Yesterday was the first time I felt comfortable in this place. It feels nice to be settling into to life here in Massachusetts. By now I have met most of the people in the church. It has been great getting to know them. We have had one care group meeting so far, which everyone in the church attends. This group is going to split into two groups soon. The meeting I attended was really good. We ended up spending the whole time lifting up prayer request. I also helped out with the youth meeting which was last Sunday night. There are four or five families that attend with kids ranging from sixteen to twelve. Phil and Pam, a young couple in the church, are helping to head up the meeting. It was an enjoyable time getting to know people better. We also played a game of ultimate frisbee, but it was nothing like frisbee back home.
Life has been good here I have been busy doing office work and running errands for the church. I have also been helping a women who used to go to the church, but doesn't now because she has to work on Sunday, move into her new house, her previous house burned down. It has been nice to be able to help her out. She keeps saying that her two oldest sons are going to steal my car because they like it so much. On Monday I went on a hike with the Buckleys. We went hiked out to Crystal Lake which is a reservoir that feeds the area around where I live. It was incredible! The sky was beautiful and the water was like glass. I forgot my camera. But that was probably a good thing because I would have had to smash it into a million peaces, because it wasn't worthy enough to capture such beauty. I did find work though. A guy in the church who has his own electrical business needs help with a job he has coming up next week. Its not the kind of job I was looking for but its work and I'm grateful to him for throwing it my way. If he continues to need help I will probably work for him but if not I will send more applications out. I talked to the companies that I applied to at first and they are all looking for work on nights and weekends, which is not what I want.
I am going to Minneapolis this weekend to the Desiring God 2006 National Conference. The theme of the conference is the supremacy of Christ in a postmodern world. It is going to be really great. Plus, I get to spend time with one of the wisest men I know, William Gerard Haughery, my father.

Prayer requests:
That I would make time each day to pray.
That I would trust in God and not in myself.
That they would find the perfect bone marrow match for Alivia.
That James would be given strength to stand up underneath this incredible load he is carrying.
That Emily would be given peace and fearlessness.

I feel I have direction for what I am doing here in Methuen. On Tuesday, Paul and I talked about the next three months and his vision for my time here. I am going to be helping with outreach. This involves thinking of ways to reach the community, developing materials to put into the the hands of people in the church, to empower them for outreach, and being involved in direct evangelism. There is a man in the church who goes out every Friday to talk with people about the gospel at different locations around town. I will be going out with him today and as much as possible. I am also going to be helping with office work. This will involve tasks such as updating the church web site, filing, and working with Quickbooks. I will also be endeavoring to be an example to the people in the church by serving on Sunday and wherever I am needed and by building relationships.
I still have not found a job yet. I have filled out applications to many different retail stores but have not heard back from them. I have faith that God will bring a job soon and in the mean time I am going to be busy with church work.

Prayer Requests:
That God would give me wisdom in all I do.
That God would provide the perfect job.
Healing for my niece Alivia.
Strength, faith, and hope for my brother James and my sister-in-law Emily.
Wisdom for every Doctor that comes in contact with Alivia.

These are pictures of my room.

I am now living in Methuen, Ma and so far it has been great. My trip north on Sat. Was without incident. The only thing that happened was that I drove trough a toll booth without paying the fare. It was an unmanned booth, the kind you throw change at, and I didn't have any change and it didn't take bills and there was a big line behind me and everyone was honking their horn, but I stood my ground and looked for change but I didn't have any so I kept driving even though I saw a sign that said "failure to pay toll may result in a $200.00 fine".
But I made it to MA and I met the Buckleys, the family that I am staying with. Paul Buckley is the senior pastor at the church. Paul and Peggy have four children, Daniel 18, Caleb 15, John 13, and Mary 11. The whole family is great, I feel at home.
On Sunday I went early with the Buckleys to set up for church. There were also a few other folks who came and set up. I set up sound. The meeting went well, we had worship and communion, I helped pass out the elements, then anouncments and offering, I helped collect the offering, finally the message and tear-down. After the meeting about thirty of the fifty people in the church went back to the Buckleys for lunch. Lunch was great. I got to meet a lot of people. At about three pm, around twenty of the thirty went to the beach. It was really beautiful and the water was freezing but these crazy New Englanders were just jumping in and frolicking. It was insane!
On Monday I drove around Haverhill to get a feel for where I was. Haverhill is the town just above Methuen and it is also where the Bucklys live. The locals pronounce it "Ha-vril". I also got my computer "online".
Today I am going to apply for jobs at places like Homedepot and Starbucks. I need to find a part time job so if you think of it you could pray for me. I am also going to talk to Paul today and plan out the next three months.

This is my new El Camino. As many of you know I had been looking for a car to bring with me up to Methuen and God has blessed me with this most bodacious ride. Thank you God.