JANUARY 2017 Letter LIVING WELL

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We pray that the Lord will bless YOU in a special way in the coming year! YOU are a blessing to us! We thank YOU for that.

As a new year begins, we think about what’s ahead. It’s a new year and a new start. Some people make goals for the year; some make New Year’s resolutions.

In years past, we made goals for a new year. But we found out that God often exceeded even what we thought we might accomplish in a year. We don’t make goals anymore.

We begin the year (and each day) by asking the Lord what He has for us. 

He does not always tell us what He has in store for us! 

We get to be surprised.

See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? Isaiah 43:19

He wants to do a new thing in YOU!

What does our Lord want to do in YOU this year? This month? Today?
What does He have for us?

• Healing marriages and hearts
• Back to Zambia January 11.
• Marriage and family conference for at least 50 pastor couples.
• Going to WISDOM Christian School.
• See their needs
• See the students
• Meet with the teachers
• Giving guidance to crisis couples
• Leading design, development, and launch of faith@home center at PCBC
• Laying the foundation of a lifelong marriage for premarital couples
• Funding and building Classroom Building #3 for WISDOM Christian School
• Leading a team to WCS in June to offer Camp Wisdom and work on campus
• Teaching the Bible to young couples
• The mysterious path of the leading of our Lord!

Please pray for the support of our January mission. If you would like to donate to this mission, DONATE NOW here. We still need for the LORD to provide $7,000 dollars more to pay for the mission. We leave January 11 for Zambia.

May the Lord bless you in 2017!
Donna and Ed Edwards
P.S. Pray the preparations and $7,000 support for the January Zambia mission.

The water that I will give him will

become in him a well of water

springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source, 

not a life style. 

DECEMBER 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Here's a side to the Christmas story that isn't often told:

Those soft little hands, fashioned by the Holy Spirit in Mary's womb, were made so that nails might be driven through them. 

Those baby feet, pink and unable to walk, would one day walk up a dusty hill to be nailed to a cross. 

That sweet infant's head with sparkling eyes and eager mouth was formed so that someday men might force a crown of thorns onto it. 

That tender body, warm and soft, wrapped in swaddling clothes, would one day be ripped open by a spear.

Jesus was born to die.*

Christmas is warm with thoughts of a newborn baby, yummy food, gifts, and time with family and friends. We don’t often think of the connection between Christmas and Easter. We don’t contemplate the purpose of His life and it’s end. Those thoughts can be hard and emotional, not warm and comforting.

Would you purposely enter into an arena where you knew that your outcome would be a brutal death? 

Could you have joy knowing that you had great suffering ahead?

Jesus did. And He did it for YOU.

How do we respond to the greatest gift of all? Consider ways to honor and glorify Him during this season that is not focused on materialism and parties.

We are thankful for another year of fruitful ministry. THANK YOU for your support of LIVING WELL. As you think of your year-end gifts, please pray and ask the LORD how He would want you to worship Him through your giving. We can offer Biblical guidance in marriage, money, and spiritual areas because of YOUR giving. We can continue to support WISDOM Christian School because of YOUR giving.

The Lord is leading us back to Ndola in January. We will do a pastor’s conference on marriage and we will go to WISDOM Christian School. The school will be starting their new school year. We will attend to the needs of the school, meet with the teachers, and best of all we will see the kids!

Please pray for the support of our January mission. If you would like to donate to this mission, DONATE NOW.

We still need for the LORD to provide $8,000 dollars more to pay for the mission. We leave January 11 for Zambia.

Thank YOU for your prayers and support as we work with couples and as we support and develop WISDOM Christian School in Zambia.

May the Christmas season be filled with love and joy as you worship Him!

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Pray the preparations and $8,000 support for the January Zambia mission.

The water that I will give him will become in him 
a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 
LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

* God with Us by John MacArthur

NOVEMBER 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Thank YOU for YOUR support and prayers for our annual dinner! 

We had a great evening and enjoyed seeing everyone. If you would like to see photos of our event, go to this photo album on the LIVING WELL Facebook page.

We all have a story of our life – but even more, a story of our spiritual journey. At our dinner, we told the story of our spiritual and life journey. If you would like to see the video of our journey, go to this page .

