Fellowship among brothers and sisters in Christ brings joy to the heart and unity to service. The Bible often uses the phrase “one another.” In these “one anotherings,” we share experiences and learn of the Lord’s doings and leadings in our lives. 

Recently, we were blessed to meet one of our supporter families, Don and Tami. This lovely couple invited us to their home for dinner and fellowship. Not long after that evening, we bumped into them again at a local congregation. No sooner had we settled into our seats than we spotted them seated right behind us. Oh, the joy of meeting again!

As we got to know Don and Tami, they shared stories of the Lord’s leading in their lives. One beautiful part of their journey involves an encounter they had with a then-young family in the fall of 1998.

Don and Tami had been sitting in the same seats of this congregation (where we had bumped into them) when they met a young couple and their children who sat down in front of them. The Butenko family, from Denmark, had come to the U.S. so Tony, the father, could study at Andrews University. Don and Tami got to know the young Butenko family, and their friendship has continued to blossom over the years.

Elsebeth and Tony Butenko are instrumental in the work of God in Greenland as they have continued to share the gospel in the land where Elsebeth lived as a child—her parents were the first SDA missionaries to Greenland in 1953. Don and Tami have continued to support the work in Greenland over the years, including in 2019, when they visited the country to encourage Elsebeth as she started returning to Greenland for yearly visits and to offer Bible studies.

We are grateful for Don and Tami and their prayers and support for God’s work in Greenland. We are also thankful for the Butenkos, who have become a great blessing to us since we accepted our call. Because of the Butenkos, we now have people in Greenland waiting to meet us for Bible studies when we arrive.

Does God orchestrate the steps of His children every day? Yes. As Don and Tami have remembered His leading in their lives, they have realized that God has brought them full circle. 

Twenty-six years ago, God introduced Don and Tami to the Butenko family and Greenland.

Twenty-six years later, God positioned us at the place Elsebeth and Tony sat. 

Twenty-six years and the Lord’s return is sooner now than it was then, for the Lord has been weaving and writing a story that will bring Greenlanders to the knowledge of His salvation, full and free. 

God confirms to His children His paths and we do well to walk therein every day. God’s encounters are as real as the air we breathe, for He is faithful and has promised to be with us always. 

Please pray with thanksgiving for what the Lord has done in Greenland through the Butenko family over the years. Please thank God for Don and Tami as they follow God’s bidding in supporting the Greenland work. Please pray for our launch into Greenland, which began in January 2025. 

We want Jesus to come sooner! Even so, come Lord Jesus.

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