Toppling Dominoes
This month was a month of changes, celebration, and clarity. For weeks (even months) now Ally and I have been looking ahead to August 2020 with anticipation and expectation.
Changes
For months we have been waiting for the birth of our beautiful daughter, Frances Belle Van Waardhuizen, and on August 12 in the middle of the night she made her arrival into the loving arms of her mother and father. There are so many stories to share that display God’s kindness, grace, and mercy even from this birth that Ally and I will be recounting for years to come.
Frances and Ally are doing great. Aksel and Flora are adjusting to the newness of the arrival of Frances as well as can be expected, and I am simply smitten with our little girl.
Celebration
Leading up to this new birth I had an amazing opportunity to lead my final event in student ministry. The Cedar Falls Bible Conference, a 99 year old tradition of the Cedar Valley, asked me and the newest staff member of Redeemer Church, Jacob, to lead the student ministry portion of this conference. I mention this because I want to share the amazing victory that was had in Jesus the last week of July! We had the opportunity to baptize four students into the Kingdom, and we saw a fifth student give their life to Christ (but was uncertain about immediate baptism)! What an amazing victory for the Kingdom of God! I hope that you all find this encouraging as you see the fruits of your prayers and support. It is our prayer that this would be a reflection of what is to come as we set off to minister to the people of Denver, CO.
Clarity
While we were in the thrill of nurturing and caring for our newest family member we were thrust into the process of being assessed for church planting through the Send Network. On August 17 & 18 Ally and I embarked on a two-day virtual journey where we answered a barrage of questions about ministry, marriage, and so much else to assess our readiness and unity in our goal of planting Capitol City Church. Ally and I are thrilled by how much we were cared for during this process (especially since Ally was a mere six days post-delivery!). We are also thrilled to announce that we have been given a GREEN LIGHT to continue to Denver to begin our apprenticeship with The Oaks Church.
With this clarity we are looking to move our family into Denver sometime at the end of October or beginning of November to begin our apprenticeship, and acclimating to the city. This is yet another step in the process of planting that we have been anticipating for years. We are so thrilled to see what God might do over these next two months as we continue to prepare through fundraising, selling our stuff, and prepare to say our goodbyes.
Vision Nights
Come join us this October in Cedar Falls or Cedar Rapids for a night of vision casting, worship, and giving to the mission of Capitol City Church.
Location in Cedar Falls is 815 Orchard Drive.
Location in Cedar Rapids is 4444 1st Ave. NE in Lindale Mall next to Von Maur.
Prayer Needs
Unity between Ally and I as we navigate sleep deprivation, new family dynamics, and the strain of transitioning.
Clarity and finality on our housing situation in Denver this Fall. We have a potential home this fall, but it is still not a guarantee.
Pray for funding! One of the primary works I am doing right now is fundraising by asking anyone and everyone to join our Partnership Team.
That God would send at least ten churches to partner with us both in prayer and in financial support as we begin our residency this coming September.
For individuals to partner with us in financial support to meet our Phase One Financial Goal for our year of Residency.
A team of missionaries to go with us into Capitol Hill to reach out to the lost.
