The Reconciliation of All Things

Our church has a local outreach we do in the community, and we had a blast w/ the kids and many others who came! Look how warm we were. :-) Gotta love SC weather!

Watch out! I'm comin' to get you!

Can you guess how many? Caleb guessed 50--so daddy just added a zero to it. At the end of the night...guess who was the closest? We were! There were 490 M&M's... Needless to say, we're still working on those M&M's these days. Don't want to overdo it now. :-)

Our trip to New York last month was a wonderful time for us as we saw Becky's relatives as well as Ben's, and we were able to visit with all of our grandmothers and Ben's one living grandfather. It was a very special time for us to reconnect with family. This is Ben's paternal Grandmother (Bacheller). We don't have pictures with Becky's grandmothers or Ben's other grandparents because we had misplaced our camera at the time. During our visit, we were able to visit two churches and share about our ministry in Brazil. One has committed to financially being a part of what God is doing in Brazil, the other is interested in hearing more about what God is doing there. Please pray for God to continue increasing the number of those who will commit to seeing God fulfill His work among the Brazilian people in spreading them around the world as missionaries. Thank you for your partnership in the gospel! Ben, Becky, & the boys.

We went to the zoo on Saturday and had a blast walking around, seeing all the animals. I (Ben) love the way this picture turned out (I had the settings wrong--too much light), but I love the way the colors turned out, and just the look and feel of it. Of course, I took it again with the right settings, but Caleb wouldn't cooperate with such a great smile the second time around.

I've been hunting already this season, but I just can't seem to find the deer. :-) Then we visited Numpa in NY and met Rudolph. Caleb and Samuel loved meeting him!

For those of you who don't get this by email. Please pray with us! Thanks for your partnership in the gospel!

Caleb, Samuel and I (Becky) were able to go to see Nana and Numpa in NY a few weeks ago. We also saw Aunt Erica, Uncle Josh and Stephanie. We had a wonderful time in the cold weather horse back riding, playin with the dogs, going for walks, blueberry picking and fishing. It was a wonderful weekend to be together, we were only sad Ben had to stay in SC.

We went camping with our church family last weekend in Pisgah National Forest, NC. What a wonderful time! Who cares that it rained most of the time...we put up some tarps for a roof and played games, ate good food, and had a grand ol' "wet" time!

This picture says it all. Samuel really loves his mommy. It's such a wonderful thing to hold a baby (though he's quite large) in your arms, and even more special when that baby holds to you like Samuel did in this picture, it's a reminder to us of the privilege and responsibility to raise our kids in and for the Lord. They are his, we just get them for a time.

Sometimes you just have to sit back and relax, ya know? Our cat, Bela, has been teaching us a few lessons in this area. She can be pretty feisty, but she sure does know how to relax. I walked out the door today to change the car oil and she was across the street just sitting there by the mailboxes. I guess she's found a new spot to relax...well, as long as nobody checks their mail. :-)

This was a couple of weeks ago when Ben wasn't feeling well. Samuel has a way of lifting one's spirit with his beautiful smile and cute laugh.

Our church has begun the 40 days of prayer and fasting for us and several other missionaries trying to raise support to get to the field for the first time. It has been so encouraging to have the support of our church body and so many of you who have committed to praying for God to move in people’s hearts and get us to Brazil. God is showing His faithfulness and His plans to us, keeping us focused on the goal He has called us to: equipping and sending Brazilian missionaries. Jesus told His Church to ask the Lord to send laborers into the harvest…we are ready to go to the Harvest; now, may His Church ask for us to GET to the harvest! Right now we are waiting on God’s   timing. Will you continue to pray that God would make this time soon? We often hear from our Brazilian brothers and sisters: “So, when are you guys coming for good? ” And we have to answer that we wish could have been there yesterday, but we are waiting for the Lord to use His Church to provide the way. Not only hav...

Vacation in TN. Back in August we went to Fairhaven Ministries in TN and had a very refreshing time as a family and with the Lord. Here are some beautiful scenes.

Are YOU a radical? No, really, ARE you? I'm more and more convinced that you and I both should be quite RADICAL...that is, if we follow Christ like he expects us to. Radical in the sense that we are so different than the world around us that others will see us as a radical people. You see, if we really begin to read Jesus' word for what they are (truth), and not just a story or history, and if we actually listen to the Holy Spirit when he talks to us, God just might get ahold of our hearts and show us what it really means to follow Him. So, why do we not follow Jesus? Why do we settle for the American Dream, as if it were synchronous with Christianity? Well, for many reasons, I believe. But I believe the biggest reason is comfort. We have come to believe that if we go to church, read our Bibles, work hard and honestly, and are "good people", we're good to go. Doesn't that make sense? God would not call each of us to a life of risk. We say: "The safest p...

