Senior Adults Visit Billy Graham Library

By Anne Butzer

While at Billy Graham’s Library in Charlotte, we received the “royal treatment.” Doug Barrett, a former member of Hempfield UMC and regional manager at the library, greeted us upon arrival and introduced us to our guides, Pam and Ron. Pam and Ron gave us a private tour. Ron is the son of George Beverly Shea. We first toured Billy Graham’s parents’ house, which is next to the library. The home has been moved from its original site a few miles away.

The library is shaped like a barn because Billy Graham grew up on a dairy farm. The entrance door is in the shape of a cross. Everyone who enters her enters at the foot of the cross. Bessie, the talking cow, tells stories and sings. Most of the exhibits are named after books by Billy Graham. We ate lunch in the “Dairy Bar,” where Mother Graham’s chicked salad is a favorite along with a gift bag containing a beautifully illustrated book of Billy’s life.

I cannot put into words the inspiration we received in this Holy Place. Our group discussed the visit and all were inspired by Mr. Graham’s life and legacy. We agreed the reason he had a successful and powerful ministry was because he never changed his message proclaiming we are all broken people and the Lord Jesus alone can forgive our sins and make us whole, giving hope to the world, just like Pastor John preaches.

Our hope is that each member of Hempfield UMC could go there and experience the blessing as we did. In the afternoon, we toured the beautiful city of Charlotte with a step-on guide.

Thursday, our last day, we enjoyed a delicious hot buffet luncheon at the Natural Bridge Hotel in Virginia, which included turkey with gravy, carved ham and hot sides. We then had free time to explore Natural Bridge and local attractions, which included a wax museum, butterfly house, indian village (very interesting) and an antique doll museum.

We arrived back at church at 8 p.m. inspired and happy, thanking God for protecting us after driving 1,128 miles.

Senior Adults Tour Hebrew Tabernacle & Amish Farmlands

By Anne Butzer

The Lord provided us with one of the most beautiful days ever for our motor coach tour of Lancaster County. Our first stop was at the Mennonite Information Center where we viewed an excellent film on Mennonite life. This followed with a guided tour of the Hebrew Tabernacle Reproduction described in Exodus chapters 25 through 40. These chapters come alive as we viewed the Tabernacle and Holy of Holies. A class of children from the Wilmington Christian School joined our group for the Tabernacle tour. These children were studying the Tabernacle as part of their curriculum. Our guide asked the children some poignant questions and to our amazement the children knew all the answers.

Spring beauty was evident as we watched the Amish farmers plowing and fertilizing the fields on roads which some of us had never traveled. One lady remarked as we stopped at Eli Stoltzfus’s roadside stand for a cup of cold and delicious homemade root beer, “Don’t leave without me, I’ll never find my way home.”

Next stop was dinner at the Amish home of Amanda and David Beiler in New Holland. Amanda cooked and her daughters served the following delicious meal for us: turkey and ham loaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and peas, buttered noodles, chow chow, cole slaw, apple sauce, homemade bread with homemade strawberry jelly, coffee and desserts. All 56 of us joined Weight Watchers the next day!

Our last stop was Kitchen Kettle, where we shopped and enjoyed the music of Banjo Jimmy and his band.
Most importantly, we had sweet fellowship. Lots of laughter. I could almost hear the angels in heaven whispering, “Oh how these Christians love one another.”