It feels as though we have not stopped going since we moved back from Tanzania in 2020. As I sit down to write this update, I struggle to find a way to include enough to make sense without bogging this post down. So here we go…when we arrived back in the US at the height of covid shutdown, we were given an odd “reentry break” since so much was put on hold. We quickly got our small farm going and began selling vegetables to friends and family locally. We sold things from our farm for a little over a year before Phillip was offered a job teaching at a small private school. He taught there for three years before going back to teach high school at Crisp County High School. Our boys were 9 and 7 years old when we moved back and now Micah is in 9th grade and has his drivers permit while Nathan is in 7th grade and is neck deep in his science fair project (only three more weeks!)! We have been working with the congregation in Byron, GA where Phillip helps preach, teach classes as needed, and has been a deacon there for several years now. Bekah helps teach children’s and women’s classes as needed and Micah and Nathan are the self-appointed “door openers and greeters.” Nathan was also baptized into Christ recently and for that, we rejoice!

Over the summer, Phillip was able to start taking classes from the Georgia School of Theology full time. He hopes to learn more to help him be better prepared to help others learn and grow closer to Christ. Over the summer he was able to successfully complete four classes while also preaching almost every Sunday for various congregations across middle and south Georgia. It has been a great experience, getting to reconnect with friends, meet new ones, and have the opportunity to teach class and preach almost every Sunday. The members at Dublin, Claxton, Redland, Fort Valley, and of course Byron, have been very encouraging and helpful as we have been able to work with them. During the summer, Phillip was also able to go to Costa Rica for ten days to work with the congregation in San Jose Sur. It was a great week of preaching, teaching, helping host a family camp for the local Christians, meeting new people, eating great food, and seeing another beautiful part of the world.

As a family, we were able to go to PTP in Branson over the summer and had a great time! This past quarter at GSOT was filled with five more great classes that Phillip was able to complete successfully and learn from wonderful teachers like Gene Stilwell, Daniel Stearsman, Allen Webster, Dave Domingue, and Eddie Fisher just to name a few. He has been able to apply some of the lessons and topics to the classes he has been able to teach and the sermons he has taught as he has been preaching all but two Sundays since August. The new quarter started today and will be filled with five more classes, including new classes covering topics like the book of John and continuing classes in Greek I and Psalms.

Bekah is still homeschooling our boys but they now work with a great co-op on Mondays. She is teaching Renaissance History to the 7th-8th graders and World History to the 9th-10th graders. She also teaching one of the children’s classes at Byron on Wednesday nights. Right now, our farm is slowing down for winter but we have been growing and processing lots of vegetables, chickens, and hopefully we will be processing some of our sheep soon.

Micah has recently gotten his drivers permit and is excited to learn how to drive on the road! He is doing very well in 9th grade and has submitted a bill for the GA Youth Assembly in November. He will attend a “mock congress” and get to participate as a congressmen. We will not know if his bill is chosen for debate until closer to time to go to Youth Assembly but he is excited for the opportunity. He did a great job maintaining the yard for the Fort Valley church of Christ building over the summer and is working to save up to fix his Papa’s chevy so he will hopefully have a vehicle to drive next year!

Nathan is doing really well in 7th grade and has continued his love of all animals great and small. He hopes to become a zoologist one day! He has to use his power chair a little more if there will be a lot of walking but over all, he is doing very well physically. Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy is not fun, but he seems to be handling it well and we are so thankful for the doctors, friends and family who help and encourage us constantly!

Thank you so much for reading this far. We ask that you please keep us in your prayers as we work to get Phillip through school at GSOT and that we are able to be used by God to encourage all of the congregations and Christians that we have contact with!

If you are able to support our work monetarily, we are so thankful! We know that the cost of everything has made this much more difficult and we are honored and humbled that you are willing to help us in any way.

Checks can be mailed to the Byron church of Christ with our name in the memo line.

Byron church of Christ: PO Box 1483; Byron, GA 31008

Paypal: pbduncan20@gmail.com

Venmo: Bekah-Duncan

In Him,

Phillip, Bekah, Micah and Nathan