simply grateful

“You ever cut corners in your job?”  That was the question the nurse asked me when I was about to donate plasma a number of years ago.  It was late, she was tired and obviously ready to process the last client of the day.  I shook my head no.  After a nervous laugh and a sly smile, she said I could proceed to the next station without answering the long list of questions she was supposed to ask.  I silently got up and walked out of her office.  I can’t blame her, I’ve been there too.   Monotony.  Do you remember the movie “Groundhog Day”?  It’s a movie where the lead actor is forced to live the same day over and over.  I’ve had times in my life it felt like that.  Day after day, same old thing.  Have you ever been there?  Where staring at a wall seems more exciting than going to work.  Days that the only thing you dread more than driving to your job is arriving there.  I’ve actually sat in my car for minutes tryin...

So sorry it has been so long since our last post.  Since arriving in Africa our internet access has been very limited. (And probably will be for quite a while).  After spending 5 days in South Africa we drove 5 hours up to Botswana where I (David) am being mentored by a Church planter while we wait for a ruling on our work permits for Namibia.   Everything has gone well so far.  Here are a few pics to show you our life here in Botswana. (I believe if you click on them you can view them in a larger format) A picture of our house: A picture of our car (with trailer) as we left South Africa to head to Botswana: Heather is home schooling the Kids: The kids are adjusting well to their new surroundings: Thanks for your continued prayers!

“I love you.”  “You’re fired.”  “Will you marry me?”  “I want a divorce.”  Isn’t it funny how sometimes just a few words can be heavy with impact?  This morning during my devotional time with God I came across one of those phrases that packed a powerful punch.  The beginning of Psalm 97:10 says, “You who love the Lord, hate evil!”   BAM!  Hate evil... ok, wait, back up just one second.  The first thing is this is directed at those who love the Lord.  Is that me?  (Is that you?)  Do I really love the Lord?  Really?  What evidence is there to show it?  I attend church.  I serve on a committee.  I volunteer at the soup kitchen.  What about internally?  Is my heart bent on Him?  On His glory?  Do I desire time with Him?  To know Him more?  What evidence, that only you know, is there that you love the Lord? Hate evil...  Oh, how we hate evil and how we are more than willing...

I thought it might be a good time to post a general information update...we leave Sunday for Johannesburg, South Africa for a week of training. We are still waiting on visas to Namibia...please keep praying.  This is apparently not unusual for it to take so long to get a work permit for Namibia.  We wish we were going straight there, but we trust God and are excited to see how this all pans out.  It may take another few months for us to get a visa into the country. In the meantime, we will be going to Lobatse, Botswana...probably next weekend?  We will have the opportunity to be mentored by some seasoned workers there in a rural setting similar to ours.  David knows this couple and thinks very highly of them.  I cannot wait to meet them.  We will also be reunited with our dear Botswanan brother, Jack, who was in our wedding. We are doing well and we know a large part of this is because of all the prayers for us.  We are sooo grateful!  ...

Since we have been delayed, we have been enjoying one more autumn. I have always wanted to go apple picking...and we were able to do that a few weeks ago. It was so fun!  Our sweet sunshine girl!  Karissa can't stand the sun in her eyes...so no smile from her.  She is always quick to stop and smell the flowers  busy little helpers  Such a cutie!  Makes me laugh to see him walking with the basket on his head.  Sassy little 2 year old  He loves trying to figure out mechanical things...I don't even know what this old contraption is. :)  Thankfully, I have one who loves having her picture taken.  us :) This captured what life is really usually like...the blur just adds to the reality. Precious Father, help me to savor each season as the gift that it is from you!   "Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity..."  Ephesians 5:15-16a

I woke up early this morning remembering sweet friends who are now on distant shores.  I love this description in Romans 10:15 and reminds me of many of our new friends who are getting adjusted to new ways and languages.  Please intercede for them with me!

