Reboot!

Has your computer ever not run right and you just couldn’t figure it out? I know, that’s a rhetorical question! I’m sure you did what everyone does—reboot!

That’s what I’m calling this season the we’re in when it come to Hope For Tomorrow. It’s a reboot of sorts, not because of an problem, but because we are closer than ever to plans to start a new orphanage in Central Asia and we are ramping up Hope For Tomorrow’s activities in preparation.

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Nicola and Drew, making videos in their home office, in front of their library.

Here’s the latest update!

Our focus this last year has been preparing for our next God-adventure, which we are announcing now for the first time!

We are going to move to Central Asia in approximately 2 ½ years and prepare to start a new orphanage there. This was not a decision we took lightly.   September 30, 2022, we took an afternoon and went to a park in Colorado Springs called Garden of the Gods. Our purpose was to seek God as to what our next step was.  We went to different places to pray, and separately both heard, “Start an orphanage in Central Asia.”  For me, Nicola, this fit right in with my original call to work with orphans in 2007 when he led me to the verse James 1:27:

“Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”

We have been doing our best to prepare for it,

• Begun preparing our Colorado home for our time overseas,

• Started a business to support our home while we are gone,

• Learned keys of kingdom finances,

• Deepened our unity in marriage.

• Unity is SO important for us and the orphans!

• Learning new languages,

• Working on systems and ideas to incorporate in the orphanage, so when we begin the orphanage we will be accustomed to the right systems, so we will be able to focus as much attention on the children and their needs as possible,

• And, of course, praying for the children who will come.

• We have friends there and an attorney to help us get situated with the legal aspects once we get there.

I am currently in my second “third year” program of Bible school in the Film and Production department in Children’s Writing.

God has given me ideas to use this knowledge to help the children grow in Christ.

We are expecting to take a trip to Central Asia in October to help us make decisions, and move there in 2 ½ years.  We are planning to spend two years getting settled, getting better with the languages, meeting local government, developing relationships with neighbors and learning the lay of the land.  Then we will start our orphanage.  We will keep you updated with our progress.

We want you to know how much we value your friendship, your prayers and your support for Hope for Tomorrow.   Thank you.

Nicola and Drew share the next steps for Hope For Tomorrow.

Let us know what you think of this video.  Do you have any suggestions?  This is new for us.   We will be doing more.

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Let’s begin with some updates!

What’s New?

It’s been far too long since we wrote you, which is indicative of our very full days. But our sparse communication is not indicative of our deep gratefulness for your sowing into what God is doing in our lives and ministry.

We graduated from Charis Bible College’s two-year program last May.

Nicola had received her minister’s license already in 2002, but that was a new landmark for me.  The list of courses we completed together is very long —from Proverbs I to Business Planning. The past academic year served as one of several ways God poured into our lives. God blessed, humbled, and honored us when our classmates voted us the “most encouraging couple” of the school year.

Mission trip to the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming.

Wind River was full of divine appointments, practical and spiritual ministry to the native population. God used Nicola in the life of a native girl who was orphaned — losing both her parents to addiction. Nicola was able to minister to this young girl in a life changing way and followed up by sending her the Chronicles of Narnia to read. We were told the girl is a voracious reader and would cherish the books.

Trusting and resting…in Him.

We are trusting and resting in God during this season of preparation as He pours into our lives through the amazing teachers at Charis, our community of like-minded students, our church family, friends and supporters. We are excited for what God is doing in our lives during this season. He is preparing us for our next season of ministry as a couple. He is knitting Nicola and I closer together than ever before in every way. We believe God will use us in powerful ways. Not a week passes without God leading us to minister to a variety of needs of His people. Divine healing is definitely a gift we operate in, with lots of opportunities to heal wounded hearts and people’s bodies. Nicola operates in a wonderful prophetic gift of visions that she receives as we pray for people. I’ve witnessed her gift impact dozens of people this past year. We are frequently told that folks see something special about us. Sometimes they say we bring a godly peace or joy into our environment. This happens so often now that we are no longer surprised by it, rather we are excited to discover how God is using His anointing on us in this way. It is humbling and exciting at the same time!

We are simply committed to go where He sends us and do what He calls us to do for His glory in this next season!

