The Gunn Site: Gunn Shots 2012

Merry Christmas!

Frank & Lydia: January 2012 marked Frank’s 20^th anniversary of ministry at Broadmoor Baptist Church in Shreveport, LA! The church celebrated with many blessings from the staff and church family as well as a reception, complete with hunting-themed décor! The highlight of Frank’s weekend was a “surprise” reunion of interns that had served with him during his tenure as Student Minister! We had a blast reuniting with these incredible friends, taking “moustache” pictures, laughing as they reminisced about their favorite memories as interns, and crying as they blessed Frank with their words of encouragement. Frank’s favorite part was seeing their families and hearing all that God is doing in their lives and the ways they are being used for His kingdom’s work! Frank and Frank made two road trips to California in January and May. Some of the highlights as they drove across the country were seeing Hoover Dam, going in the Pawn Stars shop in Las Vegas, and driving through the scenic Yosemite National Park. Frank and Annalise made two trips together this year, also – to Vancouver, Canada, for her Choir/Mission Trip this summer and to the Catalyst Conference in Atlanta, GA, in October. We all enjoyed an amazing family vacation to New Orleans and Florida this summer, grateful to have extended time together before Mary Lindsay and Slater left for the Middle East. Our niece Kelsey was married in a beautiful poolside ceremony in Mississippi in August—welcome to the family, Mac! Frank and Lydia officially became “Empty Nesters” when Annalise left for school in August—so hard to believe! Lydia and some of her friends started meeting together in an “Empty Nest” prayer group to pray for their adult children. How special that several of them met together when our children were preschoolers for prayer and Bible study! This is one of the blessings of being in one church for 20 years! Lydia is finishing up a semester of Perspectives of the World Christian Movement that was offered three hours a week at our church. This is a course that is taught world-wide and is so powerful. Speaking of classes, Frank started working toward his Doctorate of Ministry degree at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary! His focus will be on pastoral counseling. He loves experiencing the victory and healing that Christ can bring through Christian counseling, especially with couples in crisis. Lydia finally got to go see Frank’s apartment and school in California as we flew there in September! Big Frank still enjoys hunting and mountain biking, and Lydia still loves her job as a Petroleum Landman.

Mary Lindsay & Slater: What a life-changing year for Mary Lindsay & Slater! They left the comforts of home, family, and friends to pursue their God-given dream of serving for a stint overseas. Their original plan was to lead a team to Lebanon; however, due to political unrest there, they are serving in another area in the Middle East. Prior to leaving in September, their lives were very full! Slater began working at a new store called Outdoor Waco, right up his alley as an outdoor activity enthusiast! This was the perfect job to provide all the “goods” they needed as they continued to enjoy camping, hiking, and finally getting to run that 5K they had been wanting to do together! They loved attending the weddings of many of their friends, including the Nashville wedding of Lauren Caskey Bokesch, Mary Lindsay’s close friend since preschool. After graduating from Elevate, their church’s discipleship training school, their summer was packed with preparations to leave the country. They put most of their earthly goods in storage, resigned from their jobs at the end of July (Mary Lindsay saying good-bye to co-workers at Baylor where she was the Admissions Coordinator for the Master of Social Work program), then spent time visiting family and friends. They celebrated their second anniversary with a trip to Colorado. Waco friends hosted a going away party for them as they headed off for training, then they left for the Middle East in September, leading a team of twelve. They have adjusted to life there – new apartment, new team, new language, new culture! They teach English, study Arabic, cultivate discipleship among their team, serve the long-term team there, make relationships with new Arab friends, and share the Good News! We miss them tremendously, but we are so proud and excited about their adventures! We are so grateful and touched by so many of you who have partnered with them financially and prayerfully—what a blessing! Please keep them and their team in your prayers, as they will continue serving until May.

Frank: Frank is back on the mainland! In January, he moved from sunny Hawaii to sunny California! He is living in the Sacramento area and attending Sierra College. It is no surprise that he chose a college that is still close to the ocean so that he can freedive and spearfish! He is working at a local freedive shop and has taken dive trips to Sonoma, Mendocino, and Caspar. At our family vacation in Florida, he had a great time diving with his dad and Slater. He continued using his culinary skills at one of his jobs as a Mongolian stir-fry chef. His people skills and his cooking skills both come in handy in his job as a meat and seafood clerk at The Fresh Market where he creates dishes for customers to sample, then sells them what they need to cook it themselves. Frank is really plugged in to his college group at church, meeting for worship and Bible study. He also volunteers in the student ministry, discipling a group of middle school guys. In true Frank form, he has “explored” the area with trips to spots like Tahoe, Napa, and Santa Barbara. He went on a road trip to Seattle and Lynden, Washington, to visit some of his YWAM (Youth With A Mission) buddies that live in that area. When we visited him in September, he took us to San Francisco and Muir Woods—so much fun! Frank has become a fixed gear bike enthusiast, enjoying both riding and working on his bike. Although it seems like we rarely get to see him, we have loved having him home for Annalise’s graduation, family vacation, and now for Christmas! As I am writing this, he and his dad are gearing up to go deer hunting this morning!

Annalise: 2012 was certainly a milestone year for Annalise – she graduated from high school and started college at Baylor University! She rounded out her senior year continuing to be very active in student ministry, serving as a student leader, volunteering in the nursery, playing in STOMP (church youth percussion group), and being active in choir. We made several college visits that helped her solidify her decision that Baylor was where the Lord wanted her to start college. She also continued working as a tutor at Kumon Learning Center. May rolled around all too soon, and Annalise donned her cap & gown and walked across the platform as an honor graduate! She was awarded the Presidential Volunteer Service Award from the White House for the large number of volunteer hours she put in to the church and community. Her excellent GPA/ACT scores earned her a presidential scholarship to Baylor. She was also awarded a scholarship from Baylor for her leadership and service to her local church. We are so proud of her! She went on a cruise with a group of friends, then started her summer as a Bible study leader with CLEAR Camps. She paid her own way, and she grew in the Lord so much as she poured in to students all summer in camps in Texas and Louisiana. She took a week off from camp to go on her choir/mission trip to Vancouver, Canada. Frank was so blessed to get to go on this trip with her! Fall semester started, and she adjusted to college life. She has become very active in the college ministry at Antioch Community Church, participating in weekly life group, worship, and discipleship. She is also a member of the Youth Ministry Team at Baylor, a group that serves local youth ministries. All Baylor fans will be happy to know that she did attend the football game when Baylor defeated #1 Kansas State! Sic ‘Em Bears! Annalise is loving her month off from school for Christmas holidays, and we are loving having her home!