Dear Partners in Ministry,
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!
2018 in Review
As we reflect on 2018, it has been a full one for our family. A few of the everyday life highlights include:
- Lots of swim time. We have a neighborhood pool that we use pretty much daily in the summer. We also find that the pool is a great way to connect with others while we beat the summer heat. Nathan also completed his second summer of swim team.
- Lilly started kindergarten and is doing great! She tried ballet and t-ball this past year and loved both.
- Being settled. We really enjoyed NOT moving this summer.
- Becoming more involved in our church family. Carmen continues on the teaching team for the Women’s Bible Study at Blacknall Memorial Presbyterian. This year they are tackling the whole book of Isaiah. We were also invited to serve on, and then chair the International Mission Team. So we find ourselves caring and praying for missionaries as part of our daily work and our church ministry. But we love it, and are so energized to be a part of God’s Word going forth around the world.
- Sean continues to grow as an Instructor Pilot. He has been the recipient of some great training this year and uses what he has learned to equip others to serve well in remote places.
- We welcomed a nephew through adoption. We were thrilled to be in California to witness his forever family day in a Los Angeles courtroom.
- Nathan continues to be our builder. He spends his down time building Legos while listening to Adventures in Odyssey from Focus on the Family. We had the opportunity to record our own episode at Focus while visiting family in Colorado Springs over spring break. In addition to swimming, Nathan enjoys participating in a season of soccer and basketball.
- We explored Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia. Carmen and her mom spent time there with the kids while Sean was training in Idaho in May and then again during Christmas break.
We have certainly walked through some challenges outside of our life with MAG this year as well:
- Our biggest challenge was losing a precious friend to cancer at the age of 32 and sharing in the grief of her husband and 5 young children. As difficult as the journey has been, we have been privileged to walk alongside this family.
- We have also spent more time getting X-rays for Lilly than we’d prefer. She had an injury to both her arms this fall. The second time worse than the first. She has been a champ in a cast though. It didn’t stop her in the pool and she has become quite ambidextrous.
Flight Department Milestones
Many new milestones have happened in the flight department since we last wrote in October. Keith Woockman took a solo flight (you may remember the shirt cutting tradition we mentioned when Jason had his solo flight) and Brad Hoblit earned his Commercial Pilot rating. Sean and Brad worked hard to get this rating accomplished before the Hoblits welcomed their third child this week. Thank you for your prayers for Sean and Aaron as they spent time with UIM in Mexico this fall. Aaron Hammitt’s field experience was very fruitful. Carmen wasn’t thrilled to have Sean weather another hurricane (Willa) while he was there, which delayed his travels home. Yet in the Hurricane aftermath, Aaron’s presence was a blessing, as he had an opportunity to take part in relief efforts for a nearby area that experienced significant flooding. Aaron’s pilot training in the apprenticeship program is now complete. Just before Christmas they traveled to Bolivia to discern if a ministry located there is where God would have them serve long term. Feel free to check out Aaron’s blog if you’d like to read more about their time in Bolivia and his time in Mexico. http://blog.planeswithpurpose.com/
Honduras VBS 2018
As the New Year is upon us our hearts turn to Honduras. This will be the 3rd January that Carmen will be venturing into a very remote part of Honduras to share Jesus’ love with precious children from at least 3 different villages. There are some new things about this year’s VBS trip that bring extra excitement. First, is that our primary goal is teaching the children to connect with Jesus more deeply in prayer. To do that we will be bringing along some good friends of ours from the Dayton area (Jack and Jennifer McCommas), who are some of the best prayers and teachers of prayer we know! Second, this year we will be going together. There are some aviation tasks Sean needs to attend to as we work to make stronger connections with aviation partners in Honduras. We love doing ministry together and look forward to what the Holy Spirit will show us. Third, Carmen is serving as the VBS team leader. Now that she knows more about the logistics of team ministry in Honduras, she is able to free up our Country Director, Carlos, to work on things only he can do. Please pray for unity, protection, and tender hearts to Jesus as we prepare for this trip and minister in Honduras.
We are so grateful for your faithful prayers and financial gifts that make this ministry possible.
In Christ’s Love,
Sean and Carmen Garrigan