It finally happened! After much frustration and many unexplained delays, Debbie was finally sworn in as a US citizen during her Naturalization Ceremony on the 12th of December – almost three years after our interview and my Naturalization Ceremony. Thank you all for your prayers and support during this drawn out process.
Our staff conference took place during the first week of December, and was a tremendous blessing. We had our full team of 35 short term mission’s staff attending and met in our newly renovated training center in Gainesville for three days. During our time together, it was such a blessing to see how the team has developed into such a close knit family, praying for one another and showing genuine concern for each other.
During our conference we spent a lot of time talking and brainstorming about mission trip leadership. How to train leaders, recruit leaders and maintain quality while on the mission field. It was so good to be able to involve everyone in the discussion, and for each team member to see the part they play in the effective running of a mission trip. I really believe that the Lord has blessed us with some exceptional staff and I am looking forward to seeing what He will do in and through us in the years to come.
After the staff conference I flew up to Chicago with three other team members, including the director of Short term missions, to meet with the Awana ministry leadership. They had contacted AIM with the view to form a strategic partnership with us. We spent a very productive day talking about both ministries. The bottom line is that they would like to promote AIM/The Edge as their partner for short term missions. They currently have 12000 churches using their program, and 4000 churches using the teen 24/7 ministry program. Needless to say, this is going to be a tremendous exposure for our ministry, potentially referring many more young people to be exposed to the mission field and all that goes along with that.
At the end of this month, we would have been serving at AIM for four years. The time really has flown by and there have been so many highlights that I would never be able to list them all here. This year has brought increased responsibility, and seeing the Lord bring in some new staff to really help us move into all that the Lord has in store for us. I was blessed to be able to minister and train young leaders in five different countries and on three continents. I believe that 2009 will be an even better year filled with adventures and blessings, as long as we keep our eyes focused keenly on the Father and seek His will daily.
Thank you all for your prayer and support for our family and our ministry this year. Please continue to pray for us.
Merry Christmas
God bless you in the New Year.
Athol, Debbie, Christie and Joshua
