From the Home Place

August 14, 2026

Good morning! It’s a sweet 61 degrees here at 4:30 a.m., looking toward 84 for a high. We were blessed to receive a shot of rain yesterday and we have a slim possibility of more this evening. Some is way better than none!

Yesterday, Miss Deb and I traveled to Douglas to take a package to some friends and while we were there, we slipped by the State Fair. It rained on us all morning, finally chasing us plumb off. We did get to watch part of the steer roping before it got just too wet and cold to sit in the bleachers any longer. It sure was fun to watch the guys trip a few steers, and it was especially a great blessing to have to run for the car because we were getting wet!

It sounds like Casper and other areas around us were blessed with way more rain than we received, but at least everyone was blessed with some. That statement reminds me of the church plants we have going at this time. Upton is now an established church, in fact, they recently purchased land, looking forward to building a facility that will serve their ministry and God’s kingdom for years to come.

The team at Baggs continues to work hard at gathering a crowd. They have been blessed with a couple of new families beginning to attend Sunday service. Being in the middle of ranch country, hopefully there will be other folks begin to attend now that school is starting again and the crazy life of summer is coming to a close.

Burns is growing and going. They continue to gain numbers in attendance, along with several folks stepping up to serve in the many areas of need. It is really exciting to watch God increase the influence of His kingdom within all three of these communities. I wonder who He will send our way next, and where they will plant the next church here in Wyoming?

You see, church plants are somewhat like the rain reports from around the area. Some folks were blessed with an all-day drizzle and times of heavy rain, while others of us were given a shower and the hopes of more. Some church plants grow quickly with a “downpour” of new attendees, while others get a little shower of new folks from time to time. Every town in this state is different, all groups of people are different, and every planter is different as well.

Yet, I continue to marvel how God brings the right folks as planters, and then He matches that particular planter couple with a community that matches them well. The Holy Spirit continues to cause me to marvel as we watch Him do that which only He can do when the Spirit blends planters and community together to establish a new home for folks to worship the Father!

If you have a biblically based church to attend within your community, stop and praise God for His kind gift to your community. If you have been blessed with a pastor and volunteers to minister to new folks as they begin attending with your church family, praise God for nudging all of those folks your way. For you see my friends, good preaching, surrounded by a sincere love for people, in a facility that allows ministry to take place in a variety of forms, isn’t something we human can just cause to happen. Just like in biblical times, unless the Holy Spirit guides the whole process, God is not glorified. But when Spirit-led people serve the King well, amazing things happen. Much like receiving an abundance of rain during a drought!

So, let the rain continue to fall from heaven, as the King continues to reign through His local churches. To God be the glory; great things He has done, and even greater things He will do as His people follow the lead of the Holy Spirit in proclaiming the Gospel of grace to those who have never been blessed by the outpouring of God’s love! Let Him reign!!!

Enjoying God’s blessings with you, Neal