It's a Wonderful Life!

Dearest Family and Friends,
 

We can scarcely believe that it was a year ago when we said our vows under God, before our family and our friends. The picture perfect, fairytale-esque day still remains vividly in our memories, and we cannot help but smile as we reminisce the happy beginnings of our married life together. As Christmas is our favorite season of the year, Hunter and I count ourselves additionally blessed to celebrate our anniversary exactly a week before Christmas Eve! This Christmas - our first Christmas as a settled, married couple - will be bittersweet as it will be my first winter Christmas experience but also the first spent away from my Hammond family in Cape Town. However, we are excited to spend this Christmas with our Combs family, as well as my Grandparents, Bill and Harriet Bathman!

This year, has been an eventful, yet exciting, year! Our jobs have ranged from substitute teaching to nannying, working in a library, and cabinet refinishing. We also adopted two, beautiful cats, whom we named Sherlock and Watson. They add much cheer to our home and provide warm and cuddly company, particularly in these cold, wintery months. We recently moved to a beautiful, two-bedroom apartment in the last month, although we still live in the same apartment complex. We thoroughly appreciate having more room and enough space to have a Christmas tree! God has truly blessed us richly in every way imaginable!

I (Hunter) recently found out that, by God’s grace, I have been awarded with a full ride scholarship to Phoenix Seminary! It has been a deep desire of mine for a while now to attend Seminary, but until now, it has not been possible due to finances. God has been very gracious in giving me this opportunity, which will allow me to be further equipped for a life of ministry in the mission field and to receive an excellent education by some excellent minds in Christian academia.

Furthermore, Andrea and I will be more actively pursuing ministry within our apartment complex (Copper Palms), by helping out with events (possibly even hosting some of our own), further developing relationships and building new relationships with our neighbors. All this will be done with the sole motive of furthering God’s Kingdom and hopefully winning some of our neighbors to the Lord. Ultimately, we know that we are called to be ambassadors for Him wherever we are and we must be obedient to His call. However, Andrea and I both know that this will entail a lot of changes in our lives as I will have to cut back significantly from work and will need to be devoting my time more fully to my education and to reaching out to our neighbors. Consequently, we are taking a very big, yet very exciting step of faith!

We still have our gaze on the continent of Africa and hope to return again this upcoming summer, if the Lord wills. Of course, there is much work to be done in order to accomplish this goal, but we have faith that God will supply our every need. We cannot wait for what the future holds, and we know that it is going to be a great joy and honor serving Christ! We greatly appreciate and covet your prayers.

Here's to new traditions, a new family, and a very happy new year!

With warm greetings and much love,

                Hunter and Andrea

A Season of Change

Dearest Friends,

A whirlwind of happenings has engulfed us since I last wrote you... I apologize for my lack of communication. The American summer flew right by us, and before we knew it, the Fall semester commenced, leaving me with more homework than I knew what to do with.

Like the changing of the leaves, much change has begun to take place in our lives. For one thing, I am no longer the only student in our household, for Hunter signed up for a Biblical Interpretation class at Phoenix Seminary this semester! A true academic, he is loving the reading and homework assigned to him each week. Recently, the opportunity has also arisen for Hunter to receive a full ride scholarship for seminary! This has been a major dream of his! We are praying that, if the Lord wills, he will be awarded the scholarship, enabling him to earn either his Master of Divinity (MDiv) or Master of Arts in Biblical Leadership (MABL). Please join us in prayer over this, for this would further equip Hunter as a missionary to train up future leaders in the continent of Africa!

Another change for us this season was the adoption of another cat - only this time, we adopted a kitten rather than an adult! As you know, we named our other beloved fluff Sherlock. So it only seemed natural to name our next kitty Watson! Sherlock was left alone for most of the day on work days, so we desired to acquire a companion for him to keep him company :) We adopted Watson a few weeks ago when he was just less than 7 weeks old! He is now around 11 weeks old and is a constant source of joy and entertainment :) When we brought him home, Sherlock was hesitant (to say the least) to accept this strange ball of fur who had invaded his territory. By day two, however, they were best of friends and have not stopped chasing one another around our apartment since :) Hunter and I are beyond blessed to have them both as our furry companions.

