How are you? How has your New Year started? In the past month, our family celebrated two significant milestones.

First, Michael graduated from University of Central Florida with a degree in engineering after four and a half years of academic instruction and life experience. (The family after the graduation ceremony: Mark’s dad, Ross is at the left and my parents, Jim and Helen Larkins, are at the right.)

Second, Bethany returned to Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville for the Spring semester. Last March, she came home so we could help her take care of her health. Shortly after that, she was diagnosed and treated for Lyme Disease. While she’s not cured, she’s undergoing treatment and wants to finish her degree.

Just like Michael and Bethany, I’m moving into a new opportunity. Mine is with Writing for Life. Seven months ago, at Cru 15, I spent time with my friends from the International School Project, a ministry of Cru. ISP was formed in 1991 with an invitation from the Russian Ministry of Education to help develop morals and ethics in their youth.

Teachers are strategic in influencing the direction of a nation. ISP staff members, in partnership with local and national ministries of education, sponsor conferences to equip educators in their classrooms and to help raise the moral standards in society.

ISP has trained more than 72,000 teachers in 14 countries, influencing more than 2,500,000 students and their parents.  ISP staff members have ministries that include Russia, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Central America.

From January 21-31, I plan to travel to Taiwan and lead a small group of teachers who want to grow in their own faith and help their students grow in faith as well. I will also look for ways to help ISP collect stories about teachers and students who have trusted Christ to forgive their sins through the years.

Please pray that I will be a blessing to the Taiwanese teachers. Pray, too, that I will collect stories that best illustrate how ISP works. Thank you for the important part you play in our lives. We’re grateful for your prayers and your generosity.

Sincerely in Christ,

Anne Marie, for the Winz family

“But who sets direction for the writers in the ministry?” Susie asked. As one of two writers with Cru in Boston who traveled to Dallas for our training, she wanted to know if anyone could help give her and her co-worker, Michelle, some direction. (I’m coaching Michelle in this photo.)

“I think there’s a guild,” I answered. A group of Cru writers from the Campus ministry join a conference call every month to talk about projects they’re working on. Susie and Michelle are part of that group,

Yes, but it’s not enough,” Susie answered. I didn’t know how to respond. Ministries are encouraged to forge their own paths. Susie was looking for something more structured.

“What if I walked through this with you in the coming year. Would that be helpful?” I asked. Along with training teams at national events, I also coach writers for a year at a time.

“Will you do that?” Susie asked. “Of course,” I answered. I train, I coach and I equip writers to tell more powerful stories. Late last month, Mark and I traveled to Dallas with Becky, the new editor in chief of Worldwide Challenge, to train 21 writers. They came from various Cru ministries plus three other non-profits: Voice of the Martyrs, Mission to the World and Probe Ministries.

When we train, four things happen. First, everyone writes. Then I give feedback. We take extra time for meals so that we can have in-depth conversations and learn from each other. Finally, we give the writers time to rewrite what they first produced. These conferences work because we make space for writers, made in the image of God, to create by writing. Writers gain confidence and they do amazing work.

Please thank God for the people who came and for the things they learned while they were with us. Ask Him to increase their effectiveness as they begin to practice the things they learned. Please pray that God will give me and the leaders I’m talking to wisdom about what comes next. I have several opportunities, including a trip to Taiwan in January to consider.

Thank you very much for the important part you play in our lives. Through your prayers and generosity, Mark and I are able to do the work God has called us to do. Please let us know how we can pray for you.

– Anne Marie –

More than a year ago, I sensed that it was time to make a change.

I began to think that I should help find the next editor in chief of Worldwide Challenge magazine. While I’ve enjoyed my work, I recognized that someone with fresh ideas could help the magazine improve, while helping Cru better combine print and digital publishing, such as websites.

At the same time, I knew I should remain a Cru staff member and keep working in some communications role.

Anne Marie and I discussed it, and she agreed. My director, Mike, who oversees Cru’s communications work in the U.S., was initially reluctant, but he came around as we talked. To make that change, we had to identify the next editor in chief, and get that person prepared. Then we had to figure out what I would do next.

The first step looked clear to me. But I couldn’t make the decision alone.

