It’s been seven years since we moved into 3514 Ridgewood. The word of the year for our family is “abiding.”
I think abiding is a good word. It means continuing without change; enduring; steadfast. An abiding faith. We are simple branches, He is the Vine (John 15). He is unshakable, unchanging, and unending. Therefore, as we abide in Him, we have that sure hope and confidence in living. It’s been a close and intimate year with the Lord and one another. Thanks be to God.
We “abided” tightly to the Lord this past year amidst pastoring and leading. It was quite a leaning in time. The Lord was unshakable, unchanging and steadfast. We (and Hebron) abided in Him and He was faithful. There were restless nights, great prayers, close connectedness together, deep trust, conflict, tears, and great joy. It was a year of abiding as we continued to serve Him at Hebron amidst it all. The call out to the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and the fact that we are on the other side now gives us reason for great joy this holiday season. Our highlights this year were: seeing the Southwest US for the first time as national park lovers, time in Florida with Mom Lucy, special times with Kelly’s Dad in Lititz, and hiking and biking on our Sabbath days.
Our daughter Sabrina and her husband Isaac are abiding in Him in West Chester, PA. They are thriving in their second year of marriage. Sabrina is serving full time at a Christian school as a Bible teacher and Isaac works for BlackRock financial. They serve in their church and are loving life. We all tented/explored Jamaica, VT after a 10-year respite. We used to take the kids annually. It was glorious to return! We love making memories with them and interacting with them as adults. We laugh our heads off when we are together
(as we obsessively play a lot of board games).
Our son Jason is a Philly guy, too. (The nerve of some people’s kids!) He is an engineer with Arkema, a chemical company, and gets to see lots of states in business travel. He’s busy and life is full as a volunteer sixth grade youth minister at his church. He is abiding in the midst of discerning God’s work and will for his life. He is faithful and a joy to us. We can’t wait to celebrate the holidays as a family.
Thanks for your loving care. We cannot exaggerate how blessed we feel to be a part of this, our precious church family. The Lord is good. He came to dwell among us that we may abide with Him forever. Bless His Holy Name! Merry Christmas and keep on abiding in Him above all else.
Love,
The Knapps