Dear Chris,
Happy Birthday! You make 50 look like an alright place to be! :) I pray a blessing of rest, family time, and joy over you on this day.
Joel and I really appreciate your friendship in so many different ways. We have been blessed by our time together and are so very thankful for you and your entire family.
We love to watch you lead your family. We learn from and are encouraged by you in that. You model intentionality and have fruit to show from it. One thing I love about how you lead is the mix of purpose and play. Joel and I, during our vision talks, often bring up the way you weave in and out of the two. Our time in Montana with you was very fruitful. We loved seeing how your family pitched in and got it done. We loved seeing how they also opened their hearts to The Lord during devotion time. We brought some of that home with us. Now I personally am a "fun" kind of person. I love to laugh and have lighthearted fun! I love being around you and your family because there is fun there! In our family dinners, times in groups, and even those few double dates we got to have there was not only deep meaningful conversation but also life giving laughter! You have honed the rare gift of not just mixing the two but making them indistinguishable from one another.
You go after good things no matter the obstacle. That is inspiring. You have literally driven over mountains bringing your family and countless others closer to their heavenly father. I know there are struggles and times you might want to give up and pick the easier way of life but you don't. You show what perseverance to a goal looks like. You problem solve and try again until you overcome those things. There is something beautiful about your demeanor and how you view those obstacles from start to finish that put your ultimate trust in God on full display. Any obstacle is talked about with an obvious expectation that not only is God there but he has it. I love that. Not that things are not hard and wear you down but you communicate even the hard stuff through the lens of "it is finished". (to borrow some SFL lingo)
Chris we think so highly of you and Ruth that we sent our oldest daughter out across the country with you and we have not given a second thought of her safety. Not just her physical safety but her emotional and spiritual safety as well. There are only a handful of families in this entire world we could do this with. That really is the highest praise and encouragement I can give. My kids were the hardest thing to "put on the table". It was a really big struggle for me. Knowing she is with you guys is not just okay with me but I was all for it. I love that she is becoming more immersed in your culture. I love that she is seeing something rooted in the same thing but different from ours. Entrusting your child's life to someone else is one thing but entrusting their heart and soul is a whole new ball game. I feel like this summer with all the time she has been out there, that is what we are doing. She will be better because of it.
Chris I love watching how you and Ruth are a team. Sometimes I only talk to Ruth about things but she always approaches things with the view of team. You two are always on the same side even if you have different ideas about something. I love how you two build each other up and make time for one another even in the midst of everything else you have going on.
Chris you have done so many things to get others closer to God. I am sure these letters are full of examples. You have built a truly missional family in a way that feels darn near impossible in this day and age. You have given up things, rhythms, predictability, and comforts for the sake of building Gods kingdom instead of your own.
Chris on this day lay back and relax. Let all of these words soak in and marinate.
You are known, loved, and appreciated!
Angie Ash