to dance to! My little friend, Keely, brought My Father's Eyes by Amy Grant. I could not believe she would even have it. She LOVED that album and the title song in particular. I am sure it gave her comfort.

Amy has no idea how her gift has touched so many people!

Holly Davis

Amy Grant has been one of my very favorites. When I was in Junior High, our Summer Intern, played the song, Thy Word during a Wednesday night lesson. I thought it was a beautiful song sung by someone with a beautiful clear voice. I remember going in his office after church and asking about the tape that was played. I can see it laying on his desk even now, Straight Ahead, the one with the stoplight on the cover. That was my first introduction to Amy Grant. I had the tape of my own the very next day. I remember my parents getting tickets and taking me to the Unguarded Concert in Dallas. I thought she was amazing. My parents also got me the life size cut out (I can't remember what they are really called) of Amy from the display at the Christian Bookstore. So I had a life size Amy Grant in a black dress holding a dozen roses in my room. I am pretty sure she is still with us in my parents basement. I read her book many years ago and was also a member of her Fan Club. That was way before websites so every 6-8 weeks I would get the paper newsletter in the mail to catch up on what was going on with her! I skipped out on my college graduation (for my masters, not undergrad) so I could go to her Christmas Concert in Detroit! When it comes to her music, it is hard to choose favorites, depends on what day! I guess I would have to say: My favorite song - Thy Word since that was the first one I heard. My favorite album is the album of Hymns she came out with a couple of years ago.


Jennifer Hagen


I have been a Texas girl almost all of my life and as most people know who are from Texas, snow is close to nonexistent at Christmas. When I heard “Tennessee Christmas” for the first time (my dad was a huge fan) I could see the snow lined rooftops and taste the snowflakes on my tongue. As I took Amy to Baylor with me in 1990, I have vivid memories of me and my roommates standing on our beds belting this song out at the top of our lungs! I adore this song and it is not Christmas for me unless I can listen to it time and time again with my three girls staring at me like a crazy woman!

The other precious memory I have has to do with her Legacy Album. I totally anticipated its release because I am an old time Baptist girl who loves her hymns. If I remember correctly, I was hugely pregnant (just a few days away from induction) with my second daughter when this was released. I thought it would be a great album to take with me to the hospital to listen to during my labor. I went from Walmart, to Target, then to another Walmart where I finally found it. I was so excited that it never left my cd player until we left for the hospital a few days later. I can see myself now sitting in my bed at Arlington Memorial Hospital weathering through some tough contractions listening to Amy’s sweet voice sing, “This is My Father’s World.” My favorite on the album though is “It is Well with My Soul.” What an anthem of praise as I awaited Katie’s birth! Amy Grant is a huge blessing in my life…I have never met her and frankly I think I have only heard her in concert once, a very long time ago. She has been a testament of faith and perseverance in her Christian walk as she has traveled down some very dark paths. I applaud her for being real in her new book and I can’t wait to read it!

She's Back!!!
My Mom has returned from 5 and 1/2 weeks in Russia and we are so thrilled!
These 3 grandsons could not contain their excitment...it was so precious to see them run into her arms yesterday at the airport.
Oh how we missed her!

Sharing More Memories of Amy Grant

Here again are some of the memories shared with me over the past few weeks. I will have one more post which will include many of the memories that were sent to me via email. Next week I will be seeing Amy Grant at the Bass Hall in Downtown Fort Worth. I can't wait! My sweet daughter Tori, my sweet sister Becky and my sweet Mama will be sitting by my side!


Lyndsey Goode:

While I've never met Amy, she's a big part of one of my favorite memories - one of my most vivid memories of Mandy(our precious cousin who was killed by a drunk driver). I was in Houston at their old house and after some glorious time in the pool, Mandy & I spent what seemed like hours in her room (just us - no siblings!) talking about everything in the world and just listening to "Age to Age" over and over again. We'd stop and rewind after every song because every song was just that great and we needed to hear it again immediately. I remember singing our favorites - "Sing Your Praise to the Lord," "I Have Decided" and "El Shaddai" at the top of our lungs again and again. That album will probably always be my favorite, since it was the first one I really knew and because it's so connected to Mandy for me. Even though I have her others, this is still the one that I come back to now when I'm in the mood for some Amy!