My dear husband and I also decided to make the big decision to transfer this month to a larger apartment for the purpose of being able to minister to our neighbors around us. As a couple with a big heart for missions, yet unable to live in the mission field we know God has called us to, we desired to begin living our lives as missionaries right now where we live! Living in an apartment complex, we have hundreds of people with whom we can develop relationships and share the Word of God :) We have already had our immediate neighbor, Ray, over a couple of times and have developed a friendly and neighborly relationship with him! Unfortunately, our current apartment is very small which makes it difficult to entertain guests. For this very reason, we decided that having a larger space would better enable us to invite neighbors over for dinner, coffee, or tea, and talk with them about Christ :) Additionally, the extra room will provide Hunter with a work space for all of the seminary homework he will be inundated with. We will be making the move on the 17th of November and could not be more excited!

We are currently making plans and preparations to go to South Africa next summer for a missions trip! Our hearts long to visit again and to minister to the lost. We hope to travel to Zambia while we are there, but we are praying for God's guidance on where the greatest need is. We will keep you updated as the plan unfolds :)

God has been so good to provide for all our needs! Without His provision, we have no idea where we would be right now. We are so thankful for all of your continued prayers and faithful support. Please pray for God's wisdom in regards to the mission trip next year. We deeply desire to follow the will of God - not our own. You are all a constant source of encouragement and we thank God for you :

With much love and thankfulness,

Andrea

Where He leads us, we will follow

Summer has arrived! Aside from various summer school classes scattered throughout the States, college campuses are comparatively uninhabited. Students are now off relishing their three months of summer break! For me, this means no more assignments, no more essays, no more classes, and no more tests. I am finally free to focus on other things! Hunter and I long to travel to our beautiful and beloved country of South Africa. Yet, as much as we desire to spend the summer undertaking mission trips around the continent with Frontline Fellowship, alas, we are bound in Phoenix, Arizona, for the time being. We’re trusting the Lord to guide our steps towards a lifetime in missions, and we believe that (for now) we need to remain in the enthralling sandy desert we currently inhabit.

One of the most exciting events that has taking place this summer for Hunter and I is the adoption of an adult cat whom we named Sherlock Combs (affectionately after one of our favorite fictional characters, Sherlock Holmes). We discovered him one night while browsing through a pet store and immediately fell in love. Sherlock has been a wonderful addition to our family since.

We are praying and working towards a three month long summer mission trip in Africa next year (summer of 2013)! We earnestly hope and pray that the Lord will provide for all that would entail. There is, of course, a lot that will need to be considered and taken care of for the three months we would be away, but we know that God will supply our every need if this mission trip is, indeed, in His will. We ask that you would please pray with us as we seek wisdom from Him.

As far as our plans for the future go, it looks like we will be here for the next two years, and then we hope to make haste to the continent of Africa! For those who don’t know, I’m studying Communications with an emphasis in Journalism. It’s a life-long dream of mine, and I believe that the Lord will make use of it – not only here in the States but – to further His kingdom when Hunter and I finally become “real” missionaries. Because the Communications degree is newly established at ACU, I won’t be able to get through all of the Communications classes as quickly as I had hoped. This means the possibility of one extra semester for me, which means an extra semester of delay before we are able to leave. We know that the Lord will guide us precisely where He wants us in His perfect timing.

Currently, as the school year has come to an end here in the U.S, Hunter’s job as a substitute teacher is in “recess.” So as he was without a job, the “hunt” for employment commenced. After many applications submitted anywhere and everywhere over the course of the last month or so, we continued to remain "jobless"… that is, until last week… Just when we had begun to feel discouraged, a door of opportunity opened up to us (well, two doors, actually)! Hunter was hired by a friend’s Dad who owns a small business doing cabinet installation and finishing, while I got re-hired by the family I used to nanny for! Instead of just looking after their kids one night a week (like I used to), they are now wanting me to watch them most days of the week for the entire afternoon. What a blessing! Hunter loves his new job, and he is acquiring many new skills as each day holds new experiences… We are both so blessed to be employed again (As it so happens, bills don’t pay for themselves), and we thank the Lord every day for providing these jobs for us!

