Serving with Cadence International

Born Thy people to deliver,Born a child and yet a King,Born to reign in us forever,

Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.From “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus” by Charles WesleyDECEMBER 2019

TheNafzigers

Merry Christmas!

Sue and I are preparing for our 27th Christmas serving with Cadence International. How did that happen? We have been blessed to be a home-away-from-home for hundreds of military singles and families for 27 years in a row. Like past years, we will be busy with people coming and going during the holiday season. Many of the Airmen return home to visit their families for a short vacation during Christmas or New Year’s but for others, we are their home.

Christmas gives us a special opportunity to share its true meaning with the Airmen stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base. We continually invite lonely Airmen to the hospitality house which is now beautifully decorated for Christmas—Sue will make cinnamon rolls, Almond Roca, and many other special treats to make this an inviting place to spend their holiday time off.

THANK YOU!This ministry would not have continued all these years without your love and thoughtful support. How can we ever thank you and express how grateful we are for your partnership in ministry? We are sincerely thankful to the Lord for your love and encouragement in reaching young military lives for Christ.

INTERRUPTION IN MINISTRYIt was last April that Sue began having pain on the right side of her face that felt like electrical shocks. The pain made it very difficult for her to function. The shocks were severe and frequent and set off by eating, touching her face, even by the wind or talking. Her doctor quickly diagnosed her as having a condition called, trigeminal neuralgia. The MRI showed an artery had moved against the trigeminal nerve, compressing it and causing the shocks. Sue went on anti-seizure medication, but it was not long, and she had a reaction. The new medication only dulled the pain and made her sleep a lot.

All of this was happening when the ministry here at Fairchild was growing and at its peak since our arrival about eight months earlier. We wondered what the Lord might be teaching us.

During those few weeks of distress, while waiting to see a neurologist here in Spokane, friends and family began searching on the internet—especially our daughters who are nurses. They discovered a neurosurgeon in Detroit, Michigan (of all places!) who specialized in this condition. He actually

wrote a book on trigeminal neuralgia and had great reviews. So, we took a chance and flew to Detroit. We arrived on Sunday, May 19, met the doctor on Monday; checked into the hospital on Wednesday night and she had surgery on Thursday. Later that day, she woke up in the ICU with no pain! We were praising the Lord!

The surgery required Dr. Casey to enter the brain cavity behind her right ear. He found exactly what the MRI showed. The nerve was compressed by an artery and had turned color. He placed four pads to shield the trigeminal nerve from the artery and was very happy at how the surgery went. We spent an additional week in Detroit for follow-up appointments thanking the Lord for a wonderful doctor and hospital staff that took great care of Sue.

Sue is still experiencing numbness on the right side of her face and tongue as well as occasional headaches. The doctor wanted her to take it slow and have extended time off. Although the ministry to Airmen here never completely stopped, a few months ago we felt the energy to return to full-time and are currently busy as ever.

At the beginning of all these events, I was very concerned and wondered if we could continue at all. Today, the Airmen we love are still coming and we serve with a fresh revelation of

how dependent we are on the grace and mercy of God. We just don’t know what tomorrow might bring . . . but He does.

The Lord continues to bless us with unending opportunities to share the Gospel on Fairchild AFB. We have strong support from the chapel staff for on-base ministry including the Thursday night dinner and Bible study each week in the dorms. The Thursday outreach was growing and well attended prior to the medical incident—but now, we feel like

Bible Study Group

Sand

y &

Sue

Naf

zige

rPa

rtner

ship

Invo

lvem

ent

*Please do not write a missionary’s name or information anywhere on the check. Instead, include this slip with your donation.

Contributions to Cadence International are tax-deductible so far as the law allows. While we attempt to honor the specific wishes of all donors, Cadence maintains complete discretion and control over the use of the donated funds and is authorized to redirect funds within the ministry.

This

is n

ot a

lega

lly b

indi

ng p

rom

ise

to g

ive

Naf

zige

r Acc

t.# 1

0398

Name

Address

City/State/Zip

Phone

Email Address

I will pray for the Nafzigers

I will support their ministry with: $ ___________/mth $ ___________/qtr $ __________/yr Starting date: ____________________________

I have enclosed a special gift: $ _____________ Name of special project (if applicable) ______________________

I would like to receive the Nafziger’s ministry emails

Please remove me from their mailing list

To give to the Nafziger’s ministry with Cadence, please donate with a check* made payable to Cadence International or give online at Cadence.org/Nafziger

Sandy and Sue Nafziger, Fairchild Hospitality House6415 N Hayford Rd, Spokane, WA 99224 Sandy: 707.430.7689 • Sue: 707.718.6854 Sandy.Nafziger@Cadence.org

800.396.6680PO Box 1268 Englewood, CO 80150Cadence.org

we are starting over. There are 500 young lives in the dorms on Fairchild AFB . . . they desperately need the Lord and we are again figuring out ways to reach them.

Sue and I are also involved in the Chapel’s Wednesday night Bible Study. On Sunday nights at the hospitality house (our home), we host both single Airmen and families for dinner and Bible study. On Monday nights Sue leads a small group of ladies and I have a men’s group. At all the events there is a mix of believers and those who don’t yet know Christ—what an opportunity!

Lately we have been encouraged by a few very mature believers who are coming. They are a blessing for sure, but we are still shocked at the complete lack of any knowledge of Christianity by others. Some come because they like us and Sue feed’s them, but they are not very interested in Christ. Others are content with a shallow Christianity (if that is what it is?) but resist discipleship. We are working hard to figure out an effective strategy to reach all these Airmen with the Gospel while realizing more and more the need for prayer. This is a challenging generation.

FAMILY NEWSSue and I had a new grandson born to Nathan and Sarah last May. His name is Caleb Joel and he is cute and loved by everyone including his two older brothers, Nathanael and Samuel. Nathan is a respiratory therapist at a local hospital and is in the National Guard. He and Sarah continue to live with us and help us with the ministry.

Colby and Katie live on McChord AFB in the Tacoma area, only about five hours away. Their twins, Steven and Esther, bring us great enjoyment. Our son Joel and his wife Catie are stationed at Hurlburt AFB in Florida. They are also a great encouragement to us—we hope to escape the Spokane cold and visit them early next year.

Thank you for your friendship and the love you always show us and this ministry! We can’t tell all of you in person but please know that you are loved by us and by all the Airmen who participate in the Fairchild Hospitality House ministry.

If you have any questions or comments, please send us a note by using the email address below.

Love in Christ, Sandy & Sue

Our grandson, Caleb Joel