I Met Glenn 40 Years Ago Today - Dec 23, 1978 - 2018

So here is the story... I had graduated from Moody Bible Institute and had returned back to Dallas, was living at home, and was working full-time as a reservationist for Delta Airlines.  That was my dream job.  My good friend, Donna, was home from college for winter break and we tried the new Filling Station Restaurant on Greenville Avenue.  It was fun to re-connect with Donna as we had attended Junior High and Lake Highlands High School together.

I then drove to South Dallas, Duncanville area, about 20 miles from home to go and visit my friend, Mary.  Mary and I graduated from Moody Bible Institute earlier in the Spring and she was down from Illinois visiting her fiancé, Tom.  

I have said frequently, 

"If you make a friend with Judy Marr, you have made a friend for life!" 

My mom was discouraging me from driving 'clear across town' to go see Mary.  

I remember distinctly her saying, "You don't have to go", at which I replied, "Well, Mom, who knows, I might meet my husband!"  

Little did I know that I would, indeed, meet Glenn.  Glenn had also graduated from Moody several months earlier and he was living with his missionary parents who were settled down in Duncanville for the year.  Glenn and Tom grew up together in Ixmiquilpan, Mexico where both parents worked on Bible Translation projects.  Glenn had come over to see Tom that memorable day.

Tom and Mary were out doing last minute Christmas shopping.  I arrived at the Beekman's house and Glenn called to see if Tom was there.  Dr. Beekman spoke up and said, "Come on over!"  So, we met and had time to talk about our families, college, work, etc. before Tom and Mary returned.

That was December 23, 1978.  

Then, 3 days after Christmas, December 28, Glenn took me out on our first date.  We went to The Nutcracker at the State Fair grounds.  It was very nice.

To this day, I'm thankful...

• I didn't listen to my mom, but, instead, made the effort to drive down to see Tom and Mary
• Dr. Beekman invited Glenn over, even though Tom and Mary were not back from shopping
• For meeting Glenn 40 years ago today. December 23, 1978
• Glenn was brave enough to invite me on our first date, December 28, 1978

Happy 40th Anniversary,

Glenn, celebrating the day we met for the First Time!  

My heart still jumps with excitement when I think of how you have loved me these 40 years!  

I love you!

#ConversationsCoasttoCoast

In June 2019, Northwest Bible Church Senior Pastor, Neil Tomba, will be cycling across the United States where, along the way, he intends to engage in conversations about faith and Jesus with individuals from all walks of life. His Conversations Coast to Coast campaign is set to be the subject of his first book, and the cross-country ride is expected to become a documentary film.

Glenn and Judy Stewart will be assisting Neil's Team in a support role as he journeys across the USA. Their gifts of hospitality, encouragement, logistics and communication will support and participate in the goal of having conversations about Jesus. They will be a part of the daily support team, helping behind the scenes.


It is not surprising that Glenn would want to help in this endeavor. Back in 1976, Glenn, along with friend Ben Bakker, rode their bicycles from Dallas, TX to Colombia, South America, visiting churches and missionaries as well as evangelizing along the way. This project will help fund the Stewart's travel, accommodations and routine daily operations along the 3,000+ mile trip as Glenn and Judy help with  #ConversationsCoasttoCoast.  Click on "Give" for a donation to this creative project.

Check out Neil's website: NeilTomba.com

                                         

Neil's route on #ConversationsCoastToCoast

Chick on Neil's recent Kirby Anderson interview.
(2hour mark)

https://youtu.be/xiPMqtzfxRY?t=7202

Camino Global merges with Avant

Big NEWS!

In 2019, Camino Global and Avant Ministries will unite to create a combined mission with more than 500 members and a global reach extending to greater than 50 countries!

Since the 19th century, Avant and Camino have been used by God to bring the light of Christ into the darkness. Imagine the impact we will have as we join together.

#avantcamino #strongertogether

Read the press release and view frequently asked questions at www.avantcamino.org.