In our entire story, we are most grateful that God never gave up on us and that we never gave up on each other. If God had not pursued us or if we had not believed in each other, our story would be much different today. We do not take for granted where we are today. We know that we would never have had the fulfillment and meaning in our lives without the Presence of the Lord working in our lives.

If we could sit across the table from you, what we would say to you is – whatever the Lord says to do, DO IT! Whether it is something He says through His Word or through His Spirit, follow Him! His ways may seem limiting or constrictive or old-fashioned, but His ways are timeless and apply to all cultures. He will not let you down. You can trust Him!

Until we recognize how much He is already doing in our lives, we may not trust Him for more.

As we acknowledge His work, our hearts become full of gratitude, appreciation, and thanksgiving.

This principle is important for our relationship with the Lord, but is also important for other relationships – especially marriage! 

For more about appreciation and gratitude in marriage, click here. The opposite of this attitude is when we disregard and neglect (taking each other for granted) each other (for more, click here).

The Lord is leading us back to Ndola in January. We will do a pastor’s conference on marriage and we will go to WISDOM Christian School. The school will be starting their new school year. We will attend to the needs of the school, meet with the teachers, and best of all we will see the kids!

Please pray for the support of our January mission. If you would like to donate to this mission, click here and designate for Mission Zambia.

Thank YOU for your prayers and support as we work with couples and as we support and develop WISDOM Christian School in Zambia.

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Pray the preparations and support for the January Zambia mission.

The Story of LIVING WELL

OCTOBER 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Trust Me!
Hmmm . . . . seems like that is a current issue on the political scene today. Who can you trust? The low trust of our presidential candidates is surpassed by the low trust of the media – only 20% trust the media.

We are constantly in trust relationships – trust the bank with your money, trust your teens when they are out, trust your mechanic to make sure your brakes work, trust your friend with personal info, trust the doctors with your life.

In marriage, we trust our spouse with our heart.

Some people don’t trust anyone – those people can’t leave home, can’t live among people, and can’t love another.

What do these relationships have to do with trusting God?

Read more here about trust and being trustworthy.

We are thankful for YOUR trust in us to fulfill His mission in our lives and the lives of the people that we minister to.

We know that YOUR donations represent a trust in the way we spend the money God has provided.

YOUR support and prayers show your support for what we do and that we will follow His will in all that we do in ministry. We feel blessed beyond words and greatly appreciate YOUR trust.

We are preparing to tell The Story of LIVING WELL at our annual dinner. Please mark your calendars for Tuesday, October 18th. Please bring a friend with you to hear the story. If you have not sent your RSVP, you can RSVP here or call us (405)792-2586 or email us at info@livingwellokc.org

We have collected hundreds of books and lots of school supplies to send to WISDOM Christian School. They are all packed in TWO barrels. We are thankful for donations to cover the cost of the barrels and shipping. They will be picked up very soon!

We started a limited lunch program at the WCS in September. We will start with providing lunch for the children at WISDOM one day a week. The cost is $ .35/meal. For the cost of a fountain drink, you can provide 5 meals. For the cost of a dinner out for your family, you can sponsor the meals for half the school for one week! If you would like to donate, go to the website, www.wisdomchristianschool.com .

Thank YOU for your prayers and support as we work with couples and as we support and develop WISDOM Christian School in Zambia.

Our love in Christ,
Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Pray for our dinner and presentation on October 18.

SEPTEMBER 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Think of the last time that your heart was hurting.

What kind of comments from others brought you comfort?
Were they words of compassion?

Compassion is an attribute that defines our humanity.

Compassion describes our Lord. “The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.” Psalm 116:5

Recognizing the importance of compassion (and also the lack of it) is apparent in many areas of our culture. Emotional coaching is coming to the forefront in teaching children to be successful in life. Learning to be compassionate is foundational for children and adults. Without compassion, we become isolated and hardhearted.

When a person does not exhibit compassion in a relationship, resentment settles in. In marriage, if one spouse does not show compassion, the other one often feels abandoned. As we work with couples, we often see a lack of compassion in distressed marriages.

On our marriage blog, we explore more about compassion - our call, what it is/isn’t, and God’s demonstration to us.

