Friday, December 13, 2013

Nelson Newsletter December 2013

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“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Dear Friends,

We pray that you are doing well and that your soul prospers because of our Lord Jesus. He came to rescue us! Aren’t you eternally grateful for His love? “We love, because He first loved us.” He loved us beginning with His humble birth and ending with laying down His life on the cross to save us from our sins. Hallelujah! We pray that you and your family will enjoy our Savior, each other, and your friends during this holiday season and all year long. Here are some of our family highlights from this year

Our Family

Scott and Maria were blessed with the birth of their daughter Sophie this year. Her two older brothers, James (5) and Seth (2) adore her. The boys were active in soccer and gymnastics, as much as their attention spans would allow. God prospered Scott’s business, now called Nelson Exteriors, this year. Maria enjoys the fellowship of the women in her book club, and she is an avid novice gardener. Recently they have been attending Johnson Ferry Baptist Church.    

Whitney and Micah thank God for their sweet red haired daughter Corabelle who was born last December. Ezra (3) loves to read, play golf, and baseball, just like his daddy. This year Micah has exhibited work in New York, Atlanta, and Miami and continues to expand his company with an aerial photography helicopter. Whitney loves teaching art at a Christian school.  Micah and Whitney also recently competed in a national art competition creating a zoetrope and were awarded first prize!    

Julie and Matthew live in New York City where Matthew works for an art gallery and continues to paint his own pieces. Julie has grown her sewing business, Curtains for You, this year. She does quality work with a cheerful attitude which places her in demand all over the city. Jasper (7) is an excellent student known for her kindness. She dearly loves her little sister Dewey (1). Dewey climbs on everything, is very bright and interactive, and she is finally getting some hair! We are looking forward to their visit.                                                                                                                                                                              

Matt and Amanda Matt’s business, Crux Retail, has expanded into a new office with a large warehouse. He and his partner thank God for helping their business grow. Matt and Amanda lead a home group and Matt leads a men’s group. Amanda continues to work for Jack Cooper where she is able to be with both of their children, Briscoe (4) and Wilhelmina (1). Briscoe can really smack a baseball and loves superheroes. Whereas, his sister can hold her own around someone who is 100% boy!                                                                                                                                                                        

Stephanie and David are both very active in their church and lead a home group. David works for Georgia Southern while pursuing his doctorate in higher education administration. Stephanie loves staying at home with active and cheerful Nathaniel (1), leads a mom’s group, and mentors a teenage girl.                                                                                                     

Grace and Ward love being married and just celebrated their 3rd anniversary! Ward now works for Scott, along with Grace. Ward is learning how to manage a crew of workers and communicate with home owners. Both of them are an integral part of our house church. They continue to reach out to their neighbors as well as to Hispanics in some local apartments with the gospel.                                                                                                                                                                          

Merry continues to work for Habitat for Humanity in Youth Programs. She leads a women’s Bible study and volunteers to tutor at-risk teenagers. Merry gets her “animal fix” by visiting cats at the local shelter, since they don’t allow pets in her apartment. She has enjoyed performing in the local theater with roles in The Crucible, Hairspray and White Christmas.                     

Danelle is working for Scott part time.  She stays very busy with a women’s Bible study, prayer group, and frequently using her gift of serving. This coming year she is going to begin to fulfill a lifelong dream of playing the piano by taking lessons from Grace! More than anything, it has been a year of growing more deeply in love with Jesus Christ and learning what it really means to have a heart full of joy.                                                                                                                                            

Steve’s God-given passion for the lost opened many conversations this past year from the pool to Pizza Hut. He constantly looked for ways to share Christ using his testimony tract or his book, which was recently translated into Spanish! He relished weekly discipleship meetings with Scott and Matthew, praying with Grace three days a week - using running as an excuse, and loves doing ministry side by side with his bride of 38 years! He enjoys keeping bees and was surprised when his honey won first place in the Metro Atlanta Beekeepers Association honey competition this fall.

                                                                                    Ministry

Clemson. The outreach to the students last month was fantastic! Timmy Powers and I joined campus staffer Brian Bridgeman. We teamed up with students in his ministry to share Christ on the campus. Brian and his wife appreciated our coming up, and we were so thankful we did!

Faithwalkers Conference. December 27-31 Danelle and I will again travel to Asheville, NC to participate in the annual Great Commission conference. We will be teaching a seminar on marriage, and Steve will also be co-teaching another seminar with Brian Bridgeman on, “Avoid the Comparison Trap.” Please pray for us and all who attend to meet with God and come down off the mountain changed!

2014 Plans Danelle and I are planning to travel to Pamplona, Spain for several weeks this summer to teach college students with the LINC program. We also plan go to Ukraine and Mexico next year. Our desire is to also serve various churches in the Southeast. Steve will attend the annual pastor’s conference in St. Louis in June. Your gifts now will make it possible for us to make these plans.

Ministry Support First of all a great big “Thank you!” to all of you who have supported us, making it possible for us to proclaim the gospel to many here in Atlanta and all over the world. Please consider a special year end gift. Or, consider starting to support us at $10, $25, or $50 a month. Go to www.gcmweb.org to give and use #5951 to help us this next year. You can always make a check out to Great Commission Ministries and mail it to us using the envelope enclosed, and then we will send it in for you. We are deeply grateful for your gifts. God bless you for your generosity & passion for those in need!                       

Praise and Prayer                             

1. Rocio. She is at home in Mexico! It has been difficult. Pray for her encouragement, and for her family’s salvation. Pray for us to know how to minister to her long distance. 

2. Secure In An Insecure World. Praise God, the Spanish and English versions are now on Amazon! I also have English and Spanish copies here at our house if you need any. Great gifts for all occasions!   

3. Faithwalkers About 800 students will gather Dec. 27-31 for this conference in Asheville, NC. Pray for Danelle and I as we teach a seminar, and for all to have an enhanced knowledge of Jesus and His will.

Yours in Christ’s love,

Steve and Danelle