Becky Reeeves

Hi Kelly! What fun! I'm so glad you have been privileged to meet Amy Grant, pray for her, follow her life, and now be involved in reviewing her new book! I, too, was shaped by much of her music. I have memories with many of her songs, but my biggest memory is of singing "I will remember you" with my best high school friend at our high school graduation in front of over 2,000 people. The song of hers that I have sang most often in my head, however, is "Faithless heart" I identify in a deep place in my heart with the words in this song. I guess this would be my vote for my favorite Amy Grant song.

Anthony Parker

I was first introduced to Amy Grant in the early 80s in the little missions center at Lipscomb. We missions groupies would hang out there and Amy Grant vinyl albums would be played. This was one of my first exposures to contemporary Christian music of any kind, and I thought it was wonderful. And while our missions director would tell us how wrong instrumental music was in public worship, he somehow knew it was spiritually healthy for us to listen to it in the missions center.

Her "Mountaintop" song has to have had the greatest impact on me personally as I have wrestled, especially at times of leaving the U.S. for other parts of the world, with the need to come down from the mountaintop to the people in the valley below. It's strange that I now view my time in Africa as a mountaintop and the U.S. as a valley.

Tim Chapman

I am sitting in Denny's and my cell rings. I say hello and the voice on the other side says "hey Tim, it's Amy". Now I know a lot of Amy's but I had just left the Amy Grant/ Vince Gill concert while Darcy went backstage with my pass. I remember thinking I wish I were Kelly (Or maybe I wish Kelly were me) as I talked and joked with an individual who had impacted my life and my families for over two decades. Well I am not the most talkative person even with Amy Grant, so we laughed about family, Vince ( first name basis now :) and I related some of the blessings she had been to us. She was very gracious and had such class in our short conversation and I said goodbye after I confirmed I would have something to bring home to Kelly. She laughed and agreed.

Then I noticed I had missed the first call, so I checked the message it was " Tim, its Vince what is going on......" . You see we lived in a country town and you would think back stage everyone would want his autograph and pictures. Actually as Darcy described he was just roaming around because most were back there waiting to see Amy. So he was working the crowd with a lame comedy act and Darcy caught his attention (I wonder why :). She convinced him to give me a call and his message was almost as long as my conversation with Amy and it was hilarious.

Sharing Special Amy Grant Memories

In this post I wanted to share the specific memories of those who will be receiving a copy of Amy Grant's new book Mosaic.
As we get into the week I will be posting more of your memories, but we will get started with these three. Enjoy!

Laura Vaughn

I also have my most prominent memory with Amy Grant at about age nine. Randy, Kelly, Nana, and Papa had all given me cassette tapes with all her current songs and I listened to them constantly! I recall that my favorite song was “My Father’s Eyes.” One day while walking in the mall in Abilene Kelly and Mom told me that they had a surprise for me. Kelly had three tickets to Amy’s concert in Dallas! I was so excited! I bought a whole new outfit for the concert, even new tights, shoes, and a bow! Randy, Kelly, and I went to the concert a little early and I got to actually meet Amy and take lots of fun pictures! I remember Kelly talking to her for what seemed like forever! I just couldn’t wait to hear her sing! I remember one part of the concert in particular. We were on a higher level looking down at the stage, and I remember Amy walking out in the most beautiful gown! It was either purple or blue and I thought she looked just like Cinderella. Her hair was like a fountain of curls! I sang along with every song I knew. After the concert I developed the pictures and put them in a photo album that now sits safely with my other keepsakes. I still hear Amy sing on the local Christian music station and even though I don’t listen to her music regurlarly, I could still sing along with some of her old songs. I think Amy was a huge influence on me and a big part of why singing is still my favorite thing to do. She allowed me not only to enjoy music but grow in my faith through music!
I hope that Amy Grant’s music will be something for my children to grow up with as well, so that they can also grow with the Lord in an exciting way! Thanks to Kelly for bringing someone so special into my childhood

Cheryl Cash
My two memories of Amy's music involve her Christmas music. I cannot find the tape and I can't remember the Title of the song...but it is the song about Mary"s thoughts as she carries Jesus and it is sung with the chorus of "Breath of Heaven".


