Rogers Family News Christmas

Christmas greetings to our dear family and friends!

We do hope that you are doing well and that 2010 has been a fruitful year for you. As we take a few moments of your time to share how our year has been it is our earnest desire that you have grown in the Lord and that He has been working mightily in your lives. We so look forward to hearing from all of you and enjoy every card and newsletter we receive.

This has been a good year for us. Good is such a relative word, isn’t it? I say good because we have seen the Lord’s faithfulness and continued provision for us despite the impact of the economy on our business and our lives. When we have had a need, God has been there. When we have experienced hurt, God has been our comfort. When we have wavered or been weak, He has been our strength. When we have grieved for loss or for the trials of those dear to us, God has been our refuge. When we have been sick, He has been our healer. In fact, I would have to say that one of the lessons I have most learned from God this year is that He has put me in places where I have had to totally and utterly depend on Him. Some of those places have been emotional; some physical; some spiritual. However, He has been true to His promise to never leave or forsake us and that is something any one of us CAN take to the bank!

Our family has had some fun changes this year; mostly involving with the Grandkids. However, before I tell you about them, I’ll start with our own kids. Jon and Kara are doing well. Jon continues to be busy in many ways, some which, I’m happy to say, involve serving the Lord. When our church Music Minister left a couple of months ago, Jon stepped up the plate and has taken over leading worship on Sunday mornings. He has also gotten more involved with the youth at church and is helping them grow their own praise and worship ministry. He really seems to enjoy that and it’s a blessing to see him share the talents and gifts God has given him this way. He also continues to play in the adult soccer league year round, has set up a recording studio in his basement and always manages to find something to occupy his ‘spare’ time.

Kara continues to grow her little sewing business; sew.hip.mama and is now also a pattern reviewer for an online business all of which she really enjoys. In fact, she has a blog if anyone is interested in checking it out: sewhipmama.wordpress.com where she posts photos of some of the things she makes. This year she participated in a couple of Christmas boutiques and sold quite a few things. She has also entered in the world of being a ‘chauffer Mom’, something I have told her will only increase as time goes by. She continues to amaze us with her baking skills, producing the most beautifully decorated cakes and cookies.

Asher is now 5 and started Kindergarten this year. That has been a huge change for our whole family. Gone are the days of doing whatever they (or we) wanted. Now, school hours and schedules must be considered. He’s doing very well and loves school, just like Jon did. He was one of 3 kindergartners to be selected for the advanced reading program, which comes as no surprise to anyone who knows him. He is precocious, bright and fun to be around. He also has developed more of an interest in art and in music, so, we’ll see where that goes. In fact, his interest in music inspired him to enter the talent show at school which was a hoot. He likes this animusic that is on CD and the internet, and seems to particularly like the drums. So, he chose one of their songs and played a drum in the show and barely looked up after he realized how many people were watching him, but, stayed on beat and finished. It was just so cute! He also enjoyed another year of playing soccer and showed some degree of interest in the game when he was out on the field.

Sadie is now 3 and is still in pre-school. She has grown and developed so much in the past year that it’s amazing! She also started kiddie soccer this year and did really well. I think that she may turn out to really be the star athlete in the family. At the same time, she does cute little ballerina dances, and still enjoys ‘girlie’ things. She is just darling but, she’s such a ‘girl’, which is new for me because I didn’t raise girls. We have had tea together, and have fun when she gets to come to Grandma’s house.

Tim still lives in Greeneville and seems to be doing fine. He isn’t working at the moment, and we don’t see a whole lot of him, but, do see him from time-to-time. I think mostly he’s enjoying just living life. He is in a band of some kind and they do have opportunities to play in Greeneville.

As for Michael and I, well…we’re another year older and hopefully another year wiser! Isn’t that the way it’s supposed to work? We enjoy our life together. I praise God for giving me such a wonderful, godly husband every day. When I think of what my life could have been, well, let’s just say that this is soooooo much better!!!