Thank you so much for your continued prayer and support! We appreciate it more than we could ever express...

With much love,

Andrea

For the Beauty of the Earth

Dear Friends,

A little over a month ago, the schools and colleges were let out for “Spring Break.” It is a week-long interlude half way through our spring semester in order to recharge and reboot. Espiritu (the charter school where Hunter teaches) had their Spring Break at the same time that my school, Arizona Christian University, had its Spring Break, so we were free to spend that week together without any obligation to school or work. Hunter and I decided to take advantage of that opportunity by spending the first weekend of the break up in Flagstaff, AZ (a gorgeous hippy town in northern Arizona)!  The family that I nanny for here in Phoenix owns a home a couple miles outside of Flagstaff too, and they generously offered to let us stay there completely gratis J We were simply in awe of their kindness, and were very grateful for the offer (which we happily took)!

Hunter and I were able to enjoy three wonderful days up there, surrounded by lofty pine trees and hippies on every corner. Being removed from the big, bustling city of Phoenix caused us to step back and take note of how extraordinary and inexplicable God’s creation truly is.

Aside from exploring the cute little shops and supply stores, as well as my Mom’s alma mater (Northern Arizona University), Hunter and I took a day trip up to the Grand Canyon! (We thought it was about time as I had never had the chance to see it before.) I had no idea what was in store for me when we rolled into the parking lot on the south side of the Canyon. I had heard that the Grand Canyon was amazing, but I didn’t realize how absolutely breathtaking it would be… I literally stood in awe of the massive chasm before me. It wasn’t simply a hole in the ground in the middle of a desert. The book of Genesis wasn’t kidding when it recorded the flood which enveloped the earth in its entirety! The Grand Canyon was phenomenal, unparalleled proof that there was, indeed, a great flood that took place in Biblical times. I’ve always believed firmly that the flood took place… but never before had I had vivid proof before my eyes… It caused Hunter and I both to ponder the greatness of our Lord and Savior. He left a remnant of the flood as testimony of His wonder and His might. It also symbolizes His grace towards us as His people… He could have chosen to destroy the earth with the flood, but instead He chose to cause the waters to dissipate and He gave His people a second chance to start over and begin anew.

Hunter and I are so thankful for the glorious creation which God has so magnificently created. The wonders of nature are a testimony to His creativity. Sunrises, sunsets, the forests and all that consists within their timbered walls, the Canyon (which is, indeed, very grand), and everything that abides in our natural environment is living proof that there is a God who loves us and cares for us. May we never forget to take the time to stop and thank our Lord and Savior for His abundant love and mercy which He so generously bestows upon us. He never neglects to take care of us.

With much love and appreciation,

Hunter and Andrea

God is GOOD

Dearest Friends,

Our hearts are overwhelmed with thankfulness for all that God has been doing in our lives in this past month. A little over a month ago, we were unemployed and living by faith with no perspective income. At first, we were kind of concerned as to where our finances would come from (It's not exactly easy to find a job in today's economy). But God has been oh SO faithful to provide us with our every need! We have had no want of anything due to His generous provision towards us! Due to this, we finally were able to receive complete and utter peace, knowing that He would take care of us and provide Hunter with a job in His perfect timing.

Well, as soon as we placed our fears and concerns at His feet, almost instantaneously, Hunter was offered a job as a substitute teacher in a charter school, in South Phoenix. We were so excited! While the job is part time, it is also very flexible - an aspect that we greatly appreciate. The children can be very challenging and demanding, but Hunter loves the kids that he works with. We are incredibly blessed by this job!

While Hunter had been job searching, I had made a couple calls to various families that I knew were looking for a part time nanny/babysitter. The "hunt" had, so far, been unsuccessful, and so we just prayed that I would only get a job as a nanny if it was in the Lord's will for me. Well... at practically the same time that Hunter was offered the job as a substitute teacher, I received a call from a family asking me to nanny their four kids for a night or two per week! I was elated! I had never done any sort of professional babysitting before, so it was a new experience to meet a family I had never previously met and then be entrusted to take care of their four, beautiful girls while the parents spent some quality time together. Despite any fears I had before, I love the job, and I am very blessed to be a part of the girls' lives.

