As a grade school and junior high student, I looked forward to getting report cards. My personality and learning style worked well in the classroom, and the grades almost always looked pretty good.

My grades in high school and the first year of college didn’t hold up so well. General studies classes, like math and economics, didn’t play to my strengths. Even in those downyears, I liked the feedback. Knowing where I stood compared to a set standard and knowing what I might do to bring those grades back up was comforting.

When my student days ended, I learned that getting such feedback in “real life” wasn’t as common or as clear. But in our work on Worldwide Challenge, we get specific feedback twice a year through two contests we enter.

This month, the Evangelical Press Association awards were announced at the association’s convention. We won three photo awards and we earned an Award of Merit for the magazine as a whole. The judge’s summary said, “This magazine’s strengths are its strong writing, editorial mix and pacing, and the crisp, contemporary feel of its inside pages.”

Anne Marie and I also got great feedback from our 14 students on the Writing for Life training we did during the convention (shown in this photo). We even led two additional sessions that we hadn’t planned when time slots opened for them. And as the association’s new president I led the annual business meeting and a board meeting.

Thanks for your prayers for those two parts of the EPA convention. And thanks for your prayers for Bethany. She is still looking for answers regarding her mix of health concerns.

Over the next few weeks would you pray for Anne Marie and in our communication roles at Cru? We’re finishing writing and editing an upcoming issue of the magazine that includes two of Anne Marie’s articles. And we’ve started planning our first few 2016 issues. International travel requires long lead times so our writers and photographers can arrive at the right time of year. Please pray, too, for Michael and Bethany as they finish their semesters, with finals April 29-May 5.

As always, we’re grateful for your role in our lives and ministry.

We’re no longer the parents of teenagers. Last week, Bethany turned 20. It was spring break, and both she and Michael were home so we could celebrate as a family. (In the photo below, she’s getting ready to blow out candles on her cake.)

This is just one more landmark we’re passing, with more to come. Both of our children—yes, even in their 20s they are our children—finished high school. Both moved out of the house and entered college. This December, we expect to celebrate Michael’s college graduation, and next May we expect to celebrate Bethany’s completion of college.

As the landmarks pass at home, new ones come at work. Each of Anne Marie’s trips for magazine stories and training opportunities is a new step. She is preparing for training events in Colorado, Texas and Ohio.

While my job situation has remained steady, new opportunities have come my way as well. Over the past year, I’ve been doing more editing than I have in the past. And in about three weeks, I officially take on the added role of president of the Evangelical Press Association. This volunteer position allows me to help serve the association’s 300 member publications as each takes the gospel and discipleship training to different audiences.

How about you? What landmarks have you passed recently? What new ones are you preparing for in the near future?

As you think of us in the next few weeks, would you pray for three things? First, Anne Marie and I plan to lead the next Writing for Life training event in Colorado, April 7 and 8, for members of the EPA. Please pray for success as we prepare six lessons, and pray that between 15 and 20 participants will come. Second, pray for me as I help lead the EPA’s convention that week. Third, pray for Bethany as she makes a major adjustment. She will finish her semester at home due to an ongoing illness. Pray for her to find a diagnosis and treatment for her health problems. She plans to return to school in Nashville in August.

Thank you so much for your partnership in our ministry and in the life of our family.

On January 10, after we watched the taillights of the car taking Bethany back to college recede into the distance, Mark turned to me and asked if I was ready for my next adventure. I was hoping he would be taking me out to breakfast. Instead, he asked if I’d like to go to Ecuador. On Tuesday.

Of course the answer was, “Yes!” Four days later, I landed in Quito, Ecuador, at midnight, along with Worldwide Challenge photographer Tom Mills.

The next day, we met Javi Guaman and his wife, Andi. Javi is Cru’s city director in Quito. They took us to a newly constructed high school where we watched volunteers in five different classrooms present “How to Get Better Grades and Have More Fun.”

