Long anticipated return

After a more than two year hiatus, I am going to start blogging again.  For these purposes I am switching to a new blog site, check out my new blog at http://andrewhoagland.wordpress.com/ !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Another February Day

I woke up this morning, and opened my shades. I was not expecting what I saw. More snow. I don't know why that was such a revelation, it has been a stormy winter, and yet, part of my heart died.

As I looked outside, and as I walk around I often think about Brazil, and how I will soon be there. I will be about 4-5 hours from the equator, so as you can imagine, long sleeve shirts will make me sweat. But I am really looking forward to it in the light of the present Maine weather!

But as I imagine my future, I can sometimes get caught up in living in the future, which is never what God wants! God has my steps planned right where I am at for a specific reason! I can't be going around living in the future, missing the opportunities God has planned for the present!

One example of this is a friend from work. He and I went to eat at The Purple Cow (no this isn't shameless advertisement. I feel no shame. Haha), and during that time we were able to be real, and open up with each other. Because of this, he was able to leave that meal with a beautiful eternity in front of him, even if the present circumstances were less than beautiful.

But that is what it is all about, there are only two things that are eternal, God's Word, and the souls of men! Beating the high score of some game, owning the nicest car, getting good grades- news flash- those things are ultimately USELESS! Not that they are bad, and not that God condemns those things, but if we aren't walking closer to God everyday, that day is wasted!

In the words of Martin Luther the great reformer "If I don't spend four to five hours of prayer a day, it has been wasted."

Think about that! We don't often spend four to five hours a day doing anything! Sleep would be one area, but we are a "go-go-go" generation with instant results expected!

I think that the whole point of God making me reflect on this is to get me to slow down. I have my plans, I have my hopes, I have my ambitions, but God has it ALL planned out! Jeremiah 29.11! How amazing is that? We don't have to worry about ANYTHING!

As much as I want to be in Brazil now, I know that God has things planned out and that He has specific plans for me in these next few weeks. I am not sure when I will be shipping out to Brazil, but it is looking like March. The visa process is slightly overwhelming. But again, God has it ALL!

My third support letter with updated information will be coming soon!

Fund The Nations

I recently heard of a website, Fund The Nations, that will make T Shirts for you. Not only that, but the give you the TOTAL upfront cost for each T Shirt (the process to make the T Shirt, the T Shirt cost, shipping, all of it) and then they give you a suggested amount for how much you should sell them for. Usually the upfront cost is around $6-$9, and they say that you should sell them for about $20.

Now that isn't what they tell us to sell them for, only a suggestion, and here is why, Gap, with their Product (red) shirts sell for about $28-$30. The shirts are simple, and costs very little to make. But people buy the shirts because they know what they are helping with when they buy them.

Product (red) is there to help fight Aids, which is a good thing. But how much better is it if we can fight back Satan? The people that I could be reaching may have no idea who Jesus is, or what He has done for them. But when I go in there I can start sharing the Good News (which is what it is ALL about!) and save lives for ETERNITY, not just here on Earth!

I am not saying that by buying a shirt will help save someone eternally, but I am saying that it can make a difference. Not only that, but you get a cool shirt out of it! And who knows, the shirt that you wear could lead to people asking about what it is, opening up a conversation that could potentially lead to THEIR salvation!

Now this does all sound a little far fetched, but anything is possible in God's kingdom. And who are we to out think Him?!

Here are the two designs that they gave me,

If you are interested in buying a shirt let me know! They come in any size that you need, so just let me know and I will take down the order. I don't send in the order until I have all the money. I will keep selling them for a while, until I can send in the money to Fund The Nations.

Don't think rap can grow you closer to Christ? Think again!

Check out this solid interview of Lecrae and Trip Lee, two of many Christian rappers!

