Wow!  looking back over the last month and a half has proven a whirlwind of activity for the Beaudins!  Since taking over the directorship of the Ft. Drum Hospitality House we have been non-stop moving!  Our weekly schedule is filled with meals, Bible study, mentorship, counseling, meetings with Chaplains, and lots of drop in visits from our heroes – sometimes they stay overnight on a couch.  Penny and I are meeting with ladies and guys on a regular basis and I am currently teaching on Evangelism and just started a men’s study on Biblical manhood.  We’ve been seeing on average 20+ soldiers and on Friday nights and it’s beginning to grow with a diversity of singles, young marrieds, older marrieds as well as children.

Penny has unpacked her kitchen but that’s about as far as we’ve gotten!  When we are not ministering to servicemen we are working on the Hospitality House as there’s lots of maintenance and projects to accomplish!  Fall has found us outside raking an immense amount of leaves and preparing the property for winter.  Also, this old house is due for some renovation.  It has good bones but needs some fresh paint, flooring, and furniture.  The walls are 90% wallpapered and much of it has been up for two decades which must be professionally removed, textured, and prepared for paint.  We plan to paint the whole interior of the house to give it a fresh feel once the walls are ready.  New carpet in the bedrooms needs to happen as well.  You can learn more by clicking this link: Support our Work and donate to this worthy project.

The way we see it, these guys deserve the very best we can give them.  The sacrifice they and their families make for our freedoms is bigger than you will ever know.  Almost everyone here is detached from their family in some way.  We have married men who are here without their families, married women and children without their deployed husbands/dads.  Young singles, for some it’s their first time away from home, who don’t have much going on after work and desire to be somewhere – anywhere but the barracks.  The hospitality house provides a vital need to so many and we desire to give them the very best we possibly can.

I’ll leave you with pictures to give you insight into our life and work with the 10th Mountain Division – “Climb to Glory!”

Keep praying for us, we so need it.  It’s a privilege to do this ministry with you!  Thank you for your support!

It’s been an emotional week at the hospitality house to say the least.  Tim & Bobbi Bettger transitioning out, while we transition in.  Tim & Bobbi saying goodbye to all the servicemen they have ministered to all these years, and those servicemen seeing a new family arrive.  Our friends in Alaska missing us and we are missing them.  I’ve had a wet shoulder more than a few times this week as our girls and Penny work through the loss of friends and home.  You know, the average stuff that goes with a big transition in life…

…and yet, the peace of God has been present the whole time.

We’ve had several firsts this week also:  First time leading a hospitality house, first meal cooked for a bunch of hungry combat soldiers, first time to have an adorable dog (“Buddy”) in our home, first time Emily & Kelsey have EVER moved, first time for our family to have passes to get on an active military post, first time to attend church on an active military post as well as youth group for Kelsey.  The ‘firsts’ continue to ‘roll in.’

I was moved to tears this morning as we attended chapel with around 300 servicemen and their families at Ft. Drum.  A prayer request of mine was answered as worship music and the preaching were excellent.  We will miss Soldotna Bible Chapel, but God has provided a wonderful alternative!

Jesus is alive and well at Ft. Drum.  Everywhere we look we see new growth and people just wholeheartedly seeking God, not religion or a denomination, but a true relationship with God.  There were 6 baptisms this morning in Chapel.  6 new believers from this last week made a public proclamation of their faith through baptism!  Praise God!

I’ll leave you with some pictures from our week and ask that you continue to pray for transitions for everyone.  Pray for our girls to find meaningful relationships in the weeks ahead and for their parents to overcome their nervousness and insecurities as they step up and lead in a new way for our Lord and Savior.  Thank you for praying, please don’t stop!

We made it!  We are staying our first night at the North Country Hospitality House at Ft. Drum!  Our furniture will arrive in around 3 weeks and for this week we will spend it with Tim & Bobbi Bettger as they bring us up to speed on the inner workings of the house.  We are a little nervous and much excited!  Pray we remember everything as they leave after this week!!

24 hours without sleep waiting for our next flight into upstate New York!

We did it Team!  As our last newsletter referred to, we moved an impossible Rock out of the hole!  Praise God, we are humbled and overwhelmed, He is SO Good!  Cadence has looked our numbers over and, with the exception of a few of you who still need to sign up your pledge online here we are 100% supported!!

If you’ve followed our story from the beginning you know that we started with dreams and visions of being Missionaries serving the Lord and the military through Cadence International.  This meant raising a substantial amount of money to provide not only our families needs, but also the needs of the ministry.  Its like raising finances to support yourself and your business.

Cadence asked us once we accepted the job how long we expected to be in the partnership development phase.  We felt our Lord wanted us on the field in a year – so that’s what we told them.  This is no easy task, but with the Lords help bringing all of you together to support what He is doing with the Military we are there!  Our support is raised and it’s been a year.  We believed that if the Lord wanted us there in a year He would provide.