More than 500 middle- and high-school students heard the gospel-based content. The following week when we returned, the volunteers clearly explained the gospel during a second assembly. More than 200 students prayed and received Christ.

Javi works with a team of dedicated volunteers who help him increase his reach to more high school students. One of those volunteers, Jeff, spends 20 hours a week on various campuses helping high school students grow in their faith.

At one school we visited, a group of six-year-olds approached me. The leader of the group squared her shoulders, stepped forward and in her very best English said, “Hello.” She stole my heart. We told each other our names, worked on our colors in both English and Spanish, and played the “What is this?” game. They told me the Spanish name. I told them the English name. The bell rang, and they disappeared. They returned and each handed me a flower picked from the perfectly manicured landscape on the edge of the playground. We traded hugs and they ran to class.

Whenever I travel, I realize just how small the world is. Jesus commanded his disciples to take the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth. What I would consider my ends of the earth will always be someone else’s Jerusalem. It was so encouraging for me to see the gospel advancing in Quito through the work of Javi and Andi and their team.

As you think of us in the next couple weeks, please pray this story as I write it and, then Mark and I edit it. We want God to be glorified as He brings students to Christ and works through Javi and his team of volunteers.

I’m grateful for opportunities to travel to places like Quito so I can tell everyone about God’s marvelous work. Thank you for playing such an important part in this work. Please let us know how we can pray for you.

I sat in our living room yesterday, writing and listening to a gentle rain on our windows as it starts, then stops, then starts again. The sky has been gray for the last two days. And it matches my mood.

A few days ago I got the sad, but not unexpected news of the death of my mother, Joy. Sad, obviously. Not unexpected, as she’s had health problems during the last several years. The day after Thanksgiving, she got the flu and never recovered. A few days ago she told my dad that she was ready to go, and that wasn’t a surprise. She lived a full life and her love for Christ and hope of heaven stayed strong to the end.

She was raised in the faith. Her grandfather was a circuit-riding Methodist preacher. He immigrated to the U.S. from Germany and settled on a farm in south-central Nebraska. I visited that farm often as a child, and still have Homestead Certificate no. 4932, signed by President Chester A. Arthur, as a memento.

Her dad took over the farm, leaving school after sixth grade when his father died early. Still, church was the center of life. He eagerly taught a Sunday school class for high school students, even with his limited education.

Then, at a Methodist Youth Fellowship, event my mom met Ross Winz. They carried the faith tradition into marriage and parenting, and I’m a beneficiary of that.

When I first joined Cru, I though back to the stories of three generations of people who chose to follow Christ. I hope and trust I have carried on that legacy.

As darkness swallows the gray sky, and the rain seems to have ended, I’m making preparations to go back “home” to Holdrege for mom’s memorial service. Dad chose to wait several days for the service, so we’ll gather on January 26. Anne Marie and I plan to be there, and Bethany hopes to join us. Michael’s schedule doesn’t permit him to come along.

At times like this, we’re especially grateful for the role you play in our lives. We treasure your prayers for us as we walk though these days, and for my dad, Ross, and my brother, Rex. Thanks so much.

(The photo below, from a few years back shows my parents with Michel and Bethany.)

Happy Birthday, Jesus. Tonight we remember that you are Immanuel, God with us, the reason we celebrate.

When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, under the law, to redeem those of us who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Tonight is that night.

Jesus, the Son of God, who possessed both the power to create and the power to redeem, laid aside His rights as God, humbled himself and took on the role as a servant. Emmanuel, God with us.

He called Himself the Son of God, saying that He and the Father were one, and He could do nothing apart from His Father. He was God, coming in the flesh, to live among us, to model a life fully surrendered to His Father, to rescue us from our sins, to give us the power to do even greater works than He did.

This evening, as we light the final candle on the Advent wreath, we celebrate the babe in the manger. Emmanuel, God with us, the one who will save us from our sins. When we welcome Christ, the Son of God, into our lives, we are no longer slaves to sin. Instead we become God’s children, sons and daughters, ready to receive an eternal inheritance. Finally, the wait is over. Our king has arrived.