We are preparing to tell The Story of LIVING WELL at our annual dinner. Please mark your calendars for Tuesday, October 18th.

Donna will be teaching, “Be Transformed” at our church on Sunday evenings, 5-6:30, beginning September 18. The cost is $20 for the workbook. Our church is providing exciting classes for kids during that time. Let us know if you are interested in attending or sign up here (enter name, email and sign-up for 24/7).

We have been collecting books and school supplies to send to WISDOM Christian School. We will wrap up those collections Labor Day weekend. The cost to ship them is $400/per barrel. If you want more info or would like to donate, see www.wisdomchristianschool.com .

We will start a limited feeding program at the school in September. We will start with providing lunch for the children at WISDOM one day a week. Stay tuned for more details!

Thank YOU for your prayers and support as we work with couples and as we support and develop WISDOM Christian School in Zambia.

Our love in Christ,
Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Pray for funding to ship the school supplies and books to WCS.

The water that I will give him will become in him 
a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 
LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

AUGUST 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

If you are tired of watching and hearing about politics, raise your hand!

This election for president is like none other. You may have the same thoughts that we do – How did we get to this place in our country?

We are teaching 1 Samuel in our Bible study class. Our scene today has echoes of Samuel’s day. God led the nation of Israel. He spoke through a man who loved Him and followed Him – Samuel, a judge, a prophet, and a priest. Samuel’s sons did not follow His example and were dishonest. As Samuel grew older, the people lost confidence the leadership and demanded a king. We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.

As in those days, be careful what you ask for – you may get it! The nation of Israel had the mistaken idea that they needed the right person to lead them. God explained to Samuel, “they have rejected me as their king.”

It is important to be involved in the process of electing our leaders, but our hope cannot be in having the right person. The only hope for our country is that Our God is our King!

Our form of government gives us a voice with those who are elected. There are issues close to our hearts that we carry a minority worldview. But maybe, we could call for more kindness, respect, compassion, and cooperation in the public arena. Maybe, we could exhibit those qualities as we discuss politics. And most of all, we could display those values in our own lives.

Kindness is essential in making public discourse fruitful, but is also a key quality in building a marriage that will flourish. When kindness is absent, resentment and contempt grow. Read more about kindness on the our Living Well in Marriage blog here.

Donna will be teaching “Be Transformed” at our church on Sunday evenings beginning September 11. Let us if you are interested or want more info.
Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair
Profile #2 Darla and John Holinsworth

Profile #3 Brianna and Travis Lake
Profile #4 Brian and Chris Matlock
Profile #5 Anita and Isaiah Powers
Profile #6 Richard Turner

WISDOM has a new name! For more info about what is happening at WISDOM school, go to the website, www.wisdomchristianschool.com .

Thank YOU for your prayers and support as we work with couples to build and/or restore kindness in their marriage!

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Pray for us as we minister to couples!

The water that I will give him will become in him 
a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 
LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

Who goes to Zambia? Profile #6

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team. As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order! This is the last profile.

Richard Turner

Richard knew no one on the mission trip. He heard us speak once at his church in Ponca City. He had never been on a foreign mission trip. He had never been to Africa. He came without his wife. He was the only "single" on the team; everyone else had a spouse or a child with them. 

We have a great admiration for Richard's willingness to follow the Lord's call to Zambia!

Richard was a little overwhelmed after our first training meeting. But Richard is a school teacher - teaches 8th grade. Mission Zambia is a breeze compared to teaching 8th graders everyday! We knew he could do it.

And we were right! He did great with the kids and with the trip. Richard was always willing to help in whatever we needed him. He never complained, even though he had to stay outside in the sun more than his share of the time. 

He was open to learning and to serving. He even learned knew ways to use his smartphone from the youngest member of the team. 

His love for the Lord was shining through his eyes at all times! 

We are thankful for Richard's courage to follow Him!

See also: Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair

                Profile #2 John and Darla Holinsworth
                Profile #3 Brianna and Travis Lake
                Profile #4 Brian and Chris Matlock

                Profile #5 Anita and Isaiah Powers

Who goes to Zambia? Profile #5

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team. As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order!

