May 2008 Update

It appears I haven’t written any kind of update since January. Though I wish it weren’t the case I am not surprised at all. It was a very busy spring semester.
After enjoying a nice Christmas/New Years break back in Nebraska we came back to Saint Louis to dig in once more. I’m not really sure where to begin.
School-wise, this semester was even more challenging than the fall semester. Beings that I was somewhat between Greek and Hebrew I decided to take a heavier load this semester. Our goal is to finish in three years (most do it in four) which requires a pretty strenuous pace. I took six classes for a total of 15 credit hours. I don’t know that I would recommend it. I didn’t get to pour as much into the classes as I would have liked. But we are very anxious to be done with school, to leave in a cheaper setting, to begin ministry, and to start a family so we have decided to move quickly. I continue to enjoy my classes and feel that I am gaining so much invaluable insight for future ministry.
Praise God Dawn was able to find a job quickly in January. She is doing office work at an Optometrist’s office very close to the seminary. It has been a good situation and they have given her time to take some classes. She did decide to change her course of action though. Rather than pursuing a degree she is going to audit classes from now on. She was just too busy to keep up with all the reading and homework. She has also decided to become a Pampered Chef consultant. It is something she has wanted to do for a while and she sees it as an opportunity to help us pay bills as well as meet new people and gain public speaking and hospitality skills. She has already hosted a number of parties. It is difficult to make contacts because we don’t know a lot of people here, but she is a hard worker and she enjoys the business so we’ll see what happens.
Last night we became associate members of Providence Reformed Presbyterian Church here in St. Louis. We have been attending there for almost three months now and have decided to make it our church home while we’re here. They have welcomed us and provided many opportunities for us to learn and grow with them. We appreciate the things they are doing and look forward to ministering with them for the next couple years. Dawn is joining the WIC (Women in the Church) hospitality group and I am talking with the new assistant pastor (our neighbor at Gulf Drive) about opportunities for me to serve in the future. We are very glad to be there.
My brother, Josh, was here with us last week. He just graduated from High School and is planning to attend LeEcole Culinary Institute here in St. Louis starting in July. He is going to be moving in with us. We are looking forward to spending more time with him and enjoying any assignments he may need to bring home!
I finished all my finals last week and now have a week off before I start Summer Hebrew. Like Greek last summer, this class meets Mondays and Thursdays until the Middle of August. I am told that Hebrew is easier than Greek and I certainly hope this is the case. I’m also hoping to get ahead on some reading and homework for the upcoming year.
We continue to adjust to Saint Louis. Our main complaint is still all the driving we have to do. This is particularly annoying now with gas prices as they are. On the upside is the friendships we are making. Our community at Gulf Drive has been so helpful and supportive. I’m looking forward to taking Hebrew with some of the guys I’ve gotten to know better. There is a certain sense of camaraderie that comes as we go through classes and similar life struggles together. Our hope is that we can build relationships that will provide a good network of mutual support in future ministry.
There are a thousand little things that I could talk about but this has already gotten rather long. Hopefully I will have a little more time this summer to update this and keep in touch with all of you.

David