God Story! We have a Washer & Dryer!

Hey guys,

Thank you so much for praying about a stacked washer and dryer for us! God answered our prayers! Here is the God Story:

I sent the prayer request about the washer/dryer to you on Saturday...at that point, we had checked everything that there was on Craigslist in this area, and there was nothing available that would be right for us.

Sunday (the very next day) we got an email from a friend telling us to check out a stacked washer/dryer that he found on Craigslist here in Kalispell. The owner must have just posted it, because there was NOTHING when we had looked just the night before.

I contacted the owner and we went to look at it on Tuesday. It was exactly what we needed! Not only was it in GREAT shape, but the dimensions were exactly what we needed to fit in our closet (a rare find) and the owner was willing to negotiate on price. So we got it for a STEAL.

We arranged to pick it up on Wed morning and in the meantime a repair man had come to install the owner's new washer/dryer. While there, the repair man appraised the one waiting in her kitchen to be picked up by us. He said that this was a fantastic washer/dryer...better quality than most stacked and that she could have sold it to us for WAY more money than she did. He was very surprised that she had agree to part with it for so cheap. (thankfully she kept her word to us at the price we had agreed on, we couldn't have afforded to pay more)

So, to make a long story short: you prayed, THE NEXT DAY God provided the perfect washer and dryer for us, at a price so low that we should never have gotten it that cheap! AWESOME! I love having God on my side! He cares even about the little things, like us being able to do our laundry :-)

Thanks to you also for being on our side, and praying for us! We love you.

PS: Justin's lecture went well, but I will let him tell you about that, so stay tuned....

with love and gratitude,

A&J

Home Sweet Home...God provides

Hey lovely people,

We have a God story, and a couple of prayer requests, so here goes:

God story:
We are finally going to be able to move into a bigger place! Yay!

Up till now we have been sharing one small room with a small 3/4 bathroom and a mini kitchenette space. The only sink that we have is in the bathroom, so basically we have been washing our dishes in the same sink that we brush our teeth in (so much fun ;-). While cramped, this placed has been a blessing to and we are grateful that God provided for us to be able to live here for the past year. However with a baby coming, this just isn't going to be enough space for the three of us. Which is why we have been praying for somewhere else to live, but considering the small budget we already live off of every month, this was going to be a challenge.

After much praying and waiting on God, we have learned that we are going to be able to move into one of the cabins that are here on the YWAM base. Even though we call them cabins, the mental picture should probably be that of more of a small cottage. The cabin we will be moving into is only about two years old! We will have a room for the baby, a kitchen, our own bedroom that is not in the living room (like we have now) even a bathtub! We are thrilled and so excited to God for providing this space for us to live in. And while our monthly costs will go up with our new housing, it is still going to be a very economical option for us.

So, thank you everyone to who has been praying for us! God has been so faithful to provide for us all along! We hope that this encourages you, as you trust in him to provide for your needs as well.

Prayer Requests:
With that said, we have a few things that we would humbly as for you to pray about for us...

1. We need a washer and dryer. The cabin we are moving into has a small closet that is designed to fit a stacked washer and dryer. We don't have the finances to buy a new one, (they start at about 900 dollars) and finding them used is a bit tricky....please pray that God would provide a stacked washer and dryer for us. With a baby coming, this is VERY important...as you all know, babies create lots of laundry!

2. Justin is teaching Joel and Obadiah this Monday (April 26th.) Please pray for him as he continues to prepare throughout the weekend and when he teaches on Monday. His lecture is from 2-5 pm mountain time, for those of you who want to be interceding while he teaches.

Thanks so much for your interest in our lives! We love you all!

J & A

Praise Report: New Computer

Hello Faithful Blog Followers,

I have a great update for you all today!

I GOT A NEW COMPUTER...PRAISE GOD!

