December Prayer requests and Praises

Welcome to the holiday season! Is anyone else shocked that it is Christmas time already?? It seems like just yesterday that we were celebrating Christmas 08. But here we are enjoying this amazing adventure that God has led us on. We have had another very busy month but here are a couple of the highlights.... Thanksgiving in our new home entertaining 14 friends and our first visitors from Iowa, (thank you to the Mottinger family for the very fun visit).

At Agape, there are great things happening as well. The story of the "Turkey Drop" and God abundance will give you an idea of what happens around the hangar. In order to help the missionaries in Haiti enjoy a comfort of America oversees, Agape does an annual “turkey drop” for the missionaries. Now unlike what you mind is probably envisioning, we do not actually drop the turkeys out of the plane, but we do drop them off for the missionaries to come pick up with their weekly supplies and mail. This year, we delivered 44 turkeys. (BTW-We would like to also drop turkeys in Dominican Republic but the government there does not allow meat to be imported).

To make the “Turkey Drop” happen, the staff at Agape takes the orders for the turkeys, buys them, stores them and then they deliver them in coolers. On the last week of the deliveries, the turkeys were safely stored in the freezer in the hangar, but when the staff arrived on Monday morning, they discovered that 12 turkeys had been defrosted as the freezer when out over the weekend. Now, we have 12 bad turkeys and 0 turkeys ready to load on the plane. Well, here’s where God went to work…in the matter of one phone call, the cost of the replacement turkeys was provided by a complete stranger. And, not only does God provide but He provides over and abundantly as He promises in John 10:10. You see we also received 2 other donations simultaneously which could have bought12 more turkeys. God showed us once again that He is in control. He was not about to let chaos reign, for only He reigns.
John 10:10-11 (Amplified Bible)
10The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it [a]overflows).

Here are our prayer request and praises for this month. Thank you for faithfully lifting us up to the king.
Praises
Praise God that we have found a new church to call ‘home”. We were led to New Life Church over 6 months ago by a trusted ministry friend and it is definitely the place we need to be. A place to be fed and not just watered.
Praise the Lord for His provision and abundance in the replacement of the defrosted turkeys for Haiti. It may seem like a small thing but it is huge when you sit back and see how He defeated Satan’s plan to cause chaos.
Praise Him for the increase in the girls faith. They run around the house singing songs they make up for Jesus and they ask tons of questions every day. It truly warms my heart to watch them fall in love with Him.
Thank God for a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends, our Agape family. When pondering what Thanksgiving would be like without our families, we never realized how God would provide amazing friends to fill our day and bring such fun to our house.

Prayer Requests
Please pray for the staff at Agape. The preparations for Christmas by all the missionaries makes this time of year a time of high demand. It is incredibly busy around the hangar. Please pray for strength and energy for the staff and safety for the flights.
Please continue to pray for the closing of our house in Iowa. God is in control and we trust His timing.
Please pray for our new staff members who are raising support. In this time of financial chaos, we know God will provide for all their needs.
Please pray for the search for a new Executive Director of Agape. God knows who He has called, please pray for that person to hear and respond to the voice of His Father.

We hope you all have a very blessed Christmas and enjoy the celebration of Jesus' birth!
Until next time, stay strong in Him and never give in!
Living victoriously with Christ, Lynn, Lance, Grace and Hope

Mid November update

This month is flying by just like the last one, but at least I have a chance to update the blog this month. That alone is a big accomplishment for me. We have been very busy around here and I thought I would fill you in on just a few things that are happening in our life.


The church we are attending has a really neat event every Friday night at the beach. It is a Gospel Sing a long. The sing along is led by some faithful servants that started this 15 years ago and they are still going strong. For some attenders of the sing a long, this is their church, but for many others is it a just a fun Friday night activity that brings them together to praise God. Well, this is also the place and time that they do baptisms.


I have wanted to get baptized for a long time but while we were in Iowa, I never had the chance. I was either pregnant or out of town on the weekends of the baptisms, so when Pastor Randy mentioned the baptism part of the sing along I asked if he would baptize me. So on Friday night, I was baptized in the ocean. It was about 68 degrees outside with a very strong wind but I didn't notice it at all. Even though I have been a believer for many years and saved for 10 years, I have never had the chance to publicly pronounce my faith and my desire to live for Him, so I am very happy that I got this opportunity and I am grateful for Pastor Randy's bravery in the cool weather. Here are the picts of the baptism at the beach. (check out the waves)

My wonderful "towel holders" (Grace and Hope) were very excited about the baptism and the next day they were baptizing their ducks in the bath tub. I'm not sure they got the whole idea but they know what they saw. We had a lesson about baptisms that day during our school work and they are starting to understand. Grace and Hope have already asked me to be their "towel holder" for their baptisms and they would like their dad to baptize them. I am truly thrilled that they are thinking ahead to the day they can get baptized too. Grace says baptisms are "to praise God" and Hope says baptisms are "to tell God, I love you". I think they are starting really get it. Praise God.

