MARCH 2019

Greetings to All, PLEASE forgive our silence! We have been busy with life, however, we have been working on changing how we use this blog. For me, Laura, it has been frustrating - we had so much personal ministry stories to share in the past. But the Lord has us in a new season of ministry and although we cannot share details and pictures from the workers of our organization (due to safety concerns where they work), we will share stories of what God is doing around the world. However, this month we are going to 'hog' the space with some family news and pictures. 

Bringing people together in prayer!  In the growing process of learning how partnership development works, we have established what we call a signature participation project, Ou - a 'night of prayer'. This is one evening where we go to churches and/or small groups and introduce the different facets of our organization. We come together in prayer for our workers and the ministries in which they are involved. Doing this type of work is difficult enough; our organization goes into areas that don't allow believers. They must learn the trade language of a country and will then continue to learn yet another language. These folks are incredibly dedicated to making Him known to those who have never heard! So please join us in continued prayer for these folks as they travel to the other side of the world, into areas that are difficult for many reasons, and for the business they will need to have in order to remain in their new 'home'. So, our goal this year is to have at least six to eight of these 'nights' so that we can pray as the needs are so great for the unreached peoples. If you are interested or think a group or church may be interested in hosting such an evening, PLEASE get in touch with us via email.

Faith Community Christian Fellowship

First Baptist Church Palmetto 

Calvary Chapel Sarasota

Celebrating the marriage of our oldest son Joshua to Jessica!! We both looked at one another last week and realized both sons are married now, one has a child, our granddaughter Winona; we are truly blessed!! On February 23rd, Kevin had the honor of officiating the ceremony for Josh and Jess in CA. We have prayed for both of our sons since before they were born; one of those prayers were for the wives HE would bring into their lives. God has answered those prayers for both of our sons - we have beautiful 'daughters' now in our family!

Rehearsal luncheon on the waterfront in Oceanside, CA.

Seeing his bride for the first time! 

Kevin had the honor of performing the ceremony! THANK YOU, Joshua and Jessica!!!

Introducing Joshua and Jessica Wooster

Welcome to our family Jess :)

The reception was held in a huge tent, complete with
chandeliers and beautiful tables!

Most amazing and beautiful cake we've ever seen!

There are sooooo many pictures we could share, however, we do want to post just a few more of the following days in California. Two days before the wedding we had hail!!  We are beyond grateful the Lord gave us beautiful weather for the rest of our stay and more importantly for the wedding :)!! We decided to drive up the Pacific coast and check out some beaches...definitely NOT Florida beaches; but just as beautiful and lots of fun. 

Laguna Beach, CA

Corey, Brittany and Winona looking for rocks and shells on the beach.

OK...we'll stop here! We drove the coast and went up into the hills outside of LA before heading back to Florida. A couple days of rest after the wedding were amazing; thanks to Laura's brother and Corey and his family for making it loads of fun!! 

THANK YOU for serving together in this ministry. It is such an honor and blessing to serve the Lord, we could not do this without ALL of you! 

    Kevin & Laura 

October 2018

Summer has come and gone and with it the heat and humidity!  We are very much looking forward to cooler weather, (temperatures in the 70's instead of the 90's) and the holidays!! Another "Florida fun fact", knowing that the hurricane season will have passed by the end of next month :).  On that note, THANK YOU for those of you who got in touch to be certain we were not impacted in any way by hurricane Michael.  We have been protected once again this year and only experienced wind and rain-usual weather for Florida. PLEASE continue to pray for the folks in the "panhandle" or northwest section of Florida; they were hit hard and it will take years to recover from the devastation of such a storm!

Over the last months, we have celebrated our 33rd anniversary, Kevin celebrated a birthday  - we won't mention his age - our organization sent out more workers, and we heard from the folks in Russia.

In June, we decided to head south and visit our oldest son and his fiancee for our anniversary. It's so nice to have both of our sons on the same coast, in the same state, and for us to be in the same country for a change! Soooo, whenever possible, we take advantage and spend time with our 'boys'. Over the course of a few days, we went to a Miami Marlin's baseball game, ate at a great Peruvian restaurant, hit some golf balls and took our first airboat ride. We both realized we have lived in Florida for over 35 years and never been on an airboat! It was very cool but very short so we have decided we'll have to do this again soon with all the 'kids' next time.

Marlin's game with Joshua and Jessica

First airboat ride - great fun!!

The only alligator we saw and it was just a baby.

A few moments earlier this tree was filled with these white birds
that originated from Africa - beautiful!

Apparently, meat on french fries is a Peruvian food thing - amazing!

Roasted kernels of corn... different but very good as well.

In July, we were able to be a part of a week-long orientation with our organization for six couples and some single folks preparing to head out to Asia.

