Journey Note - Spring 2012 (April 20, 2012)
As
we enter into spring we want to take the opportunity to greet you and
share what we've been up to over the past year or so. For the
Wislers, 2012 was a year of excitement, sorrow, change, and new
adventures. Through each and every joy and challenge though, God has
proven Himself faithful!
“Every
good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down
from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or
shifting shadow.” James 1:17
“Life is short at its
longest.” This is a saying we've heard in recent days, but the
truth of it touched our hearts as we said goodbye to Jay's dad
February 4th, 2012. In the early hours of January 22nd
we received word that he had suffered a major stroke. For two weeks
our family walked through uncertain days, not knowing how long Dad
would be with us. In the midst of heavy hearts, God gave us “rays”
of hope and evidences of answered prayer. After hospice became
involved, Jay prayed the LORD would allow him to walk with Dad
through his final moments. Jay was holding his dad's hand as he
passed the line of worlds that snowy Saturday morning.
Following Dad's funeral on
February 9th there have been some very difficult days.
The weight of sorrow has been made lighter by the grace of God, hope
of heaven, and prayers/encouragement from friends like you! Thank
you so very much.
Ministry has been and
continues to be a great joy for our family. Last year ministry or
ministry-related events took us in many directions. In fact, between
the five of us we made it to nearly 25 of the United States. One of
the highlights of this past summer was the call to music ministry for
the Multnomah Holiness Camp Meeting in Portland, Oregon. We
thoroughly enjoyed our time there as well as several days of
sight-seeing in the Pacific Northwest. An unlikely surprise – Our
kids live just a few states away from the Atlantic Ocean, but their
first ocean view was of the Pacific!
Jay continues to lead the
Music Department at Kentucky Mountain Bible College. His time is
divided with teaching music courses, directing the College Choir,
department responsibilities, and providing private voice instruction
for both KMBC as well as his own private studio. Aside from work,
Jay volunteers in worship-leading at Five-Mile Community Church and
participates in various musical ventures. One highlight from the
past summer – Jay was privileged to present a seminar on the hymns
of John and Charles Wesley for the East Central Conference of the
Evangelical Church which met on the campus of Taylor University in
Upland, IN.
It's been back-to-school for
Amber. At the beginning of 2012, she began working on a Master of
Arts in Special Education with an emphasis in Learning and Behavioral
Disabilities. At this point, she is on schedule to graduate from
Georgetown College in 2014. When she's not busy being a
student-wife-mother, Amber serves KMBC in several capacities. During
the fall semester she enjoyed teaching Philosophy of Christian School
Education. Outside the classroom, she heads up the Academic
Accountability Program, tutors international students, and manages
the campus bookstore. More than any other responsibility, though,
Amber enjoys time working with Tiger and preparing him for
Kindergarten this coming fall.
Our older son, Caleb, is
growing fast and just recently entered his final year in the single
digits. He is now the ripe-old-age of 9. It's exciting to watch him
grow mentally, physically, and spiritually. Part of his work
responsibilities include walking/feeding our family dog, Remington,
as well as providing dog-care for some neighbors from time to time.
He's very proud of his first “paid” job! In recent months we've
been excited to see Caleb's love for reading take off. He's nearly
completed Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia series and is halfway through
the Hobbit by Tolkien. When his nose isn't in a book, he enjoys
riding his bike, building Lego sets, and writing “sermons”.
Emily reached a milestone as
she successfully completed Kindergarten. We were so proud to attend
her graduation! She is now enjoying 1st grade and
demonstrates her love of education by “teaching” Tiger in her
free time. She completed her 3rd season in the Breathitt
Youth Soccer League and loves to sing and draw. Over the summer
Emily stepped into a new role in ministry with our family – she
sang her first solo.
After spectating for over four
years, Tiger finally received his opportunity to join the Breathitt
Youth Soccer League. His team was appropriately named – The
Tigers! Tyler is bounding with energy, has a goofy side, and can't
wait to start Kindergarten in the fall. One of his favorite pastimes
is to play Daniel Boone with Caleb. Most likely due to his age,
Tiger has to be “Mingo”. We never tire of watching the
imaginations run wild.
We are constantly amazed at
God's goodness to us. His blessings are visible on a daily basis.
We're blessed to be apart of the KMBC community in service and
fellowship. What a blessing to be in the center of God's will. We
want to say a huge thanks to those who enable us for this ministry
through praying and giving.
2012 Year-In-Review
January – Dad's stroke
February – Dad's funeral
March – KMBC Choir Tour
May – KMBC Recording
June – 10th
Wedding Anniversary
July – Out West/Multnomah
Holiness Camp
August – Oakland City Camp
September – Clinton Wesleyan
Homecoming
October – Natural Bridge/Red
River Gorge
November – Getty Concert
December – Wedding Singers