If God hadn't blessed us enough, just this last week, Hunter was given a part-time job by our school (Arizona Christian University) to make promotional videos for them! Filming and editing is an immense passion that Hunter has always possessed. So it is a wonderful privilege to be employed to simply do what you love most!

We are truly astounded by God's grace and mercy towards us! Our greatest desire is to give God all of the praise and glory for providing us with our every need. We strongly believe that God is going to use the skills which we are currently acquiring to further His kingdom when we move to Africa as missionaries someday. We are very excited to see where God is taking us on this amazing adventure called Life. Until we are able to move to our beloved continent of Africa, we are content where He has us right now :)

Thank you so much for your prayers and your support! We are very encouraged by it! We ask that you would continue to keep us in your prayers as we seek to serve our Lord and Savior each and every day of our lives and that we would also be obedient to His will for us both now as well as in the future.

With much love and thankfulness,
                              Hunter and Andrea

New Beginnings

Dearest Friends, Family, Loved Ones...

The last month has gone by in a whirl, and it has taken us a while to catch our breath. Between the wedding, the honeymoon, Christmas, moving back to Phoenix, job searching, "Thank You" cards, and the college semester starting up again, life has been very busy. Despite the busy schedule however, I apologize that I kept you out of the loop for so long! I know this update has been long overdue…

Wedding Bells

As one can imagine, there is MUCH involved in the planning of a wedding, and there are many things to consider. There’s the date, the venue, the theme, the décor, the cake, the dress, the shoes, the wedding party, their outfits, the music, the photographer, the order of service, and, well… You get the picture… and that was only the beginning! Planning a wedding is a huge undertaking that is not to be taken lightly, and it most certainly cannot be done singlehandedly. That’s where my Mom and our close family friend, Aunty Sonja came in. There is no way that anything would have turned out so beautifully nor run so smoothly, if it hadn't been for them. They were the most amazing support throughout the entire process of preparing for the Big Day... especially my Mom J We were amazed at how many of our friends and family members were so eager to assist with their various skills and talents! By the time it came to December 17^th, because of all the hard work and effort that everyone put into the planning of the wedding, everything was perfect.

                                                                                                                         

The day I became Mrs. Hunter Combs was the happiest of my life! The weather was glorious, we were surrounded by loved ones, and the venue looked like it came straight out of a fairytale book. Everything was picture perfect... and it all went by in a blur... but in all, Hunter and I had a phenomenal time with our family and friends who gathered with us to witness the covenant we were to make under God. It really felt like we were in a dream the entire time... like an out of body experience. It truly was the most incredible day of our lives!!

We want to thank all who prayed, supported, donated their talents, efforts, and time, and cheered us on as we prepared for the Big Day! We could not have done it without any of you, and we are truly thankful!!!

Christmas is the Time
A week after the wedding, Hunter and I spent Christmas with my family in Cape Town. We had a fantastic time of fellowship together!! A new family tradition (as of the last few years) has been to have bacon and waffles for Christmas Eve. It is, I must say, a very scrumptious tradition, indeed. It was Hunter’s first “summer Christmas,” so he found it sort of strange wearing shorts and a tee rather than being all bundled up and cozy :P Christmas is always such a wonderful time to remember, not only the birth of Christ, but also the reason why Christ came to earth in the first place: to die for our sins. It’s a very sobering thought to meditate over… Yet, while pondering over this very thought, I was brought a lot of joy because our Savior is GOOD and gracious towards us!! We are so undeserving, but He is faithful and good to us… for this, I am truly thankful J

Back to the Land of Cactus and Sand
Soon after Christmas, Hunter and I flew back to Phoenix, Arizona to settle into our cute, one bedroom apartment. My Grandparents and a few of our close family friends, the Gilberts and the Parks, generously offered to set everything up in our apartment for us so that we wouldn’t have to once we got back. We were astounded at how completely delightful the apartment looked when we walked through the door for the first time. It was a real and profound blessing to have our family and friends step in in such a significant way! Hunter and I are truly blessed…

