Our LONG Overdue Story - God, Facebook and Us

So it has been an entire year since our worlds collided. Literally!

Many of you are probably wondering our story which God so perfectly ordered long before we became one...

The story begins on Facebook (yes Facebook) around June 18th, 2009. Well, actually the story begins far before this point. Will had been praying from Vancouver, Washington that God would give him a wife who would long to serve besides him. He was desiring to serve God with Mission Aviation Fellowship and serve Christ overseas. I (Nan) was on the other side of the states in Birmingham, Michigan working as a Medical Device Sales Rep. I had told my mom around June 1st, 2009 that I thought God had intended me to be single for my life. My mother (in her wisdom) told me she thought God desired me to be married. So, that day we began to pray for my husband (not knowing that it would be my Sweet William).

Flash forward now to June 18, 2009. Will Grant had commented on a FB post of our mutual friend. It was not his post that intrigued me as much as his picture. Will's picture was the gorgeous expanse God's beautiful creation - the mountains offsetting a rugged wooden cross. I was newer to FB and thought in order to ask this "Will guy" where the mountain-scape was located I must friend request him. So I did. We exchanged a few pleasantries like: Who are you? How do you know our mutual friend (Will attended APU with him in Cali and I went to school K-12th Grade back in Michigan with our friend)? Where do you live (Will - Washington and Nan - Michigan)? Where is your picture (Alaska)? And that was that! I added Alaska to my "bucket-list" of places to go and closed that chapter.

Two weeks later I get a random, yes random, email from Will Grant that said, "If you are ever in
the Pac NW and want a plane ride to the beach let me know." My initial thoughts... "Ummmmm... Okay?" I decided to play the game and told him via email, "Okay, as long as we go back-packing and whitewater rafting I was in for the adventure. Smile." Then we started emailing back and forth. Then one Saturday afternoon we finally talked on the phone. It was decided that I would think and pray about coming to Vancouver, Washington for a visit. I talked with my godly and wise mama. She told me she would pray about the decision and get back to me with her thoughts the following day. Well, she did! And she told me she had peace that I should go...

So, the next month and a half Will and I chatted on Gmail video chat for hours each evening. It became more and more apparent that what was happening between us was not just about us. God had brought us together, no question! I was in awe as Will was such an amazing leader in our relationship. I never had experienced a relationship with a guy that put Christ before me in everything!

On August 12th, 2009 I flew into PDX and met my Sweet William for the first time. I knew this was the man that God desired for me to marry. Later that night over dinner Will told me he loved me... out of exhaustion (up since 12:30am PST b/c of the time difference from Michigan) I said, "Yeah, me too" to Will's declaration of love. Poor guy thought I wasn't interested (but I was just so tired I couldn't think of a better answer)! But, later that night we talked further and he realized that I decided to and longed to love him as well! Over the next two weeks we grew to know each other deeper and realized that our hearts were desiring the same thing in life - to serve God together in whatever capacity HE (God) desired for our lives.

The second day into the trip we were informally engaged and Mom and Dad Grant were busy planning our Honeymoon for December! I flew back to Michigan and begin the chaotic process of closing the Michigan chapter of my life... putting in my 2 weeks notice at work, saying good-bye to friends and family, packing up my condo, selling things to pay for the cross-country move... And spending every spare moment having coffee dates with my mom who I knew I would dearly miss!

On Labor Day, 2009 Will flew in to Detroit to move me out to the Pacific North West! We loaded up the Penske truck and spent the entire day with my wonderful mama. Then we had to say good-bye. It was the hardest good-bye I could have imagined...

We began the journey which lasted for two days. The first leg was made up of many laughs, a 24-pack of Red Bull, countless King Sized candy bars, and amazing memories. One memory that will never be forgotten was in Miles City, Montana. After driving from 5 pm-8pm the next evening we finally pulled over in Miles City, Montana to get 2 hotel rooms for the night (separate rooms of course). We had just finished watching football when I told Will how hard it was to have just left my family. He comforted me and asked me to close my eyes because he had a surprise. Due to the fact I was more than sleep deprived after 35 plus hours without sleep, I thought Will had a surprise to welcome me to Washington and my new home.  I closed my eyes. When I opened them Will was down on one knee. He asked me to be his family and walk beside him, serving our God for the rest of our days. Of course, I said, "YES"!

We finally arrived in Vancouver, Washington after our two day trip exhausted, but happy! William moved me into the home of some girls from the church until we got married. Well, that only lasted for two weeks time. Both of us decided there was no point to waiting to get married until December. We wanted to honor God in our relationship and knew that we would have to bump up our wedding date in order to remain pure and honor GOD first. So, we went to the courthouse in Hillsboro, Oregon on September 25th, 2009! We moved into a little apartment and began the most incredible marriage that was perfectly ordered by our God!