Today we attended a huge event at the beach. Nineteen area churches have started a series of events called "One Christ Won City". Lance was at the beach at 8:30 this morning doing set up for the event. The whole premise of the event is to bring the 19 churches together for times of worship, praise, teaching and unity. What a sight it was to see thousands of people on the beach singing to the Lord, praising Him and praying to Him! We were very excited to attend the event today. I'm sure lives were be changed through the prayers and time of intercession today.

Among our daily routine of Lance working and the girls and I keeping down the fort, we have found some very cool things to do down here. The girls and I are now involved with Rainbow clubs at church. It is the preschool version of Missionettes. The clubs meets every Wednesday night for games, Bible verses, crafts, and fun. I have become the assistant leader for the girls' group and I love it. The girls earn badges for completing their lessons and they are very excited to start sewing the badges on their vest. The way they are learning I am going to have to sharpen my sewing needle as I think they will be keeping me very busy. The best thing is the chruch has made Wed. night a family night, so Lance gets to go to church with us and he attends the adult teaching. It is a perfect mid-week boost for all of us.

Lance is working very hard at Agape and some nights he is there way past "quiting time". The server and the computers are really keeping him busy. He also has some neat projects he is working on which I will highlight as soon as he has them done so you can see what he is up to. One project that is keeping Agape busy is the upcoming Turkey Drop. Agape takes orders for thanksgiving turkeys for the families in the mission field and then they delivers them. Last week, Lance was at the grocery store buying 10 turkeys (the store's limit) to store in the freezer until the next flight out. The Agape plane delivered 20 turkeys last week and more will be on board this week and next. What a fun way to bring a little of "home" to the families serving in Haiti!

Well, thanksgiving will be quickly upon us and we are grateful for so many things. Most important, we are grateful for our awesome God. We are proud to serve such a wonderful, powerful Lord and we are humbled to be called his children. "Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name: make known among nations what he has done. Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always." Psalm 105:1-4. We are also very thankful for our families and friends. We appreciate all of you and we know we are blessed richly by your presence in our lives. We pray you will all have a wonderful Thanksgiving with your families.

We will be in touch soon with more updates, until then, stay strong in Him.

In His service, Lynn for the Anderson crew

November prayer requests and praises

Sorry All,

I have been without internet most of the month. Also, we have been so busy with the house that I have not had chance to blog or send updates. Luckily, we are getting the internet hooked up soon at the house and I should be able to get on more often.

As most of you know we bought a house this month and were very blessed to find a great deal and a nice home. The only downside of the house is that it was not well cared for by the previous owner so it needed A LOT of work. The house is structurally perfect, but the interior left a bit to be desired. So over the first 15 days of the month, we painted every wall in the house, tore out all of the carpets, had new carpets installed, prepared the some floors for tile, and cleaned every nook and cranny.
The girls and I spent every day at the house working and cleaning. We were very grateful that God put some amazing friends in our path to help with the work. JoDee Martin and the Prachar crew helped as much as they could. It was heart stopping to think that God had this planned all along. We thought that the folks we knew we could count on were all in Iowa and Wisconsin, but God knew who He has lined up to help and they were all right here. He is so perfect in His ways.
It was overwhelming to consider all that needed to be done, but God made it all happen and on the 15th of the month, we moved in. Once again, God brought in the workers to help. Two friends from Agape came to help unload and within a few hours all of our boxes and furniture were in the house. Now we are in the process of unpacking and finding a place for everything. It is another step in the moving process and we are happy it is almost behind us. The next step is to have some visitors come to help us enjoy the house.

