Starbucks CHALLENGE!!!

We are so blessed to be on this journey that God has designed.  We are getting closer by the day to Papua, Indonesia, but still need your help!  In order to get to Indonesia we still need a team of people to join us! Would you prayerfully consider joining our team so we can meet the practical and spiritual needs of the people in Indonesia? 

We are so thankful for our supporters! 

Current day our monthly support is at 42.7%. We still need supporters for $3,727/month! Our one-time support is at 62.1%! All we need is $11,104.70 for our one-time support! 

STARBUCKS Challenge: Would you prayerfully consider partnering with us for $2.50 a day? (this would be $75/month) This is less than the average cost of a Starbucks coffee drink!  We ONLY need 50 more coffee drinkers to reach our monthly support by August 27, 2011! 

If you would like to support us please follow this link Helping the Grant's Serve the People of Indonesia!  

In order to get to Indonesia for language school by January 2012, our pledges need to be in by August 27th!  Would you help us? Thank you for following God's story in our lives! 

Blessings, 

Will, Nan & Gracie Jane

Update from Royal Oak, MI

Getting current

Last Friday we managed to scratch a little bit of time out of our day to go visit the Henry Ford Museum. It's the home of the chair Abe Lincoln was shot in, the limo JFK was assassinated in, the bus Rosa Parks was in when she refused to give up her seat, and several other interesting exhibits. Being related to Eli Whitney I (Will) enjoyed the model of the cotton gin and was amazed to find out Eli Whitney Jr. made guns with Colt. Another interesting find at the museum was the Chrysler Turbine which was a Chrysler produced car in 1965 with an Italian turbine engine.

The Chrysler Turbine

Fuel for dad

About a week ago we had a baby shower here in Michigan which was great for Nan as she was able to catch up with her girlfriends and me to meet them. Among some of the presents received was some coffee for dad as I am already not sleeping quite the same as before, but its all preparation for this next season of life.

29 Weeks!

Syracuse, NY to PA and My 1st Father's Day

At Hope Print House in Syracuse

A day after my first Father’s Day and I still cannot believe how God continues to show up in our lives.  We have explained to many of you that due to being on the road for three months we would not have any doctor’s visits to check up on Gracie.  It seems that lately the more opportunities we give to our good Lord above, the more He keeps working and we really could not be any more excited…especially me (Dad).

We are currently in Pennsylvania staying with some family friends who just so happen to have an ultrasound machine to look at Gracie…ON FATHERS DAY!  I mean are you kidding me?  My first Father’s Day and I get to see my beautiful daughter sucking her thumb while still inside my bride the most beautiful woman on the planet.  I am in awe.  In the video you will see a straight on shot of Gracie with the umbilical cord going straight down the middle of her face.  

Ever since finding out we were pregnant we have held Gracie with open arms not worried about what may or may not happen.  Many doctors will not see us for a one time check up because of the liability that comes with seeing a pregnant lady one time, but somehow through our friend in Michigan we were able to get an appointment for the crucial diabetes check which is a total blessing.

On Saturday we made the trek down I-81 from Syracuse and we were reminded of how awesome it is that so many of you are praying for our safe travels as we continue to cover many miles of road.  It was about noon as we witnessed a head on collision just 100 yards in front of us.  Doing 70 mph it was only a few seconds before we passed the scene and pulled over to check on the passengers of the two vehicles.  After all of the victims were taken care of and there was nothing more we could do, I cleared some debris from the freeway (including beer cans) and we were on our way.  Still shaking from the nature of the scene I prayed for all the people that were injured.  It was a prayer of praise.  I praised the Lord that no one amazingly enough was killed and for keeping us from being a part of the accident.  Again, we cannot thank you enough for your continued loyalty in surrounding us with prayer.

As I grow older I have become more appreciative of learning about my family.  Shortly after leaving the accident scene we met up with one of my dad’s friends who reminded me of my grandfather making gunstocks for Abercrombie & Fitch back in the day and a few other stories of my dad.  It was such a great time so I definitely needed to put up a picture of the two of us.

Thanks so much! Know you all are in our prayers as well... 

Blessings, 

Will, Nan, and Gracie Jane

In The D!

Well, we have been to Utah, Texas, Louisiana, Missouri, and now Michigan.  We have been spending so much great time with so many friends, new and old that we have not had time to blog. 

 One of the highlights of our trip came when we were able to visit mom Grant in El Paso on mother’s day.  It was so great to see mom, the new house, and help in the process of getting settled.

As we continued our journey east we settled in to the city of Austin.  Now if anyone knows me at all they know that I am not a huge fan of Texas the state or the football program, but as we met people and caught up with family we began to fall in love with the city.  The sun, the people, and the food (Rudy’s BBQ, Chuys, and Freebirds to name a few) were all part of the amazing experience of Austin.  We both agree that we will be going back there when we come back into the states.

Getting a Rudy's BBQ hand washing experience!

