Back home again in Indiana

I have enjoyed being home so much! I love getting to spend time with my family and my church. I have met with several of our small groups and I get to talk to our teenagers tonight! I'm excited to talk about all of our call to share Jesus with others.
I'm enjoying home.
I'm excited about Thanksgiving.
I hope you are too.

I'm a passionate person about THIS!

Take a look at the video I finished this week about what I do. I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed making it!



ps. if pushing play doesn't work, try hitting your space bar :) Or CLICK HERE for a link to the youtube site.

Veterans Day!

Thank you men and women who are daily out there on the front lines of our freedom. We don't live in the country we do without sacrifice and today we stop to remember that.
For those who gave their lives, we are grateful to the family you left behind for their sacrifice. For those serving on the front lines or behind the scenes, thank you for your diligence. And for those who previously served, Thank you for protecting us well and for passing the baton to the next generation.
I'm proud to know several military men and women and proud of my Grandfather who fought with pride and conviction in WWII.

I had a hard time sleeping last night.

As I was laying in bed last night I got to thinking about the kids at the JCC orphanage in Bo, Sierra Leone. I was in my fantastic apartment, laying in my soft bed with several blankets and the window cracked. I thought about the kids who at JCC were in a concrete room inside a razor wire compound sleeping in home made bunk beds covered with mosquito nets to try to fend off malaria. No glass or screens on their windows and no air conditioning because there's no electricity. Getting up for a glass of water in the middle of the night would require a flashlight and using the noisy well pump, unless they had thought ahead and pre-pumped some water before bedtime.
The kids are beautiful. I thought about Patrick, how adorable he is and how he seems to think he's one of the "big boys" at 4. I also thought of Junior, that little stinker at 2 running around playing shy with all our students to get attention. Nancy, Mabel, Christiana and some of the other older girls who are trying to navigate teen years. And of course Betty, my "Piqueing" or small child. I want so much to go wrap her up in my arms with a hug.
Laying there last night, there was nothing I could physically do for them but continue to lay there and pray for them. Pray that as they sleep they are safe, that God continues to call the 85 or so kids to himself, that they would know that they are loved and that they would be able to grow into men and women of Christ who makes an impact of the world around them. Pray for them with me would you?

Ever Wonder...

... why i do what i do? Answer.

Picture This!

My Amazing Brother Bryan Buchelt took this picture of Chicago while flying with my dad to Wisconsin for an airshow this summer. It's such an amazing picture that after messing with the color, it is now a 16x20 over our couch in the living room.

Thanks Bry :)