"Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this: He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun."   Psalm 37:3-6

On July 7, 2008 we finally met the special little girl who was to become our daughter and take the name Gracie Jin Hua Thorne (formerly Fu Jin Hua). It was the culmination of more than two years of waiting, hoping, praying and longing to complete our family. Amy and I were already blessed with two wonderful sons, Quentin (8) and Andrew (6), and we consider ourselves doubly blessed with the arrival of Gracie (2) and the formalization of her adoption in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, China.  I am writing this article to share the story of our mutual journey and the mighty power that God has displayed through this tiny child's life.

Many times over we felt deterred in the effort to grow our family. Looking back, I firmly believe that God maintained a strong hand in the situation throughout the journey; however, we experienced doubts and discouragement in the moment. It had been our ... More »

Tony and Therese Untalan with Marcia and Bob Bertalot

"And I pray that the fellowship of your faith may become effective through the knowledge of every good thing which is in you for Christ's sake. For we have come to have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother and sister." Galatians 5:6

What is a friend?

I'm reminded of an anonymous quote I read once regarding friendship…

Some people come into our lives and quickly go.
Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts.
And we are never, ever the same.

This is perhaps the most challenging article I have ever written.  How do you summarize almost ten years of a best friends-friendship in two and a half pages?

Tony and Therese moved from Guam to Portland in May of 1999.  Their move to Portland occurred during one of the many transitional times the church here was undergoing.  Not too long before the Untalans arrived, Portland had welcomed a new leadership couple, John and Lauren DeGiorgio, sent from the San Francisco Church o ... More »

Jason and Susan Bond with their three children, Rebecca, Rachel and Ryan

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."  Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Susan and I were introduced to the Marriage Dynamics workshop three and a half years ago while attending the Denver Church of Christ. At first we were a little skeptical, with the promise of our marriage being improved dramatically if only we would attend this 8-week course and pay the $150 fee. I must admit the idea of meeting together every week for 8 weeks and doing the homework seemed rather daunting especially since we had other things that required our attention. And the $150 fee…….Who was getting rich?  However, after talking it over with Susan and deciding to invest in our marriage, we decided to do it. Lit ... More »