“So what’s the plan?” has been the most asked question so far. Folks wanting to know where are we going to live long term, (Heaven) when are we going back to S.A. (April) and; what are we doing now? (Well at the moment it still feels as though we are catching up with life, sorting out taxes, settling in staff, planning ministry trips, and recruiting for another year.) Pastor Vincent Nyathi and Pastor Jonas Masotla from South Africa are joining us for 3 weeks in October. We work with their churches in the township of Mamelodi. It’s going to be a busy month as we hit the road going from Chicago to Michigan, with meetings, attending the CCDA Conference (Christian Community Development Association.) in Ohio, down to North Carolina and departing out of Atlanta. The primary reason for them coming is the conference in Cincinnati but we also long for them to be encouraged and celebrated in their time here. We will also get to see our alum team members from last year and some of you folks who came on mission trips to South Africa.

In South Africa, Jason and Cara are working hard at renovating a house we are converting into the Life House – Baby Rescue Home. It will be our next step in terms of Orphan Care as we have seen and recognized the need for a place of safety where unborn babies can be rescued. The primary Mamelodi social worker from Social welfare reports to us that at least 1 baby each week is found abandoned and often times dead in this community (Read AR’s most recent Blog post to find out more.) So God seems to be leading us to take the step to rescue His precious children with this home. It’s an honor for us to do this and we are just stepping out in faith for all the many, many needs that surround such a mighty feat as this. We invite you to join us in rescuing these kids.

If you asked us what are we most excited about? Having a baby overshadows all of these exciting things. Feeling him kick and anticipating his arrival everyday has given both of us an appreciation for how precious life is… especially as we build the Life House. A good friend of ours told us this week, “marriage changes you the second most in life…having a baby really changes you!” Bring it on, we’re ready!

Prayer Requests

1. Funding and donations for the Life House – Baby Rescue Home. We don’t have the resources to do this right now but we know through you guys and others, God will provide. Pray with us daily as we walk in faith.

2. October Pastoral Trip- Pray that God really use that trip to envision His Shepherds from South Africa. May they be encouraged and refreshed for their time here.

3. Pray specifically for Annie and I as we prepare for the coming of our little guy. Pray that we remain continually faithful to this call on our lives.

Thanks for your prayers, support and friendship. We love you.

Follow Close, Follow Hard,

allan and annie

LAST WORDS

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.”
-Psalm 68:5

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
-Luke 12:32-34

There is a chill in the air here in Michigan and the leaves are beginning to flying south. Meanwhile in South Africa all we hear about is how gorgeous the weather is getting. Just in time for our new staff as they arrive at the AR house in Pretoria. While Annie and I “baby panic”, (thank the Lord He gave us 9 months to prepare) Jason, Cara and Nic Mitchell are packing up their life and preparing to go to South Africa. The Mitchell’s hail from Oklahoma and have officially joined the AR family. Jason is a servant leader with a background in construction, the marines and once doubled for Buzz Lightyear. Cara matches Jason perfectly and makes Beth Moore look like a new believer. These guys are off the charts! (And for those of you who really love Beth Moore, I was just kidding.)

Jason and Cara visited us in S.Africa in April where we checked them out and vice versa. We must have passed the test because they’re joining us for the long haul. Jason has come on board as the Director of Operations in Africa. That’s just the fancy title that says he will be overseeing all of AR’s work on the ground, dealing with everything from hugging grannies to dealing with mission teams. He will especially be focusing his time and energy on Orphan and Widow Care as well as Leadership Development.  Both Jason and Cara are very gifted but it’s their radical obedience to God’s call on their family as well as their genuine compassion for the things that break the heart of God, that make us want to serve together in this work. They are going to have an incredible impact on the ministry.  We love this family and believe in them and know that we’ve been partnered with them to do great things for the King and His Kingdom.  I encourage you to follow along on their blog and pick up Jason’s book, Invisible Children- Rescue The Perishing, which will really help you understand the passion in their hearts. Here is a video promo of Jason’s Book that’s definitely worth watching.

Prayer Requests

1. Pray for our new staff as they settle in and set the attitude of their hearts as one coming to learn and truly serve.  Also pray for others to go and join them. Pray that God bring the right people along to carry this vision.

