Sunday, December 21, 2008
MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM THE NORWOOD FAMILY!
The Fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Ephesians 5:22-23)
We hope that you are experiencing the Fruit that comes from knowing God, through his Son Jesus, this Christmas!
We have a lot to be grateful for this year! Here’s a quick update on who’s doing what, and for links to pictures and more: http://thenorwoodfamily.blogspot.com
Daniel and Christina are living in San Diego along with their little girls, Adelae (6) and Elena (4). Daniel’s work as a product manager for Quest Software has literally taken him all over the world this year, from the Orient to Europe.
David and Carly are living in Holly Springs, GA just north of Atlanta. David works as an IT manager for a local hospital and Carly finished up her degree at Georgia State. Their band, Stellate, has nearly completed their new demo CD, and will be available for sale through iTunes starting January 1st. To listen go to Myspace.com/heliosmusic
Rachel and Aaron live in Braselton, GA, northeast of Atlanta, and both work in the same office building in Gainesville. For their first anniversary they traveled to California, visited the Napa Valley and then on to our home in San Diego so they could spoil their nieces! They are happy newlyweds!
Stephen (18) had an exciting year with his music. He was in a national music competition in May that took place on a cruise ship and took 2nd place. He has started writing and completed a demo CD of three songs he wrote and produced at a studio in Washington State. He’s enjoying singing and playing keyboard at church (Rachel and Nancy are singing there too) and is applying for a transfer to Belmont in Nashville for the Fall of 2009. To listen to Stephen's new CD, go to Myspace.com/stephennorwood
Christopher (15) continues to be active as a Brown Belt in karate, Boy Scouts and playing the bass guitar at church. He’s got his learner’s permit to drive, too! This summer he and Eric went on a Scout adventure to the Bahamas, where they crewed for an 80-foot wooden sailboat for a week.
Jonathan (11) also is a Brown Belt in karate and has joined the Boy Scout troop too. He’s already achieved the rank of 1st Class. His musical passion is the electric guitar and he loves to play football in the neighborhood with Chris and the guys!
Nancy continues to home school Christopher and Jonathan and has really thrived with her jewelry. Expanding into metalwork, her work is featured in galleries in Atlanta and San Diego. To view her latest pieces, go her her website and click on “New for 2008” at Mybeautifulcreations.com
Eric’s work in healthcare is never dull, always challenging, and rich with opportunities for God’s grace to abound! He enjoys monthly outings with the Boy Scouts and has also reached Brown Belt in karate.
A highlight of the year was our celebration of Nancy’s parents’ 60th Wedding Anniversary in Portsmouth, Ohio in March. We literally had every family member in one place for 3 days and it was a wonderful time!
We really enjoyed spending time at our second home in Escondido (San Diego), CA in June and again between Christmas and New Years. The avocados and guavas are growing fast and we find it to be the most peaceful, refreshing place on this planet. We suspect we love it because it just reminds us of a “home” we’ve yet to see, where we’ll spend eternity.
Eric read an interesting book this summer called Happiness Is A Serious Problem, by Dennis Prager. The author is a devout Jew who delves into what happiness is all about. He raises a lot of fascinating ideas, but the one that seems most central is this: happy people are grateful people. But it raises a question: to whom, then, are we to be grateful if not to our Creator?
Thomas Aquinas wrote: “There is within every soul a thirst for happiness and meaning.” God created us, and He is perfect. We are far from perfect and unable to secure a relationship with Him by doing good things. Therefore, He became a man, Jesus, who lived a perfect life, was crucified and resurrected, all to pay the debt for our sins. His work changed the world. But it is up to you to accept this gift for yourself. “Today is the day of salvation”… don’t wait until tomorrow!
Wishing you the happiest Christmas ever!
Eric and Nancy Norwood
In your honor, a donation has been made to Good News Community Center, Ouya Village, Kenya to support ministry to AIDS widows and orphans.
60th Anniversary Celebration
Nancy's parents celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary this March. All of the children,
grandchildren, and great grandchildren were able to make it.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
2007 Norwood Christmas Letter!
Merry Christmas from the Norwood Family!
2007 has been a wonderful year for our family, and we are thankful to God for all His blessings and provision!
We’ve continued to grow as a family this year - - Rachel and Aaron were married on October 6th and the wedding picture below is a rare commodity: one picture with all of our family present at once! From left to right:
Christina and Daniel, are holding granddaughter Elena (3) and Adelae (5) up front. They love living in San Diego where Daniel is a product manager for Quest Software. His business took him to Europe for 3 weeks, and Christina was blessed to join him for the final week in Paris! (Sweet!)
Jonathan (10) is our big-time Karate Kid, with an advanced blue belt on his way to black belt. He also is learning to play the piano and guitar when he’s not out in the neighborhood with his buds playing football.
Christopher (14) is also in karate, and is learning to play the bass guitar. He just earned the rank of Star in Boy Scouts. He and Eric went to Philmont Scout Ranch in the high country mountains of New Mexico in June where they backpacked 80 miles in 10 days.
Eric has been staying active by taking karate lessons with the boys for the last two years. Maybe his body will hold out long enough to be a black belt someday, too! His work is always full of challenges and opportunities to see the Grace of God in action!
Rachel and Aaron were married in Atlanta in our brand new church building, The Bridge Church of Atlanta - - and what an absolutely wonderful time we had as a family! They honeymooned in Maui for a week, and they bought and fixed up a home in Braselton, Georgia just north of Atlanta. They both work in Gainesville, 20 minutes from their home. Aaron is a graphic designer for a regional advertising agency and Rachel is an office manager for an insurance company. Rachel graduated with Honors from Kennesaw State University in May (after carrying 18 credit hours in the last semester)!
