Thanksgiving

This is most decidedly my favorite holiday.  There are no giving or receiving of gifts.  There are no fancy decorations, just simple reminders of the season.  But the meaning and spirit of thanksgiving can easily be passed on to others: being thankful - thanking God for his multitude of blessings.  We celebrate with family and friends and abundant food.  We lift are hearts and hands in praise of the might God who gave us life and promised life abundant as we follow him.

Visiting before the meal

Smoked Chicken

Friends getting it ready

The boys

The girls

Giving Thanks 

So much food!

McLean pies

Hidden Turkey

I look at the gifts given: love, joy, delight, faith, hope, fruitfulness, gratefulness and I discover that I am not awed by them.  I am often not inspired by these gifts freely given yet so costly to give to me. But, I want to be moved, changed, and inspired to love and bear more fruit!

After Thanksgiving, we experience the downside.  I think here I more readily see the spiritual battles we are fighting - the sin, the depression, the relationship issues, hurting kids and adults.  And that's among the missionaries!  Why does God allow us to be beaten down and be under spiritual attack? 
I honestly believe it's because God wants us on our knees.  It takes a strong person to get to the field - uproot and leave family, friends, creature comforts, familiar surroundings; raise financial and prayer partners; pack up or sell everything; be committed to the work. But that same strength is our downfall. We can do it all.  We can pull ourselves up and do anything.  Do we need friends? Accountability partners? Prayer partners? Or can we just try harder to succeed?  It's only the overwhelming times that force us to rely on the one who we know is our only hope, our source of strength, our guide and light, our bread of life, our living water.  We know all those things intellectually, but it takes trials, struggles, shortcomings, loneliness and sometimes even despair to see the broken vessels we truly are.  And then, when we are weak, HE is strong.  I am thankful that HE is strong.  He hears my prayers, my longing for hope, my need to fit in and have family, my desires to love and be loved. 
HE hears yours too. 

We are rushing towards Christmas now.  My birthday, Ben's, and Chris's too come first.  Life will be busy with parties, meetings, teaching, work at the library, visits with friends and much work.  But it is my hope and desire to be on my knees with the one who has saved me and loves me with an unfathomable, unending love to lift up this broken world.  Pray for peace, inside and out, amidst the troubled times we live in. 

Someone is 17

 Fieldtrip to RFIS to see the plants

Lipstick tree.  The seeds are really used by cosmetic companies!

It was red! 

Giant Palm

Beautiful tall trees (sorry I don't remember the names!)

This fruit isn't ripe yet

The Jackfruit was ripe!

Learning about plants

 Medieval Festival

Noah showing how to use a bow at the medieval feast

 Greenhouse

PreK teacher after a long day and mid illness

 Library skills class

 Church

Someone said we matched at church...

 Sunset

I vote overseas for the first time

Hortense's cinnamon rolls.  YUM!

At the seamstress - her daughter is also named Kristin

 Walks with friends

We do have trash pick up sometimes.  But I hate that the beauty is marred by trash.

Traffic gets worse the closer to Christmas

 Celebrating Birthday at school

 REAL mail! 

Last dinner with our friends the Cawleys

 Soccer Season

Thanks for reading and praying.

Remember to pray for missionaries, pastors, leaders - their kids and marriages, work and rest.  We are all sinners but those public arenas make thinks harder and targets for so much.

Pray for peace and justice in Cameroon.

Pray for Chris's work using Scripture integrated with Music and Arts to share the gospel and glorify God in worship.  Pray that the local songwriters search the scriptures for their inspiration and thus deepen their faith. We know His word does not return void!

Pray for a good place to live next school year in Virginia (Bedford County)

Pray for teachers at the Greenhouse and RFIS.  The needs are overwhelming: pre-K, K, 1-2, 3-4, art, music, librarian, math, science, history/social studies, PE, computer, advanced German/Spanish, ELL/ESL, Middle school Humanities, Head of school/principal, Guidance councilor, chaplain....

Pray for Noah's college decisions.

'Summer' is over and now it's...

