The wedding rehearsal went well last night--so fun! Cory has done a great job of decorating everything. And Sheryl did a fantastic job of decorating for the rehearsal dinner to make it extra special...

JV, Amanda and Brian are singing--Sheryl and I pre-recorded a song since we are in the wedding party. They also have a harpist playing.

The flowers and candles aren't up yet---but it's amazing what one bolt of silk can add.

The girls are nervous about their role but I know they'll have such a great time!

Sheryl made these ice chests for each table last night--kind of a bride and groom thing. Plus she had paper and colors on each table for the kids. Oh, the brilliance of a mom!

More pictures of the big day to come!

I took these pictures a while ago---but ever since February when they got their flower girl dresses, the girls have been counting the days until "Kiki and Biggie's" wedding. (The kids--especially Sam, have named Kevin "Biggie". Hilarious!) Tonight is the rehearsal and tomorrow is the big day! We have all kinds of family and extended family in town. Please say a prayer of blessing for them as they take this huge step into their future.

From Psalm 20...

May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
May He send you help from His sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
May He give you the desires of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
We will shout for joy when you are victorious
and we will lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.

That's my boy! Sam's smiling and sunny disposition is one of God's greatest gifts in my life. He's saying so many new things. He's so curious. So interested in things. He loves to come up and say, "What do?" (aka: whatcha up to?) It's so cute. He still says "CHASEY, Daddy, CHASEY!!" and takes off running. Today I am overcome with gratitude for my family.

We have relatives driving in from all over for Kim's wedding this weekend. I am preforming their ceremony. Hopefully I will NOT say, "Mawwidge...and wuuv, twu wuv" But...I MIGHT say, "Do you have the 'wing'?" We'll see.

Last night we had our first night in the studio for our newest project (title TBA). We recorded "Your Name" and the background vocals to "Where Joy and Sorrow Meet". It was a long night, but it went well. It's so fun having the group back together again!

As we were getting ready to begin my mind went back to the last 10 years and so many hilarious memories. Pictures from that first recording in 1997 crack me up. We look like children...even David England! :) Along the way there have been marriages, births, miscarriages, joys and sorrow. We've walked a lot of miles together. I'm so thankful for my sweet ZOE family. Here are some shots we captured last night.

Here we are posing with our awesome engineer, Chris Yoakum

Kyler sat in the engineer booth and watched Chris work his magic!

Here are some more pictures from our time in Orlando with ZOE. Thanks, Amy, for sending these!! We had a great time with the Metro Church out there. Thanks again to all of you who were so hospitable!

Some of the ZOE guys...nice face, Pete!

Sunday morning at Metro

More of Sunday

Here we are in all our weirdness...I LOVE these people!

For Father's Day I got some absolutely gorgeous pictures of my kids! I was really excited to get them. Here are a few...









Thank you, Sheryl, Maddie, Ella, and Sam!!

It's been a really busy week. We're gearing up to begin the ZOE recording this next week as well as trying to stay ahead on everything else. I'm really excited about the recording. We've got most of the ZOE veterans back--Sheryl, Melissa, Amy, Karin, David, Jason, Peter, and JV. (Philip Organ is also singing a few dates)

Some of the songs we're working on include...
--Your Name
--At the Cross
--Where Joy and Sorrow Meet
--Carried to the Table
--Uncreated One
--You Never Let Go
--You Are God Alone

Happy Father's Day tomorrow.

Here are some more pictures from the weekend with ZOE...

Last Monday, our second "Playground" kids' record for Parable was released. It's called "I Want to Shine!" I added a new link over there so you can order one...or two....or twenty! I am so pleased with the entire project. Now...rumors of a Christmas CD??

Here are a couple more pictures from Sam's party. Kyle took these and they were some of my favorites!

There's so much to say about the weekend...such an awesome time with ZOE and with friends in Orlando. The conference went well. Bret and his crew did a fantastic job. We all enjoyed being there and felt great about the weekend. However, I really missed Stephen being there.

There were lots of highlights for me. One was seeing Tim and Darcy Chapman...old ACU friends. Darcy and I were Sing Song hosts together. They are such amazing people. Tim kept me on the edge of my seat with stories of his visit to Africa to see our mutual friends, Randy and Kellie Vaughn. I was dying.

Another high moment was spending time with my buddy Rich Smith. He and I got there early Thursday to work on our worship leader's track. We also spent part of the day at Disney thanks to our favorite Disney employee, Charles! Thanks, brother!

Sunday morning we led worship at both services--the first was acapella and the second was with their worship band. Those guys were great--almost as good as our Otter Creek band :)

Finally, on the way home I sat with Jason McArthur, Amy Westerman and my mom and we had such a fun spiritual conversation. I always love the trips home because we get in these engaging debates. Jason is one of my all-time favorite people to talk to. He's not only one of the funniest people I know, he also knows scripture better than almost anyone I've met besides John Willis.

I'll have more pictures to post in a few days, but here are a few from the weekend--

Rich Smith and I went to Animal Kingdom first and then Epcot. While at Animal Kingdom, I saw the new Nemo show. My old friend, Juan, is in it. He was the lead in the Tarzan show that closed last January. He was great in Nemo, but it didn't feature him like Tarzan did. It was fun to see him though.

Sheryl and Darcy--Darcy and I were Sing Song hosts together back in the day at ACU. Darcy and Sheryl are both from Michigan and go waaaay back. in fact, I met Sheryl through Darcy.

Sheryl, me, Darcy and Tim--great friends!

