Stelzl Family

This past weekend we had the wonderful privilege of hosting the Neely Team for a short visit! They were passing through on their way to the beach for a family vacation, and were planning to participate in the NRA (National Rifle Association) gun show, representing Accurate Innovations. They arrived late Thursday evening around 10:00, bringing joy to the close of one of our busiest days ever! Although they were absent nearly all day Friday, we willingly took advantage of every spare moment in between, including late night conversations that lasted into the early morning hours

On Friday we prepared one of our favorite meals that we often share with guests. The Neely Team arrived back from the gun show just in time for scalloped potato special (made with an Italian tomato and herb mixture rather than cream sauce), grilled chicken, salad, and brownie-ice-cream-desert. To top off the meal, 15 of us kids played “beat the clock” to get the kitchen sparkling in just 5 minutes! Although the dish scrubbing line got a little behind, we certainly had the most experienced of dish-washers hard at work with great and amazing effort! Way to go Amanda, Bethany, and David (and all others who were involved with other jobs as well  )! It is simply amazing how normal tasks like wiping crumbs off the tables, sweeping floors, and scrubbing dishes can be SO much fun when individuals become a team and willingly pitch in with joyful determination!

Saturday morning provided opportunity for much needed sleep as we prepared to fix a big breakfast on the later side – 9:00. The Neely Team hoped to get on the road before lunch in order to arrive at the beach for their family vacation in good time. A few of us decided to forgo sleep for the joy of extra precious hours together! I enjoyed my devotional time outside with Kathryn immensely and later wrote about the wonderful memories we made together in my journal. There is nothing like the sweet lasting fellowship between like-minded believers in Christ, and the blessings that come from sharing and praying together!

Overall, we had a perfect visit with our dear friends the Neelys! They are such a beautiful example to us with their willingness to serve, their radiant joy, and their sincere love for Jesus Christ! We eagerly await the time when our paths will cross again…wherever, whenever, however that may be. We praise the Lord for drawing our families together in such a special and unique way…as sisters and brothers in Christ!

Photography by Hannah & Sarah Stelzl

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 20th, 2010 at 11:55 pm and is filed under Family Adventures, Family Ministry, Journal Entries. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.