Dear friends and family,

Good morning from San Antonio, Texas. This ‘Unfiltered’ motif seems to be developing as a worthwhile briefing for those with more than a casual interest in Karen’s and my work with United World Mission. We may eventually channel it into a subgroup of friends who’ve indicated particular interest in our work via some kind of firm commitment or request on their part. For now, though, it’s still broadcast to the 450 people on our mailing list.

For this reason, be liberal with your DELETE key if your interest is only casual. Believe me, we understand. Sometimes *our* interest in us is only casual!

√ I’m in San Antonio for the annual meetings of the Evangelical Theological Society, the Institute for Biblical Research, and the Society of Biblical Literature. I’m leveraging the fact that this is a common meeting place for biblical scholars in order to grab time with some of my Theological Education Initiative (TEI) team whom I have not yet met. At the moment, I’m awaiting the arrival of UWM colleagues Daniel Salinas and  John Bernard. We’ll spend a day and a half of strategic planning for the Theological Education Initiative based on their history with the project and the three months of thinking I’ve been able to invest as the Initiative’s newly appointed leader. I’m leaning into getting the TEI established on a fresh platform for its next chapter of service. The ideas have been flowing, people have been responsive, and I’m *very* excited.

√ As I was looking for a place to have dinner in San Antonio two nights ago, I realized I’d been here maybe fifteen years ago for this same set of annual meetings and experienced one of my most galling moments ever: a veritable panic attack as I was attempting to present an academic paper. I give thanks that this shackle around my ankle seems to be a thing of the distant past, though my temperament creates a welcome home to invasive anxiety. Thankfully, it responds to prayer (mine and yours).

√ After our reports to you following our recent Colombia visit, Karen is being addressed much more often as ‘Junior’! We’re also being asked for all the unsavory details on the cold shower/widow-maker incident.

√ Yesterday in my hotel room, I created a *Baerly There …* mailing called ‘But is it safe?’ about our intended place of service in Latin America. One more domino in the process has to fall before I can send this out to you, but that domino is scheduled for November 25. I hope you’ll look forward to reading our convictions about safety and danger in a world that exists (suffers and often thrives) under God’s providential care.

√ After a slow start and two price decreases, our home in Indy is beginning to see some interest. We were probably unrealistic about how quickly our home would sell. As you can imagine, this is a source of some anxiety for us, as the home represents our principal nest egg and cash drawer. You might pray for a sale soon to new owners who will find our space the same kind of welcoming and empowering home for them as it’s been for us. We also pray for buyers who will be a decent, pleasant, and even godly presence for our dear neighbors in Indy.

√ Just between us, I have recently had one of those odd little runs of unexpected conversations with people who are in fruitful Christian service and who have reminded me of a conversation we had ‘back when’ that steered them in the direction that has now become their life. Embarrassingly, I can sometimes not even remember those conversations … This feels like one of those ‘divine winks’ where the Lord of History bends down to peer into my little life and say ‘I’ve got your back, dude.’

√ The main ‘tearing sound’ at the moment comes from the realization that we will soon need to disengage with CHEERS, the wonderful ‘church within a church’ (in the best sense of that description, which in other contexts can be a very bad thing indeed) with whom I’ve shared life for ten years and Junior for about five. Co-leading this group has been food for my soul, and these dear Hoosiers have walked with me and held me up in both darkness and light. They knew Karen was God’s provision for me before I did. I hate it when that happens.

√ Our financial support odometer just clicked over 30%. People are amazing. I’m re-discovering why this is called ‘living by faith’. I have no desire to romanticize that reality. Being a man of only minuscule faith, I find it plenty scary. 70% to go! Our prayer from the beginning of this venture has been (as careful readers will be aware) that our support would hit 100% by December 31. That would now constitute a bona fide miracle on par with, say, Lazarus not stinking when he came out (OK, OK, maybe he stank a *little* …).

√ If you’ve wanted to become part of our financial support team but have not known how to do so, here’s the link: http://uwm.us14.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=d51738c53f3016d069e94ccb0&id=87904baad3&e=e7417ecb61

√ I’m enjoying watching Karen be called ‘brave’ by people who are close enough to understand how new and demanding all of this is for her. She actually *is* a very brave woman, although she experiences what we’re talking about here as anything *but* bravery.

√ Regardless of what she *feels*, Junior is a giant.

√ We have supporters in Peru, Italy, and Australia. Go figure. Sometime I’ll count up the number of U.S. states.

√ Colombia is seeping into our souls. The slightest mention of that country catches our ear and then our heart. This is not romanticism either, just reality. I’ve always been amazed by how the Lord knits people’s hearts to the people and the places they are called to serve. Sometimes it’s the most unlikely pairing.

√ Karen began Spanish lessons with Colombian teacher Magdalena Henao by Skype this week. She (Karen, not Magdalena …) has that deer-in-the-headlights look, but I know she’ll do well. You might pray for Karen. And for Magdalena. I can’t wait for the first time they can both laugh together at the same joke told (and understood!) in Spanish.

√ We met with our amazing vet (who happens to be a Colombian woman and a naturalized American) about the wisdom or folly of taking our rescue dog Rhea with us to Colombia. She was very encouraging. Now we have to figure out whether our situation on the ground there is suitable for a dog like ‘Rheeskis’ (one of her many nicknames). Please do not inform Rhea that her future is in play.

√ I wrote a pathetic little email yesterday to my Costa Rican friends, telling them that we will probably *not* be spending nine months of language study in that wonderful ‘second homeland’ next year, since it seems better stewardship to leverage the ‘Appearing of Magdalena’ in Colombia.

√ Son John is safe and communicative on the edge of Mosul, Iraq. His brother Christopher and family join the same 101st Airborne Division this month. Both are Captains in the U.S. Army, both married to marvelous women (one each). And we’re hearing periodic ‘How-soon-will-you-be-coming-to-live-in-Connecticut …?’ noises from the grandkids in that part of the country. Soon we will have five nodes of family: (1) Alabama, (2) Tennessee/Kentucky (with frequent deployments from the 101st’s base at Fort Campbell), (3) Connecticut, (4) Pennsylvania/Maryland, and (5) northern California.

√ As soon as we sell our home in Indy, we’ll move into our temporary livings at my home church’s ‘Haven House’ in Millersburg, Pennsylvania. These Pennsylvania Dutchmen deserve the Nobel Prize for Kindness, Loyalty, and Patience. Most of our stuff is in storage in Indy. I’ll need to rent a truck and drive that to Connecticut at the right moment.

√ Our website can be found at www.baerlythere.org.

√ It’s like a deep personal awakening to be re-engaging my life as a scholar. I’ve never struggled with the head-knowledge-vs.-heart-knowledge dichotomy that seems to be an agony for so many good people. I’ve always considered the life of the mind to be a core feature of living as a disciple. I’m grateful after twelve years of other kinds of intense engagement at OC to watch life welcoming me back into the life of a practicing scholar. A ‘desires of the heart’ sort of thing.

√ There’s a link at the bottom of our ‘Baerly There …’ emails where you can unsubscribe at any time. Though we hope you’re not inclined to do that, you may do so for free at any time and we promise our feelings will not be hurt, nor will we begin stalking you. You’re busy. We get that.

√ Junior and I are discovering Lauren Daigle’s music. Good grief…

√ The United World Mission is one bodacious outfit. Wow.

There you have it. If you’ve read this far, you’re either an amazing human being or you need to get out more. Either way, thank you!

Much love,

David (and ‘Junior’)