Imagine…“Our people are not working with the persecuted church; they are planting the next persecuted church.” (Anonymous) 

Think about that for a moment… our folks are truly our heroes! They are engaging with people groups that are unreached, they have no church yet, which also means no Bibles or Christian literature in their language. Our workers are going into areas where they will most likely need to learn two languages before having the ability to speak into the lives of the people they've gone to reach. They will be there for 'the long haul'; most have committed from 10-20 years! PLEASE keep them in prayer as they leave the familiar for the unknown...all for His glory!

Praying for our workers as they prepare to GO!

August was Kevin's birthday as well as an amazing journey taken by the churches in Siberia. We'll share the birthday picture first...Kevin always complains that I, Laura, get to celebrate at least a month for my birthday. (That may be true) So this year, we made it last about two weeks:). I was able to surprise him by going to a Tampa Rays baseball game! (He's not the easiest guy to surprise!) We also had a chance to dine with friends and go to the beach with our granddaughter. (That's always a treat!) 

Although birthdays are always exciting for us, better news came from the churches we worked with in SIberia....Were you able to take time this year to refresh and relax? Was your pastor able to get away for a time of spiritual refreshment? How about last year? How about the year before?? We are so blessed to live in a society where this is such an important part of who we are. Even our pastors and their families take time at least once a year to ‘get away’ and ‘re-charge’ for the work that lies ahead. This is not always the case in remote areas or in countries where there are few believers to have such an opportunity; for some, it has been a decade! Matthew 28 11:28-30 in part states; 

“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” 

Why do we share this? Three Car/van loads from Siberia drove across Russia to another country (over 3,000 miles) to help with a conference that was held for pastors and their families. The pastors came from some very remote areas where there is little Christian presence! We can't share details but please know that these pastors and their families were refreshed, encouraged, prayed for, housed and fed for ten days. Our group from Siberia was a part of a larger group from other countries who came together to show the love of Jesus to fellow workers. Please continue to pray for those who serve in areas where it's extremely difficult to be followers of Christ.

Part of the group from Siberia.

Skits for the adults.

Teaching for the kids.

We've been so blessed this summer. THANK YOU to all who continue to lift us in prayer and for your continued financial support. Kevin's work in the main office of our organization has kept him quite busy. We are growing in numbers and eagerly watch as the Lord continues to bring young folks that encourage us with their willingness to leave their 'comfort zones' to GO. 

I will praise the name of God with song and magnify Him with Thanksgiving. Ps. 69:30

Serving together for the Gospel.

Kevin and Laura

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May 2018

One would think that after five or so months of 'silence' there would be a plethora of information and pictures to share... however, after much searching our photos, that is just not the case. We assure you we have been busy with ministry, we just are not taking pictures like we did in Russia. (there would be a lot of pictures of with people in an office) Sooooo, please be patient with us and please continue to read...we do have things to share about how the Lord is working around the world through our organization!

February brought us quite a wonderful 'gift' from Russia! We are fairly certain as we were getting off the train for the first time in Siberia, January 1997, it never crossed our minds that the man shaking our hand would become one of Kevin's best friends from Russia. We are also certain we never imagined that this man and his wife would be sitting in our living room some 21 years later in America!! Pastor Zhenia and his wife Natasha were able to do just that in February... what an amazing opportunity for them and for the folks that were able to hear them both speak at a church in Sarasota, Florida. They were brought over to share at a conference for world missions; there is no doubt that all in attendance were challenged by Pastor Zhenia's message to the church;  “Don’t stop sending folks to the ends of the earth to work among the unreached. Send out your best and most capable so that we can see more churches established and see Christ proclaimed in these dark regions.”  We were certainly challenged and convicted that the work is still not finished and God wants to continue using all of those available and ready to GO!

Together again  - in America!

Natasha sharing her testimony at a ladies' tea.

Kevin praying over Zhenia as he shares during the conference.

Welcome to Florida :)

Hanging out at a local state park. (Gator and Zhenia)

Enjoying some time kayaking the mangroves on the bay.

Night fishing...first cast, the first catch of the night!

Jessie was part of a summer team that worked with
these folks in 2012.

Spending the last couple of days in America.

We had such a great time catching up, sharing stories, lots of laughter, and of course shopping! :) They have 10 children between the ages of five and 28. (Four are adopted) It was truly a blessing and we are eager to return and visit our Russian home soon!

Sometimes we just need a rest.... ministry can be exciting, fulfilling, a blessing, challenging, exhausting, frustrating... there is really no end to the adjectives that can be used and most often, (you) would not trade the life of ministry for anything! Being in His Will is the perfect place to be in our journeys, however, sometimes we just need a rest. Jesus was our example when overwhelmed with the day, He would find a quiet place to pray and rest in the Father. In March, some very dear friends of ours who have served in a church in Massachusetts flew down for a couple of weeks, first of all, to thaw out, but more importantly to get refreshed and renewed so that they could return and serve once again in the ministry the Lord has given them. Please remember to pray for your pastors, leaders, and those involved in daily ministry.

