And Time Keeps Rushing On

It was only yesterday, wasn't it, that I cradled him in my arms the first time, as he gasped and then began to squall. Wasn't it only yesterday that I couldn't decide whether to laugh or cry at the wonder and beauty of my baby boy, as we dedicated his little life to the Lord? And he is four years old tomorrow? Surely it can't be! Yet it is true. The years keep rushing by, and if I am to get the full benifit from them I must savor the moments and turn them slowly in His light and see them for the gifts that they are.
So here are just a few photos of his birthday party a day early with little friends.

I'm so excited Mommy!

little friends

A new flashlight! Wow! I hoped it might be a gun but this is really nice! (Yup, boy, the rubber band gun is coming tonight! One from us, and I happen to know that Uncle Jamie has another this weekend for you, and a camera! This will be a birthday to remember all right! Your top three wishes are all on their way, but I won't spoil the surprise for you yet.)

Made to order cake - Carrot Chocolate Peanutbutter with a mountain, a bear and a waterfall with rocks. (And mom knows it's fairly healthy as well, with wholegrain and honey, that didn't spoil the flavor. By the way to those who are saying gross at the carrot part, that was only a little to satisfy him)

Extinguishing the flames and about to enjoy the eating

We Have These Moments to Hold in Our Hands

I saw some stunning photography of grains of sand the other day.

The work of Gary Greenburg

And I thought how my days are made of moments - moments gleaming of his grace, yet I will never see their beauty if I let them slip through my fingers unheeded. It is only when I take the time to look at them up close, to examine them and turn them in His light that I see their true colors. Then the ordinary is transformed into a marvel of beauty. That mere sand becomes a treasure and I worship Him who knows the number of all the grains of sand on all the sandy beaches, and has a name for every star which he has strung out in the vast expanses of the universe.

So let me learn to treasure these moments of these busy days as they slip so quickly true my fingers. Let me finger each pearl as it slips from my strand of moments and turn it til I see it shine with his love and grace.  

The beauty of my little ones playing together(this one taken in Thailand)

Of sand from which I learn more of this lesson 

Of wintry skies and drifting snow

Sunlight on poles

Enjoyment of all these good things 

Of time for a love feast with my little ones and then of a candlelit  one with my sweetie while a friend babysits.

These busy days..., so much to do so little time for things like this. But I can catch a few moments while they all sleep and record a few glimpses of his mercies, and do my own heart good. For in naming of them I own them more fully. Their joys become more mine as I acknowledge them and Him, the giver of all good gifts. "Every good gift and every perfect is from above and comes down from the Father of lights in whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." He does not change and all things come from him, every one of them a perfect gift.  "He fills my mouth with good things ad my lips with praise." He brings back the sparkle that I have left slip somewhere along life's busy way, and I praise him.

Sunlight on Red Berries

"Tiny voice that I hear is my little girl calling for her mommy to hear just what she has to say.

And my little son, running here by the wayside, will never be quite like today.

We have this moment to hold in our hands and to touch as it slips through our fingers like sand.

Yesterday's gone and tomorrow may never come, but we have this moment today." AU

Joy Dare - 1000 gifts in 2012

I've been pondering joy and thanksgiving long before I found this gem, but it's been inspiring me in a deeper way. I am reading Ann Voskcamp's book one thousand gifts, and have started the joy dare - counting to 1000 gifts in 2012. I had a sticker on my fridge that read - Thanksliving, the attitude do gratitude. It has been my purpose to remember to give thanks in everything, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for us. And I am seeking his will... Sometimes it has seemed that I have sought and sought and still lived empty, so this year I decided to start listing things every day for which I am thankful, little glimpses of his grace that strike me. That's why I posted the last post. It's helped so much when the days get long and wearisome and lonesome, to seek and find his graces. Then Saturday a friend loaned me the book, one thousand gifts, and I'm so blessed with it already.

Joy in Unexpected Places

I've been meditating on joy a lot recently. I quote I read goes something like this - "Thanksgiving is the attitude of the heart. Joy is the abundance it creates."  I want to live in the joyful abundance of thanksgiving. This morning as I was cleaning and hanging up laundry in the cold wintry air, I got to pondering how thankful I am for these things! Why? Because of what they mean to me. 

Laundry means family - loved ones who are healthy and can work and play. They are a gift to me from the Lord.

