I hope you are all doing great! I love you all so very much and continually thank the Lord for your faithfulness to all He has called us to do for Him. There is no greater satisfaction in life than being found in the center of God's will. And this begins with each and every one of us personally. Strive to seek after the will of God for your life. Search Him out and seek His face. Do this through prayer, reading God's Word, coming to church to worship Him, surrounding yourself with like-minded and God-fearing friends and understanding that the Lord has only the very best in mind for you. We can also pray for each other in this regard. God uses godly people and many circumstances in life to let us know where we should be and what we should be doing.

      Our students are having a total blast serving the Lord in prisons this week. They are having the best time ever - especially in New York City - but also as many seen and many unseen decisions for Christ have been made. This group of students have been outstanding in every way and we can be so very grateful for the fine young people they indeed are. Mirror Image will be sharing a number of their songs with us in worship on Sunday and then will want you to join them on Sunday night for their Homecoming Concert. And the same can be said for our boys and girls who had such an incredible time at Camp Voyager. Judging by all accounts this was just a wonderful time. And, to top it all, many decisions for Christ were made and recorded. Can anything be more fantastic than this? We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Eddie, Greg, Steve and all the chaperones and helpers of every kind who gave up holiday time and took off from work to go on Mirror Image Prison Tour and to be at Camp Voyager. We just cannot thank you all enough for doing this for our students and children. And, above all, for the Lord. What an investment.

     And now Vacation Bible School! Greg tells me we are geared up and reared up and ready to go! A hive of activity for the Lord. What fun and what a grand time as boys and girls come from everywhere. God gets all the glory. Pray too, for the annual Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Columbus, Ohio through Wednesday. We have all been called to serious prayer by our president and Tuesday evening's session is devoted completely to prayer. Thousands from around the nation will be gathering. My wife, Karyn, is also honored to be on the Committee on Nominations - which is considered the strategic zone of influence on the SBC because it places people from all around the nation on these strategic committees. What I love about all of this is that prayer is becoming the central issue. Our church call to 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting has made an indelible mark on all of us. The gathering of thousands for prayer in Charleston is remarkably significant. The meeting of Southern Baptists, the nation's largest protestant denomination, centered in prayer, is dynamic. God is at work.

     I love you all.

     Your friend and pastor,

 Praying and Preparing for