Tico Tuesday, December 20th

Pre-Christmas greetings from Portland, Maine!
I arrived here safely and soundly at dark, frigid wee hours of the morning and am very happy to be able to spend the next several days here and celebrate the incarnation of Jesus our Savior with my parents.

This weekend I was able to distribute a little thank you to many of those who were small group facilitators this year. It was just a small token of heartfelt thanks to them for their service this year and inviting them to the training retreats we are planning next year, but many people were very touched by the mini-card and chocolate. I wished I could have given them so much more, but many responded with deep gratitude, giving me a big hug and telling me thank you for the support I provided to them over the course of the year.
Then yesterday before flying out I had breakfast with one of the women on my small group core team. She posted a picture of us on facebook afterward and the words she wrote to accompany the picture touched the depths of my heart and almost had me in tears. "...Thank you for your love...your friendship and your wonderful representation of Jesus...Growing by your side has been a great blessing." Well if that right there doesn't make me feel like all my labors and efforts from the year have been worth it, then nothing will. I had not felt any doubts about my service this year, but receiving such kind words makes it all feel worth it a hundred times over.
God has been so good to me this year and it is a great joy and blessing to be an instrument in his hands. Thank you again to all of you for your support in every way. Words can never be enough. (No Tico Tuesday next week as I try to disconnect as much as possible while I have time off, but a Chronicle will come out shortly after the first of the new year).
Merry Christmas to you all, and may God's peace and joy fill you to overflowing as we celebrate his miraculous birth and await his return!
Come, Lord Jesus!
Carrie

Tico Tueday, December 13th

A smattering of news:
I am going to get to go to the island in the Caribbean that has a piece of my heart! Thank you to those who have already started donating to the cause. A team of 8 from my church is going and I'm really excited. We'll be focusing on children's ministry and small group training. Also, this week I was able to get my plane ticket to Spain for the Life Coach training for less then I had expected. Praise the Lord! So now the total I need to raise (formerly $2900) for both the island (Jan 8-16) and Life Coach training (in March) is $2400 (also taking into account what has been given already). You can give here.

Working hard in PT!

Speaking of travel: I'm going to Maine for Christmas! I am really looking forward to some time off and getting to spend time with my parents. If you are in northern New England and would like to get together, let me know and we'll see what we can do! And since I will be in Maine shortly before I go to the island, I will be taking donations with me to take to the island, so if you would like to donate: new or lightly used children's clothes, candy, face paint, balloons, stickers (preferably not with English writing on them), or if you happen to have 120 units of the same, small toy please contact me and we'll see how close I can come to my baggage weight limit! (Hooray for free bags on Southwest!)
In other news, I have two, just TWO sessions of physical therapy left! And the last one my therapist and I are going to play tennis with some other people from church. Hallelujah! This recovery process has been really hard work and very tiring, but it is paying off. I continue to feel better and stronger each day. I can't wait to see how impressed my orthopedist will be when I have my followup appointment with him on Friday!
I ask you to please join me in prayer for the staff of my church. On Thursday we're having our big annual planning retreat. Pray for unity, efficiency, creativity, and great wisdom for us as we look at each area of work and evaluate 2016 and plan 2017, striving to be obedient to God and grow his kingdom here on earth.
Thank you so much for everything! You are an amazing support team and I am so thankful for you all, for every prayer, for every gift, every email! Thank you!
Carrie

Tico Tuesday, December 6th

The other day one of the small group facilitators wrote to me, ecstatic about the experience her group had at supporting our church's biweekly ministry to the homeless. They brought the food, led the singing, and spent time pouring love into those who came. The small group facilitator sent me pictures, including this one, and several of her small group in action. Then she included several screenshots from their group chat, in which multiple members expressed the joy of serving together, how happy they are to know each other and be part of a spiritual family together, all sorts of warm, fuzzy feelings. The facilitator's joy brought me joy, and it was beautiful to see how God has been working in this group. This facilitator is one who came to most of the trainings we had this year and I can tell she has really been trying to put it all into practice. This is one of the greatest small group success stories I've heard this year and I thank the Lord for what he's been doing!
Another small group facilitator and I were texting recently as well, and he was among the group from my church who was able to go help with relief efforts from Hurricane Otto. He is planning a special gathering to share with his small group what God did in that time. He shared a testimony with me: the day they left, the team had a light breakfast. They had brought some food to eat later, but gave it to the people they were serving because they had nothing. The team ended up not eating again till the evening after a very hard day's work: and the Lord sustained them and gave them energy all day. He told me he wasn't even hungry that night. As he told me that, a verse came to mind: Jesus said, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me" (John 4:34). I believe serving others was the food of my brothers and sisters from church that day, and it was a beautiful act of worship to the Lord, and God rewarded them in multiple ways beyond their comprehension and mine.
Praise the Lord for his ways and his works!
Carrie