Dear Friends,
We wish you all a very Merry Christmas (Feliz Natal in Portuguese) and pray that you have a wonderful time celebrating and remembering the birth of our Savior! We are so blessed by each and every one of you who read these messages and pray for us. We are so thankful for the Lord’s provision during this time and for providing us with good health. I pray that this Christmas will be full of joy for each of you as you honor the One who gave everything for us all.
We have truly enjoyed our 4 months in Portugal so far. Language is more challenging than we expected. There is so much to learn to be able to share with others on a personal level in their native language. To be able to ask someone about their faith or to share how God has worked in our lives takes more language skill than survival Portuguese. “It just takes time” is the theme we hear from our instructor and from other missionaries here that are ahead of us. We can’t rush the process. We have been told by several missionaries that the time we spend learning the language is very beneficial and extremely important!
The Lord has used this time in so many ways to prepare our hearts, our minds, our emotions, and to strengthen our faith. We are learning more than just the language. We are learning to live in a completely different culture, without our friends and family close by. We are learning how to live daily life in a much smaller home without many of the modern conveniences we were used to. We are learning how to respect each other's space and how to live simpler lives. We are learning to depend on each other and how to manage our time between homeschooling, our classes, homework, cooking, and cleaning. But most importantly, we are learning, even more now, to truly depend on the Lord for our daily needs.
The Lord has provided some very wise veteran missionaries that have been such a blessing to us by helping us understand that this is all preparing us for our ministry in Angola. Most of the challenges we face now will continue when we move to Angola. It has all helped us understand that Portugal is a stepping stone in our ministry. We are celebrating the birth of our Savior who gave up heaven to come to this world and die on a cross for each of us. It helps put things in perspective...
We are ever grateful for the Lord's provisions and for your continued support through prayers, encouragement, and financial donations. We couldn't be here without it and we appreciate each and every one of you.
As we celebrate the birth of the Savior, we rejoice in His extreme love for us. We wish you all the very Merriest Christmas and a very Happy and Blessed 2013!
10 Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
Luke 2:10-11
Merry Christmas!
Danny, April, Riley, & McKenna
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AGA Inc.
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Addison, NY 14801-1009
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