Our Family Circus

Our church is reading through the Bible in a year.   The children and I read through the old testament during the school year last year, which was arranged over 5 days a week and only during the school months.   This reading is much easier than 5-6 chapters a day allowing more time to hover over The Word.  We read it together during the week and on our own on the weekend.   The weekends, I hover! Matthew 11 was a weekend read for me to hover over.   First, I never thought about the fact that John did not know who Jesus was.  There were no baby showers, family reunions,  or social media accounts to reacquaint those babies once they became men.   John heard about Jesus just like others.    John sent messengers to ask Jesus, "Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?"   I love this!   I love that he asked and let him know I'm going to keep looking if it's not you.   John KNEW who ...

We've been married for over 20 years....but... I do NOT complete my husband. I am NOT his soulmate. I am NOT his best friend. AND I am NOT the one his soul longs for. So much for a Happy Valentine's Day for us.    Here's the truth .   We are 2 imperfect people, living imperfect lives, raising imperfect people as we go about our days trying to share truth. The truth. Jesus Christ completes my husband. Jesus Christ is his soulmate. Jesus Christ is his best friend. Jesus Christ is whom his soul longs for.  And this is all the better for me!   My Dear's love for the Lord lavishes on me, our children, our family, friends, and even complete strangers.   My Dear's desire for me, our children, and all others  is the same; that ONLY Jesus will complete us, ONLY Jesus is our soulmate and best friend and ONLY Jesus is who our souls long for.   

Time for the word of the year.   I struggled with accepting this year's word of the year.  Probably because last year's brought such significant change.  But, you know what else it brought, peace.   It brought peace because as the year unfolded, I was reminded that God gave me that word for this year.  He knew the year.  He knew the changes.  He know how upside down everything would feel. Late December, I felt like my word would be HOMELESS.   I didn't like it!!!   I was in homelessness already and it had been hard....BUT I know that I am truly in the most beautiful of homelessness.  We have a beautiful home to hide in until we have our own.  Everything we want and need is available to us.  I wake up to a beautiful view and go to sleep with the light of the moon reflecting off the earth.  This is where healing has happened for us.   But, I don't want to be here....here, as in this position.   I don't wan...

My 10-year-old niece is a thrill seeker!   She loves amusement parks and there is no ride too scary for her.   My sister enjoys them too but a brain tumor has removed her ability to enjoy them without consequences.  She can ride the rides, but she won't be able to drive the car home afterwards.   Therefore,  she packs a to-do-list and makes phone calls while my thrill-seeking-niece rides.   Dolly and I went along with them for a trip this summer.   Dolly would ride with the thrill-seeker and my sister and I could have that time together.   I got to ride some too!   It was a fun day of getting to know my sister and my quiet yet fearless niece. My sister suggested I ride a roller coaster with the girls.   The ride beat you up, dropped you down and of course went fast.  I had to keep coaching myself to not stiffen up but to be a "wet noodle" to enjoy the ride.    One part of the roller coaster ride took a steep dive into th...

My "word" of the year is "Deny Thyself."   Each year the Lord lays a word on my heart and I get to watch it unfold.  This year...….WOW!    Month-by-month I see this unfold. January I was challenged to deny myself U.S. treats while we were in on furlough. So long sugar for the month of January.   Deny Thyself In February, God called me to deny myself in the relationships with the missionary staff we lived and worked with.  Serve and honor them above myself.  Deny Thyself March, the mission's parent organization sent in 2 representatives that told us we were going under a new parent organization.  This was a big change that came with many more changes.  Deny Thyself April, the new organization stepped in.....it was like a step parent and we were all trying to figure out how this worked.  Deny Thyself May, we were asked to leave the organization and the country we loved. Deny Thyself June, we left our home, life, mi...

A couple of weeks ago, I posted on FB a list of blogs my head had written that week.  The thought of change and dirty diapers came to mind as change is going on at the mission and frankly, it has been hard and stinky!    It seemed to be a direct correlation to diaper changing.  At the time, the title made me smile a bit but I did not realize how big that change would be. Only a few days shy of 4 years, our family will leave our home in the beautiful Kenscoff Mountains. We have prayed many, many times about our being here over the years as the Lord has held yet refined us through the struggles.  The Lord, knowing we were here until we heard clearly from Him,  made it crystal clear.   The mission is now under a new parent organization.   With the new direction the mission will be going, our services are no longer needed.   We will go in grace and gratitude for all the Lord has shown us here.  What a beautiful place this is...with beau...