Since then we have experience an incredible journey that daily strips us of ourselves (especially me) and teaches us to put God first, then each other, then others and THEN ourselves. It has been an amazing year of our lives. Happy ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!

Each day, God draws our hearts closer. We feel that our next step is to join Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) to serve God overseas in the coming days. If you would join us in prayer as we have our evaluation with MAF in October, 2010 and will hope to join in January 2011.

Thank you for joining us in this joining perfectly designed by our God!

Aerial Shots & 25 Days...

25 More Days of Training
Life has seemed somewhat of a whirlwind over the last several months... We are fully immersed in our training: flying 3 days a week and engulfed in aviation books the 3 opposing days. I (Nan) have become the designated back seat passenger on our training days. I spend my time observing the radios, techniques, and activities of my fabulous pilot hubby. I must say a pilot's job is one for an incredible multi-tasker! I never knew so many things could happen at once: Talking to ATC (Air Traffic Control), using the instrument panel (which provides the pilot with info about the flight situation of the Cessna 206: height, speed, altitude etc), maneuvering, dealing with passengers (me) and "simply" flying! But pilots, like my hubby, do it all!

Aerial Shots and Life Lessons
God has a funny way of teaching us lessons through daily life, if we listen... I have seen this as my back seat flying days have lended to the learning of photography. I daily undergo the task of snapping as many aerial shots as possible until I have obtained the right focus, lighting and perspective. This is similar to my relationship with God. Day by day I can choose to have the focus and perspective of being overwhelmed by the stress of this season - unsure how our bills will get paid, where we will be this time next year or how... well you get the point. Drowning in worry. OR I can choose to simply TRUST GOD. Not to be trite; it is true. Psalm 62:8 says, "Trust in him (God) at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us." God knows all things and will take care of HIS people, I must choose to rest in that promise. So instead of drowning in worry, our family has chosen to Trust in God always and find peace in HIM!

Well, in this process of trusting, Will's pilot skills improve daily as we draw closer and closer to our deadline at MAF (October 11th-22nd). We pray each morning and night together that God will prepare our hearts to deepen our trust in HIM each step of the way! Thank you for joining us in prayer as we step closer to our time at MAF...

Wing Walking... Life's Adventures

Ahh the thrill of wind brushing its airy fingers through my hair as I walk boldly across the wings of my husband's airplane mid-flight... Well, I didn't exactly wing walk, but my hubby and I watched a "wing walker" and her husband's pirate performance during my first airshow!

The airshow was perfect. I now grasp the awe of a child, as everywhere I looked there was something new to discover! I must say, the day was a bit easier to navigate when your CFI, pilot hubby is the tour guide. It was an exhilarating day from start to finish as well as a fabulous date with my hubby! I am again amazed to see God using simple experiences, such as the airshow, to catch a better glimpse of my hubby's God-given passion for flying.

Our summertime has flown by as well. This season of life has entailed the norm: working, studying, flying, and trusting God to reveal HIS hand and purpose in each day. Additionally, we enjoyed some special moments: our wedding photo shoot (a year delayed), time at the beach, hikes, the airshow, and just life together... As we are preparing in this season for MAF we both sit back in awe how God is allowing us to do life together. We are nearing a year of marriage and I must say I cannot remember life without my hubby! It is a gift from God to walk daily beside your best friend! We are excited to watch what God does in the days to come! We now only have 41 days until our evaluation and discovering the next page in our story. Thank you for your continued prayers.


Blessings,
Will and Nan

Cannon Beach...

God provided the perfect getaway weekend for my hubby's 29th birthday. A beautiful and gracious couple from our church gave us a weekend away in a little 1920's cottage in Cannon Beach, Oregon! It honestly could not have been more ideal! I asked Will to work over time Monday-Thursday because we were having a birthday adventure Friday afternoon! I picked him up from work at noon on Friday and kidnapped him (Blind-fold and all)! Eventually I let him see and he figured out that we were spending "the afternoon" at the beach. Only later to find out that we were spending the WHOLE weekend at the cottage thanks to our dear friends.

We enjoyed relaxing walks on the beach, talking for hours, attempted frisbee in the rain/wind, experiencing adult sugar highs (ice cream and confectioners chocolates in the same sitting after sharing a 20-slice pizza)and no communication with the outside world for 3 whole days! I was a good wife and packed Will's study materials so he could stay mentally sharp as our evaluation is drawing near... He studied for an hour or so while I enjoyed journaling on the couch, listening to music and the rain... It was the best mini-vacation and weekend of memories in our lives! We could not be more thankful for God allowing us to have this time of refreshing together as we are in the final stretch to our evaluation with MAF.