That's about all I have time for today, so it is time for the praises and prayer requests...
Praises

• Praise God that our house in FL closed easily and we were able to immediately start the process of cleaning, painting, fixing, and tiling. Also praise God for the help we received and that all of the work was completed in 15 days and we moved in by the middle of the month.
• Praise God for an uneventful Phase inspection on the plane. This means it is certified and ready to fly for another 200 hours before we have to do it again. Thank God for the volunteer mechanics that gave of their time to complete the inspection and all those who donated food to keep them working.
• Praise Him for all the volunteers that help at Agape. These folks do just about any job they are asked to do and Agape could not operate properly without these faithful people He has provided.
• Praise the Almighty that He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. We have been living out of our suitcases and moving boxes since mid-July. It was a challenge for us to live in the “ready to move” stage, “temporary housing” stage, “fixing up the house but not ready to move into yet” stage and the “unpacking” stage. In short, our lives have been CHAOS. We are grateful that He never changes. His love and protection guided us through this very unstable and busy time.

Prayer Request

• Pray for the missionary family that Agape serves who through a tragic accident lost their son last month.
• Please pray for us as we continue to find a home church. We want to find a strong church that will feed us and challenge us in our walk. Pray that we will see God’s leading in this and find the perfect match for us.
• Please continue to pray for our house in Iowa to close and for that burden to be released.
• Please pray for Lance as he works at Agape. Every day presents something new and he is working through the learning curve with new projects and systems. Pray that God would give him wisdom and guidance.
• Please pray for the girls and for their schooling needs. We are in the process deciding whether to homeschool and/or find an affordable preschool. Preschool in FL is very expensive so we are trying to make the right decisions and find a place that meets their needs without costing the same as college.

Thank you all for you loyal prayers and encouragement. We appreciate you very much.
Philemon 1:4-7 says it best, "I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers, because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints. I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ. Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints."
Happy Fall to all!

In His service, Lynn for the Anderson ministry team

October Praises and Prayer requests

A Place to Call HOME.
After we arrived here, we immediately began a search for a home. We actually started searching before we arrived but, until we were here it was hard to get really serious about buying something. So with the help of our realtor, we started looking at houses quickly.

I have to explain that here in FL there are three types of home sales. There are foreclosures, short sales, and individual house sales. The first is owned by the bank. Most of these homes are trashed and in need of a great deal of work. The second type are homes that are pre-foreclosure/short sales. These houses are usually good buys but can take up to six months to close, due to the liens and approvals necessary to close these homes. The third are normal home sales. The market here is all based on the type of house you want to buy and how soon you would like to have occupancy. If you are not in a hurry, you can consider a short sale but typically, they are a headache and can take a long time to get answers and the keys.

With that said, we tried very hard to stay away from the short sale market, until last week. Last week, God led us to a house that was a short sale. We liked the home, we liked the location but we were really not sure we wanted to get into the mess of the short sale. But we prayed about it and gave it to God and waited to see what He would do. Here’s what He did…we wrote the offer on Wednesday, the sellers accepted the offer on Wednesday, and the bank accepted our offer on Friday, which means we can close on the house by the end of this month. God took a normally 6 month ordeal and made it happen in 2 weeks. That is unheard of in this market but not unheard of in God’s time. He is so sovereign. Nothing can compare to His timing and His work. We are very grateful that He is in control and we are so humbled that He cares for us and for the tiniest details of our lives.

So, starting October 1st, we will be moving our stuff into our new home and sprucing it up to make it our own. It needs paint, clean up, carpet, and tile. We will be busy for a while. Come help if you have the time. We will need lots of help.

Here is a pict of the new digs.







That's what we have been up to, so now it is time for the prayer requests and praises.


Praises

• Praise God that our tractor sold the day before we left Iowa. It would have been a real headache to try and sell it once we left town. Chalk one up for God’s timing again.



• Praise God for safe travels to FL and travel mercies.



• A huge praise to Him for well behaved kids on the trip.



• God provided the perfect amount of helpers and packers for moving day.



• Praise God for providing our supports and partners. Without partners, we would not be here.



• Praise God for His amazing work on getting us a very affordable home in a very fast manner. That is unheard of in the real estate world today.

Prayer requests

• Please pray for the Agape plane this week as it undergoes the Phase inspection process.Pray for all the volunteers who provide this inspection and for their safety.



• Please pray for safe travels for the weekly deliveries with our volunteer pilot and aircraft. Also pray for our weekly flights and the crew.



• Please pray for the misssionaries Agape serves, that all of their needs will be met.



• Please pray for our house in Iowa to close.



• Please pray for our family as we continue to make the transition to Florida and we search for a local church.

Thank you all so much for your faithful prayers and support. We miss Iowa and the familiarities of home but we are adjusting well. The Agape staff is amazing. They have treated us very well and we feel very much part of a large family.

Blessing to all of you. Have a great month.

