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Happy New Year from the Tanner Family! We pray that you had a wonderful Christmas.
January is the time of year when people often talk about goals. It’s a time to start fresh, looking at the upcoming year the Lord has made with anticipation. It’s goal setting time, as we pray and seek God’s direction in how to focus our effort.
Through our discussion and prayer, we had some great conversation about goals in general. We’re going to share two key takeaways we had, goal setting truths, and then share our goals for 2020.
Goal Setting Truth #1
Just because it’s in your plans doesn’t mean it’s in God’s…
You can plan and time block and make your new planner beautiful. But, if you don’t stop to seek God’s will in your planning, it will all be for nought.
Your plans…Our plans… don’t always match up with the direction God is leading.
And so while we can set goals, and they can help us take the baby steps needed to move in the right direction, they are not the end-all-be-all.
God has to be at the center of any goal setting. You must spend time in prayer, seeking His will. And He may ask you to change your goals mid-year. There’s nothing wrong with that. Don’t wait until next January to course correct if you see the need to in June…
Goal Setting Truth #2
You don’t have control over everything.
And setting goals based on things you can’t control means you may not reach those goals.
We can contact loads of churches. But if those Pastors never respond to our emails or voicemails, we aren’t going to schedule meetings.
And we can present our ministry in churches, but if God hasn’t called that church to be part of our team, we aren’t going to see more monthly support.
This means prayer must be an essential part of any goal-setting process. All you can do is your part and pray. Take the steps that move you in the right direction, and leave the results up to God.
Big Goals for 2020
With that said, we are asking for your prayer support this year. We have two big goals for the next twelve months.
- Present our ministry in 25 churches (we have 6 churches currently scheduled, so plenty more openings in the year!)
- Be at 50% support by this time next year (we started January at 11.7% and are already at 14.5% – God is so good!)
These are big asks. And we know that.
But we serve a big God who can do the impossible.
He’s already done so much for us on our missionary journey. Our answers to prayers include:
- Providing a 15-passenger van
- Protecting us on the road
- Helping us get completely debt free
- Growing Lisa’s business so Bryan could step down from his job and we could begin full-time deputation
- Taking care of us completely when our son had seizures after a presentation and we had to visit an unfamiliar ER
And we know that God can move the mountains that are standing between us and 100% support so we can move to the Acres and start serving there.
We Are Needed at Missionary Acres
Deputation takes an average of 5 years. So why are we praying to be at 50% after one more?
Well…
We don’t want to wait for four more years to get to the Acres.
They need help now.
One couple on staff retired in 2019. And another couple who volunteered also needed to step-down last year.
And while the staff is shrinking, more residents are moving in. That part is good.
But, it means the need for help is great. They need more houses built. They need people to mow the grass and work on the septic system and do all the things that need done.
And we are so eager to get there and get to work.
How Can You Help?
We are earnestly seeking your prayers. Please pray for our family. Pray that Bryan would be able to connect with Pastors and fill our schedule for 2020.
We have a trip to Ohio planned this summer and are praying that we can schedule churches all along the way.
We are planning on swinging by the Acres on this trip and letting our kids see the place where God has called us. Please pray that we can schedule meetings down in that part of the US as well.
Pray for meetings.
Pray for support.
And pray that God would be glorified in all that is done.
We cannot do this alone. We need God. And…we need you.
Consider Joining Our Team
Did you know that individuals can also support missionaries? It’s true! Of our current supporters, we have four churches and four individuals. We are so thankful for each of them.
If you are interested in learning more, you can visit this page to learn how you can join our monthly team.
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