The waiting is over, the working continues . . .

After waiting for weeks to hear from my test (the last part of the application process), I heard Sunday that the letters were mailed out on Thursday. We live across the street from the seminary so we should have gotten it Friday or Saturday. But we did not, so we would get it Monday for sure. However, we were reminded by a friend that Monday was Columbus Day, so no mail would be delivered! It seemed God was not through having us wait just yet! (As it turns out, the letter actually left Louisville, went to our Savannah address, then forwarded to us in Louisville!) So, the news came today (Tuesday) in the form of a letter that I was approved to enter the Ph.D. program. Amanda says she never had any doubt. I am not able to say the same thing. I didn’t know for sure I would get in, but I did know that God was good and He would take care of us as long as we obeyed. What a blessing to be given the opportunity to study at Southern Seminary with great, knowledgeable men of God!

My advisor is Dr. William (Bill) Cook and my first impression is that we share the same kind of heart. He’s pastoring a local church that we’ve visited the last couple of weeks and seems to have a passion for both teaching and the local church (like me). I look forward to getting to know him better.

My classes are going well. I just finished a paper and will turn it in tomorrow. I still have one book to read and write a report on between now and the end of November. I continue to take German twice a week. We have weekly vocabulary quizzes and are translating regularly now. That will culminate in a take-home final exam. The class is pass or fail, no grade. I completed an online class dealing with the Cooperative Program last week.

Concerning our housing situation, we still have had no serious bites on our house in Savannah. Please continue to pray for this. However, God has opened up doors for us to rent a house from some “snowbirds.” The couple will go to live in Florida December through May and they’re going to rent their house (fully furnished) to us. It is a great deal. Our rent will be half what it is now and we’ll have over twice the square footage as we do now. It will also give us even more time to get our house sold. We are grateful for this nice, big house with a nice yard in a nice neighborhood for this period of time.

Concerning our finances, God continues to take care of us. He has used gifts from family and friends to bless us and provide for us. In addition, I continue to tutor a lot and got an hourly raise. Plus, we have picked up three other one-time jobs for this week (yard work, helping a lady load/unload in a move, and child care). It is good to show our kids that it is a privilege to work, that we should be thankful for the willingness and ability to work.

On a personal family note: My younger brother, Brian, was ordained as a deacon last week. It has been cool to see how God’s working in his life the last few years. Pray for him and his family.

Quick Prayer List:
1) First Baptist Church, Savannah as they continue to seek God for a new pastor
2) Continued financial provisions
3) Wisdom as we continue to seek a church home here
4) Our house to sell in Savannah, TN
5) Our spiritual lives to grow deeper and more consistent: Now that something is settled, it may be even easier to become self-reliant.

Final Devotional Thought:
I read this morning in my quiet time about Jesus getting ready to ride triumphantly into Jerusalem. The disciples were instructed to go get a donkey. Jesus told them to tell the owner, “The Lord has need of it.” What is it that you have that Jesus wants to use? Remember that when you give it and He uses it, He is the one who gets the glory. I once heard a preacher say that when Jesus rode in and they shouted, “Hosanna!” and cheered and waved branches, the donkey knew they weren’t cheering for him!