JOY~A Valentine Letter

We usually post this on Valentine's day, but not this year! Here's our yearly Valentine letter...

JOY

Rejoice in the LORD always; again I will say, rejoice! Philippians 4:4

Joy has been a running theme for us this past year.  When rooted in Christ, joy is continuous and something that is present through good times as well as in times of suffering.  In fact, sometimes our greatest joys can be found in our deepest sufferings.  For the believer who is in Christ, the purpose of life is to Glorify God, all while becoming more like Jesus and to call others to join us in submission to His Lordship.  This has been a truth we have had to fix our eyes on over this past year through many challenges.  Although very difficult at times, God has given us a deep rooted JOY through the many health complications within our family, a demanding travel schedule with work, the continued refinement of parenting two little ones and times of trusting the Lord during the unknown.  Neither of us would say that we have walked through each of these moments with sheer perfection, but rather by the grace given to us by our Savior, we have maintained stride and seen the Lord refine us along the way.  We have also experienced great joy in some wonderful times as a family from vacationing together to visits with various extended family members and many exciting life events taking place (including the expected arrival of a third child).  It has been a year of learning how to have joy in the midst of any type of situation.  Joy doesn't mean we're always happy, but joy is a deeply rooted part of our very existence because we find ourselves rooted firmly in Christ alone.  We find redemption from our sins in Christ, and it's this understanding that allows us to have and maintain joy in the ups and downs. 

On the go-  Steve stays busy working with Converge Worldwide as their Director of Mobilization for international ministries and traveled quite a bit during this past year.  He enjoys being able to meet people and help recruit individuals who want to travel the world to share the Gospel with a lost and unbelieving world.  His many travels means Jenny is holding down the fort, caring for the kids, while he is away.  It was hard when Steve first began in this role as we didn't anticipate how much travel it would entail, and it was a bit of an adjustment. Jenny soon realized, she must find her joy in Christ to help sustain her through each day he would be away traveling. It is tiring.  But it is a joy to have children and even on the tiring days (which are many with two little ones), we have found great joy in seeing Karis and Isaac grow and develop. Karis is three and a half and Isaac will be two at the end of February.  We also await the arrival of our third child, Olivia Noël, hopefully by the end of this month or early in March.  So "on the go" seemed fitting here with our life's pace; but even as we type those words, our hearts are being settled by the assurance that God is the one who sustains us through the busy moments of life.  This is the hope we rely on when life gets busy and life's demands seem overwhelming, it becomes the root of our joy and a reminder that our true rest can be found in Christ. 

Year ahead- Since the day we met, we have talked about how missions might be an essential part of our lives; both of us having a desire and a sense of the Lord leading each of us to serve as missionaries one day.  Each step we have taken in the course of our marriage has been with a mindset of preparing us for a ministry as missionaries at some point.  We had the opportunity this past year to visit Poland (in Eastern Europe) with the intentions of pursuing what it might look like to serve there one day as missionaries. The Lord continues to open the door for us to pursue this opportunity and with great anticipation, prayer and careful thought, we are taking steps towards moving overseas.  It is for the joy we talked about earlier (our hope in Christ), that we feel this move is so important.  It is for the joy of the people in Poland, their salvation in Christ, and hope in a real and tangible God.  We are excited for what the Lord has in store and look forward to sharing more with you in the coming months as we wait on the Lord's perfect timing in it all.  We are currently in the application and assessment process with our mission organization.  Would you pray for us as we continue on this journey? 

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that

by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." Romans 15:13

This Valentine's day, we pray that you may find your joy complete only in Christ 

and his LOVE for you.

Happy Valentine's Day (a bit late!)

Steve, Jenny, Karis, Isaac and baby Olivia