2. Prego lady- Pray for Annie as she goes through the end of her 2^nd trimester. We are thrilled all is well and are blessed by a Grandma who can’t stop buying cute things for her grandson on the way.

3. At the moment it still feels as though we are catching up with life, sorting out taxes, books, general admin stuff. We are looking for a volunteer here in Lansing to help us with the many admin tasks that come up as we grow this ministry. We are praying for someone who loves research and admin and order. That’s what us visionaries need to keep us on track.

Thanks for your prayers, support and friendship. We love you.

Follow Close, Follow Hard,

allan and annie

^“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

Phil 1:4-6

It’s a BOY!!! Yep we just found out it’s a boy and we are both over the moon! We could not believe it as we had ourselves convinced that it was a girl. We had the girls name picked out and everything! We are just thrilled. Now I don’t care if I end up being one of those gushing dads but if you’ve ever seen an Ultra sound or heard the heart beat you will know how surreal and earth shaking it feels to know that, that’s your son! Wow!! So we are just ecstatic and thrilled for what God has for us in the next few months.

While there is sadness over missing Africa there is a nothing like the thought of a little guy arriving in a few months to fill our hearts. While we wait we are getting set up here in Lansing, MI. We have decided to rent here till we go back next year. We are thrilled that God seems to be opening up opportunities to share about our year. The church, URC has been wonderfully welcoming as we fit into life here. We are trying not to be those annoying folks who come back from a life changing experience and compare life here to life there at each and every opportunity. So far I think no one is too annoyed… yet.  However I sense God has been giving me a message to share with His Church here in the U.S. I sense God is making an invitation or a plea to his people to come rescue Him on the road to Jericho. I sense God is looking for more from His people. This message I find challenging and convicting in my own life. So we ask you to specifically pray about our next steps of sharing this and pray that God would use us for His purposes State-side.

Prayer

1. Like I shared, please pray for the wisdom and the message to share what God wants spoken through us as we now focus on mobilizing, recruiting and support raising for the work in Africa.

2. Pray for our new teammates as they leave the U.S. and hit the ground in South Africa. They are replacing us and will be our co-laborers in the field. Check out their blog here. Jason and Cara Mitchell’s Blog.

3. Thank God for the ways He has provided for us as we find our place here. For me, Allan, Chicago was the only American life I knew and being here is definitely different from Chicago. I am grateful for these changes yet there is always adjusting.

Thanks for your prayers, support and friendship. We love you.

Follow Close, Follow Hard, allan and annie

P.S. As this is the end of grilling season and we are enjoying some Summer cook outs I thought some of you might enjoy this short video of a BBQ I took at one of the young adult gatherings of the Powerhouse church in South Africa. They take a lifestyle of worship seriously, singing while they BBQ. Watch for Joshua in the pretty frock.

It was hard to say goodbye to everyone in South Africa. Pastor Vincent had the whole church come up and hug us one at a time at the last service and it felt sad to be leaving when we feel like we have just started getting into peoples lives. It was hard to say goodbye to our interns/house mates/friends/fellow revolutionaries. We know that God is going to take the great things that He has planted in each of us and cause it to grow in the years to come. My prayer is the spark that was struck in Southern Africa will turn into a fierce furnace for the King and His Kingdom! Hey, we’re serious!

We are back in the States and adjusting to life. It seems surreal and odd as we catch up with folks and share about our experience in Africa and hear about their year. It was good to have a break in Greece en-route home. Yes Greece! It was incredible. We considered it our baby-moon… the last hoorah before the baby comes. And it was a ridiculous! We spent time in Athens on Mars Hill where Paul debated with the Athenians. We got to visit the islands of Santorini and Mykinos. Both were gorgeously beautiful. We just felt so loved and spoiled rotten by the Lord that we could be there.  It was the perfect place as we processed our transition out of Africa.

You can see more of our trips of the trip on Allan’s FaceBook page.

We arrived back here in the States with lost baggage, a cancelled flight adding almost an extra day to the trip but great gladness once we saw Mom and Dad Herwaldt at the Detroit Airport. They have been great giving us a car and a phone to use, groceries, and a place to stay. It’s good to be home now just to get over the jet lag.