I was sure that Becky Thomton should be the next editor in chief. Spotting talent in up-and-coming writers and editors is one highlight of being an editor. Becky joined our team in 2001 as a writer, and I soon knew she had a future in publishing. Over the years, Becky has traveled the U.S. and the world gathering stories for Worldwide Challenge. She served as an editor for the magazine, and then moved on to help edit Cru’s websites.

A group of Cru leaders, including Mike and me, considered a few candidates. In the end, we agreed that Becky was the best fit.

When we considered my next role, there were a few options. Then we got the news that our current managing editor would be leaving our team at the end of the year for a different ministry.

My previous job, as managing editor, was a natural fit for my personality and strengths. Might it work for me to move back to that? Mike, Becky and I pondered, prayed and planned together, concluding that it could.

Now, Becky and I are working together on the transition. We’ll both help with the magazine and with the website, Cru.org. (I encourage you to click that name and take a look.)

As Becky begins to lead our team, I’ll take some time away from the office for planning in November. That will allow her to settle into the new role while the current managing editor is still on duty.

Would you pray for us as I train Becky this month and for both of us as we take on new roles? Also, please pray for Anne Marie as she leads a Writing for Life training in Dallas on October 20-23. I’ll join her, as will Becky—something Anne Marie had planned before knowing that Becky would be the new editor in chief.

Thanks for your generosity and prayers. Let us know how we can pray for you.

We’re grateful for your friendship and your concern for our family over the years. As both Michael and Bethany face milestones, we decided it’s time to bring you up to date on what is happening with all four of us.

Michael plans to graduate from the University of Central Florida in December with a degree in mechanical engineering. We’re proud of the hard work he’s put in, and grateful that he earned and kept some generous scholarships. College has also allowed him to gain leadership experience by serving as president of the running club. He’s looking for a job, and of course we hope he finds one that he likes, maybe close to Orlando.

Bethany’s last few years have included opportunities and challenges. After facing a mix of medical problems, she finally has a diagnosis: Lyme disease. Fatigue and constant joint pain are two of the symptoms, and are so severe that she is spending this semester at home seeking treatment, instead of at school.

At the same time, she has written and edited her book, One Dress. One Year. The book focuses on her year-long project to fight human trafficking. It mixes some excerpts from her daily blog posts with narration about what was happening behind each post. It releases on March 1, and is already available for pre-sales on some websites.

After a summer break, Anne Marie restarted her neighborhood Bible study, now in their 18th year.

At church, Anne Marie and I continue working together to coordinate adult ministries. This includes Sunday school and women’s Bible studies now, and we hope to add othe
r small groups soon.

Here are some current prayer requests.

• Please pray that Michael will finish school well, and will find the right job.
• Ask God to guide the doctors helping Bethany to find a treatment plan. She is trying a mix of things now, but is not seeing a lot of progress yet.
• Pray that Anne Marie and I will find ways to effectively make disciples at church and in our neighborhood.
• Please continue to pray for upcoming Writing for Life training events in Orlando this month and in Dallas in October.
• Ask God for wisdom for me as I continue leading the magazine team.

Thanks so much for praying for us. And please let us know how we can pray for you.

Photo: At Scott’s Bluff National Monument in Nebraska on our way to Colorado.

This summer, at Cru 15, our staff conference in Colorado, I met a dear staff couple. They came to BAM, a bloggers and authors meet-up. “We’ve been through a traumatic situation,” they said.” We think God wants us to write a book. Can you help us?” They are parents of a son who suffered a brain injury while playing football.

My friend Sus Schmitt and I hosted the gathering, providing a forum for staff authors, bloggers, readers and writer “wannabes” to talk and trade advice.

More than 160 people gathered to ask for and give advice. The buzz of conversation filled the room. Staff members connected with other staff members, talking about how to write and publish everything from books to blog posts. No structured program; only conversations.

When the couple approached me, I pointed them to Ney Bailey, one of our staff members who wrote a memoir called Faith is Not a Feeling. She sat with them, listened to their story and offered insight from her own writing and speaking experience. During their 30-minute conversation, she wrote out her best thoughts so they could take the notes with them.

Of course they thanked her for spending time with them and she thanked them for telling her their story. Later, she told me how very much it had meant to her to hear their story.

