This past week MCAN was able to spend a week with us here in Brussels, giving us an opportunity to minister to them as they walk through such a difficult time. We are so proud of these students and staff as they continue to praise God through the difficult times. They continue to press on for what God wants to do in and through them. They may be hurting but continue to trust in God's goodness. We have seen God bless them with His peace that passes all understanding and fuel an even deeper passion to know Him and make Him known. We are thankful for the time we were able to spend with them this week and thankful for all God has done through it.

Thank you all for your prayers and please continue to pray for MCAN as well as Daniel's family in Colorado.

Isaiah 57:1-2

1 The righteous perish,
and no one takes it to heart;
the devout are taken away,
and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
to be spared from evil.
2 Those who walk uprightly
enter into peace;
they find rest as they lie in death.

Nolan was able to be there this past month with another team from Calvary Church, in Toledo, Ohio to continue to minister in this area. Here is an article about what they did and how God is moving there. 

Giving away flour and oil to families so they can make bread.

The children love to see their pictures and have their picture taken.

Familiar faces; we love these kids!

Nolan, along with the Convoy of Hope staff, also sought out to find more communities in Albania where we could make an impact, through our Adopt a Community program. They were encouraged to find another one very similar to the community in Grumbullimi, in the south of Albania. We are thankful for the continued open doors and opportunities to make an impact.

This year our conference was held in Rome, Italy. Although the location sounds incredible it did bring a whole different kind of spiritual battle. In Italy the churches are still VERY conservative. For the most part woman sit on one side of the church and men on the other. Woman wear veils and skirts past the knee. As you can imagine, music is simple and quiet. There is fear of anything new, which is holding them back. As we began to prepare this conference we were a little nervous of what we would be allowed to do, but through our conversations with the pastor he didn’t show any concern or disapproval.

Nolan and I arrived early to get everything set up and ready and as we did the opposition began. They were uncomfortable with the lights and sound that we were setting up as they thought we were making a “disco”, and gave us a strong warning that this would not be acceptable. We humbly moved forward with caution and prayed for them to see our heart. That first night the pastor joined us in the service and by the end of the night he came apologizing, and shared that we did nothing he thought we would do, but could see that we had a heart of worship. He emphasized that he wished he could have this every night in their church. We were also able to make a great impact on the youth of the church as they have longed to be a part of something like this and had believed they never would be able to in Italy. Though there was opposition God used us to make an impact on this church, through our positive attitude and passion to go after God. Please pray that this will only spur them on to go further and not be held back by fear.

We have heard great reports from our directors on the impact this conference had in their students lives. One director writes,

“Our group was really impacted by so many different aspects between the workshops, the different preachers and the worship time. Their experience in Rome left a big mark in their hearts! Thank you so much for all your work!!! The impact goes far beyond the three days of conference!” - Summer Balverde (Paris, France).

We were also able to celebrate 3 new programs during this conference! We are exciting at the momentum being built and passion to create disciples that will ultimately make a great impact on this continent.

Thank you for praying for us during this time. God has done so many great things through it!

This is not a testimony because we got what we wanted, but a testimony of one way he is showing His love and provision for us. These past few months God has provided in so many miraculous ways. Why is it so easy to forget these things and move on to our next worry? Why is it so easy to become anxious on how the next need we have will be provided for when he's JUST shown us time after time that he is our provider and he IS taking care of us?

I read in my devotional this morning that

The service ended with some beautiful words written by Grandpa himself.

Jim Pancoast's Last Words
(a letter we found in his briefcase)

Recently I have been pondering the thought - where am I going to spend eternity? and as I went to scripture, the Bible was painting out - that Heaven was the absolute place for me. Very specific. 

I then realized many years ago I had asked Jesus into my heart and life. In so doing, I was told that my name was now written in the Lambs Book of Life in Heaven, giving me assurance that someday I would be called home to heaven. 

I read a story of a soldier who lay mortally wounded on a cot and he kept calling out, "here, here" those around him asked what he meant by saying "here". The answer from the dying man… "I hear the roll call in heaven and my name is about the be called". Suddenly he shouted "here" and then he was gone. 

So my thoughts went to the time when I was a soldier and I stood on the dock beside a huge troop ship that was being loaded with soldiers going to do battle somewhere. There was a man standing alongside the gang way leading aboard that ship. He had a pad an pencil and as each mans name was called he would be a check mark beside the name. The solider then boarded the ship. I too stood in line waiting for my name to be called and soon I heard Pancoast, and I answered, James W, and I too boarded ship. 

And so it will be, my days are surely growing shorter. Time is passing swiftly by and I am waiting for that call… Pancoast. I shall answer James W. 

And I then shall ascend those golden stairs to my new home. 

Praise the Lord. My hope is in Jesus.

Our hope is also in Jesus and we look forward to the day we can be reunited in Heaven. We love you Grandpa!

We feel so blessed that we were able to be with family during this time. Our trip was spent with SO much family and that is so special for us. Another blessing that came from something so sad was it brought so many people around that we probably wouldn't of seen otherwise.

Colton had a lot of time with his Aunties and his first sleepover ever with his Aunt Theresa. When we dropped him off he blew us a kiss and said goodbye. When I went to pick him up he didn't want to leave . I'd say he had a good time!

Here's Colton with his Aunt Theresa

Colton having some snuggle time with his Poppi

He loved his cousin Emily! They had so much fun laughing and playing together.

Being in Florida also gave us the opportunity to connect with some great friends and supporters. We love being able to connect face to face and share what's going on here, and just catch up on life. We were also able to meet with several churches, share our vision and heart for Europe and how they will be able to get involved with the work here. We are excited to see more churches invest in Europe on a deeper level.

We also had another Europe Benefit with our friend, Lyn Bohyn, who is Belgian but lives in Florida. It was a blessing to be able to meet her circle of friends and see how God is connecting us with people who want to help make a difference in Europe.

This trip was a big step of faith for us, but God was SO faithful, going above and beyond to meet every one of our needs emotionally, spiritually and financially, so that we could return to Europe with excitement and support that will help us last for the long haul. We are so thankful for the relationships that we have had and have made on this trip. We hope you all know how much you mean to us.

We were able to spend Christmas in Florida with the family. What a perfect way to end our trip, giving to each other and taking time to be thankful for each person. Nolan's family gives Christmas cards to each other every year and that is something that I have appreciated so much! To not just give with gifts but to give with words, words of love and words of encouragement. A tradition that we will pass on to our family.

Yea Christmas!!

Other highlights from our time in Florida

• More sun and beach time!
• SO much family time
• Shell factory zoo
• One of Nolan's best friends, Alex, came for a few days
• Lots of great restaurants and food
• More time with family and friends

From Florida we had one more week in Michigan where my Parents and sister came to have Christmas with us and say goodbye. We had one last goodbye with our friends there before we went to Rockford for a couple days to hang out with our friends from Rockford First, and finally flew out from Chicago back to Belgium.

We are thankful for our time in the USA and we love you guys!

Then he discovered musical toys

And just loves a good song (this is my favorite)

We will see where this skill takes him, but one thing is for sure he LOVES music and he LOVES to dance!