We have been back in country for a full week now.   The first few days were harder than I expected.  I assume it is the change in altitude and a late flight followed by an early flight that knocked me off of my feet.   I don't recall ever sleeping that hard.   (I am glad to know that I can still do it!) We enjoyed the beauty of the snow when we were out.  The coziness of homes with  double-paned windows, insulation and heat kept us comfortable when it was cold outside.   In fact, I shared with My Dear that I was warmer at night in the states than I am in our mountain home. Upon our return, I stood at the clothesline with a fresh appreciation for the sunshine that we were getting and how warm the blankets on the line felt.   I have stood at the clothesline many times with gratitude.  On this day, I looked at the t-shirt quilt that My Dear's mom made for Billy before our move.  It was such a precious gift for a boy who was leaving all ...

Friday afternoons I get to hang out with some pretty cool people for English class.  This class is not required for anyone, for anything, and there is no accountability to be there.   It allows for us to have fun together and does not demand a scope and sequence which makes it fun to teach too! Recently, in class, I talked a bit about social rules for Americans.   There are many visitors to the mission and probably just as many eager students who want to practice speaking English.  I recall being approached by them when we first moved here and feeling a bit uncomfortable.   Funny enough, I asked two female interns about how they felt because my initial feeling of discomfort are gone and well, this is my normal now. We talked about "personal bubbles," approaching a man vs. approaching a woman, touching or not touching....just STUFF that is cultural that we don't even think about.   I will confess that sometimes when we discu...

In February 2014, there was a children's conference in KY.   My heart was heavy the entire weekend. My Dear had taken the children to NC to visit grandparents while I was away.   We were trying to cushion our children during a difficult time but My Dear and I knew I should continue with my plans. I sat in a seminar and the speaker shared about a child that was a part of her children's ministry.  Shelby had a passion for raising funds so kids in Haiti could go to camp.   I listened to how she walked along side of this child and fostered her passion. After the session, I waited for the classroom to clear out.   I stepped forward to talk with Missy, the speaker.   My voice began to shake as I held a secret that was wrecking my heart.   My friend Fay was with me and I had already shared my secret with her....in fact, the Lord had spoken to Fay before He spoke to me.  The Lord knew I would need this as one day Fay told me she was praying for me.....

I have learned there is no consistency to what my day of rest might look like.   Today's was very different but I can honestly say, it was a good day! Snoozed the alarm 3 times for church.  You should know that I am not a "snoozer."  This was not a good start. Instructed the big kids last night to set their alarms.   Fussing to prepare for church is no longer an issue for me.  They do it themselves and if they are not there when it starts, there are consequences in the area of their free time.  THIS is liberating for me!  And big sister woke little sister for me...who had a new dress so you only had to tell her once to get ready. We came home from church and read a chapter in our book together and prayed. I put on a pair of jeans and a long sleeve shirt.  It felt like spring here today but our concrete house is much like a cave.  I have to wear a skirt anytime I leave our housing area.   Few bus...

So it is has been a few days....meaning like almost 100 of them, but the time never really came for me to write what the Lord showed me about my word.  As I was writing the other post, it just got longer and I got tired of writing so I knew you would tire of reading.  Speaking of tired, the word the Lord gave me is REST. I am reclaiming my Sabbath.  The Lord didn't suggest a Sabbath, He instructed it, demanded it.   I have been sinning not following His leadership in this area.  My day is Sunday since we school Monday-Friday and I work on Saturdays.   Resting is not doing that thing that drains you.  For me, schooling and cleaning are draining.  I would much rather read and play games with my family. You know what I noticed when I rested, I like me.   Not only did I like me, I liked everyone else too!   RESTING has not exactly worked out for me each weekend when I tried.   The fi...

We are heading to the states in a couple of days.   We have taken our furlough time the past 2 summers.  BUT as we looked at the calendar, we were asked to submit possible furlough times.   It was difficult to find a time we could go out with our obligations.   There was nothing on the calendar for the month of February.   Of course there is stuff going on but nothing additional to our already busy lives.   My Dear said, "So what about going out in February?"   My response was, "We don't have clothes for that!"   Well, guess what, we are heading north for winter....we are backward snowbirds! Nana did some shopping and we have clothes waiting on us!  Billy's suitcase was the funniest...2 pairs of pants.   Hi-waters are not popular I hear!   Thank you God for growing children. Here is our schedule for our time out.   Feb. 5th      Murfreesboro...

For almost 10 years,  the Lord has called me to "a word."  It is not a resolution but could be.  What I have learned is, the Lord gives me the word and then leads me through a season of that word.  There have been times that I knew my world was about to turn upside down like 2014 when we would move to Haiti.  The word was CHANGE.   Little in our lives would stay the same.  I knew change was coming....and a lot of it! Years before that, the Lord called me to LESS....less stuff in our home, less debt, less weight, you get the idea.  I did not expect for the Lord to call me out in other areas like the LESS baggage area when He flipped my heart upside down and called me out on junk I was hauling around in my heart.   It was a year of liberation!    I see how it prepared me for all that would follow. In 2015, my pal left Haiti.  The Lord called me to SWIM.  Truth is, it was a sink or swim situat...

