Looking Back At 2024

Kenneth and Monica on the University of Florida campus.

We wish our South African friends a special Day of Reconciliation today.

As we prepare for Christmas, we wish you ‘exceeding great joy’ as we celebrate the miracle of His birth. (Matthew 2:10) We are privileged to be messengers of that joy and hope.

We experienced a lot of joy this year:

1. Kenneth graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Geomatics on 13 December. He has several job offers and is excited about the future.
2. We have an unexpected opportunity to be in South Africa over Christmas.
3. The spiritual growth of the people we are discipling has been faith-building to watch, as well as seeing Kenneth and Monica catching the vision of building spiritually into the lives of fellow students.
4. Stefan loved visiting Egypt and an Asian country to confirm reports of church planting growth there. In the Asian country, 26 generations of churches have been planted despite the prominence of another major religion. The generations mean a church that plants a church, and that new church then plants a church, etc. Stefan and his team were privileged to interview members of those 26 generations of churches, and it was amazing to see the accuracy of their doctrine.
5. We celebrate nearly 500 leaders who have either graduated or are studying a Master’s program in Transformational Leadership. Stefan helps to coordinate the program. It is designed to produce leaders of character and competence who help ensure the health and sustainability of churches being planted around the world. Stefan loves seeing their growth in leadership.

We also had some tears:

1. Stefan’s dad is facing some health challenges.
2. Our cat, Foxy, went missing in August.
3. The ongoing wars and unrest that several of our co-workers are experiencing in the 110 armed conflicts around the world. The stories we hear are heartbreaking, yet we know the Lord is also at work amid all the tears.

Thank you for your friendship, prayers, encouragement and support during 2024. May the Lord richly bless and use you!

Merry Christmas!