Mama was happy

For the first time in 9 years, all of our kids were in our house on Christmas day.  And what a time it was! 

David's family has always gathered on Christmas day. So again this Christmas morning, from far snd wide, we all converged in Adrian.  Then Sunday evening, Mom and Dad, Miriam, Stephen, Rebecca, and Deborah headed home to celebrate.  Mike was far away at work, David was at home sick, but Chris was able to take his dinner break and join us for a hour.  We missed them terribly! 

This year we decided to do something a little different.  In addition to the gift card exchange, we had "favorite thing" stocking/bags.  Everyone brought 8 of their favorite things and put one in each bag.  We had fun going around the circle choosing one to open.  Very creative thoughtful gifts were there.

My bag was a Christmas tree because I love Christmas trees.

Miriam and Mike - tervis cup.

We each got our favorite SEC football team ;)

Deborah - favorite Christmas candies.

She also made a brown sugar scrub just for me.

Chris - dipped chocolate spoons for cups of hot chocolate.

Rebecca - bottle of yum! Nutella for each couple.

David - knife

Rebecca - Christmas decoration (mine's Noel) and toothbrush/toothpaste

Stephen - $5 Subway card for the special $5 subs.

Dad - toothbrush

Mom - salsas

I didn't get one of those though.

Yep, Mama was happy having all her kiddos in her house on Christmas.

An extra special Christmas blessing...

Daily we are getting updates from churches where we have recently visited

that they are reaching or surpassing their Lottie Moon Christmas Offering goals.

We are honored that we could put a face on the LMCO to these churches.

At work around the world...reaching the world for Christ.

Continue to Pray, Give and Go.

You are...



Merry Christmas Everyone!

Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

God blessed times...

Our time in the states has been God blessed.

We have been blessed with the opportunity to share our story.  As we have shared our heart, many have been challenged to seek out what God has planned for their lives.  Knowing the influence of missionaries in our lives, we pray that our life story will challenge and encourage as God directs their path in His service.

Knowing that God-sized plans can only be accomplished with prayer, we are so blessed that over 600 have committed to pray. We can go out in strength knowing there is a force behind us covering us in prayer.  As a reminder, these are the five things that we listed for special prayer especially during these days before we return.
Pray for:
     1.  National churches and pastors to catch the vision of God as Great Commission Christians to reach the lost pockets of Guatemala for Christ.
     2.  US churches and associations with similiar heart and vision to come alongside the nationals bringing specific outreach ministry to these indigenous mission fields.
     3.  Us that we will have the understanding of the mind of Mayas in order for them to have the mind of Christ.
     4.  Ch'orti' to be saved and discipled.
     5.  Lost pockets of Guatemala tobe reached with Gospel of Christ.

And we have been blessed with memory making family times. 

Well, that was a flash

November was a blur and December is a flyin'!

We have enjoyed these two busy months and the opportunities they have provided for us to share the vision to reach the world.   As you are aware this is the time of year that Southern Baptists are challenged to give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.  It has been a blessing to walk among these folks and be challenged by their sacrifical giving.  Together we are

How will you respond to God's challenge to you?

Reach out and

It's time for another celebration...

It has been great to be stateside and enjoy special days of celebration with our kids. 

This time it's Christopher's birthday. 

And because we can, we enjoyed a celebratory dinner Friday night.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Christopher!

One of the things about which we prayed for our kids was their future spouses.  And God brought three fine men to our girls.  Each one is different but designed perfectly for each daughter.  

                   Mike and Miriam 

                                  David and Rebecca

                                                 Christopher and Deborah

God knew what each one needed and He brought them together.  Though Mike and Miriam have been married the longest (8 years this past July) Chris has "been hanging" around the longest - 10 years.  We thank the Lord for His gift of godly men who love our girls and with whom our girls can serve Him. 

More Memory Making Times

Recently we spend some memory making time at Whitestone Inn

with special friends, Ron and Margie and Wendell and Jane.

Both of these couples invested in our lives as we traveled to Guatemala as volunteers. 

Now we are priviledged to serve alongside them. 

Ron and Margie are completing their stateside time before returning home. 

Wendell and Jane, retired from full time missionary service, 

have recently returned to Georgia after spending several months in Guatemala as volunteers. 

The beauty of creation was overwhelming. 

