Giving Thanks
The Thanksgiving holiday brings an opportunity to reflect on the blessings of the past year, and to give thanks to our Lord for his many kindnesses to us. His goodness knows no bounds. My grandson had a saxophone solo at his church’s thanksgiving service, and he played “The Goodness of God.” It’s been my favorite song all year and I play it often. It’s a heartfelt song of thanksgiving for God’s goodness. And to hear my grandson play it was very moving. Here are some of the lyrics:
I love You, Lord
For Your mercy never fails me
All my days, I've been held in Your hands
From the moment that I wake up
Until I lay my head
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God
And all my life You have been faithful
And all my life You have been so, so good
With every breath that I am able
Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God
We so often take for granted the good things in our lives, but we make much ado about the challenges and problems. But, if we can step back and look at our lives, it becomes clear that our blessings far outweigh our trials.
Here are some specific blessings Dwayne and I are grateful for:
A recent trip to Russia! We had wonderful opportunities to encourage our brothers and sisters in ministry there, especially those missionary pilots who trained many years ago in Alaska at Kingdom Air Corps. Their ministry outreach is fruitful and expanding as they bring the good news to outlying villages with no road access.
A new (for us) airplane! We are thrilled to share that KAC has purchased a 1977 Cessna 172 Hawk XP. It’s a gem of an aircraft trainer, fully equipped for instrument training. It flies every day from our Pennsylvania winter training base, where six pilots are working on private and instrument ratings.
Our team of missionary staff families. We couldn’t ask for a more wonderful, dedicated team of missionaries to serve with, and we are grateful for each one of them. Together, we are looking ahead to next steps for Kingdom Air Corps in ministry growth and facility expansion.
The opportunity to speak at two mission conferences in the past month on the east coast.
The blessing of hosting many staff, friends, and family at our Pennsylvania home as they travel through the Fall and winter months.
Finally, we are grateful for you; for each of you who prays for the ministry of Kingdom Air Corps; for those who support our missionaries and our ministry; for those who volunteer to help in Alaska from May to September, and for those who work with our missionaries in the off-season. You are an integral part of our ministry, and we could not possibly accomplish all we do without you. Thank you so very much.
As we sit down with our families and friends over this Thanksgiving holiday, let’s be mindful of the Lord’s great blessings to us and give him thanks. Lamentations 3:22-23 reminds us: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”