1,000 Gifts

Well, I'm back. I can hardly believe my 3 weeks with BPS El Paso is already over. It seems crazy...I'd been looking forward to the trip for nearly a year, and then: boom. It's over. So many great memories, so many gifts, so much grace. I'll be posting tons of pictures in the weeks to come, so stay tuned for that.

Oh, and one more request: before I left I asked for prayer for the three weeks I was going to be down there. Please don't stop praying. Pray for the people who made decisions, pray for the people who received Scripture, pray for the remainder of the BPS summer trips. Let God Arise!


Joy is the fruit of gratitude. And gratitude is rooted in perspective. And when one’s rooted in Christ, one has been given the gift of the eyes that really see. So joy is always possible. As long as thanks to God is possible, then joy in God is always possible. Joy is always possible.

508. Voices raised in song on a Sunday morning

509. Communion

510. Strawberry shortcake

511. bean bag toss
512. A summer evening kayaking on Lake Calhoun
513. Mom's homemade pizza
514. Root beer floats
515. Peeking through the cracks on the deck to see the baby robins with Ella
516. Rainbows
517. Both girls cuddled up on the couch reading
518. My nanny families from the past few months who have been so accommodating of my crazy schedule
519. Words of encouragement and promises of prayer before heading down to BPS
520. The day I've been looking forward to for months finally arriving
521. Starting off a plane trip right...with a Starbucks Frappuccino
522. Flying over the Rockies
523. Being back at BPS
524. Dan and the rest of the guys driving up safely shortly after I arrived
525. Texas sunsets
526. {Not being afraid of danger because we have a dangerous God}
527. {He will preserve your going out and your coming in}
528. Overlooking Juarez
529. Praying for the week
530. Jamming
531. BPS Bus Time
532. Dan on his 23rd birthday
533. Mom arriving safely...the opportunity for the three of us to be together at BPS
534. Singing on the bus
535. Meeting our Mexican church for the week
536. Singing together with the Mexican church
537. Their generosity in serving us dinner
538. Talking with the ninas
539. Late night dishes
540. "Yokes" on the bus
541. Gummy Life Savers
542. Praying for the bus to start and it starting before we had even said amen
543. Handling the Gospel
544. The thought of angels rejoicing over souls saved
545. Holding babies and watching their moms go forward to receive Christ
546. Big brown eyes
547. {Psalm 46}
548. {Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord}
549. Breezes through the bus windows...the "10/40 air conditioning"
550. Helen (a little Mexican girl)
551. Painting faces
552. A bracelet from Carla
553. Devotions on the deck overlooking the mountains
554. Crazy stories that are only funny when you're sleep deprived
555. Testimonies
556. Tears
557. Growing together
558. Goofy glasses
559. Laughing until you're crying
560. Viewing God's handiwork at Carlsbad Caverns
561. A desert storm...wind, sand, rain...the whole 9 yards
562. Brother hugs
563. Answered prayer
564. Finding out Dan passed his last test...woohoo! :D
565. Bowling and Laser Tag with the workers and the Jimenez boys
566. A sliver of the moon shining in the night sky on the way home from a middle of the night airport run
567. Dad and all the hard work he does for our family
568. {Why should I gain from His reward? I can not give an answer. But this I know with all my heart, His wounds have paid my randsom.}
569. Time to rest
570. Scattegories with Kenn, Joy, and the Summer workers
571. Getting up early enough to see the sun rise
572. Mountain climbing
573. Countertop Chats
574. Yogurt without chunks ;)
575. Arnie Palmers
576. Shopping excursions with the fam
577. Looking out the window and seeing the mountains
578. Playing music with Allie
579. Dinner and Diablos game with Mr. Jarvis and the workers
580. Breakfast at Jimenez's
581. Impromptu music specials
582. Assembling 1,500 + whole Bibles in the print shop
583. Ping Ping Pong Pong
584. Golden light on dark brown hair
585. Our little "family"
586. Practical jokes
587. Short border lines
588. Friendly border guards
589. Chilling at the Soriana
590. Chocolate chip banana bread and chocolate milk on our last night together at BPS
591. Watching the sun rise over the mountains
592. An invitation to go back next year
593. Chocolate from Vanessa
594. Ella on her 5th birthday!
595. The BPS staff
596. Kenn's reminder from Philippians 3:13-14 to "keep on keeping on"
597. Hector getting up to pray with us before the guys left
598. The guys fitting my suitcase in the van so I didn't have to check it
599. Dinner with the Jimenez's before leaving El Paso
600. Vanilla
601. One final look at Juarez

602. Flying cross country at night

603. The opportunity to spend 3 weeks serving at BPS El Paso
604. Seeing mom and dad
605. Green grass
606. Coming home to having a car at the end of the driveway...thanks SO much, uncle Dave
607. Box seat tickets to the Twins game with Dad, Mom, and Andy
608. Sleeping in my own bed