We're off to Europe!

We've had a great start to our sabbatical!

Kelly and I spent a week in Vermont with our kids and grand kids. We had a wonderful time getting caught up and being part of their household for a few days. We took a side trip to Knowlton, Quebec, Canada and spent two nights in a B&B in that little village. It was a great dry run for our trip to France. Kelly got the chance to practice some of her French as we roamed around the quaint little hamlet.

For the last two days we've been packing, trying to figure out what we can take as Summer turns into Fall in Brittany. The weather will be similar to that in Vermont, so we have to prepare for cooler temperatures while trying to prepare for big city heat, all while trying to keep our luggage to a minimum.  Think layers of light clothing!

We leave from Dulles this evening (Tuesday/11pm).  We decided to take a flight that had a layover in order to save $$ so we'll do some sight-seeing in Paris and London when we (finally!) arrive then move on to the quiet of the French countryside for the remainder of our stay. The place we'll be living in is a beautiful, quiet setting ideally suited for down time and located close enough to places like the beaches of Normandy and some historical sites to make it easy to take a few day trips while we're there.

Here's what our accommodations will look like:

Needless to say, we're eagerly looking forward to quiet times for reading, praying and just spending time together. Our hosts are committed to ministering to pastors on sabbatical and missionaries who are on break. They've been very helpful as we prepare to meet them in person and seem to be ideally sensitive to a pastor's need for rest and relaxation. 

My personal goals for our time away are to read one piece of classic literature (suggestions are welcome), to brush up on my Greek, then learn some basics of Hebrew (like the alphabet), and to do some study in biblical narrative I've wanted to do for quite some time. However, the primary goal is to slow down, hear from the Lord and enjoy one of the greatest blessings God has ever given a guy, my amazing wife. Everything else is secondary.

We covet your prayers while we're gone. As we pray for each of you, you can pray for us - to be blessed with wisdom, discernment and a vision for WBF as well as to have sensitivity for each other all while gaining physical & spiritual rest and also to spend time in reflection.

We feel so blessed by everyone's encouragement and the thoughtful and generous support we've received. Thank you!

We'll have Wi-Fi just about everywhere we go, but our cell phones and voice mail will be turned off for the duration. We'll check our emails, Facebook and FB instant messages once a day (please remember we'll be 7 hours ahead of you so we might be sleeping when you IM) but won't be spending much time on any of those. We'll try to post pictures and keep everyone caught up via Facebook and this blog. The easiest way to get in touch with us will be through email but if this is difficult for you, you can also get an emergency message to us through Diane Strang or Doug Sachs (who is our acting associate pastor for the time being). 

We'll head home on Nov 2 and I'll return to the pulpit on Nov 12. Meanwhile, we've been blessed by Pastor Scott's first sermons in the Psalms, and we're eager to hear the rest from him (and our other faithful men who will be teaching). It's comforting and encouraging to know that Scott has the same passion for God's word that I do and is uniquely gifted by God for a time such as this. May the Lord give him rest, wisdom, and peace as he pastors you, our incredible flock for the next two and a half months! 

We love you, we'll miss you, but we'll be home soon!