Charissa Marie

What a precious treasure to have a baby in the house again! As you could just imagine, the day has been filled with 'picture' moments. Here are just a few ----

"I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made...

...marvellous are Thy works; and that my soul knoweth full well."
Psalm 139:14

"One generation shall praise Thy works to another...

...and shall declare Thy might acts...

...I will speak of Thy wonderous works."
Psalm 145:4-5

For more photos, visit Bethany's site.

It's a Girl!

It is with great rejoicing that we announce the birth of

Charissa Marie

born at 2:36 this morning.

7 lb. 13 oz

Both Mommy and baby are doing very well and are enjoying a restful day.

God is so good!!!! Thank you all for your prayers!

Charissa -- "Grace"

"But grow in grace, and in the knowledge

of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

To Him be glory both now and forever. Amen."

2 Peter 3:18

Schedule

With thanks to our webmaster, we have our updated fall/winter ministry schedule now posted. While there are several services still pending, this will hopefully give you an idea where we will be in the upcoming months. We're looking forward to these opportunies -- and maybe seeing many of you in person yet this year!?!!

Also, as we have extra 'home time' this month, we are working on our 2007 schedule. If you're interested in having our family share a concert in your area/church, please contact us soon!!!

Elizabeth

Happy 17th Birthday, Elizabeth Joy!

Seventeen years ago this morning your five older brothers and sisters were all piled on Dad and Mom's bed looking at your precious little face for the first time. You've seen by the home videos how eager we were to hold you and kiss your soft skin. What a delightful new treasure you were to our family!!

But as special as that was, we love you even more today as we've watched you grow from our curly-headed blonde toddler to a sweet young lady. We are grateful for your servant's heart and the countless ways you make our home a more pleasant place -- the orderliness, the special activities with the younger ones, and the quiet evening chats.

We love you, and pray that today and always you will feel the Lord's presence in your life as you continue to grow in Him!

Baby Update

Many, many thanks to those of you who are keeping Mom and baby in your prayers this month. We are still in the 'waiting' zone -- or maybe it should be classified the "eager anticipation days"!!?

Thankfully, Mom has been feeling well -- even joining us for most of the activities last weekend. We'll keep you updated, and Lord-willing, will have news (and pictures!) to post in the upcoming week(s). Thank you, again, for your prayers!

Trust

"You may not understand why He leads you now in this way and now in that,
but you may, nay, you must believe that perfection is stamped on His every act."

--Elizabeth Prentiss

Sometimes simple trust and obedience can be a challenge -- at least for me -- and I all too often need to be reminded that all things are in His hands.

And this was the story of our weekend. The Lord showed me once again that His ways are perfect and so much higher than my own......

You see, we had planned to take this month 'off' and just be home to enjoy getting ready for the baby and catch up on home projects. But 'somehow' we got scheduled to travel to western Nebraska for a whole weekend -- back on the road, away from our church family, and with a group of people we'd never met. And on our 'off' month, of all times! [smile]

But as we loaded the bus I knew that I had to get my heart right, 'trust and obey' with a joyful attitude -- thanking the Lord for every situation. And how could I doubt? As the weekend progressed, I marveled. Once again He did exceedingly abundantly what we could ask or think.

The weekend retreat was held at a large Christian campground, which became a refreshing haven for our family to enjoy after the busy week. Dad was asked to preach 3 times over the course of the weekend -- along with a couple concerts -- and the Lord worked, knitting our hearts to His Word and His people in such a beautiful way.

Trust... Obey... and Rejoice! He knows all -- what a glorious thought!

"How can I fret at anything which is the will of God? Let Him take all beside;
He has given me Himself.
I love, I praise Him every moment!"

And for those of you who enjoy pictures as much as I do ----

Even Mom enjoyed the paddle boats!

Hannah feeding worms to the fish (okay, I guess they did catch a couple)!

Kayaks or bumper-boats!??!

Off to the canoe races!

"Teach me to do Thy will;

for Thou art my God:

Thy Spirit is good;

Lead me into the land of uprightness."

Psalm 143:10

Smile

Sighted: A smile with a hole it it!

Missing: one small tooth

Ahhh -- the joys of growing up!

Provision

Tonight I heard Bethany skimming her diary for fun 'Wissmann history' facts and my attention was quickly alerted by the following:

"Four years ago today we bought our first bus!"

