We wish you a Merry Christmas!

We are so thankful this holiday season to be serving the Lord in Nenana. We continually talk about how much we enjoy it here, and how we feel that we have been placed here for a reason. We thank you so much for praying and supporting us so that we can do the Lord’s work.

We were very pleased this last week to be asked by a local organization to help fill the food boxes for the needy family in our community. Bill spent one whole afternoon carrying turkeys, canned food, milk, eggs, bread, etc. from the trucks to the tables, to the boxes, to the people. He was able to meet a bunch of new people, both in the white and native community.

We have had a great time listening to the school Christmas concerts, participating in the class parties, and attending movie night fund raisers. Rebecca helped the first and second graders make reindeer antlers for their play, The Littlest Reindeer. And her picture was in the paper because she helped make a quilt that was auctioned off as a fund raiser for the senior center.

We would ask for your prayers for the Blair family, who recently lost a young son due to heart trouble. Please lift up in prayer a man who is coming to Bill for spiritual help. Also please continue to pray for our elders as they guide our church through the necessary paperwork required by the State of Alaska.

We have also had answers to our prayers. A friend, Wanda, was having a lot of foot trouble and after a visit to a specialist is now pain free. Baby Silas is home from the NICU and doing well. We are breaking attendance records at AWANA nearly every week. The Lord is doing great things!

In Him,

Bill and Rebecca

westroxel@gmail.com, rebecca0669@yahoo.com

Prayer Request

A young man from our community was just life-flighted to Seattle. Please pray for his healing, peace and comfort for the entire family, and for wisdom from the doctors.

Update:
The young man went home to be with his Lord on Thursday the 13th. The service is Thursday, Dec 20th.

Remain in prayer for his family. They know they will see him again someday, but their loss and grief must be hard to bear. Pray for their continued peace and healing.

I took some pictures this weekend. First of all, here is our church during service. We had 27 in attendance this week.




And some new photos of each of us. Notice the big green spot on Ethan's forehead? He ran into the support at AWANA. He said he didn't cry because he didn't want anyone to know that he had blinked while running and hit the post.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We have been here in Nenana a little over three months and are as excited about it today as the first day. We hope there is as much to be thankful for in your house as there is in ours. My parents are here to spend the holiday with us, and we always enjoy their visits. We celebrated Thanksgiving with a potluck for our church family and a community dinner at the school today.

Nenana Community Church is growing in size and in commitment. Offering in October was $1700 more than offering in August. This is great for the church budget! Our membership elected another elder to fulfill the church constitution. There is a great amount of participation in activities by our church family. AWANA is fully staffed; Ladies Bible Study has had a solid turnout of seven plus a few more here and there. There are many church attendees that are involved in the school, and a few are involved with the radio station, KIAM. Bill is continuing to attend the Pastoral Prayer Meeting with the other clergy of Nenana. We are getting better connected to the happenings of our town every day.

Bill had quite a pastoral experience in October. A friend and fellow supporter Scott, and his wife, Anna, delivered a healthy baby, Silas, but within minutes his health deteriorated and he needed to be rushed to Anchorage NICU. Scott called to tell Bill this news as they were riding in the ambulance. Bill knew he must go to them in Anchorage. Thankfully, we had the means for him to get on a plane and be there in less than four hours. Scott was so thankful that Bill arrived to help them through this difficult time. Bill was by their side for four days. Baby Silas is continuing to have problems with eating, but is looking forward to being home for Christmas.

We covet your continued prayers for our personal needs and the concerns of our church:

1. Nenana Community Church will be working on a Child Abuse Protection Policy that is required by Village Missions.
2. The church elders to establish their relationship with each other and their wives.
3. Future elder retreats for further education

We also have praise reports:

1. Our friend Mark had a positive answer to a personal prayer request.
2. Our children are doing well in school and are involved in activities.
3. Baby Silas is very close to going home to stay.
4. We are so thankful for our home, families, friends and supporters.
   

We carved a Jack-o-lantern. What a fun evening!


The results of our efforts!

And here is our new little dog, Maggie. She is such a sweetie!

When arriving in Nenana from Fairbanks, this is the bridge we cross. Once we see it we know we are home. And that is such a great feeling.


This is a photo of the parsonage, 509 1st St. It has four bedrooms, a bathroom, a laundry room, a kitchen, a large open living/dining room and a wonderful front porch.


Nenana Community Church meets at the senior center. We push the tables aside and set up the chairs for service. We appreciate the use of this building so much.





AWANA is held at the Civic Center. There is a large open room and we have the use of some tables and chairs. This is such a great place to hold AWANA.


These are the latest pictures of the kiddos. Aerin is 9 and in 4th grade and Ethan is 6 and in 1st grade.

October 5th Update

Dear Friends and Family,

We have some great news for you in this update! The church is doing well, our district representative’s visit went well, everyone returned from moose hunting well stocked and it snowed last night!

Nenana Community Church is bursting at the seams. Attendance is up to the level when the previous pastor was here. At the last service, our membership doubled, and we now have four couples as members of the church. Bill is preaching through Genesis and John, switching monthly. This week is the beginning of John. Please continue to pray for our church and its ministries. Elder selection will begin soon, and we ask prayer for God’s guidance in this process.

We are involved in AWANA, youth group, the Book Fair, the Community Prayer Meetings and other things. AWANA started October 1 ^st and there was a great turnout. We have plenty of leaders and staff this year, which is always a blessing. Youth group meets every Friday night and Bill is giving the messages. The teens have pizza, play games and have a bible study. Attendance has been low but now it is starting to increase. I have been setting up the school library for the book fair that is coming in mid-October. I have been painting winter scenes and hanging snow flakes. Bill is also attending the community prayer meetings with the other clergy. These meetings are every two weeks and will focus on prayers for the town and its inhabitants.

Vern and Cindy Wilkinson, representatives from Village Missions, came to visit for a few days in early October. They had meetings with us, with Bill, and with the elders. It was revealed that everything is going well and all parties are extremely happy with our presence in Nenana.

Aerin went on a trip with her school class to Denali Park for a hike and outdoor education. Bill went along as a chaperone and got a chance to interact with the kids and the other adults. They had a great time. Ethan is reading like a whiz! He was put in 2^nd grade math and is one of the best behaved kids in the class.

On a sad note, our van has been given the hands down to fixing it again. The mechanic said the only hope was to rebuild or replace the engine, and really the van is not worth it. It is currently running, but with reduced power and increased gas usage. We are saving our dividends and hoping to put a little more money aside and make it to the New Year with the van. Then we will look for a different vehicle.

We do have a serious prayer request for a member of our church family. Cindy has been diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer, but this time it is in all the vertebrae. She is currently undergoing chemo and continuing to work. She is feeling pain in her back and tiredness from the chemo. Please pray for patience, strength and pain relief for Cindy and for continued hope for the future.

In Him,

The Troxel Family