Development and a Train Ride

Last week, I (Cody) spent seven days in Florence attending a course on church history.  It was taught by a professor (Dr. Hyatt) who has lived in Budapest, Hungary for the past 14 years, and Germany and Russia before that.  The course is part of Campus Crusade's on-going education program to help staff better minister in the field.  While this was a survey course that covered the end of the 1st century through the 20th, we spent a considerable amount of time looking at the Roman Catholic Church and how it has shaped the culture here over the past two millennia.  While I appreciated seeing how the development and growth of the church occurred, I enjoyed even more seeing the sovereignty of God as His mercy compels Him to save humanity.

On Saturday, Jen and the kids came to visit, which was a great delight...especially for Ben.  For the past few years, Ben's fascination with trains has grown into near fanaticism.  It has reached the point where he now recognizes the power wires above unseen tracks around town that provide the electricity for trains.  He has also memorized all the places in town where tracks run.  He knows the best places to stop and watch for them and is constantly on the lookout for them.  Ticket prices have risen dramatically over the past year, so we don't ride them very often anymore.  This weekend was the first time Ben had ridden one since we returned from furlough.  He was beside himself for the entire trip and actually cried when they had to get off.

Now that my class is over and students are finally returning to a normal schedule at the University (they had been studying for exams prior to now), we anxious to get back to day-to-day ministry.  Check out our updated prayer requests page to see how you can join us in praying for some specific ways we'd like to see God move in the coming months.