Christmas 2008                      

Christmas greetings from the Friesens!

The Friesen family, together for Christmas in 2008, attended the Texas state championship football game for Division IV.

We are still in Austin, Texas, welcoming Jessica home from Chicago for a week and once again heading up to Baylor University in Waco for another state championship (Division IV) football game. Josh is a senior at Lake Travis High School, playing alto sax in the marching band. The game on December 20 may be the culminating experience in the Friesens’ Texas football sojourn! (LTHS won 48-23!) Who knows, another year in Texas and we may be wearing burnt orange!

Hannah continues to work as an occupational therapist at HealthSouth. She has moved over to East Austin to live as part of an emerging Christian community. It’s a great fit for her, and we are thankful to have her close by. Jessica, having graduated from Wheaton last May, is now working at Chicago Rehab Network as an AmericaCorps volunteer and living with a group of Wheaton friends in downtown Chicago. She is worshiping at LaSalle Street Church, just down the road from Moody where Paul and I met back in 1980! She took the LSAT recently and continues to explore future possibilities. Josh has been accepted at LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas (about six hours away), where he is considering studying aeronautical science beginning next August. His high school graduation is coming up June 4!

Carol continues to serve as associate pastor at Westlake Hills Presbyterian Church.  The church has just called Dr. Peter Barnes as the new senior pastor. He’ll begin at WHPC on February 1 transitioning from 16 years at First Presbyterian Church in Boulder, Colorado. After a fairly tumultuous three years, we are looking forward to a new season under Dr. Barnes’ leadership. Amidst the changing landscape at WHPC, a highlight of 2008 for Carol was spending a month studying spiritual direction at Pecos Monastery, a Benedictine community outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico. 

Paul, who has also experienced a fair bit of staff turnover in his position as regional liaison for Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) also has a new boss, Dr. Michael Parker. He and Mike traveled to Cambodia and Vietnam in October. In November eleven Southeast Asian nations sent delegates to Phnom Penh to look for ways to collaborate in mission and evangelism. Other highlights of Paul’s work include plans to bring house church leaders together in 2009 to develop ways they can do leadership and theological training together. Three trips for next year are already scheduled. Stateside, Paul enjoys opportunities to teach, visits the prison, and corresponds with overseas partners.

We  are still at 11512 Emerald Falls Drive, and as we anticipate an even emptier nest, so we want to remind you that we have room for you to come visit!

Together for Christmas, we rejoice in the good news, Immanuel, God with us! May you experience God’s empowering presence this season!

Paul, Carol, Hannah, Jessica and Josh Friesen

The 2009 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 234