My favorite conversation? For more than a year, I had been coaching Leslie via email as she wrote monthly devotions for mothers of preschoolers. She found me at BAM. What a thrill to give her a hug and tell her how much I enjoy reading what she writes.

God has given each of us a story to live and to tell. Together, Sus and I are using our expertise to help our staff members tell their stories online and in print so that people will come to Christ.

Throughout the conference, I had 15 conversations in which I coached our staff members to become better communicators. Most of them want to write on websites or social media.

A lot of outreach and discipleship now happens in this digital realm. Through the website www.everystudent.com, for example, thousands of people have indicated decisions for Christ.

Thank you for the valuable part you play in our lives. We’re grateful for your prayers and support. God uses you to allow us to continue doing the work He has called us to do.

Please let us know how we can pray for you.

– Anne Marie –

I have the twelfth version of a story for a future issue of Worldwide Challenge on my desk. Most articles don’t go through this many editing steps.

Over the last few years, our writers have taken on increasingly complex stories as Cru finds ways to take the gospel to groups of people who need a specialized approach.

Our May/June issue featured a story about the Nations branch of our campus ministry. We tell of a couple, both Native Americans, who purposefully present the gospel in meaningful ways to other Native Americans. For over 400 years, missionary activity has been focused on this group, yet only five percent have come to Christ. Now, this couple and other Native American believers are adjusting their approach without changing the core message of the gospel.

Our July/August issue reports about a campus outreach to Deaf students at the Rochester Institute of Technology. Did you know the Deaf don’t consider themselves people with a disability, but rather a distinct culture? They have their own language, American Sign Language, and ways of doing things usually not understood by outsiders.

Now, in version 12 on my desk, is a story about veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Cru Military seeks to assist those who have served the country. Coming to Christ does not solve the problems of PTSD, but He can offer hope to many men, and increasingly, women, who have been damaged in ways a hospital stay cannot address.

As Cru changes tactics to proclaim the gospel, those of us who tell the Cru story need to stay informed. This summer we’ll have a chance to learn about more new tactics.

Next month, Anne Marie and I plan to attend our staff conference, Cru ’15, in Colorado. We’ll hear from Cru ministry leaders and from leading Christian speakers about the issues facing us in society. On the way back we’ll visit family and friends in Nebraska.

Over the next few weeks would you pray about for our travel plans?

• First, please pray that we would complete the work we need to finish before we leave on July 9. Anne Marie and I both have multiple deadlines in that time.
• Second, would you pray for good health as we work hard now and then as we travel?
• And third, please pray that we could get our schedule set up as we try to visit people in Nebraska, and for appointments in Colorado as Anne Marie meets with fellow staff members to plan upcoming Writing for Life training events. (The photo above shows Anne Marie during our last trip to Colorado for a training event.)

Thanks so much for praying for us. And please let us know how we can pray for you.

I recently moved into a new office and onto a new team. I am working full-time with Writing for Life, training and coaching communicators at Cru.

Now I report to Judy Douglass, the wife of Cru’s president and my friend, with whom I have worked for the past five years. She’s thrilled, and so am I.

While I train and coach the three writers in her office, I will also develop new material to train and coach other communicators throughout Cru. You can see what I’m up to at www.writingforlife.org.

A year and a half ago, I took a position on the writers team to write for Worldwide Challenge and Cru.org, reaching more than 50,000 readers.

I traveled overseas and wrote two international features. I also wrote about how to share your faith as well as a personal experience piece about fasting. In so many ways, it was a great time. But it came with a cost.

While meeting writing deadlines, I also trained communicators on other teams throughout the ministry as part of Writing for Life. As the year progressed, the training opportunities outstripped the amount of time I could give to them.

In an attempt to balance my time, I thought I would step away from some of the training I had done. When I tried to scale back, people like Tim, the leader for the communications team at Athletes inAction and Larry, one of the editors from the Campus ministry, asked me to please keep trainingtheir teams.

Finally, when I missed a writing deadline, we knew something needed to change. I had to pick writing or training. I couldn’t keep doing both. While I miss my companions from the writers team, it’s a relief to have one job description instead of two. And I hope Judy’s influence will help open some doors for me to train teams internationally as well.

Thank you for your prayers and support of the work Mark and I do for Cru. We are grateful for your involvement in our lives. We can’t do what we do without your help.

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.