My son Alex was born on December 24th. Our daughter was not yet 2 yrs old and my pregnancy with Alex had been a surprise. I was overwhelmed and anxious as I carried him and worked out all the details of traveling from our home in Ft Portal across two countries to Nairobi for his delivery. This song was balm...exhortation...Hope. "But I offer all I am....to the mercy of Your plan... Help me be strong...Help me be...Help me...." I prayed this song to the Lord over and over. I thought about Mary and the practical side of her pregnancy. The faith and ponderings of her heart. We aren't told everything about that time for her...but as I carried my own child...I viewed those moments for Mary in a new light. That song and its cries nursed and nurtured me...reminding me I am never alone. Mary's mother did not travel with her to Bethlehem. She delivered her first child without her family near. As I longed for my own Mom and sister during the delivery and the joyful moments after Alex had arrived...the song filled my heart. "Breath of Heaven Hold me together...be FOREVER NEAR me...Breath of Heaven..." God's mercies and Presence are so undeserved and so Powerful...PRAISE!!!


The other memory is an ongoing one...it is now my Christmas tradition to listen to Amy sing "I'll Be Home for Christmas" and cry. One good heartfelt cryfest...mostly with thankfulness for all the amazing Christmas memories I have of my precious family in the States. A part of me always misses Christmas at "home" even though I so love our Christmas memories and traditions that we have established in Ft Portal with our children, missionary friends and Ugandan friends.


Finally, I want to share Jeff's memory. I have to share it with you because it took place in Eldoret, Kenya!
When Jeff was interning in Eldoret (he was there for 6 months in 1989) he was feeling very stressed. He was walking through the market and put on his walkman and listened to Amy Grant. It changed everything for him. His outlook changed. He didn't feel alone anymore. Amy accompanied him through the market!
As he walked around, a guy in the market asked what he was listening to. Jeff told him, "Amy Grant". The guy asked if he could borrow the tape and Jeff let him. Several days later when Jeff walked through the market...all the stores and dukas were playing Amy Grant! And the Eldoret market was never the same...

Jill Coan

About twelve years ago, we lived a few blocks away from a family that had lots of kids (smile). Five to be exact. I went on daily walks with my two (at the time) little ones. I kept seeing these kids and wanted to get to know them. I found out that they lived with their grandmother. In fact, there mother had been murdered and their father was in jail. At some point, I invited the kids to go to church with us. I didn’t think of the logistics of it, because we did not have room in our vehicle for all of them. Amazingly enough, God always provided a way to get all of them there. At some point, we purchased a van. Not exclusively for that reason, but it helped make our decision when we looked at vehicles. The first 6 months or so after we invited them, we had 3 or 4 go with us each week. At some point, two of them stopped going as much. There were twin girls, however, who would not ever miss. We really bonded with them and they became part of our extended family. They spent Sunday afternoons with us and visited us during the week. At some point we shared an Amy Grant CD with them. They immediately loved her music. A few months after we shared Amy Grant with them, we heard that Amy was doing a concert in Dallas. We immediately bought tickets for our twin girls (they were around 10 years old at the time) and ourselves and lined up a babysitter for our little ones. At some point before the concert, I had the idea that it would be an amazing thing if these precious twins could meet Amy face to face. I knew it was a long shot, but I wrote a letter asking her as much. I gave her some background about the girls in the letter. Everyone that I told about this smiled sweetly and reminded me that Amy was “big” and to “not get my hopes up”. They were up, though. I was elated to receive a phone call from Amy’s staff telling me to bring the girls to the ticket office 2 hours before the concert began. Steve and I took them early. The staff person asked if they could go to a pre-concert party with Amy and then sit up front during the concert. They also wanted the girls to go backstage for an after concert party! We were SO excited. The girls had shocked, disbelief and excitement etched on their faces. I began to cry as they did. What a moment. I will NEVER forget it. I had more joy watching those two girls enjoy the concert on the front row (as I sat in the nosebleed section) than I would have ever had being on the front row myself. It was an unforgettable night. The two normally quite girls were chattering all the way home. They shared their one on one conversations with Amy. They kept saying how nice she was. From the way they described it, it seems that Amy took them under her wings and was their personal escort through the night. I could not have been happier. I am so thankful for Amy Grant. She may be “big” as everyone warned me, but her heart is much bigger.

