theMangoTimes

WHO IS FLETCH?
It is always fun to get a peek at the people behind the blog. In the virtual world sometimes you only get a piece of the picture, but if you keep reading hopefully the picture will fill in for you. Here is a very brief introduction.

My name is Fletch. Some people call me Andy and some people call me the MangoMan. Hey! I think someone wrote a song about that? I have been married to Kendra for more than 20 years and I wonder all the time how a guy that looks like Shrek ended up with such a pretty wife. God has been ridiculously gracious to me and it doesn’t end with a great wife…we have eight great kids ranging from toddler to adult that God has given us to raise and love.

During the day I fix teeth, but as my dad is quick to clarify, “at four days/week and 52 Fridays off each year…its hardly a full-time job.” The rest of the time you can find me listening to Jimmy Buffett, driving an old VW, stretching out a pair of flip-flops, perfecting a pizza recipe, searching for a warmer climate, blending a refreshment, chillin’ with a mangokid, updating theMT, or watching my wife throw out another piece of my tie-dye wardrobe.

At the center of who I am and a lot of what I write about here on theMangoTimes is my personal faith in Jesus Christ. For years I was tightly wrapped-up in definitions, but I found that it is easy to paint yourself into a corner by labeling who you are. For the sake of simplicity, I love Jesus and He has given me the desire to obey Him. I believe God is ultimately in control of ALL things. I believe that the Gospel is not only a message of salvation, but a daily reminder that we find our identity, our hope, our value and our security in what Christ has done for us. Lastly, I believe there is a fine line between knowing who we are in Christ (justification) and what we are to be doing (sanctification).  I spent way too many years surrounded by people that shifted their hope from Christ's finished work to their own efforts, developing gospel amnesia along the way.

The rest of the stuff you can pick up along the way. We homeschool, we eat good food, we listen to good music, we love to travel, and we are continual learners.

Thanks for reading theMangoTimes, it’s people like you that make me wonder why anyone would read what I write!