So, what has our year been like? Busy with family, some travel and keeping up with life and the Lord. Michael still works long hours, but, he is so grateful to have that opportunity. Yes,like everyone else, the economy has affected our business somewhat. There were a few months when the impact seemed particularly strong. However, despite that, as I said earlier, God knows our every need and has been so faithful to meet them all in truly amazing ways. Consequently, the business is still strong and that is such a blessing. There are other businesses all around us, just as I’m sure you see as well where you are, that have not survived. It saddens me to see all the businesses that have failed. To get away and relax Michael takes every opportunity he can to get out and hike and work outside. Got to keep that old vitamin D quota up!

My life has been somewhat different this year as well. At the end of June we made a staff change in the office which necessitated me to be there fulltime for awhile and to take on additional office responsibilities. I have decided come- what- may to take a lot of time off in December to do ‘Christmasy’ things and I’m very happy to have that time. Next year will see more changes for me, I think, and I look forward with great anticipation to see what the Lord has in mind. I still try to find time to sew and quilt and do some minor gardening. I hope to do more of all of those things next year. I also am teaching a women’s Bible study at church, and am still involved with the choir and the praise and worship ministry.

We’ve had some fun family times this year. We all went to Hilton Head for the first time for summer vacation and had a blast. We rented a house right on the beach with a pool and relaxed a lot, spent a lot of time in the water and exploring the area. Then, we went with Jon and his family for a trip to Germany at the end of November, staying mostly in Bamberg (Bavaria; where Michael’s mom grew up) and taking some side trips to Rothenburg, Nuremberg and Frankfurt. We went to many Christmas markets there and with the snowy, cold winter weather; it was like taking a step back in time to a fairytale world. It was a truly memorable time. We’ve also made many trips over to North Carolina to visit Michael’s parents, and eat dinner at our favorite German restaurant in Hickory. This year’s Hinman Dental convention was held in Orlando and we stayed in the Dolphin hotel, and, while Michael and Jon went to courses, Kara, kids and I saw just about all that Orlando has to offer. Asher’s birthday occurred while we were there, and Kara’s parents came down as well. The hight point of that trip for Asher was getting to see a rocket launch into space from Cape Canaveral. As we were walking back to the hotel after dinner there it was, and, because Asher is into everything space, he was just thrilled to get to see that. It was really pretty cool.

All-in-all, 2010 has been good for us. I think one of the things, though, that I have most learned is that God is who He says He is. As I watch dear friends struggling with serious health and marriage issues, and local business fail, I have seen incredible testimonies of faith upheld and prayers answered. I have seen the grief that goes along with all those things, and when I have run out of the faith or courage to face the trials in my life, God has been there every step of the way. It has caused me to take a serious look this year at what I have placed my hope and trust in.

What the world’s economic and physical challenges should be teaching us is that we can no longer depend upon those people, governments or things which we had always thought would be solid and would uphold us. Those things we thought would protect our rights or our values or our security sometimes fail. Two great quotes come to mind: Benjamin Franklin saying “in this world nothing is certain but death and taxes”, and Solomon who said in Ecclesiastes, “there is nothing new under the sun”. We should not be so surprised by what is happening in the world today. For those of us who know the Bible, we know that this world will indeed come to an end. It is prophesied and it will happen.

Benjamin Franklin’s statement addresses only those things IN this world and the two things he mentioned are indeed certain. However, for those of us who truly know God, we must remember that this world isn’t really our home. Jesus is coming again and I believe His return is imminent, although it is also true that no one knows the hour or the time of that event. However, that and that alone; the hope of glory as the Apostle Paul calls it, is really the only thing that is eternally certain for us and it is the only thing that can truly sustain us through this life. I truly do not know how those who do not have a personal, saving relationship with Jesus Christ make it through the challenges and trials of life. I was once in that place, and thought I had it all together, but, I was so wrong. But for the grace of God, I don’t know what would have become of me! And, once again…if you are reading this, know that it is by God’s design, and if you have never taken that step to recognize you are a sinner, confess your sin before God and ask Him to be the Lord and Master of your life, I cannot encourage you strongly enough to do so now. Please! Paul writes more than once in Scripture “Consider Him”, and that is wise instruction, dear one.

In closing, we want to wish you a wonderful, blessed Christmas and a New Year that will be filled with Christ and the riches of His glory. It is our prayer that we, and you, would “walk in a manner worthy of our calling” in the coming year, and that God would use us to reach those in a lost and hurting world.

As always, you are in our hearts, ever near and ever dear.

Michael & Jan