Wedding Bells²

A little over a week after touch down, we were blessed with a wedding reception here in Phoenix! Organized beautifully by Hunter’s wonderful Mom, Tammie (my new mother-in-law!!), her daughter, Christina (my new sister-in-law!!), and Boo (Hunter’s Grandma), the reception was an opportunity for us to celebrate our marriage with family and friends who were unable to attend the wedding in South Africa!! The event was held at our church, West Greenway Bible Church, my Grandpa, Bill Bathman, blessed us with an inspired message, and our pastor, John Correia, conducted a really touching ceremony (a renewal of vows of sorts). We had so much fun celebrating with everyone! Hunter’s Mom, sister, and Boo did a fantastic job setting up the church prior to the reception. It was truly a beautiful reception, and we were very blessed by all who were there J

New Beginnings
It’s a new chapter in the life of the new Mr. and Mrs. Hunter Joshua Combs. At present, Hunter is in the process of looking for jobs (with some hopeful prospects), while I have gone back to attending classes at Arizona Christian University! We love married life, and it has been a very happy adjustment so far. God has been providing for us in countless ways! We are in awe with how good He has been to us. Every time we begin to doubt, God surprises us again and again with His faithfulness and His provision. We are so excited for what He has in store for us in the future!!


Thank you, as always, for your love and support in this new chapter in our lives. We are so grateful to each one of you for your involvement in our lives! You have impacted us in far more ways than you can imagine, and we are so blessed to know you all… May the Lord bless you all abundantly!!

With love,
       Hunter and Andrea

Ps: Romans 4:7-8

Coming Soon...

We are in the process of working on an update about what God has been doing over the past couple months in our lives. With the biggest event of course being our wedding! God has blessed us more than we could possibly imagine recently and we thank you for your much needed prayers and abundantly gracious support! Within the next week the story of the wedding and the move back to the States should be up. Thank you and God bless!


       "For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.   Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer. Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." 2 Corinthians 5:14-17 

 God has really been working on my heart through this verse. I hope you found comfort and encouragement in it too.

In Christ,

                           Hunter and Andrea

South Sudan

The "flat tire"

When we departed from Cape Town on September 27^th we had no idea all the obstacles we would have to face just in order to get to South Sudan. The first challenge was that we left Cape Town without even have enough money to pay for diesel to get to Sudan. In addition to that we ran into some issues when we were only about 5 hours along our journey. We were driving down the road and the car was beginning to sway a little funny as if it were windy outside but we didn’t see the wind blowing the plants along the road so we kept driving. Then as we were passing some trucks they began to flash their lights at us. So we finally decided to pull over. We all got out to stretch our legs and see what was going on. We walked around the vehicle to make sure everything was okay and to our shock our trailer had the flat tire of the century. The tire was completely gone. We had been driving on nothing but the hub. Not even the rim of the tire was left. There was a white line engraved into the road where we had been dragging the trailer. So we decided to see how far back the tire was. We drove eleven kilometers before the engraved line in the road stopped. We had been driving eleven kilometers on nothing but the rim passing trucks all the while not knowing that we even had a flat tire. The trailer could have easily flipped the vehicle as we had a heavy load of books in there. God certainly is faithful to protect us!

During this whole incident we received a call from the office saying that the funding came through and it was enough for us to get to South Sudan. God certainly is faithful to protect us and provide for us. I was greatly humbled and in awe that the Lord so faithfully provided for us when we stepped out in faith. I was reminded of Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”  

            We had many other trailer issues to face before getting to Sudan as our trailer’s axels broke five times: once in Zambia and four times in Tanzania. We continued to battle with the trailer in Sudan, as the roads are incredibly rough with large potholes littering the rugged dirt roads throughout the country. Finally after three weeks of traveling we made it to South Sudan. The day before we crossed the border from the lush country of Uganda into Sudan, Uncle John received news that his father was about to pass away. At the last minute he had to arrange a flight back home. The day after we arrived in Kajo-Kaji for our first Biblical Worldview Seminar he had to begin his journey back home to be with his family.