The Beaudin family is now in full court press getting our house packed and ready for renters!  We have a couple things to complete for Cadence and then they will officially release us to the field.  I will post that document when it comes!

Here are our current Prayer Requests:

• Pray for the 10th Mountain Division as they are deployed to Iraq, Afghanistan, and South Korea.  Pray for their loved ones back at Ft. Drum.
• Pray for us to get everything done.  I still have some yard and house projects that need completion.
• Pray for awesome renters who will take good care of our home.
• Pray for our family as these times can be stressful.
• Pray our vehicles sell and pray we can afford something reliable once we get to upstate New York.
• Pray for everyone affected by our move and for the teenagers and adults at Soldotna Bible Chapel.  Goodbyes are brutal after 20 years with people you love.
• Pray for awesome transition for the new youth pastor as well as us with Cadence.

 “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.”

Matthew 6:31-32

We are overwhelmed to be at 97% with only 3% to go!  You can see how many partners we still need to be fully supported at 100% HERE.  Cadence has told us we can schedule our moving container and book our tickets.  In mid-September we will load up a moving container and on September 20th we will catch a flight out to Ft. Drum in upstate New York.  Our time is coming to a close in Alaska for now.  It’s bittersweet but our Heavenly Father has wonderful plans for us.  We anxiously await being the hands and feet of Jesus at Ft. Drum!  Rejoice with us!!

In June when we visited the Cadence House at Ft. Drum we became friends with Chaplain Dan and his wife Cheryl.  They actively use the Cadence ministry to reach men and women for Christ and would like to share an important message with you:

“Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.”  Deut. 7:9

Have you ever felt overwhelmed to accomplish something so big?

Please read our Summer prayer letter

~

Click here to get us to Ft. Drum!

On July 28, 2015, US Army SPC Thomas Ladd lost his battle within. Before he lost his battle though, Thomas left one final farewell on his Facebook page.

Each day, 22 Veterans lose their battle within. This video is dedicated to those 22. The video itself has pictures of 22 Veterans who lost their battle from around the world and the video itself is exactly 2 minutes and 22 seconds.

We know our posts are normally encouraging but this video gives you a window into an aspect of our future ministry.  We are very grateful for the graduate level training in Gospel centered Military Resiliency Todd has studied, helping our soldiers cope with combat struggles – post deployment.  We often think of those who have suffered from war as those who have lost a limb and while they have, there are also hidden hurts not seen.  22 suicides a day tell a sobering truth.  It is our desire to give hope and make a difference in the lives of our men & women serving at Ft. Drum very soon and help them fill that “hole in their soul” mentioned in this video with Jesus Christ.

Speaking of very soon, our plan is to move to Ft. Drum by mid September and ask your prayers.  There are so many things to accomplish in Alaska yet as we pack our stuff, prepare our home for rental, say our tearful goodbyes after 20 years, and prayerfully wait on our Lord for the remaining 11% we need before going…we are so close to the finish line!!  If you would like invest in “treasure in heaven” please follow this link.

Support Our Work!

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.  But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  Matthew 6:19-21

We’ve accepted the mission and we will be moving to upstate New York!

In the second week of June we flew to Watertown, NY and did a little reconnaissance on the ministry of Tim & Bobbi Bettger.  They are a wonderful missionary couple that we will replace as they move on to another Cadence ministry.  We were warmly welcomed and they did a wonderful job showing us the Cadence House, Ft. Drum, instructing us on ministry history, and answering my incessant questions!

As we spent time on Ft. Drum, we had opportunity to talk with their chaplains and were very encouraged as to the enormous possibilities for ministry! Penny & I came away with a clear ministry vision for the future with our Military and their families!  We can’t wait to get to the mission field and get to work!

Would you like to see where we are going?

Front of the Cadence House

Back of the Cadence House

Yes, the property is armored with a Trebuchet!  There’s also a bunkhouse and garage on the property.  Next, pictures of the backyard!

…and if you peek through the trees in the backyard, we are on the Black River!  This will be a great place for military guys to go fishing!

These pictures are from one of the chapel’s at Ft. Drum

Sharing the Gospel and our Lives with the Military!  Thats our mission to the 10th Mountain Division at Ft. Drum!

Fellowship after dinner and Bible study on Friday night. We had around 20 in attendance.

As we continue to prepare to go, would you please pray?

• Please pray for approx. 2,000 combat vets from Ft. Drum’s 10th Mountain Division who deploy this Fall to Iraq to train Iraqi soldiers how to fight ISIS.
•  Pray for their young wives and children who will miss them for the 9 months they are gone.
• Pray for us, as we are so close to being released to the field!  We are only 13 percent away!  Our Lord is providing and He will continue to provide through those He is calling to be apart of something great!  We are at 87%!  Please click Here if you wish to join our partnership team.

