MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Merry Christmas and a happy holiday season to each of you!

"But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son..." Galatians 4:4 reminds us that God chose just the moment that He wanted for His Son to come and live among us. As a coworker reminded us this week, it was anything but an easy time for Mary and Joseph, and later on for Jesus as He lived out His mission of love and sacrifice for us here on earth. But how thankful we are for God's gift to us!

December was perhaps not the month we would have chosen to be building a church! And yet this has been the time that God allowed all the pieces to come together so that we were able to finally move ahead with the construction of "God's House of Prayer" in Palmira community. Although the building process has not been easy with much rain and mud and slippery roads, we have watched God work and are thankful for His help in the whole process.

So yes, there were definitely less Christmas decorations and glitter around our house this year, and alot more mud and mess! And 'making our lists, and checking them twice' was more along the line of 50 bags of cement, five truckloads of sand and gravel, and 1200 cement blocks....! But God has blessed us with much Christmas cheer :-) as we rejoice to see the construction taking shape. Working with the cement 'maestros' has also been a joy, as each of them are not just friends, but also fellow believers.

Our family was a bit scattered for the holiday season this year, with Kimberly staying at school to work over break, Kenny & Sophia in Virginia with Sophia's family, and Keilah & Jeremy happily traveling to West Virginia to spend a special Christmas with Jeremy's family (who are usually in Paraguay). But we certainly enjoyed opportunities to chat with each of them! As we look to the new year, and the new challenges that are to come we can rest in the fact that His grace is sufficient, and His power unlimited. We trust you also find this to be abundantly evident in your own lives in 2018!

In HIS grip,
Kevin & Kathy