2026 is off and running, and we’ve gone from cruising in the warm Caribbean the first two weeks of the new year to ice, snow, and frigid temps every place we’ve been since. Winter is here real time!!

We were only home 2 brief days from the Panama cruise before heading to the Pacific Northwest for an 11-day trip, which included a marriage conference in Newport, WA, a marriage night in Moses Lake, and multiple events in Kennewick, WA.

Every place was cold outside, but oh so warm inside.

Spanning the past 18 years, we’ve been honored to partner first with the Moses Lake Alliance Church and now the Moses Lake Christian Church in helping the community and church focus on Biblical marriage and family. The weekend conference is held at Camp Spaulding in Newport, WA, at a beautiful retreat center and 28 couples (max capacity) assembled January 16–18 to get a “marital shot in the arm.” Organized again this year by Justin and Marilyn Shuck, Mark and Sharon Blazer, and John Roberts, all of the elements were in place for this to be a very uplifting time.

And it was. The worship team, led by senior pastor John Roberts, was inspired; interactive games led by Jay and Cyndi Dickinson produced many laughs; and our teaching was well received. There was a great spirit all weekend and we all left refreshed and renewed.

*The Moses Lake Christian Church retreat at Camp Spaulding.*

*The A-team behind it (l–r): John and Sharlyn Roberts (senior pastor), Mark and Sharon Blazer, and Justin and Marilyn Shuck.*

*Paul and I teamed with John and Sharlyn in an open Q and A session and apparently something very funny was said.*

*Times of worship were rich and inspired.*

Down the mountain from Camp Spaulding we drove Sunday afternoon, and after spending Monday counseling via zoom, we spoke for a marriage night at Moses Lake Christian Church. With RSVPs numbering 40, we were all happily surprised when over 100 showed up! We were so thankful for such a good turn-out and even more thankful for a responsive and appreciative audience.

*A small representation of the attendees lingered after most had gone.*

*Paul opened the evening with some crowd interaction.*

Wednesday morning we hit the road and drove two hours southwest to Kennewick to spend the next 5.5 days with the South Hills Church. This was our third year with this group and it was such a joy to continue our partnership with them. The senior pastor, Scott Paulson, has been in our life since 1990, when as a young high school graduate, he served on our summer program staff for family camp. It’s been the greatest delight to watch Scott grow as a man of God, marry a beautiful godly woman named Lisa, graduate from seminary, and serve in pastoral ministry. He and Lisa, with their 4 children, came to South Hills 4.5 years ago to assume his first senior pastor role, and their congregation has grown exponentially under their leadership. They are both deeply loved and honored by their congregation.

This year we spoke for a parents of teens evening, at the marriage conference, and then Paul preached at their two Sunday services.

The evening with parents of teens was sobering as we talked about the increasingly challenging world in which our teens are growing up. Social media, gaming, sexual confusion, etc., are all constantly in the face of this vulnerable age group and threaten to turn over solid Biblical authority. Many parents are struggling to navigate this craziness. It was good to talk together, to hear from God’s Word, and to be reminded that each parent is not alone. There is strength in community and in having reinforced that while tools, information, and strategies are helpful and important, our bottom line hope is in the Lord and in Him getting a hold of each teen’s heart. That is our prayer for them.

Friday night and Saturday morning we spoke for their third annual marriage conference. Each year, this event has experienced significant growth, much to the delight of the team at South Hills as well as to us. Launching with dinner Friday night, the couples shared sweet fellowship over delicious, in-house made pulled pork sandwiches and coleslaw. We were the main event following dinner and the evening ended at 8 pm. All regathered Saturday morning for a full morning of teaching. The vibe was very positive and we had many encouraging conversations with a variety of attendees. We love what we get to do!

*Lead pastor of South Hills Church, Scott Paulson and his wife Lisa are doing a great work at this church.*

*Scott introduces the marriage conference Friday evening.*

*We were most encouraged by the number of young couples who attended; this is a photo of some of them who didn’t want the party to end Friday night.*

*Saturday morning included breakfast and two talks followed by Q and A. It was a rich time together.*

We had lunch with the Paulson brothers, Duke and Scott, and their wives, Amy and Lisa, at the conclusion of the conference. We love these two couples and are so thankful for the decades we’ve now journeyed together.

Paul preached at the two worship services Sunday morning and was well received. It’s so unusual for him to speak alone, but I love listening to him. He’s my favorite speaker.

*Scott Paulson introduced Paul before he preached.*

Our final event before driving from Kennewick to Spokane to catch our flight home was having lunch with Bill and Ruth Dingfield while watching the Patriots win the AFC title. Bill and Ruth have become very dear to us over the past three years of serving South Hills. They are truly “salt of the earth” folks, with their huge hearts for the Lord and their unstoppable servant-heartedness. Our hearts are in sync with theirs and we love any time we have with them. How blessed we are!

*Ruth and Bill Dingfield generously hosted us to watch the Patriots beat the Broncos. As you can see, they are Seahawk fans so we would not be watching the Super Bowl with them this weekend.*

We flew home Monday, the 26th, to a winter wonderland of snow, ice, and below-freezing temps. As much as we would’ve loved to have just played in the snow with our out-of-school grandchildren, we had two days to get everything ready to head to Newport, RI, on Thursday, the 29th, for our annual HIM marriage retreat, so our snow play time was limited to a couple of hours Wednesday afternoon. We made the most of that!

We still love sliding down a hill on a tube.

And it’s so much fun to do with two snow-loving grands!!