Anita and Isaiah Powers
Once again, this is not a married couple but it is a mother and adult son.

Anita has been very interested and involved in WCS for a long time. She was unable to go to Zambia in the beginning because she was caring for her son, Micah. A few months after Micah went to be with the Lord, I was talking to Anita and said "Why don't you go with us? You could go now." She prayed and said "yes!" and went on our Mission Zambia 2014 team. 

She was great with the kids. Later that year, she had heart surgery, so in 2015, she was still in recovery.

Her health returned and we asked her to go back. I suggested that she asked her 32-year-old son, Isaiah, to come as well. She asked and they both said "yes!"

Anita is not just good at arts and crafts, she is an artist! We asked her to be in charge of the crafts for 400 kids and she was amazing. After experimenting with every craft and finding the best way to do it, she rounded up and assembled every thing we needed. Then, she says, "I don't feel like I have really done much." So, I gave her another project! She is one of the most creative people ever!

Her value to the mission transcends her artistic gifts - she reflects the Lord in what she says and what she does! She has an abundance of enthusiasm; she loves life and loves the Lord. 

Before we started training for the mission trip, we had not meet Isaiah. It can be risky to take a team member that you don't know. But Isaiah fit right into the team - he was easy going and talented and the kids were attracted to him!

Isaiah lives in Kansas City and is an artist also. Vocationally, he does something with video and computer animation and design - more complex than most of us understand. His skills with photography were a real asset to the team. Besides capturing numerous poignant moments, he took individual pictures of all the kids at Camp Wisdom!

Isaiah's love for the Lord overflowed generously into the lives of all of the children!

See also: Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair
               Profile #2 John and Darla Holinsworth
               Profile #3 Brianna and Travis Lake
               Profile #4 Brian and Chris Matlock

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Who goes to Zambia? Profile #4

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team. As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order!

Brian and Chris Matlock
The way our teams come together is so interesting. Music is essential to doing CAMP WISDOM. The African kids love to sing; it's part of their culture. They can sing anything - even if they don't understand the English words.

We have been fortunate enough to have Mary Kay McCormick to go for each of our first four camps. She was great with the kids and laid a strong foundation. But she couldn't go in 2016 .... something about her first grandson graduating from high school in Texas.

In God's providence, a donor came forth and offered to send someone to do the music. We prayed and God led us to Brian Matlock and his son, Chris.

Brian is an engineer by vocation (yes, we had a multitude of engineers), but has an extensive background in ministry - music ministry, teaching, preaching. He has gone on several foreign mission trips.

Brian not only lead the music, but he also shared the gospel with the children at CAMP WISDOM and shared with the community on Saturday. He preached at Wisdom Church on our first Sunday and led a worship service for our team at our place of lodging (one of the highlights of our trip!), when our schedule didn't permit us to attend on our second Sunday.

When he wasn't leading music at CAMP WISDOM, he was helping with the lessons, crafts, or games. He was busy! We are thankful for God's provision.

Brian's 16-year-old son, Chris, was eager to go on the mission to Zambia - even though he had never been on an airplane. He did great - never complained or got sick! After 10 flights that covered 20,000 miles, he is a seasoned traveler.

Along with his dad, Chris played the guitar and led music for CAMP WISDOM. His real gift was playing with the kids at the end of the day, after we finish CAMP WISDOM.

Chris was always willing to do whatever we asked, including washing the women's toilet seat (we use latrines with a hole in the ground while at WCS; we have a toilet seat lid designed for putting on a bucket when camping).






See also: Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair
               Profile #2 John and Darla Holinsworth
               Profile #3 Brianna and Travis Lake

Who goes to Zambia? Profile #3

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team. As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order!

Brianna Lake and Travis Lake
Unlike our first two profiles, this is not a married couple but a father and daughter couple.

Their story and ours are very long - almost 20 years long. Travis and his wife, Mandy, came to the Bible study class we teach shortly after they got married. We have seen them grow and mature and have a family. Which brings us to part 2 of the story. Their oldest daughter, Brianna, is now 14 and about to start high school. She has been wanting to go to Zambia as long as we have been serving at WCS, but she was too young ...... until now. We don't let young people go with us until they finish the 8th grade and their parent has to come with them. [see more about their story here]

Brianna loves sports and has served at our church in the puppet ministry. She used her talents and leadership skills to minister to the kids at WCS and honor the Lord in her service.

