Ooooooklahoma where the wind comes sweeping down the plain....

Hello, all! :) Or maybe I should say "yeeehaw," as we are headed into the great land of Oklahoma. We'll be spending a few days in Tulsa, which I'm looking forward to. When I was 15, I went to Tulsa with my family to check out ORU for college. If I had not decided on Liberty, I probably would have ended up at ORU. My parents actually met at school there, so it'll be fun to be back in the town. 

It's hard to believe that nearly a week has passed since I last updated. There is very little time to go online, but I will update my blog every chance I have. It's wonderful knowing some of y'all read this and are praying for the team and for myself. Thank you! 

It has been a fantastic week, with several "fun days" which enabled us to catch our breath from the busy concert routine. (Last weekend, we had 5 concerts!) 

My host family in Sedalia, Missouri showed me around the town. Scott Joplin, the father of Ragtime music lived in Sedalia, so we saw some sites relating to him and to Ragtime. Pretty nifty. 

I also ate something that sounds absolutely nasty, but I loved it :) At a diner in Sedalia, they are famous for "Guber Burgers." And that consists of: a hamburger with melted peanut butter on top! Plus lettuce and a tomato. Mmmm. 

This past Tuesday night, we arrived in Overland Park, Kansas. It's an incredibly nice area a few miles from Kansas City. I want to shout out to my incredible host family, the Shaws :P I stayed at their house with Neha (Nepal) and Maria (Uganda). The Shaws have three beautiful children who are 2, 6, and 9. The whole family absolutely spoiled us :) Last night they treated us to a yummy meal at a Japanese Steakhouse (it was my first time experiencing that. So awesome.) When all the kids went to bed each night, I enjoyed having some downtime and getting to know Kendra and Dustin (the parents.) Kendra gave me a book that looks awesome. It's called "Crazy Love" and it's by Pastor Chan from CA. Has anyone read it? Thank you, Shaw family, for a wonderful stay. 

Please keep praying for us. Praise the Lord that many people have decided to sponsor children. To us, that is the most important part of what we're doing. We repeatedly tell our kids in the choir: "Because of you singing, dancing and worshiping Jesus, you are changing kids' lives all over the world. Now they can have food, medicine, schooling, etc." 

I wish you all could get to know our kids. Last weekend, during one of the concerts, I was hit with a wave of emotion while the kids sang "How Great is Our God" (by Chris Tomlin.) All I could think about was "This is what we'll be doing in Heaven..." Hearing young kids worship our Savior like that is an experience that money can't buy.

Till next time...

-Ash