january prayer letter!

Hello friends and family!

The ball has dropped. The last words of “Auld Lang Syne” have faded away. The ashes from the fireworks have settled. And it’s 2008. We begin using our new calendars. We laugh a little bit when we still sign something 2007. We even make some resolutions. With a simple movement of a clock’s secondhand, the entire world is swept into a fresh, new year.

A new year marks a new beginning. And when I think of that, I get a bit of a knot in my stomach, it’s a mixture of intimidation and exhilaration. As I approach 2008, I hesitate and then gingerly approach the first contact of the new year with my words, my thoughts, my actions, my prayers.

So, with both intimidation and exhilaration here’s my first prayer letter of the year. Writing this letter is like looking at the first pages of a new, empty journal. I begin wondering what the tone should be and deliberate about what I should include.

If I look back at my prayer letters from last year I’m not sure I would be able to identify a consistent tone or story that I conveyed. My letters were a bit scattered. They outlined a bit of a crisis with my financial support. And in the midst of that, I would give hurried reflections and updates of my life in Omaha. Thank you for reading through my letters and finding the heart of what I was communicating. Thank you even more for accompanying me through last year. Your support and prayers encouraged me and sustained me through 2007.

This year my desire for my prayer letters is that they are able to have somewhat of a natural flow to them, telling a story of my vocation, struggles, celebrations and life in Omaha. I want my letters to paint an accurate picture of who I am in Omaha and at Word Made Flesh. If I made a portrait of myself based on last year’s prayer letters, I think that there would be broad strokes of crises, fluster, worry and growth. Instead, I want to have a portrait with broad strokes of God’s grace, sustenance, mercy, love, joy, justice, freedom and salvation. I want these strokes to be the foundation of not only my life but of these prayer letters.

Within the body of my prayer letter, I want to include how God’s grace, sustenance, mercy, love, joy and other characteristics are playing out in my life and in the lives of those in my community. And I will also include the times of suffering, loneliness, desperation that I’ve seen in my life and in the lives of those in my community and those whom they serve among. But I want those to be seen through the lens of God’s character.

At the end of my letters, I want you to have a sense of how I’m doing: spiritually, emotionally, physically, financially, vocationally, relationally…you get my drift. Hopefully at the end of these letters you will not only have a clear idea of how you can pray for me and/or support me, but you will also have a clear sense of the invitation I want to continue extending to you: partner with me in what God is doing around the world with Word Made Flesh.

You all have made 2007 a sweet year. From phone calls, emails to letters, you all have invited me into your lives, and I love it. I’ve been able to celebrate the anticipation of a new grandbaby. I’ve been able to share in the excitement of new jobs. I’ve been able to be inspired by visits from friends. I’ve been able to observe selfless love of families in Omaha. I would not be where I am without the unique ways you have linked arms with me in my life. You all have carried me when I’ve been exhausted. You all have prayed for me when you thought of me. You all have sent money by faith to support the ministry of Word Made Flesh. You all are some of the most beautiful expressions of God’s goodness and grace in my life. Thank you for allowing me to observe that.

Here’s to an exciting year together,
Love you,
jara