Dear family and friends,

Greetings to you! This is the 3rd Independence Day that Brad and I have been in Florida. I stood out in our yard and watched the fireworks over Lake Monroe on Thursday evening. After being overseas for so many years, it is always nice to be here for the special celebrations. We are so very thankful for the freedoms that we have here in our wonderful country. Of course these do not compare to the freedoms that we have through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Brad and I continue to enjoy our ministries here in central Florida. I am having a break from teaching since school is out for the summer. Of course I find enough to keep me busy. I have plans to do some painting as well as some cleaning here at NTM Homes in the next week or so. We have been experiencing quite a bit of rain and neither of my outdoor projects can be done in rainy weather. I am hoping that we will soon have two or three nice sunny days in a row so I can get busy on those projects. Patience seems to be the name of the game at this time.

Brad and I were able to get away for a bit of a break last month. We traveled the 950+ miles each way to Maryland so that we could spend time with some of our supporting churches, friends, and family members. We were gone a total of 18 days. Two of those days were VERY LONG traveling days. We visited 5 supporting churches in West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. We also spent time with a number of families & friends who have stood behind us as we serve Him here in Florida. We had some time with parents, brothers, nephews, and nieces. As I look back on all the folks that we were able to see, I am amazed that we accomplished so many visits in such a short time. Of course there were folks that we missed seeing due to just not having enough time to do so. If we missed seeing you, maybe that can happen on our next trip up north. Brad spent parts of several days going through the attic, cellar and the old house where his grandparents had lived. He enjoyed spending a bit of time in the barn as well. The family is making plans to have someone come in and level both structures in the not too distant future. Even though Brad put in quite a bit of time and energy, he enjoyed his trip down memory lane.

At the end of this past school year, the kindergarten teacher retired. This opened up the door for me to move into her position, which had been vacated. Since kindergarten is my grade of choice, I was so excited to be moving back into the kindergarten realm. I have spent quite a bit of time moving my collection of kindergarten books, games, and various supplies into the kindergarten room. These are things that I have collected since moving here just over two years ago. I have looked forward to getting back to working with 5 and 6 year old boys and girls. Unfortunately my dream job will have to wait for another year. Even though I was slated to teach kindergarten this year, there was only one kindergarten student enrolled for this coming school year. Since the family has now considered other educational options, I became a teacher with no students. I met with the school principal on Monday and we talked about where I could fit in during this next school year.

I have had to apply the character trait of flexibility. It has been decided that I will be teaching math to both first and second grade students. I will teach the classes individually so as to allow the first and second grade teacher to be able to teach reading to these same students. While I am teaching first grade math, Miss Drake will be teaching second grade reading. While I am teaching second grade math, Miss Drake will be teaching first grade reading. At this point there are 3 first grade students and 2 second grade students. I have taught first grade math for the past two years and second grade math this past school year, so there are really no surprises as far as the lesson content is concerned. I now have the old kindergarten room pretty much set up as the Math Room for these students. I will also be teaching some of the older students in our little school. To give the fifth grade teacher a bit of a break in her day, I will be teaching History and Geography to the four fifth grade students this year. This will be a new one for me. I do enjoy history as well as geography and am looking forward to this new experience. I hope to start on some lesson planning this coming week.

This will be a fairly light teaching load for me for this coming school year. I am thankful for this as I will soon be enrolled as a student at Seminole State College here in Sanford for a college algebra course. This is the last course that I need to complete in order to receive my degree in early childhood education. I have been brushing up on my high school algebra recently so as to be ready for this new challenge. It has been a very long time since I was in high school algebra and honestly, I really don’t remember much at all about what I studied way back in the 70s. I do not yet know if I will have to take Intermediate algebra before taking the college algebra course.

Just recently I read some thought provoking things in New Tribes Mission literature and would like to share them with you.

“New Tribes Mission is reaching a new tribe every 45 days. And NTM is just one avenue God is using to glorify His name among the world’s unreached people groups. Because you and NTM are working together to see the last tribe reached in this generation, we’re hearing testimonies like this: “This is God’s talk,” said a Biem man who heard the climax of foundational Bible lessons late last year. “See, it’s just one story, from the Old Testament to Jesus. There is no other road but Jesus. God meant it this way from the beginning.” A Dinangat woman in a ripped shirt and patched skirt, living in a grass-roofed hut, and eating a steady diet of sweet potatoes and little else, was ashamed when she read I Timothy 6:6-8: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” She responded, “When we have food and clothes, what else do we need? We have God, our Savior. He is everything we need to live and die.” He is indeed all we need! Brad and I are thankful to be a part of this team that desire to glorify His name by making Him known to the ends of the earth.

God has answered these prayers:

  • The electrical work was completed and inspection passed for the big power project last month in the Assisted Living Facility.
  • Brad and I had a profitable trip up north last month.
  • I now have a better idea about what I will be teaching this coming school year.

Please pray that: 

  • Brad and I will live each day to its fullest. We desire to spend our energy doing things that matter in the light of eternity.
  • Brad will be able to stay ahead of his daily office work as well as work on writing up a manual for anyone who needs to know the step by step processes that he does to get his work accomplished.
  • I, Wanda will be diligent to study algebra in the next 2 to 3 weeks so that I will be better prepared to take the math placement test at Seminole State College
  • I, Wanda as I study the teacher’s manual for the fifth grade history and geography course that I will soon be teaching.
  • I, Wanda will be able to balance school projects, NTM Homes projects, and domestic duties here at home.
  • We will both be focused on the tasks that God has before us each and every day.
  • We will continue to follow hard after Him. We desire to please Him in all that we say and do.

Thank you for your part in our ministry here.

By His grace,

Wanda (and Brad) Hull