Rich, my mom, Sally Gary and me. I was so glad my mom got to come and of course, it's always a pleasure to see Sally. Behind us is the lovely drawing that Jack and Jill Maxwell did during the conference.

More pics soon...

Today is my son's second birthday! It's hard to imagine that he's 2! He is such a joy to me. I love how he comes over to me and asks me to play chase by saying, "Chase-y??!" I love how he enjoys giving hugs and kisses to all of us, but especially his sisters. I love his laugh. I love his waddle run. I love his tender but strong heart. He is a gift to Sheryl and me. Happy birthday, Sam! May the Lord bless you and keep you and make His face to shine upon you!

Here are some pictures from Sam's Thomas the Train party today--

I got back from TX last night. It was a difficult trip. I am so, SO grateful to have been able to go (thanks, Steve!) and I know that God had His hand in getting me there. Seeing people you love in such deep pain stinks. That's just the truth.

Craig drove in from Ft. Worth and picked me up at the airport and we headed straight to the church for visitation. We walked into the family life center and there had to be at least 1000 people there. We could barely squeeze in. We immediately saw Alan Brown who took us right to Stephen and Stephanie. We just hugged and cried. It was so good to finally get to hug them.

The line wrapped and curled around the inside of the building. For THREE hours people waited in line to hug and cry with Tod and Lee Ann. It was incredible to watch. Tod and Lee Ann were focused on each person and really were ministering to THEM. Incredible.

Craig and I congregated with Stephen, Stephanie, and other members of the Brown and Bailey families and laughed and cried and were just present with each other. David and Kendra Needham were there too. It was so good to see them. I got to hug and talk to Hutton and Reagan (Connor's brothers). Bailey didn't get to come to the visitation but she did make it to the funeral in a wheel chair and looked amazing considering all she's been through.

Craig, Stephen and I got to share a meal together late that night. We sat around the table like we have done so many times over the last 19 years. (We missed you, Chris!) I thought as we sat there about how RICH I feel in Kingdom relationships. I have been blessed with more than my fair share. I know that the older we get, the more we'll have to deal with and walk through together. But--what a GIFT from God to have brothers and sisters to share life with.

The funeral Monday was impossible to describe. That very large sanctuary was packed with people sent to overflow seating. George Rowe played the piano and sang beautifully. He also wrote and sang a song about Connor called "Held". Kevin Riggs led us in powerful worship, the tributes were moving and heart wrenching...perfect for such a Godly young man. The sight of Connor's picture up front just made us keep asking the question...what are we doing? Could this be real?

Afterwards, we filed out hugging and crying with the Browns and Baileys. It seemed impossible that this was actually happening. But, the stories of Connor echoed in my heart. He was a young man who loved God, loved people, and wanted to serve others. He was so mature for being 13.

It was hard to say goodbye to Stephen. It was difficult to get out of Craig's car at the airport. Sometimes in times like this you just want to huddle near. But, as we all head back to our families and lives, I think we are forever shaped in some ways by this experience. Each day is a gift. What will we do with it? God is good. His transforming love knows no boundaries. Rich, poor, young, and old...we're all being chased by that Love. I saw it alive and well in Midland, TX.

Last weekend...which seems like a world away... we spent some time at a farm in Mt. Juliet. Several of our close friends went out to Kyle's sister's farm. We gathered to say goodbye to Lea Brown who is moving back to TX. SO SAD! There was a gorgeous farm house and 4 other cabins. Ours was an A frame complete with a stand-up arcade games of Pac Man and Galiga. It was a quiet retreat...

There were horses! Sam and the girls loved talking to them and petting them

As well as horses, there were 4 wheelers!! Brian brought some of his too so we had plenty to go around. There was also a golf cart which the kids loved...until Sam experienced the 4 wheeler. Once that happened, he was done--DONE--with the golf cart! HA!

Sam poses with Kevin--Kiki's fiance (otherwise known as "Biggie" by our children!)

L-R: "Biggie" Brian ("Bobby" as Sam calls him), Sam, me, and Kyle ("Ky-Ky")

I just can't believe Lea is leaving us. Our kids have adored her. She and Ella have always had a special friendship. We will miss her so much.

Monday morning, Memorial Day, we all woke up and went to Cracker Barrel--to make our farm house experience complete!

It was breakfast, but Sam was already ready for a nap!

That night we went over to Byron and Beth Williamson's to celebrate Memorial Day. Their son Ryan and his wife Sarah have been some of our best friends for a long time. Ryan and Sarah's kids and our kids had to put on a little Memorial Day show for everyone...

L-R: Maddie, Sydney, Ella, and Jack

As we pulled out of the Williamson's driveway we learned of Connor's death. We pulled over and just cried. It's been a really long week filled with a lot of emotion. Tomorrow I am getting on a plane to go and meet Craig so we can be with Stephen and his family for visitation Sunday night and the funeral Monday. Please pray for all of them as they take this baby step forward.

Though our peaceful farm retreat seems like a lot longer than a week ago, I am grateful for that time with friends and for the reminder that EACH DAY is precious. Absolutely precious. I've held my children more. I've looked a little more deeply into their eyes. I've taken stock of God's goodness in our lives and rejoiced that even in extreme sorrow He has given me friends who stick closer than a brother.

Chris Doggett, Craig Fisher and Stephen were once college roommates...then brothers. Now, the importance of their presence in my life cannot be measured. Chris and I remarked this week that the more life we live, the more stuff we'll walk through with each other. Thank you, Lord, for the gift of Jesus made manifest in relationships here on Earth.