As we traveled over to Louisiana and up to Missouri we were able to see a little bit of the damage that had been done by the tornados, which was a first for the both of us.  We also managed to go over the Mississippi River and not through it.  As we think of all the disaster in the area and all the miles of road we have covered it truly has been the Lord’s protection to get us safely here to Michigan.

So does anyone know where Panera Bread started?  Well, I did not know either until going through St. Louis.  In the picture you will see that Panera was in fact started in St. Louis.  I have this thing I do with coffee there now that it is summer and blazing hot.  I buy a coffee, fill the cup with ice, cream, sugar, and then pour coffee on it.  About eight cups later I am ready to hit the road again.  So now I am sure you wondering “Wouldn’t you just have to hit the bathroom just a few minutes down the road?”  Well, yes but I will anyway because of the ever growing baby girl riding shotgun.

In St. Louis I was able to meet more of Nan’s family which was so great!  Among others I met the original “Jane” which is where Nan gets her eyes…and a few other characteristics ;)

With Grandma Jane

 It has been such a blessing to see so many great people, have so many great conversations, make a ton of new friends, and be able to share how Christ has brought us to this point in our lives.  We are honored to have the partnership team that we do so thank you so much for all of your prayers and financial support!  

In the Detroit area celebrating a cousin's graduation

Gracie, Papua, and Texas Bound...

Recently there have been a couple notable updates in our lives.  First of all, we are having a GIRL!  As one of my great friends puts it and still makes me smile "Welcome to the scary club."  I (Papa Grant) plan to keep her distracted with animals, airplanes, and two languages to learn ;)  Nan on the other hand  just cannot wait to dress her up.  Although, we have no idea what it takes to raise a girl we know we will be surrounded with a lot of great mentors.

Gracie about to suck her thumb

The second big news which was totally unexpected was finding out our assignment to Indonesia.  We knew it was going to be either Kalimantan or Papua, but really did not expect to find out until we arrived at language school.  We will be serving in Papua!  We are so excited to finally be able to start researching the area.  A snapshot of how Mission Aviation Fellowship serves in Papua, Indonesia...

38 MAF missionary families, two short-term staff, and more than 80 Indonesian staff members serve from six bases in Papua. Thirteen MAF aircraft, as well as three email hubs and communications networks, multiply the effectiveness of some 65 agencies and hundreds of churches ministering in Papua.

Finally, we just wanted to leave you today with a couple of photos from our road trip thus far.  Thank you everyone for all of your prayers and financial support.  Please pray for more partners as we head toward our goal leave date of January 2012.

A trip to Crown Burgers in Salt Lake City, UT.  Also seen on Man vs. Food

With mom in El Paso, TX

Kids and Candy Airplanes

We are currently in Redding, CA which is our last stop northbound on I-5 before heading home to Portland/Vancouver.  Yesterday we had the pleasure of being guest speakers at a Bible school in Red Bluff.  It was great to share our hearts with the 3rd to 5th graders as well as some adults.  

We had an activity that is probably pretty familiar to any MAFer who has worked with kids.  It consisted of a stick of gum, a rubber band, two life savers, and a long tootsie roll.  What does that make (without cheating and looking at the picture)?  I never knew an airplane could be made with these materials, but sure enough they can.  

Just for the record the pictured airplane was not constructed by me (Will).  I know that in this set up the relative wind would rip the skin of the wings right off.

Anyway, that is a snapshot of us right now.  We will be home for Easter!

17 Weeks and Kicking!

This is what Nan looks like at 17 weeks!  Baby Grant is finally kicking!  And just two and a half weeks until we find out if we are having a boy or girl.

Ok for a non baby update.

We are currently nomads, homeless and on the road for the next four months.

It has been so great to catch up with old friends, family and meet new friends as we have finally settled into this new season of life.  The sunshine has also been a huge blessing.  Why? Well, after a crazy week of selling our stuff and packing our lives up we were a little stressed at times.  So when we finally crossed the California border there was sunshine and my beautiful bride came back to life.


There were several interesting events that happened in the Bay area, but the one I still cannot believe is the house I spent the first couple years of my life in was just on the opposite side of the neighborhood pool from a college friend's house.  So that was exciting.  The only memory I have at that age was walking across the hot street with no shoes on my soft baby feet headed to the pool.  Ouch!

In front of the Winchester House

While we were in San Jose my Aunt Lucinda took us to the Winchester House which was extremely interesting.  You can google the story, but basically Mrs. Winchester had her house under construction for about 40 years 24/7.  It was pretty sad to see what someone can do when they do not believe in Christ.

Just excited about guns...nothing unusual.

The Lord has blessed us greatly thus far with great conversations, lodging, and opportunities to share what Christ has done in our lives.  We look forward to many more opportunities to share our lives with people.  Your continued prayers for us as we travel, work as a team, and prepare to be parents are greatly appreciated.

Look for a prayer letter by the end of this month.