My Hope

There’s are some trees down that we can’t get ourselves and we were waiting to talk to the insurance adjuster to see what would be covered. I asked the girls if they knew what insurance was… Hannah replied, “Yes, it’s that bill you pay every month.” Most times it feels like nothing more than another bill to pay. But when you need it, you’re thankful you’ve been paying into it every month. I was talking to a friend of mine about some of the destruction and devastation at Mexico Beach. She shared that from some of what she’s heard there are lots of people who didn’t have the right type of insurance. They’ve been paying the bill every month, but their loss won’t be covered. I get it. If your house has been around for years, you think it’s withstood the test of time. Confession: I also sometimes agree to the terms and conditions of things without always reading the fine print. I don’t know how insurance can cover the losses of farmers with orchards or timbers and it’s more tha...

  Here's the oak that fell right next to the house.  You can see the size of the roots compared to Victoria.   Crisis We feel like over the past week and a half we’ve had a very small glimpse into what so many people experience worldwide on a daily basis.    Except we didn’t.    As we sat inside with the winds whirling around we jumped up every time we heard a loud crash to see where the next tree had fallen… but we didn’t fear bombs leaving a shell of our home.    We spent a week trying to make things work with limited electricity… but we still had plenty of food in the pantry and a generator to run the fridge.    We had to ration water… but only for flushing the toilets.    We walked out the next day to survey the damage… but overall as powerful as the storm was, lives were spared.      I got a text after the storm passed asking if we could take a package to Lebanon and someone would try to get it over to ...

  We’re getting really close to being able to buy tickets and head over!!!    As our time here is quickly coming to a close, we’ve been spending time with friends and family.    The girls and I went on a trip with my parents to see my brother and sister-in-law recently and I’m thankful we got to see them and other friends and family along the way.     On our way back, we were planning on stopping at a park outside to break up the trip.    When the weather forecasted storms and our windshield wipers confirmed them, we decided to change our plans.    The girls still needed a break from the car and we thought the Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham might be the place to go.    It brought me both hope and heartbreak.      This monument was for the children's march after which thousands of children were thrown in jail. I watched more of my girls’ innocence chipped away as we went through the exhibits.  ...

  This Sunday I was excited to hear a pastor from Kenya speak.    He preached on Jesus’s appointment of Peter to feed and care for his sheep.      15 So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Tend My lambs."   16 He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Shepherd My sheep."   17 He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love Me?" Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you love Me?" And he said to Him, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You." Jesus said to him, "Tend My sheep. 18 "Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself, and walk wherever you wished; bu...

  Do you ever feel pulled in different directions?    I feel like my heart is being torn between three places!    I loved being in Clarkston and ministry and community came very naturally.    I’m missing the people we poured into and who poured into us!    While missing them, I’m also really enjoying being in Bainbridge and love this community.    I’ve found myself at the coffee shop a number of Saturdays (I’m sitting at the Bean drafting this in fact) and at times it feels as though we never left.    If those weren’t enough of a pull, my heart is also ready for Lebanon.    I’m excited to go and to share and see how God uses us there!      I wonder if the disciples felt the same way.    8  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Act 1:8 NIV) The disciples wer...

  How do you go about sharing the gospel with people?    I like to share stories and also show a personal application.    God lined everything up perfectly for me to be able to do so, even if it was a little more close to home and nerve wracking than I’d prefer.    Just after moving back to Bainbridge we were welcomed by life in the country.    Tommy had taken the girls for a ride through the woods and they got out to investigate.    Hannah was about 10 feet from Tommy and as he looked down he saw a 3 ½ foot rattlesnake heading her way.    He quickly grabbed a gun, told her to freeze and shot it’s head off.    I’m thankful it was him and not me.    When they came back and told me about it, I was just in awe of God’s protection.    If Tommy had seen it   too late or hadn’t been able to get a good shot, everything could have easily turned out differently.    I was amazed when...

I got teary last Sunday.    Our church asked all the kids to bring their backpacks to church and they prayed over the children and the school year ahead of them.    I forgot the backpacks but thankfully my kids weren’t the only ones up there without them.    As I listened to them talking about the things that will fill their backpacks over the course of the year, I thought about what our girls backpacks represent.    I’m homeschooling them so they’re rarely filled with anything academic.    Instead they’re carry-ons.    I’ve been eyeing them to size them up and figure out which of their most treasured possessions will fit inside them as we go (in case our checked baggage gets lost).    The backpacks will go with us on each of the visa runs and back again for furlough.    I’ve yet to experience the mixed emotions that come with the first day of school for most moms, but I sat there half listening half imagini...

  Lots of people have been asking us what it will be like living in Lebanon.    Because we’ve only visited and talked with other expats there, I’m sure I’ll have a better idea after we’ve actually been there awhile.    I think this photo sums it up well.    It’s the same… yet different. We didn't go inside, but I have a sneaky suspicion that the selection didn't resemble Trader Joe's.  We’ll be living in a major city when we first arrive so we’ll have access to almost everything we’re used to here but shopping will still be very different.    While there were some grocery stores and malls very much like ours here, most of the stores were much more specific.    Instead of huge chain super center, most places you find separate produce markets, meat markets, bakeries, etc.    It wasn’t just food that was like this, we saw stores that specialized in just kitchen décor and appliances, others that only carried bedroom furni...

While we were in Lebanon, we got to spend some time reaching out in ministry. Tommy and I went with a team to Horizon's newest ministry center. It didn't even have doors installed when we arrived but we still were going into the refugee camps to invite families to a service the following day.  We split up into three groups, each with 20 vouchers for food. It was a drop in the bucket in meeting the needs, but it was all the space would hold. I was paired up with a Horizons teammate who could translate and off we went.   We were warmly welcomed into the first tent and began sharing a little. As we visited more and more people came in until the tent was overflowing. The original plan was to visit multiple tents passing out the vouchers but we didn't even have enough to give to the people in the first tent. Some of the people who didn't receive one became upset and it was difficult and heartbreaking to turn them away.   Empty handed, we were still welcomed in...

I’m a mother and one of the things that my kids can do that bothers me most is direct disobedience. When I know I’ve made myself clear and they choose to ignore or defy my command it troubles me and there are usually consequences for them. If I’ve been unclear about my expectations in a new situation, I’m much more lenient.   God expects obedience out of us, and He has made His expectations abundantly clear.   7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do.^8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. (Jos 1:7-8 NLT) We read in Joshua 1:8-9 to study and know His word… that we might obey it. God does not expect us to follow instructions known only to Him. We see this throughout script...

We just got back to Clarkston and in less than 24 hours I’ve visited multiple families, shared the importance in being obedient to God and had an international experience that one only finds here at the Clarkston Culture Fest!    It’s good to be ‘home’… for the next three weeks.    Then we’ll say goodbye to this home and make our way back to Bainbridge to get the girls settled before Tommy and I leave for a training in Lebanon.    Our lives over the next couple of months are going to be extremely transitional and segmented and as difficult as the constant goodbyes are going to be, we’re also looking forward to them.    I’m glad we aren’t just taking off from here without getting to see friends and family back at our other ‘home’.       We spent the last two weeks focusing on language learning…. Sort of.    We’ve really been focused more on how to be a language learner.    Americans are so used to only speaki...