Let’s pray: Thank you Jesus, the Son of God, for coming to earth to save us from our sins. We can do nothing apart from you. Tonight, after waiting imperfectly and impatiently, we gladly surrender ourselves to you and invite you to take your rightful place in our lives. Thank you that we can become your children, sons and daughters who are no longer slaves to sin. At long last, You are here, with us.

When did life become so complex? Sweet Mary did everything her mother told her to do. Kind Joseph planned to marry her so she could support him at home while he supported her with his trade.

And then Mary announced she was pregnant. Suddenly their perfectly planned lives were thrown into chaos. Grieving Joseph planned to divorce the woman he loved. Frightened Mary understood he had no choice.

But then, an angel of the Lord appeared to unravel the mystery. “Fear not,” he said. “The child growing in Mary is from the Holy Spirit.” So Joseph, placing faith in what he couldn’t see, continued his engagement to Mary. He took care of Mary while Mary took care of the baby. They raised him from childhood and He raised them from the dead.

They trusted the Holy Spirit, who engineered the events of their lives, the third person of the trinity, the one who convicted them of sin and led them into truth. The one who promised to be with them, and who promises to be with us, too, even to the end of the age.

Today, as we light the fourth candle of Advent, let’s thank God that He is Emmanuel, God with us, the one who sees us through the events of our lives even when they seem unmanageable. Let’s prepare our hearts to receive Him as we wait impatiently for His coming.

Let’s pray: Thank you, Father, for the gift of the Holy Spirit, who has promised to be with us, to convict us of sin, and to lead us into truth, even in the midst of our troubles. Prepare us as we wait impatiently for His coming so we can give him His rightful place in our lives.

Advent means waiting. We wait for the day when we will celebrate our Savior, coming among us as one of us to pay for our sins and give us power over sin and death through the Holy Spirit.  

May you know Immanuel, God with us, the Son of God, this Christmas season.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”  (Luke 2: 13, 14 ESV)

On the night Christ was born, the angels announced peace. Peace to Mary who gave birth to a child conceived by the Holy Spirit. Peace to Joseph who married his pregnant bride and walked beside her throughout her journey.

Peace to the shepherds watching their flocks on just another ordinary night. Peace to those who were near and those who were far away. At long last, the unfettered reign of sin was about to expire. Emmanuel, God with us, was on his way, providing a pathway to peace with God.

Today, as we light the second candle of the Advent Wreath, that same Jesus, the one we wait for, has broken down the dividing wall of race, gender and privilege. In these heated days of division, while our culture screams for war, and the injustice in our midst astounds us, we wait impatiently and imperfectly for Jesus, the Prince of Peace to join us in the flesh and be Emmanuel, God with us.

Let’s pray: Jesus, as we wait impatiently for your coming, break down the dividing walls in our lives and in our cities. Prepare our hearts to receive you as our Prince of Peace.

Advent means waiting. We wait for the day when we will celebrate our Savior, coming among us as one of us to pay for our sins and give us power over sin and death through the Holy Spirit.  

May you know Immanuel, God with us, the Son of God, this Christmas season.

Week 1: Christ, the Anointed One

At the beginning of his earthly ministry, Jesus stood in the temple and read from the scroll of Isaiah:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives

and recovering of sight to the blind,

to set at liberty those who are oppressed,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Jesus, God’s chosen Son, the anointed one, came filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, announcing good news to the poor, freedom for those trapped in slavery, sight to those who were blind, relief for those carrying heavy burdens. God’s favor rested on Him.

Through one man, Adam, sin entered the world, and death through sin which spread to all men. Through another man, Christ, came an abundance of grace, the undeserved gift of having our sins forgiven, of being made right with God.