Without any other team members, she worked with the kids who did the puppet show and did a great job!

She loved playing with the kids and holding the little ones. They adored the attention!

Travis is an engineer by vocation and is always examining the best way to "get it done." We asked Travis to be in charge of the games. Having watched his three girls play millions of games, he easily took it on with great planning.

Travis is known for having a servant's heart. We knew we could count on him to do whatever needed to be done. He spent one afternoon (after the Camp Wisdom time finished) working with the WCS 7th grade teacher on computer skills.

Travis and Chris loading a counter top in the team bus.

With his GoPro and camera, he captured hundreds of memories at WCS!

















See also: Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair
               Profile #2 John and Darla Holinsworth


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Who goes to Zambia? Profile #2

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team. As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order!

John and Darla Holinsworth 

God captured the heart of John and Darla on their first trip in June of 2012. They have been with us eight times now. We are so thankful that God raised up this couple to join us in His work there. They are our partners in ministry there. They very involved with the ministry at WCS.

John is a retired fire captain and likes to do building projects.

He and Ed execute all the building projects at WCS. On this trip, they built shelves, an island for the kitchen, and counter tops. These guys make a powerful duo!

God uses John's gifts in a vital ministry role to the Zambians. He found a niche doing fire safety instruction at the school and to groups in the Ndola area. They do very little fire safety instruction there but have many fires. The community (over a million people in the greater Ndola metro area) has one fire station and one fire truck.

John loves the kids and loves seeing them learn about Jesus. He has a servant's heart and is great at washing dishes!

God gave Darla a love for children. Her background with children's ministry at church and as a vocational school counselor makes her invaluable in developing WCS and being a leader at CAMP WISDOM. 

Darla wrote all of this year's lessons. Then she  worked with the kids to dramatize the lessons.

She has made a mission of learning the children's names and faces! She helps make CAMP WISDOM  a huge impact in the lives of these children.

John and Darla's love for the LORD spills out into the hearts of many African children.

See also: Profile #1 Sherry and Charlie Beair

Who goes to Zambia? Profile #1

We have such limited time and space to talk about our mission teams. God always puts together an amazing team.  As I thought about each person who goes and what a diverse group that we have, I thought I would share more of the story.

To avoid showing preference to anyone, it's in alphabetical order! It just happens that my sister and her husband are first alphabetically.

Charlie and Sherry Beair
Even though they have probably heard more about the Zambia missions, seen more pictures and videos, than anyone, they will both tell you that you can't adequately grasp it until you go there. About five years ago, God did a work in both of their hearts and they became very devoted to following the Lord. We never pressured them to go with us or considered that they would go. But we were delighted!

Charlie is an engineer by vocation and had no experience with working with kids or VBS, but he was enthusiastic about doing whatever was needed. You could see the delight in his eyes as he interacted with the children of WISDOM. He helped with games, with lessons, and with crafts. And, like the other engineers on the team, he was always willing to help rig up our props.

 

For a vocation, Sherry has something to do with accounting and computer software (beyond my pay grade!). Her only experience with kids is raising her own and playing with her grandkids.

When I told her that we needed her on the Camp Wisdom team (she thought she might paint!), her response was "I am not good at working with children." Well, she proved that statement to be wrong! She did so well whether it was teaching the kids or helping with crafts. It touched my heart to see her in this new role.

She found out what an amazing work God can do through you - beyond your expectations. And it helps when you are used to following your older sister's instructions already.

Check back for our next Mission Zambia team profiles!

JULY 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

We stepped out on a new limb with God on this last mission trip to Zambia. We took a 14-year-old girl with us! Never mind that her dad was on the trip too or that we have known her since birth. We had no doubt about her character or her abilities . . . . . . . but she was still a 14-year-old girl! 

Brianna playing with WCS girl.

We all know that 14-year-old girls can be self-centered and whiny. We work really hard while we are in Zambia and we need every person to add to the team and not drain energy from it. 

Our prayer was that she would be able to pour into the lives of the kids there and not need pampering. We were not disappointed!

