Our prayer is for God to lead and guide our children and grandchildren.
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with my eyes upon you.” Psalm 32:8
Our granddaughter, Alexa, and her husband, Jaco, are on a journey called… Life. They have asked God to guide them each step they take. I asked Alexa to post this report here on our website. I know it will encourage you, as it has us.
We have always prayed these Scriptures over our children and grandchildren:
Matthew 6:33 “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.”
We proudly share a short newsletter written by our granddaughter Alexa on their new journey:
(You can click here to view the official pdf Newsletter with images or read the text below)
The Gerbrands Upcoming Adventure!
by Alexa Gerbrands
Hello family and friends, Alexa here. July 27, 2007 I came across a quote when deciding if I should take a risk in moving to Florida to attend Fort Myers Masters Commission. That day my mom took me to Berean Book store to buy a new Bible and devotion. I was torn on whether or not I should pursue FMMC or a University. I knew one day I would earn my BA degree; however, I had a feeling that God was calling me to Biblical Studies at this season of my life. While browsing the bookstore with my mom, I was stressing to her my worries about making the wrong decision. My mom told me to trust God to speak to me on my decision to stay or go. At this point in my life I had never really stopped to listened to God and I was not sure how that would happen, but I was hopeful.
That afternoon I was browsing around the bookstore and picked up a random devotion called Streams in the Desert by L.B Cowen. I flipped to the day, July 27th. It started with Malachi 3:10, “Test me in this…..and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have enough room for it.” That verse captured my attention, so I continued reading…..The devotion talked about God’s ability to perform far beyond our prayers, even our greatest prayers. Then the quote came that was so simple, yet is still brought to my attention daily. “I have asked for a cupful, while He owns the entire ocean! I have asked for one simple ray of light, while He holds the sun! My best asking falls measurably short of my Father’s ability to give, which is far beyond what we could ever ask for,” John Henry Jowett.
You see, this is the moment that I knew no matter how much I tried to plan my life and come up with these radical plans to live for Christ and walk serving Him, my prayers do not even measure up to the plan God already has for me. As many of you know Jaco and I just celebrated our first year of marriage…that’s right marriage! I married the man of my dreams. God came through, once again, and gave me someone that is far more than I could have even imagined and I am so blessed.
Jaco and I currently live in Grand Junction Colorado and love everything about this small relaxed town. Last month I graduated from Colorado Mesa University with my BA in Mass Communication, Public Relations and Advertising. I chose this degree years ago with the goal to work for a non-profit missions organization.
This past year Jaco has been working hard as the Assistant Tennis Coach of CMU, along with many other jobs such as painting, tiling and anything else he can get his hands on. I am so blessed that he took a year off to wait for me to finish my degree before he pursues his goal of earning a Master’s in Exercise Science. While I studied away, Jaco worked hard researching schools that offer his area of study. He narrowed a few schools down and applied. For those of you who have a Master’s you know that process is not easy. Although Jaco was accepted to the schools he applied to, only one came out a winner.
During the application process we always joked about moving to this certain town and looking back now God had given us the answer from the beginning. When Jaco told me he decided to attend Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. I was so excited because that is the place the Lord had already laid on my heart. Knowing nothing about this town I was excited to follow my husband and support his decision. When I told my dad that about our decision, I will admit I was very sad seeing as we are moving to the opposite side of the country. But, my dad reacted with great excitement. He said, “Alexa, do you have any idea what organization is in Boone? I responded with a laugh, “No… I know nothing about Boone.” He began to tell me that Samaritan’s Purse is located in Boone, NC.
From that moment I teared up and knew that our faithful God was up to something. What are the chances that a dream organization of mine would be in this small town we were moving to? So, a few months ago I started researching and applying for jobs at Samaritan’s Purse and sure enough on June 8th I received a phone call and accepted the job as a Media Relations Associate. I start July 17th! I would like to say that I am shocked but that would be a lie. I know God gave me a desire to work for an organization just like SP back in 2007, during my time at Fort Myers Master Commission. The moment my dad told me SP was located in Boone I knew that I would be their future employee.
It is easy to have confidence in the Lord when we realize that his plans are so much bigger than our own. Life with Christ is the most fulfilling, unbelievable adventure and I am so humbled to be moving into this next chapter of Jaco’s life and mine. So the news is out…..We are moving to Boone, North Carolina this July! Jaco will be attending grad school at Appalachian State University where he will be studying Kinesiology with a focus in Exercise Science and I will be working full time under Franklin Graham at Samaritan’s Purse on the Media Relations team!
We are so humbled by the Lord’s hand on our lives and especially our marriage. This first year of marriage has been such a wonderful learning experience in our relationship with eachother and especially the Lord. It is a beautiful thing knowing the more we focus on the Lord the closer He brings us together. Jaco and I are so thankful that we were raised by parents who showed us the importance of a Christ centered marriage. We trust the Lord with this umcoming move for He does immeasurably more than we could ever dream of.
We are looking forward to the great outdoors of North Carolina and this new chapter in our lives. Thank you for your love, support and most important, your prayers!
In Christ,
Jaco and Alexa Gerbrands