Prayer Requests

1. Transition. We have a place to stay in for the next month and a half as we house sit just outside of East Lansing. It’s glorious, corn field front and back!

2. Direction regarding buying, renting, etc

3. Praise- Thank God for a good year following hard after Him.

Again, thanks to everyone who supported us this year! Thanks for everyone who visited us and made the 18+hr flight to South Africa! We love you guys and hope to see you in person over this summer.

Love, Allan and Annie

Yo friends,
Great news; Gloria and Pastor Vincent were blessed with an additional member of their family this month. They are both proud parents of a healthy baby boy. Vukosi was born on June 5th. Vukosi means “Kingdom” in Zulu. Click here for more pics.

We also wanted to share what an incredible time we had with 3 different teams serving alongside us recently. A Campus Outreach group from the states came and partnered with us and the Powerhouse as well as a team of 20 folks from North Carolina and Georgia.

Along with our interns we crafted a trip that would be more of a learning/vision trip rather than the traditional “work trip,” which helped set the tone for the whole experience.
The team members came to learn and serve and work alongside the local church. It was beautiful to see God’s Church serving in this manner into the community. Posted here on our blog are a few pics of what it was like. We plan on sharing more stories on this experience on the blog as it impacted so many.

Because this is our last update before we arrive back in the good ol’ U. S. of A we want you guys to be blessed with a bunch of pics we have been holding back on over the year. Check our picture gallery here for pics of “life in our house,” or “hanging out” and a bunch more to get a picture of our time here… consider it a “Year in Review.”

Prayer Requests
1.) Thank God for our growing baby and for the life of Vukosi Nyathi. Life is precious and there is nothing like a baby to remind us of that.

2) We thank God for the vision teams that came and left with so much accomplished and so much learned. We pray that God take what each team member learned and continue to apply it to their lives and ministries back in the U.S. We especially thank the Lord for the amazing example and hospitality the Powerhouse Church showed to our visitors from overseas. They felt loved and welcomed like never before.

3)We pray that God watch over the lives of the widows we got to serve. Ask Him to grant us wisdom on how to better serve them in their distress. (James 1:27)

4.) Pray for our travels and transition back to the U.S. and for everything God has for us there.

It’s our last update from Africa this year but we will still keep you informed as to our whereabouts. Hopefully even this summer we will get to see many of you as we travel back to the US.

As always we are thrilled to be partnering with you in doing God’s work here in Southern Africa.

follow close, follow hard
allan & annie

Hello friends,

Some of you may have seen Annie’s Face Book profile change to “bun in the oven” and realized that it is indeed true. Yes we ARE having a baby!!! We are so grateful to the Lord for this incredible gift and we thank Him everyday for this opportunity to love and nurture a young life…. to be honest we haven’t a clue as to what is about to happen yet we are incredibly giddy about the news.

We travelled to Swaziland with Pastor Vincent and Gloria as well as our team members and visitors from overseas. We had Jason and Cara Mitchell join us from Oklahoma as prospective staff.  Jason applied for the position of Director of Operations in Africa which is the fancy name for the “make it happen man.” We hit it off with them and are confident that they will be an integral part of the AR family from here on out. Jason and Cara are looking to move here indefinitely in September of this year to take over our on-the-ground work in Africa, as AR is growing and Annie & I need to be running things stateside. We look forward to sharing more of them with you in time.

Prayer Requests

 1.) Thank God for our little tadpole baby and pray that he/she grows up strong and healthy. Pray too that God prepare Annie and I for the transition from young hip couple to boring old parents.

2) Again we thank God for Jason and Cara and pray that their next steps be very specifically guided by the Lord as we hand this side of the work over to them. Pray for them as they rally a team around themselves to be obedient to God’s call on their lives.

3) We have 3 teams coming soon from the U.S. to visit and work with us. Pray for our planning and how we can most effectively envision them with God’s long-term vision for their lives as well as how they can serve in the community here.