But this isn’t just the story of a mission trip. . . . This is a story of investing in the lives of young couples and families. 

They loved her!

Because of YOUR prayers and support, we have taught, counseled, and mentored young couples that now have families. We believe that our Lord produces fruit from this kind of investment.

One of these couples came to our Bible study class as newly marrieds 20 years ago. We have seen this couple grow and develop in their faith, their leadership, and in their family. We have seen them handle financial success and suffer severe illness – all with faith and courage. They have faithfully served others while raising three girls.

The time had come when the oldest girl met the criteria (high school, have a parent with them) to go to Zambia with us. God called her and her dad to experience ministry in a third world country together.

Brianna leading the puppet team.

Brianna and WCS puppeteers.

This 14-year-old girl has now paved the way for others! She was a valuable part of the team. On the last day, she was very teary. We asked her later to share her feelings at that time. 

I was heartbroken to leave the kids because I had built strong relationships with several of them and knew I would really miss them all. I feel like God used the kids to show me that you can be happy even in the worst of situations, you just have to have a positive attitude and trust that the Lord has a plan for everything and everyone!

We believe that it is the parent’s role to nurture their children’s faith and give them guidance in their walk with the Lord. We require a parent to go with any high school child that goes on mission with us. We see our role as facilitators for that journey of faith. We give them the opportunity and the tools to interact about it.

We hope YOU will rejoice with us as YOU see the fruit of your support! We have more great stories to share. Go to our Facebook page or blog for more stories and pictures.

Our love in Christ,
Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Thank YOU again for YOUR prayers!

The water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

JUNE 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

THANK YOU for your prayers and support for our mission of healing families through the good news of Jesus Christ! Because of you, we bring His healing to families in our office, week after week. We also bring healing to families in Zambia through our ministry there to pastors and to the children of Wisdom Community School.

We are in the last days of preparation before we leave on June 1st. We deeply appreciate your prayers for us. Check our Facebook page for updates as we travel (when we have access to the internet).

Our commitment in this mission at Wisdom Community School is to maintain a long-term relationship with the staff, children, and community. Our goal is to see these children come to Christ, to get an education, and to be agents of change in their community and country.

As Americans, we often see money as the solution to poverty. We see poverty as the lack of material possessions. In the book, Helping Without Hurting in Short-term Missions, the authors (Steve Corbett, Brian Fikkert) share this perspective, “In contrast to this common view of poverty, low-income people tend to describe their poverty in far more psychological and social terms, often expressing a profound sense of shame, inferiority, helplessness, vulnerability, and social isolation. This disconnect between how we think of poverty and how the poor actually experience poverty is at the heart of the crisis in poverty alleviation efforts. We need a sound diagnosis of the underlying disease of poverty if we are to apply the proper treatment. From a Biblical perspective, poverty is rooted in broken relationships with God, self, others, and the rest of creation.”

We can do very little in one mission trip to make a difference in those problems. But through a long-term commitment, God can work through us to give these children a sense of value and worth, hope for their future, and a vision for being leaders in their country and community to make a difference.

When people go on the missions with us, we see them catch a bigger vision of what God is doing and what He can do through them. We see them continually engage with what is going on at WCS while back at home. We see them looking for ways to spread the news to others. We see pictures of WCS kids and teachers stuck on their refrigerator at home. For those who go, it’s not a “one and done” trip but a passion for personally learning and growing in their relationship to Christ but also to those in need at WCS.

YOUR prayers are vital to our mission!
Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Praise for full funding of Mission Zambia 2016!

The water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style. 

MAY 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant. (Robert McCloskey)

Ah, here we have the challenge of communication – speaking clearly and listening to understand the heart of the speaker.

One of the top struggles in marriage and life is communication, with listening as one of the top issues. Listening is a problem in many settings, not just marriage. Having attended many meetings, it’s easy to see by the questions that are asked - who is really listening?! Many parents have said to their children, “Listen to me!”

What are the obstacles in a home that hinder listening? How do we listen effectively? Why listen? See our blog here for more info.

As we prepare to teach 400+ kids in Zambia, we are focusing on the story of Noah, the ark, and the flood. 