They have a story to tell, and we need to listen!

http://theresurgence.com/2011/01/09/an-interview-with-lecrae-and-trip-lee

Missions Conference 2011

The end of Missions Conference is here. The past few days, Wednesday the 5th I arrived here, till now have been devoted to training, and getting ready to go out to the field. The Missionary field. I am part of Missionary Interns, along with 19 others. We are going to 9 countries all over the world, and MANY people were impacted this next weekend to become part of the second generation of MI going out next January!

It has been awesome to see what God has been doing, and what He is going to do! The 20 of us will mostly be separate for the next two years, but when we come back together we will all just have so many stories to tell of God's faithfulness, His power, and all that He has been doing in our lives, and the lives of those around us! It is an exciting time, as well as humbling, and at times, maybe even nerve wracking, but it is SO exciting!

One of the highlights of this past weekend was seeing my friends from my Second Year at Word Of Life Bible Institute. I have known these friends for almost two years, even if we weren't close our first year, we can all still see each other and see how God has grown each and every one of us. This is encouraging because if I have grown at all these past two years, I KNOW that God will grow me more in the coming two years! I am so thankful for the friends God has blessed me with! They are here for life, and I am so thankful!

I will be posting more about Missions Conference, so stay tuned!

2011, already?!

Looking back, I realize that I have not updated since September.

A lot has been happening.

Since I got back home, my Pastor has had me going to Spur groups (a small group every other week after Church), I have been working at Tim Hortons, I have been taking online classes, and generally raising support. It has been a lot, but God is good and got me through!

Spur groups were awesome, come on, free food. I got to meet a lot of people, and I got some good experience on sharing my vision, and speaking in front of people. It was really hard at times, but again, I feel I learned a lot!

Tim Hortons has been great, crazy and fun at all times! I have run into tons of situations where I have had to have a lot of patience, and joyously serving people even when I didn't want to.

Online classes have been interesting. Harder than I originally thought, not being able to talk to the teachers or other students in person. You have to be highly motivated in order to get everything that needs to be done. One good thing that can be said is that you can finish classes whenever you like, not having a set schedule. Unfortunately, time can slip by faster than you think!

On top of Spur groups, God has blessed me with all kinds of different opportunities to tell people about what God is doing in my life. I am amazed to see who has supported me, and to see how much I have raised in the, truthfully, short amount of time. I never knew what to expect when I started this new journey in my life. But I always knew God would do what was best.

Which leads me to my next topic. Originally I had planned on going to Brazil this coming 14th of the month. However, God has had bigger plans, better ones than I could have expected, and I know that He is still in charge, which is just the way I want it!

I have been doing a lot support raising, letting people know what God is leading me to, but I don't think I did enough praying. I think that there is a lot that God will be teaching me these next coming months, and I am honestly excited!

I don't know when I will be going to Brazil, it really depends on support, and ultimately God's timing!

I promise to be updating more, and letting everyone know what is going on in my life, and how God has been working! So if you have ever wanted to support a missionary, now is a great time!

https://home.wol.org/giving/giveto/Hoagie+Hoagland+(0L0822)

God bless!

-andrew

Brazil: January: Support Raising update

Time to update. Now that I have, realistically, more time. I find less and less of it is used productively. However, I want to take the moment and write a brief update.

Wednesday night, 9/1, I had the chance to bring my missions trip to the Cornerstone Fellowship congregation, at a special Wednesday night Bible study.

I was nervous, I didn't bring some of the necessary paperwork, we had a hard time figuring out the projector and my laptop, and I didn't get a chance to brush my teeth. Oh well, regardless, the people that I got to talk to at the end seemed to think that I did well. Not that I don't trust them, I just know myself!

If you are interested about having me come to your church, I am interested! I need to raise more awareness! Let me know, and we can work out a good time.

If you are personally interested in supporting me, let me know and I can send you a slip via e-mail and get things underway!

Also, I am in need of FORTY prayer partners. Word Of Life realizes the need to have prayer backing up ALL of their missionaries. Prayer is more important than finances most of the time!

So if you would like to commit to pray for me, or support me financially, let me know!

my e-mail is :

andrew.hoagland@yahoo.com

Thanks!