Today was a tougher ride than usual. We took off in the cold and rain, and my hand went numb within 5 minutes of riding. Even so, the world around was absolutely beautiful:

As the cold and rain continued, we kept on pedaling, with spirits starting to wane. Eventually we made it to the last rest stop after a tough past few stretches. Coming out, I got the chance to ride with Audrey who seemed to be having a tough day. I asked her how she was doing, and she explained how she gets colder than most and was feeling really down. Knowing nothing else I could do to lift her up, I prayed for her and not too long after she was feeling better and beginning to warm up—in noticeably higher spirits and actually able to talk coherently now. Praise God! We even joked that the maybe the sun would come out for us…

Lo and behold…

We couldn’t have been happier

What started as a crummy and cold day turned out to be an awesome day especially for myself and Audrey. I was so encouraged by God’s provision for us in our deepest times of need. Tonight we tented out in a baseball field in Chistochina; tomorrow I sag. What a day…

And just for kicks… here’s Joel doing what he does best—being silly.