Several folks asked to see a picture of JoEll’s new baby. Here he is.- little Gabe Fricke.

The Fricke’s have a tradition in their house that all the kid’s names start with the letter “G.” Gabe has two older siblings, Gabrielle and Geb. They didn’t go for my first choice in baby names – “Gil” (after John Gill). The possible Finding Nemo allusion scared them off. I think I’ll call him “Goober” instead (after Goober Pyle).

My friend Nathan White, his lovely wife, and our buddy Stephen Ake visited Lakeshore a couple of weeks ago. Jamie beat me to the punch and blogged about our Labor Day weekend. Nathan shot me an email and apologized for the “little work” he acomplished. Maybe I should have sent him to gut a mold infested house or chainsaw downed trees in the mosquito thick marsh, but instead he did some light paining in my new office, repaired a squeak in my pulpit platform, sat around talking theology, and solved all the problems plaguing the SBC.

We also drug the threesome to Long Beach for a Jars of Clay Concert. The band played several Redemption Songs, covered some old favorites, and unleashed a few pre-release Good Monster tunes. Stephen brought his own ear plugs and held down the back row. I somehow doubt he plans to join us for Third Day in October.

I praise God for the great friends He has seen fit to send me this past year. Their encouragement sustains me by God’s grace.

Isabel Baptist Church of Bogalusa will hold nightly services this week. I look forward to preaching all five nights. Lord willing, I will share some of what we have learned this past year. Pray that those in attendance see God glorified through the proclamation of His word.

While I’m away, pray for James as he leads two hard working teams from Decatur Alabama and Corbin Kentucky. JoEll recuperates on maternity leave, Jamie traveled home to Wisconsin for a week, and Greg works by phone in Atlanta.

I just talked to James and it sounds like the teams hit the ground running. They look to lay flooring in Mrs. Redford’s house this week and finish up several odds and ends. The other team plans to spend a good bit of time in Mrs. Lynn’s house. Several other jobs should see progress as well.

JoEll had her baby yesterday. The strapping boy weighed in at 8 pounds. Mother and son are doing well.

For those not familiar with Lakeshore, JoEll serves as my administrative assistant. That means she does most of the stuff that I get credit for. So, please pray for me extra hard as JoEll recovers.

btw, JoEll and family now have a small albeit “full sized” mobile home. Up until a few weeks ago, she, her husband, their 13 year old, and nine year old lived in a very small camper. At least now they have space for the new born and enough room to walk around a little. Early after the storm I posted a picture of what remained of the Fricke house. The rubble has now been cleared and they have house plans in the works. Pray for them as they make plans to rebuild their home.