I am so happy to have a place to share this story. What a sweet memory! Our precious twins just turned 20 a few months ago. One has a daughter of her own. We have all gone our own ways, but we know that we impacted their lives... And they ours.

BENIN: Praying for the Aja People (2nd of 4)

BENIN: Praying for the Aja People (2nd of 4)
Praying for the Believers in Benin and among the Aja People


Last night I was home with my two two-year-olds which permits little productive work other than enjoying wrestling with them and doing a little laundry (I was trying to be super-Dad and let them share in this character-building chore with me…big mistake. Reminder to self: toddlers can’t fold and only make a mess of what you’ve already folded).

The television was on because I had just caught the end of the Dallas Cowboys’ victory over the Vikings. Somewhere in the midst of the chaos, one of the kids had grabbed the remote and we ended up on the new CW station. They were airing the new show called “Aliens in America”. The language of the first few scenes took me aback but the storyline was intriguing enough that I stayed with it awhile. (oh, sorry CW, I doubt I will make it a staple source of what little TV I watch nowadays). This site shares this synopsis, “Aliens in America follows a teenage boy named Justin Tolchuk as he tries to make it through high school in Medora, Wisconsin. His mother signs up for the international exchange student program, thinking that an athletic and brilliant Nordic teen would shed some instant “coolness” on her son. However, her plan backfires as she discovers that her exchange student is a Pakistani Muslim named Raja Musharaff. Despite the cultural differences, Justin and Raja develop an unusual friendship that might just allow them to get through high school’s social nightmares.”

The stereotypical nature perhaps regretfully displays many American’s view toward people of other cultures. Of course in this first episode perpetuating their ignorance by whispering that Raja could be a terrorist in their midst, or during his introduction at school, the class teacher actually surveys the class, asking how many people are angry at Raja because his people blew up the buildings on 9/11. Obviously the insinuation is hideously naive, but the stupidity of the American mindset is disappointedly laughable. Then the teacher perpetuates her lack of awareness of the rest of the world by saying that Raja would be able to teach them about “Muslimism” (for any of you equally unaware, she should have said “Islam”).

So in the midst of Raja’s budding friendship with Justin, this American secular teen is slowly introduced to Raja’s world, which includes this Muslim’s daily prayers. In this scene, Raja introduces Justin to the god to which he prays when he is wrestling with the stress of life. Raja’s spirituality is strikingly more sophisticated compared to Justin’s response to stress, “usually I just eat a brownie or buy a CD.”

OK, enough about American TV reviews. I was simply struck by this characterization of the average American when it comes to facing the challenges of life. Eat some comfort food and acquire some new merchandise. It wasn’t long before I found myself wrestling with my own prayer life, especially regarding intercession for the nations of the world, so geographically and mentally distant from most of us in America. If we are a part of the family of God worldwide, this should NEVER be the case with us.

This is the 2nd in a series (see the first here), hoping to direct our thoughts toward an area of the world important to me and my family. Having lived in West Africa (Benin) for almost 10 years, I came to establish some of my favorite friendships among the believers among the Aja people. They are human like you and me, making their share of mistakes and learning how to enjoy the fullness of God on their journey of faith. But I might step out on the edge and suggest that our brothers in sisters in Africa struggle in their faith at an entirely different level when it comes to persecution, oppression, and in battle with the spiritual forces of evil. Every culture has its gods, its demons, its idols and its forces that wreak havoc on the maturing Christian hoping to live victoriously each day. But I plead with you this week to remember your brothers and sisters of faith in West Africa.

