Adventures in Indiana

One of the most challenging aspects of joining staff with Time to Revive was the variability in Shawns travel schedule.  I was uncomfortable with the lack of predictability around the duration and location of each trip and I fretted over how those inconsistencies would impact our family.  As it turns out, my fretting was mostly in vain because our family still thrives (sometimes with more effort than at other times) despite the travel. 

Over time we've gotten much better at transitioning in and out of these trips.  Shawn and I continue to learn how to best support one another in our unique roles and responsibilities.  For me, that looks like extending a lot of grace and flexibility to Shawn about finding time to touch base with me because his days away are so full.   For him, it's making sure that we have ample food in the house before he leaves and sending video messages to the kids during moments of down time.  We have hundreds of other lessons we've learned along the way and we're still learning because no two trips are alike. 

One of the first and most impactful lessons we learned early on is that all of us are more successful when we keep our home life as consistent as possible.  This consistency manifests itself in both big and small ways throughout each trip, but it almost always means that the kids and I don't travel with Shawn for work.  By staying home, the kids day to day life remains largely undisturbed and Shawn is free to work long and hard without the added responsibility of checking in on us in strange cities. 

There are exceptions to every rule and this past December we loaded up our van to embark on our first ever family work trip.  We navigated a fair amount of challenges but we had fun along the way.  It was a trip filled with new experiences and rich relationships. We're so glad we got to do it!

Reading books together at our host home

We were in a small town in Northern Indiana, right in the heart of an Amish settlement.  Jonah was enamored with the horses we saw scattered throughout the countryside and Nicole was a huge fan of the abundance of fresh bread everywhere.   We were only a stones throw away from two different towns, each with their own libraries, which is where the kids and I spent many a chilly morning.  It was incredibly unique to intermix so freely with the Amish as we saw them everywhere we went.  All the establishments in the area have hitching posts for the horses and buggies to park, which exponentially increased the amount of horses we got to see up close. 

The kids and I were included in many of the staff meals, and the team regularly frequented an Amish restaurant called the Essenhaus.  In addition to eating numerous meals at the Essenhaus, we were invited to an "Amish dinner" which was hosted and cooked by an Amish family in the area.  We went to their house and ate salad, bread, homemade jelly, mashed potatoes, gravy,  noodles, meatloaf, fried chicken, and three kinds of pie.  The meal itself lasted for 2 incredibly enjoyable hours.  We had hired a babysitter for Jonah so he could nap during it, but Nicole came and ate her weight in fresh bread and jelly. 

Nicole eating homemade bread and jelly at the Amish dinner we attended

The main purpose of the trip for Shawn was to finish reviveSchool, a daily two year study of the Bible, Genesis - Revelation.   December marked the final month of the two-years and from the beginning a large group of men had been meeting in someones barn monthly to study together.  In an effort to finish well, a small group of the Time to Revive team headed to Indiana to host the final 22 lessons of Revelation in that barn.

We stayed with the family whose barn was used to host reviveSchool so we were very close to the action night after night.  Our proximity to the barn ended up being a really fun aspect of the trip for the kids because they got to see Shawn at work and Nicole was able to stay in the barn for the singing they did before beginning the Bible study.  Her current favorite song is Way Maker, which she was delighted to sing on multiple occasions. 

For the past two-years, this barn-study has been only for men but for this final stretch, women and children were invited.  Attendance steadily increased from 120 all the way up to about 170 men, women and children eagerly studying the book of Revelation together.  After completing the study on December 31st, everyone stayed to watch professional fireworks, which was a first for my kids.  It was a really fun way to ring in the New Year. 

Getting Ready to Watch the Fireworks on New Years Eve. . . a little past Jonahs bedtime ;) 

We headed back home to Texas on New Years Day and for the first time ever, drove the entire 16 hours in a single day.  The drive was long but it was the perfect way for us to wrap up our adventures together.  We were all grateful to arrive at home and start the New Year with the memories of our trip still fresh in our minds. 

I hope your New Year is off to a great start.
Love,
Erica