Celebrate Love!

Isn't it wonderful to be loved?!

I am basking in the love of my one-and-only...My Andrew. My life has been enriched being married to this adventurous man. I've experienced many exciting things in the past (nearly) ten years of marriage. I wish each of you knew him. He is just wonderful!

My heart just melts when he looks at me and smiles...a smile meant only for me.

I adore the way he fathers our children...so tenderly, so lovingly.

I joyfully follow him as he serves his Lord. What a blessing to be able to serve the Lord with him!

His sense of humor has picked me up many times...his positive outlook on life has made me see always the bright side of life...his "all will be okay" has settled me down in times I've wanted to over-react.

I appreciate his gentleness. I love the way his voice becomes gentle when he doctors a sick child. All is okay when Dr. Andrew bends over to kiss a little girl's fevered forehead and he says, "This is your medicine. It will make you feel all better."

So many things I appreciate about this man. All year long I take notes, recording in my heart all the things that make this man so amazing.

Have you told your Sweetheart today how much he means to you?

Go tell him now.

And Happy Valentine's Day to all!!!

Just Sayin' Hi

Hello, Friends!

Besides the fact that we are staying very busy (isn't it a wonderful privilege to serve the Lord?!), I do not have easy access to the internet, which is why I have not posted anything lately.

I have several blog posts in my heart, but I have not taken the time to write them. How the Lord has blessed us!! I would love to take the time to share all of His blessings with you.

I do want to let you all know that Abdías is doing much better. I thank each and every one of you for your continued prayers for him.

We have had the wonderful privilege of getting to be involved in some new ministries, and we are loving every minute of it. Hopefully soon I can share all about them.

But for tonight, I'm posting a picture of our family that we took in December.

Thank you for keeping in touch. I love, love, love hearing from each of you!!!

Joyfully Serving Jesus,

Anna

Update on Abdías

Dearest Readers who have been praying,

Abdías came through the surgery just fine. We are praising the Lord for His care over him, and that he is on the road to recovery.

A big THANK YOU to all who have been praying. Please continue to pray as he recovers.

I will update you again soon.

Please Pray!

Dear Readers,

I would like to introduce you to an Indian young man in our church who was saved about 6 years ago. Abdías López came to the boys' home here from the village of Chalchihuitan.

An Indian man whom Dad won to the Lord in the early 80's (Sebastian Gómez), who now pastors in the village of Chalchihuitan, knew Abdías and sent him to live here in the boys' home.

Abdías, the young man on the left with the guitar

Abdías was saved soon after he arrived, and grew steadily in his Christian life. He went through the Bible Institute here, graduated in 2009, and is faithfully serving in many areas of the church. He has been a great blessing to our church, as well as to our family.

Abdías is the third from the left, in Bro. Sebastian's church

In the month of August, Abdías began having kidney trouble and his condition has steadily grown more seriously. Tomorrow he is to have surgery in the near-by Capitol city of our state.

Would you please take a few moments throughout your day to pray for this 23-year-old young man? He is young and desires to serve the Lord with his life. Please pray that the Lord would give his doctors special wisdom during the surgery and throughout his treatments and recovery.

I will try to give you a regular update.

Thank you, Dear Readers, for praying.

A Token For Good

"Shew me a token for good:...because thou, Lord, hast holpen me, and comforted me."
Psalm 86:17

So have you ever asked the Lord to do something special JUST for you, that you know He did, JUST to show you that He loves you?

I have. Many, many times.

And many, many times He has answered with such sweet blessings that I know were direct answers to my requests.

Little ol' me. Can you imagine that our wonderful God Who's glory the Heavens declare, cares enough about me to move specific people and circumstances to remind me of His love for ME?!

It overwhelms me. Every time.

So I want to tell you about something VERY special that God has done for me (and for many hundreds of other people, for sure!) to show that He loves me so much.

He has brought my oldest brother, Tom, and his wonderful family to our town to serve as missionaries. They arrived in November to begin a Baptist radio ministry that (Lord willing) will reach to dozens (if not hundreds) of surrounding villages and towns. (Go on over and read Mona's blog...Mi Casa Es Su Casa.)

The months of November and December were (for us) such busy months! I am so ashamed that I am just now writing about their arrival.

When Tom and his family arrived, they hit the ground running, and began at once plunging right into the work.

What a blessing it has been to have them here! Not only the FUN of having (more) family close by, but the blessing of having more workers in the church....a growth of sweet young ladies in my Sunday School class...new, fresh ideas for different activities among the ladies.

Yes, indeed, God has personally blessed me. In these past 2 months, He has given me spiritual encouragement; I have been challenged to do more for Him; and He has given me a renewed purpose and commitment in my child training, as I have watched Tom and Mona with their children.

God has brought them for such a time as this...to say, "I love you. I did this JUST for you!"

Thank you, Tom and Mona, (and all you sweet, sweet Sloan children) for being SUCH an encouragement! I love you, each and every one!

Tom and his children singing on Thanksgiving Day

"I'm Saved!"

On Saturday, January 7, our Little Deborah Jolene accepted Jesus in her heart!

She had been asking questions for a while, and I believe she was under conviction;
and we praise the Lord for saving her, and for freely giving salvation to all who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and all who call upon His name.

She wanted to be baptized the next day. She called her Uncle Tommy on the phone (he is fulfilling pastoral duties, as Philip and Liz are in the States now) and said, "Uncle Tommy, I'm saved. Can you baptize me?"

After the morning service yesterday, she bravely stepped into the (freezing!) baptismal waters and followed the Lord in believers' baptism.

We are rejoicing with the angels in Heaven over this lost sinner who has repented.

Rejoice with us!

And thank you to all who have been praying with us for our
Little Debbie Jolene!

A Little Boy's Pockets

I see him get out of bed; he comes to me and gives me a hug. I want to snuggle just a bit, but he’s off. Off to play…ride his bike, play on the rope swing outside; off to feed the rabbits. He usually comes inside only if he wants a drink or when he gets hungry.

And I pray for him throughout the day. “Lord, keep him safe today. Put your angels of protection around him. Protect him from harm and from evil. Protect his mind and his heart from sin.”

At the end of the day, he puts his jammies on and he hardly has the energy to brush his teeth. This little ball of energy goes, goes, goes all day long. Always ready to give a smile…such a sweet boy. He’s a helper to his Mama.

“Don’t forget to put your dirty clothes in the laundry basket,” I remind him.

The next morning, I’m sorting the laundry, ready to put them in the wash. I remember to check his pockets. Marbles I find one morning. A coloring page he folded and put into his pocket I find the next morning. I found Play-dough one morning….(I’m SO glad I checked his pockets!)

Then one morning, I check his pockets and I find Gospel tracts. Yes, he’d been out the day before handing out Gospel tracts. “Mommy!” he shouted, excitedly when he came in. “Someone got saved!” How he loves going out to share the Gospel! This little boy of mine, saved for 11 months now, so enthusiastic about the things of the Lord.

And I smile. I bow my head right there in front of the washing machine…and I thank the Lord for my boy. My Little Andrew Jonathan.

Today is his birthday. He's eight years old today!

(A very dear friend to our family found out that our Little Andrew
wanted a violin, and they sent a very nice one to him!)

Happy Birthday, My Little Man!
I can’t wait to see what God has for you this year!

“Lord, please fulfill Your purpose in his life! Use his life to bring honor and glory to Your holy name.”