Dear Friends,
Notice the extra sweet smiles on the boys this year. That’s because we talked Mama into climbing three branches high in a Magnolia tree for our Christmas picture. Saying, “Mama in a tree,” made the boys smile like nothing else. It may have cost me all my Christmas presents this year, but it was worth it.
Lawson is in fifth grade and now has braces; which means you won’t see him smile while showing his teeth until seventh grade. Lawson returned to Fall baseball after a season of football and became an excellent catcher, but even better team leader. He has continued his workouts and we’ve gotten 73 miles towards our goal of running 100 miles together this year (as of Nov. 1). In October Lawson made public profession of his faith and was baptized.
Marshall is in third grade and he’s shown a great boost in his competiveness; both athletically and academically he is starting to enjoy giving his best and finding out how good he can do. His dry, common sense humor still amuses Sallie and I regularly as we look over to expect to see a cranky 80 year old man embodying many of his comments.
This summer the boys and I took our #ManTrip6 to the mountains of NC (bradhambrick.com/mantrip6). This year’s adventure included mountain climbing, trout fishing, and wading a river; we chased more fish than we caught. Marshall had the quote of the trip when he said, “Papa, that was scary, but it was a fun kind of scary,” about repelling down a rock face.
Sallie is still “the best Mama ever” as both boys are fond of telling her. The boys love having her sub at their school; we know that will pass soon enough, but you can keep your Grinch comments to yourself. She continues to run Hambrick, LLC, Inc phenomenally well and hand-painted signs for all the teachers at Leesville Elementary School in trailers in her free time.
Brad got to spend his birthday in Hong Kong as part of a teaching initiative for SEBTS (www.bradhambrick.com/hongkong) and created a seminar on Post-Traumatic Stress that has become a resource for military chaplains (www.bradhambrick.com/ptsd). As usual, his favorite thing to do is coaching Lawson and Marshall’s ball teams; which included four baseball seasons and one basketball season (Lawson was assistant coach – VP over Team Morale – for Marshall’s basketball team).
Over the next year we would appreciate your prayers that we will (1) fully enjoy this sweet season when our boys are young and lay a good foundation for their future, (2) prioritize marriage and family during a very busy season of life and ministry, and (3) grow in our trust in God’s character and effectiveness at sharing His hope with others.
We want to thank you for your friendship and the unique role you have played in the life of our family. Our prayer is that this Christmas you will experience the power, peace, and joy of Immanuel – God with us (Matthew 1:23) – and have the opportunity to multiply that hope by sharing it with others.
Merry Christmas!
The Hambrick Family