Our current casa MAIL time! Immunization time **PlAy TiMe** (This is her "yard sale" :)) face time 

The seasons are changing. The coolness in the morning seems to add a bounce to my step as I walk the children to their school. After weeks…months actually…of feeling like the pace of life and my never-ending to do list were daily exceeding my ability or even desire to meet...I am so grateful for a change in pace. I am also grateful for all that we are having the opportunity to learn as a family. Each week, the children study a country that one of their classmates will be going to soon. They are learning so much about beauty and fun things in other cultures. They are also learning the usual prek/kindergarten language and phonics and number sense kinds of things. Karissa is learning a ton of new little finger plays that she loves to sing. It is so fun to see them thriving in this new environment and it encourages my heart as a mama about the next round of changes. David and I have been learning so much as well. The saying they use around here is that we are trying to drink out of a fi...

I suppose I should have ran when it started.  I sat in a class with some 150 others, listening to the speaker pontificate upon his assigned topic.  He was assigned a hard time slot, from 1-2 pm, to keep his students interested... or at least awake.  Heavy eyed from the lunch we just finished, I tried to keep focused on the topic at hand.  When I heard the rumbling I immediately thought an air-conditioner had gone bad and was creating the racket.  The ceiling began to shake and I was sure of it... one of the units on the roof was self-destructing.  I began to realize that my assessment of the situation might be off when people started taking cover under the tables in the room... a few headed towards the door that led outside.  Heather and I bolted for the door.  I heard several say it was an earthquake as we congregated in the parking lot.  Not yet convinced, I fixed my gaze skyward looking for the faulty air-conditioning unit on the roof....

 God knows your name.    God has a purpose for you today.   Those were the two “lessons” that I wanted Makayla and Elijah to take away from our “devotion” talk yesterday.  I find that if I try to share with them what I am learning in my devotional times, it makes me boil it down to one or two basic take-aways.  (and also holds me accountable for doing my devotions).  So as I walked them to school yesterday morning I told them the story that I read in my devotional time that morning.  It was the story of God calling Ananias to go to Saul, following his conversion.  In verse 10 the Lord called Ananias by name, (hence point 1).  In Acts 9:11-12 the Lord then told Ananias to “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying, and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.”   (hence p...

Sorry for the long delay in blog entries.  Over the past month we have driven over 3,500 miles and visited 11 states.  We have arrived safely at our training and are learning all kinds of new things.  The kids are loving their time here!  More entries to come soon!

Recently I read Colossians 1:13-14,  “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,   in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  As I often do, I started to tweet a thought from my devotional time:  “What we are saved from is not nearly as great as what we are saved to.”  Twitter is good for it’s purpose, bumper sticker size updates on our lives and thoughts.  The problem is, sometimes what God is saying to us cannot and should not be whittled down to 140 characters for simplicities sake.  You know folks, not everything needs to be tweetable!   “What we are saved from is not nearly as great as what we are saved to.”  As I began to dwell on that thought, I began to think about what we are saved from.  I quickly remembered the point in my journey before I choose to follow the Lord.  Were there good times?  Certainly.  Friends?  Yep.  Did I attend ...

As Heather was reading Voices of the Faithful this morning as part of her devotion, she discovered today's reading was about one of the people groups we will be able to work with in Namibia.  If you would like to purchase this book you can do that by clicking HERE .  Here is today's reading: “Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God.” 2 Corinthians 3:5 God has truly shown us that He is working among the Herero (hah-RARE-roh) people.  It was getting late in the day, and I was wondering if we really had time to make another stop in Talismannis (TAL-iss-MAN-iss) before heading back to where we were going to spend the evening.  We were deep in the bush, two hours from our destination, knowing that it was not safe to be traveling on these roads after dark due to the many animals that graze by the side of the road at night. Just out of Reitfontain (REET-fon-tain), we saw a woman and a child hitc...

I (David) just finished a book called Scandalous, The Cross and Resurrection of Jesus, by D.A. Carson.  I intended to read it all over Easter weekend, but it was to heavy to read lightly.  I love books that make me process.  In the last chapter he quotes a poem written by Edward Shillito that I thought was amazing and worth a blog.  Shillito wrote this poem from the viewpoint of the maimed and suffering British soldiers returning from WWI. Jesus of the Scars If we have never sought, we seek Thee now; Thine eyes burn through the dark, our only stars; We must have sight of thorn-pricks on Thy brow; We must have Thee, O Jesus of the Scars. The heavens frighten us; they are too calm; In all the universe we have no place. Our wounds are hurting us; where is the balm? Lord Jesus, by Thy Scars we claim Thy grace. If when the doors are shut, Thou drawest near, Only reveal those hands, that side of Thine; We know today what wounds are; have no fear; Show us Thy...

