We've introduced you to the rest of the family . . . so this week we begin with a picture of our dog, Mike. This picture was taken earlier today. Notice the azaleas are now in full bloom . . . making the outside look a lot more beautiful just in the last few days.

Chicken Counting

That title comes from the old warning about not counting your chickens before they are hatched. Our rejoicing about the sale of our house turned out to be premature. We received a call from Audrie, our realtor, that the people we thought were buying our house are not going to be able to go through with the deal because they cannot get the financing they expected. Apparently they were turned down for a mortgage and don't think they can afford other more expensive financing options so want to back out of the deal. So we're back to where we were 15 days ago, but with 2 1/2 months instead of three to get the house sold. I wish the people had been more candid about their financial situation at the beginning, but there is no use crying over spilt milk. Please join with us in praying that things will turn out.

We thought we had a timetable worked out for us to arrive in Burlington on or about June 4th. I don't think the uncertainty about the house will change that schedule very much . . . at least it should not make it later because we will have to leave with the house unsold if we don't get a buyer in the next six weeks or so. Faxes and Fedex make it possible to close on a sale long distance when necessary. It could work out that we will arrive sooner if we do get a buyer who wants to close before Jared's graduation. Should that happen, we might try to ship our furniture ahead and stay in an extended-stay hotel for a week or two until Jared graduates May 24. It will all work out so we aren't going to worry.

We've enjoyed hearing from several of you . . . either with your comments here or by e-mail. I also was able to talk by phone with Jim and Ruth Lake this week.

In Christ,

John

Our House Sold!!!

If you have read our earlier post about getting our house ready to sell, you might have picked up on the fact that we had just a little bit of anxiety about how hard it might be to find a buyer. Real estate here in northwest Florida has been in a slump and some properties have been on the market for six months or more with little interest.

We had been working hard to get things looking good for prospective buyers and finally signed the paperwork Wednesday to list the house with Audrie Palmer, a realtor who is also a member of the Leonard Street church. Thursday was a day not fit for man or beast around here. It was rainy and stormy. Everyone with any sense kept one eye on the skies for possible tornadoes and stayed in as much as possible. I doubt anything was done in real estate that day. Early Friday morning, however, someone put up a "FOR SALE" sign in our yard. Audrie showed up with more papers for us to sign and a lock box for our door so other agents could show the house. We prayed that we might have a buyer within 60 days so there would be a possibility of closing with the new owner before we left for Washington.

God is surely taking care of us! If we needed any more evidence of that, we found it Friday afternoon. Trish came home to find Audrie showing the house to a nice older couple. They have a daughter living in our neighborhood and had been looking for a house near her. They had seen the multiple listing service listing shortly after it went up and called Audrie for an appointment ASAP. They loved the house and neighborhood (we do live on a nice cul-de-sac) and sat down with Audrie at our dining room table to make an offer on the spot. The nice thing is that they are willing to give us til May 25 to close -- that is one day after Jared's graduation. The price is exactly what we had hoped for . . . and the timing could not be more perfect. A final bonus is that it turns out the buyers are members of the church of Christ . . . so they might even be attending with us at Leonard Street. Rejoice with us!

UPDATE: See the March 17 entry to learn about why the sale of our house didn't turn out as well as we expected when this entry was written.

John

This is a more recent picture of Jared.

Happy Warm and Sunny Sunday Afternoon to all of you. It's 74 degrees at the moment here in Pensacola.

It occurred to me that we've talked about Jared quite a bit, but haven't shown you a picture of him. The photo at left was taken last October 20 on Jared's 17th birthday. He was sporting a long n' curly hairstyle.

His look is a bit different now as the next post will show. (I'm not all that sophisticated at this blogging business and am not going to take time to figure out how to get two pictures together).

T-Minus 3 Months & Counting

Three months from tomorrow will be the date for Jared's high school graduation. He is working hard now to finish up his two-year "Capstone Project" and several other long-term assignments which are due before Spring Break (March 19-23). He expects that his school life will be a little easier during his last nine-week quarter of high school.

Allen & Judy commented on the "busy-ness" Trish and I are going through right about now. Trish is no longer among the employed (she worked her last day for Covenant Hospice last week), but she has been working harder than ever going through the house, packing some things and disposing of others. We gave a sofa sleeper that we didn't want to move to my secretary at church. I have bags of clothes in the back seat of my truck right now to drop off at Goodwill. Our big green trash can has been overflowing for every pickup the last couple of weeks. My time at home has been filled with all sorts of projects . . . cutting some trees and trimming shrubbery, repairing a fence, cleaning out the garage, etc. I like it when it's time to go to work and rest a little! We're hoping to get things organized enough to get the house listed with a real estate agency next week . . . just in time for the three months that our realtor tells us we need to sell in this market.

We have an Outreach Training Northeast seminar taking place at the Leonard Street church March 4-11. A brother in Christ from West Virginia (Dennis Menear) is coming to teach a group of up to 30 for a total of 18 hours of class time. I don't know too much about this program, but it has been highly recommended to us. Trish and I expect to participate unless we get a full roster of participants. On Wednesday, March 7, we'll travel up to Montgomery, Alabama where I'll be speaking on "Eternal Scheme of Redemption" at the Faulkner University Lectureship. Due to the seminar going on at Leonard Street, we'll make a quick trip and hope to be back for Wednesday night classes.

After all that, perhaps we can catch a breath before time comes to get down to the serious packing during the last month before we leave Pensacola.

Thanks to everybody who has sent us greetings and good wishes about the move to Burlington. June will be here before we know it!

John

Happy Valentines Day, Ya'll!

Just wanted to say Happy Valentines Day to you all.

Love,
John and Trish

Triumphant Memories!

Trish and I were saddened to learn yesterday of the death of brother Jesse Pollock. Our hearts go out to his family and to the family of God's people at Skagit Valley who are hurting today because he is no longer with us.

Then this morning we learned of the death of brother V. P. Black, who was one of the great gospel preachers of his generation. Brother Black was 88 and had continued to preach, hold Gospel Meetings, and Stewardship Seminars until he suffered a heart attack a few months ago. I don't know how well-known brother Black was in the Northwest, but in the Southeast he would have to be reckoned as one of the Church of Christ's most influential figures in the last half of the 20th century. He was a dynamic, emotional speaker who had a wonderful way with people and a great ability to persuade people to commit themselves to God. His funeral has been scheduled for 1 p.m. Tuesday at the University Church of Christ building adjacent to the campus of Faulkner University in Montgomery, AL.

With brother Jesse and brother V. P., the sadness is on this end. We have to believe that in heaven there is rejocing that two great men of faith have won their victories and have now retired from this worldly battlefield in triumph.

John