Papamoa, NZ

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30 Hour Famine, in CO: We just finished skyping in with the youth group of our church. It was great to hear the distant shouts of familiar and excited voices! what an opportunity the thirty hour famine is! Here in New Zealand, we are very excited for all of you... we REALLY are! We are committed to praying for all of you.

Reality: Speaking to friends brings a harsh reality that... well... reality is coming! that real life with real responsibilities is coming in... 11 days:) *** ugh.. HEART ATTACK!*** but we are very thankful for this process here in New Zealand! Papamoa beach was a great time of us getting to rest and recoop, entering the realization the states was ahead of us. It's an odd spot honestly, because as we study the trip and all the amazing things God has provided. We are also giving ourselves to our futures ahead, life in the states. in this awkward and uncomfortable spot in life. We are so thankful for a God who is patient with us. looking back and reading journals has left us amazed at all God does through long periods of time and our persistence of prayer. And thankfully, He is so patient when we forget to remember who He is, and all He has done and is doing! In our attempt to see what God has done, answering prayers and transforming us, we are very thankful for this time period in our lives.

Back to the Shire: At the beginning of the trip we watched Lord of the Rings, and it saddened our hearts thinking of the return after the great adventure, back to the ol' shire. But as time as gone by, we are more than thrilled to take the next step of the adventure, which is even bigger and better! God has a plan for each of our lives individually, no matter what location we are at. He has equipped us with everything we need to bring Him glory, and He is bigger, captain over our life's situation. He has planted us where we are at for a reason every day! In this 11 days left, we will continue to be bewildered at the 7 month trip behind us.. and whatever is in front of us when we get to the states.

Thnx: Thank you for faithfully praying. in retrospect, there are countless times when prayer and support and such made the whole difference. being locked into a body of believers has made this great. We feel like the builders in Nehemiah 4, when they are rebuilding the wall. As the men stand around the wall, everyone prays; they have a trumpet in case of attack. half of them stand guard, ready to fight- as the other half work- building the wall together. If they heard the trumpet blast, all of the builders in the body would rush immediately to help fight as one community! Likewise, we blow the trumpet of help. We are thankful for a group of people who will come help fight in those moments. We have seen how the body of Christ works just like this! And we are thankful that in this massive project God has- putting the world back together- we can be in fellowship and unity with each other and God. Thank you.

"But we prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves... I explained to the nobles and officials and all the people, "The work is very spread out, and we are widely separated from each other along the wall. When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding. Then our God will fight for us!" We worked early and late, from sunrise to sunset. And half the men were always on guard."

- Nehemiah 4:9,19-21

v-team

"evan kristen andrew"