70 Days...

Only 70 days until our Technical Evaluation with MAF. Our eval is just around the corner now! My hubby is sitting in our office rigorously studying in order to be as prepared as feasibly plausible.

Two to three times a week you will find us sitting in the crush of I-5 Vancouver traffic in order to put in some 206 flight time. My role (when there is not another CFI on board) is to call out instructions at random to my Captain... "Your engine is out..." Or, "Altitude" if my hubby varies more than 20 feet in his altitude levels (which he rarely does). These are only a few of the factors that my hubby will be assess on in October.

Over the last weeks Will has had a LOT of flight time. This last weekend, we had the honor of flying people from the "All Church Picnic" at Pearson Airport! It was a wonderful event where families from the local areas came together for sermons, worship & music, games and of course, airplane rides!

Will was the designated 206 Captain for the entire day. What we thought would be only a few flights quickly turned into a 6 hour day. Over 80 people signed up for their airplane experience. As the day neared a close, we sadly had to turn people away... However, a memorable ride for both of us was our last flight. Saorsa, a 6 year old boy, told us that he was going to be an astronaut when he grew up. However, he FIRST must become a pilot! By the end of the flight, and after Will's continuous instruction, Saorsa turned to his Rodger and said, "Dad, I am gonna teach you how to fly one day!" Will now has his youngest pilot/fan in training :)

It was a joy sharing Christ with the people around us in the midst of the chaos... The chaos of flying 80+ people, collecting donations, manning the lists of people awaiting plane rides... Oh, and on empty stomachs because the wife (me) forgot to pack lunches because I assumed (lesson one - never assume) an All Church Picnic meant, food was provided. Oops! But, my kind and wonderful hubby gracious ate the few granola bars I could scrounge up with a smile on his face as he continued to fly the eagerly awaiting passengers!

On our way home from the picnic we recalled the variety of passengers. Passengers who were retired pilots flying again to remember when... or the 206 flight filled with 5 boys (one of which lost his lunch mid-flight)... or the children who's eyes were filled with wonder upon their first flight...

It was amazing to realize how opportunities like this are God's blessing and HIS way of preparing us for the next step in our lives. We long to continue to bring hope to a world of people who may not have touched hope in tangible ways. Finding hope through God's unconditional love, or receiving practical things such as food, water or medicine. This is the "hope" that we will have the privilege to bring wherever God sends us in this world.

God has given my hubby the gift of being an amazing pilot and us together, the ability to show God's love to people. We cannot wait to see what the next page in our story may be as we step another day closer to our journey at MAF, in God's perfect time...

I thank my God when ever...

Our lives are so good. I could not be more grateful! Or could I?

As I was reading this morning God taught me a few much needed lessons... Philippians 1:3 says, "I thank my God when ever I think of you..." God stopped me in my tracks as the first few words took root within me... "I thank my God when ever..." Do I? Well, often yes. BUT when ever? This was such a good reminder to me that everything that Will and I have been blessed with is from GOD. It is not ours, but HIS. So as I am struggling some days with being grateful, I am stopping to remember how good our God is to us... Today I will thank God WHEN EVER, period!

Moving = Downsizing & Sunshine = Flying and Hikes

God has an amazing way of teaching one to trust HIM in the daily details of life. Our lives have been chaotically fabulous all in one breath! About a month ago we found out our old apartment management team thought it would be brilliant to increase our rent 20%. Needless to say that was not "in the budget" due to Will's flight preparation for MAF. Will and I began to pray intensely that God would provide. And HE DID provide more than we could have imagined! We are now renting a condo from a Christian couple and have moved in over the last weeks. The Grants are now settled in to our charming 800 sq foot condo! It is such a blessing...

Moving has also prompted us to downsize. We moved from an apartment with a garage to a condo with none. On that note, we are busily craigslisting, ebaying, and consignment shop selling (Nan is trying to reduce her plethora of clothes). All of the selling is going directly into our "Flying Fund".

God is continuing to take care of us in more ways than we can imagine... Simple things like at our new home we get basic cable (aka Discovery Channel is all that matters in our house lol) and internet for FREE! Little savings add up quickly and we couldn't be more thankful to God!

And then yes, I did say SUNSHINE! Portland has finally awakened to the fact it is summertime. We, PAC Northwesterners, are getting hit full force with some heat! Today is peaking at a mild 99 degrees. BUT on the wonderful side, the sunshine equals time for my hubby and I to hike up Saddle Mountain and fly. We thankful to God for what HE has provided for us each day!

Please continue to pray as Will is rigorously preparing for his evaluation with Servant Wings in late August and final evaluation with Mission Aviation Fellowship in October. We are in God's hands and fully confident that HE will direct our steps! Thank you for joining us in prayer...

Blessings,
Will and Nan Jane Grant