Natalie Goes to the Lawyer

Glenn and I took Natalie downtown to the lawyer's office for her to check about the process of getting a permanent visa.

(I guess if you were not hungry for a Hamburger, you could always get some fresh oranges and plums before going into McDonalds!)

As we drove downtown, we gave Natalie "pointers and landmarks" for her to know the way to get there again.  The mission has been using Betty for years.  Her office is downtown, next to the McDonalds in Zone 4.  So, Glenn parks the car in the parking lot and we buy an egg McMuffin so we can legitimately park at McDonald's, since Betty doesn't have any parking for her clients.

Ready or not, here we come!

Glenn shows her exactly how to buzz in.

Not sure if she wanted to go behind the bars!

And she makes it out alive!

In conclusion

• 1 hour of traffic going to the lawyer's office
• Purchase McMuffin and yogurt at McDonald's to "pay for parking"
• Navigated our way through the locks and doors to Betty's office
• Sat in the hallway for 1/2 hour until Betty was ready - not too bad
• Natalie made a decision to wait until next year to process it, if at all, because of several factors such as name change of mission, email address change, etc
• Stopped off at PriceSmart (your local Sam's Club) to check on new tires for Natalie's 4Runner/Community Bus/"Janet"
• 1 1/2 hours back to the house
• I would say it was a successful day, although we didn't get to cross everything off the list

Morning Walk + Orange Juice

On the weekends, Glenn and I adventure outside of our gated community for our morning walks. Several reasons; we can do this because there is not much traffic on Saturdays and Sundays, plus we feel just a little bit safer on these days.  As we walked over the weekend, this is what we experienced!

I used the excuse that I needed to take a picture of Agua, but in reality, I needed to stop and take a breath as we were walking up a steep street.

Then we stopped at our customary "Orange Julius" Juice stand for 2 bags of freshly squeezed OJ that comes in a plastic bag with my own straw.

 Good morning, Guatemala!

55 minutes 

7,361 steps

2.7 miles and 10 flights stairs

More Thanksgiving Family Shots

Mom and Dad

3 or the 4 siblings (Rick, Judy and Ronnie)

Kelly and Meredith

Meredith

Mom and Dad

Sherrie and Steve plus 2 of their 4 kids (Michelle and Stephen) plus me

How it All Began

Sherrie's family

Decorating the Christmas tree and setting out the train!

My Favorite!

Thanksgiving Day without Glenn but with Family

On Thanksgiving Day,  I drove mom down to East Texas for the traditional Helms side of the family Thanksgiving Dinner.  It use to be that we gathered at the community center where Big Mama (my great grandmother) would come and fix the dinner.  This was in the old school house.

Now, Big Mamma has passed away and all of her kids (my grandfather plus aunts and uncle). But the tradition lives on as the great grandkids make it a point to meet, greet and eat every Thanksgiving.  It is a once-a-year thing.

Here are some photos of food, family and friends.

We gather together to ask the Lord’s blessing;

Oh, Those Grandkids!

Glenn and I took advantage of the $84.00 roundtrip airfare I found for DFW-DEN-DFW!  We were so thrilled to be able to make a quick 3 day visit to see Ellen and Luke and also "spoil" David, Emily, Lucy and Elizabeth.

GrandDad had lots of time reading to Elizabeth

David was proud of the Batman Symbol that Uncle Gary gave to him recently.

Sisters, Sisters...

Free Day at the Denver Zoo was one of the many highlights

Boy, we love Chick-Fil-A plus we took them to the library for Story Time

Look at the process.  Lucy combing Ellen's hair, Ellen braiding Emily's hair and Emily watering down baby Elizabeth's head, and Elizabeth taking it all in.

Emily - age 5 1/2

Glenn even had time to help Ellen's friends purchase a Toyota in just under 2 hours!

Basketball practice

We are so thankful we had a chance to be with the grandkids just for 3 days.  It went fast!  I loved helping Ellen in the kitchen, taking the kids off her hands so she could concentrate on some editing jobs she has, plus give her a little break by providing "babysitting" service for them to go out on a date-night.