As always we are thrilled to be partnering with you in doing God’s work here in Southern Africa.

follow close, follow hard
allan & annie

p.s. In case some of you are unaware, we are writing regularly and posting pics of our time here on our blog. www.ARblog.org

Hello friends,
March was a good month. The highlight was definitely our trip to Iris Ministries in Mozambique. The team and Pastor Vincent, traveled together to Maputo, Mozambique to visit 2 Iris Ministries centers to see how they do orphan care. We tried to soak up and learn as much as we could from this successful ministry. At the 2 centers we visited, Iris cares for around 150 orphans at one place and 350 orphans of all ages at the place where we stayed, Zimpeto. At Zimpeto they have a baby house, infant/toddler nursery, and multiple homes for the older boys, and older girls. We had a chance to visit some of the kids in their homes, speak with staff, and speak with a couple of guys who have actually grown up in the center since around ages 8-10. Although the center is understaffed, and can only feed these growing kids beans and rice for each meal, it was a great encouragement to be reminded that when we are obedient, God is faithful to show up, and that love covers a multitude of inadequacies. We definitely came home envisioned, and re-energized.

Prayer

1. April is a BUSY month…Annie’s parents are coming for the first two week, Allan’s sister will be here the whole month, and our prospective staff members for next year are coming at the end of April, through the middle of May.

2) As Easter approaches we find ourselves encouraged by all the great things going on around us. It seems that God is doing some amazing things beyond our own efforts. For example A web design co-op founded through the efforts of our interns and a close friend have proved fruitful in providing some of our graduates with jobs. Not only that but two companies have stepped up to help establish the co-op with generous grants.

3) We are feeling overwhelmed and a little tired with everything going. Please pray for strength and refreshment during the month of April. And if you get a chance shoot us a quick email to boost our day!

As always we are thrilled to be partnering with you in doing God’s work here in Southern Africa.

follow close, follow hard
allan & annie

 

March Madness has set in. Not so much for basketball but more so for the various projects we have underway. Our interns are doing a fantastic job teaching and pursuing all that God has for them in this year. 

During Feb, Nate Massey from N.C. came and volunteered with us at the Powerhouse. Nate C and Massey did a fantastic job rebooting and re-designing a new home for this part of our skill development efforts. Click here to see more pictures of it and read all about how we roll with Ncomputing technology.

While AR tries to create sustainable programs to empower many there are often times God slows us down to focus on the one. Nicodemus is a friend of ours and he needed a new bed. God provided! We just got to see it happen up close. See the pics and read Allan’s most recent blog post about this beautiful opportunity to be an answer to prayer.

During February we took our intern get away trip to the Cape. We drove down the Garden Route and were astounded at South Africa’s beauty. The highlight for us was meeting Floyd McClung. The famous Y.W.A.M. missionary who lived with his family in Kabul, Afghanistan and then the Red Light District in Amsterdam. Click here to see pictures of our Cape trip and read about our time with Floyd McClung.

Prayer

1.) Mercedes-Benz informed us last month that due to the economy they had to recall our donated lease of the Vito mini bus, as of March 1st. This was an unexpected blow as the Vito is such a workhorse for AR. Referring to Matthew 21, Pastor Vincent said, “The Lord needs this donkey, and no one else will have it.” He then announced a church wide day of fasting and prayer Monday February 23 for the Vito! We were wowed at the members’ faith and excitement to see God move. When we called on the 26th to get instructions for returning the vehicle, they told us the lease had been extended to the end of June when we are leaving…! Praise God! What touched our hearts was the next Sunday, when the church took the time to give God a blow-the-roof-off song of praise and thanks for answered prayer.

2) Despite the Vito victory, both Allan & I have been struggling with discouragement. The longer we are here the more we realize the amount of work to be done, and not a lot of time. Oh how we need the Lord; His power His Spirit, His wisdom, His leadership and His love. We are waiting on Him.

3) One of our team members, Nate Clendenin, has been working hard with Allan to overhaul the AR website and make it more user-friendly and updated. Nate is a certified genius and we Praise God for him. This is a BIG help, and is looking great, check it out!

As always we are thrilled to be partnering with you in doing God’s work here in Southern Africa.

follow close, follow hard
allan & annie