The dirt and hand prints that my little ones make are evidence of this also. And so are the muddy tracks from my husband's work boots. It means that God graciously gave him his job back, and we didn't need to come back and look and search for work in this low economy! It means I have a wonderful husband and provider! "Where no oxen are the crib is clean, but much increase is by the strength of the ox." (I'm not saying he's an ox, only that it may be less work to be alone, but I'd much rather the work and my lovely family)

These past eight months

It’s the beginning of a new year… I look back and ponder all the way that the Lord has led us. This time last year we had no idea that today we would look back on eight months of Bible School in Asia. In fact, at the time we had very little knowledge of what IGo even was.

 

our little family in Thailand

    But God opened doors and directed us through them and we are very thankful for His leading and rest in the steadfast hope that he will continue to lead in the future.
    So a bit of a sum up.
If you read back over past posts, you will be able to form a bit of an idea what life looked like for us there.  There were a lot of changes to make to adjust to being students. We’ve both been out of school for years, and were mostly home-schooled, add to that being spouses and parents. I had no idea what a challenge that would be. After the first term, I stopped taking classes in the class room and did a bit of listening over skype or to recordings while caring for the children.

  

 John and Christy playing in the dirt

Darren took all of the morning classes, but for the most part used the afternoon for studying. After a few terms I began taking one class in the afternoon while the children napped. That was a blessing.
    The teaching we received enriched our lives and the experiences of living in unusual circumstances and working closely with other people day in and day out was very good training for us. I learned to understand better what it means to live “in a fish bowl” or a “glass house.” They say that people who live in glass houses should never throw stones. I think I understand that concept better than ever. Those who lived with us, and worked with us over these past months can testify to our many faults. I hope also, by God’s grace, they could testify that they have seen us reaching forward, and striving to overcome them. As I saw my own weaknesses exposed for everyone to see, I  think I learned to feel for others more deeply and to give them more grace in their weakness. I hope I don’t forget but continue to learn this lesson.
 

My little monkey

 
  After Darren’s last accident, we had one more term and then took the trip to Cambodia that we had been planning to take when he got hurt. 

(That hurt foot healed very slowly and his toe still gives him pain)

    Our original contact had to take a quick leave of absence, and was not able to give oversight to the planned work, so we worked with a kindergarten school there instead. It was a rather unique experience. Teaching a bunch of 4-7 year olds to say their letters and words like - eyes, mouth, ears…. Not exactly what we would have chosen, but God knows best. Cambodia has a horrifying history of genocide during the Pol Put regime. If you don’t know anything about it, maybe you should research it sometime. I understand that about 1in 3 of the people were tortured and killed during the horrific reign of the Khmer Rouge. The stories make your blood run cold. All the older people (over 30) can remember those days. It definitely still has its affect.

In Cambodia

 

Change of Plans

The heart of man plans his way,

but the LORD establishes his steps. Prov. 16:9

    The last post, I mentioned that we were packing up for Cambodia. The Lord has changed our plans.
    On Tuesday afternoon as I was packing up the last few things and preparing for our trip, I was interrupted by a visitor. One of the other ladies had gotten a call that the men had had an accident. Darren was involved and was being taken to the hospital for xrays on his foot. I was relieved that it was simply a foot they were concerned about, because motorcycle accidents can be so bad!
    It turned out that they didn't find any break, but did remove the nail and put 12 stitches in, including some where the nail had been. He had a severe sprain and some burst blood vessels besides.
The amazing thing is that this injury was actually worse than the ones he got from his tumble down the falls! We measured that when we went back, and found that it was around 60 ft. from the top to were he landed! God is good!
    Now he is down recovering. The foot was very painful at first, but the pain is beginning to lessen.
    But of course that has meant a change of plans! We are thankful that we know - "All things work together for good to those that love him." We do love him, so we know he has some good thing for us through it all.

Testing and packing

Today was the final day for this term. We finished our testing for the day. Now to pack for our expedition to Cambodia! We leave on Wednesday, Lordwilling. I'm not exactly sure what the details of this trip will be. But we trust that He will go before us and set a path for our feet. Then it's one more term, one more trip, and we wrap up to come home! Continue to hold us in your prayers.

 

And here's a plane that Darren took a picture of the other day!

Nok(Bird) Airlines! For the birds?