Our first bus! What a special memory -- and how quickly time has passed! Back in 2002 we were starting to sing on a fairly regular basis but didn't travel out of state often -- little knowing what lay in store for the coming years. And it all started with the Lord's miraculous provision.......

In 2002 we were packing to journey east on our second annual "Old Threshers" trip -- around the same time good friends of ours were upgrading their bus. They offered to let us use it for the weekend, explaining they'd let us purchase it for "X". Well, we were excited to try it out, even though we knew we didn't have close to "X". It would be a fun treat for the week.

We prayed the Lord would make direction clear in regards to the bus offer, and headed on our way. It was a good trip -- but to avoid overloading blogspace with details, I'll suffice to say our prayer was answered. Once we returned home we counted the financial gifts from the weekend, set aside our tithe, and discovered that we had exactly $1.52 over the price of the bus!

You can just imagine the jubilation and awe as we discovered the Lord's provision. We were once again reminded that nothing is to difficult for HIM -- a lesson we continually re-learn in this school of life! He is so good.

"Seek the Lord and His strength;
Seek His face evermore!
Remember His marvelous works which He has done,
His wonders,
And the judgments of His mouth."
2 Chronicles 16:11-12

Pink or Blue!?

"...You formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother's womb...
My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret...
How precious are Your thoughts to me, O God!"
Psalm 139:13,15, &17

Can anything match the excitement of preparing for a baby? The 'ohh' and 'ahhh's over each tiny little outfit ("Was I ever that small??"), the fragrance of the baby soap and powder, and watching little faces light up each time they feel a 'kick' from this new little brother or sister! The joy and wonder of meeting this new person.

And praying for a good, healthy birth. Our whole family sends a big 'thank you' to so many of you who have been praying for Mom during the last 9 months -- and especially now as the time grows near. We'll keep you posted!

Meanwhile, the question continues -- will it be a boy or girl?! Anyone want to venture a guess?!

Emrich Wedding

I know it has been quite awhile since I've updated here -- we've had a full schedule since arriving home last Tuesday. As always, driving around the corner and seeing our home again -- and knowing we'd be staying for awhile -- is a good feeling.

But for several of us, this past week was filled with preparations for our friends' wedding on Saturday. If you've been keeping up with Bethany's Blog, you'll know that we appreciated all the prayers for both Ragnar and Angela -- and for 'us Wissmanns' who were asked to help with various parts of the ceremony.

And what a glorious day it was! We thank the Lord for so many answered prayers and for their beautiful testimony of two young people with hearts full of love for the Lord and eachother. What an occasion to celebrate!!!

The new Mr. & Mrs. Ragnar Emrich!

Preparing the prelude music.

Bethany captured the moments on film.

"Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out
in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."
Romans 5:5

'Reunion' Review

What a weekend! The time really flew quickly these past couple days as we finished up the last of our travels for awhile. We saw so many answered prayers -- from cooler weather (for Mommy's sake), to the Lord's drawing on the hearts of the people.

Ah! The joys of camping!

Alaythia watches Mom tune-up,
(Notice 'Baby Wissmann' keeps growing!!!)

We were able to share a total of 7 times on the grounds of the Old Threshers Reunion this year. This is always a unique experience as all the tractor engines, train whistles, and antique car horns add a fun mix of 'bells and whistles' to our music! But despite these potential distractions, each program was such a joy and we thank the Lord for this incredible opportunity!

"Without Christ, not one step; with Him, anywhere!"
--David Livingston--

The perfect finish to a full day -- the peaceful ol'time music of the Log Village.

"And let the peace of God reign in your hearts,
to which you were called in one body;
and be thankful."
Colossians 3:15

Old Threshers

Get Ready...

...Get Set...

... Go!

Thank you all for your prayers this weekend. The Old Threshers Reunion in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa is always a highlight for our family. The sights, smells, and sounds are one of a kind -- filled with tractors, trains, trolleys, horses, living history and,... well, you get the picture! We have a full schedule, too, as most days we share a couple times under the large family tent.

We are especially grateful for this opportunity as it is a secular -- though family friendly -- event. When we first sang here in 2000, we were one of the first 'gospel groups' introduced for many years, and were surprised and encouraged by the crowd's enthusastic responce. What a blessing it is to proclaim the plan of salvation through song and testimony at an event where it wouldn't otherwise be heard! We covet your prayers!!!

"For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard."
Acts 4:20