Happy new year from Steve, Karen, Stephen, Timothy, Kimberly, Catherine, Michael and Luke Plodinec in the US. For the last four years we have resided in South Africa, but this year we are back in the US for furlough. Our plan is, Lord willing, to return to South Africa in January of 2011.
We hope that you are well and have grown in love and friendship with God and others. It has been a difficult year for some, not so difficult for others, but hopefully we all have a better understanding of what is important in life.
BRIEF FAMILY UPDATE
Steve: ministry at the school is going well. We have a fully accredited bachelor’s degree and are working toward adding an accredited honors degree. To do this the instructors need to specialize, so I will be heading the New Testament department, which I am excited about. I need to write a few class syllabi this year, which I will be doing starting in September when we are back in California.
Karen is very busy as always, mainly with the kids, though coping with me takes a big chunk of her time as well. With six kids ranging from 19 to 2 years old she is busy all day long.
Stephen is settled into college and working toward a degree in construction management. He wants to build bridges, dams, roads, power plants and any other big projects. He also enjoys playing guitar and bass and would like to play in a church band.
Timothy is finishing high school and is not sure what he wants to study in college, but he still has time. He spends a lot of his spare time reading theology books and has taken classes at the seminary in South Africa. The only thing he wanted for Christmas was a book on ecclesiology (the doctrine of the church), so he might go to Bible college.
Kimberly is a junior in high school and loves to read. She is also enjoying spending time with her new friends at church, and she is looking forward to reconnecting with all her old friends.
Catherine is 10 and she loves to bake and draw and paint. She is also a good organizer and good worker around the house and is a big help to mom.
Michael is 8 and loves to play and run. He is planning on playing football for the 49ers when he grows up. He is also learning to love electronic games and would play them all day long if he could.
Luke is 2 and is busy – busy, busy, busy; he never sits still. And he is fearless. And he does not get hurt. Whenever he takes a hard fall or gets banged around by his older siblings he just mumbles to himself “Ow, I’m OK” and then keeps going. And that kid’s brain is attached to his mouth. He never stops talking and you always know what is on his mind.
Stephen, Timothy and Kimberly will be remaining here in the US when the rest of us go back to South Africa in January of 2011. Stephen and Timothy will be in college and Kimberly will be finishing high school in San Jose, Ca. We are not looking forward to having the family dispersed across the globe, but all children must grow and leave and make their own family and home and life. This brings us to . . .
THE WORST PART OF BEING A MISSIONARY
. . . is separation from family and friends. We are in a great situation in South Africa. We are part of a ministry that is very effective and is being used by God. We have a great church there and are very blessed with wonderful South African friends. We have no doubt that God wants us in South Africa. But, for Karen and I, our hearts already ache just thinking about saying goodbye to our three oldest kids. Even though there are all kinds of modern communication marvels and we can video chat across the continents, we will still be on the other side of the world, literally. Every stage in your child’s life is a crucial stage and you want to be there to help and encourage all you can. Your ability to do that significantly decreases when you are on another continent. We love our kids and want to be around them. They are great people and we love being together. So, please remember to pray for us and the kids. And, I am letting you all know right now that once we are back in Africa I reserve the right to call any one of you and ask for your help in emergencies if my kids need it.
THE SECOND WORST PART OF BEING A MISSIONARY
. . . is trying to raise ministry partners and financial support. This is the reason we are in the US this year. Many people have given much so that we can minister in South Africa, and we deeply appreciate all that everyone has done. You all have been a part of some great and long lasting accomplishments in the lives of people in South Africa. But, we need to increase our support level to ensure that we can return to South Africa next year. And, I confess, this is a very difficult part of the ministry for me. I have an aversion to talking about giving and finances in the church, but I must. We will be making a tour of the US this year to hopefully speak with you about getting involved in the ministry with us. We will leave from LA at the beginning of March, head East across the southern part of the country and return West across the northern route to be back in LA in August.
I know this is not the best time for missionaries to be raising support. And, I know that many of you very much want to see us and know about the ministry in South Africa, but you also can’t help financially at this time. That is fine, we want to visit even if financial support is not a possibility this year because we want you to join with us through prayer and other ways. In the next few weeks I will be contacting many of you with the dates when we will be in your area, and we hope to be able to see you and hopefully you can introduce us to others who would be interested in joining with us for ministry in South Africa.
