New Year, Same Challenges

Happy New Year, my friends!

Last month we sent out Christmas letters and cards to all of our supporters. In that letter, I made a request for donations, noting that our ministry was in a semi-precarious position. And it was.

The outpouring of support as a response to that request was beautiful. Not only did many people give more than usual, but many reached out and told us that they love us and are praying for us. Those encouraging words mean more than you can possibly know.

The truth is, we are not out of the woods yet, but we’re in a much better position than we were, and we have you to thank for that. Truly, I know this sounds cliche, but we could not do this work without you.

The emotional toll of the last few months was real, and it was a lot to bear. Many people reached out to me specifically, asking if I needed support or someone to talk to. I did need someone to talk to, and now I am working through some of those things with him.

The end of the year has helped Rachel and me reframe and rethink some of our coping strategies as we seek to love our neighbor as ourselves. And so we’re working on putting in place better, more specific boundaries to protect our mental and emotional health, our relationship, and our children. For example, we’ve decided to silence all work notifications on our phones on Sundays.

We intend to be doing this work for the long-haul, and so it is essential that we have guardrails in place so that we don’t burn out in this intense environment. I stated this when we first started this work, and I’ll state it again now: My family is the most important thing in my life, and I intend to keep it that way.

So thank you all for the support and kindness that you’ve shown over the last months. I was wrong to feel so alone, and I know now that there are many, many people on my side to catch me. You have captured the true spirit of Christmas, and for that I am grateful.

Blessings to you all.