From Jim & Kathy McNally
December 24, 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
As 2007 comes to a close, Kathy and I wish to express our sincere appreciation and gratitude to each of you for your love, your prayers and your support. This past year is a year we will never forget. It has been a year of many opportunities and many challenges. In the midst of it all, we continue to see God’s grace and faithfulness. It was a year of travel for both of us.
January: We were in Hamilton, Montana to visit Bill & Sue Peddie, who lost their pastor to Leukemia, and are currently battling for the life of their daughter-in-law Jill who has a reoccurrence of cancer. Later in January I took a team into Zacatecas, Mexico.
February: Kathy and I went with Matt and Tina to visit Jubilee Church in Maidstone, England. The weekend that followed David Price joined me in Parker, Colorado, where I did a seminar at a Baptist Church on Sonship: The Path to Fatherhood.
March: The second week in March, Sean, Matt and I were able to spend a weekend together, something that I will treasure for the rest of my life. Later in March, Kathy was able to spend the middle of the week with one of her best friends, Glenda Head. Glenda has published a book about her journey with the care and death of her daughter entitled Dani’s Last Dance.
April: The first part of April, Bradley, along with Kathy and I, were able to host David Price and his family for a couple of weeks. I spent an extended weekend in Cullowhee, North Carolina ministering to the church and the campus group at West Carolina University. From Cullowhee I went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee to attend a conference hosted by Charles Simpson. Bob Mumford was one of the featured speakers at the conference.
May: I spent a week and a half in Paraguay with Ronald Balzer visiting a number of churches and families that relate to him. While I was in Paraguay, Kathy, along with a number of ladies from Harvest, attended a Women’s Retreat in Maidstone, England. As is our custom, the last weekend in May we spent camping with several families from Harvest at Blackwater Falls State Park in West Virginia.
June: The first part of June I traveled to Uruguay, South America to be with Rainer Kunze. While most of my time was spent in Montevideo, I was able to travel with Rainer to the Mennonite colonies of El Ombu and Gartental. On June 16, the day before Father’s Day, I was shocked by my longtime friend Tuhl Bannister. He presented me with a brand new bright red Pontiac hard top convertible! WOW! I am still stunned by this unbelievable gift. Later in June, Michael Puffett came from Maidstone to assist me in rewriting my book on sonship. This is a tedious project which has been put on hold since August.
July: Kathy and I were able to stop and spend some quality time in Elyria, Ohio with John and Wendy Beckett on our way to the McNally Family Reunion. Nearly one hundred members of my family attended our reunion which was hosted once again by my nephews, Jim and Linda McNally near Williamston, Michigan. After the reunion Kathy and I were able to visit Dave and Judy Van Horn in Pinckney, Jeff and Cheryl Bennethum in Gaylord, and finally Dan and Glenda Head in Benton Harbor. Later, in July I was able to spend time with Marlin Eller, Dan Wolfe, Dick Nielsen and Gary Bergel at the Nielsen condominium in Massanutten, Virginia.
August: On the second weekend in August before a packed house at Harvest, I had the privilege of ordaining Marlin Eller affirming his call to plant a church in Staunton, Virginia. On August 17 I led a work team into Zacatecas, Mexico. Along with Bob McClelland of Empty Tomb Ministries, the team was able to put a roof on the church facility, completing a dream that Bob had envisioned for Chuy and his family. I am grateful to all who helped complete this vision.
September: Kathy and I were able to break away for a few days of sun and relaxation the first week of September. We would need it, since Kathy had taken on the task of providing meals for the 160 plus men that would be attending our men’s retreat here in Stafford. On September 21 I returned for another weekend of ministry in Cullowhee, North Carolina.
October: This had to be one of the most challenging times of recent years. As mentioned above, Harvest hosted over 160 men for a weekend campout. Ralph Carder, Sean’s father-in-law provided the venue for the event. Ninety-five of these men came from overseas, mostly from the United Kingdom. Kathy worked like a trooper, and impressed all who attended by the detailed manner in which they were fed. Matt and Tina handled the extensive administrative task of arranging everything form portable showers to transportation, including two days of sight seeing for our foreign guests. Matt, Michael Puffett and I had the responsibility of sharing messages. Complements are still coming in for the success of the time. A few days after the retreat, Matt broke the news to Kathy and me that God was calling him to relocate to Florida. Although we were stunned by his decision, we support Matt and the family in this. The weekend of October 19 Kathy and I were able to join Sean and Wendy in a return trip to the Wizard Academy in Austin, Texas. In a private ceremony, witnessed only by Sean and Wendy, Kathy and I repeated our wedding vows at the chapel on the campus. On the final weekend in October, Kathy and I, along with some other members of Harvest were able to attend an open house for Marlin and Joyce Eller, who continue reaching out in their area as they gather people for a church plant.
November: On November 6 Kathy and I flew to Sydney, Australia to participate in a business people’s seminar hosted by Lorraine Cheng. Each year Lorraine gathers the 40 plus people she is mentoring, and has opened the door for Kathy and me to share at this retreat. The following Monday and Tuesday evenings I ministered at a Korean Church in Sydney. From Sydney we flew to Launceston, Tasmania to be with Michael and Cathy Vos. The Vos family was celebrating fifty years of successful business in Australia, and we were honored to attend this event. We arrived home from Australia in time to celebrate Thanksgiving with Sean and Wendy, and her parents as we have done each year for well over a decade. During the final week of November we were able to join several members of the Burton family, who came in from Missouri to witness the graduation ceremonies of their son, Daniel, from Officer Candidate School at nearby Quantico. Dick and Carolyn Burton have been as family to Kathy and me.
December: One of Kathy’s many ingenious traditions has been to celebrate our family Christmas by decorating our tree together. We do this on the first weekend in December. With the knowledge that Matt and his family would be relocating to Florida after the first of the year, this was a time of mixed emotions for me. The following weekend Kathy took one of her best friends, Linda Ellenwood, and traveled to Montana to visit her sister, Sue. Bill and Sue’s son James, and daughter-in-law, Jill have a five month old baby. They returned home last month from Thailand, where they served as missionaries. Jill is fighting a second occurrence of lymphoma. Your prayers for James and Jill would be appreciated.
The final days of this month have been spent in helping Matt relocate. Matt and Tina, along with Taylor, Emma and Levi left on Saturday, December 22 with a rental truck packed with their furniture and belongings. They will return after the first of the year, and we are planning a “Sowing Away” party for them on Sunday, January 13.
Conclusion: In addition to all I have written, much of my time has been researching for rewriting my book on sonship. During my journey this year, Kathy and I have met and began to some wonderful fellowship regularly with Tony and Marilyn Fitzgerald. Tony is the founding father of the Church of the Nations. I continue to seek out Dan Wolfe for counsel and direction. I have taken back the leadership responsibility for Harvest Christian Fellowship, while attempting to fulfill my commitments elsewhere. Kathy and I are looking forward to 2008 with the hopes that our paths will cross. As you have opportunity, please remember us in your prayers. Your financial support is deeply appreciated, too. So I close with this, “May the gracious abundance of God’s blessing be your daily supply…”
In Christ,
Jim & Kathy McNally