Nancy had a lot on her hands in 2007 - - home schooling her boys, helping Rachel plan a wedding, making gorgeous jewelry in her little playroom in the basement, and researching places to invest in a “second - and - future-retirement” home. We purchased a home on 7 acres of mountain-top orchard property in San Diego this fall, with plans to offer it as a vacation rental to friends and family. The very day after negotiating the offer on the property San Diego County experienced the largest wildfires in its history. Thankfully neither our property nor Daniel and Christina’s home were affected.
Carly and David are enjoying married life in Canton, Ga, on the north west side of Atlanta. David works as an information technology manager for a local hospital, and Carly just finished her degree in Communications. Their Christian band, Helios, continues to gain notoriety, and weekends find them either traveling with the band across the Southeast or David playing guitar at Northpoint Community Church.
Stephen (17) graduated from home school this May and began classes at Georgia State University in the fall. Singing continues to be his passion. He produced a demo CD to begin to compete in regional and national competitions. He and his brother David performed as part of the wedding, as did Rachel.
We’ve been married for 31 years, hard to believe for some who said “it’ll never last!” As we reflect upon where we’ve been and how our lives have unfolded, we are truly grateful for what God has done. Those of you who have known us for years have heard us say many times that Jesus Christ changed our lives 31 years ago. It’s become somewhat trite these days to talk about “being born again” (especially for celebrities and felons doing time!) But our convictions about what we believe are increasingly validated in two ways: our personal experience of the reliability of the Scriptures and of knowing the presence of God in our daily lives. All we have in our lives - - family, friends, the needs and the desires of our hearts - - come from the hand of the One True God who sent His Son to be Savior, Lord and Friend to any one who will ask it of him.
As we send this Christmas letter, we pray for you to experience, if even for the first time, the true Joy of new life in Jesus this Christmas!
2007 has been a wonderful year for our family, and we are thankful to God for all His blessings and provision!
We’ve continued to grow as a family this year - - Rachel and Aaron were married on October 6th and the wedding picture below is a rare commodity: one picture with all of our family present at once! From left to right:
Christina and Daniel, are holding granddaughter Elena (3) and Adelae (5) up front. They love living in San Diego where Daniel is a product manager for Quest Software. His business took him to Europe for 3 weeks, and Christina was blessed to join him for the final week in Paris! (Sweet!)
Jonathan (10) is our big-time Karate Kid, with an advanced blue belt on his way to black belt. He also is learning to play the piano and guitar when he’s not out in the neighborhood with his buds playing football.
Christopher (14) is also in karate, and is learning to play the bass guitar. He just earned the rank of Star in Boy Scouts. He and Eric went to Philmont Scout Ranch in the high country mountains of New Mexico in June where they backpacked 80 miles in 10 days.
Eric has been staying active by taking karate lessons with the boys for the last two years. Maybe his body will hold out long enough to be a black belt someday, too! His work is always full of challenges and opportunities to see the Grace of God in action!
Rachel and Aaron were married in Atlanta in our brand new church building, The Bridge Church of Atlanta - - and what an absolutely wonderful time we had as a family! They honeymooned in Maui for a week, and they bought and fixed up a home in Braselton, Georgia just north of Atlanta. They both work in Gainesville, 20 minutes from their home. Aaron is a graphic designer for a regional advertising agency and Rachel is an office manager for an insurance company. Rachel graduated with Honors from Kennesaw State University in May (after carrying 18 credit hours in the last semester)!
Nancy had a lot on her hands in 2007 - - home schooling her boys, helping Rachel plan a wedding, making gorgeous jewelry in her little playroom in the basement, and researching places to invest in a “second - and - future-retirement” home. We purchased a home on 7 acres of mountain-top orchard property in San Diego this fall, with plans to offer it as a vacation rental to friends and family. The very day after negotiating the offer on the property San Diego County experienced the largest wildfires in its history. Thankfully neither our property nor Daniel and Christina’s home were affected.
Carly and David are enjoying married life in Canton, Ga, on the north west side of Atlanta. David works as an information technology manager for a local hospital, and Carly just finished her degree in Communications. Their Christian band, Helios, continues to gain notoriety, and weekends find them either traveling with the band across the Southeast or David playing guitar at Northpoint Community Church.
Stephen (17) graduated from home school this May and began classes at Georgia State University in the fall. Singing continues to be his passion. He produced a demo CD to begin to compete in regional and national competitions. He and his brother David performed as part of the wedding, as did Rachel.
We’ve been married for 31 years, hard to believe for some who said “it’ll never last!” As we reflect upon where we’ve been and how our lives have unfolded, we are truly grateful for what God has done. Those of you who have known us for years have heard us say many times that Jesus Christ changed our lives 31 years ago. It’s become somewhat trite these days to talk about “being born again” (especially for celebrities and felons doing time!) But our convictions about what we believe are increasingly validated in two ways: our personal experience of the reliability of the Scriptures and of knowing the presence of God in our daily lives. All we have in our lives - - family, friends, the needs and the desires of our hearts - - come from the hand of the One True God who sent His Son to be Savior, Lord and Friend to any one who will ask it of him.
As we send this Christmas letter, we pray for you to experience, if even for the first time, the true Joy of new life in Jesus this Christmas!
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
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