Seems incredible to think that another Fall has quickly come and gone. And what a wonderful Fall it was. The kids continue to grow in so many ways and I cannot believe how much they have learned since starting Classical Conversations (Much of the credit must go to Trishia and her amazing teaching!). The Fall was a very busy semester for me, as I took more units than I should have and ended up feeling behind or close to it throughout the semester. Praise God that He gave both the strength and endurance to finish well and learn so much this semester from His Word. As far as the rest of the Fall went, the time was full and enjoyable... In September, Trishia began attending Every Woman's Grace (Women's Bible Study at GCC) and also had the opportunity to share her testimony in the TMS Sem Wives group (I have posted the link to the audio here along with a link to her written testimony here). The kids also started attending AWANA again (Aidan and Annika are in T&T, Austin and Ava are in Sparks) and had a wonderful time hiding God's Word in their heart. Most importantly, in the mid-September, Austin made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior! What a joy it is to see your children walking with the Lord, and growing in faith and obedience to God and His Word. In early October, we journeyed back North to celebrate the wedding of Trishia's brother, Justin. We had a great time seeing family and enjoying the weekend. My buddy Colby and his new wife and family came to visit us in October as well, and I was blessed with the opportunity to preach at the Mainstream Fellowship Group at Grace. Trish and I also celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary on October 10th (God answered our prayers through some dear seminary friends who volunteered to watch our kids for us so that we could go out for a nice dinner). In November, Trishia's mom came down to celebrate Trishia's Birthday and stayed for a long weekend with us. We spent Trishia's birthday on a beautiful Malibu beach and enjoyed time with Nana. For Thanksgiving, we stayed in the area and hosted some families from TMS who are either from out of the State (Minnesota and Arizona) or out of the Country (South Africa, Australia, and India). We had about 30 people in our home, and it was a busy but very enjoyable Thanksgiving holiday. It was great seeing non-Americans enjoying their first Thanksgiving and for some their first taste of Turkey! December is always crazy as we tried to juggle the end of the semester with all of the traditions and celebrations we like to enjoy. At the beginning of the month, my mom and dad surprised Austin on his 7th birthday by showing up at our door. We had a great opportunity to go to Legoland for next to no cost, and so grandma & grandpa came down and went with us down to Carlsbad. Early December also saw all of the decorating and preparations for Christmas. We got to see the reindeer at the LA zoo, finally beat the traffic and made it to the top of the Griffith Observatory, saw the lights at Hastings Place in Pasadena (literally 250+ houses decorated for the holidays), and enjoyed making Christmas cookies and goodies at home. We have thoroughly enjoyed our Christmas season and are excited about what the New Year has in store. God has been so faithful throughout 2016 and continues to amaze us daily with His goodness and mercy bestowed on us. It is incredible to think that we are already 3 semesters into our TMS journey. And, while we still have 3+ years to go, I can see how quickly it will fly by. We are so thankful for God's continuing provision in our lives and look forward to what the future holds. Thank you so much for all of your continuing prayers. We plan on making it back to Modesto for a longer stay this coming summer and hope to see many of you then. I will also try to update this site a little more regularly in the Spring. ![]()
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Filbrun Family6 sinners saved by God's unmerited Grace, trying to live for the Glory of God in all things! Archives
December 2019
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