This update is coming directly from me, Cory. First and foremost, I think I realized that while AI has dominated so much of my vocational life lately, these updates deserve the real, un-AI’d version of what’s been going on – so that’s what we’re going to be doing in these posts. Real, unfiltered, sometimes messy updates on what we’re doing as we prepare to launch as missionaries in Panama.

It’s been a whirlwind last month as we have been preparing more and more for our launch to Panama in early 2027. It’s been a busy time of finishing up projects, connecting with people about our ministry, purging things from our lives, and planning for the next steps. Honestly, it’s been a huge humbling process as we learn, process, and grow in sharing our story. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been meeting with various local churches and have had the opportunity to share with the local church what God has called us to as a family. This morning, August 30th, we had the chance to share with the church where Abbey grew up and came to faith, the New London Alliance Church, in New London, OH. It was a wonderful time to stand in front of the place where she was shaped as a Christian at a young age, with people who I’ve gotten to know over the past almost-14 years of marriage including family and friends. At this service, the newly-installed pastor (who is married to Abbey’s best friend growing up, so we’ve known him for a long time) shared his vision for the church to not only be a place where people can learn and grow in their faith, but also be equipped to be sent out as the body and he challenged them in what that would look like for them in rural north-central Ohio to be the hands and feet of Jesus in their community.

Then we returned home, with a nephew in tow for the week, and went to the annual ice cream social and baptism service for our home church, North Way Beaver Valley, where we got to enjoy time with the congregational body of our church and watch the public declaration of faith for almost 30 people as they were baptized in Brady’s Run Creek (and then my boys and nephew swinging off a rope swing into the creek afterwards). The weekend was filled with the local church being the local church and, for the past couple months, I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking and praying through how much I really love the local church…not one specific church, but the local church. Our church in Panama, Coronado Bible Church, is working hard to take the call of the Gospel to the English-speaking communities around that area of Panama, the many churches our friends are part of both here in the US and in Panama are taking seriously the mission of the local church we see through the New Testament and throughout the first 2,000 years of church history to care for the poor, the widow, and the oppressed; share with, help grow, and equip Christians as they mature in their faith; and send Christ-loving Bible-Believing Christians into the world to continue to let people know that Jesus loves them right where they are, when they are, how they are, and who they are – not because of anything they’ve ever done or could do.

As we gear up for this next season in Panama, I’m excited to be a part of what the local church is doing down there and watching as the missionaries on our team begin to go out into the various provinces and comarcas (think Native American Reservations) around the country to partner with the local church to build up the Body of Believers through reaching students and young people. It’s not something we’re doing alone, it’s something we believe in partnering directly with the local church to do.

The local church is so beautiful that it brings tears to my eyes and joy in my heart when I reflect on it, and it was a privilege this weekend to get to see the local church in action.

We have a busy September of meeting with churches, connecting with a ton of you, and continuing to slow down, gear up, and get ready for 2027. We’re so thankful for all of you we’ve already met with, those we have coming up soon, and for the many of you who have partnered with us in prayer, one-time gifts, and ongoing monthly support towards the ministry needs in Panama. We love you and continue to pray for you all, as you pray for us.

Ways to Pray:

• For our family as we sell off/donate a lot of our stuff here in the United States. The kids have been great about going through their things and seeing what can be donated to those more in need.
• For the kids as we prepare to sell our house in the United States (yes, we decided this was the best route forward, instead of trying to rent it for a time), downsize on animals (the goats will go to the home of a homeschool friend of Abbey’s, the chickens and outdoor cats will go to my in-laws farm).
• For our financial support – we’re at about 12% funding (between those who have said they’ll support at a specific amount even if they haven’t formally donated it through the Word of Life website and those who have actually gone through and done the process). We have a lot more people who have verbally committed to funding at some level. We believe we have been called to Panama, and now as we work towards hitting our fundraising goals, we believe at that point is when we’ll have been sent.