Pray for the believers in these ways:
- that in spite of their poverty, they will find God’s daily bread to be sufficient provision and abundant living (pray, too, that those Christian families suffering through poverty because of their Christian choices will find the generosity of God and His people worldwide),
- that in spite of oppression and rejection from their immediate families, they will remain faithful to the family of God and the integrity of God’s people; while at the same time not distancing themselves so much from their pagan relatives that they might miss opportunities to be witnesses of faith
- that the seeds of jealously sown into the lives from earliest days will die out among the lives of believers (in the years I served there, I can say that jealousy was a daily demon to wrestle with within the church)
- that believers will know well the victory of today as well as the hope for eternal rejoicing
- that believers might find in one another true godly friendship and marital relationships (that believers would find encouragement, accountability and sharpening strength from other Christian friends and spouses)
- that believers might find strength in God, to stand in the face of the enemy and to gird themselves for the war of souls facing not only this generation but the ones to come
- that believers would commit themselves to multiplying and advancing the Kingdom of God into areas unknown or unavailable to western Christianity.

While many Americans may have little response to the challenges of life other than eating and shopping, may American believers share through prayer the challenges facing our family in Africa. Next week, I will continue this prayer focus, encouraging us to pray that the barriers to Christianity would fall in the face of God’s great power.

-Randy

Hot Dog Banquet

We rushed back from Baird to make it in time for Tori's practice for the upcoming Christmas musical and as well for Tori and Timothy to attend the Hot Dog Banquet. This is the Banquet that is sponsored by children of Richland Hills specifically to pray for the missionairies and those they serve around the world. Throughout our time in Benin we were blessed by the prayers prayed for us at this Banquet. We actually came to see this time as a time to consider the things that we considered impossible prayer requests and we would give them to the kids. We did this because when their pure hearts come before him with prayer, He Responds! We saw amazing things happen and lost people saved. Because of their powerful prayers, we wanted to be there tonight among those coming before Him. It was a special time and Tori especially was touched by this opportunity. Everytime it was time to pray, she was one of the first to volunteer as well as her sweet cousin Pate! I was so blessed that Murphy and Christine Crowson included Tori up on stage when their family was being interviewed. I had tears in my eyes for most of the evening. There is some sadness that our family was not up on stage sharing about our lives and our dear Aja friends. My heart was aching tonignt to be up there sharing their story and asking for prayers for God to be at work in their lives. The transition continues for us...and it is HARD. We appreciate your prayers for our family every time we come to your mind. We are earnestly seeking the Lord continuously about where He wants us to be...He leads with peace and clarity and we are waiting for His voice that we have come to know so well to tell us the next step.

PS: I will be posting the memories and stories of the 3 contest winners tomorrow!

Abilene and Baird....Time well spent!

We have enjoyed an incredible weekend. My cousin Tim Chapman, who I enjoy referring to as my third brother, because we are so close, flew in to DFW Thursday afternoon with his wife Darcy. We left soon after for Abilene and I took my son Timothy with us too. Randy stayed behind with everyone else and they came on to Abilene as soon as Tori was out of school on Friday. I mentioned earlier that this is my reunion year. Darcy had been a Sing Song hostess our senior year and all of the 1992 Hosts and Hostesses led worship in ACU chapel on Friday and Saturday. We were so blessed to spend some great time together and to be so encouraged seeing old friends. It is so refreshing to be with friends who are growing in the Lord, pressing on in hard times and reflecting Christ in their marriages, families, jobs and ministries! Randy and I both were deeply encouraged and reminded again of how thankful we are for our years at ACU. Our kids were so thrilled that they were able to spend the majority of their time at the ranch in Baird. Becky and Tony were there with Pate and Benj, Uncle Andy joined us and so did Paw! This was a guarantee for a wonderful weekend. We are blessed.








My 2 favorite Tims......Tim Chapman and Timothy Vaughn