*We snuck away from our cookie baking marathon to play in the snow with Nathan and Rachel. “Snow much fun!”*

*Rachel stuck with the snow board and became quite proficient.*

The cookie baking marathon was real. Paul baked 500 chocolate chip cookies and I made 250 each of lemony snap, oatmeal raisin, chocolate with white chocolate chips, and snickerdoodles for the conference. Our mixer and oven were going non-stop for the two days we were home, but we accomplished our mission and were ready to drive by early Thursday morning. Our rented SUV was packed to the gills with cookies, meals, books, and everything else needed for our weekend conference.

*Lemony Snap cookies are a favorite. The recipes for all our cookies are in* The Family Table Cookbook which you can order at *www.himweb.org/cookbook*

HIM’s annual marriage retreat was our largest ever with 450 attending. It was sold out in October with a waiting list. We are so thankful for the growing interest in this event, which underscores how important it is to gather as a community to reinforce the goodness of God’s design in marriage.

From the long on-ramp of registration, handled by Gabby Warren and Barbara Steele (two people along with their husbands, without whom we could NOT do this event), to the preparation of all aspects of the weekend, it was a joy to see it all come together. So many gifted volunteers gave their best, including: Richard Hendricks, who did anything and everything from office procurement of supplies to helping with decorations; Pat Drumm, who donated his AV equipment and professional services all weekend long, and his wife Betsy, who decorated the stage and ran the slides; Kelly Plosker, who once again transformed the ballroom with her bright and happy sunflower centerpieces; Ann Fredericks and Gabby Warren, who created lovely goodie bags for each couple; Gabby Warren and Alisa Cravens, who warmly greeted every guest at registration; Dave and Diana Watts, Steve and Janet Hathaways, Holly Mullen, and Richard Hendricks, who all tended the book table which was swamped at every break; Jamie Phillips, who served on the AV team; the Fredericks, the Eunices, Brittany Phillips, and Holly Mullen who bagged hundreds of cookies; Barbara and Guy Steele who formatted, produced, and published all printed materials and slides, and Rob Warren, who did an excellent job emceeing once again.

A team effort for sure. Each person with different gifts, all using them for the common good.

We are so blessed to be surrounded by such an incredible team.

The theme of the 2026 retreat was “An Extraordinary Marriage” and this was carried out through the plenary sessions and the workshops, each of which was led by exceptionally gifted teachers. The wide variety of workshops provided great choices for everyone and all were well attended.

Worship was led by Justin and Falon Unger (www.likewiseworship.com) for the second year and we were exceptionally led in the heart of worship. Their song selection ranged from beloved hymns to contemporary worship music, and at each session, the ballroom was filled with the angelic sounds of corporate worship. It was truly unifying and uplifting. Following the evening session, they then performed at the Saturday night coffee house and shared a number of their own songs. They’ve developed quite a fan base in New England.

Saturday night’s plenary session was a panel presentation by four couples on practices they have developed in their own lives to keep their marriages alive and growing in Christlikeness. Rob and Gabby Warren, Nate and Heidi Parks, Matthew and Shahrzad Slater, and Justin and Falon Unger inspired the audience with what’s working for them and gave us practical handles and inspiration. It was a great success.

We felt God moving through all aspects of the weekend and are so humbled that He takes our small offerings and empowers them to make a difference.

*Though the harbor was freezing (literally), the clear skies, which during the day featured the bright sun and at night the beautiful full moon, made the cold bearable.*

*The cookie bagging team . . . all locked and loaded!*

*The ballroom is set and ready to welcome 450 guests at 8:00 pm Friday, January 30.*

*Kelly Plosker never disappoints. Her centerpieces conveyed hope and joy during this mid-winter weekend.*

*Friday night before launch, both the teaching and operational team gathered for prayer.*

*And in they came, filling the ballroom with expectant, open hearts.*

*The team gathered for prayer Saturday and Sunday mornings before the retreat day started, all believing that only the Holy Spirit could change hearts and heal marriages.*

*Times of worship were rich and joy filled.*

*Lunch with part of the team: (l-r), Justin and Falon Unger, Bill and Christi Bachman, and Matthew and Shahrzad Slater.*

An afternoon gathering with some of our dear friends and partners from Eusebeia, the marriage experience we’re privileged to be a part of every October. Harold and Dalia Arnold, front and center, are the founders and directors of Eusebeia.

Saturday night’s plenary featured a panel of four couples (besides Paul and me, who just facilitated): Nate and Heidi Parks, Rob and Gabby Warren, Matthew and Shahrzad Slater, and Justin and Falon Unger. Each couple shared practices they’ve incorporated to keep their marriages alive and growing. Notice the beautiful backdrop designed and produced by Betsy Drumm.

*Justin and Falon Unger did a concert “after hours” Saturday night and introduced us to a few of their own original recordings.*

It was such a joy for us to have two ex-Pats, with whom we did Bible study for years, speak at the retreat. Matthew and Shahrzad Slater did a workshop and were on the panel, and Logan and Kara Mankins gave their testimony, affirming what a difference following Christ together has made in their marriage and family. Logan came to the study for years before surrendering to Christ several years ago. All praise is His!!

*John and Tammy Eunice shared their testimony of how God has protected their marriage in the aftermath of losing their 17-year-old son, who drowned while duck hunting 15 years ago.*

*Paul and I share a moment while teaching on temperaments at one of the two workshops we presented.*

When the last person had vacated the hotel on Sunday afternoon, our HIM Board gathered to give thanks. We all felt that the Lord had really moved among us throughout the weekend. We all did all we could to contribute to the success of the weekend, but we’re all very aware of the truth that lives and hearts aren’t changed through our words and efforts, but through the work of the Holy Spirit.

And He did an extraordinary work.

And for that, we give Him all the praise.