How do we teach that story to kids here in our churches? After some research, the emphasis seems to be on Noah’s obedience (build the ark), God’s judgment (the flood), and God’s promise (the rainbow).

But are those emphases the real point of the story? How does this story point to Christ? The big story here is that God provides a way of being saved from destruction. After Noah loaded his family and the animals, GOD shuts the door! God not only provides a way of salvation but also secures our salvation. And He brings restoration to the earth and the human race. The Bible doesn’t paint an apocalyptic picture of the earth after the flood. God restores the vegetation and beauty of the earth before Noah and his family disembark.

CAMP WISDOM t-shirt design

We will talk about Noah’s obedience, God’s judgment, and His promise but our theme is “Get in the Boat!” 

Our emphasis is to be saved from destruction – Get in the Boat – receive the salvation God provides through Jesus Christ.

Want to be a part of sharing this message to the children of this slum in Africa? DONATE NOW

Pray and give towards Mission Zambia. We still need $5,000 for the expenses of the mission. The cost includes materials and appliances to finish the kitchen building, Camp Wisdom materials, and the expenses for the trip for the two of us. We value YOUR prayers and donations for this mission!

Thank YOU for YOUR support and care for our mission and for us.

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards
P.S. Please pray for MISSION ZAMBIA preparations and the remaining $5,500 need.

The water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style. 

Preparing for WISDOM

What does it take to prepare for Camp WISDOM for 400+ kids who are 10,000 miles away and with only 11 team members? LOTS of WISDOM!!!! And lots of help here and local help there.

Rain Stick

One of our challenges - doing crafts. They love the crafts we do with them. They don't have art in schools. The kids don't have access to arts and crafts materials. Most kids don't even know how to use scissors.

We have limited luggage space and weight to carry materials over there to use. Most of the supplies that we need are not easily available there.

We want the crafts to relate to and reinforce the lesson that we do each day. We design crafts that are light weight and don't take a lot of room. We pre-cut everything. If the project can't be pre-cut, we don't do it. We have to also consider the abilities of first graders versus seventh graders in being able to color and assemble projects. We only do crafts 3 days with the 1st and 2nd graders. We do them every day with all of the older kids.

This year, our lessons are about Noah and the ark. On the day that we talk about the rains and the flood, we will make rain sticks. This craft will take a little more skill than some others, so we will do this one only with the older kids. We will only be preparing 280 of this craft!

Our team will pre-cut strips of fabric, paper, ribbon, and cord. We will take card stock to make the tube. After we arrive in Zambia, we will buy rice and beans to go inside the stick. Then, one evening while we are there, the team will put together the tubes, fill them, and secure them - ready for the kids to decorate!

The CHILDREN of WISDOM will have a great time decorating these Rain Sticks and playing with them at home!

To support Camp Wisdom or the Mission Zambia team:

APRIL 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Why do you want to get married?

• We have been together for a while. We think we are ready to get married.
• He makes me happy.
• She accepts me like I am.
• We clicked the first time we meet. We talked for hours.
• I have never had anyone love me like he does.
• We want the same things in life.
• We are sooo much alike!

When we first started doing premarital prep, we thought that would be an easy question with an obvious answer – because we love each other! Wrong!

The question now comes with many nuances. When we ask that general question, couples interpret it in many ways. Their answers reflect what is going through their heads – getting married . . . versus living together, for convenience, so I can have children, for financial reasons, for companionship, to feel loved, and on and on.

The answer – because we love each other – is rare. What about answers such as – we want to commit our lives to each other, we want to glorify God through our marriage, or we want a godly home for children to learn what God is like? Never!

Expecting those kinds of answers is probably very unrealistic, but should it be? What are we teaching our children about marriage at home or at church? The home is where the real premarital preparation begins.

Because of YOUR continued support LIVING WELL, we can continue to teach couples about God’s design for the family. Thank YOU for strengthening families!

As an expression of our thanks to YOU, we have a message on marriage. The personality and attitude of each person weighs heavily on the success or failure of a marriage. See our blog about judgment vs. grace for more info.