Sharing another Florida sunset with friends!

We had to share one last photo of fun in the Florida rain :)

Grandaughter Winona jumping in puddles with Papaw :)

So that we do not completely overwhelm you with pictures; we will continue next month with 'the rest of story'. Thank you so much for standing with us as we partner together in HIS work, many of you have been part of our team for over 20 years and we are truly humbled.  Please continue to lift us in your prayers as we continue our work together to reach the unreached.

Blessings, Kevin & Laura

December 2017

OK....I, Laura, admit this Florida fall/winter weather is pretty amazing! Today is a beautiful 75deg with no humidity - the second part of that being the key; no humidity! In any case, greetings dear friends. We realized time was running short for this year and we had left you 'hanging' with news on the last update; Sooooooo... we'll begin with the awesome news first.
The story will begin with a flight to California... it was to be a surprise for a few folks, however, our oldest son, Joshua, was eager for our arrival. Orders were given; we were to 'lay low', prepare the patio area at his friend's apartment, pick up the desserts, and be ready for the signal to come through the gate. Confused? Let's follow the pictures...

  We landed on a Friday morning, got our car, found the nearest coffee house, took care of some business (waiting for lunchtime) then drove to the nearest In-n-Out for a burger and fries and met with Josh. 

Our favorite burger place in California

 Our next stop was to get the apartment and see what we could do to prepare for the main event! We rested that evening then began cleaning up and buying party supplies for Sunday. Kevin decided to add to the excitement..... he was moving a large gas grill when he cut his finger on the edge of the lid. After much persuasion, we drove to a local hospital ER to get stitches. Yep, 10 of them...

How the first nurse wrapped his finger until the doctor could have a look :)

 Of course, while we're there Josh calls to see how things are progressing and if we'll be able to meet him at the jewelers. Just as I was telling him where we were. we lost our signal and he had no idea what had happened...only that his 'pops' was bleeding and we were in the ER. After an eternity, 15 minutes, with much relief, we re-connected and let him know we would be done soon and on the way.

First look at the ring! AMAZING

 Now that we were done with all the added excitement of cut fingers, we gathered all the items and began the transformation on the patio deck.

Now the waiting began... this was only Saturday evening; the big event was almost 24 hours away!  Joshua made certain all the last details were in place (there is another long hysterical story you'll have to ask him about) and the next evening we waited with friends a block away for the signal to return...

                    She said YES!!!   We are beyond excited to introduce Jessica and have already welcomed her into our family! ... no wedding date yet, but everyone will know the minute we do!!!!!!

The entire evening and us being there was a complete surprise to Jess. 

 Whew....what a weekend! We flew back the following evening to Florida  - we quickly remembered why we dislike jetlag!
Then we had a birthday celebration - our granddaughter turned two. We seriously can't believe she is two years old already! The kids had a quiet party at her favorite park; with hotdogs, chips and cupcakes. It was a beautiful day and everyone had a great time just hanging out.

New sticker books - YEA! Thanks, Mimi and Aunt B :)

Mommy made cupcakes from scratch with mini mouse ears - yummy!

We are so blessed to have them all with us at this time. Next year they'll be in Colorado :(
THANKSGIVING.... For the Wooster Gang was a quiet one but LOTS of food none the less! Our oldest son was on the road moving from California to Florida and our youngest was sleeping because he is working nights at the moment. However, the Wooster's will never go without the 'Meal' and so we prepared a turkey with all the fixings, baked pies, and casseroles, and had our 'snacks' before the meal. (Won't even go into sharing that list.)

Laura took the picture from the loft, Winona was fascinated.

READY to dig in and enjoy!!

We are extremely grateful for His provisions this year and for our family that is so close, for the first time in too many years. (We will be doubly blessed at Christmas this year as we will have everyone together!)
Now, of course, we didn't just have one Thanksgiving meal this year but two ..... we are especially blessed and have the privilege of working with a small church about 20 minutes from our home. They have a tradition of celebrating Thanksgiving together as well as inviting folks they know would not necessarily have a meal. The day was a wonderful reminder of how much the Lord blesses us and how much more blessed we are to share with those less fortunate.

We turned the sanctuary into a dining room.

Four turkeys and ALL the food to go with the meal!

Folks enjoying the outside deck; it was a beautiful fall day.

Kevin with some of the guys waiting for the line to dwindle.

Forty minutes later, this was all that was left.

Well, we are stuffed and busy preparing for the holidays. Over the years, our family has made Christmas a time for building memories and not so much on the gifts. We have been given the perfect gift already; the Son of God, Jesus! Our prayer is that your homes will be filled with family and friends and most of all the love and joy of the season - Jesus our Savior.

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."   Isaiah 9:6

 

 Merry Christmas,  Kevin & Laura