Gabi snuggles with Hampton

Gabi enjoys a little snuggle time with her cousin, Hampton Carnine. Hampton is my sister and brother-in-law (Lori and Clint Carnine)'s newest addition. The reside in Adel, GA where both Clint and Lori are teachers. He'll never be able to get away with anything at school.

Introducing our beautiful children!

Here our our children, Alexandria, 6, Grant, 10 and Gabriella (Gabi), 4. Grant loves to read and play sports. Harry Potter is his favorite. Alexandria also loves to read, watch Hannah Montana and play soccer and golf. Gabi loves to do "quafts" and draw, watch Hannah Montana and go to the movies. They each do very well in school and we are very proud of all of them.

Render's Walk to Emmaus

I have just returned from a 72 hour retreat put on by The Upper Room called Walk to Emmaus. Without going into too much detail, the Walk to Emmaus is designed as a spiritual retreat to enhance church members so that they can return to their home churches better equipped to be leaders for Christ. That was its design but it is so much more than that. Although put on by a United Methodist Church organization, the Walk to Emmaus is a non-denominational retreat (I'm Southern Baptist) that forces its participants to step away from the bustle of daily living and become completely focused on their relationship with Christ for the 72 hour period. Service in Christ is stressed and taught and for those immersing themselves in the moments provided, God pours out his Spirit and blessings upon them in an amazing way. This experience ranks in the top five of all of the events occurring in my life to date, and it is a blessing that each Christian seeking to live a life more abundant can have. For more information on the Walk go to http://www.theuppperroom.org/. I attended the South Georgia Walk to Emmaus and more information on that Walk is available at http://www.sgwte.org/. The friends and servants that I met at the March 2008 Walk will forever be embedded in my memory and the closeness I felt with Christ this past weekend is a closeness I will treasure for the rest of my life. I encourage you to consider taking a much deserved break from the hectic pace of your life to experience it too.

In Christ,

Render