I love Saturdays! I especially love the first Saturday of each month! A group of us from Northside Baptist Church gather together to hang out with some terrific kids from the neighborhood.  We usually have around 14 kids who walk here...although last month we only had around 6. I mean, really, how can I resist going to see these guys and gals? It is often quite a mixture of people... but we are greeted with smiles like this... and this... We play...  listen to a Bible story... learn a Bible verse and make a craft... Our prayer is that they leave having seen more of Jesus... If you are interested in starting a Good News Club in your neighborhood, go for it!  It is really easy and does not take a lot of prep time.  We found resources from Lifeway  (click for a sample lesson).  It is such a joy and the kids have continued to be so receptive.  We have had two pray to receive Christ.  Some are walking to join us at other service times and we...

Reason #3348889 why my life rocks.   Dancing kiddo's on a Saturday morning. 

Ke bo Kae. ¿Cuánto cuesta? Combien? These are translations of some of the first words I learn wherever my travels take me. They mean, “how much?” They are the words that came to mind as I was recently reading Luke 9:55 and following. The title given to that passage of Scripture is “The Cost of following Jesus”. I struggled with the exchange rate on our recent trip to Zambia. Currently one US dollar is equal to 4,838.87 Zambian Kwacha’s. I have been used to exchange rates that are a little easier to convert, for example, 7 Pula for 1 US dollar. So, whenever we were in Zambia it took quite a bit of time for me to think about what the actual cost of something was and if it was worth it. There are many “costs” to following Jesus. In Luke 9:57-62 Jesus gives us three of them. It may cost you your attachment to your home. It may cost you your attachment to your family. It will cost you time and effort as you follow Christ. Notice that Jesus is not telling these to the “spiritually elite”...

Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy had his team fitted for their Super Bowl rings on February 5th… the day BEFORE the Super Bowl. It was a bold move he made to motivate his team that seemed to work! The 45th Super Bowl was a great one that we will remember for probably… two or three years. Not to be negative, but how many of us even remember who played three years ago in the Super Bowl? Before an impending battle in The Gladiator, the main character Maximus says, “Brothers, what we do in this life echoes in eternity.” Another great motivational ploy, but simply not true. Only things of eternal value echo in eternity. Bragging rights about Super Bowl victories vanish with a new season. The new car smell is only temporary. The promotion and raise at work only satisfies for so long. None of those things have eternal value. I have heard someone say, “Evaluate your day by thinking what you have done that had eternal significance.” Let me encourage you to take it one step further. In...

18...that is a good amount of anything...18 kids, 18 cupcakes, 18 percent increase, $18 would get us to the movies :)... Today marks 18 years since I really surrendered to God...this is why I am so grateful.  All that I have is because of Him.  Anything good in me is because of Him.  My life has never been the same since this day 18 years ago... My story, like so many others, is a story of one who was transferred from a life of darkness and confusion to a life of light and hope. I grew up knowing about the Lord. I remember going to Sunday School and Vacation Bible Schools. As an adolescent, I participated regularly in a great youth group at church. All throughout my growing up years, I can look back and see ways that God wove His truth into my life through people and experiences. I knew about God and Jesus.  I knew stories. I sang songs.  I even prayed "the prayer", but I didn't know them personally. It was all action and no heart... In high school an...

Not really. :)  I am ok that this snow happened about two weeks ago.  I mean, it is definitely beautiful but I am not really a fan of being cold.  With so many friends around the country getting snowed in, I wanted to share in the fun of snow pictures... The kids were so excited!  They loved trying to catch the snowflakes on their tongues.  Going for rides with Daddy in our laundry basket...er.."sled"  Eating the snow...  Cutest snow angels ever... being spun in circles!   David had fun too... and around...and around...   by my Prince Charming...  Makayla trying to pull Elijah...not so effective!  This is how Karissa rolls... She bends over like a duck to the step...  to get a bite of snow...  apparently she was tired of her hands being cold...but she still looks cold.  Don't worry...we went in shortly after!  This is Mama Petro's favorite way to play in the snow. :)   Karissa was still busy eat...