In His service, Lance, Lynn, Grace and Hope

Happy Birthday Lance!!

It is another special day in our family. Today, we celebrate Lance's birthday. We don't have any special plans just time together after work and a little party during lunch with his co workers and cake.

Lance is an amazing husband and father. We could not ask for a more perfect man in our life. God blessed us richly when He made us a family and put Lance in charge. We love you dearly, Lance, and we hope you have a great day. We are very proud of you.

The Big Move

Here is the full post of all the details of the trip to FL. I mentioned some of this last week but I thought I would write the whole report now that I have had some time.

As most of you know, we recently relocated our family to Nokomis, FL to start work at Agape Flights. The actual move and all the events leading up to move were to say the least, chaotic, but God was perfect in all things and He worked it all out.

The most amazing part of the story of the move for us was the way God worked the sale of our house. The house had been on the market for 6 months (btw-that is the average for a home in our area) and we were anxious to get started at Agape. So, after Lance’s August trip to Florida, we decided that we were going to set a date and move whether the house was sold or not. We prayed for the house and gave over to God for the last time. Within six days of that decision to move, God provided a buyer for our home. It was amazing. The family that was interested in our house wanted to have occupancy in October so that worked out perfectly. The actual closing on the house will not be complete until their house in Georgia sells but we are happy to have them in the house and leasing until the sale is completed.

We did all of the packing and loading of the trailers on Labor Day weekend. We were very blessed to have the perfect moving teams show up. Saturday, my(Lynn’s) dad took control of the trailer and packed it like a pro. Every item was placed and loaded with care and we filled the trailer to the roof. Special thanks to the Damewoods, Wescots, and Victor Buffington for the awesome help on Sat. You guys were a great team. On Monday, Lance’s dad brought his trailer and it too was loaded with excellent care. Larry(Lance’s dad) and his crew of Tom Carver and Louis Hawkes made short time of the job. The girls loved having the Gramma’s around for extra attention and love. Thank you so much for all of the help. We appreciate all you did to get us on the road and we appreciate your families for loaning us you for a few hours of the weekend.

On Tuesday morning, with all the trailers loaded and house empty, we headed out for the long drive. The trip went very well. The girls were extremely well behaved (thanks for all the prayers on that, it worked). They took on the adventure with excitement and joy. They loved having the cat in the car with them. They took turns holding him and wrapping him like a doll in their laps. (note-we don’t normally have a lap cat). Lance was the primary driver for the 1338 mile trip. I tried to give him some breaks but I am definitely not a truck driver by nature. The drive went well but we were very tired when we arrived. We took some rest stops on the way but for the most part we stayed on the road as much as possible.

We could feel God’s protection as we drove and we know He provided the strength we needed to keep going. He kept our eyes on the road and He kept us alert as the miles rolled on. The trip was virtually problem free until we hit the 1330th mile. We could see the exit for “home” but we heard a “pop”. We had a flat tire on the trailer. Thankfully, our former neighbors, the Prachars, and a kindly stranger came to help us and we were back on the road very quickly. We were very grateful to see that even though Satan wanted to derail us again, God put people there at the perfect time to help us out and get us back on the road.

So, after 1339 miles, 32 hours in the truck, and only one major problem, we are here. God was in control the whole trip and we thank Him that we all arrived safely.

(I have picts of the moving teams and picts of the blown tire(thanks to Travis and her trusty camera) but my camera cords are still packed. I will post picts after I find the cords and download the picts.)

I hope all is well with each of you. We will be posting soon about our house shopping adventures and starting work at Agape.
Never give in!
In His service, Lynn, Lance, Grace and Hope.

We Made it!

Hey All,
Just wanted to let you know that we made it to FL. It was a long trip, as we did a straight through run. We stopped just a few times to rest our eyes but we pretty much stayed on the road as much as possible. The girls were complete ANGELS. They never complained or asked to get out to play. They just played with their toys and the cat for the whole ride.

We made it virtual problem free until the 1329th mile, (total trip as 1338 mile) when we blew a tire on the trailer. We could see the exit for "home" but we couldn't get there. Our former neighbors from Iowa, the Prachars, came to our rescue. Travis picked up the girls and I, while Lance, Paul and a kindly stranger changed the tire and got the trailer back on the road. Thanks Neighbors, we appreciate you.

Now, we are trying to settle in. Lance started work today. We still do not have internet at the house but are hoping to set something up later this week. We will be in touch soon.
Thanks for all the prayers.
Never give in!
In His service, Lynn for the Anderson crew.