We would like to see the road map ahead, yet God has told me “Be diligent in your work, be diligent in your studies and I will show you what’s next when the time comes.

The transition from the mission field to marriage and to school in Colorado has been difficult for Nicola at times.

I have seen and experienced reverse culture shock — that fish-out-of-water feeling one experiences when moving from one culture to another. Yet, Nicola’s experience has been subtler and more complex, nonetheless very real. Much of her life has been singly devoted to Jesus as her husband, teaching in Charis - St. Petersburg, Russia, ministering to orphans and widows there and in Central Asia. Imagine the shift to marriage for the first time, a husband, blended family, moving to Colorado, enrolling in Charis, while her heart is torn between her current season and her familiar ministry overseas!

We know that God brought us together for such a time as this.

God confirmed to her that I was the one by telling her “He’s yours” in Russian! And He called me to “…bring the power of the covenant of Holy Matrimony” to her. Yes, you read that right — God called me to Nicola. I’m in awe of His goodness because Nicola is quite literally the manifestation of God’s love for me. I’m focused on ministering to Nicola in the power of the Holy Spirit as best as I can allow Him to flow through me to her as unhindered as possible as I rest in Him. None of this is as easy as it may sound. But God is willing and able, therefore, so am I.

Now we are going through the leadership track of Charis’ third year program together.

The third-year program at Charis is optional, but it is the reason we moved to Colorado in the first place. When Nicola first graduated in 2002, there wasn’t a third-year course of study and we looked forward to going through third year together. Little did we know she’d enroll in first year at Charis again and we’d go through all 3 years together!

Charis’ third year is a hybrid program.

That means that we have 150 minutes of pre-recorded lessons each weekday, then a full day of in-person classes every other Saturday. We recently finished “Full Time Ministry, Full Time Married”, a course of rich interviews with eight couples, seven of whom have been married more than 40 years, and in full time ministry throughout their marriage. The hybrid program is described as a mix of Ministry, Global Training (missions), and Business school classes designed to cultivate one’s gifts while being surrounded with instructors and classmates who share the same passion. A key aspect of third-year leadership is a capstone project where teams of students strategize plans for a student’s ministry. I am working on building an app that will connect people in life threatening situations with safe, reliable help. Nicola is working on an organic farm that will be an outreach. These are intense projects, and by graduation our teams will formally present our project to a panel who will evaluate our projects are and grade us on our business plan and preparation. Each project will be up and running before the end of the school year.

Through the classes and projects, we follow the leading of the Holy Spirit as new strategies and plans for Hope for Tomorrow come to fruition!

You share in spiritual fruit.

Your faithful support has been a central factor enabling us to envision Hope for Tomorrow’s next phase of ministry. You are partakers in the fruit of this ministry for all eternity! Our time of preparation has been challenging, quite frankly very difficult at times. Even so, God is faithful and He’s been faithful through you. We are so expectant for the upcoming season to be a time of increase and breakthrough for us in our calling to God’s kingdom work.

We look forward to keeping you abreast of His plans for Hope for Tomorrow during this time.

Thank you for your faithful support

And for your patience as we walk this path together.

Will you please pray for:

1. Our discernment of God’s leading in this season.

2. God-ordained helpers to come alongside us as we strategize on Hope for Tomorrow’s future ministry direction.

3. Divine unity and wisdom for Nicola and me as we complete Charis 3rd year leadership program.

4. Open doors and opportunities for us to advance the kingdom like never before.

We love you, appreciate you, and pray for you,

Drew & Nicola

Transition and Preparation

Graduation day at Charis Bible College.

The ministry entered a time of transition after Drew & I were married and moved to Colorado to attend Charis Bible College. We’re nearly halfway through our third year leadership program at Charis. And as we’ve sought God for His heart for the ministry that He’s called us to, we’ve received confirmation that we are to build an orphanage!

Yes, you read that right. God has called us to build an orphanage. We’re going through a time of discernment — to discover where and when and so many other details. Right now we believe it will be built in Central Asia, yet we are remaining open to a stateside location too. Regardless of location, we know this is God’s call because it is so much bigger than we can do without Him.

Well, Lord, this is Your orphanage! Thankfully, you’re going to have to build it through your people.