As most of you know, before this school started my (Justin) old computer became unusable. Not the greatest time for that to happen (having a functioning personal computer is a must in staffing this school) but throughout the process of waiting on God to get a new one, He has been faithful. I have been borrowing friends' computers for about eight months now which has gotten me through, so I am very thankful for that! Now I have a nice new computer that I can depend on when I work and it has changed things already! I can have my own computer software that helps me study and prepare for my lectures. I also am able to do my own PowerPoint presentations for my lectures (which was very difficult before in that I had to borrow other peoples'. ) Also, I can actually see the screen! The one I was borrowing most recently was so small that I had trouble using it. We are praising God for this blessing; many prayers for a new computer have been answered!

I sincerely thank you all for praying with me for this. And for those who gave thank you so so much for being willing to be used by God through giving and encouraging me!!

That's all for now...Again...thank you so so much!

Love,

Justin and Annie

Proverbs - "Pass it on"

Hello Everybody! I hope you are all doing well! Students are now returning from having a week of spring break and Monday marks the start of the third and final quarter of the 09/10 SBS.

I (Justin) had the awesome privilege of teaching the book of Proverbs a couple weeks ago in our School of Biblical Studies, and it went awesome! Thanks so much for praying for me as I prepared and taught.

The book of Proverbs is such and amazing book of the Bible! God really used this book to speak to me where I am at at this point in my life. This book is about passing wisdom and guidance on to the next generation; showing them practical ways to live everyday life so that they can walk in their Covenant with God. As you know, Annie and I are about to have a baby girl. God used this book to challenge me that I need to take this next five months to get as ready as I can for this baby girl. It is up to me to learn and grow so I can be the best father I can be.

The other main thing God really highlighted to me both for my life and for the students, is that wisdom is a lifestyle. When we look at the life of Solomon (author of some of the proverbs) we see that he was the smartest man in the world and he still fell because of his love for women. He had all the wisdom he could need, and still fell, because he failed to use it. It isn't about just having wisdom but living that wisdom out in every day situations in our lives. It is up to us to walk in a lifestyle of wisdom and the book of proverbs has some good helps for us to do this. Although some of the proverbs, don't apply to us culturally there are specific truths in each of them; truths that can be applied by us today.

My main application of the lecture was seeking wise counsel. The book of Proverbs encourages one to seek wise counsel for wisdom in whatever decisions you are going to make and situations you are in. For me, as our daughter is about to come I need to be asking other parents what I can do to get ready to better prepare me to be a father.

Our students are in the part of this school where they are making decisions about what they are to do next, after the school is over. As an application, I had them write down three people that they trust and can talk to for advice in any area of their lives so that they can go to those people and seek wise counsel.

I am so thankful that God had me teach this book! It was such a blessing to me and it was awesome to see the students discover what God had for them in this book as well.

Next Teachings

Justin:
Joel and Obadiah April 26th
Esther June 4th

Annie:
Zephaniah May 14th

Praise reports:

• After being very sick the first five months of her pregnancy, Annie is finally starting to feel better. Annie has had to step back a bit from her normal SBS duties in order to focus on her health, but she is now hopeful to jump back in with the start of the new quarter and finish the year strong.
• We have been seeing God provide for us in amazing ways! Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us!
• Justin has been able to borrow a laptop until we can afford to get him a new one. Thanks to everyone who has been donating and praying for this.
  

Prayer Requests:

• Finances- We are still trying to raise finances to cover our increase in costs of living with baby coming.
• Housing -We are still waiting to get into a bigger place that will fit our growing family. This also means an increase in our monthly expenses. Please pray for the right place to open up for us, before the baby comes, and for the finances we will need to afford it.
• Health- continued health for mom and baby
• Our marriage and family- It has been a year full of changes!!! Please pray that we will grow together as we process through all of the changes that we have encountered this year and will continue to encounter with the growth of our family. Also for grace and wisdom as we raise a family on the mission field.
• Lectures-pray for us as we prepare to teach the word of God this quarter. Teaching is a responsibility that we do not take lightly. Also that we would be good stewards of the other many hats we wear as SBS staff, from discipleship to grading and beyond.
  

With love and gratitude,

Justin & Annie (& baby girl)

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight." Proverbs 19:10