Christmas Letter 2009

December 12, 2009

Dear Friends and Family,
We are so thankful for all that God did in 2009. He provided opportunities for us to travel to Germany and the East Coast, provided a place for our church to meet, provided abundant grace for all the tasks and blessings in our life, and most of all, provided peace with Himself through Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection.

Carl - Carl continues to pastor Grace Church. He is busy finding workers and making decisions for the new campus that our church owns, studying, preaching, keeping up with our busy family, and meeting with people. He finished installing all new windows in our house (yay!) and occasionally gets to go surfing or dirt biking. He is thankful for the Lord’s constant provisions and faithful presence.

Kerstin - We have taken a different path in our homeschool journey as we joined a new program and are doing more classical education. It has been a challenging but great experience to choose all our own curriculum. Little glimpses: yesterday the girls performed a play about the discovery of Uranus, recited 15 weeks of memory work in all the core subjects, and today I read to them in German as they ate a snack and colored a picture of a grasshopper and caterpillar. I really enjoyed taking the kids to Germany to see family and make new friends, and to NJ and NC as well. I continue to paint and am getting interest in prints of my paintings, which is fun. There have been really stretching moments for me this year that caused me to grow in wonder how deep God’s love for me is and how unworthy I am. What a Savior!

Johanna (12) - Hanna just celebrated her 12th birthday and gave us all gifts. She has grown so much in maturity as she serves and thinks of others more highly than herself. Hanna continues to pursue ballet, violin, and piano. She and Maggie taught 3 little girls (one was Lily) ballet this summer. At the end of the summer, they choreographed and performed a ballet show with the little ones. Hanna usually has her schoolwork done by 9 a.m. and really has a knack for Latin. She looks for ways to encourage and help. We often see a message from Hanna on our white board in the kitchen: “I love my family!” Hanna really loved going to Camp Iroquoina (the camp in PA that I went to growing up) because it caused her to grow in her faith. She would like to have a farm some day--definitely some horses and chickens. “I don’t mind hard work,” she says. I especially appreciate when Hanna tells me, “I have a cleaning bug today!”

Magdeline (10) - Maggie has such a gentle spirit, although she is also full of energy. She loves the little ones and thinks of fun things that they can do. She also gets them ready for the day or nap. The only problem is that when she demonstrates how high she can climb in our huge tree Trey tries to be like her! Maggie absolutely adores babies. If there is a baby anywhere nearby, she longs to hold it. Hanna and Maggie are always pretending that they have many babies. They have plans for Maggie to have an orphanage someday on Hanna’s farm. The more babies, the better. Maggie also plays the flute, piano, and rides a dirt bike with Carl. She says things that make us laugh like, “I have fingers in my head that I count” (doing math in her head), “stored in my brain” (remembering things), “my tooth is on one dangle” (loose tooth), or “at least I don’t have leprosy or cholera” (when she was sick). Maggie dreams of being an ice skater--she has started some lessons and may get to perform in a competition. She loved Camp Iroquoina, saying, “The Bible has been all cloudy until now--it is like it is cleared. I didn’t know for sure that I was going to Heaven but now I do. This is more important to me than ice skates, or ice skating, or getting a Nintendo DS!”

Lilyana (5 1/2) - Lily is doing well physically--the only scare was when she passed out again in reaction to pain (it has happened about 4 times so far). She started kindergarten this year, but mainly soaks in life from wherever she is. Lily is sensitive and intuitive. When we pass a bird on the side of the road, she muses, “I wonder if it’s the same one I saw a minute ago.” Lily prays for people faithfully after she hears that they need prayer. Both Lily and Trey are scared of going to jail, so Lily prayed that she wouldn’t go to jail and that “Paul [the apostle] would get out of jail so he can preach more” (we’ve been reading Philippians). When we read about Paul’s thorn in his flesh, she called it “his prickle under his skin.” Lily heard Carl preaching when she was in the nursery and commented, “He REALLY knows what he’s talking about!” She loved coloring with Grandma and telling her, “Good job, Grandma!” Trey calls her “Lilyana Wilfred Fletcher!” She makes gifts for her siblings from her stuff because “I have so much, and they can be happy.” Lily wants to bring me breakfast in bed every day and comforted Maggie after Maggie had been teased by a boy, saying “Boys are rough!”

Carl III a.k.a. “Trey” (3 1/2) Our little guy is full of life and joy. His favorite outfit at the moment consists of his pjs, a bow tie, and his shades. He LOVES ties (unlike his Papa) and does not like his hair messed with, except sometimes by his sisters. He makes my day with his comments. “I love you, Mama. You soooo cute. You the best thing that I like. I love my sistas and my Mama and my Papa.” Trey is doted on by his 3 sisters, but he is all boy--racing around on his balance bike or scooter. He does not like food unless it has a considerable sugar content. When complimented, Trey replies, “Why thank you!” He loved coloring with Grandpa this summer, and talks longingly of camping, birthdays, and Christmas (he cried at Thanksgiving when there were no presents). Trey plans to be a ice hockey player (like Tim McAdam), race car driver, or motorcycle rider when he grows up. Trey has a wonderful, infectious chuckle. He loves to be chased down and tickled--a living, breathing toy for our family to play with!

We wish you a very Merry Christmas, and God’s peace in 2010.

Because of Christ,

The Fletchers

We love to keep in touch. We love visits too!