What Christmas Eve looked like for me...minus the food preparation and dish washing and basic parenting that just happens.   1.  Go through the stash of goodies we have collected and outgrown and pick out gifts for our security guards to give to their children for Christmas.    2.  Listen to a grown man giggle when he is radioed to come to the security gate and to be handed toys for his daughter. 3.  See their love for one another as they radio their coworkers to come and meet us. 4.  See a man smile big with something as simple as 2 small balls. 5.  Go shopping on the street to give our local vendors some holiday cash. 6.  Make your shopping list of who to shop from next so everyone gets some business. 7.  Shop on credit...not a good idea.  "You take it.  You can pay me later."   They will get you every time! 8.  Share jokes, laughter, and love with young men you are beginning to re...

My day is pretty normal, like most of the of world there is a routine in it.  I begin with time with the Lord, then school with the children.   We have lunch and I take off to work at Mountain Maid and then will have English Class 2 days a week and another day I am part of a ladies' Bible Study.  It is pretty routine and that works.  But something turned my ordinary into something pretty exciting!   I hope I do not get too wordy, but the details of God's plan have been so beautifully laid out. A month ago, I joined our sending church as they were with their partnering church in our country.   I stopped in for the day and allowed our children to play with the other children.  I noticed a precious girl outside of the gate of the school.   She was not in uniform and had a radiant smile.   I wondered if her family could not afford for her to go to school.  I stopped to talk with her and som...

Hurricane Matthew swept over our island taking roofs, fences, gardens, crops, trees, and even livestock with it. Some areas did not see any destruction while other areas are still devastated with loss followed by excessive rain that has lead to flooding.   The mission has been unable to get supplies to where they need to be because of the washed out roads.  Earlier this week, I found myself focusing on what we were unable to do instead of focusing on God, who is sovereign and holds every detail in his loving hands.   I looked at all that was wrong instead of what was right.   It was easy to see the struggles but harder to see that God has it already worked out.  He showed us this in many ways as we have seen Him at work, but how quickly I forget. I later challenged myself to look for that good!  And THIS "good" I had forgotten to share! My Dear posted on FB the need for greenhouse film that had been ripped off...

When God called Moses to lead the Israelites, Moses had excuses.   Well, we call them excuses but Moses knew himself.   He knew his struggles, his past, his character, all that was NOT RIGHT with him.  He knew his sinful, struggling self.   Sometimes we use those as excuses and sometimes we think perhaps, the Lord needs to be reminded of our faults.   Aren't we kind to be so helpful to THE KING OF UNIVERSE!  This is my Friday.    It happens pretty much every week that I am reminded of how unqualified I am to stand before a group of people and teach.   My Kentucky accent, that my southern friends say is northern and my northern friends say is southern, is not the best for teaching English.   I struggle with English and spelling!    Is there less judgment from others if I just admit it?  It will take me at least an hour to w...

Two years of living in Haiti has taught us......we have a lot to learn!   We were ignorant to how difficult language learning would be and even more ignorant to how difficult it would be to understand another culture. This past week, a team come from the states to help do inventory, cleaning, painting, planting and repairing at Mountain Maid, the self-help program.  We are thankful for their "attack" on the never ending to-do list. The team worked indoors most of the time so a few cultural experiences were planned for them. My Dear took the team so our 12-year-old daughter, I refer to as Dolly, went along to a historical fort nearby.  You should know that  Dolly enjoys people, adventures, Jesus, and is passionate about animals.....especially dogs.  Her love for animals is unique to this country where animals are seen as a way of living and not as companions.  When Dolly received a goat, the empl...

1st Birthday-- cake is GOOD! 8th Birthday--sleeping bags, new pjs, and music with friends...sleepovers are fun! 10th Birthday--My friend Mary can make herself burp but sometimes it comes out of the wrong end. 14th Birthday--My girlfriend never let my birthday pass without celebration.   Life is worth celebrating.  Friends are worth celebrating.  16th Birthday--Friends will keep a secret for a surprise party even when you are with them all day for 2 weeks of band camp.  Friends love you enough to not give up on you when they see you making one destructive decision after another.  21st Birthday--I want to be a rebel.   Do something rebellious on my 21st birthday.   Talked a cute guy into going with me to give blood.   Being a rebel is being different!  I am pretty sure I read something about that in the Bible my girlfriend gave me years ago for my birthday. By the way, I married that cute g...