Christmas 06

Christmas update 06

Dear Friends and Family:

Merry Christmas! Its hard to believe another year has flown by. This year has been difficult at times, but very exciting and rewarding. We are eager to share what we have learned and how God has blessed us this year.

This past semester was undoubtedly the most challenging for Mark academically, as he really dove into the Greek and Bible classes. He took Greek Exegesis classes in both Philippians and Colossians, as well as a class in Methods of Biblical Interpretation. Although these classes truly stretched him, they were incredibly beneficial and he feels much more prepared to minister God’s Word to others. Mark is looking forward to learning more as he takes a full load next semester as well. Meagan took a class on the Ministry of Christian Education to Children, which she greatly enjoyed and looks forward to putting into practice.

Last February, we began attending Messiah Baptist Church, a wonderful church where we have really been able to get involved. Meagan has been playing the keyboard on Sunday mornings and Mark as been given the opportunity to preach several times. We are very excited about this church because we feel like we are given much opportunity to learn the Bible and grow in various ways of ministering to others. We also really love the people in the church who are so willing to share their lives with us.

Although we enjoyed living in our duplex, in July, God made it possible for us to buy a nice little house! It feels like we are out in the country, but it is only about 15 minutes away from school. We are truly enjoying the beautiful area, as well as the much-needed extra space! We even found two little adorable kittens to adopt and have really enjoyed their company.

One of the reasons that we desired a little extra space was because we were praying for God to bless us with a baby. And He did!!!!!!!! Meagan is now about half-way through her pregnancy. We are so excited to share that sometime next May we will have a beautiful baby girl! We know that this will change our lives completely and we covet your prayers and advice as we begin this new stage of life.

Mark has continued to work at UPS part-time. He is excited to be a supervisor now because he feels like he can minister to the guys more easily and get to know them better. It is still grueling work, but we are grateful that God has blessed him there and given him favor. Meagan is still working at the Children’s Academy and she has really grown to love the children there. She will continue to work there as long as she is able. Although she loves her job, Meagan is really excited about stopping once the baby is born and fulfilling her full-time job as wife and mother!

As the new year begins, please feel free to e-mail, call, or write us to let us know how you are doing and how we can pray for you. We look forward to seeing what God has in store for us next year.

Love,

Mark, Meagan, and “Baby” DeLong

Mark's Study Buddies!

I know its hard to believe, but this is how Mark spent most of his time studying for his Greek Vocab exam -- with both cats curled up on him. The kitties love exam time because Mark is actually still long enough at his desk for them to snuggle up to him.