Back to School….

Our summer in Cameroon.  Even though we’ve been in Cameroon since 2014, this is the first summer we have spent here.  I was worried at first because, well, what do you do all summer here?

The elementary school had work days. They tore down 2 structures and started the leveling process for the new pavilion, power washed the basketball court, and they helped sort and clean things in the resource room. That kept them busy the first week.

 

Pulling nails

Breaking up concrete

Helping a neighbor family with their project.  Hauling tile and cement

The high school tech guy needed an assistant to update all the computer systems.  That was 2 days a week for Noah almost the whole summer.

The high school had a work day toward the beginning and one toward the middle of the summer.  They moved books, built things, and helped me organize the high school text book room.

A mom organized soccer ‘camp’ all summer 2 days a week for girls.

They played games, read books, watched movies, hung out with friends, and of course, played on their computers.

Celebrating on the 4th of July

Proud to say mother and daughter won the watermelon seed spitting contest!

4th of July picnic

Ben's pizza for friends with termites on the right side pieces.

We got to see the Incredibles 2 at the new theater! 

Each kid cooked one night a week.  Lots of yummy meals, and they are all more competent in the kitchen.

 

Clam Chowder

Pancakes count!

Noah did his own laundry, which is too complicated to do in the school year for kids. (think 6:40-4:00 gone from home, later in sports seasons, sun sets at 6:20, rainy season issues, and homework) 

We had a craft night and tried to watch the world cup finals.

We had lots of people over for dinner.

And we even made it to the beach for 4 nights.

All while Chris worked with 2 interns and traveled for most of 7 weeks.  He is Kenya now.

 

Noah with Yeadam, one of the interns

Ben with JP, the other intern

The interns left this week and school started.  It’s Noah’s senior year. I’m working in the library at RFIS and doing a little bit at the elementary school.

 

First day picture - can't you just hear Ben saying hurry up mom!
But I followed them and worked at school, so I got better ones this year.....

Helping with text books at the RFIS library.

It was a good summer.  The last with all the kids together most likely.  But it was odd not being able to escape the realities of life in a developing country.  Water, power, and cultural issues.  Frustrations with ants and roaches and mice. Driving crazier than ever.  Fighting to get kids off their computers.  Frustrations with how things are done, or not done.  Navigating the systems of paying bills and rent and getting things repaired.  And trying very hard to be a good mom, a good wife, and to spend more time with God.  I need him desperately.  So glad he is here and he has not left me alone.  So thankful for friends near and far who show me again and again Christ’s love.  

More than a month after issues started with this pipe, the street is still muddy and awful.

They are still working on it!  My house is just ahead and around the corner.

Traffic is bad! 

Worse when you think about the motos zooming in and out around the cars!

 I wasn't sure what all was on/in this car until we were beside it!

One more year and we’ll return again to that other home, but not to the same house.  Mom has moved.  We’ll need a place to live, cars to drive and hopefully be able to let Kristin and Ben go to schools in the same school system. Each season brings change once again. And change is hard.

Thanks for praying for our family and for Chris’s work.  We pray that the word of God, in the heart language of the mother tongue, in the heart sounds and arts, will make a lasting impact: a heart level change for the good of all and for the glory of God. 

Still longing for our true home in heaven!

Please keep praying for Cameroon!

Trying new food

A hand carried treat from a tiny church in NC

Working with the neighbors to clean the shed in back of the rat mess.

Lettuce bought today for about 60 cents (300cfa)

He loves the bush baby Zeus!

Line Dance class

 Fabric shopping

More Beach pictures, because, well, I like the beach and it was the only 4 days we all got to leave the city together all year. 

I finally got a curl - the waves were really strong. Unfortunately my camera will never be the same...

This one wants to learn to serf now!

So does this one - even though he dove into a sand bar when he went under a wave.

6 awesome kids leaping into life!

Yep! They even let me do a selfie!

Hermit crab!

We found 3 of these tiny sand dollars.  I don't think any of them made it home intact.  So fragile!

Noah's rock

Thanks for reading!