Biblical Worldview Summit in Kajo-Kajo

Now our team was down to three members, which meant we all had to really pull our weight. We had a good turn out to the BWS with many pastors, and evangelists attending the seminar. The people were hungry for the Word and very eager to learn and apply the training to their lives. Everyday we had outreaches planned that we all took part in and we saw many lives changed. We had the opportunity to preach to inmates at a prison with no walls, at a military barracks, and in several schools as many of our students went out evangelizing door to door in the town. We saw and heard testimonies of those who came under the conviction of the Holy Spirit and saw their need for the One and Only Savior Jesus Christ. 

Preaching at a military barracks

A man listening intently as we shared the Gospel

The Lord opened the door for us to be able to preach the Gospel in a military barracks. At first when we got there, there was no one ready for us so we decided that we would begin singing. So Daniel, Mike, myself, Canon John, Emmanuel, and a couple of the other Bari leaders began singing. It wasn’t long before the people began to slowly trickle in and sit down to listen to what the strange white people had to say. There were many children, some women, and a few men that congregated to listen to us. Daniel began speaking to them about Gideon and Emmanuel our interpreter was hard at work translating into Arabic. Soon we began sharing the Gospel with them. We shared about how they had achieved their physical freedom from the Islamic north but now they still needed spiritual freedom from sin, which can only be found in Jesus Christ. As we shared the Ten Commandments with them they began to see their true sinfulness and wretchedness in the sight of Almighty God. After explaining to them that even our good works cannot save us from the wrath of God, soon came the question: “How can we enter the Kingdom of heaven?” This is when we were able to share about the wonderful work of our Righteous and Loving God by sending His Son to die in our place to pay the punishment for our sins (2 Cor. 5:21). Mike also shared with them the story about the rich man and Lazerus from Luke 16:19-31. While he was preaching everyone stopped dead in their tracks for the lowering of the South Sudanese flag and Mike began explaining how their flag had the Gospel in it: the black stands for our sins, the red stands for Christ blood shed to pay for our sins, the white stands for the fact that God will cleanse us white as snow if we trust in Christ, the green stands for growth in Christ and the blue with the star in it stand for the fact that one day we will be in heaven in paradise with Christ if we trust in Him alone for salvation. God really used that time to open the people’s hearts to their need for Him to be their Lord and Savior. We saw the Lord work as many people responded when we asked if they wanted to receive Christ. I was reminded of the fact that we serve an awesome and a mighty God, Who is able to change the hearts of sinners. But most importantly I was reminded that “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” except through Jesus Christ our Lord (Acts 4:12).

We had the opportunity to Show the Jesus Film on many occasions to evangelize to the people

While we were in South Sudan the Lord gave us the chance to do training in five different major towns: Kajo-Kaji, Lui (the birthplace of Christianity in Sudan), Mundri, Maridi, and Katobi. Thanks to God’s faithfulness and the faithfulness of those who supported this mission we were able to distribute thousands of books. Supplying hundreds of pastors, evangelists, teachers, and hungry believers with libraries of valuable discipleship resources. We also were able to supply nine different libraries with many Christ-centered discipleship books; we were also able to give discipleship training to hundreds of individuals. I am in awe by the way God uses such broken vessels as myself to further His Kingdom. We are but broken sinners, who have been redeemed by the Holy, Living God. Yet because our Lord is capable of all things He chooses to use us for His glory.

Evangelist and pastor training in Lui, the birthplace of Christianity in Suda

 

Please be praying for the believers in South Sudan as they are now the newest nation on earth but still have many struggles facing them. They still need lots of discipleship as there are many who are religious but do not have a personal relationship with the Lord. Also, South Sudan is at a strategic point as they sit on the edge of the Muslim world. We need to pray that God would send workers out into the harvest to reach the unreached peoples of Northeastern Africa. Also, pray for the Christians in the Nuba Mountains in north Sudan as they still are under severe persecution by the Islamic government of the North.