God's Artistry

Tea at the Ritz, a trip to Pier 39, and Thanksgiving

I had the pleasure of going to High Tea in San Francisco with some friends--the Eros tea was my very favorite (check it out at tealeaves.com).




The Monday before Thanksgiving we went to the Aquarium of the Bay in San Francisco at Pier 39. Trey just wanted to see sharks--but I like the jellies!

Lily in the bubble...
Trey in the bubble...
Hanna in the bubble...
Maggie in the bubble...

We had lunch at the Sea Lion Cafe.
Thanksgiving was so delicious and fun!
Before and after haircut (it actually took 3 haircuts to get it right...)


Thanksgiving dinner was delicious and fun...everything turned out so well!


The morning after Thanksgiving the kids had hot cider and pumpkin pie.

Taking risks for the gospel

It's better to make a fool of yourself than to play it safe | Andrée Seu

Illustration by Ali Douglass

My roommate on Cape Cod in 1974 was a Jewish girl who got saved on the Boston Commons when a Christian approached her, in all her hippiedom, and said, "Want to meet some normal people?" Susan said yes, and followed. If there is a worse evangelistic appeal, I don't know it.

Let me have risk-takers around me. Just as a practical matter. Let me have Christians who try things that fail, and then try something else. Introduce me to someone who parks near handicapped parking at McDonalds and waits for someone to come along who might need prayer. Send me a friend who would rather make a fool of himself obeying what he is 80 percent sure the Word commands than play it safe, or who supports missionaries beyond his means. I want to hang out with a woman who snaps to the voice of the Spirit, rather than mind-screwing it till it subsides. Or who puts her full weight on the promises of God and doesn't get so mired in theological discussion of "context" that the promise is whittled to nothing.

It seems to me we're always getting ready to share the gospel and never actually sharing the gospel. We are forever describing it to each other. We fill our notebooks with neat insights from Christian conferences. We are entertained by C.S. Lewis and Bonhoeffer—the very men who warned us against making the gospel "an academic problem which is worth discussing with a good master" (The Cost of Discipleship). Someday we will be sitting in nursing homes still mumbling to ourselves the names of Berkouwer and Warfield.

We rob each other. How do we rob each other? By not risking anything all day long, so that we give no room to God for the glorious testimonies He is waiting to hand us, that we might encourage each other. God is glorified in the demonstration of the difference between our natural ability and His miraculous power. Risk-taking is nothing fancy, just an everyday pressing into little things that we have no confidence of doing without the help of God.

And we rob the world. "I am certain that the world outside is not going to pay much attention to all the organized efforts of the Christian church. The one thing she will pay attention to is a body filled with this spirit and rejoicing. That is how Christianity conquered the ancient world. . . . I am exhorting you in this evil world in which we find ourselves that if you really are concerned about it, . . . then it will be your duty to become a person such as is depicted here, because this is the only thing that is going to persuade men. They say, 'Oh we know your teaching and preaching, we have had it all before,' but when they see it in operation they will listen because they are miserable and unhappy" (Joy Unspeakable, Martyn Lloyd-Jones).

Do you feel your faith is too weak yet to venture out for God? Or that you are not yet a good enough person for Him to use you? "This is the disobedience of the 'believers'; when they are asked to obey, they simply confess their unbelief and leave it at that (Mark 9:24). You are trifling with the subject. If you believe, take the first step, it leads to Jesus Christ. If you don't believe, take the first step all the same, for you are bidden to take it" (Bonhoeffer, ibid.).

"Risk must be taken to pursue solutions to impossible situations. The gospel of power is the answer to the tragic condition of humankind. John Wimber said, 'Faith is spelled R-I-S-K.' If we really want more of God then we must change our lifestyle so that His manifested presence will increase upon us. This is not an act on our part to somehow manipulate God. Instead it is the bold attempt to take Him at His Word, so that we radically obey His charge. He says 'Amen' with the miraculous. I challenge you to pursue God passionately. And in your pursuit, insist on a supernatural lifestyle" (When Heaven Invades Earth, Bill Johnson).

Postscript: The first person who spoke to me today before I completed this essay was a disheveled man on the street at about 6:30 a.m. He said, "Good morning, M'am. Have a blessed day." Imagine risking that.

I caught a few shots of Lily in the setting sun the other day...






Maggie took this photo as Trey was "talking to God while waiting to ride his bike in front of our house."

A Prayer Worth Praying...and Getting Prayed By Others For Me!

Carl was reading the beginning of Philippians for our family devotions this morning. We focused on the following passage:

Phil. 1:9-11
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,

so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ,

filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ — to the glory and praise of God.

What a prayer! I was meditating on the words and realized some things--love should have knowledge and insight. (Does mine? I desire that my love has knowledge and insight.)

Knowledgeable love causes the ability to discern what is "best...pure and blameless." (Do I have that discernment? I desire that I would have.)

This kind of love and discernment causes lavish fruit of righteousness through Jesus Christ. (Do I have a fullness of righteous fruit? I desire it.)

I am going to start praying this prayer for the ones I pray for--and would definitely appreciate it if anyone prays for these specifics for me!

To the glory and praise of God.

Halloween Fun

Here they are--Princess Lily, Ladybug Hanna, Pippi Maggie, and Monkey Trey!

Julia was reading to Trey and Lily--Trey had borrowed Hanna's glasses so he could see the book better!

Cowboy Carl!

Maggie loves Benjamin, her bunny!