Thanksgiving! We're LOVING Fall!

 

Thanksgiving cards went in the mail last Friday. Nope. Not to you; but to 70 people I may never meet: People serving time in prison who call Chattanooga home. When the blank Thankgiving cards arrived in the mail, I prayed that the Lord would provide at least 15 names signed on each card. For a prisoner to see a BUNCH of names, it would be a powerful visual that they are not forgotten. I thought that 15 names was a big ask, seeing as we're all still pretty isolated. Turns out 15 names wasn't too much to ask of God. In the last couple of weeks about 20 people signed them! My hairdresser did, while my color was processing. Yes. I cover the grey. Fifteen girls who live in an addiction recovery home run by our church signed. Below is a photo of a few who don't mind having their photo taken. There's more... There were some Covenant College girls who wanted to spread the stack of cards on a table in the dining hall one night last week. They'd planned to invite friends to come sign at dinnertime. Then, a bad Covid case quarantined all of the on campus students for the rest of the term! Only 4 roomates signed them. But that's okay! Two women invited me to their Bible Study groups. A high school girl who was fundraising door to door for her band stayed a few extra minutes to sign. Some of these people wrote verses or words of encouragement. They also learned more about caring for the prisoner. At the bottom of this email is a sampling of recent letters that came for me from Tennessee state prisons. So much hope! What are you most thankful for this week? Cameron called me last week to ask for Grandma's Orange Candied Yams recipe. it. He baked it for his "Friends Giving" last night. My mom hated those yams. But she faithfully made a huge batch every year because we all LOVE them! Every year in Asia we had guests or open house for Thanksgiving. Those orange candied yams always went fast. The stuffing, however, was the favorite among our Singaporean and Chinese friends! We're thankful for our first GORGEOUS fall, and for our supportive friends! Kimberly & Jim Creasman P.S. I put an update on the family below for those who missed our last eNews. A letter from William "It is inspiring to me, to see people like you..doing so much to reassure men and women behind the wall are certain that someone out there cares about us and we are not forgotten. That there is hope. Hope for reform. Hope of a brighter tomorrow. Hope of love and hope to laugh again." --Arthur D Arthur writes that he is reading his new Insider Bible free from Prison Fellowship, he's memorizing some verses in Colossians with me, and has his kids signed up for gifts from Angel Tree this year. from Michael from Kenneth If you missed our Family News last month: In September Tyler flew Cameron out to Columbia, South Carolina for a long weekend. We joined them for two of the days. This was thefirst time we'd been all together since my mom's memorial last September. Expect a happy Christmas card photo in your mail next month (if you don't get one, it means we don't have a correct address for you!). Jim is loving his trees, his dogs, American football, investing, giving, mentoring calls, and retirement! Kimberly is getting more connected with other NOVO ministries she can partner with. She's also learning the staff admin requirements that Jim did all these years (Bless you and Thank you JIM for the years you let me be FREE of that!). We both LOVE having a house! Tyler is investigating graduate schools in the US and abroad. The Army has him until Spring next year. After grad school he wants to work internationally for a government agency or an NGO. Also, Tyler has fallen in lovewith a nurse in Sydney, Australia. Sweet Keara Chan is a Singaporean/American gal who attended the same Christian High School as our boys. We all see that the Lord's hand is in their relationship. Even Cameron, who can't believe his big brother is so smitten! We don't know WHEN they'll have the chance to be physically together (thank God for news of a COVID vaccine!), but their courtship, so far, has been sweet. Lord we pray for Tyler and Keara. What are your plans for them? We pray you will to bring your justice and hope to the nations throught these third culture young adults. After layoffs in Austin, TX, Cameron found work with California Pizza Kitchen in Cedar Park, TX. He's a a positive and encouraging young man finding his way in the world.  We're looking at making a trip with Tyler and the dogs to see Cameron the week before Christmas. Happy, happy momma! And Thanksgiving in Atlanta with brother and family...