from Lincoln, NE

Well, we wanted to get to Omaha, and we could have, but we stopped at a few places today and there was no big need to push ourselves. Plus we got to see that last few minutes of the Olympic opening ceremonies.

The drive out of Laramie to Cheyenne was really cool. Beautiful scenery! We sure would like to come back. Wyoming is soon becoming a favorite, right there next to Montana and Colorado. That drive included that big bronze bust of Abe Lincoln you see in the collage. We learned that I-80 was named the Lincoln Highway on the centennial of his birth. This statue commemorates that.

We fulfilled our plan to stop in North Platte, NE and check out Buffalo Bill State Park where "Mr. Wild West" had a home and barn with some really cool stuff from his shows and all kinds of neat Old West history. The frog, barn and turkey shots are from there. Click here for some additional, perhaps "less interesting" shots from this stop :-)

We left North Platte at 6pm thinking we were going to drive straight to Omaha. Then we saw a sign for an Original Pony Express building in Gothenburg, so we stopped. That was really interesting. The last two pictures are from there.

We listened to a little "book on tape" of Pastor Jeremiah's thoughts on angels. Then we listened to the "message-version" of "The Barbarian Way" by our latest favorite, Erwin McManus (I think you can still download this message at the podcast section of http://www.mosaic.org/ ) Geoff read the book a few months ago. Then Connor read it. To say the least, it was a very impacting book and I (Geoff) would recommend it to anyone fighting "faith domestication." I would like to blog someday soon about all the lessons that God has been teaching us in this process. There have been many. But to part with today, a reminder that God's main concern is not our comfort and safety, but rather His glory and our sanctification. Starting in 2 Corinthians 11:23, Paul lists things that were neither physically safe OR comfortable, and surely Paul knew something about God's main concerns. Was Paul outside the will of God? No, God was working IN him and THROUGH him to bring glory to Himself and to accomplish his purposes, regardless of physical safety. This is outrageously purpose-filled life adventure that God calls us to; and the safety and vibrance of our soul in this context couldn't be greater.

Well, like we said yesterday, we hope to make it to the Chicago area tomorrow. 500 miles seems to be our daily average. Should be the same tomorrow. We should make it to my Aunt and Uncle's house in Wheaton where we'll likely take a bit of a break from long travel days and catch up with a variety of family in the area. Thank you again for your love for us and the many ways you express it. Especially in your conversations with God. We look forward to keeping you posted. Onward, for God's glory and fame!