Our MISSION ZAMBIA 2016 team is working and praying for the June mission. LIVING WELL is asking God to provide $14,500 for the expenses for the mission. The cost includes materials and appliances to finish the kitchen building, Camp Wisdom materials, and the expenses for the trip for the two of us. We value YOUR prayers for this mission.

Thank YOU for YOUR support and care for our mission and for us.

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Please pray for MISSION ZAMBIA preparations and donations.

The water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.

John 4:14b

LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

MARCH 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Gary and Barb Rosberg at Together Forever

Thank YOU for YOUR prayers for our Together Forever event. It was a great weekend! God showed up and spoke to many hearts.

We can’t say enough good things about Gary and Barb Rosberg. They spoke from their hearts, shared their experiences, demonstrated their principles, but best of all, they directed everyone back to their relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ. God encouraged, strengthened, and mended marriages on Friday night and Saturday. And we all had fun too!

Ed with Gary Rosberg

An update on WISDOM Community School – the kitchen building is underway! The foundation has been poured and the walls are going up! We also have new desks! Many THANKS to the generosity of our supporters!

We are building our MISSION ZAMBIA team. We are excited about the people who have committed to go with us. We have 3 parent/child pairs going with us. It’s a great experience to share with your teenager or adult child. More news on that next month!

We have been writing about problems/solutions in marriage over the last few months. When couples come to see us, near the top of their list is communication – more specifically, “arguing.” They can’t seem to disagree without arguing. The arguing escalates into a verbal battle, ending in anger and/or withdrawal. Is there a difference between arguing and disagreeing?

Benjamin Franklin said, “If you argue and rankle and contradict, you may achieve a temporary victory - sometimes; but it will be an empty victory because you will never get your opponent's good will.” In marriage or other close relationships, do we want to “win” the argument or do want good will in the relationship?

We have a post on our marriage blog about arguing and disagreeing. Please take time to read it. This kind of conflict happens in many relationships, not just marriage.

As believers, we celebrate the Resurrection every day, but the rest of the world focus on it at the Easter season. Many people are open to hearing the gospel at this time of the year. Each of us can use this time of the year to share the real meaning of the death and resurrection of Our Lord and Savior.

Thank YOU for YOUR support and care for our mission and for us.

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Please pray for us as we make plans for our next Zambia mission.

The water that I will give him will become 

in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source, not a life style.

FEBRUARY 2016 Letter LIVING WELL

Yes, it is February – the LOVE month! 

“Love makes the world go round.”

“Love will find a way.”

“Love is blind.”

“Falling in love.”

People talk about love a lot – such as the quotes above. But the real musings in our own hearts are ......

Do you really love me? Forever? No matter what?

See our post here more ideas about our capacity for love. Do I love from a full heart or a heart to be filled?

We want to invite YOU to a special marriage event later this month – Together Forever, February 26-27.

We are coordinating the event with our Marriage and Family Team at PCBC. The event is to celebrate marriage with a nice dinner, some fun photo ops, abundant door prizes, and great teaching from Drs. Gary and Barb Rosberg.

We first heard Gary Rosberg teach over 20 years ago. He made real impact in our marriage at that time and continues to do so now! The Rosberg’s work with Focus on the Family and FamilyLife. They are some of the best nationally who speak on marriage. We guarantee that you will enjoy it and grow in marriage. If you are interested in attending, please give us a call or click here for more info or to register.

Thank YOU for your support and prayers on our mission trip to Zambia. We had a great trip! WISDOM Community School is exploding! WCS now has 400 children and seven teachers. Wow! Just four years ago we visited there for the first time; the school has tripled in size since then! The kids look so happy and were very eager to see us.

The kitchen building is completely funded! We were able to meet with a contractor and arrive at an agreement to begin construction on a kitchen building. We can’t wait to go back in June and see it complete. 

Why don’t YOU go with us? We are now putting together our next MISSION ZAMBIA team. We need to have the team assembled by the end of the month. Please let us know if you are interested or click on the “Get Involved” page of the WCS website.

Thank YOU for YOUR support and care for our mission and for us. 

Our love in Christ,

Donna and Ed Edwards

P.S. Please pray for us as we make plans for our next Zambia mission.

The water that I will give him will become 

in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. 

John 4:14b 

LIVING WELL is a life source,  not a life style.