These days we're thinking about Brazil, and about getting there...we have questions about when we'll leave the US to fly to Brazil, when our full support will come in...when God will begin the next step of our lives. We're not sure, but we DO know that He wants us to trust Him in all things. One very practical way God reminded us was a couple of weeks ago when we took a family vacation and went to the mountains in Tennessee. We went to this beautiful waterfall (as you'll see below if you click on the video) and we were able to swim and relax there... While swimming and playing, Caleb demonstrated to us what God expects of us. Caleb places complete trust in me, as his daddy, to catch him and care for him. Do I/we place my/our complete trust in my/our Father to catch us and take care of us? We su re want to!

Samuel with his friend, Lily, in Greenville during our 4th of July visit.

July 4th weekend we went up to visit friends in Greenville, SC. It was 10 degrees cooler than Columbia! Here's Samuel, thinking about something...we just don't know what. :-)

Last month, Caleb, as well as Becky and I and Samuel, had to say goodbye to our dear friends, Brock & Nicole Mathison, along with their two kids, Nathan & Gracie. Nathan has been Caleb's best friend since birth--it's a difficult thing for a missionary kid to do..all the transitions they (we) have to go through. Nathan too is becoming an MK, he's going to Kenya with his family, while Caleb will go to Brazil with us. Please pray for these kids' adjustments, that God would use the challenges for their good and His glory.

Well, there are two things that remind us we're in South Carolina: tropical sized spiders, and sunflowers that wilt in the hot, humid sun of Columbia, SC. This spider greeted us at the entrance of our front porch when we returned from a weekend trip to Greenville, SC. And the sunflower below we grew from seed--it is now about 10 feet tall. Yep, 10 feet tall. Would it suprise you to know that Columbia is making itself known as a place that is "Famously Hot"? Yes, indeed! When you are driving on the highway toward Columbia, you will see a billboard every once in a while that says "You're getting hotter...", reminding one of the games we used to play as children...hotter...hotter...colder...really really hot!!! (remember?) The billboards then proudly proclaim Columbia, SC as a wonderful vacation spot, with the words: "FAMOUSLY HOT". Now, who in the world would want to go to a place that is FAMOUSLY HOT? As if the recent 110+ weather here in anythi...

Today was a long day for me, Ben. Not to mention it was for Becky too, with the boys at home. Caleb's a handful, especially when he "tries" to help mommy with Samuel by sticking the nose suction thingy up Samuel's throat when mommy looks away briefly to answer the phone. Caleb's such a "helper"! :-) Most of the time though, Caleb REALLY IS a big helper, and he'll even sing a song with the following words, all in tune: I'm a helper I'm a helper I am big, I am strong I can help you all day long. If you need me Just call my name You'll be glad I came to help you... You'll be glad I cAAAAAme! Sometimes Caleb will switch the words on the "If you need me" line and sing innocently: "If you need me, just call YOUR name..." What a silly guy. So, for me, Ben, it was a long day, but it was a good day too. God reminded me today that He's in the business of preparing me and Becky for His plans. As you might know, I work ...

Here's a video of Caleb in Sunday school the other day. Hope you enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-z8zZb0724

Hello all! Sorry for the lapse in posting. We've been trying to catch up on our sleep, of course, but we've also been preparing for travels. As I type, we are in northern Virginia with friends, support raising, sharing about our ministry in Brazil, and visiting with friends. It has been a wonderful time, actually quite relaxing for us, which has been much needed on our part. The toughest part is driving all day w/ a newborn who's gotta eat at regular intervals. A regular 8 hour trip now becomes an 11 hour trip or so. It doesn't really matter though b/c we're making memories as a family! Regarding getting to Brazil, we're inching closer and closer! We are now at 63% of our outgoing/transition expenses (that's what GETS us to Brazil) and 41% of our monthly needs (that's what KEEPS us in Brazil). God is good. He's called us and we keep plugging away at sharing what God is doing in the world through the Brazilian Church, and how you and we can be a si...

Our sweet boy, Samuel Isaiah Bacheller.

One of Samuel's first smiles, at 7 days old. He is such a good baby and such a blessing from the Lord.

We are so thankful that Becky's mom has been able to stay with us for Samuel's first 10 days. She has been an amazing help around the house and has done many special things with Caleb to help him in adjusting to having a new brother. We are so thankful for the sacrifices she made to come and share this special time.