"The LORD Himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deut. 31:8
Dear friends and family,
We write to you just a few weeks into a fresh year...one that we hope will be full of blessings and joy for you as you seek to know and be fully satisfied in Christ our King!
Much has happened since we sent out an update letter last June. After selling our house last May, we spent 3 months living with our dear friends, Paul and Emily Allegra, on their farm just south of Brainerd. Words cannot express the kindness and love we felt as they so generously opened their home to our family. Living there was a true blessing, and we will never forget “our summer on the farm.” Caleb especially loved it. He became good buddies with the Allegra’s oldest boys, and still talks about tractors, riding on the gator, playing in the hay loft and baling hay with Mr. Paul. We are so grateful for that fun and precious time!
We spent most of June searching for housing in Minneapolis. After looking at close to 30 homes, we put an offer on a foreclosed house in Brooklyn Center. By July 3, we learned that our offer had been accepted! Thus began the craziest and busiest 6 months of our lives! Brad had begun taking a 7 week accelerated Greek class in the Cities the last week of June. Since he was going to be gone from us so often, the kids and I kept busy with T-ball (Caleb), gymnastics (Sammy & Caleb), play dates at the park with friends, and Vacation Bible School (Sammy & Caleb). The kids also spent a great deal of time with my Mom and Dad in Bismarck so I could focus on the countless errands and things to do in preparation for our transition to the Twin Cities and Brad could focus on passing the National Greek Exam (which was necessary for admission into seminary) and working on our new home. We are so grateful for the 3+ weeks they spent in ND during parts of July and August swimming, going to the zoo, and playing with Grandma and Papa! We closed on our house on July 24 and as we walked into our new home, I remember thinking to myself, “What have we done?” We had looked at many foreclosed homes in various conditions and even though our home didn’t need many expensive repairs, it was disgustingly dirty with layers of grease and grim and mildew on many of the walls and ceilings. We also had almost 2 pages of repairs that needed to be done before we could even occupy the house. We set to work and with the help of several Twin Cities friends, we were able to pass inspection on August 7. It felt so good to actually be able to sleep on the floor of our new home! We learned a TON about plumbing and mudding and taping and code violations! Brad did a great job working on the house, and I really came to appreciate all those hours on the “paint crew” in college since I prepped, primed, and painted every ceiling and wall in our home.
On August 18, after a very bittersweet good-bye in Brainerd to our dear friends of 8 years, we loaded up and headed to our new home. We were welcomed by many old college friends and new friends from Bethlehem Seminary who helped us move in.
Brad officially began orientation for Bethlehem Seminary just 4 days after we moved and there was so much work yet to do! Brad’s mom, Betty, spent a week with us cleaning windows, unpacking, playing with the kids, and washing my dishes! She is an incredibly hard worker, and we were so grateful for her help!
The rest of August and September, to be completely honest, was a blur. Jumping into the rigor of seminary work, looking for part time work (for both me and Brad) and still finishing a long list of projects on our home was quite a “shock to our systems!” I don’t know how we survived those first few months; I truly don’t! I missed my friends and the familiarity of Brainerd so much, and this “new normal” of Brad’s incredibly heavy study load was hard for me to adjust to.
But now, after having a semester under our belts, we can truly see the goodness of God as He provided for us in ways we could have never imagined! Although our house was a TON of work, it is an amazing blessing to us! We have a big back yard, room for our kids to play, an office for Brad to study, and extra room to house old and new friends. Although I still find myself complaining about my “highly dysfunctional kitchen” (that we hope to remodel sometime in the upcoming year), I am grateful for a place to cook meals for our family and provide hospitality to those God brings to our door.
Less than a month before school started for Sammy, we learned that she had been accepted to Birch Grove School for the Performing Arts, a magnet school in our district. We had been praying about schooling options for her, and we felt this was a clear answer to prayer! Her new school is just the perfect fit for our highly musical and dramatic daughter! She’s even one of 61 students that was casted for her school’s spring musical! God provided so personally and specifically for her gifts and personality!
God also provided a great part time job for Brad. He’s working at Delta Industrial 1-2 days a week during school and full time on breaks. The business is owned by a family from our old church in Brainerd. We are so grateful for the flexibility and steady hours that this job offers. God truly provided the perfect job for Brad for this specific season!
I have been blessed by the twice a month gatherings of the other seminary wives. I am poured into and trained and loved by several pastors’ and professors’ wives. I so look forward to those Tuesday nights, and feel very blessed to be in a tight community with other women going through the same things I am! I am also doing some childcare in my home, and I am slowly growing a network of families whose children I care for.
We are also enjoying being so close to Brian and Sarah. We’ve been able to see them several times since we moved, and that is such a blessing! We had them over for Sammy’s birthday party in October, I met Sarah for a playdate in Woodbury, we spent Thanksgiving Day with them, met them downtown for the Holidazzle Parade last month, and have more get-togethers planned for this winter/spring. Being near family is such a blessing!
My parents have also been able to visit twice and help with some final projects. Putting on doors is NOT my strength, so I was glad that Dad was here to help Brad hang the final 3 bedroom closet doors!
All of these blessings and provisions have been such good gifts from the Lord! Even though we have worked harder...on less sleep...with less income...in highly stressful circumstances the last 6 months, we have learned so much about finding our true satisfaction and joy in our unchanging and all-powerful God! He has truly sustained our family, both financially and physically.
"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21
Our desire is to know and love God and to make His name great as we journey through these next 3 1/2 years of seminary. All the circumstances of this last year were by His provincial hand and He has brought us through many hard, but good times.
We think and pray often for you all, our dear friends and family! We are praying for God to personally meet with each of you as you look to Him to provide all that you and your families need.
With much love,
Brad, Jenny, Sammy, Caleb, and Hannah Aust