“The LORD protects and preserves them, they are counted among the blessed in the land, He does not give them over to the desire of their foes.”  Psalm 41:2

Man!  What a ride!

An appropriate way to sum up our whirlwind trip.  We traveled through 14 states, plus visited Mexico and Canada!  We were so blessed to not have to deal with any major sicknesses or vehicle breakdowns, the Lord kept us safe and fairly well rested.  We enjoyed every visit we had with so many friends and family.  Thanks to all who showed us hospitality, we were so blessed by each of you!

There are many things we learned as a family along the way, but two items of vulnerability I wish to share with you all: the value of family and priority.  We spent two solid months traveling over 10,000 miles in a beautiful mini van one of our supporters graciously provided for us to travel in.  We spent that time in very close proximity to one another, and even though I felt like we were already a close family, this trip brought us closer literally and figuratively.  When there are four of you traveling this way for long periods of time, there is nowhere to retreat when you get annoyed or upset with one another.  As a result, we learned to communicate on an entirely new level.  This was good for us and I believe we are a much stronger family as a result.  The other take away from this trip was an affirmation of our values, priorities, and goals in life.  When asked if I missed home, I would often say I have home with me, so not really.  Yes, we all missed the comfort of our stuff and longed for that place where we could truly be ourselves.  But the reality is we were together and that is truly HOME for us.  The 3 ladies in my life are by far the most valuable treasures I have, on loan from God!  Stuff doesn’t matter as much as relationship with family and friends.

We are now supported at 79%!  Whoo! Hoo!  Only 21% to go!!!

We are overwhelmed by the response we’ve received from those of you who have joined us in partnership!  It’s humbling to say the least and hard for me to think about without being moved to tears.   We appreciate how you have made sacrifices in order to be a part of something so awesome!  You are truly patriots and love the very military that keeps us all safe here in this country we call America.  Thank you.

As we round the final corner, there is still time to join us if our Heavenly Father is directing you to do so.  You can click on this LINK to partner with us!

We do have a few prayer requests if you would pray:

• Please pray for our trip in June to upstate New York to visit the Ft. Drum Hospitality House.  We need clarity that this is where the Lord desires for us to be and we have much to learn about the ministry there.  Pray that we ask all the right questions.
• Please continue to pray that our last 21% comes in quickly so we can rest assured the finances are in place for ministry and we can focus on packing our house to move.
• Would you please pray for some of our friends who are struggling with relational, financial, and health issues?  We spent time trying to minister to their needs on this trip.
• Please pray that God brings the right renters for our home in Alaska.  We would love to find the perfect couple or small family that might love our home and be good stewards of it while we are away.
• Lastly, Cadence International holds one conference every 5 years which will occur in late June, about a month from now.  This conference is THE gathering of all Cadence missionaries around the world and a strategic time of training, vision casting for the future, and opportunity for fellowship with your fellow missionaries.  We had resigned that going was not possible because of our timing to get to the field by August, there just isn’t enough time and finances to do both.  Cadence thought it would be wise to allow you to know about this and if God wants us to go, He will provide through His people.  This trip would combine our trip to New York to see our possible place of ministry and allow the girls to go as well.  For our family of four to fly down from Alaska, rent a car in New York and drive it to Wisconsin, cover conference, room and board the cost will be around $7000.  Our window of opportunity is short as they need to know as soon as possible.  If it is to be, it’s to be – otherwise we will wait until 2020 if it is not.  If you have the means and desire to be used by God in this huge way here is the LINK to blow our minds.

Thanks to each of you who read this blog.  We love you and thank you for your support and prayer from the bottom of our hearts!

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  Philippians 4:6

10,000 miles, 3 oil changes, and many many awesome experiences!  That’s what the Beaudin’s have been up to!  We traveled through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, and now Minnesota and we’ve been blessed with many visits with some amazing friends and family and cherish every memory. In two weeks, our time on the road will come to an end as we head back to Alaska on May 15th.

Our support is now at 67%!!  Praise God!  We are close to the final stretch of our partnership development phase!  Thank you, each of you who have joined us as partners!   As we round the final corner of our support raising, Cadence has shared with us where they would like to place us and so we are prayerfully considering Ft. Drum in Watertown, NY.  This is home to the 10th Mountain Division, the most deployed unit in the United States, there are 20,000 active soldiers currently there.

For this reason, there are great needs concerning our troops like deployment and post-deployment issues, working with young marrieds and their children while soldiers are away for 9 months, and sharing the Gospel is paramount.  1,250 troops from this unit will deploy this Fall to train Iraqi troops to fight ISIS.

We would be replacing a missionary couple who have been faithfully serving there for the past decade who are going on home assignment.  Here is a video of the North Country Cadence Hospitality House:

The possibility of meeting our goal to be fully supported and on the mission field by this August is very real.  If you would like to help us get there, please become a partner in this ministry by clicking on this link!