Dear Friends,

Spring is officially here! We had a couple false alarms with a few days of spring weather and just about when I was ready to put away the winter clothes, we would wake up to snow! But now we have finished up our snow skiing season and transitioned to spring time sports. Bryce will be starting baseball next week and Kendra decided to play soccer. She is really enjoying it.  We are pretty impressed with how quickly she has learned the strategy of the sport. She does great at stopping the ball and throwing or kicking it back to her teammates when playing goalie. And last week she made her first goal while playing forward! It was very exciting.

Wade tags along and whatever big sissy and brother are doing he wants to be right in the middle of it! He’s quite the character. We are currently working on the BIG milestone of…yes, you guessed it…potty training! He’s coming along and with Grandma’s tricks and strategies he’ll be potty trained in no time.

For the first part of the year we had three ministry events that I would like to share:

In January, Travis traveled to south Texas and Mexico with the Revival in the Desert team. It was so awesome to hear of the lives that were touched. Since then, we have heard many positive reports on the lasting impression that occurred during the ministry meetings. Travis has recently been invited back to speak at a youth conference this June and we are excited for him to go back!

In February, we hosted our first annual conference with guest speakers Gary Carpenter and Dave Roberson. What a powerful week that was! It felt as though we pioneered something special and unique. We were pleasantly surprised with the way our ministry team worked together and the response of the guests who attended. There are already people making plans for next year!

Our most recent trip was in March.  Travis, Bryce and I traveled to Aylmer, Quebec Canada. This was Travis’s 5^th annual trip speaking at the conference hosted by Liberty Ministries. We had a great time visiting old friends and making new ones. Bryce did so well traveling and enjoyed every minute of his special “Mommy and Daddy” time. He instantly hit it off with the kids and taught them how to rope on his little roping dummy he brought from home. Two days before we left we had so much fun at a delicious fish fry feast and were taken on our first ice fishing experience! We caught 5 fish total and each time “fish on!” was hollered out we all scrambled to collect the prize!

It was an honor and privilege for Travis to minister beside Pastor Alan Taylor who also flew in for the conference.  He was the administrator of the Bible College we attended in Tennessee and has been a strong influence in our spiritual journey.  The speaking schedule alternated between Alan and Travis and it was just amazing to experience the flow of the Holy Spirit during the meetings.  It was so neat to see how each service seemed to build on the other and the topics would meet the people’s needs while being so intricately intertwined.  We serve an awesome God who knows the hearts of His people and so longs to minister to us in a personal and intimate way.

There are two testimonies that I asked and have permission to share with you. Both are from our trip to Canada. The first is from a man who owns a liquidation retail store. He contacted us through our website and wrote:

“I have been blessed. The Lord has sent many that have blessed me, but I feel so much more peace with having been blessed by meeting you and your amazing family. Reason being, you both were very transparent, humble, forthwith and while holding nothing back you touched my own heart in a way that I never knew or ever thought could exist. For that, I wish to share my testimony, of which I have never ever done in complete. I have shared things here and there but never ever what has moved my life from good to bad to death and to holy. I love Jesus, for what he has done for everyone, and I truly want people to know what he has done for me. Its probably way to long for this tiny little box so I will sit down for the first time in my life and release what I have kept inside, my witness... That little boy that has seen so much dark and yet so much light. The witness of the man of god. God bless you both, its been an honor to hear your testimonies, really it has, I feel it. Your brother…” 

The second testimony is from a young lady who reluctantly showed up to church one night and during the praise and worship couldn’t stand it any longer. She grabbed her friend’s mom and marched her to the back of the church where Travis and I were standing and said, “I want to be saved.” Just like that she gave her life to Jesus. She has not been the same since and wrote this on FaceBook last week:

“3 weeks ago I had no willpower or determination. I had no intention of changing course, going to church and accepting God into my life. I never wanted to be clean, it was the scariest thing to me. I didn't want to feel emotions. Feeling the good stuff only meant to be hurt in the process and I knew I couldn't handle that.

I never wanted the physical withdrawals or the constant need for human interaction. Yet here I am, 21 days after receiving the Lord... And I realize that even if I didn't want it, God did. I am where He wants me to be and I am certain that He has always waited for me to accept Him. Now that I have, I will be protected. I have the strength to fight against the Devil and his Demons who try to possess my mind! I am in a Relationship with God and because of that, Devil, you do not have the strength to overpower me!! I stand with open arms; I Love You, Father! 

Rejoice in the Lord for He is the one who heals the wounded and fixes the broken. He who loves us and shines over us day and night. Pour your heart out to Him, tell Him you love Him! Tell Him what you need and He will provide! Fear is what the demons want you to feel because with that they control you! They feed you with selfish thoughts, take every ounce of willpower and lock it away! Only the Lord has the power to heal and help you fight the darkness!”

We would like to thank YOU for your continued prayers as we minister here locally and when we travel. It is an honor to serve our Lord and see lives like these changed. He truly is the miracle worker. Praise Him!

Until next time, enjoy this wonderful Spring weather and have a blessed Easter. And if it’s still snowy where you live, you’re more than welcome to come our way for a visit!

With Love,

Jennifer