As we prepare to light the first Advent candle and prepare our hearts to receive our king, let’s take a moment to remember Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, who came as flesh and blood to live among us. He not only paid the price for our sins on the cross, he gave us the power to overcome sin and death.

Let’s pray:

Father, thank you for sending Christ, the anointed one, chosen and set apart to live among us and become the payment for our sins, to set us free from slavery, to open our eyes when we were blind, to provide relief from our heavy burdens. Prepare our hearts to receive our coming king as we wait for his arrival.

(These are scripts read at church during the lighting of the Advent wreath).

A lot of history and experience came together for us in our ministry this year. We’re looking back on 2014, and beginning to plan 2015, with gratitude to God.

Anne Marie returned to the office as a writer last winter. In June, on short notice she made a trip to Korea to report about how our staff members are using short films to share the gospel. Stories from that trip have already appeared online at Cru.org, and more will appear in the next issue of Worldwide Challenge magazine.

She also continued to build Writing for Life, teaching 25 staff members in Orlando and going on the road twice to teach 24 others. Writing for Life gives us a chance to help a growing number of people use the written word in print and online to proclaim Christ’s love. That is Cru’s focus, and the reason we have both served as staff members for more than 30 years.

I continue serving as editor in chief of Worldwide Challenge. My work on the magazine increased this year as one of our editors took a leave. I did much more editing this year and I enjoy the process of working on stories with our team of writers, making each story better and helping the writers increase their skill.

What are your highlights from this year as it comes to an end? And what do you look forward to in 2015? Let us know in the comments below.

We’re excited about the coming year. Anne Marie will continue to write for the magazine and our websites. And she plans to continue offering Writing for Life training. She’s been invited to teach a session here in Orlando, and has tentative invitations to teach in Texas, Colorado and Ohio. Two of those trips would be to train more Cru staff members, and the other would take the training beyond Cru staff members, as it will be offered to communicators with a wide array of ministries.

Her next magazine story is designed to help our more than 50,000 readers learn how they can share the gospel with their friends and others they know.

My work with the magazine will continue. And in May I’ll become the president of the Evangelical Press Association, which serves the staff members of about 300 Christian publications. It is a volunteer position that has to be added to my other work, so I’ll be busy.

We also look forward to family events this year. Michael plans to graduate with an engineering degree from the University of Central Florida next December. Bethany is in her junior year at Trevecca Nazarene University, and she plans to be done with an internship.

Mark and I just returned from a second Writing for Life three-day training on the Athletes in Action campus near Dayton, Ohio. Our students learned to write articles that will help readers grow spiritually. Their finished pieces will be published at various Cru online platforms.

We connected with Cru staff members from around the country who are budding writers looking for ways to sharpen their writing skills. We present content, leave time for students to write during workshops, and then offer feedback.

As much fun as the time is, the real success of what we do happens after the event ends. Seven months ago, we held our first training at Athletes in Action. Afterward, I kept coaching several of the people who attended. Since then, six of our students published stories in six different places, including Worldwide Challenge magazine, Cru.org and Athletesinaction.org.

Shannon published my favorite piece, a first-person article at Cru.org called “When You’re not a Mom on Mother’s Day.” The responses Shannon received indicated that she helped her readers grow spiritually. Courtney, another student who attended the training, has published three pieces at Cru.org. One of those articles will also appear in an upcoming issue of Worldwide Challenge.

This training ended less than a week ago. Three students have written strong pieces that will be posted on their ministries’ websites or at Cru.org.  We also have invitations from two Cru ministries to train their teams in 2015. Can’t wait. We equip writers so they can skillfully tell glorious stories of how God is at work around the world.

As you think of us over the next month, please pray for me as I follow up with staff members who attended our event. Pray that we can create content that will cause our readers to grow spiritually. Pray, too, for Mark and I as we continue writing and editing for Worldwide Challenge and Cru.org.

Thank you for the crucial role you play. We are grateful for your prayers and your gifts, which allow us to do the work God has called us to do. Please let us know how we can pray for you.