“To God be the glory, great things He has done! So loved He the world that He gave us His Son. Who yielded His life, an atonement for sin, and opened the life gate that all may go in.  Praise the Lord….” Fanny J. Crosby, William H. Doane

 

And so, this late winter and early spring, we invite you to praise the Lord with us. Because of this profound truth, because of what Jesus did for each of us, we give Him praise. Because we have been honored to witness God redeem and profoundly change lives these last couple of months.

 

Picture someone who came to Christ and experienced the work of the Spirit in their life. But after a while, the Bible sat on the shelf, and it was easier to make poor choices. Then what began as a choice soon became the task-master, and the addiction now owned you. As your brain and body chemistry acclimated to the addiction and what it caused internally, the body now craved and cried for that chemistry. Regardless of the kind of addiction. It starts with the person in control making poor choices, sinful decisions, and it progresses to the point where the individual feels they are no longer in the driver's seat of their lives. They are passengers in a journey they no longer want to take. But….God.

 

Since Christmas, God has allowed us into the lives of a significant group of people wrestling with just this kind of bondage, striving to learn how to consistently make godly choices and be free from the tyranny of their addiction. Some are doing well, while some are still in the midst of the battle. But we wish you could hear the voices of those who are seeing God’s hand of deliverance!  You can hear the freedom in their voices. You can see it in their faces. We are so thankful that God allowed our personal Sabbatical plans to be altered - it made us available to walk beside so many people. These are people we love and care about. And we have the joy of seeing God working in their lives, and hearing them rejoice and praise the Lord…repeatedly and with conviction!  

 

Besides these counseling ministries, we have enjoyed slowly moving back into new roles and ministries with InterAct. We were blessed to spend three days teaching the interns at Victory Bible Camp, participating with their Outpost ministry. We loved having the opportunity to attend the Alaska Native Musicale, an annual event in Anchorage. It always occurs at the time of the Fur Rondy…another exciting all-Alaska event!  We loved hosting a table for the InterAct display because it gave us so many wonderful opportunities to meet friends, renew friendships, and create some new ones. I (Jill) loved having the chance to talk with a teenager. She loves the Lord, has high ambitions, and just completed a medical milestone after also suffering through some very difficult times as a child. It was my joy to pray with her one evening. We attended church where our grandson was leading worship. We attended volleyball games where a granddaughter was playing. We hosted several InterAct families at our home for dinner. We got acquainted with one of our Siberian missionary families- and I think she and I are kindred spirits! We have attended family birthday parties, gathered for important events, and welcomed another great-granddaughter to our family. We have visited with many friends here in Alaska. We have held multiple meetings to discuss our roles, when/how we begin, and how we fit this into our counseling ministry. We flew back to Phoenix for Steve’s sister’s Memorial Service and can praise Him because she was redeemed by the Savior. We have grieved as a granddaughter learned she has thyroid cancer, grieved and prayed with a long list of good friends facing multiple medical challenges, and some with other challenges.  Through all this, we see God’s hand at work. 

 

To God be the glory!  He still works. He works in lives that are shattered, in lives faithfully living for Him, and in those that He has yet to redeem. We are so thankful that He chooses to use us to share in God’s work, and so thankful for each of you reading our updates. We praise the Lord with you. We pray for you. And we thank you for caring!

Serving in Partnership with You in Alaska!

 

Steve & Jill