The Thomas Newsletter
"Serving together since 2016..."
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Hello everybody! Stephen here.
We just returned from a whirlwind trip in the U.S. Over 6 weeks, we drove 4,500 miles and flew much more. It was split between time with family and time for networking/ fundraising. Having grown up in Costa Rica, a lot of the people I know, know my parents. Which makes networking even more important for us as we expand to Panama. We must expand our network base and share what we are doing to have more people engaged and excited about Panama. It is not always easy, but it has paid off tremendously. We are so excited and grateful for the individuals and churches that met up with us during our trip.
Through this whole trip, we were able to raise even more funds. We are within $20,000 of reaching our fundraising goal of $367,000. God has been so extremely good and faithful! Having closed in on our goal, we are even more thrilled because it means that the last 4 years of praying, fasting, and moving to a new country will soon be met with tangible results. We are closer than ever to be able to purchase land and get our program up and running.
In other news, Noah is now 16 months old! Unfortunately, the day before we left Panama, three of his molars decided to come in! That made the next 24 hours of travel that we had very interesting. He was super happy to make it to his grandparent’s house, to say the least! Of course, the fourth molar came as we were leaving for Utah. He did get to experience his first cold weather/white-out snowstorm in the mountains of Utah. Our little Panamanian boy, whose favorite outfit is wearing just diapers at home, since it is so hot, did not know what to do with snow. Fortunately, he seemed to be intrigued by it!
Also, we have some great news to share with y’all. We finally found out the gender of our little bun in the oven! We will be having another…BOY!!! We are over the moon with excitement. We know that he will be a great addition to our family. Thankfully, Kendra is over her morning sickness and food aversions and is feeling much better now. So far, the baby seems to be healthy and is starting to move around a lot more. He seems like he will have the same energy as his big brother, Noah!
On a different note, I chose the quote above because it resonates so much with us and the season of life we are in right now. Ever since I was a little kid growing up on the mission field, my parents embodied faith. They lived out and put action to what they taught my siblings and me about faith and trusting in God. Uprooting your family to go to a different country and giving up all financial security seems crazy to most. Yet God provided every step of the way and seeing that made a huge impact on me. Now on my own journey 24 years later, I have felt God calling us to do the same thing my parents did all those years ago. I moved my family to another country intending to follow God’s calling. However, seeing someone follow God and then doing it yourself is quite different.
We are trying to hold nothing back and put all our hope in God’s faithfulness. It has been a wild ride. Through last year, which was brutal for everyone, I kept wondering how we were going to be able to fulfill what God has called us to do. Yet we did not let the circumstances of the pandemic scare us, and we held fast to God’s calling to be here in Panama. Now we are so much closer to carrying out the call that He has put on our lives. We are just beginning, but seeing God move and provide in seemingly dire circumstances has truly been amazing. It gives us hope and confidence that as we keep putting ourselves out there to follow Him, He is faithful and will provide every step of the way.
Thank you SO much for your prayers and support. They mean so much to us!
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If you would like to financially partner with us, there's 2,
tax-deductible options:
1. PayPal: Click "Donate" for a one-time gift or subscribe for monthly support.
2. Mail: Send a check payable
to 'Thomas Missions' to:
Visions Made Viable
17595 Harvard Ave.
Suite C235
Irvine, CA 92614
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If you would like to financially partner with the
Abraham Project Panama (APP), there's 2, tax-deductible options:
1. PayPal: Click "Donate" for a one-time gift or subscribe for monthly support.
2. Mail: Send a check payable to 'Abraham Project, Inc.' with
Panama in the memo section to:
Abraham Project, Inc.
7904 N. 19th St.
McAllen, TX 78504
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We were able to celebrate Kendra's 29th birthday on April 15 in Salt Lake City, Utah where we were able to go sightseeing the capital, the famous square downtown, and the planetarium, which we all loved, especially Noah! We were able to create some special memories together as a family!
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As mentioned in our newsletter, we are thrilled to announce we are having a baby boy! My current due date is September 14 and we do not have names picked yet. We cannot wait to meet the newest addition to our growing family in a few months! The Lord is so good!
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God bless,
Stephen, Kendra, & Noah Thomas
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