We visited the Scottish Highland cattle at the barn.

Ms "Curly Horns" stopped and posed for the camera.

We were able to feed them, even by hand.

Can't you tell that Margie really liked feeding her?

David chose a less slurpy manner.

He posed so gallantly as well.

Friends making memories.

Life Investers, Life Impacters, Sweet Memories

On a recent trip up through Alabama and Tennessee, we were able to spend time with some more life impacters.

Jeanne and I first became friends at BMA summer camp when I was 11 and she was 12.

Oh the pages and pages we have written as we fueled that friendship,

 sharing the tales of youth, young adulthood, marriage, family, and ministry.

She has poured godly influence in my life since that time many years ago.

In 1986 we moved to Huntsville with four young children - ages 6, 5, 3 and 6 months old.

Kelly was one of those dear friends who invested in our family's life.

Thanks for the many hours of keeping kids entertained!

How can she look just like she did back then?

Pat and Charlie poured into our family in so many ways.

They poured special love and concern into the kids life, especially during the days

of my dad's illness and his entrance into eternity.

Charlie took his first foreign mission trip with us to Guatemala.

 and continues influencing others in missions today as a pastor.

Nita and I shared life.  There weren't many of us mothers of four children around.

We kept each other "sane" though our kids often wondered about that sanity, but we knew.

Don't think I could have made some of those days without her!

Doug and Kimber were a young couple who often took Rebecca on special outings.

Guess we have them to "thank" for her becoming such an Auburn tiger.

Kinda of hard for us Georgia bulldog parents!

But then she must have influenced them as well...

here they are posing with four of their seven children.

Vicki is the sister of a long time friend, Cathy. 

David and I attended Cathy and David's wedding not many months after our own. 

I remember well when Cathy asked us to pray for her sister,

 that God would bring His choice of a husband to her. 

Then about 15 years later after moving to Augusta,

we met Vicki and Bill, God's perfect choice for her.

Oh, the influence these dear friends have made in our lives!

Kim and Jerry were a young couple who first impacted our lives in Augusta.

We have followed with special interest as God blessed them with David and Andrew.

It has been exciting to watch as God continues to direct their paths and use them to impact others. 

As we returned home, we enjoyed a tasty lunch break at the Blue Willow in Social Circle. 

We are thankful for those who have invested in our lives,
impacting us and our children in the ways of God.

Week Long Celebration

Last March when planning our stateside time we scheduled a family vacation. It just so happened that their best time schedule corresponded with the week of Glynis' birthday. 

Now that was quite a CeLeBrAtIoN if you ask me.

He's not Goldilocks but...

We are on vacation with our family in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.  While David was getting the grill ready to cook for dinner, he suddenly came running to the door...up lumbering the hill, right up toward him was...

Mama Bear

and

her two baby bears!!

Don't know if they smelled the coals and thought supper was a'comin' but for sure, David didn't want to be that supper.  So, he's definitely not Goldilocks but it WAS the three bears!  You just never know what we might find in these thar' hills.



Rebecca's Narration.

This is just a preview of the fun times ahead for the Millers this week.

Sharing the Vision...

We are priviledged to be able to share our work and vision with folks throughout the southeast - North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee - while we are in the states these six months.  We have already shared in 20 different locations with about the many more ahead of us.  Not only are we sharing what God has done, we are casting a vision for the future while recruiting a larger network of prayer warriors.  It is comforting to know that as things come to us, they can only pass through that prayer covering that surrounds us.  It is encouraging to know more dear folks are coveting to broaden that covering over us.  Thank you for calling our names to the Father, asking for His peace and direction is our lives.

Guess where this weekend's journey carried us...

Before speaking at the international dinner at Bull Street Baptist Church,

we were able to enjoy a few minutes on the river walk in Savannah.

We enjoy being able to share our heart with folks, but we are also delighted when our engagements allow us to spend time with dear friends from the past as well as family.  Our time in Savannah included friendship refreshment with Ed and Adrienne before heading to David's sister's home in North Carolina to speak in their church on Sunday.

We were delighted that it is close enough that Loy and Claudette

and Miriam and Mike were able to join us for the day.

Couldn't tell these three are siblings, could you?

Think we are enjoying the "life of Riley"

...well, atleast the life with Riley :)