From the top down: Nathanael, Luke, Rebekah, Amanda, Brian, and Brenda.
An Introduction to the Krueger Family
Brian
I am an avid outdoorsman. I enjoy bow hunting for deer, turkey hunting, fishing, and camping. It is a tradition to take a 6 day trip to boundary waters every year. I really enjoy passing these passions onto my kids. I enjoy playing strategy board games and computer games. I am a fan of the Iowa Hawkeyes. And of course, I like to build things!
Brenda
In my spare time, I enjoy running, scrapbooking, card making, sewing and having a coffee with my friends. In the last 6 years, I have completed 3 sprint triathlons, 1 marathon, 3 half marathons and several 10k’s and 5k’s. I have started scrapbooks for all 4 kids and my cousins and I make over 100 cards for my aunt annually. Two years ago I started a quilt for our first RV. I hope to have it finished before we move this summer. I also enjoy playing piano and singing. It has been fun to be involved in music ministry at my church as well as on deputation. If I were to have a day or two completely to myself with nothing else to do I would enjoy snuggling in a blanket with a cup of coffee and reading a book.
Amanda
Bonjour, comment ça va? Hello, I am Amanda! I am 13 and I am learning French. I have played the piano for almost eight years. And I have played the flute for four years. If I could play any other instrument I would play the bari saxophone. My favorite subject in school is reading. I really enjoy the series Wings of Fire. It is about dragons and prophecies and other fun stuff. I really enjoy writing letters to people! Right now I am writing to like seven different people. Au revoir!
Luke
Hi, my name is Luke and I play the trumpet. I also play the piano. This year I went out and shot my first deer with a muzzleloader when I was out hunting with my grandpa. I really like building random stuff. I enjoy finding out how things work by taking them apart and then putting them back together.
Nathanael
Hi, my name is Nathanael Krueger. My favorite color is yellow, my favorite food is chocolate and my favorite animals are dogs. My favorite subjects are science, reading and math. I like making stuff with stuff. I have taken piano lessons for 4 years. I like to make people laugh and have fun.
Rebekah
I am Rebekah Krueger and I am myself. I love little things like Mini mixieq’s, Lola Loopsies, Tsum Tsums, and Littlest Pet Shops, and one of my favorite foods is tomatoes. My favorite subject is reading Science with my mom. I have been taking piano lessons for about two years.
Counterclockwise from top: Amanda, Luke, Rebekah, and Nathanael.
Our Testimony
Brian
It boggles my mind that God can use a sinner like me for His glory… As I look back, it is very evident that God has always had a purpose for my life. I was blessed to grow up in a Christian home where I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior as a child. I am thankful that my parents made church a priority. My father is a carpenter in a small town and I remember going with him many times to fix and maintain the church property. After graduating from high school my parents encouraged me to go to college. God greatly worked in my life in college as he deepened my relationship with Him and helped me overcome my shyness around others. During my sophomore year, a good friend encouraged me to join him on a mission trip. It was life-changing. God opened my eyes to missions and I was addicted! From that point on, I actively looked for opportunities to serve on missions trips. During my senior year I met my future wife, Brenda, on my third mission trip. We were married in 1997 after I graduated. At this time, I knew I wanted to actively serve God with my life.
In 1999, Brenda and I started attending Faith Baptist Church in Iowa City, and because of our heart and desire to serve, it didn’t take us long to become active in the church. After four weeks, the pastor handed me a church key and told me I could help out with the basement remodel anytime! Brenda and I started serving in the children’s ministry, and a year later we transitioned to serving with the youth group. In 2001, I took a major step of obedience, was baptized, and joined the church with my wife. Because of the impact missions trips had in our lives, we searched for opportunities to take our youth group on a mission trip. In 2003, we took the youth group to a Continental Baptist Missions, CBM, build site in Sioux City, Iowa. While we were there, one of the CBM builders wanted me to arm wrestle him. If he won, I would become a builder. Even though I turned down his offer, God used that encounter to plant the seeds of becoming a full-time builder with CBM.
Brenda
I asked Jesus to be my Savior as a child and was baptized as a believer at the age of 16. When I graduated from college we moved to Iowa City so that I could attend the chemistry doctoral program at the University of Iowa. At the University, God brought people from Campus Bible Fellowship into my life to draw us to Faith Baptist Church. God has used this church and its Biblical teaching to sanctify me and draw me closer to Him. While there I have participated in several ladies Bible studies, 3 years of a discipleship ministry, and am currently involved in music ministry, and a small accountability group. I have also attended four tracks of intensive Biblical Counseling training. The two verses that I cling to in my daily life are Philippians 4:6-7, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus” and James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” As a wife and homeschooling mother of 4, there are many times that I need wisdom as well as a reminder to not worry because it is all in God’s hands.
During high school, I took short-term missions trips to Mexico where we built 12’x24’ houses for homeless families. During college I did three short-term missions trips. One of them was with Habitat for Humanity, where I met Brian.
Brian and I started serving in youth ministry. In 2003, we took the youth group to a CBM build site in Sioux City, IA. We had a great time and decided to schedule a mission trip every other year. During the next 6 years we did three more missions trips; two VBS mission trips and another CBM build site trip. In 2011, we planned a teen mission trip to Sauk City, WI to help with the church build, but God determined that this trip would be a Krueger family trip instead as all of the teens backed out. Proverbs 16:9 says, “A man’s heart plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.” It was on this trip that we saw God’s direction toward church building.
Brian
As we traveled to Sauk City, WI, I told Brenda that maybe God was using this to call us into ministry. Brenda said “No! Get that idea out of your head!” That week, as I worked with all the builders I asked each of them about their testimonies and how they had been called into this ministry. I was excited about the possibility of becoming a CBM builder and my wife was dead set against it! I told the lead builder that I had a problem and explained that I felt God was calling my family into this ministry, but my wife was against it. He said “Brian, we serve an amazing God. If He has called your family to this ministry, then He will call your wife.” After the building was completed, we came up for the church’s dedication service. Brenda was able to talk to the builders’ wives and discuss the ins and outs of life as a builder’s wife and having a family on the field.
As we have taken each step of faith to become CBM church builders, God has shown himself over and over to be trustworthy in providing for our needs, and it has been a humbling and amazing experience.